What is ISO 13837 about?
ISO 13837 specifies test methods to determine the luminous, the direct and total solar transmittance, and the colorimetry of safety glazing materials for road vehicles.
ISO 13837 applies to monolithic or laminated, clear or tinted samples of safety glazing materials. Essentially flat sections of glazing parts can be used in this test, as well as flat samples of the same materials.
Who is ISO 13837 for?
ISO 13837 on test methods for the determination of solar transmittance of safety glazing materials for road vehicles is useful for:
- Car manufacturers
- Vehicle windshield manufacturers
- Vehicle safety auditors
- Regulatory authorities
Why should you use ISO 13837?
A review of existing standards and industry specifications and procedures reveals a lack of agreement with respect to the basis for defining and measuring the ultraviolet (UV), visible (VIS), infrared (IR) transmittance and colorimetry properties of glazing materials. To avoid the continued preparation and declaration of conflicting standards by individual entities, there is an interest in the automotive and glazing industries to coordinate on a worldwide basis the test procedures and protocols used to assess the solar transmittance properties of glazing materials.
With the help of ISO 13837 which includes test methods for the determination of solar transmittance of safety glazing materials for road vehicles you can ensure reliability and confidence in worldwide coordination of test procedures and protocols used to assess the solar transmittance properties of glazing materials.
The use of ISO 13837:2021 helps to contribute to UN Sustainable Development Goal 9 which aims to ensure the building of resilient infrastructure, promoting inclusive and sustainable industrialization and fostering innovation.
What’s changed since the last update?
BS ISO 13837:2021 supersedes BS ISO 13837:2008, which is withdrawn.
BS ISO 13837:2021 includes some technical changes with respect to BS ISO 13837:2008.
These include:
- Deletion of all texts and tables corresponding to air mass 1,0 global.
- Addition of some symbol definitions for variables and parameters.
- Addition of calculation methods for luminous transmittance [TL], solar direct reflectance [Re], solar direct absorbance [ ae ] and colorimetry.
- Revision of calculation method for solar UV transmittance (TUV 380) to calculate with air mass 1,5 global.
- Revision of Annex A to list the source of values in the new solar weight tables and give out the derivation process of Table 3 as an example.

