Abstract: The present invention relates to a special module for the entrance to a cooling station of a glass sheet tempering apparatus and particularly relates to the construction of a pair of upstream modules at the upstream end of the cooling station immediately beyond the exit of a furnace through which glass sheets are transported for heating for subsequent quenching and rapid cooling in order to impart a temper. The special entrance modules of the present invention are cooled by providing a baffle wall spaced upstream of the upstream wall of each upstream module that faces the furnace exit to provide an open ended air chamber between each upstream module and the furnace. In addition, optionally, coolant may be passed through pipe means provided between the furnace and the upstream modules. These changes in upstream module construction result in producing tempered glass with less kink than prior art apparatus having upstream modules not so modified.

Abstract: This invention relates to the tempering of glass sheets, and particularly concerns cooling heat-softened glass sheets sufficiently rapidly to induce a stress pattern through the thickness of the glass of sufficient magnitude to temper the glass sheets with minimum surface deformation in a process where flat glass sheets are conveyed while supported on a modified gaseous bed that comprises an upstream portion having opposed modules with thin slotted openings that provide thin, discrete, laminar streams of tempering medium against the opposite major surfaces of said glass sheets and a downstream portion having opposed modules that provide a smoother support bed than said discrete streams through a more diffuse pattern of tempering medium.

Abstract: Removal of glass fragments from a glass sheet tempering quench apparatus is expedited by damping air flow simultaneously with opening of the quench chamber.

Abstract: This invention relates to the tempering of glass sheets, and particularly concerns cooling heat-softened glass sheets sufficiently rapidly to induce a stress pattern through the thickness of the glass of sufficient magnitude to temper the glass sheets with minimum surface deformation in a process where flat glass sheets are conveyed while supported on a gaseous bed.