Kearns first got the idea for a “windshield wiper that blinks” after losing the sight in one eye when a champagne cork exploded unexpectedly on his wedding day. In 1963, he showed Ford a new Galaxie in which he had installed electronic-based intermittent wipers.

What inspired the intermittent wiper?

Intermittent wipers Kearns claimed that the inspiration for his invention stems from an incident on his wedding night in 1953, when an errant champagne cork shot into his left eye, leaving him legally blind in that eye.

Why was the windshield wiper invented?

Windshield Wiper Invented In 1902 By A Woman Who Didn’t Drive Entrepreneur Mary Anderson thought it made no sense that New York streetcar drivers had to keep jumping off to clean snow from the windshield. She soon won a patent for her “window cleaning device.”

Who invented intermittent windshield wipers?

Robert Kearns, 77, Inventor of Intermittent Wipers, Dies. DETROIT, Feb. 25 – Robert W. Kearns, the inventor of intermittent windshield wipers, who won multimillion-dollar judgments against Ford Motor and Chrysler for using his idea, died on Feb.

When was intermittent windshield wipers invented?

In 1967, Kearns received several patents for his design for wipers that paused between swipes, making them useful in light rain or mist. The invention allows the driver to set the interval at which the wiper sweeps the window.

What was Robert Kearns principal argument when he was defending his invention in court?

Mr. Kearns argued that because Ford engineers frequently asked him to discuss the design, he thought the company would buy the system. But it never did. In answering a long list of questions posed by Judge Avern Cohn, the jury decided that none of the earlier inventions cited by Ford had made Mr.

When was the first windshield invented?

The first windshield appeared in 1904, and consisted of two sheets of window-pane glass. These early windshields were prone to shattering upon impact, however, which posed a risk to passengers. French artist and chemist Edouard Benedictus gets the credit for inventing the first laminated glass prototype.

How did Mary Anderson change the world?

Alabama native Mary Anderson (1866-1953) is credited with inventing the first operational windshield wiper. In her 1903 patent, she called her invention a window cleaning device for electric cars and other vehicles.

How did Mary Anderson come up with the idea of a windshield wiper?

While touring the city of New York in a trolley car on a snowy day in the early 1900s, Mary Anderson conceived her idea of a windshield wiper blade that could be operated from the inside by the trolley driver. 7

What was the first car with intermittent wipers?

In 1969, the Ford Motor Company introduced the first electronic intermittent windshield wiper. Kearns, still believing that a deal with Ford was possible, and that Ford was acting in good faith, didn’t question Ford’s intentions until 1976.

Who invented the windshield?

743,801 to a Birmingham, Alabama woman named Mary Anderson for her “window cleaning device for electric cars and other vehicles to remove snow, ice or sleet from the window.” When she received her patent, Anderson tried to sell it to a Canadian manufacturing firm, but the company refused: The device had no practical

What are intermittent wipers?

Most wipers have a low and a high speed, as well as an intermittent setting. When the wipers are on low and high speed, the motor runs continuously. But in the intermittent setting, the wipers stop momentarily between each wipe. It can require almost constant attention to keep the wipers operating properly.