{
  "patent_number": "US 6033785",
  "country": "US",
  "title": "How Car Windows Use Special Coatings to Balance Privacy and Visibility",
  "original_title": "Vehicular colored glass pane with light transmittance and reflectance adjustment",
  "summary": "A patent for automotive glass that uses a specific combination of tinted glass and multi-layered coatings to keep the inside private while ensuring the driver can see out clearly.",
  "what_it_does": "The invention describes a vehicle window that combines a tinted glass plate with a specific multi-layered film coating. The film consists of at least one light-absorbent layer and one non-light-absorbent layer. By carefully controlling the light transmittance (how much light gets through) and the reflectance (how much light bounces off) of both the inner and outer surfaces, the glass ensures that passengers inside have privacy while maintaining clear outward visibility. For example, by keeping the inner surface reflectance low (up to 15%), the glass prevents distracting reflections of the vehicle's interior from appearing on the window at night.",
  "what_it_does_not_cover": [
    "Does not cover glass panes that do not incorporate a multi-layered film with both light-absorbent and non-light-absorbent layers.",
    "Does not cover glass configurations where the visible light transmittance falls outside the specific 25% to 55% range.",
    "Does not cover smart glass technologies that use electrical currents to change opacity (electrochromic glass).",
    "Does not cover simple tinted glass that lacks the specified multi-layered film structure."
  ],
  "filed": "1997-07-24",
  "granted": "2000-03-07",
  "expires": "2017-07-24",
  "status": "expired",
  "holder": "Central Glass Co Ltd",
  "holder_url": "https://patentbrief.org/company/central-glass-co-ltd",
  "inventors": [
    {
      "name": "Osamu Miyazaki",
      "url": "https://patentbrief.org/inventor/osamu-miyazaki"
    },
    {
      "name": "Katsuto Tanaka",
      "url": "https://patentbrief.org/inventor/katsuto-tanaka"
    },
    {
      "name": "Motoharu Inoue",
      "url": "https://patentbrief.org/inventor/motoharu-inoue"
    }
  ],
  "times_cited": 7,
  "tags": [
    "automotive",
    "mechanical",
    "materials"
  ],
  "abstract": "The invention relates to a vehicular glass pane having inner and outer major surfaces which are respectively disposed on a first side of a vehicular interior and a second side of a vehicular exterior. The glass pane has a glass plate and a multilayered film formed on one of the inner and outer major surfaces of the glass plate. The glass plate contains a coloring agent. The multilayered film includes a first layer which is light-absorbent and a second layer which is non-light-absorbent. The glass plate and the multilayered film are such that a visible light transmittance of the glass pane is from 25 to 55%, that a first reflectance of the inner major surface of the glass pane is up to 15%, that a second reflectance of the outer major surface of the glass pane is from 10 to 40%, that the visible light transmittance minus the first reflectance is at least 15%, and that the visible light transmittance minus the second reflectance is up to 30%. The glass pane is capable of sufficiently maintaining the vehicular occupants' privacy therethrough and the outward visibility therethrough from the vehicular interior, under various conditions.",
  "url": "https://patentbrief.org/patent/us/6033785/vehicular-colored-glass-pane-with-light-transmittance-and-reflectance-adjustment",
  "markdown_url": "https://patentbrief.org/patent/us/6033785/vehicular-colored-glass-pane-with-light-transmittance-and-reflectance-adjustment/md",
  "google_patents_url": "https://patents.google.com/patent/US6033785",
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}