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US 8,997,521 B2Granted
Method and apparatus for supporting and heating glass sheets on a hot gas cushion
AssigneeGlaston Services Ltd. Oy
InventorsJukka Vehmas, Mikko Rantala
Life of this patent
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AssigneeGlaston Services Ltd. Oy
InventorsJukka Vehmas, Mikko Rantala
Estimating the term…
A method and apparatus for supporting and heating glass sheets for tempering or bending on a hot gas cushion. One edge of the glass is supported on transport rollers and the rotation axes of the rollers are transverse relative to the plane of the glass. The glass sheet is supported by means of gas pressure on a planar surface which has an angle of inclination of 2-20° relative to horizontal plane. The angle of inclination is sloping towards that edge of the glass which is supported by the transport rollers. Gas is expelled through the planar surface by way of gas outlet slots or holes. As the glass is moving, a gas is drawn or blown by fans from a certain part of the glass through the planar surface more than from the rest of the area by adjusting the rotating speed of the fans or by changing the suction pressure or delivery side pressure of the fans.
A method of supporting and heating glass sheets for tempering or bending on a hot gas cushion comprising:
An apparatus for supporting and heating glass sheets for tempering or bending on a hot gas cushion, said apparatus comprising a glass sheet bearing platform provided with nozzle orifices and at its edge with transport rollers, the rotation axes of which are transverse relative to the bearing platform and upon which one edge of a glass sheet presently on the bearing platform is supportable, and the bearing platform has an angle of inclination of 2-20° relative to horizontal plane and the bearing platform includes gas outlet slots or holes, the glass sheet bearing being established by means of the pressure of a hot gas flowing along the bearing platform between the nozzle orifices and the gas outlet slots or holes, wherein the gas outlet slots or holes flare out below a planar surface of the bearing platform into larger outlet channels, several of which are arranged successively in the glass conveying direction, the outlet channels being connected to the suction inlets of at least two fans to define a suction zone extending across substantially an entire width of the glass sheet, the suction pressures or the rotating speeds of the fans being adapted to be adjustable with respect to each other for causing different suction effects at different areas of the glass sheet.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.