Do you know how much science lies behind our work? We are not merely referring to the technical aspects of designing and developing a product, but to those ancient notions that constitute the basis of scientific knowledge as we know it today. To create glass whose ballistic resistance is guaranteed and certified, we need to span across various disciplines, from engineering to physics, and from chemistry to mathematics; disciplines whose principles are put into practice by our highly qualified professionals. One of the sciences that guides our daily toil is external ballistics, that is, the part of ballistics that deals with the behaviour of a projectile in flight to understand its impact and complexity. Distinguished mathematicians and physicists, such as Galileo, Tartaglia, Newton and Euler, dwelt on this very topic of complexity. Let us take a look at a few historical facts about this discipline.
From yesteryear to the modern era
In order to understand the ballistic resistance of a glass surface, it is worth taking a small journey back in time. The first ballistics studies were conducted by the mathematician Nicolò Tartaglia, who analysed the motion of projectiles in 1537. He was followed by Galileo, who developed a mathematical method for calculating trajectory, attributing its curved shape to gravity and regarding air resistance as completely negligible. Later, Newton’s aerodynamic laws gave a semi-definitive imprinting to these theories, adding that the air resistance force is approximately proportional to the square of the velocity. Recent developments, brought about by computers and great minds in the field of science, have seen the birth of more reliable and accurate formulas and theories on the motion of projectiles. Particularly worth noting is the theory of the “6 degrees of freedom” (6-DOF), which makes it possible to calculate the trajectory of any projectile, particularly used in the military sphere.
Isoclima at the service of science
All the scientific findings concerning the trajectory of projectiles can’t possibly be covered in one article. However, these scientific revelations have resulted in us being able to design ballistic resistant glass.
That is, surfaces that we subject to “stressful” tests in which we use innovative techniques to understand their ability to react and resist impact. In this way, we provide products that resist not only projectiles, but also, and above all, larger objects that could undermine people's safety.