Windshield liquid wash heater

Abstract

For inclusion on the line between the liquid wash supply and the discharge jets of a vehicle windshield liquid wash pumping system, a liquid wash heater secured on an engine manifold or exhaust pipe, comprising a housing with a thin-walled, relatively small diameter, non-linear liquid wash tube contained therein.

Description

BACKGROUND OF INVENTION [0001] The invention relates to an improved windshield liquid wash heater and in particular to a relatively smaller, more efficient, and less costly to manufacture heater that incorporates a liquid wash line that is capable of rapidly heating the liquid wash contained therein. [0002] By common winter experience of auto drivers much on the road, especially in the more northernly regions of the United States and Canada, frosting, icing or the like of the windshield is often an annoyance and not infrequently a definite driving hazard. Thus where a vehicle has been parked outside, freezing rain, sleet, or wet snow which has frozen, or at time heavy frost, may be deposited on a windshield which is not removable by windshield wiper action, may in fact have immobilized the blades, but in any event requiring scraping or chipping or application of chemical sprays, or a prolonged wait for the defrosters to melt or lessen the deposit, to clear at least the wiper-swept a...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

[0009] The general objective of the present invention is to provide a simple, low cost, rugged, improved heater unit for rapidly heating a liquid by engine exhaust waste heat.

[0010] Another objective is to provide a simple windshield wash liquid heater readily installed in a vehicle such as an automobile.

[0011] Another objective is to provide a heater furnishing heated liquid wash for cleaning a windshield of icing in conjunction with wiper action over its area in a relatively short time after engine starting.

Problems solved by technology

By common winter experience of auto drivers much on the road, especially in the more northernly regions of the United States and Canada, frosting, icing or the like of the windshield is often an annoyance and not infrequently a definite driving hazard.

Thus where a vehicle has been parked outside, freezing rain, sleet, or wet snow which has frozen, or at time heavy frost, may be deposited on a windshield which is not removable by windshield wiper action, may in fact have immobilized the blades, but in any event requiring scraping or chipping or application of chemical sprays, or a prolonged wait for the defrosters to melt or lessen the deposit, to clear at least the wiper-swept area, before the vehicle can be safely driven.

Also, vehicles parked under certain species of trees will accumulate a sap-like deposit which is not easily washed off by the usual auto windshield washers.

At times, even when a vehicle is being driven with the defrosters on at full heat and wipers operating, severe weather conditions may lead to some vision-obscuring icing, or there may be a small localized pad of ice or snow frozen onto a blade and spacing the rest of the blade from effective glass-wiping contact, so that vision is interfered with unless the driver stops to clean the blade.

Usually under these circumstances the windshield washer system is of little help, since its liquid wash supply is itself comparatively cold and in any event would require undesirably extended use to be of any value.

Some for example have by-passed or diverted exhaust gases through the heat exchanger, undesirable since interrupting the integrity of the poisonous exhaust gas conduits.

However, the device disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,785,359 is bulky, and takes approximately seven minutes to heat the wash water due to the size, shape and configuration of the wash water reservoirs contained therein, which is highly undesirable in today's fast paced world.

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