GB2090587A

GB2090587A - Immersion cage for acid polishing of glass articles

Info

Publication number: GB2090587A
Application number: GB8139107A
Authority: GB
Original assignee: WTB WIRTSCHAFTSGLAS VEB
Current assignee: WTB WIRTSCHAFTSGLAS VEB
Priority date: 1981-01-07
Filing date: 1981-12-30
Publication date: 1982-07-14
Also published as: FR2497507B3; DE3149486A1; FR2497507A1; DD156963B1; DD156963A1

Abstract

The immersion cage comprises a bottomless outer container (1) with at least one perforated side wall, an inner container (3) also having at least one perforated side wall and surrounded by container (1), pivoting means (5) enabling the container (3) which has a base grid (4) to tilt freely relatively to the container (1) about a horizontal axis (Figure 3), and immersion arms (7) linked to the immersion cage. The arms (7) are connectable with an automatic acid polishing drive means and a side wall of the container (3) is hingedly connected by thrust bars (9) with hinged connections (14) on the arms (7). The container (1) is connected with arms (7) by a traverse (10, 11) bridging side walls of container (1), the traverse consists of supporting members (10) fixed to the side walls of container (1) and a shaft (11) held by members (10), supporting rollers (6) being mounted on the shaft (11) so as to be freely rotatable, and U-shaped lugs (12) being disposed on the arms (7), which lugs (12) are closable so as to embrace the shaft (11) by bridging means (13, 18) displaceable in the direction of said arm (7) to close the U-shape. <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION An immersion cage for acid polishing of glass articles The present invention relates to an immersion cage for acid polishing of glass articles.

Such immersion cage is of the kind which is adapted to be operated by driving means of an automatic acid polishing machine when in use, and is especially intended to accommodate glass articles with retracted edges from which polishing liquid, when the articles are lifted out of the polishing bath, is prevented, partly owing to the retracted edge, from running off completely from the article.

In the case of a manual immersion process and articles with retracted edges the complete discharge of the polishing liquid is ensured by special or additional tilting of the immersion cages. The technology of acid polishing also includes a drum process in which the glass products are introduced into a rotating drum and conveyed in this manner through the acid bath.

This method involves an expensive and cumbersome drum apparatus and necessarily reduces the size of the production lots, besides limiting the possible range of patterns.

The purpose of the invention is to make it possible for specially shaped glass articles, which may, for example, have an edge retracted to a substantial distance, to be acid polished by automatic polishing plant, the input of the apparatus remaining within acceptable limits and the resultant polished article being of high quality, also resulting in a reduction in the proportion of wastage hitherto found to occur with such glass articles.

The basic intention is to enable the additional tilting, which has to be carried out by the etcher in manual operations, to be automated by means of a device in which glass articles with retracted edges or those of special shapes can likewise be substantially faultlessly polished.

In this invention the immersion cage includes inner and outer containers both connected via a traverse and also via an adjustable lever system with each other and with immersion arms, which immersion arms are connectable with driving means of an automatic acid polishing machine. In an especially favoured form of immersion cage embodying the invention, upon tilting of the containers on transfer from a polishing bath to a washing bath or after termination of a polishing operation the inner container is pivotable about a horizontal axis in relation to the outer container to a substantially vertically position, whereby with glass articles having retracted edges the treating medium is caused to run off the article substantially completely.

According to the present invention there is provided an immersion cage for acid polishing of glass articles, the cage comprising a bottomless outer container having at least one perforated side wall, an inner container surrounded by the outer container, the inner container having at least one perforated side wall and a base grid, pivoting means enabling the inner container to tilt freely relatively to the outer container about a horizontal axis when the immersion cage is in use, and immersion arms linked to the immersion cage, the immersion arms being connectable with driving means of an automatic acid polishing machine for acid polishing of glass articles, one of the side walls of the inner container being hingedly connected by means of thrust bars with hinged connections provided on the immersion arms, and the outer container being connected with the said immersion arms by a traverse bridging opposed side walls of the outer container, the traverse comprising supporting members, fixed to the outer container side walls, and a shaft held by the said supporting members, supporting rollers being mounted on the shaft so as to be freely rotatable, and U-shaped supporting lugs being disposed on the said immersion arms, the lugs being closable so as to embrace the shaft by briding means displaceable in the direction of said immersion arm to close the U-shape. The base grid may consist of inter-connected rounded bars; the inner container is suitably tiltable about spindles provided in opposed side wails of the outer container. Preferably the said bridging means comprise bolts secured by locking means.

The immersion cage is conveniently provided with a pressure grid cover for use in an acid polishing operation, the cover being adapted to be clamped against the traverse by means of a clamping wedge.

Advantageously, at least some parts of the immersion cage are made of an acid-resisting plastics material. Usually the said inner and outer containers are rectangular. In a convenient form of the invention the outer container has opposed perforated side walls and the inner container has opposed perforated side walls facing the opposed perforated side walls of the outer container.

By way of example a preferred form of immersion cage embodying this invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein: Figure 1 is a perspective view of an immersion cage, Figure 2 is a plan view of the immersion cage of Figure 1 to an enlarged scale covered with a pressure grid partly broken away, and Figure 3 is a sectional view of the immersion cage of Figure 1 showing the inner container tilted to a substantially vertical position.

The illustrated immersion cage is made up of an outer open-bottomed container 1, having perforated front and rear side walls and cornerreinforcing members 2, and of an inner container 3, likewise having perforated front and rear walls and also having a base grid 4 of interconnected bars of rounded cross-section.

All of the components 1-4 are made of acidproof plastics material. The inner container 3 is so dimensioned as to ensure that without touching the outer container 1 it will be tiltable relative to the outer container 1 by means of two spindles 5 provided on the sides of the containers 1, 3.

The outer container 1 is articulated by means of supporting rollers 6 to immersion arms 7 of a polishing machine (not shown).

By means of two joint connections 8 on one of the longitudinal sides of the inner container 3 the latter is connected via two thrust bars with the immersion arms 7 above the supporting rollers 6, by means of joint connections 14. The thrust bars 9 are interchangeable, so that different tilting angles between inner and outer containers are obtainable, according to the particular needs arising, by means of thrust bars 9 of varying lengths.

The outer container 1 is also provided with a traverse, consisting of supporting brackest 10 mounted on the side walls of the outer container 1 and a shaft 11 on which the supporting rollers 6 are rotatably mounted. The purpose of the supporting rollers 6 is to secure the immersion cage in relation to the immersion arms 7 and to fix it in position.

The connection between the containers 1,3 and the immersion arms 7 is effected by means of the traverse and the supporting rollers 6 situated thereon, via supporting lugs 12 which are open towards the top and which in each case are formed or welded onto the immersion arms 7.

In operation the supporting lugs 12 are connected at the top by bolts 13 displaceable in the direction of the immersion arms 7, the bolts 13 being secured by locking devices 18 on the immersion arm 7. To ensure that the contents of the cage will not float to the top during an immersion process the articles immersed therein are covered with a pressure grid 15 which is in its turn clamped against the traverse of the immersion cage by means of a clamping wedge 16 and bolts 17.

Claims

1. An immersion cage for acid polishing of glass articles, the cage comprising a bottomless outer container having at least one perforated side wall, an inner container surrounded by the outer container, the inner container having at least one perforated side wall and a base grid, pivoting means enabling the inner container to tilt freely relativeiy to the outer container about a horizontal axis when the immersion cage in use, and immersion arms linked to the immersion cage, the immersion arms being connectable with driving means of an automatic acid polishing machine for acid polishing of glass articles, one of the side walls of the inner container being connectable with driving means of an automatic acid polishing machine for acid polishing of glass articles, one of the side wall of the inner container being hingedly connected by means of thrust bars with hinged connections provided on the immersion arms, and the outer container being connected with the said immersion arms by a traverse bridging, opposed side walls of the outer container, the traverse comprising supporting members, fixed to the outer container side walls, and a shaft held by the said supporting members, supporting rollers being mounted on the shaft so as to be freely rotatable, and U-shaped supporting lugs being disposed on the said immersion arms, the lugs being closable so as to embrade the shaft by bridging means displaceable in the direction of said immersion arm to close the U-shape.

2. An immersion cage according to Claim 1, wherein the base grid consists of interconnected rounded bars.

3. An immersion cage according to Claim 1 to Claim 2, wherein the inner container is tiltable about spindles provided in opposed side walls of the outer container.

4. An immersion cage according to any preceding claim, wherein the said bridging means comprise bolts secured by locking means.

5. An immersion cage according to any preceding claim, which is provided with a pressure grid cover for use in an acid polishing operation, the cover being adapted to be clamped against the traverse by means of a clamping wedge.

6. An immersion cage according to any preceding claim, wherein at least some parts thereof are made of an acid-resisting plastics material.

7. An immersion cage according to any preceding claim, wherein the said inner and outer containers are rectangular.

8. An immersion cage according to any preceding claim, wherein the outer container has opposed perforated side walls and the inner container has opposed perforated side wails facing the opposed perforated side walls of the outer container.

9. An immersion cage for acid polishing of glass articles substantially as herein described with reference to and as shown by Figures 1 and 3 or Figures 1, 2 and 3 of the accompanying drawings.