Patent ID: 8397539

Claim:
A non-contact dancer mechanism for conveying a web of brittle material, the non-contact dancer mechanism comprising: a guide rail; a variable position web support plenum slidably positioned on the guide rail, wherein the variable position web support plenum comprises an arcuate outer surface with a plurality of fluid vents for emitting a fluid to support the web of brittle material over and spaced apart from the arcuate outer surface thereby preventing mechanical contact and damage to the web of brittle material; and a support plenum counterbalance mechanically coupled to and passively supporting the variable position web support plenum such that the variable position web support plenum is free to slide relative to the guide rail and the support plenum counterbalance exerts a force on the variable position web support plenum such that a tension on the web of brittle material is constant irrespective of the position of the variable position web support plenum on the guide rail.