Transition Lenses --> Transition Window Tint --> Tint on demand?
 

Ok...here's my idea/question, and I think it's obvious I don't know the technical aspect behind it. So here goes...

You have transition lenses which auto-tint in brightness/sunlight... so can you apply that to windows? Have car windows that auto-tint in bright sunlight etc? B/c if that's possible, can you control tint on-demand (tint or no-tint, maybe controlled via some electical mechanism? Assuming you can mimic the whole sunlight-tinting mechanism by passing an electrical current through the windows or something to that effect?) :D

~Ramy

been done.

the Maybach has this technology already with its electrochromatic sunroof.

Yea? Care to elaborate how it works?

Not exactly a crucially necessary mod, but it would be nice to be able to blacken out your windows to 5% tint or something when you like/see it necessary, and say, if you're in an area w/ cops or driving at night, poof, back to clear windows? :D

~Ramy

EDIT: Come to think of it...is that how some auto-dimming rearview mirrors work?

An electrochromatic sunroof is different, I think. In that case, it's like an LCD screen that the voltage darkens the liquid trapped between two layers of glass.

Ramy, I dunno how the transitions lenses work, but it would be very interesting to apply them to auto glass.

Dave

Dave, the only thing I found on the net was that they contain molecules like silver chloride or silver halide which change shape in ultraviolet light. Apparently (or at least to the best of my searching ability), no one's tried this on auto glass. But c'mon...you guys KNOW you remember seeing the Knightrider car auto-tint on demand and think "wow...now that's hot" hehe :D

~Ramy

damn! so thats how they make those shower glasses in huge mansions shine and fog up in different colors and all of a sudden it clears up like regular glass again! noice!

hmm i know they uses these on glasses for poeple I'm sure if they can use it on eye glasses it can me transfered to auto glass. Glass is glass

^^ I sent you a pm... no repsone..

So no one's heard of this in autos?

since i own a pair of glasses that have these lenses they would almost always be tinted even if it was cloudy out and the tint wouldnt be that opaque. at night they would be perfectly clear, leaving you vulnerable to thieves.

My mother is an Optician and my father is an Optometrist. From my understanding, a transition tinting could be applied to auto glass. This would have to be done by submerging the glass in a vat of heated tinting solution. The only problem with this is that transition tinting is meant for indoor and outdoor use. With a car always outside, the tint would always be noticable.

The electrolysis idea is cool though. If there was a solution, other than LCD, that could be applied to the window and sealed, it might work. Something reactive to electricity, darkening as voltage increases. I'm sure there is a chemical out there to do it.

Well got bored and found this post so I thought I'd share some research I did in my spare time :)

First off, the Electrochromatic approach that Bugatti and the new Ferrari Modena use are essentially not gonna happen. The technology is both expensive and fragile, so it would only work for maybe your windshield and rear window and only then if you had a couple thousand bucks laying around. The material is essentially a special sandwich conconction with particles that align themselves to let light in when a voltage is applied between two layers. This is how both the Liquid Crystal and Suspended Particle styles work. Found all this at How Stuff Works:
http://electronics.howstuffworks.com/smart-window.htm

So then your only real option is to get the "Transition Lenses" material, which is referred to as Photochromatic, meaning it changes opacity depending on the light it recieves. Basically how they do this is by embedding special molecules throughout the class material that change their ability to transmit visible light depending on the intensity of UV light that they recieve. Most techniques involve mixing these materials with the main plastic, but Transition's solution is to apply a thin layer of the Photochromatic material to the front, and then let it seep through. While you might be able to use this technique for your 7's windows, the fact that the material is exposed to wear (weather, bumps, punks) could mean that it wouldn't survive for very long. Also, the article I got this from says that the molecules only work for up to two years, so once again it could be a costly expedition. Here's my source:
http://www.eyetopics.com/articles/30...en-in-Sunlight

All in all, it seems like it would be possible, but it would be both costly and labor intensive, you'd have to remove your glass entirely. But the Nightrider autotinting is going to stay a fantasy for some time.

Hope this helps....

:naughty:

:( It does help, thanks...but apparently all my "ideas" are never feasible lol

~Ramy

Hmmm...this may help: http://www.switchlite.com/home.html

Yeah, that stuff has been around for a while. Too bad it doesn't really filter the light out as much as it diffuses it. Although diffused high-beams blasting from my side view mirrors would probably be more tolerable than not.

Got any leads on how to retrofit some auto-dimming side view mirrors into the stock housings?

Negative on the sideview mirrors, and I'd be weary of them. My friend's Beemer has auto-dimming sideview mirrors, and the auto-dimming crystals are apparently a fluid, and the mirrors "went bad" somehow, so only half the mirror is dimmed, and the other half isn't. How much do just mirror lenses go for? $250+ a POP. And to add insult to injury, the material is toxic, so it's only a matter of time before it starts leaking and you HAVE to replace 'em. No thank you very much...

On a similar note, I know companies like FEED make auto-dimming rearview mirrors:

http://www.fujita-eng.com/fd3s/dress_img/pl_011.jpg

i know that manual rear view mirrors has a mirror and a glass layer. most of the light passes through the glass layer onto the mirror and is then reflected back to your eyes, however when the light gets too bright you flip the switch, so that the little light that does reflect off the 1st glass layer goes to your eyes and the rest of the light that passes through goes to the mirror and shines off somewhere else, leaving you with a nice dim image.

Yeah, there has been talk about this for some time now in the window film industry. Some window tinters are nervous about it, but I'm not. It would cost so damn much to equip an entire vehicle with this type of glass that very few people could even afford it, let alone want to spend that kind of money.

Then you have state laws that will step in and probably make them illegal all together, seeing how you could easily be darker than the legal limit at a touch of a button, but then make it disappear before an officer could do anything about it, all though I don't agree with tint laws, atleast as strict as they are in some states anyway.

Didn't expect they failed much.. Figured it's just an LCD panel in front of a mirror, no? And we all know how dealer pricing works. Madza actualy thought I would pay $380 for an oil pressure switch. Ha! I know there is a company that's been selling aftermarket auto-dimmers for a few years now.. Mostly for SUVs & trucks where you replace the whole mirror. Figured it was a matter of time until there was a retrofit market.

LCD technology is fairly cheap and it's easy to control. I would imagine the real expense is making one in custom shapes and having them be clear enough to see through in the daylight. I do have an auto-dimmer rear view on my Saab.. it works okay but it's a little slow to react. Guess I'm sticking to window tint on the side views.

Ramy,

Leave med school and come work with me - we need more ppl with crazy ideas in our department =)

As for the rear view mirror, I've retrofitted one of our auto-dims into a friends S2k back in California - it doesn't have to be a FEED one (as much as I like to support FEED).

For the side view mirrors the light sensor is located on the rear view mirror and they work together - and there is a switch to turn that function off altogether (depending on the mfr). They do not fail that often, but when they do... it really sucks - seen it once.

Going back to the original question though, this has been considered and vendors to mfrs do already have the capbaility to do it. Issues have been cost and demand, and ultimately - is the consumer willing to pay a premium for such a thing.... (ie. people other than Ramy)?

Apparently it's VERY common. A bunch of the M3 guys have had this prob. In fact, one guy didn't replace it, it started to leak (remember it's toxic), he was hospitalized, and is suing BMW and the manufacturer of that toxic crystal material.

And the prob w/ price is, the stealerships want $300ish. You know me, I never pay full price for anything. My hookup was gonna get it for me for $215ish for one, and $250ish for the other (about $100 of each one). But that's still $400+, then you have to disassemble the ENTIRE mirror, and remove the existing lenses w/o breaking them so you won't risk harming/poisoning yourself. Needless to say, most guys ended up buying the regular non-tinted lenses and just using those instead.

LOL Paul, PLZ don't tempt me man. You know I'm STILL am interested in electronically adjustable ride height... :D https://www.rx7club.com/3rd-generation-specific-1993-2002-16/modernizing-fd-461840/

Who doesn't ;)

Good question. I personally think that it depends on what car this is offered. I say that b/c at least from my observation, if it's a car that mostly only the well-to-do can afford, they tend to often buy options just because they can lol. Usage and practicality aren't much of a concern often times. And of course, much like anything, once it hits the market, it's only a matter of time before the technology's mass produced enough to make it affordable on a variety of vehicles. Heck, I'd think even if this tint worked ONLY when the vehicle was stationary, it would be a good idea; it could be marketed to keep your car safe by obscuring visibility of your valuables, protected from the sun's harmful discoloring rays, and cool from the hot sun :D

~Ramy