Abstract: The method of operating a windshield wiper intermittently requires an apparatus including a rain sensor (12), which generates a signal (S) depending on an amount of rain on the windshield, and a signal processing device (13), e.g.a microprocessor with internal A/D and D/A converters, connected to the sensor (12) to receive the signal (S) and, a control unit connected to the signal processing device (13), and, advantageously, a device for measuring a wiping process duration (T) and inputting the duration to the microprocessor and a drive for the windshield wiper connected to the signal processing device (13). According to the method, the windshield wiper is operated by the signal processing device at least partially according to the signals (S) from the sensor so that the time interval (I) between successive current wiping processes, depends, in part, on a duration (T.sub.-1, T.sub.-2, . . . T.sub.-n) of at least one past wiping process (W.sub.-1, W.sub.-2, . . . W.sub.