Patent ID: 8893528

Claim:
An apparatus for thermally strengthening glass containers after they are formed in an I.S. machine, comprising: a tempering Lehr that reheats the glass containers to increase their temperature to a temperature that is sufficiently high to obtain adequate compressive stresses in the glass containers but not so high that the glass containers may become deformed; and a cooling station that simultaneously cools the outer and inner surfaces of a glass container located in the cooling station rapidly so that all of the stresses in the glass container are locked in, the cooling station comprising: a cylindrical cooling shroud that directs cooling air onto the outer sides of the glass container located in the cooling station; a bottom cooler that directs cooling air upwardly onto the bottom of the glass container located in the cooling station, the bottom cooler being coupled to and mounted within the cooling shroud; and a cooling tube having a tube nozzle located at the distal end thereof for the delivery of cooling air provided to the cooling tube from a source of cooling air; wherein the apparatus for thermally strengthening glass containers after they are formed in an I.S. machine further comprises: a cooling tube operating assembly for operating the cooling tube and the tube nozzle to move them between a first position in which they are located above the glass container in the cooling station to allow the glass container to be brought into the cooling station after it is reheated and to allow the glass container to be removed from the cooling station after it has been thermally strengthened and at least a second position in which the cooling tube and the tube nozzle are at least partially inserted into the glass container located in the cooling station to deliver cooling air into the interior of the glass container.