US2398676A - Glass press - Google Patents

Description

April 16, 1946. H. H. sNYDER ETAL GLASS PRESS Filed April 430, 1942 5 Sheets-Sheet l April 16,1946. H. H. s N'YpER ETAL 2,398,676

GLASS PRESS Filed April 30, 1942 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 7,////// 32 //l/l//l//l/l/l, s1 N "-f' f I i-@Lz API'TG 1946- v H. H. sNYDER l-:TAL 2,398,676

GLASS PRESS Filed April'sof l1942 s sheets-sheet v3 v Il l 7 n Il my Uf "Mig" Z7 HIMII' Z7 Il n jililll I 3' Jil .Ig 26 2j INVENTORQX ATTORNEYS Patented Apr. 16, 1946 Harold H. Snyder, Mount Lebanon, and Edward H. Bennett, Pittsburgh, Pa., assignors toForter-TeichmannCompany, Pittsburgh, Pa., a'corporation of Pennsylvania Application April 30, 1942, Serial No. 441,111

4 Claims.

This invention relates to the production of glassware; the objectin'viewis therapid production of pressed articles of minute accuracy lof shape. Practical application of 'the invention 437has been made in the production ofthe reiiector.

element of whatisknown as the sealed 'beam light, used as an automobile headlight. This re'iiector is of paraboloid shape; it is penetrated in the central region with orifices, `temporary and permanent, for air-pump connection,ior thepassage of the leads ofan electric circuit, and for the mounting of a lament'within, to constitute thelight source; and at its periphery it isadapted tobe engaged in hermetically tight union by'the periphery ofa cover glass or f1ens,\toco'mplete what is, in effect thebulb of an incandescent lamp. Accuracy of shape is of utmost importance; the eiciency of the headlight is Y*directly dependent on the perfection of the curve of the paraboloid, the symmetry and uniformity of the Walls, and the accuracy of the placement of the light source Within the reilector.

In the accompanying drawings, Fig. I is afiliagrammatic viewin side elevation oftheessential parts of the apparatus of the invention. Inthis figure the apparatus of the invention'is -shownfin operative assembly with a glass tank. The fore hearth of the tank is fragmentarily shown -in -vertical section. Fig. II is a View to larger scale, showing in transverseand vertical section a por-1 tion of the apparatus of Fig. I. The plane of section of Fig. II is, in Fig. I, indicated by the line II-II. Fig. III is a fragmentary vievl'in horizontal section, on `the `plane III-III, Fig. II.v Fig. IV is a fragmentarvy view to yet larger scale, ont` the plane IV-IV, Fig. III. Fig. V is aview to equal vscale with Fig. IV, showing, partly in elevation, partly in section, the closed mold. The plane of'section is vertical andlongtudinal and is indicated by the broken line V-V, Fig. II. is a view in front elevation of the'nishedrefiector. Fig. VII is a View in section of the completed lamp. Fig.' VIII is a view partly in elevation and partly in 'section o f a detail of construction.

The reflector Ris pressedv in a mold.` The mold consists of the usual parts: the relatively sta- K tionary, concave or bowl-shaped part A|, the re- Y ciprocabl'e, convex plunger 2, and the reciprocable and spring-backed ring 3'.

A glass'tankjd'elivers from its fore hearth 4 a descending stream oi` glass `oi. proper viscosity, `wliich,'in known manner, and by `shears that movesub'stantially in the plane indicatedV at gobs descend one bygone and come to place, each` parisonsG or-gobs of accurately*determinedsize. A chute?, isprovided, through Whichthe'severed in 'one of a succession of mold parts I,Whentliese mold parts have come "oneby onelto the position indicatedby A, Fig. I. From position A the mold `part 1|, when it has received itsgob, advances to position B, and finposition B the mold part i `is in thepositicn of co-operation with the mold parts 2 and '3. The severing ofgobs andtheguid- Iing of themto molds arev typically 'illustratedin United-States Letters Patent Nos. Y1-,'l," 1,'707, Milarticle `is shaped may be completed beforejthe` 2,010,334, stewart.l

i The plunger 2 is rigidly (though `adjustably) borne by a cross-head 6, andcrossehead 6 is rigidly carried upon the stein l of a piston that is reciproca-ble in the iiuid-pressure cylinder 8. Cylinder 8 constitutes the motor element of the press. The adjustability alluded to of the plunger 2 is indicated by the `nut 'I I, engaging from below the cross-head 6 and movableupon a screw-threaded portion 12 `of the stem'f'l.

vIh'e ring 3 is mounted upon the cross-head 6 by the usual-extensibleand retractible connection thatv consists of--stems 9 and springs i0, so that the portionof the-mold cavity in which the -rim of the plunger t2 completes -its"downward, pressing trav- The convex-face-cf plunger? (Which,-o`fcourse, will ordinarily'be-forme'd "of steel) ispolshedand plated `With chromium; andthe inner and concave surfaceV ofthe article shapedlby` pressure beneath it yiscorrespondingly smooth. It is'thisin- -ner face of the pressed article thatis` silvered, to aiord the reflecting surfaceA of fthe completed lamp.

The g1ass-"feeding vand gob-severing l.apparatus are such a'sto afford-a succession of gobs oftuniform-and predetermined size, Within-a very nar- I row margincf'tolerance; and thestrength of-'the the tension off-springs `Ill-'becomes `effective in opx-r, Fig'. I, cuts the'stream into a succession-of' 555 `f position' to the LadvanceAoi-tli`efplung`en Therev position to pressing position. t between pinion IT and the axle of sprocket wheel'v l are VSuch that the return, right-to-ieft traverseef the piston within cylinder I9 vis ineffective operation of the conveyor brought one by one toy `successive positions in which they rst receive each a gob of glass and then each co-operates with the plunger 2 in the shaping of the glass. Our invention lies in an organization such that irregularities of structure and wear, inevitably attendant upon the use of such a conveyor, are ineffective to disturb the accuracy of the pressing operation.

The endless conveyor of our invention consists y of a succession of blocks I l with terminal eyes I2, articulatedgby vspindles I3, to form an endless chain. The prolonged spindles carry rollers I4, and by rollers I4 the chain conveyor is mounted upon andcarried by a pair of sprocket wheelsv I5 I 5. The aXlelII) of one of Vthese sprocket wheels I), upon which the wheel is integrally carried, is provided with a pinion I1. Pinion I1 is in mesh with a rack I8, and rack I8 is carried.

by thestem ofa piston reciprocable in a fluidpressure cylinder I9. The organization is such that the left-to-right traverse of the piston in cylinder i9 effects the advance of the conveyor (in thedirection indicated by the arrows a, Figs; I), and the range of advance with each such piston traverse is precisely that required to advance a conveyor-borne mold part I from gob-receiving The connections to turn the wheel. As an example of oneA of the several known devices Vthat may be employed to provide such connections, we show in Fig. VIII: o a ball-ratchet Ila in the body of the pinion.

The conveyor is arranged as shown in Fig. I,

` extending in upper and lower horizontal reaches that are made continuous in rounded courses at the ends. Al strong and rigid frame 20 carries the sprocket wheels; and this rigid frame includes a Y table-top 2|, over which the plates Hof the conveyor advance in the upper reach of their travel and upon which they firmly rest, as best shown in Fig. v. Throughout the longitudinal extent of the table-top 2| the spindle-borne rollers I4 are o confined in channels 28.

The mold parts I are spaced at equal intervals, one upon each of the duplicate plates II; the distance of advance of the conveyor in each recurrence of the Ystep-by-step feed is equal to the centre-to-centre spacing of the plates I I; and that centre-to-centre spacing is suiiicientV to allow each mold part I in turn, after receiving a gob of glass at station A, Fig. I, to come to pressing position B. The interval of rest, during which the piston in cylinder I9 makes its return stroke,

Yis s uicient to allow the plunger 2 to descend in its glass-pressing stroke and to recede again. The glass-feeding and gob-cutting apparatus are acljusted to cause successive gobs G to descend through chute 5 at identically the intervals of time during which successive mold parts I" come to position A beneath the lower end of the chute;

This is conventional practice, as has already been indicated.

The mold part I is so mounted upon the plate II that, borne thereby, it still is freely movable, to allow it to come, at the time when the article is pressed within it, precisely to axial alignment with the plunger 2; and means are provided that the advance of the piston in cylinder 8 shall bring the mold part I into accurate axial alignment while plunger 2 is still in course of its pressing stroke, and preferably before the plunger shall have entered the mold cavity.

The mold part I is stepped into a block 22, and block 22 rests face to face upon plate II. These meeting surfaces extend horizontally throughout the upper reach of conveyor travel (Fig. V). The

plate II is centrally perforate. The block 22 is provided with a stem 23 (Fig. V). In the assembly this stem extends through the perforation in plate II, and the perforation so far exceeds the Upon the lower end of the stem engaging atits rim a nether surface of the plate I I, permitting the sliding movement'already mentioned, holds the block against separation from the plate. At the four corners` of the block 22 .rise bosses` 25, and through these bosses are formed bores 26. The cross-head 6 of the press is equipped with corresponding downwardly extending stems 2T and these stems at their lower ends are rounded. When in the'progress of operation a moldpart I borne-by a plate IIs, having received a gob of glass, comesl to position B, Fig. I, the piston within cylinder 8 makes its downward and glass-pressing stroke. The descending piston carries integrally the cross-head 6, the plunger 2, and the stems'2'l.y The stems 21 entering the bores26, by engagement of their rounded lower ends with the rims of the bores, first shift the block 22, so far as maybe necessary, to bring the mold part I precisely to alignment with the plunger 2-and suchaccurate alignment will be achieved before the plunger shapes the glass within the mold part I. Such corrective alignment removes from the pressing operation ir- .regularity consequent upon the structure and (Fig. 1) from the pressing position B they carry within them, eacha pressed and now solidified article. Means are provided for retaining these articles in place in the moldparts until, rounding the left hand end of their course, they come to .inverted'position, and until in the extent of the lower horizontal reach-of conveyor .advance they come to the desiredpoint of release. Such' means are found in fingers 29 mounted in housings 30.

The housings rise from plates II upon each side of and in diametricallyopposite positions with relation to the block-borne mold part I. The ngers are longitudinally reciprocable upon the distal ends ofthe ngers are retracted 'from the peripheral edge of the mold cavity, to the position shown in Figs. IIV to' IV, in which at diametrically opposite points theyoverlie the rim of the article'R that lies shaped within the mold cavity. f-Aspring-backedlbolt 3I with rounded Qdista'l end'isalso arranged in housing 30, and the fagc'sgeve spring 32 tends always to drive thebolt 3I outward-that is 'to say downward, as seen in Fig.

IV. Within the housing 3! ashaft33is'rotatably mounted. 'I'his shaitcarries'two pinions. One of them, the `pinion 34, is in mesh with la rack yformed upon bolt 3l thepther, 35`L(here shown'to `be of' segmental extent) is in `mesh with a rack formed upon linger 2t.A As the bolt`-3| is advanced finger 29 is` retracted; as the bolt is revtractediinger 29 is advanced. i Normally thebolts tion.` RailsV 3B are provided, that extend marginally `along the course of conveyor travel and throughout so much as is desired.A -Upon these `railslthebolts cometobearing and conveyorV ad-` vance causes them when engaged by the rails to Vrecede within` housings Sli, and in so doing toeffeet the extension of the fingers 29. And throughout the extentof rails 36 the fingers 29 continue in extended position. Fig. I shows that the rails 36 extend throughout the rounded end of the course of conveyor travel, and terminate at a point where the inverted mold Vparts are advancing (from left to right) on the lower horizontal reach of the course. As the bolts pass beyond the ends of the rails 35 their backing springs become effective to drive them outwardly to extended position. Thereupon, through the rack-andpinion connection described, the ngers 2B are retracted. Ihe article within the mold part I then, no longer restrained, falls free from the mold.

A suitable conveyor 3l is provided; the falling Y article R comes to rest upon it; and upon it is carried (from right to left, Fig. I) to a suitable place of delivery.

In summary, the chain bearing the plurality of mold parts I advances step by step, in the direction indicated by arrows a, Fig. I. When a mold part I comes to rest in position A it receives a gob of viscous glass. Advancing again, it comes to rest in position B, where it rests solidly supported from beneath upon table-top 2|. pressing plunger then descends. Before it reaches the glass within mold part I, however, the mold part has by the co-'action of stems 21 and bores 26 been trued in its position (to the extent that truing is required), and shifted upon the sustaining plate II to accurate axial alignment with the descending plunger. The plunger 2 then completes its downward stroke and the article is shaped. When the plunger recedes the mold part with the article shaped within it advances. As it advances, the retaining fingers are extended above it and continue extended above it until in the course of thereturn travel of the conveyor on its lower reach these ngers are withdrawn. The freed article then falls to and is received by and carried upon conveyor 31 to the place of delivery.

The reflector, production of which is the immediate object of invention, possesses further renements of shape. When nished it is perforated at and near its axial centre with perforations: an exactly central perforation, through which the completed lamp may be evacuated. This perforation, when evacuation has been effected, is sealed off. And near the central perforation are others (there may be two of them), through which leads may extend, to carry a lament (commonly a coil) that becomes the light source, and to carry to the supported filament the current under which it becomes incanment F is added, borne by the leads.

descent V These oriflces must placed -and l finished.

be dmost accurately The "co-'operating imola-parts I and 2, Jofi genferal paraboloid J shape iare elaborated 'in :detaiL The part yI is formed "near the centre '.withfreentrant, circular, downwardly VAtapering recesses 38, within .which rise centrally placed upwardly tapering projectionsiagof truncated conical form. -Plunger izvcarri'es correspondingly `placed down- `wardly tapering -Lprojections 4Illof truncated.` conic'alshape. -B'etweenthesa as best shown finlFig V, thefpressedrarticle isprovided exteriorly with bosses, andcentered in these-bosses are aligned recesses sunk vin the opposite surfacesrecesses thatat-Itheiibottoms'are separated only by thin lseptarof glass. `'Ihese septa maybe removed'with accuracy, and thesurface left 4by their removal may be left smooth and Vof accurate conformarled` byme April 30,1942,

Fig. VII illustrates the nished lamp. Beginning with the reflector after the septa have been removed and the perforations completed, the completion of the lamp is carried out as follows: The inner surface S of the reector Ris silvered. Leads L, L are set in the orices that stand symmetrically placed adjacent to but spaced from the axis of the paraboloid, and a fila- This ilament becomes the light source, and is, of course, accurately placed at the focus of the paraboloid. The cover glass C is then applied, and the seam of union at the periphery of the two glass parts is made hermetically tight-advantageously by fusion and welding of the glass at the meeting surfaces. When this has been done (the mounting of leads L, L being also hermetically tight), the assembled lamp is connected through the remaining axialor-ice with an air pump, and in known sequent procedure the space within the lamp is exhausted of air; and, nally, the orifice sealed off at 4I.

Within the terms of the appended claims various modications are permissible.

We claim as our invention:

1. In apparatus for pressing glass articles that includes a conveyor carrying a succession of molds, a press including a reciprocable plunger, and means for advancing the conveyor step by step in a plane beneath the plunger, the invention herein described which consists in a mold and means for securing the mold to the conveyor in a union permissive of movement of the mold in the plane of conveyor advance, and means borne by the press, movable with the descending plunger, and adapted to engage the mold and to shift it in said plane to co-axial position with the plunger, before the plunger closes with respect to the mold, and means adapted when the plunger opens the mold to move inwardly with respect to the mold for temporarily retaining the molded article therein.

2. In apparatus for pressing glass articles that includes a conveyor carrying a succession of molds in horizontal course, a press including a vertically reciprocable plunger, and means for advancing the conveyor step by step beneath the plunger, the invention herein described which consists in a conveyor member in the form ,of an oriced block, a mold member formed with a stem of smaller diameter than the orifice in the block and in the assembly resting face-to-face upon the block with its stem extending Within the orince in the block, and means borne by the press, movable with the descending plunger, and adapted to engage the mold member and to shift the mold member in its face-to-face engagement v With the said block.

3. In apparatus for pressing glass articles that includes an endless conveyor carrying a succession .of mold parts erect and invertedin successive horizontal reaches, a press including a reciprocable plunger adapted to cooperate with the mold parts in their erect advance, and-means for advancing the conveyor step by step, the invention herein described which consists in a mold and means for securing the mold to the conveyor in a union permissive of movement of the mold in the plane `of erect mold advance, means borne by the press, movable with the descending plunger, and adapted to engage the `mold and by engagement shift the mold in said plane, and a succession of fingers borne by the conveyor and extensible and retractible above the conveyor-borne mold parts, together with means for effecting the alternate extension and retractionof the i'lnger severally, in response to the advance of the conveyor.

4. InV apparatus for pressing glass articles that includes an endless conveyor-carrying 'a succession of mold parts erect andvinverted in successve horizontal reaches, a press including a reciprocable plunger adapted to cooperate with

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