Jet fighter technology that fires ultrasonic soundwaves over windscreens to keep off rain could end the car wiper blade’s 100-year reign.
Supercar maker McLaren is said to have a system that is due to arrive after 2015.
It could cost as little as £10.
Prof Paul Wilcox of Bristol University said the vibration would not be visible as it is at “nanometer level”.
McLaren called the wiper, created in 1903, “archaic”.
Its system may improve fuel efficiency without the weight of wipe motors.
McLaren’s chief designer Frank Stephenson said: “It took a lot of effort to get this out of a source in the military.
“I asked why you don’t see wipers on some aircraft when they are coming in at very low speeds for landing.
“I was told that it’s not a coating on the surface but a high frequency electronic system that never fails and is constantly active.
“Nothing will attach to the windscreen.”
The pioneering system is similar to technology used by dentists to remove plaque from teeth and doctors scanning unborn babies.
Removing wipers could improve cars’ fuel economy without the weight of wiper motors.
