The importance of protecting windows from windborne debris has been pointed out in many reports on wind induced disaster. In Japan, there are still no building codes or standards to protect cladding from wind-borne debris. In contrast, both American and ISO standards cover specifications, including testing methods, for cladding performance under impact by wind-borne debris. A series of impact tests was conducted to evaluate the safety of different types of window glasses. This paper describes results for impact resistant tests, including destruction modes, for float glass, tempered glass, wired glass and glass with film based on ISO standards using an air cannon to propel missiles, e.g., debris. It was found that glass other than that with film was destroyed by the “missile A,” which is categorized in the lowest rank of the test missile of ISO standards. Thus, film minimally improves the impact resistant performance of glass.

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