Roll forming heat-softened glass sheets

Claim 3

IN THE METHOD OF SHAPING SHEETS OF HEAT-SOFTENABLE MATERIAL BY ROLL FORMING WHEREIN A SERIES OF HEAT SOFTENED SHEETS IS CONVEYED ALONG A PREDETERMINED PATH IN A FORMING STATION HAVING A LONGITUDINALLY EXTENDING CENTER LINE AND EACH SHEET OF SAID SERIES IN TURN IS MOVED CONTINUOUSLY BETWEEN A PAIR OF SETS OF FORMING ROLLS ROTATING ABOUT AXES TRANSVERSE TO SAID PATH, EACH SET COMPRISING A SERIES OF ROTATING FORMING ROLLS SPACED LONGITUDINALLY ALONG SID PATH AND BEING ALIGNED ALONG A LONGITUDINALLY EXTENDING CENTER LINE COMMON TO SAID SETS OF FORMING ROLLS, AND ADAPTED TO ENGAGE ONE OR THE OTHER MAJOR SURFACES OF SAID SHEET AND EACH ROLL IN ONE OF SAID SETS CORRESPONDING TO A ROLL OF COMPLEMENTARY CURVATURE IN THE OTHER OF SAID SETS, AND PROVIDING SAID SETS WITH RELATIVE MOTION TOWARD ONE ANOTHER WHILE SAID SHEET IS MOVING THEREBETWEEN TO ENGAGE SAID MOVING SHEET IN SANDWICHING POSITION BETWEEN SAID SETS OF ROTATING FORMING ROLLS FOR SUFFICIENT TINE TO IMPART THE SHAPE OF SAID ROLLS ONTO SAID SHEETS, AND COOLING EACH ROOL FORMED SHEET UNTIL IT IS COOLED TO BELOW A TEMPERATURE AT WHICH IT IS SUBJECT TO DEFORMATION ON CONTACT WITH A SOLID OBJECT WHILE CONVEYED ON ROLLS IN A COOLING STATION, SAID ROLLS HAVING SHAPES SIMILAR TO THE SHAPE OF SAID FORMING ROLLS AND POSITIONED WITH THEIR COMMON CENTER LINE NORMALLY IN ALIGNMENT WITH THE COMMON CENTER LINE OF SAID FORMING ROLLS, THE IMPROVEMENT COMPRISING OFFSETTING THE ROLLS IN THE FORMING STATION OR THE SHAPED CONVEYOR ROLLS IN THE COOLING STATION LATERALLY WITH RESPECT TO THE CENTER LINE OF THE PREDETERMINED PATH OF MOVEMENT OF THE SHEETS IN AN AMOUNT SUFFICIENT TO MODIFY THE CURVATURE OF PORTIONS OF THE SHEETS DISPOSED OUTWARDLY OF THE CENTER LINE OF THE LONGITUDINALLY EXTENDING PATH OF MOVEMENT OF THE SHEETS.

Claim 4

IN THE METHOD OF SHAPING SHEETS OF HEAT-SOFTENABLE MATERIAL BY ROLL FORMING WHEREIN A SERIES OF HEAT SOFTENED SHEETS IS CONVEYED ALONG A PREDETERMINED PATH IN A FORMING STATION HAVING A LONGITUDINALLY EXTENDING CENTER LINE AND EACH SHEET OF SAID SERIES IN TURN IS MOVED CONTINUOUSLY BETWEEN A PAIR OF SETS OF FORMING ROLLS ROTATING ABOUT AXES TRANSVERSE TO SAID PATH, EACH SET COMPRISING A SERIES OF ROTATING FORMING ROLLS SPACED LONGITUDINALLY ALONG SID PATH AND BEING ALIGNED ALONG A LONGITUDINALLY EXTENDING CENTER LINE COMMON TO SAID SETS OF FORMING ROLLS, AND ADAPTED TO ENGAGE ONE OR THE OTHER MAJOR SURFACES OF SAID SHEET AND EACH ROLL IN ONE OF SAID SETS CORRESPONDING TO A ROLL OF COMPLEMENTARY CURVATURE IN THE OTHER OF SAID SETS, AND PROVIDING SAID SETS WITH RELATIVE MOTION TOWARD ONE ANOTHER WHILE SAID SHEET IS MOVING THEREBETWEEN TO ENGAGE SAID MOVING SHEET IN SANDWICHING POSITION BETWEEN SAID SETS OF ROTATING FORMING ROLLS FOR SUFFICIENT TINE TO IMPART THE SHAPE OF SAID ROLLS ONTO SAID SHEETS, AND COOLING EACH ROOL FORMED SHEET UNTIL IT IS COOLED TO BELOW A TEMPERATURE AT WHICH IT IS SUBJECT TO DEFORMATION ON CONTACT WITH A SOLID OBJECT WHILE CONVEYED ON ROLLS IN A COOLING STATION, SAID ROLLS HAVING SHAPES SIMILAR TO THE SHAPE OF SAID FORMING ROLLS AND POSITIONED WITH THEIR COMMON CENTER LINE NORMALLY IN ALIGNMENT WITH THE COMMON CENTER LINE OF SAID FORMING ROLLS, THE IMPROVEMENT COMPRISING OFFSETTING THE ROLLS IN THE FORMING STATION OR THE SHAPED CONVEYOR ROLLS IN THE COOLING STATION LATERALLY WITH RESPECT TO THE CENTER LINE OF THE PREDETERMINED PATH OF MOVEMENT OF THE SHEETS IN AN AMOUNT SUFFICIENT TO MODIFY THE CURVATURE OF PORTIONS OF THE SHEETS DISPOSED OUTWARDLY OF THE CENTER LINE OF THE LONGITUDINALLY EXTENDING PATH OF MOVEMENT OF THE SHEETS.

Claim 5

Apparatus as in claim 1, wherein said sheet forming station comprises upper and lower sets of forming rolls having said complementary curvature and a movable open reinforced frame structure supporting said sets of forming rolls, and said sheet cooling station comprises a series of shaped conveyor rolls having shapes similar to those of said lower forming rolls and a movable structure for supporting said shaped conveyor rolls, said means for adjusting the position of said sheet forming station transverse to said path comprises a first reversible drive motor operatively connected to said open reinforced frame structure and said means for adjusting the position of said shaped conveyor rolls transverse to said path comprises a second reversible drive motor operatively connected to said laterally movable structure for supporting said shaped conveyor rolls.

Claim 6

In the method according to claim 2, wherein said roll formed sheet is cooled to below a temperature at which it is subject to deformation on contact with a solid object while conveyed on rolls having shapes similar to the shape of said forming rolls and positioned with their common center line in alignment with the common center line of said forming rolls.

Claim 7

In the method according to claim 2, wherein sheets of non-rectangular outline are shaped to cylindrical configurations about an axis parallel to said predetermined path, the improvement wherein said forming rolls are positioned with their common center line offset from the longitudinal center line of said sheet during the performance of said roll forming method.

Claim 8

The improvement as in claim 5, wherein said roll formed sheet is cooled to below a temperature at which it is subject to deformation on contact with a solid object while conveyed on rolls having shapes similar to the shape of said forming rolls and positioned With their common center line in alignment with the common center line of said forming rolls.

Claim 9

The improvement as in claim 5, wherein said sheets of non-rectangular outline have a longer longitudinal side edge and a shorter longitudinal side edge, wherein the common center line of said forming rolls is offset closer to the longer longitudinal side edge than the shorter longitudinal side edge of said sheets during the performance of said roll forming method.

Claim 10

The improvement as in claim 2, wherein said sheets are composed of glass.

Claim 11

The improvement as in claim 2, wherein sheets of rectangular outline are shaped to curvatures about an axis skewed relative to the longitudinal center line of said sheets, wherein said sets of forming rolls are positioned so that their common center line is offset transversely of said predetermined path with respect to the longitudinal center line of each said sheet in said series sufficient to develop a skew of the desired angle in said sheet relative to said common center line during the performance of said roll forming method.

Claim 12

The improvement as in claim 9, wherein said roll formed sheet is cooled to below a temperature at which it is subject to deformation on contact with a solid object while conveyed on rolls having shapes similar to the shape of said forming rolls and positioned with their common center line in alignment with the common center line of said forming rolls.