The humble windscreen wiper is celebrating its 100th birthday.
Gladstone Adams came up with the idea exactly a century ago as he drove home from London through a snowstorm having watched Newcastle United play Wolves in the 1908 FA Cup final. The photographs, negatives and camera equipment of the inventor, who died in 1966, are being sold in June on behalf of his daughter-in-law and are expected to fetch several thousand pounds.
Here are 10 things you might not know about the humble blade:
:: The wipers on early models of the iconic Citroen 2CV were powered mechanically by the engine, and varied with its speed. When the car came to a halt, so did the wipers, and the driver had to operate them manually using a handle under the dashboard.
:: Most cars now use an electric motor to power the wiper blades, though some vehicles with air brakes use air-operated wipers.
:: The first intermittent wipers were introduced in 1969, with adjustable speed.
:: Formula One cars do not have windscreen wipers. The driver's helmet visor has a number of clear films covering it, which he can remove one by one when rain and dirt build up.
:: Swedish manufacturer Saab introduced headlight wipers in 1970.
:: The 1975 Citroen CX was the first mainstream production car to use a single, centrally-hinged wiper instead of a pair.
:: The first patent for windscreen wipers in the US was filed in the early 1900s by one Mary Anderson, who was apparently initially told the idea had little commercial value. By the early 1920s - after her patent expired - wipers were fitted as standard in cars across the US and Europe.
:: In 2001 Citroen launched the first UK production car to feature rain-sensitive wipers that activate automatically. Other manufacturers, including Renault, Honda, Peugeot, Mercedes and Toyota now offer similar features.
:: The Italian firm Fioravani has created a concept car with no wipers. The windscreen of the Hidra uses a special oxide to repel water, while tiny nozzles project high-pressured water and air to clear away dirt.
:: As well as car windscreens, wipers also feature on planes, ships and even the space shuttle.
