Active Anti-fogging by Ultrasonic Excitation to Enhance Visual Acuity Through Transparent Media
摘要
The degradation of visibility due to fogging on optical components, such as eyeglasses and safety goggles, in highly humid environments can pose serious safety risks. Passive anti-fogging methods, such as surface coatings are commonly employed, however, are easily damaged and have low durability. This paper presents a multiphysics approach to actively defog optical samples to enhance anti-fogging rates by ultrasonic methods. Tomographic measurements of micro-water droplets during exposure to ultrasonic loads are obtained by optical coherence tomography (OCT). A custom environmental chamber with integrated temperature and humidity controls was constructed. Ultrasonic loads are characterized using scanning laser Doppler vibrometer (SLDV) for frequencies up to 1 MHz. Multiple parameters, such as visibility, fog area, and dissipation rates, are monitored in real-time using a custom-developed program, and results are presented. Current work presents a promising solution for anti-fogging of optical substrates that have important applications across diverse industrial sectors.