JP2005162604A - Method and apparatus for manufacturing plate glass - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To attempt the simplification or the like of equipment; to enable a supporting means for holding plate glass at the time of its separation to quickly move toward a glass ribbon from the time at which the supporting means is released from its holding; and to achieve the increase in glass forming speed and the enhancement of productivity. <P>SOLUTION: A plate glass manufacturing apparatus 1 equipped with the following is provided: a scriber (a carving means) 3 for carving a separation line on a continuously descending glass ribbon 2; a separation means 4 for separating plate glass 2a from the glass ribbon 2 with the separation line as the border; and a conveying means 5 which holds and conveys the plate glass 2a delivered by a supporting means 9 (which is a constituent of the separating means 4) to a position apart from the glass ribbon 2. The supporting means 9 consists of two parts, one arranged at one end side and the other at the other end side in the width direction of the plate glass 2a. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2005,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a method for manufacturing a glass plate and an apparatus therefor, and more particularly to an improvement in a glass plate manufacturing technique having a step or means for separating a glass plate from a continuously descending glass ribbon with a separation line as a boundary.

  2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, flat display devices such as liquid crystal display devices have rapidly spread due to the increase in the size of display screens and price reduction. Therefore, a large display screen is realized by increasing the size of a glass substrate (glass plate) used in a flat display device to form a large display panel, and a plurality of display panels are formed on the enlarged glass substrate and then separated. The manufacturing cost is greatly reduced by adopting the process.

  As a method of manufacturing a glass substrate for such a flat display device, a float method in which molten glass is drawn out in a horizontal direction and formed on a molten metal bath such as tin, as in the case of manufacturing a window glass plate, An up draw method in which glass is drawn out in the vertical direction and formed, and a down draw method in which molten glass is drawn out in the vertical direction and formed are known. Among such glass substrate manufacturing methods, the overflow method belonging to the downdraw method that can realize high dimensional accuracy and high surface smoothness has attracted attention. In this overflow method, molten glass overflows from both sides of a long bowl-shaped molding refractory, and is welded (joined) again at the lower end of the molding refractory, and is drawn out vertically as a glass ribbon. The parts excluding both sides have high surface smoothness with high dimensional accuracy, and the glass plate separated from the glass ribbon is used as a glass substrate in most flat display devices without polishing the surface. Yes.

  By the way, when separating the glass plate from the glass ribbon that is continuously drawn out from the molding refractory and moving downward in the vertical direction, as disclosed in Patent Document 1, it is synchronized with the movement of the glass ribbon. A moving scribing machine makes the anvil abut on one side of the glass ribbon and engraves a separation line (scribe line) on the other side of the glass ribbon and separates the separation area of the glass plate defined by the separation line. A glass cup engaging device (supporting means) is attached to the glass cup, a bending moment is applied to the glass ribbon, and the glass ribbon is split by a separation line to separate the glass plate from the glass ribbon. In this case, with the glass ribbon moving downward in the vertical direction as a reference, on one side thereof, a glass plate engaging device having a vacuum cup row, an anvil, and a glass plate carrying out the glass plate delivered after separation On the other side, a scribing machine is provided, whereas a transport system is provided.

JP 2002-137930 A

  However, in the technique disclosed in Patent Document 1, the supporting means for holding the glass plate is composed of a frame and vacuum cup rows attached to both sides of the frame. When is held, the central portion of the glass plate is covered with a frame. Therefore, after the separated glass plate is transferred from the supporting means to the glass plate conveying system, even if the supporting means tries to move again toward the glass ribbon, the moving direction side is shielded from the front by the glass plate. It has become a state. For this reason, after the glass plate is moved to a position where the glass plate does not become an obstacle by the operation of the glass plate conveying system, for example, after the glass plate is reversed and moved to the back side so as to bypass the periphery of the support means. Otherwise, a situation occurs in which the support means cannot move close to the glass ribbon. Due to this, it takes an unreasonably long time for the support means to hold the glass ribbon, separate the glass plate, pass the glass plate, and hold the glass ribbon again. Become.

  In this case, if the glass ribbon forming speed, i.e., the glass ribbon descending speed, is increased in order to improve productivity, the glass ribbon is delayed in approaching the support means as described above. Unless the separation line engraved on the ribbon has passed, the support means cannot reach the glass ribbon, and there is a problem that the glass ribbon cannot be held by the support means in time. Therefore, an unreasonable restriction arises for increasing the glass ribbon forming speed, which is a great hindrance in improving productivity and the like. Further, in order to cope with such a problem, a plurality of support means that perform different operations are installed, for example, when one support means performs an operation of delivering a glass plate to the glass plate conveyance system, The support means may perform the separation operation with respect to the glass ribbon. However, such a method not only increases the size and complexity of the equipment, but also causes an increase in equipment costs and maintenance costs. Become.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and after avoiding complication of equipment, the support means that has held the glass plate at the time of separation from the glass ribbon quickly releases the holding. Further, it is a technical object to allow the supporting means to return and move toward the glass ribbon, to increase the glass forming speed and to improve the productivity.

  In order to solve the above technical problem, the method according to the present invention includes an engraving step of engraving a separating line on a continuously descending glass ribbon, and then glass from the glass ribbon with the separating line as a boundary. In the manufacturing method of the glass plate including the separation step of separating the plate, when the glass plate is separated in the separation step, both ends in the width direction of the glass plate are separately provided on one end side and the other end side. It is characterized in that it is held by support means arranged in the.

  Here, as the above-mentioned support means, each support means on one end side and the other end side has a pair of holding members that hold the end portion of the glass plate from both the front and back sides in the vertical direction (vertical direction). ) Or a plurality of negative pressure suction pads for adsorbing and holding the end portion of the glass plate from only one of the front and back sides. . And it is preferable that these support means take the holding position which hold | maintains a glass plate, and the retracted position in the state which the holding | release was cancelled | released. More specifically, when the glass plate is held, these support means face the end surface of the glass plate, whereas when the holding is released, the glass plate It is preferable to be configured to be in a state of being retracted from the end portion to the outside (outside in the width direction or outside in the vertical direction). The “separation line” engraved on the glass ribbon in the “engraving step” has a depth of, for example, about 1/10 of the thickness of the glass ribbon and extends along a straight line. Shaped groove.

  According to such a method, in the glass plate separation step, the supporting means for holding both end portions in the width direction (left-right direction) of the glass plate to be separated from the glass ribbon is one end portion in the width direction of the glass plate. Since the glass plate is held and separated after the glass plate is held and separated, the supporting means finishes a predetermined role and releases the holding, and then is arranged on the one end side. The provided support means can shift to the retracted state on one end side, and the support means disposed on the other end side can shift to the retracted state on the other end side. As a result, when the support means tries to return and move toward the glass ribbon again to separate the glass plate from the glass ribbon, the moving direction side of the support means is not shielded (movement obstruction) by the released glass plate. Can be. As a result, the support means can quickly move closer to the glass ribbon without being obstructed by the glass plate, thereby increasing the descent speed of the glass ribbon, that is, the forming speed, and improving productivity. Become.

  In this case, it is preferable that the support means disposed on the one end side of the glass plate and the support means disposed on the other end side can be individually adjusted in position and / or angle. . In this way, even if the glass ribbon is warped and is not a regular flat plate shape, the glass ribbon is appropriately held by adjusting the position and angle of each supporting means individually. It is possible to smoothly perform the separation work of the plates.

  In addition, while the support means holds the glass plate and separates it by splitting, etc., the glass that is continuously descending is subjected to unnecessary stress that causes deviations in the engraving position of the separation line and errors in separation work. In order to prevent the ribbon from occurring in the ribbon, it is preferable that the support means is moved down in synchronization with or following the descent (movement) of the glass ribbon.

  In the above method, after the glass plate is separated in the separation step, the unloading step of transferring the glass plate from the support means to the conveying means and carrying the glass plate to a position away from the glass ribbon while being held by the conveying means is further performed. In the unloading step, immediately after the delivery is performed, the support means is in a retracted state along paths respectively existing on one end side and the other end side in the width direction of the glass plate held by the transport means. It is preferable to move toward the glass ribbon avoiding the glass plate.

  The above-mentioned “path” can be provided in the vertical central part, the vertical upper part or the vertical lower part on both end sides of the glass plate in the vertical posture. In the case where the support means in the retracted state exists outside the width direction of the glass plate, the "path" exists in the vertical upper portion and the vertical lower portion of the glass plate. In addition, the support means in the retracted state may exist not only on the outer side in the width direction of the glass plate, but also on the outer side above and below the glass plate, respectively. Further, this “path” is preferably the shortest path from the glass plate delivery position to the glass ribbon, and the one end side path and the other end side path are arranged in parallel to each other. It is preferable.

  In this way, immediately after the separated glass plate is transferred from the support means to the transport means, the support means moves toward the glass ribbon in a state of moving to the retracted position. When moving toward the glass ribbon, the glass plate cannot be in the way. That is, the moving direction of the supporting means toward the glass ribbon is not shielded by the glass plate as in the prior art, and as a result, the supporting means can immediately move toward the glass ribbon. The separation position can be reached. Therefore, even if the lowering speed of the glass ribbon becomes higher by increasing the molding speed, the support means reaches the separation position of the glass ribbon until the separation line engraved on the glass ribbon passes, It becomes possible to perform separation work of a glass plate appropriately. While the operation as described above is performed, the conveying means holds the glass plate delivered from the supporting means and carries it out to a position away from the glass ribbon, for example, a processing position in a subsequent process. It will be done.

  In the above method, in the unloading step, it is preferable that the support means moves straight toward the glass ribbon.

  In this way, not only can the time required for the support means to reach the separation position of the glass ribbon immediately after the glass plate is delivered, but also the movement for moving the support means toward the glass ribbon. The structure of the mechanism is simplified, and as a result, production facilities can be simplified and facility costs can be reduced.

  In the above method, it is preferable that the supporting means or the conveying means does not reversely move the glass plate in the unloading step.

  In this way, it is not necessary to rotate the support means before passing the glass plate to the transport means, or to turn the transport means to bypass the support means. In addition, the glass plate is moved while maintaining its original direction without being reversed, so that the space for moving the glass plate can be reduced. It is possible to make the manufacturing plant line more compact.

  In the above method, in the separation step and the unloading step, it is preferable that the supporting means and the conveying means are in contact with only the portion excluding the effective surface of the glass plate.

  In this way, the problem that minute scratches or dirt adhere to the effective surface (use surface) of the glass plate due to the contact with the support means and the transport means is reliably avoided. And such an advantage can be acquired notably especially when the base plate glass for image display apparatuses, such as a liquid crystal display by which the high cleanliness of a surface is requested | required, is carried out.

  The apparatus according to the present invention, which has been made to solve the above technical problem, includes an engraving means for engraving a separating line on a continuously descending glass ribbon, and a glass from the glass ribbon with the separating line as a boundary. In a glass plate manufacturing apparatus comprising a separating means for separating a plate, the separating means comprises support means for separately holding both end portions in the width direction of the glass plate from one end side and the other end side thereof. It is characterized by that.

  According to the manufacturing apparatus having such a configuration, the separating means for separating the glass plate from the glass ribbon is separately arranged on one end side and the other end side in the width direction of the glass plate to be separated. Since the supporting means holds and separates the glass plate, after the predetermined role is finished and the holding is released, the one end side and the other end side are in the retracted state. Will be able to migrate to. As a result, it is possible to enjoy the same operational effects as those already described for the configuration corresponding to this in the description of the above method.

  In the above apparatus, the apparatus further includes a transport unit that holds the glass plate delivered from the support unit and carries it out to a position away from the glass ribbon, and is held by the transport unit immediately after the delivery. The supporting means is configured to be movable toward the glass ribbon while avoiding the glass plate in a retracted state along paths existing on one end side and the other end side in the width direction of the glass plate. Is preferred.

  In this way, immediately after the separated glass plate is transferred from the support means to the transport means, the support means moves toward the glass ribbon in a state of moving to the retracted position. When moving toward the glass ribbon, the glass plate cannot be in the way. As a result, it is possible to enjoy the same operational effects as those already described for the configuration corresponding to this in the description of the above method.

  In the above apparatus, the support means is preferably configured to move straight toward the glass ribbon.

  In this way, it is possible to reduce as much as possible the time from immediately after delivery of the glass plate until the support means reaches the separation position of the glass ribbon, and further, a moving mechanism for moving the support means toward the glass ribbon. Since the configuration is simplified, it is possible to enjoy the same operational effects as the matters already described in the configuration related to the above method.

  In the above apparatus, it is preferable that the supporting means or the conveying means is configured not to reversely move the glass plate.

  In this way, it is not necessary to rotate the support means before transferring the glass plate to the transport means, or to turn the transport means to bypass the support means, and without reversing the glass plate. It will be possible to move while maintaining the original direction. As a result, it is possible to enjoy the same operational effects as those already described for the configuration corresponding to this in the description of the above method.

  In the above apparatus, it is preferable that the supporting means and the conveying means are configured to contact only a portion excluding the effective surface of the glass plate.

  In this way, the above-described method can be reliably avoided because minute scratches and dirt adhere to the effective surface (use surface) of the glass plate due to contact with the support means and the transport means. It is possible to enjoy the same operational effects as those already described for the configuration corresponding to this in the description according to the above.

  As described above, according to the present invention, when the glass plate is separated, the supporting means for holding both ends in the width direction of the glass plate to be separated from the glass ribbon includes one end side in the width direction of the glass plate and the other. Since it is separately arranged on the end side, after the glass plate is held and separated, after the supporting means finishes the predetermined role and releases the holding, it is arranged on the one end side. The supporting means provided can move to the retracted state on one end side, and the supporting means disposed on the other end side can move to the retracted state on the other end side. As a result, when the support means tries to move back toward the glass ribbon again to separate the glass plate from the glass ribbon, the moving direction side of the support means should not be shielded by the glass plate released from holding. Can do. As a result, the support means can quickly move closer to the glass ribbon without being obstructed by the glass plate, and accordingly, the descent speed of the glass ribbon, that is, the forming speed can be increased to improve productivity. It becomes possible.

  Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. FIG. 1 is a main part perspective view showing a glass plate manufacturing apparatus according to the first embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a main part cross-sectional plan view showing the operation of the manufacturing apparatus. FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional plan view of the main part showing the operation of the glass plate manufacturing apparatus according to the second embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 4 is the operation of the glass plate manufacturing apparatus according to the third embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 5 is a main part cross-sectional plan view showing the operation of the glass plate manufacturing apparatus according to the fourth embodiment of the present invention.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the manufacturing apparatus 1 according to the first embodiment of the present invention is provided in the upper side of the figure and for forming a bowl-shaped mold that causes molten glass to overflow and flow down to perform, for example, an overflow method. The molten glass that has a refractory and has flowed down from the molding refractory gradually solidifies to become a glass ribbon 2 that moves continuously in a substantially vertical downward direction, and the surface of the glass ribbon 2 (in FIG. A separation line (not shown) is engraved on the oblique front surface) by a scriber 3 as engraving means at a preset height position. Further, the manufacturing apparatus 1 includes a separating unit 4 that is disposed below the scriber 3 and that separates a predetermined region from the lower edge of the glass ribbon 2 along the separating line to separate the glass plate 2a as a glass plate 2a. And a conveying means 5 for conveying the glass plate 2a separated by the above to a predetermined position away from the glass ribbon 2.

  In this case, the scriber 3 has a support portion serving as a fulcrum when the glass plate 2a is folded from the glass ribbon 2, and is held vertically movable. The glass ribbon 2 is engraved with a separation line when the speeds of the two are the same.

  The separating means 4 includes a slider 8 which is held so as to be movable back and forth along a rail 7 fixed on the floor surface or base 6 so as to extend in a direction perpendicular to the surface of the glass ribbon 2, and the slider 8 is supported so that the position and / or angle of the glass ribbon 2 or the glass plate 2a can be adjusted. The supporting means are separately provided on one end side and the other end side in the width direction (left-right direction) of the glass ribbon 2 or the glass plate 2a. 9.

  More specifically, the slider 8 includes a bottom wall portion 8a in which an engagement groove that engages with the rail 7 is formed, and a pair of side walls that are erected and fixed to the upper portion of the bottom wall portion 8a in the width direction. Part 8b. And this pair of side wall part 8b is arrange | positioned through the width direction gap | interval longer than the width direction dimension of the glass ribbon 2, and said support means 9 is each inner side surface 8ba of each side wall part 8b. Equipped. Although the support means 9 on the right end side is not shown in FIG. 1 for the sake of convenience, the support means 9 on both end parts has a symmetrical structure (see FIG. 2).

  Here, with reference to FIG. 2, description will be made based on FIG. 1, and the support means 9 can be moved down following the lowering of the glass ribbon 2 and can be moved up for return. A movable bracket 9a held on the inner side surface 8ba of the portion 8b, and an elastic body that is disposed at two longitudinal positions of the movable bracket 9a and can hold the ineffective surface of the glass ribbon 2 (glass plate 2a) from both the front and back sides And two pairs of clamping members 9c each having a pad 9b made of More specifically, the movable bracket 9a not only can move up and down, but also rotates around an axis parallel to the moving direction of the glass ribbon 2 to change the angle. When separating 2a, the glass ribbon 2 can be rotated in the direction indicated by the arrow A in FIG. 1B (within a plane orthogonal to the surface of the glass ribbon 2) around the position where the separation line of the glass ribbon 2 should exist. Has been. And each operation | movement of this movable bracket 9a and the support means 9 is comprised so that the adjustment can be performed separately in the left end part side and the right end part side. As shown in FIG. 2, the clamping member 9c includes an arm 9e whose base end is rotatably supported by the movable bracket 9a via a support shaft 9d, and a pad 9b fixed to the distal end of the arm 9e. A pair of pads 9b approaching each other to sandwich the glass plate 2a, and a pair of arms 9e along a straight line to form a pair of pads 9b. It is configured to take a state of being separated from and retracted from the glass plate 2a. In addition, you may arrange | position this pair of clamping member 9c in three or more places of the vertical direction of the movable bracket 9a.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 1C, the conveying means 5 is slidably held along two rails 7 fixed to the floor surface or the base 6 and extending in the front-rear direction, and a glass plate. A gripping arm 7a capable of suspending and releasing the support at two places in the width direction at the upper end of 2a is provided. The gripping arm 7a carries out the glass plate 2a delivered from the support means 9 described above at the delivery position to a predetermined position away from the glass ribbon 2 while maintaining the vertical posture at the time of delivery. It is configured. The grip arm 7a is configured to be slidable by a linear motion rail, a ball screw, a stepping motor, or the like, for example. The glass ribbon 2 has a width dimension of, for example, 700 to 3000 mm and a thickness of 0.25 to 1.10 mm, and the separated glass plate 2a has a longitudinal dimension of, for example, 700 to 3200 mm in addition to the above dimensions. And it is used for preparation of the base plate glass of the glass panel for liquid crystal displays.

  Next, the operation of the glass plate manufacturing apparatus having the above-described configuration, in other words, the glass plate manufacturing method will be described. 2 (A), (B), (C), and (D) represent the same fixed positions as the line denoted by P in FIG. 1 (C).

  First, as shown in FIG. 1 (A), while the glass ribbon 2 is continuously descending, the scriber 3 is engraved with a separation line on the surface of the glass ribbon 2 while descending synchronously. The holding members 9c of the separating means 4 (supporting means 9) are moved downward following the lowering of the glass ribbon 2 while holding the lower side of the separating line of the glass ribbon 2 from both the front and back sides. In this case, even if the glass ribbon 2 is warped, the angle adjustment is performed by individually rotating the holding member 9c between the left end side and the right end side around an axis parallel to the moving direction of the glass ribbon 2. Thereby, each clamping member 9c can clamp and hold | maintain the both ends of the width direction of the glass ribbon 2 reliably. When the engraving of the separation line for the glass ribbon 2 and the clamping by the clamping member 9c are completed, the movable bracket 9a rotates the clamping member 9c in the direction indicated by the arrow A in FIG. The glass ribbon 2 is folded along a separation line with the support portion of the scriber 3 as a fulcrum, and the glass plate 2 a is separated from the glass ribbon 2.

  Thereafter, as shown in FIG. 1C, the movable bracket 9a moves the holding member 9c back to hold the glass plate 2a in a vertical posture, and then the slider 8 is moved backward (obliquely backward in the figure). The glass plate 2a is also moved rearward, and the upper end of the glass plate 2a is clamped by the gripping arm 7a of the transport means 5 under such a state. As a result, the state transitions from the state shown in FIG. 2A to the state shown in FIG. 2B, and from such a state, as shown in FIG. 2C, the pair of holding members 9c of each support means 9 is opened. By keeping the state along the straight line, the holding of the glass plate 2a by each supporting means 9 is released, and each supporting means 9 is retracted to the outside of both ends in the width direction of the glass plate 2a, and Become.

  Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 2 (D), when the slider 8 moves straight forward (in the direction approaching the glass ribbon 2) from such a state, each support means 9 is in the width direction of the glass plate 2a. It moves toward the glass ribbon 2 without interfering with both ends of the glass ribbon 2. That is, each support means 9 is along the shortest path along which the inner side surface 8ba portion of the side wall portion 8b of the slider 8 moves along the path existing at the both end side positions in the width direction of the glass plate 2a. It moves and reaches the position of both ends in the width direction of the glass ribbon 2, that is, the position where the glass plate 2a is separated. At this time, the scriber 3 has moved down from the state where it has returned to the upper end to an appropriate position in synchronization with the glass ribbon 2, and a separation line is again engraved on the glass ribbon 2, and The part below the separation line is clamped by the clamping member 9c of each support means 9. After that, the glass plate 2a is separated, transferred to the conveying means 5, and the return movement of each supporting means 9 is performed in the same manner as described above. In addition, while the return movement of each support means 9 is performed, the glass plate 2a handed over to the holding arm 7a of the conveying means 5 is moved to the rear step along the rail 7 of the holding arm 7a. It is carried out to the predetermined | prescribed position for performing the process in.

  FIG. 3 illustrates the operation of the glass plate manufacturing apparatus according to the second embodiment of the present invention. The operation of the manufacturing apparatus according to the second embodiment is different from that of the first embodiment described above when the separated glass plate 2a is transferred from the support means 9 to the conveying means 5 as shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 4, only the holding member 9c on the back surface (rear surface) side of the glass plate 2a is opened 90 degrees out of the pair of holding members 9c, and the holding member 9c on the front surface side is not opened and is maintained as it is. It is a point. Even in this case, as shown in FIG. 3B, each support means 9 can move toward the glass ribbon 2 without interfering with both ends of the glass plate 2a. It is necessary to open the holding member 9c on the surface side of the glass plate 2a by 90 degrees before reaching the positions at both ends in the width direction 2. The configuration of the manufacturing apparatus according to the second embodiment and the operations other than those described above are the same as those in the first embodiment described above, and thus the description thereof will be omitted. In FIG. The same reference numerals are used for common components.

  FIG. 4 illustrates the configuration and operation of the glass plate manufacturing apparatus according to the third embodiment of the present invention. The configuration and operation of the manufacturing apparatus according to the third embodiment are different from those of the first embodiment described above, as shown in FIGS. 4 (A) and 4 (B). Is held by the movable bracket 9a so as to open and close in parallel to the front and back surfaces of the glass plate 2a, and as shown in FIG. 4C, the pair of clamping members 9c are opened in parallel. By moving a certain support means 9 in a direction along the surface of the glass plate 2a, the support means 9 is retracted to the outside of the end of the glass plate 2a. Also in this case, as shown in FIG. 4D, each support means 9 can move toward the glass ribbon 2 without interfering with both ends of the glass plate 2a. Other configurations and other operations of the manufacturing apparatus according to the third embodiment are the same as those of the first embodiment described above, and thus the description thereof is omitted. In FIG. 4, the first embodiment described above is omitted. The same reference numerals are used for the common components.

  FIG. 5 illustrates the configuration and operation of the glass plate manufacturing apparatus according to the fourth embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 5A, the configuration and operation of the manufacturing apparatus according to the fourth embodiment are different from those of the first embodiment described above in that the support means 9 is connected to the movable bracket 9a via a support shaft 19d. A suction member 19c formed by attaching a negative pressure suction pad (also referred to as a vacuum pad) 19b that sucks and holds only the back surface of the glass plate 2a to the tip of the arm 19e that is rotatably held. As shown in FIG. 5 (B), the suction holding by the negative pressure suction pad 19b is released and the suction member 19c opens 90 degrees toward the back side (rear), so that the support means 9 is located at the end of the glass plate 2a. It is a point where it will be in the state of retreating outside. Also in this case, as shown in FIG. 5C, each support means 9 can move toward the glass ribbon 2 without interfering with both ends of the glass plate 2a. Since the other configuration and other operations of the manufacturing apparatus according to the fourth embodiment are the same as those of the first embodiment described above, the description thereof is omitted, and in FIG. 5, the first embodiment described above is omitted. The same reference numerals are used for the common components.

  The method and apparatus for producing a glass plate according to the present invention includes a glass plate used for production of glass panels for various image display devices such as a liquid crystal display, a plasma display, an electroluminescence display, and a field emission display, and various electronic display functions. It is suitable to be used in the production process of a glass plate used as a substrate for forming an element or a thin film.

FIGS. 1A, 1B, and 1C are schematic perspective views showing the overall configuration and operation of the glass plate manufacturing apparatus according to the first embodiment of the present invention. 2 (A), (B), (C), and (D) are main part cross-sectional plan views showing the main part configuration and the operation of the glass plate manufacturing apparatus according to the first embodiment of the present invention. . FIGS. 3A and 3B are main part cross-sectional plan views showing the main part configuration and operation of the glass plate manufacturing apparatus according to the second embodiment of the present invention, respectively. FIGS. 4A, 4B, 4C, and 4D are cross-sectional plan views of main parts illustrating the main part configuration and operation of the glass plate manufacturing apparatus according to the third embodiment of the present invention. . FIGS. 5A, 5B, and 5C are cross-sectional plan views of main parts showing the main part configuration and operation of the glass plate manufacturing apparatus according to the fourth embodiment of the present invention.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Glass plate manufacturing apparatus 2 Glass ribbon 2a Glass plate 3 Scriber (engraving means)
4 Separating means 5 Conveying means 9 Supporting means

Claims (10)

An engraving process for engraving a separating line on a continuously descending glass ribbon, and an isolating process for separating a glass plate from the glass ribbon with the separating line as a boundary after engraving the separating line in the engraving process. In the manufacturing method of the glass plate containing,
When separating the glass plate in the separation step, both end portions in the width direction of the glass plate are held by supporting means separately disposed on one end side and the other end side thereof. Manufacturing method of glass plate.   The method further includes an unloading step of separating the glass plate in the separating step and then unloading the glass plate from the support means to the conveying means and unloading the glass plate to a position away from the glass ribbon while being held by the conveying means. In the process, immediately after the delivery is performed, the supporting means avoids the glass plate while the supporting means is retracted along paths existing on one end side and the other end side in the width direction of the glass plate held by the transport means. The glass plate manufacturing method according to claim 1, wherein the glass plate moves toward the glass ribbon.   The method for manufacturing a glass plate according to claim 2, wherein, in the unloading step, the support means moves straight toward the glass ribbon.   The method for manufacturing a glass plate according to claim 2 or 3, wherein the supporting means or the conveying means does not reversely move the glass plate in the unloading step.   The method for producing a glass plate according to any one of claims 2 to 4, wherein, in the separation step and the carry-out step, the supporting means and the conveying means are in contact with only a portion excluding an effective surface of the glass plate. In an apparatus for manufacturing a glass plate, comprising: engraving means for engraving a separating line on a continuously descending glass ribbon; and separating means for separating the glass plate from the glass ribbon with the separating line as a boundary.
The said separating means is provided with the support means which hold | maintains the width direction both ends of a glass plate separately from the one end part side and the other end part side, respectively, The manufacturing apparatus of the glass plate characterized by the above-mentioned.   It further has a conveying means for holding the glass plate delivered from the support means and carrying it away from the glass ribbon. Immediately after the delivery, the glass plate held by the conveying means The support means is configured to be movable toward the glass ribbon while avoiding the glass plate in a retracted state along paths respectively present on one end side and the other end side in the width direction. The manufacturing apparatus of the glass plate of Claim 6.   The said support means is comprised so that it may move linearly toward a glass ribbon, The manufacturing apparatus of the glass plate of Claim 7 characterized by the above-mentioned.   The apparatus for manufacturing a glass plate according to claim 7 or 8, wherein the supporting means or the conveying means is configured not to reversely move the glass plate.   The said support means and conveyance means are comprised so that it may contact only the site | part except the effective surface of the glass plate, The manufacturing apparatus of the glass plate in any one of Claims 7-9 characterized by the above-mentioned.

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