Apparatus for manufacturing curved glass sheets

摘要

An apparatus for manufacturing a curved glass sheet has a glass sheet conveyor mechanism for conveying a glass sheet heated up to its softening point in a heating furnace, and a mold assembly disposed downstream of the heating station with respect to a direction in which the glass sheet is conveyed by the conveyor mechanism, for curving the glass sheet to prescribed curvature. The glass sheet conveyor mechanism includes a pair of fixed rails extending in the glass sheet conveyance direction, a pair of movable rails disposed outwardly of and extending parallel to the fixed rails, the movable rails being movable transversely of the glass sheet conveyance direction, and traveling assemblies guided by the fixed rails for movement between a "standby position" where the softened glass sheet is received from the heating furnace and a "transfer position" where the glass sheet is transferred into the mold assembly. A plurality of pairs of conveyor plates are supported on the traveling assemblies in engagement with the movable rails. The conveyor plates receive the glass sheet at the "standby position". When the conveyor plates reach the "transfer position", the conveyor plates are moved transversely of the glass sheet conveyance direction to allow the glass sheet to be placed on a mold of the mold mechanism.