Method and apparatus for making individual glass panes

A method of making individual glass panes each having a thickness between 0.03 mm and 2 mm, said method comprising the steps of:

• a) drawing a glass band vertically downward from a hot forming device with drive roller pairs through a vertical cooling zone until the glass band reaches a temperature below a strain point of the glass band;
• b) engaging respective rollers of said driver roller pairs on opposite edge regions of said glass band while said glass band is oriented vertically and providing means for driving said respective rollers separately at individually controlled drive speeds;
• b) subsequently deflecting the glass band in a bending zone, in which the glass band is freely suspended and has a bending radius of between 0.1 m and 4 m, so that the glass band passes from the bending zone into a horizontal zone in which the glass band has a substantially horizontal orientation;
• c) cutting edge portions from the glass band in an edge cutting process;
• d) cutting the glass band to length to form the individual glass panes in another cutting process;
• e) measuring said bending radius and controlling a feed speed of the glass band in the horizontal zone according to said bending radius determined during the measuring in order to control the bending radius in the bending zone;
• f) monitoring at least one edge of said glass band to detect linearity deviations and correcting said linearity deviations by controlling said drive speeds of said rollers of said roller pairs individually;
• g) monitoring said at least one edge of said glass band to detect lateral position deviations of said glass band and correcting said lateral position deviations of said glass band by controlling said rollers;
• and
• h) monitoring said at least one edge of said glass band to detect curvature of said at least one edge and correcting said curvature of said at least one edge by controlling said rollers;
• whereby rejects and waste are reduced.