Abstract: A transverse fan includes a pair of end plates each having an annular shape, a plurality of blades annularly disposed between the end plates and a plurality of partition plates each having an annular shape and disposed at intermediate portions of the blades. Each of the partition plates has one side surface to which base ends of the blades are integrally secured to extend forward with a predetermined inclination and form a multi-blade impeller. A plurality of the multi-blade impeller are stacked axially so that each of the partition plates has another one side surface to which leading ends of the blades of adjacent multi-blade impeller are connected, and one of the end plate has one surface to which the leading ends of the blades of a leading end side one of the stacked multi-blade impellers are connected and another one of the end plates has one surface to which the base ends of the blades of a base end side one of the stacked multi-blade impellers is secured.

Abstract: A transverse fan in which a plurality of blades are disposed between disk- or ring-shaped end plates in a circumferential arrangement at fixed mounting pitches in a ring-shaped configuration. Partitions plates are disposed at intermediate portions in the longitudinal direction of the blades such that each of the blades is inclined at fixed angles with respect to a fan axis and mounted at unequal pitches. The transverse fan includes a plurality of multi-bladed impeller units disposed between the disk-shaped end plates. Each of the multi-bladed impeller units has one disk-shaped partition plate having one surface on which a plurality of blades are integrally disposed along a circumferential direction thereof at unequal pitches and inclined at predetermined angles so as to extend along the axial direction of the transverse fan. A plurality of the multi-bladed impeller units are integrally stacked coaxially with each other to form the transverse-fan.

Abstract: An air flow supplied by a duct 10 adjacent a melt furnace 3 is normally directed downwardly through a plurality of nozzles 12 in the bottom of the duct towards a floor grate 13 or the like communicating with an exhaust duct 14, to thereby form a heat shielding air curtain 11 to protect the operator/controller. During the initial start-up period of the filament draw forming operation, however, a pivotal damper plate 15 adjacent the supply duct may be raised to deflect the air flow across the bottom of the orifice plate 4 of the melt furnace 3, to thereby cool the molten glass cones at the orifice exits and increase their viscosity, which serves to stabilize the filament forming conditions and prevent adjacent cones/filaments from converging together.