Apparatus for conveying insulating glass panes

In apparatus for conveying insulating glass panes comprising each two spaced apart individual glass panes, which define grooves at the edges of said insulating glass panes, which grooves are filled with a sticky sealing compound, said apparatus being operable to convey said insulating glass panes with an inclination from the vertical along a predetermined path so that each of said individual glass panes has a lower edge face, an upper edge face, an outside surface, and an outer upper edge between said upper edge face and said outside surface,

• the improvement residing in that
• a plurality of pairs of mutually opposite rigid supports disposed on opposite sides of said path are provided and are spaced apart along said path and movable along the same,
• drive means for moving said pairs of supports in unison along said path are provided,
• the supports of each of said pairs are adapted to engage the lower edge faces of respective individual glass panes of each of said insulating glass panes only in an outer portion of said lower edge faces,
• backing means disposed on one side of said path and spaced above said supports and adapted to engage one of said individual glass panes of each of said insulating glass panes on its outside surface,
• two parallel guide rails which are spaced below said rigid supports and engage the latter from below,
• said drive means comprising two parallel endless conveyor elements disposed on opposite sides of said path,
• the supports disposed on each side of said path being secured to the adjacent said conveyor element,
• the supports of each of said pairs carrying respective pressure contact jaws having substantially vertical pressure contact surfaces facing each other and adapted to resiliently engage respective individual glass panes of each of said insulating glass panes on said outside surfaces close to said lower edge face, and means to cause said pressure contact jaws to apply pressure resiliently to said outside surfaces, said pressure contact jaws cooperating resiliently with said rigid supports to maintain said lower edge faces of said panes on said rigid supports with said rigid supports out of contact with said sticky sealing compound.