JP2023032279A - Glass manufacturing apparatus, and glass manufacturing method - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide a technology of suppressing damage of a discharge pipe for discharging molten glass.SOLUTION: A glass manufacturing apparatus is equipped with a discharge pipe for discharging molten glass from a vessel for containing the molten glass or from a conveyer pipe for conveying the molten glass, a rotary member for supporting the lower end part of the discharge pipe, and a weight attached to the rotary member. The discharge pipe has a discharge port for discharging the molten glass at the lower end part. The rotary member includes a support part for supporting the lower end part of the discharge pipe, a rotation center part of the rotary member, and a fitting part to which the weight is attached. The fitting part and the support part are arranged so as to sandwich the rotation center part.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD The present disclosure relates to a glass manufacturing apparatus and a glass manufacturing method.

A glass manufacturing apparatus is equipped with a discharge pipe for discharging molten glass from a container containing molten glass or a transfer pipe for transferring molten glass. The discharge pipe discharges extraneous glass contained in the molten glass (see, for example, Patent Document 1). Foreign glass includes foreign components such as zirconia eluted from bricks. Ejecting foreign glass can improve the quality of glass products.

The glass manufacturing apparatus described in Patent Document 1 controls the heating temperature of the discharge pipe in order to control the discharge flow rate of the molten glass. The discharge pipe is made of, for example, platinum or a platinum alloy, and is electrically heated. By controlling the heating temperature of the discharge pipe, the viscosity of the molten glass in the discharge pipe is controlled, and the discharge flow rate of the molten glass is controlled.

The discharge pipe described in Patent Literature 1 includes a vertical portion. The vertical section has a discharge port at its lower end for discharging the molten glass. The discharge tube has an orifice at its lower end. The orifice regulates the molten glass discharge flow rate by throttling the discharge port. By replacing the orifice, the molten glass discharge flow rate can be changed.

Patent Document 2 discloses that a conveying pipe for conveying molten glass has a horizontal pipe and a vertical pipe, that a stirring blade is provided inside the vertical pipe, and that a discharge pipe is provided at the lower end of the vertical pipe. Are listed. The center line of the discharge pipe is eccentric to the upstream side in the molten glass conveying direction with respect to the center line of the vertical pipe.

Patent Document 3 describes that a conveying pipe for conveying molten glass has a horizontal pipe and a vertical pipe, and that a discharge pipe is provided at the upper end of the horizontal pipe. The discharge tube extends vertically upward from the upper end of the horizontal tube, then horizontally, and then vertically downward. The foreign glass discharged by the discharge tube contains light or volatile components.

Patent Document 4 discloses that a conveying pipe for conveying molten glass has a horizontal pipe and a vertical pipe, that a stirring blade is provided inside the vertical pipe, and that a discharge pipe is provided on the side wall of the vertical pipe. Are listed. The discharge tube extends horizontally from the side wall of the vertical tube and then vertically downward. The foreign glass discharged by the discharge tube contains light or volatile components.

WO2011/010624 JP 2013-199385 A WO2015/194642 JP 2016-69235 A

A glass manufacturing apparatus includes a discharge pipe for discharging molten glass. The discharge pipe discharges extraneous glass contained in the molten glass. The discharge pipe may be damaged due to strain due to temperature change, creep deformation, or the like.

One aspect of the present disclosure provides a technique for suppressing breakage of a discharge pipe that discharges molten glass.

A glass manufacturing apparatus according to an aspect of the present disclosure includes a discharge pipe that discharges the molten glass from a container that stores the molten glass or a transfer pipe that conveys the molten glass, and a rotating member that supports the lower end of the discharge pipe. and a weight attached to the rotating member. The discharge pipe has a discharge port for discharging the molten glass at its lower end. The rotating member has a support portion that supports the lower end portion of the discharge pipe, a rotation center that is the center of rotation of the rotating member, and an attachment portion to which the weight is attached. The attachment portion and the support portion are provided with the rotation center portion interposed therebetween.

According to one aspect of the present disclosure, breakage of a discharge pipe for discharging molten glass can be suppressed.

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a glass manufacturing apparatus according to one embodiment. FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a glass manufacturing apparatus according to a modification. FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an example of a connection mechanism. FIG. 4 is a diagram showing another example of the connection mechanism. FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an example of a link mechanism. FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a conventional example of a glass manufacturing apparatus. FIG. 7 is a diagram showing another conventional example of a glass manufacturing apparatus.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present disclosure will be described with reference to the drawings. In addition, in each drawing, the same reference numerals are given to the same or corresponding configurations, and explanations thereof may be omitted. "~" indicating a numerical range means that the numerical values before and after it are included as lower and upper limits.

A glass manufacturing apparatus 1 according to one embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. The glass manufacturing apparatus 1 includes a discharge pipe 20 for discharging molten glass G. As shown in FIG. The discharge pipe 20 discharges extraneous glass contained in the molten glass G, thereby improving the quality of the product glass.

The discharge pipe 20 discharges the molten glass G from the container 10, for example. The container 10 accommodates the molten glass G. The container 10 is made of refractory bricks, for example. The refractory bricks are preferably electroformed bricks because they are excellent in heat resistance and corrosion resistance to the molten glass G.

The container 10 is provided, for example, in a dissolving device. The melting device melts powdery frit to produce molten glass G. Glass raw materials are prepared by mixing multiple types of materials. The frit may include glass cullet to recycle the glass. The glass raw material may be a powder raw material, or may be a granulated raw material obtained by granulating the powder raw material. Glass raw materials are determined according to the composition of the glass.

The glass is, for example, non-alkali glass, aluminosilicate glass, borosilicate glass, soda lime glass, or the like. Alkali-free glass means glass that does not substantially contain alkali metal oxides such as Na ₂ O and K ₂ O. Here, "substantially free of alkali metal oxides" means that the total content of alkali metal oxides is 0.1% by mass or less.

Alkali-free glass is, for example, SiO ₂ : 50.0% to 66.0%, Al ₂ O ₃ : 10.5% to 22.0%, and B ₂ O ₃ : 0 in terms of % by mass based on oxides. % ~ 12.0%, MgO: 0 ~ 8.0%, CaO: 0 ~ 14.5%, SrO: 0 ~ 24.0%, BaO: 0 ~ 13.5%, MgO + CaO + SrO + BaO: 9.0% ~ 29.5%.

The container 10 may be provided in a clarifier. The clarifier removes air bubbles from the molten glass G obtained by the melting device before the molten glass G is formed by the forming device. As a method for removing air bubbles, for example, one or more selected from a method of reducing the pressure of the surrounding atmosphere of the molten glass G and a method of heating the molten glass G to a high temperature is used.

The forming device forms the molten glass G into a desired shape. A float method, a fusion method, a roll-out method, or the like is used as a forming method for obtaining a plate-shaped glass. A bellows method, a Danner method, or the like is used as a molding method for obtaining tubular glass. The glass molded by the molding device is slowly cooled by the slow cooling device.

Although not shown, the discharge pipe 20 may discharge the molten glass G from the carrier pipe instead of discharging the molten glass G from the container 10 . The conveying pipe conveys the molten glass G. The conveying pipe conveys the molten glass G from the melting device to the molding device, for example. The conveying pipe may convey the molten glass G from the melting device to the forming device through the clarifying device.

The conveying pipe is made of metal, for example, and is electrically heated. The transport tube may be made of metal containing one or more selected from platinum (Pt), rhodium (Rh), tungsten (W), iridium (Ir), and molybdenum (Mo), for example. Metals include alloys. Pt, Rh, W, Ir and Mo are excellent in corrosion resistance to molten glass G. The conveying pipe may be made of refractory bricks like the container 10 . If the conveying pipe is made of refractory bricks, a heating device is provided around the conveying pipe.

The transport pipe has, for example, a horizontal pipe and a vertical pipe. A stirrer may be provided inside the vertical tube. The discharge pipe 20 may be connected to a horizontal pipe or a vertical pipe. The conveying pipe may have an inclined pipe instead of a horizontal pipe, and the discharge pipe 20 may be connected to the inclined pipe.

The discharge tube 20 is connected to the bottom, sidewall or top end of the container 10 or carrier tube. The container 10 or the lower end of the carrier tube is fixed. Which part of the container 10 or the conveying pipe the discharge pipe 20 is connected is determined according to the type of foreign glass discharged by the discharge pipe 20 .

The molten glass G contains, for example, foreign components such as zirconia eluted from refractory bricks. A foreign component such as zirconia has a higher density than other components contained in the molten glass G and sinks easily.

A discharge tube 20 is connected to the lower end of the container 10 or the conveying tube, for example as shown in FIG. 1, for discharging foreign glass having a relatively high density. For example, the discharge tube 20 includes a vertical portion 21 extending vertically downward from the lower end of the container 10 or carrier tube. The vertical portion 21 has an outlet for discharging the molten glass G at its lower end. The molten glass G is discharged by the pressure caused by the height difference between the liquid surface of the molten glass G and the discharge port of the discharge pipe 20 .

The molten glass G contains light or volatile components. The lightweight component or volatile component tends to gather near the liquid surface of the molten glass G when bubbles are removed from the molten glass G or the like. As a result, foreign glass having a relatively low density is formed near the liquid surface of the molten glass G.

A discharge tube 20 may be connected to the side wall of the container 10 or transfer tube, for example as shown in FIG. 2, for discharging foreign glass of relatively low density. For example, the discharge pipe 20 includes a horizontal portion 22 extending horizontally from the side wall portion of the container 10 or the transfer pipe, and a vertical portion 21 extending vertically downward from the tip of the horizontal portion 22 . The vertical portion 21 has an outlet for discharging the molten glass G at its lower end. The vertical portion 21 secures a height difference between the liquid surface of the molten glass G and the discharge port of the discharge pipe 20, and secures the pressure for discharging the molten glass G.

The discharge pipe 20 may be connected to the upper end of the container 10 or the conveying pipe (not shown) to discharge foreign glass having a relatively low density. The discharge pipe 20 has a first vertical portion extending vertically upward from the upper end of the container 10 or the conveying pipe, a horizontal portion extending horizontally from the upper end of the first vertical portion, and a second vertical portion extending vertically downward from the tip of the horizontal portion. including the part and The second vertical portion extends vertically downward from the upper end portion of the container 10 and has a discharge port for discharging the molten glass G at the lower end portion. The second vertical portion secures a height difference between the upper end portion of the container 10 or the conveying pipe and the discharge port of the discharge pipe 20, and secures the pressure for discharging the molten glass G.

The discharge tube 20 may have an orifice 25 at its lower end. The orifice 25 adjusts the discharge flow rate of the molten glass G by narrowing the discharge port. The orifice 25, like the discharge tube 20, may be metallic. The diameter of the outlet of the orifice 25 is, for example, 3 mm to 70 mm. By replacing the orifice 25, the discharge flow rate of the molten glass G can be changed.

The discharge pipe 20 is provided with a heater 30 for heating the discharge pipe 20 in order to adjust the flow rate of the molten glass G discharged. The higher the heating temperature of the discharge pipe 20, the lower the viscosity of the molten glass G in the discharge pipe 20 and the greater the discharge flow rate of the molten glass G. The temperature of the molten glass G in the discharge pipe 20 is, for example, 1000°C to 1600°C, preferably 1200°C to 1400°C.

If the discharge pipe 20 is made of metal like the carrier pipe, the heater 30 electrically heats the discharge pipe 20 . The electrically heated portion of the discharge pipe 20 may be separable from other portions. Note that the heater 30 is not limited to one that electrically heats the discharge pipe 20, and the discharge pipe 20 does not have to generate heat. A heating element that generates heat outside the discharge pipe 20 or a gas burner provided outside the discharge pipe 20 may be used as the heater 30 . A gas burner heats the outlet of the discharge pipe 20, for example.

The thickness of the discharge pipe 20 is, for example, 0.3 mm to 2 mm. The inner diameter of the discharge pipe 20 is, for example, 20 mm to 80 mm. The length of the discharge pipe 20 is, for example, 200 mm to 800 mm. The heating temperature of the discharge pipe 20 is, for example, 1050.degree. C. to 1350.degree.

The discharge pipe 20 may repeat discharging and stopping the molten glass G. The temperature of the discharge pipe 20 when the discharge of the molten glass G is stopped is, for example, room temperature to 500°C. The length of the discharge pipe 20 changes as the temperature of the discharge pipe 20 changes.

Next, a conventional example of the glass manufacturing apparatus 1 will be described with reference to FIG. Problems that arise when both ends of the discharge pipe 20 are fixed will be described below. In FIG. 6, the discharge pipe 20 is connected to the container 10 or the lower end of the carrier pipe, but the same problem occurs if it is connected to the side wall or the upper end.

As shown in FIG. 6, the lower end of the discharge pipe 20 is fixed and the upper end of the discharge pipe 20 is fixed to the lower end of the container 10 or the carrier pipe. Additionally, the lower end of the container 10 or carrier tube is fixed. Since both ends of the discharge pipe 20 are fixed, the discharge pipe 20 cannot expand and contract according to temperature changes, and is distorted.

For example, when the material of the discharge pipe 20 is platinum, the length of the discharge pipe 20 is 750 mm, and the temperature of the discharge pipe 20 rises from room temperature to 1400° C., the lower end of the discharge pipe 20 must be fixed. , the length of the discharge tube 20 is extended by 11.3 mm. If both ends of the discharge pipe 20 are fixed so as not to cause this elongation, a large load acts on the discharge pipe 20 and the discharge pipe 20 is plastically deformed.

Further, when the material of the discharge pipe 20 is platinum, the length of the discharge pipe 20 is 750 mm, and the temperature of the discharge pipe 20 drops from 1400° C. to room temperature, the lower end of the discharge pipe 20 must be fixed. , the length of the discharge tube 20 is reduced by 11.3 mm. If both ends of the discharge pipe 20 are fixed so that this shrinkage does not occur, a large load acts on the discharge pipe 20 and the discharge pipe 20 is plastically deformed.

If both ends of the discharge pipe 20 are fixed, there is a problem that the temperature of the discharge pipe 20 repeatedly rises and falls, causing damage due to plastic fatigue. Plastic fatigue is also called low cycle fatigue.

(1) Reducing the length of the discharge pipe 20 is effective in suppressing damage due to plastic fatigue. The shorter the length of the discharge pipe 20 , the smaller the dimensional change of the discharge pipe 20 in response to the temperature change of the discharge pipe 20 , and the smaller the load acting on the discharge pipe 20 . However, the shorter the length of the discharge pipe 20, the smaller the change in the discharge flow rate of the molten glass G according to the temperature change of the discharge pipe 20 becomes.

For example, if the length of the discharge pipe 20 is 750 mm, when the temperature of the discharge pipe 20 changes from 1375° C. to 1425° C. through 1400° C., the pressure loss in the discharge pipe 20 is 55% through 45% to 37%. change up to On the other hand, if the length of the discharge pipe 20 is 325 mm, when the temperature of the discharge pipe 20 changes from 1375° C. to 1425° C. via 1400° C., the pressure loss in the discharge pipe 20 goes from 24% to 16% through 20%. %.

Here, the pressure loss in the discharge pipe 20 is the percentage (% ). The depth D of the molten glass G contained in the container 10 is 1500 mm, the specific gravity of the molten glass G is 2.5 g/cm ³ , the viscosity of the molten glass G is 180 Pa s, and the discharge pipe 20 The inner diameter was assumed to be 45 mm.

The shorter the length of the discharge pipe 20, the smaller the change in the pressure loss in the discharge pipe 20, and the smaller the change in the discharge flow rate of the molten glass G. There is a limit to shortening the length of the discharge pipe 20 from the viewpoint of the controllability of the discharge flow rate. Therefore, it is difficult to sufficiently solve the above problem by shortening the length of the discharge pipe 20 . The length of the discharge pipe 20 is preferably 200 mm to 800 mm.

In order to suppress damage due to plastic fatigue, (2) it is also effective to leave the lower end of the discharge pipe 20 free without fixing it. However, if the lower end of the discharge pipe 20 is a free end, another problem arises in that the discharge pipe 20 creeps and deforms due to its own weight, resulting in creep rupture.

In order to suppress damage due to plastic fatigue, it is also effective to (3) provide an extendable movable part in the middle of the discharge pipe 20 . A metal bellows, for example, is used as the movable portion. However, the bellows or the like is easily damaged, and another problem arises in that the molten glass G leaks.

Next, another conventional example of the glass manufacturing apparatus 1 will be described with reference to FIG. Problems occurring when the lower end of the discharge pipe 20 is supported by the spring 40 will be described below. In addition, although the discharge pipe 20 is connected to the lower end of the container 10 or the transport pipe in FIG. 7, the same problem occurs when the discharge pipe 20 is connected to the side wall or the upper end.

As shown in FIG. 7, the lower end of the discharge tube 20 is supported by a spring 40. As shown in FIG. Spring 40 is a compression spring in FIG. 7, but may be a tension spring. The spring 40 pushes the discharge pipe 20 upward by its elastic restoring force, and suppresses the creep deformation of the discharge pipe 20 due to its own weight.

The spring 40 contracts when the discharge tube 20 extends, and the spring 40 expands when the discharge tube 20 contracts. The spring 40 expands and contracts to allow expansion and contraction of the discharge pipe 20 and suppress plastic fatigue of the discharge pipe 20 . However, due to the expansion and contraction of the spring 40, the elastic restoring force of the spring 40 fluctuates, and the force pushing the discharge pipe 20 upward fluctuates.

For example, when the number of springs 40 is three and the elastic constant of each spring 40 is 6.2 N/mm, if the length of the discharge pipe 20 is extended by 11.3 mm, the elastic restoring force of the spring 40 is approximately 210N, and the force pushing the discharge pipe 20 upward increases by 210N.

By supporting the lower end of the discharge pipe 20 with the spring 40, the load acting on the discharge pipe 20 can be reduced compared to the case where the lower end of the discharge pipe 20 is fixed. However, the load acting on the discharge pipe 20 cannot be zero.

If the spring 40 is provided at the lower end of the discharge pipe 20, there is also the problem that the work space for maintenance of the discharge pipe 20 becomes narrow. In order to widen the work space, the length of the spring 40 may be shortened, in which case a spring having a high elastic constant, such as a disc spring, is used. The larger the elastic constant of the spring 40 is, the larger the fluctuation of the elastic restoring force according to the expansion and contraction of the spring 40 is.

When the spring 40 is provided at the lower end of the discharge pipe 20, there is also the problem that the spring 40 is also heated when the gas burner heats the discharge port of the discharge pipe 20. FIG. As a result, the spring 40 is thermally deteriorated and the elastic constant of the spring 40 is lowered.

Next, with reference to FIG. 1 again, the glass manufacturing apparatus 1 according to one embodiment will be described. The glass manufacturing apparatus 1 includes a rotating member 50 that supports the lower end of the discharge pipe 20 and a weight 60 attached to the rotating member 50 .

The rotating member 50 has a support portion 51 that supports the lower end portion of the discharge pipe 20, a rotation center portion 52 that is the center of rotation of the rotating member 50, and an attachment portion 53 to which the weight 60 is attached. The mounting portion 53 and the support portion 51 are provided with the rotation center portion 52 interposed therebetween.

The weight 60 pushes the support portion 51 vertically upward by pulling the mounting portion 53 vertically downward. The support portion 51 pushes back the discharge pipe 20 vertically upward with a force approximately equal to the gravity acting on the discharge pipe 20 , for example, a force of 70% to 130% of the gravity acting on the discharge pipe 20 . Therefore, creep deformation of the discharge pipe 20 can be suppressed. The gravity acting on the discharge pipe 20 includes the gravity acting on the accessories of the discharge pipe 20 (for example, the heater 30).

The rotating member 50 rotates around the rotation center portion 52 to allow expansion and contraction of the discharge pipe 20 and suppress plastic fatigue of the discharge pipe 20 . The support portion 51 moves vertically downward when the discharge pipe 20 extends, and moves vertically upward when the discharge pipe 20 contracts. Therefore, expansion and contraction of the discharge pipe 20 can be allowed, and distortion of the discharge pipe 20 caused by temperature change can be suppressed.

The force by which the support portion 51 pushes the lower end portion of the discharge pipe 20 vertically upward is: (1) the ratio of the distance L1 between the support portion 51 and the rotation center portion 52 to the distance L2 between the attachment portion 53 and the rotation center portion 52 (L1/ L2) and (2) are determined by the weight of the weight 60, etc., and do not depend on the rotation angle of the rotary member 50.

When the glass manufacturing apparatus 1 includes the rotating member 50 and the weight 60, the expansion and contraction of the discharge pipe 20 can be allowed, and the discharge pipe 20 can always be pushed back vertically upward with a constant force. Therefore, breakage of the discharge pipe 20 can be suppressed.

According to the present inventor, the material of the discharge pipe 20 is platinum, the length of the discharge pipe 20 is 750 mm, the total weight of the discharge pipe 20 and its accessories (such as the heater 30) is 8.3 kg, The extension of the discharge pipe 20 was actually measured when L1 and L2 were each 350 mm and the weight 60 weighed 8.3 kg. When the temperature of the discharge pipe 20 was raised from room temperature to 1400° C., the elongation of the discharge pipe 20 was about 10 mm, which was close to the theoretical value of 11.3 mm. From this, it was found that the discharge pipe 20 expanded substantially freely. After that, when the temperature of the discharge pipe 20 was lowered from 1400° C. to 600° C., the elongation of the discharge pipe 20 was reduced to about 5 mm. It was found that the amount of shrinkage of the discharge pipe 20 was substantially equal to the product of the coefficient of linear expansion and the width of temperature change, and the discharge pipe 20 contracted substantially freely. Therefore, it was confirmed that the expansion and contraction of the discharge pipe 20 is permissible.

When the glass manufacturing apparatus 1 includes the rotating member 50 and the weight 60 (see FIG. 1), the amount of discharge around the lower end of the discharge pipe 20 is greater than when the glass manufacturing apparatus 1 includes the spring 40 (see FIG. 7). Work space for maintenance of the pipe 20 can be easily secured. The distance L1 between the support portion 51 and the rotation center portion 52 may be greater than the distance L2 between the attachment portion 53 and the rotation center portion 52 so that the work space is wider.

A distance L1 between the support portion 51 and the rotation center portion 52 is, for example, 150 mm to 1000 mm, preferably 300 mm to 600 mm. A distance L2 between the attachment portion 53 and the rotation center portion 52 is, for example, 150 mm to 600 mm, preferably 200 mm to 500 mm. The ratio (L1/L2) is, for example, 0.8 to 3.0, preferably 1.0 to 2.0, more preferably 1.1 to 2.0.

Next, an example of the connection mechanism 70 will be described with reference to FIG. 3 . The glass manufacturing apparatus 1 may be provided with a connecting mechanism 70 . The connection mechanism 70 is used when the rotary member 50 is rod-shaped. A pair of connecting mechanisms 70 may be provided on both sides of the lower end portion of the discharge pipe 20 .

The connection mechanism 70 connects the lower end portion of the discharge pipe 20 and the support portion 51 of the rotating member 50 so as to be relatively movable in the vertical and horizontal directions. When the discharge pipe 20 expands and contracts according to temperature changes, the lower end of the discharge pipe 20 and the supporting portion 51 of the rotating member 50 can move relatively vertically and horizontally, so that the rotating member 50 can rotate smoothly.

For example, as shown in FIG. 3, the connection mechanism 70 includes an elongated hole 71 formed in the discharge pipe 20, a horizontal pin 72 inserted into the elongated hole 71, a column 73 horizontally supporting the horizontal pin 72, and a column and a horizontal plate 74 provided at the lower end of 73 . The elongated hole 71 is elongated in the vertical direction, and a plurality of horizontal pins 72 are provided at intervals in the vertical direction. Thereby, the lower surface of the horizontal plate 74 is always kept horizontal. The lower surface of the horizontal plate 74 is in contact with the supporting portion 51 of the rotating member 50 . The support portion 51 pushes the lower end portion of the discharge pipe 20 vertically upward by pushing the lower surface of the horizontal plate 74 vertically upward. The positions of the long hole 71 and the horizontal pin 72 may be reversed, and the long hole 71 may be provided in the column 73 and the horizontal pin 72 may be provided in the discharge pipe 20 .

The connection mechanism 70 may have a second elongated hole 75 formed in the horizontal plate 74 and a second horizontal pin 76 inserted into the second elongated hole 75, as shown in FIG. The second long hole 75 is long in the horizontal direction. The second horizontal pin 76 is fixed to the support portion 51 of the rotating member 50 . The arrangement of the second elongated hole 75 and the second horizontal pin 76 may be reversed. good too.

Note that the distance L1 between the support portion 51 and the rotation center portion 52 is sufficiently long compared to the elongation of the discharge pipe 20, and the change in the rotation angle of the rotating member 50 due to the elongation of the discharge pipe 20 is small. Therefore, even without the connection mechanism 70, the rotation of the rotation member 50 is possible due to the play of the rotation pair that rotatably connects the support portion 51 of the rotation member 50 and the lower end portion of the discharge pipe 20. FIG. However, if the connection mechanism 70 is provided, the rotating member 50 can rotate smoothly.

Next, an example of the link mechanism 55 will be described with reference to FIG. The rotating member 50 may have a link mechanism 55 instead of being rod-shaped. A pair of link mechanisms 55 may be provided on both sides of the lower end of the discharge pipe 20 . Note that the link mechanism 55 can be used not only when the discharge pipe 20 is connected to the lower end of the container 10 or the carrier pipe, but also when the discharge pipe 20 is connected to the side wall or the upper end of the container 10 or the carrier pipe. Available.

Each link mechanism 55 includes a plurality of (eg, five) links 81-85 and one or more (eg, six) pairs 91-96 that connect two adjacent links. Each pair 91-96 is provided at the nodes of two adjacent links. Each pair 91-96 is, for example, a rotational pair. The rotational pair includes, for example, a round bar and a cylinder into which the round bar is inserted. A round bar is provided on one link and a cylinder is provided on another link, and the round bar and the cylinder rotatably connect the two adjacent links. The rotational center line of the rotational pair is provided parallel to the rotational center line of the rotating member 50 .

Each link mechanism 55 includes, for example, a parallel link mechanism. The parallel link mechanism is composed of four links 81-84 and four pairs 91-94. A pair of upper and lower links 81 and 82 are maintained parallel to each other, and a rotation center portion 52 is provided in the middle of the upper link 81 . A pair of left and right links 83 , 84 are maintained parallel to each other, one link 83 constitutes the support portion 51 of the rotating member 50 , and the other link 84 constitutes the mounting portion 53 of the rotating member 50 .

Each link mechanism 55 may include an intermediate link 85 and a pair of upper and lower joints 95 and 96 in addition to the parallel link mechanism described above. The upper pair 95 connects the middle link 85 and the upper link 81 . The upper pair 95 constitutes the rotation center portion 52 . Lower pair 96 connects intermediate link 85 and lower link 82 . By fixing the intermediate link 85 vertically, the link 83 that constitutes the support portion 51 and the link 84 that constitutes the mounting portion 53 are always maintained vertically.

The link 83 forming the support portion 51 is always maintained vertically as described above. Therefore, if a horizontal plate is provided at the upper end of the link 83, and the lower end of the discharge pipe 20 is placed on the horizontal plate, the link mechanism 55 will support the lower end of the discharge pipe 20 even if the discharge pipe 20 expands or contracts. You can keep pushing vertically upwards. Incidentally, when the rotating member 50 has the link mechanism 55, it is also possible to use the connection mechanism 70 shown in FIGS.

When the link mechanism 55 is used, the weight of the weight 60 is determined also considering the weight of the link mechanism 55 . The weight of the weight 60 is such that the support portion 51 pushes back the discharge pipe 20 vertically upward with a force approximately equal to the gravity acting on the discharge pipe 20, for example, 70% to 130% of the force of gravity acting on the discharge pipe 20. is determined by

As an example, a pair of link mechanisms 55 are provided across the lower end of the discharge pipe 20, the total weight of the discharge pipe 20 and its accessories is 4.5 kg, L1 (see FIG. 1) is 500 mm, and L2 ( 1) is 200 mm, S below is 40 mm, W1 below is 3.6 kg, and W2 below is 1.4 kg, the weight of the weight 60 is set to 15 kg. S is the distance between the center line of rotation of the upper pair 95 and the center line of rotation of the lower pair 96 . W1 is the total weight of the portion of the pair of link mechanisms 55 on the support portion 51 side with respect to the rotation center portion 52 . W2 is the total weight of the portion of the pair of link mechanisms 55 on the mounting portion 53 side with the rotation center portion 52 as a reference.

Although the glass manufacturing apparatus and the glass manufacturing method according to the present disclosure have been described above, the present disclosure is not limited to the above-described embodiments and the like. Various changes, modifications, substitutions, additions, deletions, and combinations are possible within the scope of the claims. These also naturally belong to the technical scope of the present disclosure.

1 Glass Manufacturing Apparatus 10 Container 20 Discharge Pipe 50 Rotating Member 51 Supporting Part 52 Rotation Center Part 53 Mounting Part 60 Weight G Molten Glass

Claims (10)

a discharge pipe for discharging the molten glass from a container containing the molten glass or a conveying pipe for conveying the molten glass;
a rotating member that supports the lower end of the discharge pipe;
a weight attached to the rotating member;
with
The discharge pipe has a discharge port for discharging the molten glass at a lower end,
The rotating member has a support portion that supports the lower end portion of the discharge pipe, a rotation center portion that is the center of rotation of the rotating member, and a mounting portion to which the weight is attached,
In the glass manufacturing apparatus, the attachment portion and the support portion are provided with the rotation center portion interposed therebetween. The glass manufacturing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the rotating member is rod-shaped. 3. The glass manufacturing apparatus according to claim 2, further comprising a connection mechanism that connects the lower end portion of the discharge pipe and the support portion of the rotating member so as to be relatively movable vertically and horizontally. The glass manufacturing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the rotating member is a link mechanism including a plurality of links and one or more pairs connecting two adjacent links. 5. The apparatus of claim 4, wherein the link mechanism includes a parallel link mechanism. The glass manufacturing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the discharge pipe is connected to a lower end portion, a side wall portion or an upper end portion of the container or the transfer pipe. The glass manufacturing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the rotating member has a distance between the support portion and the rotation center greater than a distance between the mounting portion and the rotation center. The glass manufacturing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein said discharge pipe has an orifice at said lower end. The glass manufacturing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 8, comprising a heater that heats the discharge pipe. A glass manufacturing method comprising manufacturing glass using the glass manufacturing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 9.

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