Improvements in Processes of and Apparatus for Manufacturing Plate or Sheet Glass
Year: 1898

page_text: Date of Application, 14th Mar., 1898-Accepted, 14th May,
1898
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Processes of and Apparatus for Manufacturing Plate
or Sheet Glass
I, FERDINAND VITTE, Senior, of 78, Greenbush Street, Pittsburgh, in the County
of Allegheny and State of Pennsylvania, United States of America, Mould Manu-
facturer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention and in what manner the
same is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by
the following statement:-
My invention relates to the manufacture of sheet glass and especially glass pro-
vided with ornamentation upon one side thereof though it may be used upon plain
glass; and it has for its object the production of a process by which the manu-
facture of sheet glass, either figured or unfigured, flat or bent, may be more cheaply
produced than by the present processes, and also one in which the liability of
breakage is reduced and the chances of a perfect, instead of an imperfect figure,
in the manufacture of figured glass, increased. Another object is to provide an
improved apparatus for carrying out one part of the process.
To these ends the invention consists, first, in the step of simultaneously forming
the glass into roller or cylindrical shape and slitting it longitudinally from end to
end; second, in simultaneously forming the glass into roller or cylindrical shape
and slitting it longitudinally from end to end, and subsequently flattening said
roller into flat-sheet form; third, in an apparatus for forming a split roller or
cylinder, consisting of a suitable mould, a plunger movable through this mould,
and means for splitting the glass cylinder its entire length as it is formed in the
mould; and fourth, in further constructions and arrangements of the parts of the
apparatus and in further details in the process as hereinafter more fully described
and set forth in the claims.
The accompanying drawing illustrates my improved apparatus for forming the
split roller, and in said drawing::
-
Fig. 1 is a vertical sectional view of said apparatus.
Fig. 2 is a similar view, but with the plunger at the upper limit of its stroke.
Fig. 3 is a plan view.
Fig. 4 is a detail perspective view of the strip for splitting the roller during the
formation thereof, and
Fig. 5 is a transverse section through the mould used for forming a series of
sheets of bent glass at once.
a
Referring to the drawings,
2 designates the usual mould-supporting table or plate, having a
central hole through which reciprocates the hollow plunger 3 having
conical closed upper end.
The lower end of this plunger is pro-
vided with an inner packing gland 4, surrounding the supply-pipe 5,
over which the plunger moves. This supply pipe projects upwardly into
the hollow plunger and is of such length and so engaged with said plunger as to

page_text: guide the latter in its reciprocations. The lower end of the pipe 5 is secured to
a plate 6 held by depending rods 7, and the plunger 3 is provided with a bottom
flange 8 having upwardly and downwardly projecting springs which are arranged
to contact with the plates 2 and 6, respectively in the reciprocations of the plunger,
thus cushioning the same at the end of the strokes and preventing injurious shocks.
The plate 2 is provided around the central hole with an annular dovetailed pro-
jection 10 which enters corresponding recesses in the sections 11 of a four-part
mould, which is arranged to be clamped around the central hole and held by a
pin 12 that passes through registering holes in lugs 13 projecting from two or
more of the mould parts or sections to which the handles 14 are secured.
The cavity of this mould is of general circular shape and when it is desired to
produce figured glass, said cavity is provided with the desired pattern cut on its
face. At the lower end of the matrix cavity is an annular recess 15, which is
erranged to hold the lower end of the mass of glass which is ladled into the mould
and prevent the plunger moving the body of glass upwardly through the mould.
16 is a splitting strip of the same length as the mould-cavity, and received within
registering recesses in the two parts 11 of the mould, which are first opened, this
strip being of such width that it will contact with the side face of the plunger in
the upward movement thereof and thus sever or split the glass strip being formed.
At the upper end of the mould is an inwardly projecting ring 17 arranged to form
a thin or crack-off portion at the top of the glass-cylinder or roller.
To make figured sheet glass according to this process and by means embodying
the above described apparatus, the melted glass is ladled out and poured into
the mould. The plunger is then moved upwardly by admitting compressed air
thereinto through the pipe 5, and said plunger forces the lower portion of the glass
into the recess 15 and then moves upwardly through the mass of glass, forcing
it out against the sides of the matrix and forming a glass roller having its outer
surface ornamented according to the pattern upon the inner face of the mould,
and at the same time the severing strip slits the roller from end to end at one side
thereof. The plunger is then withdrawn and the mould parts swung open, the
splitting strip dropping out as the mould opens, when the split roller may be
removed. This split roller is then flattened into sheet form in any suitable
manner, as for example by the usual mode of pressing it while in a flattening oven.
The process of making plain or unfigured glass is identical with that for making
figured glass, except that a mould having a plain, instead of a figured inner sur-
face is used. If desired the flattened sheet of unfigured glass may be polished
by fire, or in any other suitable way.
In making bent sheet glass the mould, having a plain or ornamented interior
face, according to the kind of bent glass to be produced, is provided with a series
of splitting strips, the spacing of which in the mould corresponds with the width
of sheets to be produced, and the subsequent step of flattening is dispensed with,
whereby two or more sheets of bent glass may be produced at one time within
the mould.
It will be seen that the above described processes materially reduce the cost of
the product as they do not necessitate the employment of specially skilled work-
men and dispense with much handling of the glass as well as reduce liability of
breakage thereof. It has been demonstrated by extensive practical experiments
that perfect figures are formed in the glass during the process of moulding the
same and that said figures are not distorted in the flattening step of the process,
and, furthermore, that it is practical with my improved process to form sheets of
greater width and length than with any other processes with which I am
acquainted, and of a thickness of from one-fourth of an inch up to at least three
or four inches.
In practicing the process by means of the apparatus above described for forming
the roller, I have found that the most, if indeed, it is not the only practical means for
raising the plunger consists of compressed air, preferably used at about two hun-
dred pounds pressure to the square inch

page_text: Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed I declare that what I
claim is:-
1. The improvement hereindescribed in the art of making sheet glass, consisting
in simultaneously forming the melted glass into roller or cylindrical shape and
slitting or severing the wall of the same longitudinally from end to end.
2. The improvement hereindescribed in the art of making figured sheet glass,
consisting in simultaneously forming the melted glass into roller or cylindrical
shape, impressing the figure on the surface thereof and slitting or severing the
roller or cylinder longitudinally.
3. The process hereindescribed of making flat sheet glass, consisting in simul-
taneously forming the melted glass into roller or cylindrical shape and slitting or
severing the wall thereof longitudinally at one side, and then flattening said split
roller or cylinder.
4. The process hereindescribed of making flat sheet glass having an ornamented
or figured surface, consisting in simultaneously forming the melted glass into
roller or cylindrical shape, impressing the figure thereon and slitting or severing
the roller longitudinally, and then flattening said split roller by pressure applied
thereto while in a flattening oven.
5. The process hereindescribed of making bent sheet glass, consisting in form-
ing the melted glass into cylindrical shape and splitting the same longitudinally
at various points corresponding to the width of the sheets to be produced, while the
glass is being formed.
6. In apparatus for making sheet glass, a cylinder mould, a plunger movable
therethrough, and means for splitting the glass cylinder its entire length along
one side as it is formed in the mould.
7. In apparatus for making sheet glass, a cylinder mould, a plunger movable
therethrough, and a splitting strip in the mould cavity and arranged to split the
cylinder its entire length.
8. In apparatus for making sheet glass, a plate having a hole, a sectional
cylinder mould above the hole, a plunger movable upwardly through the hole and
the mould, and a splitting strip in the mould cavity arranged to split the cylinder
throughout its length.
9. In apparatus for making sheet glass, a plate having a hole therein, a cylinder
mould arranged to be clamped around the hole and having an annular recess at
the lower end of the matrix cavity, a hollow plunger movable upwardly through
said hole and mould, means for admitting fluid pressure to the plunger, and means
for splitting the glass cylinder throughout its length as it is formed.
10. In apparatus for forming split glass cylinders, a sectional mould, a plunger
movable therethrough and a removable splitting strip fitting in a recess in the
mould and arranged to engage one side of the plunger, said strip extending the
entire length of the mould cavity.
Dated this 14th dowe SML 1000