Indirect visibility of heavy duty trucks in wet weather Online publication date: Sun, 25-May-2014
by K. Nakamura, A. Suehiro, H. Shida
International Journal of Vehicle Design (IJVD), Vol. 7, No. 5/6, 1986
Abstract: Ensuring indirect rear vision is a most important safety requirement in trucks. As is often experienced, while driving in the rain, especially at high speeds, raindrops adhering to the outside rearview mirror and door window seriously restrict indirect rear vision. In the past there has been no study of the effects on viability of water drops adhering to mirrors and windows or of the cause of this problem. Nor has any attempt been made to present suitable countermeasures. This paper clarifies the effects of cab shape, mirror position, and vehicle speed on raindrops adhering to the outside rearview mirror and door window through tests conducted using an actual truck. A wind tunnel test was also conducted to check the behavior of air and raindrops around the cab and mirror, thereby analyzing how water drops adhere to the mirror. Countermeasures are also presented for the problem. If also deals with the theoretical approach to solving the problem by making a two-dimensional fluid analysis through numerical calculation.
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