TW201802043A - System and method for roll upset management - Google Patents

Abstract

A method and system for responding to an upset event in the production of a glass article. The method and system include monitoring the amount of glass on the outer circumference of at least one roll contacting a glass ribbon and further include remotely removing the at least one roll from contact with the glass ribbon if the amount of glass on the outer circumference of the roll exceeds a predetermined amount.

Description

System and method for roller imbalance management

This application is based on the priority benefit of the U.S. Provisional Patent Application Serial No. 62/341,248, filed on May 25, 2016, the disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference.

The present disclosure relates to systems and methods for glass roller management, and more particularly to systems and methods for glass roller management in imbalance events.

In the production of glassware, such as glass sheets for display applications, including televisions and handheld devices, such as phones and tablets, there is a need to increase production to more efficiently utilize existing capital equipment. There is also a need to reduce the response time for damage or imbalance events that occur during production, especially in high-volume processes where response time delays can result in repair or replacement of capital equipment.

Embodiments disclosed herein include a method for responding to an imbalance event in the production of a glazing. The method includes monitoring the amount of glass on the outer circumference of at least one of the rollers contacting the glass ribbon. The method also includes remotely removing contact of the at least one roller with the glass ribbon if the amount of glass on the outer circumference of the roller exceeds a predetermined amount.

Embodiments disclosed herein also include a system for responding to an imbalance event in the production of glass articles. The system includes a mechanism for monitoring the amount of glass on the outer circumference of at least one of the rollers contacting the glass ribbon. The system also includes a mechanism for remotely removing contact of the at least one roller with the glass ribbon when the amount of glass on the outer circumference of the roller exceeds a predetermined amount.

The additional features and advantages of the embodiments disclosed herein will be set forth in the <RTIgt; The detailed description below, the scope of the patent application and the accompanying drawings are included.

It is to be understood that both the foregoing general description The drawings are included to provide a further understanding, and the drawings are incorporated in this specification and constitute a part of this specification. The drawings illustrate various embodiments of the present disclosure and, together with the description

Reference will now be made in detail to the present preferred embodiments embodiments Wherever possible, the same element symbols are used throughout the drawings to refer to the same or the like. However, the present disclosure may be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as being limited to the embodiments set forth herein.

The scope of the disclosure may be expressed as "about" a particular value and/or to "about" another particular value. When such a range is indicated, another embodiment includes from a particular value and/or to another particular value. Similarly, when values are expressed as approximations, for example, by using the foregoing "about", it is understood that the particular value forms another embodiment. It should also be understood that the endpoint of each range is important to the other endpoint and is independent of the other endpoint.

Directional terms as used herein - for example, up, down, right, left, front, back, top, bottom - refer only to the chart drawn rather than to the absolute direction.

Unless otherwise expressly stated, any method set forth herein is not intended to be construed as requiring that the steps be performed in a particular order, or in any particular orientation of the device. Therefore, the method request items are not actually described in the order in which they are followed, or any device request items are not actually recited in the order or orientation of the individual components, or are not specifically stated in the claims or descriptions. The steps are limited to a particular order, or a particular order or orientation of the components of the device is not described, and the order or orientation is not intended to be inferred in any way. This applies to any possible non-explanatory basis of explanation, including: logical questions regarding the arrangement of steps, operational procedures, order of components, or direction of components; pure meaning derived from grammatical organization or punctuation, and; embodiments described in the specification The number or type.

As used herein, the singular forms " " " " " " " " Thus, for example, reference to "a" or "an" or "

As used herein, the term "unbalanced" or "unbalanced event" refers to any condition under which the glass manufacturing process is interrupted such that a high quality glass article such as a glass sheet cannot be manufactured for at least a short period of time. Examples of imbalances include conditions under which the formation of a high quality glass article at least briefly exceeds a predetermined specification, including conditions in which the outer casing containing the molten glass ribbon begins to be filled with molten glass in an improper form.

As used herein, the term "edge roller" refers to a roller or roller intended to be in contact with a glass sheet or ribbon, the glass or glass ribbon comprising a molten glass sheet or glass ribbon, such as, for example, having from about 10 ⁴ to about 10 A viscous molten glass or glass ribbon of ¹³ poise. The edge roller can provide tension, for example, in at least the lateral direction of the glass sheet or glass ribbon. In general, it is contemplated that the edge roller will comprise a refractory material and may be further expected to be idle because it does not impart significant external rotational force or torque to the glass sheet or glass ribbon.

As used herein, the term "pulling roller" refers to roller intended to contact with the glass ribbon or glass sheet or rollers, this comprises a glass or glass with a molten glass ribbon or a glass sheet, such as, for example, having from about 10 to ^7.6 poise A viscous molten glass or glass ribbon of about 10 ^14.5 poise. The pull roller can provide tension, for example, in at least the lateral direction of the glass sheet or the glass ribbon. The pull-out roller can also provide tension or tension, for example, in the longitudinal direction of the glass sheet or glass ribbon (i.e., in the direction in which the glass sheet or ribbon is drawn). In general, it is contemplated that the draw roller will comprise a refractory material and may be further contemplated to be driven (e.g., by a motor, such as a servo motor) because it exhibits significant external rotational force or torque when applied to a sheet of glass or glass ribbon. When at least two draw rollers are in contact with the molten sheet or glass ribbon, they can be driven to exhibit the same or different external rotational forces or torques. For example, different pull rollers can exhibit the same or different torque or rotational speed.

As used herein, the term "roller" may refer to at least one of an edge roller and a draw roller.

An exemplary glass manufacturing apparatus 10 is illustrated in FIG. In some examples, glass manufacturing apparatus 10 can include a glass melting furnace 12 that can include a melting vessel 14. In addition to melting the vessel 14, the glass melting furnace 12 can optionally include one or more additional components such as heating elements (e.g., burners or electrodes) that heat the raw materials and convert the raw materials into molten glass. In another example, the glass melting furnace 12 can include a thermal management device (eg, an insulating component) that reduces heat lost from the vicinity of the melting vessel. In other examples, the glass melting furnace 12 can include an electronic device and/or an electromechanical device that facilitates melting of the raw material into a glass melt. Still further, the glass melting furnace 12 can include a support structure (eg, a support chassis, support members, etc.) or other components.

The glass melting vessel 14 is typically comprised of a refractory material, such as a refractory ceramic material, such as a refractory ceramic material comprising alumina or zirconia. In some examples, the glass melting vessel 14 can be constructed from refractory ceramic tiles. Particular embodiments of the glass melting vessel 14 will be described in greater detail below.

In some examples, a glass melting furnace can be incorporated as part of a glass manufacturing facility to make a glass substrate, such as a continuous length of glass ribbon. In some examples, the glass melting furnace of the present disclosure may be incorporated as part of a glass manufacturing apparatus comprising a slit drawing apparatus, a floating tank apparatus, a pull down apparatus such as a melt process, a pull up apparatus, a roll press apparatus Tube drawing equipment or any other glass making equipment that would benefit from the aspects disclosed herein. By way of example, Figure 1 schematically illustrates a glass melting furnace 12 as a component of a molten downd glass manufacturing apparatus 10 for melt drawing a glass ribbon for subsequent processing into individual glass sheets.

The glass making apparatus 10 (e.g., the melt down apparatus 10) may optionally include an upstream glass making apparatus 16 located upstream with respect to the glass melting vessel 14. In some examples, one or the entirety of the upstream glass making equipment 16 may be incorporated as part of the glass melting furnace 12.

As illustrated in the illustrated example, the upstream glass manufacturing apparatus 16 can include a storage tank 18, a raw material delivery device 20, and a motor 22 coupled to the raw material delivery device. The storage tank 18 can store a quantity of raw material 24 that can be injected into the melting vessel 14 of the glass melting furnace 12 as indicated by arrow 26. The starting material 24 typically comprises one or more glasses and one or more modifying agents that form a metal oxide. In some examples, the raw material delivery device 20 can be powered by the motor 22 such that the raw material delivery device 20 delivers a predetermined amount of the raw material 24 from the storage bin 18 to the melting vessel 14. In another example, the motor 22 can power the raw material delivery device 20 to introduce the raw material 24 at a controlled rate based on the level of molten glass sensed downstream of the melting vessel 14. Thereafter, the raw material 24 in the melting vessel 14 can be heated to form the molten glass 28.

The glass making apparatus 10 may also optionally include a downstream glass making apparatus 30 located downstream with respect to the glass melting furnace 12. In some examples, a portion of the downstream glass making apparatus 30 can be incorporated as part of the glass melting furnace 12. In some cases, the first connecting conduit 32 discussed below or other portions of the downstream glass making apparatus 30 may be incorporated as part of the glass melting furnace 12. The elements of the downstream glass making apparatus including the first connecting conduit 32 may be formed of a noble metal. Suitable noble metals include platinum group metals selected from the group consisting of platinum, rhodium, ruthenium, osmium, iridium, and palladium or alloys thereof. For example, the downstream components of the glass making equipment can be formed from a platinum rhodium alloy comprising from about 70 to about 90 weight percent platinum and from about 10% to about 30 weight percent rhodium. However, other suitable metals may include molybdenum, palladium, rhodium, iridium, titanium, tungsten, and alloys thereof.

The downstream glass making apparatus 30 can include a first conditioning (ie, processing) container, such as a clarification container 34, located downstream of the melting vessel 14 and coupled to the melting vessel 14 in the manner of the first connecting conduit 32 described above. In some examples, the molten glass 28 can be fed by gravity from the melting vessel 14 to the clarification vessel 34 in a manner that the first connecting conduit 32. For example, gravity can cause the molten glass 28 to pass from the melting vessel 14 through the internal passage of the first connecting conduit 32 into the clarification vessel 34. However, it should be understood that other conditioning containers may be located downstream of the melting vessel 14, such as between the melting vessel 14 and the clarification vessel 34. In some embodiments, a conditioning vessel can be used between the melting vessel and the clarification vessel, wherein the molten glass from the primary melting vessel is further heated to continue the melting process, or cooled to below the melting vessel prior to entering the clarification vessel The temperature of the temperature of the molten glass.

The bubbles can be removed from the molten glass 28 in the clarification vessel 34 by a variety of methods. For example, the starting material 24 can include a multivalent compound (ie, a fining agent), such as tin oxide, which, when heated, undergoes a chemical reduction reaction and releases oxygen. Other suitable fining agents include, but are not limited to, arsenic, antimony, iron, and antimony. The clarification vessel 34 is heated to a temperature greater than the temperature of the melting vessel to heat the molten glass and the fining agent. The oxygen bubbles generated by the chemical reduction induced by the temperature of the fining agent rise through the molten glass in the clarification vessel, wherein the gas in the molten glass produced in the melting furnace can diffuse or merge into the oxygen produced by the clarifying agent In the bubble. The subsequently expanded bubbles can rise to the free surface of the molten glass in the clarification vessel and thereafter exit the clarification vessel. Oxygen bubbles can further induce mechanical mixing of the molten glass in the clarification vessel.

The downstream glass making apparatus 30 may further include another conditioning vessel such as a mixing vessel 36 for mixing molten glass. The mixing vessel 36 can be located downstream of the clarification vessel 34. Mixing vessel 36 can be used to provide a homogeneous glass melt composition that reduces chemical or thermal inhomogeneous zones that would otherwise be present in the clarified molten glass exiting the clarification vessel. As shown, the clarification container 34 can be coupled to the mixing vessel 36 in the manner of a second connecting conduit 38. In some examples, the molten glass 28 can be gravity injected into the mixing vessel 36 from the clarification vessel 34 in a manner that the second connecting conduit 38. For example, gravity can cause the molten glass 28 to pass from the clarification vessel 34 through the internal passage of the second connecting conduit 38 into the mixing vessel 36. It should be noted that although the mixing vessel 36 is illustrated as being downstream of the clarification vessel 34, the mixing vessel 36 may be located upstream of the clarification vessel 34. In some embodiments, the downstream glass making apparatus 30 can include a plurality of mixing vessels, such as a mixing vessel upstream of the clarification vessel 34 and a mixing vessel downstream of the clarification vessel 34. The plurality of mixing containers may have the same design or they may have different designs.

The downstream glass making apparatus 30 may further include another conditioning vessel, such as a shipping vessel 40 that may be located downstream of the mixing vessel 36. The delivery vessel 40 can condition the molten glass 28 to inject it into the downstream forming apparatus. For example, the delivery vessel 40 can act as a reservoir and/or flow controller to adjust and/or provide a coherent flow of molten glass 28 to the shaped body 42 by way of the outlet conduit 44. As shown, the mixing container 36 can be coupled to the delivery container 40 by way of a third connecting conduit 46. In some examples, the molten glass 28 can be fed by gravity into the delivery vessel 40 from the mixing vessel 36 by way of a third connecting conduit 46. For example, gravity can drive the molten glass 28 from the mixing vessel 36 through the internal passage of the third connecting conduit 46 into the delivery vessel 40.

The downstream glass making apparatus 30 may further include a forming apparatus 48 comprising the molded body 42 and the inlet duct 50 cited above. The outlet conduit 44 can be positioned to convey the molten glass 28 from the delivery vessel 40 to the inlet conduit 50 of the forming apparatus 48. For example, in an example, the outlet conduit 44 can be nested within the inner surface of the inlet conduit 50 and spaced from the inner surface of the inlet conduit 50 to provide melting between the outer surface of the outlet conduit 44 and the inner surface of the inlet conduit 50. The free surface of the glass. The shaped body 42 in the molten down glass manufacturing apparatus may include a groove 52 in the upper surface of the molded body, and a converging forming surface 54 that converges in the drawing direction along the bottom edge 56 of the molded body. . The molten glass conveyed to the shaped body tank via the transfer vessel 40, the outlet conduit 44, and the inlet conduit 50 serves as a separate molten glass flow overflowing sidewall of the tank and descends along the converging forming surface 54. A separate molten glass stream is joined below and along the bottom edge 56 to create a single glass ribbon 58 that is drawn by applying tension to the glass ribbon, such as by gravity, edge roller 72, and draw roller 82. The direction 60 is drawn from the bottom edge 56 to control the size of the glass ribbon as the glass cools and the glass becomes more viscous. Thus, the glass ribbon 58 undergoes a viscous-elastic transition and achieves mechanical properties that impart stable geometric properties to the glass ribbon 58. The glass ribbon 58 can be separated into individual glass sheets 62 in some embodiments by a glass separation apparatus 100 in the elastic region of the glass ribbon. The robot 64 can then transport the individual glass sheets 62 to the conveyor system using the gripping tool 65, with the subsequent processing of the individual glass sheets.

2 illustrates a front view of a portion of the glass ribbon 58 and the edge roller pair 72 and the pair of pulling rollers 82 of the contact glass ribbon 58 in accordance with embodiments disclosed herein. Although Figure 2 illustrates the edge roller pair 72 and the pull roller pair 82 on each side of the strip, it should be understood that the embodiments disclosed herein can be included or applied to any number of edge rollers in any configuration. And/or a pulling roller (for example, an edge roller above the pulling roller, as illustrated in Figure 2, or an edge roller below the pulling roller, such as along the length of the strip in the drawing direction Roller roller alternately edge roller, etc.).

In particular, in the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 2, the edge rollers 72 are each part of the edge roller assembly 70, and the edge roller assembly 70 includes a support shaft 74 attached to the edge roller 72 such that the edge roller 72 can be mounted Support shaft 74 is coaxial with it. The support shaft 74 can be made, for example, of metal or other material that withstands the temperature of the drawable glass ribbon 58. The support shaft 74 is in turn connectable to a motor 75, such as a servo motor, which is mounted on a slidable mounting block 76 that is laterally movable along the slider 77 such that the edge roller 72 is via, for example, a motor 75 The operation moves relative to the glass ribbon 58. The edge roller assembly 70 can also include an adjustment mechanism 78 to cause the edge rollers 72 to move accurately and quantitatively, for example, in an incremental manner, such as based on engaging gears, slots, and the like.

In the illustrated embodiment of FIG. 2, the draw rollers 82 are each part of the pull roller assembly 80, and the pull roller assembly 80 includes a support shaft 84 attached to the draw roller 82 such that the pull roller 82 can be mounted. On and parallel to the support shaft 84. The support shaft 84 can be made, for example, of metal or other material that withstands the temperature of the drawable glass ribbon 58. The support shaft 84 is in turn connectable to a motor 85, such as a servo motor, mounted on a slidable mounting block 86 that is laterally movable along the slider 87 such that the pull roller 82 is operated via, for example, a motor 85 (this motor Moving relative to the glass ribbon 58 with or without providing force to rotate the same motor associated with the roller. The pull roller assembly 80 can also include an adjustment mechanism 88 to cause the pull roller 82 to move, for example, in an incremental manner, such as based on engaging and measuring gears, slots, and the like.

3A and 3B illustrate an edge roller pair 72 and a pull roller pair 82 in a portion of the glass ribbon 58 in accordance with embodiments disclosed herein and in the process of removing contact from the glass ribbon 58 in the thickness direction of the ribbon. Side profile view. In the embodiment of Figure 3A, edge roller 72 and draw roller 82 contact glass ribbon 58 on opposite sides of glass ribbon 58. In the embodiment of FIG. 3B, the edge roller 72 and the pull roller 82 remove contact with the glass ribbon 58 by removing the roller from the glass ribbon 58 in a direction opposite to the thickness direction of the glass ribbon 58. This is illustrated by the arrow 90 with respect to the edge roller 72 and by the arrow 95 with respect to the pull roller 82.

4 illustrates a front view of a portion of the glass ribbon 58 and the pair of edge rollers 72 and the pair of pulling rollers 82 during removal of the ribbon from the strip in the lateral direction of the glass ribbon 58 in accordance with embodiments disclosed herein. In the exemplary embodiment illustrated in FIG. 4, the edge roller 72 moves in the direction of the arrow 92 due to the lateral movement of the slidable mounting block 76 along the slider 77. Likewise, as the slidable mounting block 86 moves laterally along the slider 87, the draw roller 82 moves in the direction of arrow 97.

In this manner, the embodiments illustrated in FIGS. 3A and 3B can be used in combination with the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 4 to remove edge roller 72 and/or pull roller 82 and glass ribbon 58. The contact is first removed from the glass ribbon 58 in the opposite direction relative to the thickness direction of the glass ribbon 58 (e.g., as illustrated in Figures 3A and 3B), and subsequently in the glass ribbon. The roller is removed from the belt in the lateral direction of 58 (e.g., as illustrated in Figure 4).

5A and 5B illustrate a portion of a housing wall 100 (not shown in FIGS. 5A and 5B) that accommodates a glass ribbon and edge rollers during removal from the housing in accordance with embodiments disclosed herein. 72 and a front cross-sectional view of the pull roller 82. In the exemplary embodiment illustrated in FIGS. 5A and 5B, the sealing plate 102 and the sealing plate 104 may be first moved or removed, such as by remote control or manual, to facilitate the edge roller 72 and/or the draw roller 82. Move from the outer casing. The edge roller 72 is then movable in the direction of arrow 94 due to the lateral movement of the slidable mounting block 76 along the slider 77. Likewise, as the slidable mounting block 86 moves laterally along the slider 87, the draw roller 82 moves in the direction of arrow 99.

Figure 6 is a flow chart illustrating the steps of the method in accordance with embodiments disclosed herein. In particular, the flowchart of FIG. 6 illustrates exemplary steps for responding to an imbalance event in accordance with embodiments disclosed herein. In the flow chart of Figure 6, the hexagon 200 represents a stabilization process in the manufacture of glass articles, such as glass sheets. Block 202 represents an imbalance or imbalance event, as defined herein. The imbalance can be detected, for example, by an operator and/or by a process control system configured to detect an imbalance event. Block 204 represents the step of augmenting an air flow, such as an air flow, around at least one roller, such as at least one edge roller and/or at least one draw roller, such as edge roller 72 and pull roller 82 illustrated in FIG. Such an increase in airflow may be accomplished, for example, by at least one of flowing more air throughout the outer casing and flowing air through the nozzle or orifice, the nozzles or orifices being directed toward at least one edge roller and/or at least one Pull the roller. This increase in airflow can occur when at least one of the rollers is still in contact with the glass ribbon, and it can continue to occur after removal of contact of the at least one roller with the glass ribbon. While some amount of gas, such as air, may have flowed into the outer casing that houses the glass ribbon, increasing the flow rate of the gas may help minimize or prevent the glass from wrapping around the rollers such as the edge rollers or the draw rollers. The increased airflow can be accomplished over long distances, such as by an operator or process control system by remote control to actuate the automated mechanism to increase the airflow around the at least one roller above a predetermined level.

In some embodiments, the extent to which the glass wraps the roller can vary in a sense with the viscosity of the glass ribbon that abuts the roller, ie, the amount of adhesion between the glass and the roller can vary, at least to some extent, with the viscosity of the glass, such as The viscosity of the glass ribbon at the point of contact with the roller ranges from about 10 ⁴ to about 10 ^14.5 poise, such as from about 10 ^7.6 poise to about 10 ¹³ poise.

Continuing with Figure 6, diamond 206 represents a first decision point wrapped around at least one of the rollers, such as at least one edge roller and/or at least one draw roller. In particular, if the amount of glass on the outer circumference of the roller exceeds a predetermined amount, such as when the glass on the outer circumference has a radial thickness that exceeds the thickness of the glass ribbon, the contact of the at least one roller with the glass ribbon can be removed, such as Represented by block 208 and illustrated, for example, with respect to edge roller 72 and pull roller 82, in Figures 2 through 4. Determining whether the amount of glass on the outer surface of the at least one roller exceeds a predetermined amount can be accomplished, for example, by monitoring the amount of glass on the outer circumference of the at least one roller using, for example, a camera or other monitoring device, camera or other The monitoring device is in turn monitored by the operator and/or included as part of the process control system. Removal of the at least one roller can be accomplished, for example, over long distances, such as by an operator or process control system by remote control to actuate the automated mechanism to remove contact of the at least one roller with the glass ribbon.

If the number of glass on the outer circumference of the roller does not exceed a predetermined amount, the accelerated removal of at least one of the rollers may not be selected as part of the remaining steps of the imbalance recovery procedure, as indicated by block 218. In this case, at least one of the rollers may still be removed at some point, but if the number of glasses on the circumference of the roller does not exceed the predetermined number, the roller removal may have a lower relative priority in the imbalance recovery procedure. The rights, and can be performed remotely, for example, via the use of a manual or automated system. Once the imbalance recovery procedure is fully performed, the stable process for making the glass article can continue, as indicated by the hexagon 220.

The diamond 210 represents a second decision point for removing at least one edge roller from the housing that houses the glass ribbon and the at least one edge roller. In particular, if the unbalanced condition in the outer casing exceeds a predetermined threshold, such as where irreparable damage to the at least one roller is expected to be urgent, at least one of the rollers can be removed from the outer casing, as represented by block 212, and for example The edge roller 72 and the pulling roller 82 are illustrated in FIGS. 5A and 5B. Removal of the at least one roller may be accomplished, for example, over long distances, such as by an operator or process control system to remotely control the automated mechanism to remove at least one roller from the housing. This removal may also include an operator or process control system actuating the automated mechanism to remove the sealing member, such as seal plate 102 and sealing plate 104 in Figure 5A, to facilitate removal of at least one roller from the housing.

If the unbalanced condition in the housing containing the glass ribbon does not exceed a predetermined threshold, then the removal of at least one of the rollers from the outer casing may be selected as part of the remaining steps of the imbalance recovery procedure. In this case, at least one of the rollers may still be removed from the outer casing at some point, but if the unbalanced condition in the outer casing containing the glass ribbon does not exceed a predetermined amount, the removal of the roller from the outer casing may have an imbalance recovery procedure. The lower relative priority, and can be performed manually or remotely, for example, via the use of an automated system.

After the at least one roller is removed from the outer casing, it can be replaced by at least one replacement roller, as indicated by block 214, such as by replacing the roller on the support shaft when the roller assembly is outside the outer casing. Once the at least one replacement roller has been placed on the support shaft, the roller assembly can be repositioned back into the interior of the housing, as indicated by block 216.

Although the above embodiments have been described using a fusion pull-down process, it should be understood that such an embodiment is also suitable for other glass forming processes, such as a float process, a slit draw process, a pull up process, and a roll press process.

It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications and changes can be made to the embodiments of the present disclosure without departing from the spirit and scope of the disclosure. Therefore, the present disclosure is intended to cover such modifications and variations, and such modifications and variations are within the scope of the claims.

10‧‧‧Glass manufacturing equipment
12‧‧‧Glass melting furnace
14‧‧‧melting container
16‧‧‧Upstream glass manufacturing equipment
18‧‧‧Storage box
20‧‧‧ Raw material conveying device
22‧‧‧Motor
24‧‧‧ raw materials
26‧‧‧ arrow
28‧‧‧ molten glass
30‧‧‧Down glass manufacturing equipment
32‧‧‧First connecting catheter
34‧‧‧Clarification container
36‧‧‧Mixed containers
38‧‧‧Second connection catheter
40‧‧‧Transport container
42‧‧‧ molded body
44‧‧‧Export conduit
46‧‧‧ Third connecting conduit
48‧‧‧Molding equipment
50‧‧‧Inlet catheter
52‧‧‧ slots
54‧‧‧Converging forming surface
56‧‧‧ bottom edge
58‧‧‧glass ribbon
60‧‧‧Drawing direction
62‧‧‧Single piece of glass
64‧‧‧ Robot
65‧‧‧Clamping tools
70‧‧‧Edge roller assembly
72‧‧‧Edge wheel
75‧‧‧Motor
76‧‧‧Slidable mounting block
77‧‧‧ Slider
78‧‧‧Adjustment agency
80‧‧‧ Pull roller assembly
82‧‧‧ Pull roller
84‧‧‧Support shaft
85‧‧‧Motor
86‧‧‧Slidable mounting block
87‧‧‧ Slider
88‧‧‧Adjustment agency
90‧‧‧ arrow
92‧‧‧ arrow
94‧‧‧ arrow
95‧‧‧ arrow
97‧‧‧ arrow
99‧‧‧ arrow
100‧‧‧glass separation equipment
102‧‧‧ Sealing plate
104‧‧‧ Sealing plate
200‧‧‧hexagon
202‧‧‧ box
204‧‧‧ box
206‧‧‧Rhombus
208‧‧‧ box
210‧‧‧Rhombus
212‧‧‧ box
214‧‧‧ box
216‧‧‧ box
218‧‧‧ box
220‧‧‧hexagon

Figure 1 is a schematic view of an exemplary molten drop glass manufacturing process;

2 is a front elevational view of a portion of a glass ribbon and a pair of edge rollers contacting the glass ribbon and a pair of pull rollers in accordance with embodiments disclosed herein;

3A and 3B are side cross-sectional views of a portion of a glass ribbon and a pair of edge rollers that are in contact with the glass ribbon in the thickness direction of the strip and a pair of draw rollers, in accordance with embodiments disclosed herein;

4 is a front elevational view of a portion of a glass ribbon in accordance with embodiments disclosed herein and an edge roller pair and a pair of draw rollers moving away from the strip in a lateral direction of the strip;

5A and 5B are front cross-sectional views of portions of an outer casing wall and edge rollers and pull rollers removed from the outer casing in accordance with embodiments disclosed herein;

Figure 6 is a flow chart illustrating the steps of the method in accordance with embodiments disclosed herein.

no

58‧‧‧glass ribbon

70‧‧‧Edge roller assembly

72‧‧‧Edge wheel

74‧‧‧Support shaft

75‧‧‧Motor

76‧‧‧Installation block

77‧‧‧ Slider

78‧‧‧Adjustment agency

80‧‧‧ Pull roller assembly

82‧‧‧ Pull roller

84‧‧‧Support shaft

85‧‧‧Motor

86‧‧‧Installation block

87‧‧‧ Slider

88‧‧‧Adjustment agency

92‧‧‧ arrow

97‧‧‧ arrow

Claims (18)

A method for responding to an imbalance event in the production of a glass article, the method comprising the steps of: monitoring the amount of glass on a circumference of at least one of the rollers contacting a glass ribbon; and if the roller is If the number of the glass on the circumference exceeds a predetermined amount, the contact of the at least one roller with the glass ribbon is remotely removed. The method of claim 1, wherein the method further comprises increasing airflow around one of the at least one roller. The method of claim 1, wherein the glass ribbon and the at least one roller are housed in a housing and the method further comprises the step of removing the at least one roller from the housing by remote control. The method of claim 1, wherein the glass ribbon at the contact point of the roller has a viscosity ranging from about 10 ⁴ to about 10 ^14.5 poise. The method of claim 4, wherein the glass ribbon at the contact point of the roller has a viscosity ranging from about 10 ^7.6 to about 10 ¹³ poise. The method of claim 1, wherein the at least one roller comprises an edge roller. The method of claim 1, wherein the at least one roller comprises a pull roller. The method of claim 1, wherein the monitoring step comprises the use of a camera. The method of claim 2, wherein the gas comprises air. A system for responding to an imbalance event in the production of a glass article, the system comprising: a device for monitoring the amount of glass on a circumference of at least one of the rollers contacting a glass ribbon; and a configuration if The amount of the glass on the outer circumference of the roller exceeds a predetermined amount, and the contact of the at least one roller with the glass ribbon is remotely removed. The system of claim 10, wherein the system further comprises a configuration to increase airflow around one of the at least one of the rollers. The system of claim 10, wherein the glass ribbon and the at least one roller are housed in a housing and the system further includes a configuration that removes the at least one roller from the housing remotely. The system of claim 10, wherein the glass ribbon at the contact point of the roller has a viscosity ranging from about 10 ⁴ to about 10 ^14.5 poise. The system of claim 13 wherein the glass ribbon at the point of contact of the roller has a viscosity ranging from about 10 ^7.6 to about 10 ¹³ poise. The system of claim 10, wherein the at least one wheel comprises an edge roller. The system of claim 10, wherein the at least one roller comprises a pull roller. The system of claim 10, wherein the device comprises a camera that monitors the amount of the glass on the outer circumference of at least one of the rollers contacting a glass ribbon. The system of claim 11 wherein the gas comprises air.