Patent ID: 7287401
Filing Date: 2007-10-30
Classification: C03B

Abstract:
1. A system for cylindrically forming and quenching glass sheets, comprising: a furnace having entry and exit ends and including a heating chamber having a conveyor for conveying glass sheets along a direction of conveyance through the furnace between the entry end and the exit end; a bending station located within the heating chamber at the exit end of the furnace to provide bending of the heated glass sheets along a direction transverse to the direction of conveyance so each bent glass sheet has a cylindrical shape; a roll bending station located externally of the furnace downstream along the direction of conveyance from the exit end of the furnace to receive the bent glass sheets from the exit end of the furnace, the roll bending station including a lower roll conveyor having rotatively driven rolls that extend transversely to the direction of conveyance with a cylindrically curved shape to support and convey the bent glass sheets received from the exit end of the furnace, the roll bending station having an upper roll former having rolls that collectively provide a downwardly facing cylindrically curved shape complementary to the curved shape of the lower roll conveyor, and an actuator that provides relative vertical movement of the upper roll former and the lower roll conveyor toward each other as each bent glass sheet is received by the lower roll conveyor to cooperate therewith in further cylindrically forming the glass sheet as the glass sheet is continually conveyed through the roll bending station; and a quench station to which the formed glass sheets are conveyed from the roll bending station for rapidly cooling thereof to provide toughening.