Glass sheet manufacturing method and apparatus

A molten glass extruding apparatus for receiving a charge of molten glass of a predetermined volume from a glass refiner, and for forming said glass charge into a sheet of semi-molten glass of a predetermined thickness, said apparatus comprising:

• a glass charge storage chute which receives said molten glass charge from said refiner;
• a glass charge extruder device coupled to said storage chute and having an intake stroke and an extrusion stroke, said extruder device receiving said molten glass charge from said glass charge storage chute during said intake stroke and extruding said molten glass charge during said extrusion stroke;
• eccentrically pivoted glass sheet roller means coupled to said extruder device for rolling molten glass into glass sheets of a predetermined thickness;
• a mobile extruder carriage which houses said storage chute, said extruder device and said roller means, said mobile carriage laterally moveable during said extrusion stroke;
• and
• compressed air generation means for operating said extruder device;
• whereby said glass charge is formed into a semi-molten glass sheet of a predetermined thickness, and said glass sheet is deposited from said glass sheet forming apparatus as said mobile extruder carriages laterally moves during said extrusion stroke of said extruder device.

A molten tin bath for imparting an ideal smoothness to a sheet of semi-molten glass deposited on said tin bath, said tin bath comprising:

• a molten tin bath container having rectangular bottom, front, back and side steel plated faces and an open top face;
• molten tin within said molten tin bath container;
• electrode means traversing the interior of said container for maintaining said molten tin in the molten state;
• an external flat flange seated horizontally on said front, back and side steel plated faces around the perimeter of said open top face, said external flange overlapping said front, back and side faces and having a plurality of recessed indentations proportionately spaced in said external flange;
• scrap glass rejection means for removing scrap glass from said flat flange, said glass rejection means comprising a rotating bar, a plurality of rejection forks rigidly attached to said rotating bar, said rejection forks horizontally seated in said recessed indentations of said external flange when said rotating bar is rotated in a first direction, and said rejection forks rotated to a substantially vertical position when said rotating bar is rotated in a second direction opposite to said first direction;
• whereby scrap glass lying on said external flange is removed from said molten tin bath as a result of the horizontal to vertical rotation of said rejection forks.

A glass cutting apparatus for cutting said semi-molten glass sheet into predetermined lite sizes while said sheet still lies on a molten tin bath having a flat external flange, said glass cutting apparatus comprising:

• a vertically mobile rectangular cutting frame having a flat horizontal internal flange at the base of said frame, said internal flange having the same dimensions as said external flange of said tin bath means, said internal flange of said cutting frame and said external flange of said tin bath means firmly clasping said molten glass sheet deposited on said tin bath means when said vertically mobile cutting frame is lowered on said tin bath means;
• first mobile cutting carriage means supported on said cutting frame for cutting said glass sheet lengthwise according to said predetermined glass lite sizes, said first mobile cutting carriage means having a plurality of identical cutting block assemblies mounted in a front row and a back row, said cutting block assemblies in said front row laterally offset from said cutting block assemblies in said back row;
• a second mobile cutting block carriage means supported on said cutting frame for cutting said glass sheet widthwise according to said predetermined glass lite sizes, said second cutting block carriage means also having a plurality of said cutting block assemblies also mounted in a front row and in a back row, said cutting block assemblies in said front row laterally offset from said cutting block assemblies in said back row;
• a plurality of threaded rotatable vertical movement worm gear shafts, one said vertical movement worm gear shaft for each of said rows of said cutting block assemblies of said first mobile cutting carriage means and said second mobile cutting carriage means;
• and
• a plurality of threaded rotatable fractional movement worm gear shafts, one said fractional movement worm gear shaft for each of said rows of said cutting block assemblies of said first mobile cutting carriage means and said second mobile cutting carriage means;
• whereby said glass sheet is cut into said predetermined lite size by selectively activating particular cutting block assemblies, placing those cutting block assemblies activated in cutting position by means of the rotational movement of said vertical movement and said fractional movement worm gear shafts, and making alternate cutting passes of said first cutting carriage means and said second cutting carriage means over said glass sheet on said molten tin bath.

A method for the automated manufacturing of sheet glass comprising the steps of:

• melting raw glass batch materials in a vertical furnace;
• maintaining molten glass in a homogenous state in a transverse refiner;
• cooling the walls of said furnace and said refiner;
• maintaining a constant predetermined refiner molten glass level within said refiner;
• forming a discrete molten glass charge of a predetermined volume of molten glass and delivering said glass charge from said refiner;
• and
• extruding said glass charge into a sheet of semi-molten glass of a predetermined thickness over a molten tin bath.

A method of metering molten glass from a source of molten glass comprising the step of:

• locating symmetrically a plurality of basin cylinders in communication with said source of molten glass, each basin cylinder having a plurality of glass dispensing chambers of a known volume;
• rotating said basin cylinders;
• capturing a predetermined volume of molten glass within each of said glass dispensing chambers during each rotation of said basin cylinders;
• and
• depositing said captured molten glass outside said source of molten glass during the rotation of said basin cylinders.

A method of forming a smooth glass sheet of semi-molten glass comprising the steps of:

• metering a discrete charge of molten glass of a known volume from a source of molten glass;
• feeding said charge to a molten glass extruding device having a pair of eccentrically pivoting glass sheet rollers;
• adjusting the eccentric pivoting of said rollers such that said rollers are separated by a predetermined distance;
• and
• extruding said charge of molten glass from said molten glass extruding device through said eccentrically pivoted rollers while moving said extruding device and said rollers over a molten tin bath.

A method of manufacturing sheet glass from a charge of molten glass, comprising:

• feeding said charge to an extrusion device comprising a container having a first port and a second port, and a pair of rollers exterior to said container and adjacent said second port;
• adjusting the distance between said rollers to a predetermined distance;
• and,
• applying a pressurized fluid to said first port such that said charge is forced out of said container through said second port and through said rollers under pressure of said pressurized fluid.