CN216104475U

CN216104475U - Glass plate manufacturing device

Info

Publication number: CN216104475U
Application number: CN201990000997.7U
Authority: CN
Inventors: 鉴继薰; 中塚弘树
Original assignee: Nippon Electric Glass Co Ltd
Current assignee: Nippon Electric Glass Co Ltd
Priority date: 2018-09-07
Filing date: 2019-08-20
Publication date: 2022-03-22
Anticipated expiration: 2029-08-20
Also published as: TW202019796A; WO2020050010A1; JP2020040757A

Abstract

The glass plate manufacturing device is provided with a conveying device (14) for conveying glass plates (G), wherein the conveying device (14) is provided with: a shaft (32) for conveyance; a bearing (33) that supports the shaft (32); a housing chamber (34) that houses the bearing (33); a supply path (36) for supplying the lubricant liquid (35) to the housing chamber (34); and a discharge passage (37) for discharging the lubricating liquid (35) from the housing chamber (34). The conveying device (14) with the above structure is configured to be capable of discharging the gas (38) in the housing chamber (34) together with the lubricating liquid (35) from the housing chamber (34) through the discharge passage (37).

Description

Glass plate manufacturing device

Technical Field

The present invention relates to a glass plate manufacturing apparatus, and more particularly to a technique for preventing dust and other contaminants generated during conveyance of a glass plate from adhering to the surface of the glass plate.

Background

In the production of a glass plate represented by a glass substrate for a liquid crystal display, for example, a glass plate cut out from a molded glass original plate (molded original plate) is subjected to a process such as an end face process, and then the glass plate is cleaned, and a cleaning liquid adhering to the surface of the glass plate at the time of cleaning is removed (removed) by blowing air to dry the glass plate (see, for example, patent document 1). When the above-described treatment is performed on the glass sheet, the glass sheet is conveyed in the drying chamber by a conveying device such as a roller conveyor.

In addition, such a conveying apparatus is generally configured to support a shaft for conveyance having a roller by a bearing. Therefore, dust generation from the bearings becomes a problem with the conveyance of the glass sheet. Then, patent document 2 proposes the following: a part of the bearing is immersed in a liquid for the purpose of suppressing dust and capturing dust, and a cover for covering the bearing is attached around the bearing for the purpose of preventing scattering of dust to the glass plate.

Documents of the prior art

Patent document

Patent document 1: japanese patent laid-open No. 2014-38914

Patent document 2: japanese patent laid-open publication No. 2002-347928

SUMMERY OF THE UTILITY MODEL

Problem to be solved by utility model

However, even if the cover is attached around the bearing as in patent document 2, an inevitable gap is generated between the shaft supported by the bearing and the cover, and there is a risk that the dust leaks out of the cover. Therefore, it is difficult to prevent the dust from adhering to the surface of the glass sheet during conveyance.

In view of the above circumstances, a technical problem to be solved is to provide a glass sheet having excellent surface quality by preventing dust generated during conveyance of the glass sheet from adhering to the surface of the glass sheet.

Means for solving the problems

The above object is achieved by the glass plate manufacturing apparatus of the present invention. That is, the manufacturing apparatus is a glass plate manufacturing apparatus including a conveying apparatus for conveying a glass plate, and is characterized in that the conveying apparatus includes: a shaft for conveyance; a bearing that supports the shaft; a housing chamber for housing the bearing; a supply path for supplying the lubricant liquid to the housing chamber; and a discharge path through which the lubricating liquid is discharged from the housing chamber, and the conveying device is capable of discharging the gas in the housing chamber together with the lubricating liquid from the housing chamber through the discharge path, wherein a suction device that sucks the gas is disposed on an outlet side of the discharge path.

In this way, in the glass plate manufacturing apparatus of the present invention, the discharge path for discharging the lubricating liquid from the housing chamber of the bearing is provided, and the gas in the housing chamber can be discharged from the housing chamber together with the lubricating liquid through the discharge path. According to this configuration, not only the dust-forming substance captured by the lubricating liquid but also the dust-forming substance floating in the housing chamber (not captured by the lubricating liquid) can be removed from the housing chamber. This can effectively prevent the dust floating in the storage chamber from leaking out of the storage chamber and adhering to the glass plate during conveyance. Further, since the gas volume in the housing chamber can be brought into contact with the lubricating liquid as much as possible by generating the flow of the gas toward the discharge passage, the effect of capturing the dust-laden material by the lubricating liquid can be enhanced. Naturally, since the supply path and the discharge path of the lubricating liquid are provided in the housing chamber, a state is formed in which the clean lubricating liquid is always present in the housing chamber, and therefore, a stable effect of capturing the dust can be obtained.

It is also conceivable to provide a separate exhaust passage for discharging the gas in the housing chamber and a separate discharge passage for discharging the lubricating liquid, but in this case, a new exhaust passage having the same number as the number of discharge passages is required, and the number of pipes increases (doubles), which complicates the piping system. In addition, the dust is easily attached to and accumulated in a pipe constituting an exhaust passage for discharging the gas. In contrast, in the apparatus for manufacturing a glass sheet according to the present invention, since the exhaust passage is shared with the discharge passage, the number of pipes can be significantly reduced as compared with a case where the exhaust passage is provided separately from the discharge passage. The dust adhering to the discharge passage flows through the discharged lubricating liquid and is discharged together with the lubricating liquid. Therefore, the complication of the piping system and the accumulation of the dust at the discharge passage can be avoided, and the adhesion of the dust to the glass plate can be prevented.

In the glass plate manufacturing apparatus according to the present invention, a suction device may be disposed on an outlet side of the discharge passage, and the suction device may suck gas. In this case, a gas-liquid separation tank for separating the lubricating liquid from the gas by a difference in specific gravity between the lubricating liquid and the gas may be disposed between the discharge passage and the suction device.

By providing the suction device on the outlet side of the discharge passage and providing the gas-liquid separation tank between the discharge passage and the suction device in this manner, the lubricant liquid and the gas in the storage chamber can be efficiently discharged separately with a simple configuration. Further, since the lubricating liquid and the gas are discharged in a state separated from each other, the lubricating liquid can be recycled by circulating the lubricating liquid, and the amount of the lubricating liquid used can be reduced, which is economical.

In the glass plate manufacturing apparatus of the present invention, a plurality of housing chambers may be disposed, and the gas-liquid separation tank may be connected to each of the plurality of housing chambers through the discharge passage.

By adopting a configuration in which a plurality of housing chambers are connected to one gas-liquid separation tank in this manner, the number of pipes other than the discharge path connected to the gas-liquid separation tank can be significantly reduced as compared with a case in which one gas-liquid separation tank is provided for each housing chamber. Thus, further simplification of the piping system can be achieved.

In the glass plate manufacturing apparatus of the present invention, the discharge path may be connected to the bottom surface of the storage chamber.

By connecting the discharge path to the bottom surface of the housing chamber in this manner, the lubricating liquid can smoothly flow down by its own weight and be discharged from the housing chamber. Therefore, the load on the suction device and the like can be reduced, and the lubricating liquid can be easily discharged.

In the glass plate manufacturing apparatus of the present invention, the cross-sectional area of the suction passage may be larger than the cross-sectional area of the supply passage.

By thus making the cross-sectional area of the supply passage relatively small and the cross-sectional area of the discharge passage relatively large, the flow of the lubricating liquid in the housing chamber can be made good, and the stagnation of the lubricating liquid in the housing chamber can be avoided. Therefore, the effect of trapping the dust-forming substances by the lubricating liquid can be effectively obtained, and the adhesion and accumulation of the dust-forming substances to the inner surface of the pipe can be prevented as much as possible. Naturally, the larger the cross-sectional area of the discharge passage, the more easily both the lubricant and the gas discharge paths are ensured, and therefore, this is preferable in that the dust can be smoothly discharged.

As described above, the apparatus for manufacturing a glass sheet according to the present invention can prevent the adhesion of dust generated from the bearing that supports the shaft for conveying the glass sheet to the surface of the glass sheet, and is therefore preferable when the conveying apparatus is disposed in a drying chamber having an air knife, for example.

The above object can be achieved by the method for producing a glass sheet of the present invention. That is, the manufacturing method is a manufacturing method of a glass plate, which includes a conveying step of conveying the glass plate, and is characterized in that the glass plate is conveyed in the conveying step by using a conveying device provided in the manufacturing apparatus.

In this way, the method for manufacturing a glass sheet according to the present invention conveys a glass sheet by using the above-described conveying device in the conveying step. Therefore, the complication of the piping system and the accumulation of the dust at the discharge passage can be avoided, and the adhesion of the dust to the glass plate can be prevented.

Effect of the utility model

As described above, according to the present invention, it is possible to provide a glass sheet having excellent surface quality by preventing dust generated during conveyance of the glass sheet from adhering to the surface of the glass sheet.

Drawings

Fig. 1 is a side view of a glass plate washing and drying apparatus according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 2 is a sectional view a-a of the carrying device shown in fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is another sectional view a-a of fig. 1 for explaining an example of use of the conveying apparatus shown in fig. 2.

Fig. 4 is a B-B sectional view of the carrying device shown in fig. 2.

Fig. 5 is a sectional view a-a of a conveying apparatus according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

Detailed Description

The first embodiment of the present invention is explained below.

The method for manufacturing a glass plate according to the present embodiment includes, for example, a processing step of applying a predetermined process such as cutting or polishing to the glass plate, a cleaning step of cleaning the glass plate to which the predetermined process is applied, and a drying step of removing the cleaning liquid adhering to the cleaned glass plate and drying the glass plate, and further includes a conveying step of conveying the glass plate for the purpose of carrying in and out the glass plate in the series of operation steps. In this case, the glass plate manufacturing apparatus according to the present embodiment includes a glass plate processing device, a cleaning and drying device, and a conveying device. Hereinafter, the matters related to the cleaning step and the drying step will be described first, and the matters related to the conveying step will be described later.

Fig. 1 is a side view showing the overall configuration of a cleaning and drying apparatus 10 used in a cleaning step and a drying step in an apparatus for manufacturing a glass sheet according to the present invention. As shown in fig. 1, the cleaning and drying apparatus 10 includes a cleaning chamber 11 and a drying chamber 12, and a conveyance path 13 for the glass sheet G is provided so as to traverse the cleaning chamber 11 and the drying chamber 12. In this case, a conveyance device 14 is disposed in the cleaning chamber 11 and the drying chamber 12, and the conveyance device 14 conveys the glass sheet G along the conveyance path 13.

In the present embodiment, the cleaning processing chamber 11 has a first cleaning chamber 15 and a second cleaning chamber 16. The first cleaning chamber 15 has a cleaning roller 17, and the cleaning roller 17 wipes the surfaces Ga and Ga of the glass sheet G to remove contaminants such as foreign matters adhering to the surfaces Ga and Ga. In the present embodiment, a pair of upper and

lower cleaning rollers

17, 17 are disposed at positions facing each other across the conveyance path 13 for the glass sheet G.

In addition, a cleaning liquid supply device 18 is disposed in the first cleaning chamber 15. In this case, the orientation, the width-directional dimension, the supply flow rate, and the like of the supply port (not shown) of the cleaning liquid supply device 18 are set so that the cleaning liquid 19 is supplied to the entire regions of the surfaces Ga, Ga of the glass sheet G passing through the conveyance path 13. The "width direction" in the present embodiment is a direction that coincides with the width direction of the glass sheet G conveyed on the conveying path 13.

The second cleaning chamber 16 is located downstream of the first cleaning chamber 15 in the conveyance path 13, and includes a rinse liquid supply device 21, and the rinse liquid supply device 21 supplies a rinse liquid (cleaning liquid) 20 to the surfaces Ga, Ga of the glass sheet G conveyed from the first cleaning chamber 15 into the second cleaning chamber 16. In this case, the orientation, the width dimension, the supply flow rate, and the like of the supply port (not shown) of the rinse liquid supply device 21 are also set so that the rinse liquid 20 is supplied to the entire regions of the surfaces Ga and Ga of the glass sheet G passing through the conveyance path 13.

The drying chamber 12 includes a dehumidifying chamber 22 and a first drying chamber 23, and the first drying chamber 23 is located on the downstream side of the dehumidifying chamber 22 in the conveyance path 13. In the present embodiment, the drying chamber 12 further includes a second drying chamber 24 on the downstream side of the first drying chamber 23 in the conveyance path 13. A partition 25 is provided between the dehumidifying chamber 22 and the first drying chamber 23. This restricts the inflow of the ambient gas and the like in the dehumidifying chamber 22 into the first drying chamber 23.

A gas blowing device 27 is disposed in the first drying chamber 23, and the gas blowing device 27 is used for blowing a predetermined gas 26 (for example, clean and dry air) toward the surfaces Ga and Ga of the glass plate G carried into the first drying chamber 23. In the present embodiment, the gas blowing device 27 is a pair of upper and lower air knives 28, and the conveyance path 13 for the glass sheet G is located between the pair of

air knives

28, 28. Here, the width-directional dimension of the supply port 28a of each air knife 28 is set to a size that allows the gas 26 to be blown over the entire area of the surfaces Ga, Ga of the glass sheet G passing between the pair of

air knives

28, 28. The angle of the supply port 28a of each air knife 28 is set to a size that allows the gas 26 to be blown onto the surface Ga of the glass sheet G from the first drying chamber 23 side toward the dehumidifying chamber 22 side.

A partition 29 is provided between the first drying chamber 23 and the second drying chamber 24. This divides the internal space of the first drying chamber 23 and the internal space of the second drying chamber 24, and therefore, the inflow of the ambient gas and the like in the first drying chamber 23 into the second drying chamber 24 is restricted. Therefore, the cleanliness of the second drying chamber 24 can be made higher than that of the first drying chamber 23.

A gas blowing device 30 is disposed in the second drying chamber 24, and the gas blowing device 30 is used for blowing the predetermined gas 26 toward the surfaces Ga, Ga of the glass sheet G carried into the second drying chamber 24. In the present embodiment, the gas blowing device 30 is a pair of upper and lower air knives 31, and the conveyance path 13 of the glass sheet G is positioned between the pair of

air knives

31, 31. Here, the width-directional dimension of the supply port 31a of each air knife 31 is set to a size that allows the gas 26 to be blown over the entire area of the surfaces Ga, Ga of the glass sheet G passing between the pair of

air knives

31, 31. The angle of the supply port 31a of each air knife 31 is set to a size that allows the gas 26 to be blown onto the surface Ga of the glass sheet G from the second drying chamber 24 side toward the first drying chamber 23 side.

Fig. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view of the conveying device 14 as viewed from the conveying direction (in fig. 1, the direction of arrow a). As shown in fig. 2, the conveying device 14 includes: a shaft 32 for conveying the glass plate G; a bearing 33 for supporting the shaft 32; a housing chamber 34 for housing the bearing 33; a supply path 36 for supplying the lubricant liquid 35 to the housing chamber 34; and a discharge passage 37 for discharging the lubricating liquid 35 from the housing chamber 34. In the present embodiment, the conveying device 14 further includes: a suction device 39 for sucking the gas 38 in the storage chamber 34; a gas-liquid separation tank 40 as a gas-liquid separation device for separating the lubricating liquid 35 and the gas 38; a tank 41; a pump 42 for pressure-feed; and a filter 43. The housing chamber 34 is disposed inside the drying chamber 12, and the suction device 39, the gas-liquid separation tank 40, the tank 41, the pump 42, and the filter 43 are disposed outside the drying chamber 12.

The shaft 32 directly or indirectly supports the glass sheet G. In the present embodiment, a roller 44 is attached to the outer periphery of the shaft 32, and the glass sheet G is supported by the roller 44. The shafts 32 configured as described above are disposed along the conveyance path 13 of the glass sheet G (see fig. 1). A driving device such as a motor, not shown, is connected to a part of the plurality of shafts 32, and the driving device drives the part of the shafts 32 to rotate, thereby applying a conveying force in the direction along the conveying path 13 to the glass sheet G supported by the rollers 44. In fig. 1, the components of the conveying device 14 other than the shaft 32 are not shown. In fig. 2, the components other than the conveyance device 14 (i.e., the components of the cleaning chamber 11 and the drying chamber 12) are not shown.

The bearing 33 is, for example, a liquid lubrication type bearing, and is disposed inside the housing chamber 34. In the present embodiment, the bearing 33 is fixed to the housing 45 constituting the housing chamber 34 via the mounting base 46.

The supply passage 36 is used to supply the lubricating liquid 35 to the internal space of the housing chamber 34, and is connected to the housing chamber 34. In the present embodiment, as shown in fig. 2, the supply path 36 is connected to the bottom surface 34a of the storage chamber 34.

A pump 42 is connected to the upstream side of the supply passage 36 via a filter 43. A tank 41 in which the lubricating liquid 35 is stored is provided upstream of the pump 42, and the pump 42 is connected to the tank 41. Thereby, the lubricant liquid 35 in the tank 41 is pressure-fed by the pump 42 toward the housing chamber 34, and the pressure-fed lubricant liquid 35 flows into the housing chamber 34 through the supply path 36 (see fig. 3 described later).

A discharge passage 37 is connected to the housing chamber 34. The conveyance device 14 provided with the discharge path 37 is configured to: the lubricant liquid 35 in the housing chamber 34 is discharged from the housing chamber 34 through the discharge passage 37, and the gas 38 in the housing chamber 34 is discharged from the housing chamber 34 through the discharge passage 37.

Here, the discharge path 37 is formed of, for example, a tubular body having a regular circular cross section, and is connected to the bottom surface 34a of the storage chamber 34. Here, the cross-sectional area S1 of the discharge passage 37 is set larger than the cross-sectional area S2 of the supply passage 36, for example.

A suction device 39 capable of sucking the gas 38 is disposed on the outlet side (downstream side) of the discharge passage 37. Further, a gas-liquid separation tank 40 is disposed between the suction device 39 and the discharge path 37, and the gas-liquid separation tank 40 serves as a gas-liquid separation device for separating the lubricating liquid 35 and the gas 38. In the present embodiment, the discharge passage 37 is connected to the top surface 40a of the gas-liquid separation tank 40, and the inlet side (upstream side) of the exhaust passage 47 is connected to the side surface 40b of the gas-liquid separation tank 40. The outlet side (downstream side) of the exhaust passage 47 is connected to the suction device 39. A drain line 48 is connected to the bottom surface 40c of the gas-liquid separation tank 40, and a tank 41 having an open upper portion is disposed below the drain line 48. Thus, the lubricating liquid 35 that has reached the gas-liquid separation tank 40 through the discharge passage 37 is held in the lower space 40d of the gas-liquid separation tank 40, and the lubricating liquid 35 in the held state can be returned to the tank 41 through the discharge passage 48. The gas 38 that has reached the gas-liquid separation tank 40 through the discharge passage 37 is sucked by the suction device 39 and can be discharged from the gas-liquid separation tank 40 through the exhaust passage 47.

In the present embodiment, as shown in fig. 4, the plurality of storage chambers 34 are arranged along the conveyance path 13, and one gas-liquid separation tank 40 is connected to each of the plurality of storage chambers 34 via the discharge passage 37. A suction device 39 is connected to the gas-liquid separation tank 40 via a gas discharge path 47. Although not shown, when the bearings 33 are disposed on both sides of the shaft 32 in the longitudinal direction, the above-described connection mode may be formed not only in the housing chamber 34 housing the bearing 33 on one side in the longitudinal direction but also in the housing chamber housing the bearing on the other side in the longitudinal direction. That is, one gas-liquid separation tank may be connected to each of the plurality of housing chambers that house the bearings on the other longitudinal side of the shaft 32 via the discharge passage. The liquid discharge passage 48 may be provided in only one or a plurality of the gas-liquid separation tanks 40.

Next, an example of a conveying process using the conveying device 14 having the above-described configuration will be described.

In this conveying step, the glass sheet G subjected to the predetermined processing (at least one of the end surface processing, the surface treatment, and the like) in the processing step is conveyed along the conveying path 13 by the conveying device 14. In the example shown in fig. 1, first, the glass sheet G is carried into the first cleaning chamber 15 of the cleaning and drying apparatus 10 located on the upstream side of the conveyance path 13. While being transported downstream in the first cleaning chamber 15, the cleaning liquid 19 is supplied from the cleaning

liquid supply devices

18 and 18 to the surfaces Ga and Ga of the glass sheet G, and the surfaces Ga and Ga of the glass sheet G are wiped by the cleaning

rollers

17 and 17. This wipes off foreign matter such as particles adhering to the surfaces Ga and Ga. Then, the glass sheet G is carried into the second cleaning chamber 16 by the carrying device 14. While the glass sheets are conveyed downstream in the second cleaning chamber 16, the rinse liquid 20 is supplied from the rinse liquid supply device 21 to the surfaces Ga and Ga of the glass sheets G, and the foreign matters and the rinse liquid 19 on the surfaces Ga and Ga of the glass sheets G are washed away. Then, the glass sheet G is carried out of the second cleaning chamber 16 by the carrying device 14.

After the above-described cleaning step, the glass plate G is carried into the dehumidifying chamber 22 of the drying chamber 12 by the carrying device 14. Immediately before being carried from the dehumidifying chamber 22 into the first drying chamber 23, the gas 26 is blown from the pair of

gas knives

28, 28 as the gas blowing means 27 toward the surfaces Ga, Ga of the glass sheet G. This blows off the rinse liquid 20 (a small amount of the cleaning liquid 19 may be present) remaining on the surfaces Ga, Ga of the glass sheet G and foreign matter including fine particles.

Then, the glass sheet G after being removed from the liquid is carried out of the first drying chamber 23 and carried into the second drying chamber 24 by the carrying device 14. Then, immediately before the glass sheet G is carried into the second drying chamber 24, the gas 26 is blown from the pair of

air knives

31, 31 as the gas blowing means 30 toward the surfaces Ga, Ga of the glass sheet G. This blows off foreign matter including particles and the rinse liquid 20 remaining on the surfaces Ga, Ga of the glass sheet G. As described above, by removing the foreign matters including the rinse liquid 20 and the fine particles, the surfaces Ga and Ga of the glass plate G are cleaned and dried. The glass sheet G subjected to the above-described cleaning and drying processes is carried out of the second drying chamber 24 by the carrying device 14.

When the glass sheet G is conveyed by the conveying device 14 as described above, the shaft 32 is rotatably supported by the bearing 33. While the shaft 32 is rotatably supported by the bearing 33, the bearing 33 is in a liquid lubrication state. Specifically, when the shaft 32 rotates, the pump 42 shown in fig. 3 is driven to pump the lubricant liquid 35 stored in the tank 41 toward the housing chamber 34. The lubricant 35 that is pressure-fed flows into the housing chamber 34 through the supply passage 36, and contacts a part of the bearing 33 (here, the bottom of the bearing 33 is in a state of being wetted with the lubricant 35). Thereby, the bearing 33 is in a liquid lubrication state. The lubricating liquid 35 that has flowed into the housing chamber 34 flows on the bottom surface 34a of the housing chamber 34, and is discharged from the housing chamber 34 through a discharge passage 37 connected to the bottom surface 34 a. At this time, the flow rate of the lubricating liquid 35 into the housing chamber 34 per unit time is adjusted, and the flow rate of the lubricating liquid 35 out of the housing chamber 34 per unit time is adjusted, whereby the flow pattern of the lubricating liquid 35 in the housing chamber 34 is set to a predetermined pattern. By adjusting the inflow amount and the outflow amount of the lubricating liquid 35 as described above, for example, the liquid surface height h (see fig. 3) of the lubricating liquid 35 stored at the bottom of the housing chamber 34 is maintained at a predetermined level.

At this time, as shown in fig. 3, the lubricant liquid 35 in the form of a layer formed on the bottom surface 34a is discharged through the discharge path 37, and the suction device 39 disposed on the downstream side of the discharge path 37 is driven to suck the space communicating with the discharge path 47, thereby discharging the gas 38 in the housing chamber 34 through the discharge path 37. In this case, the lubricating liquid 35 passes through a region of a part of the discharge passage 37 (for example, a peripheral portion 37a shown in fig. 3), and the gas 38 passes through a region of the remaining part of the discharge passage 37 (for example, a central portion 37b shown in fig. 3). The above-described manner of flowing the lubricating liquid 35 and the manner of discharging the lubricating liquid 35 and the gas 38 can be achieved by adjusting, for example, the discharge amount of the pump 42, the cross-sectional area S2 of the supply passage 36, the cross-sectional area S1 of the discharge passage 37, the suction amount of the suction device 39, the volume of the housing chamber 34, the volume of the gas-liquid separation tank 40, and the like.

The lubricating liquid 35 discharged from the housing chamber 34 through the discharge passage 37 is introduced into the gas-liquid separation tank 40 together with the gas 38. Here, since there is a large difference in specific gravity between the lubricating liquid 35 and the gas 38, the lubricating liquid 35 introduced into the gas-liquid separation tank 40 falls due to its own weight and is held in the lower space 40d of the gas-liquid separation tank 40. In contrast, the gas 38 introduced into the gas-liquid separation tank 40 is held in the upper space 40e of the gas-liquid separation tank 40. The lubricating liquid 35 held in the lower space 40d is discharged from the gas-liquid separation tank 40 through a liquid discharge passage 48 connected to the bottom surface 40c of the gas-liquid separation tank 40, and the gas 38 held in the upper space 40e is discharged from the gas-liquid separation tank 40 through an exhaust passage 47 connected to the side surface 40b of the gas-liquid separation tank 40.

The lubricating liquid 35 discharged through the liquid discharge passage 48 falls toward the tank 41. The lubricating liquid 35 dropped into the tank 41 is pumped by the pump 42, and is supplied again into the housing chamber 34 through the supply path 36. By capturing the dust in the lubricating liquid 35 with the filter 43 disposed between the pump 42 and the supply path 36, the clean lubricating liquid 35 having substantially no dust or a lower content of dust than that when passing through the discharge path 37 flows into the housing chamber 34. In this way, the lubricating liquid 35 is recycled.

As described above, in the apparatus and method for manufacturing a glass plate according to the present invention, the lubricant liquid 35 is supplied to the housing chamber 34 of the bearing 33, and the gas 38 in the housing chamber 34 can be discharged from the housing chamber 34 together with the lubricant liquid 35 through the discharge passage 37. According to this configuration, not only the dust captured by the lubricating liquid 35 but also the dust floating in the housing chamber 34 can be removed from the housing chamber 34. This can effectively prevent the dust floating in the housing chamber 34 from leaking out of the housing chamber 34 and adhering to the glass sheet G during conveyance. Further, since the gas 38 in the housing chamber 34 can be actively brought into contact with the lubricating liquid 35 by generating the flow of the gas 38 toward the discharge passage 37 (see fig. 3), the effect of trapping the dust-laden material by the lubricating liquid 35 can be enhanced. Naturally, since the supply path 36 and the discharge path 37 of the lubricating liquid 35 are provided in the housing chamber 34, the clean lubricating liquid 35 is always present in the housing chamber 34, and thus a stable trapping effect can be obtained. As described above, according to the method and apparatus for manufacturing a glass sheet of the present invention, it is possible to prevent the adhesion of dust generated during the conveyance of the glass sheet G to the surface Ga of the glass sheet G, and to provide a glass sheet G having excellent surface quality.

Further, by sucking the inside of the housing chamber 34 by the suction device 39 as in the present embodiment, not only the gas 38 inside the housing chamber 34 can be discharged through the discharge passage 37, but also a flow of the gas 38 from the outside of the housing chamber 34 to the inside of the housing chamber 34 through the gap between the housing 45 of the housing chamber 34 and the shaft 32 can be generated (see fig. 3). This can more effectively prevent the dust from leaking out of the housing chamber 34.

In the present embodiment, since the gas-liquid separation tank 40 for separating the lubricating liquid 35 from the gas 38 is disposed between the discharge path 37 and the suction device 39, the lubricating liquid 35 and the gas 38 in the housing chamber 34 can be efficiently discharged with a simple configuration. Further, since the lubricating liquid 35 and the gas 38 are discharged in a state separated from each other, the lubricating liquid 35 can be recycled by circulating or the like (see fig. 3), and therefore, the amount of the lubricating liquid 35 used can be reduced, which is economical. Further, since the lubricant liquid 35 can be circulated smoothly in the housing chamber 34 by circulating the lubricant liquid 35, the adhesion and accumulation of dust on the corner portions of the housing chamber 34, the inner surface of the discharge passage 37, and the like can be effectively prevented.

The first embodiment of the present invention has been described above, but the apparatus and method for manufacturing a glass plate of the present invention are not limited to the above-described exemplary embodiments. The manufacturing apparatus and the manufacturing method can take various forms within the scope of the present invention.

Fig. 5 is a sectional view of a conveying device 50 according to a second embodiment of the present invention. The conveying device 50 differs from the conveying device 14 shown in fig. 2 in the following points: the carrying device 50 omits the tank 41 disposed between the gas-liquid separation tank 40 and the pump 42, and connects the gas-liquid separation tank 40 and the pump 42 so that the lubricating liquid 35 can be supplied from the gas-liquid separation tank 40 to the pump 42. That is, in the carrying device 50 of the present embodiment, the lower space 40d of the gas-liquid separation tank 40 always stores a predetermined amount of the lubricating liquid 35, and also functions as the tank 41 of the first embodiment. On the other hand, the exhaust passage 47 connected to the suction device 39 is always opened to the upper space 40e of the gas-liquid separation tank 40, and thereby the lubricating liquid 35 and the gas 38 can be separated from each other by the gas-liquid separation tank 40. In this case, the gas-liquid separation tank 40 and the pump 42 are connected via the drainage path 48. Therefore, the lubricant liquid 35 discharged from the gas-liquid separation tank 40 is pumped by the pump 42, and flows into the housing chamber 34 again through the supply passage 36. Since the other structures are the same as those of the first embodiment, detailed description thereof is omitted here.

As described above, according to the conveying device 50 of the present embodiment, the gas 38 in the housing chamber 34 is discharged from the housing chamber 34 together with the lubricating liquid 35 through the discharge passage 37, and thus not only the dust-off material captured by the lubricating liquid 35 but also the dust-off material floating in the housing chamber 34 can be discharged from the housing chamber 34. Thus, as in the first embodiment, it is possible to effectively prevent the dust particles floating in the housing chamber 34 from leaking out of the housing chamber 34 and adhering to the glass sheet G being conveyed. In addition, in the conveying device 50, the tank 41 is omitted, and the lubricating liquid 35 can be circulated and used, so that the above-described operational effects can be effectively enjoyed, and the piping system of the conveying device 50 can be further simplified.

In the above embodiment, the case where the lubricating liquid 35 passes through the peripheral edge portion 37a of the discharge passage 37 and the gas 38 passes through the central portion 37b of the discharge passage 37 when the gas 38 in the housing chamber 34 is discharged together with the lubricating liquid 35 through the discharge passage 37 has been exemplified, but the present invention is not limited to this embodiment. As long as the lubricating liquid 35 and the gas 38 can pass through the discharge passage 37 together, the discharge modes of the lubricating liquid 35 and the gas 38 can be set arbitrarily. Further, the form of the discharge passage 37 may be changed for this purpose.

In the above-described embodiment, the rollers 44 are attached to the outer peripheries of the shafts 32 constituting the conveying

devices

14 and 50, and the glass sheet G is supported by the rollers 44, but the shafts 32 may have other forms. That is, the present invention may be applied to the shaft 32 that directly contacts and supports the glass sheet G, or may be applied to the shaft 32 that drives a member such as a conveyor belt having the roller 44 and a conveyance surface other than the outer peripheral surface of the shaft 32. It is important that any shaft 32 related to the conveyance of the glass sheet G can be applied to the present invention.

In the above description, the case where the conveying

devices

14 and 50 of the present invention can carry in and out the glass sheet G in the cleaning step and the drying step has been exemplified, but the present invention can be applied to a case where the glass sheet G is carried in and out in a step related to the production of the glass sheet G other than the cleaning step and the drying step, or the glass sheet G is conveyed between the plurality of steps.

Claims

1. A glass plate manufacturing apparatus including a conveying device for conveying a glass plate,

the conveying device is provided with:

a shaft for conveyance;

a bearing that supports the shaft;

a housing chamber that houses the bearing;

a supply path for supplying the lubricant to the housing chamber; and

a discharge path for discharging the lubricating liquid from the housing chamber and discharging the lubricating liquid

The carrying device can discharge the gas in the housing chamber together with the lubricating liquid from the housing chamber through the discharge passage,

a suction device is disposed on an outlet side of the discharge passage, and the suction device sucks the gas.

2. The glass-sheet manufacturing apparatus according to claim 1,

a gas-liquid separation tank is disposed between the discharge passage and the suction device, and separates the lubricating liquid from the gas by a difference in specific gravity between the lubricating liquid and the gas.

3. The glass-sheet manufacturing apparatus according to claim 2,

the apparatus for manufacturing a glass sheet is provided with a plurality of the housing chambers, and the gas-liquid separation tank is connected to each of the plurality of housing chambers through the discharge passage.

4. The apparatus for manufacturing glass sheet according to any of claims 1 to 3,

the discharge passage is connected to a bottom surface of the storage chamber.

5. The apparatus for manufacturing glass sheet according to any of claims 1 to 3,

the cross-sectional area of the discharge passage is larger than the cross-sectional area of the supply passage.

6. The apparatus for manufacturing glass sheet according to any of claims 1 to 3,

the carrying device is arranged in a drying chamber with an air knife.