Analysis of the behavior of a wiper blade around the reversal in consideration of dynamic and static friction

Reducing noise generated by automobile windshield wipers during reversals is a desirable feature. For this purpose, details of the behavior of the wiper blade need to be ascertained. In this study, we present theoretical and experimental clarification of this behavior during reversals. Using simulation algorithms to consider exactly the effects of dynamic and static friction, we determined theoretical predictions for the vibrational response caused by friction and the response frequency and compared these results with experimental ones obtained from a mock-up incorporating an actual wiper blade. We introduce an analytical link model with two degrees of freedom and consider two types of states at the blade tip. In the stick and the slip states, static friction and dynamic friction, respectively, act on the blade tip. In the theoretical approach, the static friction is expressed by a set-valued function. The transition between the two states is repeated and an evaluation of an exact transition time leads to an accurate prediction of the behavior of the wiper system. In the analysis, the slack variable method is used to find the exact transition time. Assuming low blade speeds during reversal, a parameter study indicates that the blade tip transitions between slip and stick states and the frequency of the vibration caused by this transitions is close to the natural frequency of the neck of the wiper blade. The theoretical predictions are in good agreement with experimental observations.