Abstract: A conveyor roll for conveying glass sheets and a conveyor comprising a plurality of said conveyor rolls is described. Each conveyor roll comprises a curved shaft conforming to the shape of said glass sheets transverse to their path of movement, a plurality of hubs of essentially cylindrical configuration mounted around said curved shaft and having loosely interfitting tongues and grooves and a cylindrically shaped collar of a material that does not mar glass in tightly fitting relation about each of said hubs. When torque is applied to one of the end hubs of said conveyor rolls, the glass engaging surfaces of said collars rotate in unison at a uniform peripheral speed to convey the curved glass sheets through a cooling area included in glass sheet tempering apparatus with minimum scuff marks because the different collar surfaces rotate at the same rotational speed against the engaged surfaces of said curved glass sheets.

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 making continuous ribbons of clear, flexible interlayer material into a maximum number of interlayers having a coating of graded intensity along a longitudinal edge portion thereof for use in curved laminated safety glass windshields. The method avoids rubbing or differentially stretching the flexible interlayer material during processing, which includes cutting a continuous ribbon of clear, flexible interlayer material into successive interfitting flexible sheets of trapezoidal shape, applying a shade band, preferably by electrostatic spraying, to a predetermined portion of each sheet and laminating the sheet so treated to one or more rigid transparent sheets of glass or a recognized plastic substitute for glass.

Abstract: Shaping sheets of heat-softenable material while suspended from cable means.

Abstract: When glass sheets are shaped by drop forming a glass sheet released from vacuum engagement against the bottom perforated plate of a vacuum platen to drop onto a shaping mold of ring-like construction, the intermediate portion of the glass sheet can develop excessive downward sag. The present invention discloses different techniques to develop an upward bow in the intermediate portion of the glass sheet sufficient to compensate approximately for the undesired excessive downward sag.

Abstract: Glass sheets arriving at a bending station where their under surfaces are exposed to a hot gas support bed are delivered with minimum misalignment and misorientation by engaging each sheet simultaneously across its entire width with at least two rotating conveyor rolls. The latter are spaced from one another longitudinally of a path of glass sheet travel a distance sufficient to optimize flow of hot gas against the engaged glass sheet surface. This invention enables the leading edge of glass sheets of either rectangular or non-rectangular outline to nest within aligning means located in a fixed but adjustable position at the bending station. Provision is made to handle two or more sheets arriving at the bending station in side-by-side relation.

Abstract: Glass sheets are shaped while heat-softened by engaging a surface thereof against an apertured surface of a vacuum mold within a heating furnace. After releasing the glass sheet for further processing, the vacuum mold is removed from the furnace without the glass sheet for cooling and returned to the furnace in sufficient time to engage the next glass sheet to be shaped. This invention avoids the need to overheat the glass to compensate for cooling that occurs when a mold engages a glass sheet outside a furnace to shape the latter without losing control of the maximum temperature to which the mold is subjected during a glass sheet shaping program.

Abstract: Apparatus for shaping glass sheets to a complicated shape including a longitudinal component of bend and a complicated transverse component of bend within a tunnel-like lehr. An outline mold with guides for aligning one or more glass sheets for proper orientation and alignment thereon supports the glass while the glass is bent by gravity sagging to provide a longitudinal component of bend and to deliver the sag bent glass to a position between upper and lower pressing molds having complementary shaping surfaces conforming to a complicated bend including a complicated transverse bend component. Special alignment means are provided to orient and align the outline mold relative to said pressing molds so that the lower pressing mold can lift the sag bent glass off the outline mold into engagement with the upper pressing mold to impress the transverse bend component and return the glass with its complicated shape to the outline mold for controlled cooling and removal from the lehr.

Abstract: In press bending glass sheets delivered while heat-softened into a shaping station between an upper vacuum mold and a lower lifting mold wherein the glass sheet is first lifted on said lifting mold, transferred by suction to said vacuum mold, lifted while engaged by said vacuum mold to provide clearance for entry of a ring-like member to a position below said vacuum mold, stopping the suction in said vacuum mold to drop said glass sheet onto said ring-like member and removing said glass sheet from said shaping station while supported on said ring-like member, the rate of production is increased by lowering said vacuum mold into a parking position closely adjacent to the uppermost position permitted for said lifting mold to provide clearance for delivering a succeeding glass sheet to said shaping station and reducing the vertical distance needed to lift the glass sheet to a position where it can be transferred by suction to the vacuum mold once the ring-like member clears said shaping station.

Abstract: Glass sheets are shaped while heat-softened by engaging a surface thereof against an apertured surface of a deformable vacuum mold and deforming the vacuum mold while maintaining the heat-softened glass sheet in vacuum engagement thereagainst.

Abstract: Fabricating a panel comprising a rigid mounting frame surrounding a laminated transparency having a metal reinforcing insert embedded therein in such a manner that the insert is parallel to the outer major surface of the transparency after its fabrication.

Abstract: Hydraulic fluid actuated pistons are operatively connected to shaping molds used to shape glass sheets by moving the molds between a glass-engaging position and a retracted position. The piston is movably mounted within a piston cylinder to form two chambers. Hydraulic fluid is applied under pressure alternately to one or the other chamber to actuate movement of the piston and the glass sheet shaping mold connected to the piston. When hydraulic fluid is applied under pressure, it tends to become heated to a temperature at which the hydraulic fluid carbonizes and/or foams. Either of these occurrences reduces the efficiency of the hydraulic fluid to actuate uniform piston motion.

Abstract: This invention relates to a method of and apparatus for forming a colored shade band on an elongated area of a flexible sheet of interlayer material comprising applying a dye composition by electrostatic spraying against an elongated area of a surface of a flexible sheet of non-conductive interlayer material such as polyurethane or plasticized polyvinyl butyral. A flexible sheet to be coated is mounted on a support carriage at a loading and unloading chamber in a substantially horizontal support plane, is transferred to a coating chamber, is tilted into an oblique plane at said coating chamber where it is aligned with a platen mask, electrostatic spray means disposed to one side of said platen mask supplies an electrostatic spray of a dye composition through said platen mask to the elongated area of said flexible sheet.

Abstract: In fabricating a press bending mold having a flexible metal shaping member such as a plate or a frame, a reinforcing grate and adjustable attachment means extending through certain apertures in the reinforcing grate to adjust the shape of the metal shaping member, localized distortion of the shaping member that formerly occurred when the attachment means were bonded to the shaping member by welding or soldering is eliminated by using a thermosetting adhesive capable of application at room temperature, such as an epoxy resin adhesive, to bond the attachment means to the flexible metal shaping member. When the former and the latter have bonding surfaces composed of aluminum, an epoxy resin containing finely divided aluminum filling is preferred.

Abstract: Applying a boron nitride composition to a flexible fiber glass fabric cover for a press bending mold for shaping heat-softened glass sheets having a portion painted with a composition consisting essentially of a finely divided frit-pigment mixture by impregnating at least the portion of the cover that engages the painted portion of the glass sheet reduces the likelihood of marking the press bent glass sheet in unwanted regions. In addition, such impregnation facilitates removing the press bending molds from the press bent glass sheet when the press bending molds are separated after engaging the heat-softened glass sheet.

Abstract: This invention relates to shaping glass sheets and particularly to a mold capable of shaping glass sheets having many different outline shapes but bent to the same radius of curvature. Such molds have dimensions larger than those of a family of windows of a given radius of curvature but different outline shapes. Such molds comprise a solid block of refractory material comprising a plurality of smooth, curved, upwardly facing, elongated shaping members extending continuously across an entire dimension of said mold and separated by transversely extending grooves that extend completely across the entire dimension of the shaping mold and have sufficient width and depth to permit clearance for raising the mold above a horizontal path of glass sheet travel defined by glass conveying elements.

Abstract: In bending glass sheets to a complicated shape by a combination of gravity sagging the glass to a longitudinal component of bend while supported on an upward facing shaping surface of an outline mold and then lifting the glass so shaped off the outline mold onto a solid shaping mold of continuous extent to impress a complicated transverse component of bend, glass edge engaging members are provided closely adjacent to said outline mold to the outside thereof, means is provided to support said glass edge engaging members so that the upper edges thereof are located in position to abut the edge of one or more glass sheets as the latter sag toward said outline mold and to remove said glass edge engaging members suddenly and automatically from the vicinty of the edge of the supported glass sheets just before the glass sheets are lifted from said outline mold to said solid shaping mold to reduce edge distortion of the mold supported glass sheets.

Abstract: In shaping a pair of glass sheets simultaneously to a complicated shape including a longitudinal component of bend and a complicated transverse component of bend such as one that is S-shaped in elevation or other complicated shapes, the pair is sag bent in unison on an outline mold to sag bend the sheets to a shape approximating their longitudinal component of bend, then the pair of sag bent sheets is lifted on a solid mold having a complicated shape including said complicated transverse component of bend to impress said transverse component of bend (into engagement with an upper pressing mold of complementary curvature, if needed) and supported on said solid mold for the minimum time sufficient to develop said complicated shape.

Abstract: Reducing kink in the leading edge portion of tempered flat glass sheets by applying a downward flow of air across the entire width of the leading edge portion of the upper surface only of the glass sheet as the sheet passes the boundary region between the exit of a furnace or heating area and the entrance into a cooling area where both upper and lower surfaces of the sheet are cooled throughout their entire extent to impart at least a partial temper to the sheet.

Abstract: When glass sheets are shaped by a bending method in which the glass is first shaped to a longitudinal component of bend by gravity sagging onto an outline mold followed by press bending against a solid lower shaping mold to complete the bend which includes a complicated transverse component of bend, a particular speed cycle is provided to lift and lower the lower shaping mold to minimize the duration of the shaping cycle and to minimize the chance of misaligning the glass relative to the outline mold during transfer of the glass from the outline mold to the lower shaping mold and its return to the outline mold. This speed cycle includes a rapid initial lifting speed and final lowering speed of the lower shaping mold while it is out of contact with the glass and a lower speed of lifting and lowering when the lower shaping mold contacts and supports the glass.