Tesla's New Glass Can Reduce Noise And Control Temperature Inside The Vehicle

Tesla material development has seen the realization of Tesla Glass, a special type of glass supposedly stronger than normal glass, as seen in the Tesla Cybertruck. Over the years, the in-house material development of the American electric vehicle maker has been focused on developing materials using its own design in partnership with SpaceX. Recently, Tesla filed a new patent on a new iteration of its glass technology, which aims to provide temperature control and better noise reduction inside Tesla vehicles.

The recent Tesla patent is titled “automotive perforated insulated glass structure.” The automaker describes the system in the patent application as follows:

“Some vehicles use alternative materials to create the structure or body of the vehicle. For example, vehicles may use glass to create parts of or the entirety of the roof of the vehicle in order to create an interior that feels more open to the outside world. In some instances, it is desirable for glass used in the body of a vehicle to provide noise absorption and temperature insulation characteristics. Thus, the interior of the vehicle will feel more open to the outside world while providing noise absorption and temperature insulation characteristics.

“In some embodiments, a glass structure for a vehicle includes an outer layer of glass and an inner layer of glass, wherein the inner layer of glass is perforated by a plurality of holes and wherein the outer layer of glass and the inner layer of glass are separated by a gap disposed between opposing surfaces of the outer layer of glass and the inner layer of glass. The perforations, layers of glass, and gap between the inner and outer layer may further be tuned for desired noise reduction characteristics, insulation properties, visual appearance, and the like.”

It appears that the main feature of this new glass structure is to reduce noise. It is worth noting that the noise reduction feature in Tesla vehicles is because of Christopher Conklin, which is a former senior engineering manager at Tesla. Along with Hyunjun (Jay) Shin, a former intern at Tesla working on noise reduction, both are listed in the patent application as inventors.

Other inventors listed in the patent are Rosie Mottsmith, a staff engineer who formerly worked on Tesla Glass, and William S. Swene. The US vehicle maker also states that the glass structure would be ideal at controlling the temperature in the vehicles and minimize the load on the vehicle’s HVAC system, which in turn would enhance the efficiency of the vehicle. While these new details may sound exciting, it is essential to note that this is just a patent, and it does not say that it will soon be in Tesla vehicles.

In Nov. 2019, another Tesla patent filing was spotted, revealing that the US electric vehicle maker is looking into using glass-cleaning lasers. The patent describes the use of cameras to sense debris or weather and lasers to clean the surface of the material from water droplets, snow, bird droppings, plant sap, oil spills, paint, dirt, and mud. The patent explains in extensive detail on how the technology could clean sensors, windshields, and photovoltaic panels that gather dirt and other debris.

It is worth mentioning that, like all other companies, patents often do not reach the production stage or the consumers. Automakers and tech companies have a habit of filing patents. However, it is interesting to learn that Tesla is looking into these kinds of possibilities.