Apparatus for manufacturing glass plate

Abstract

To provide a method for manufacturing a glass plate, capable of efficiently manufacturing glass plates having different sizes.SOLUTION: An apparatus 100 for manufacturing a glass plate, capable of cutting a belt-like glass ribbon Gr to manufacture a rectangular glass plate G1 or glass plate G2 includes: a main line 11 dividing a glass ribbon Gr to be sent in a conveying direction X while conveying the glass ribbon Gr to form a divided glass plate Gd; first and second conveying lines 15 and 17 connected to the main line 11 and for cutting and extracting glass plates having different sizes from the divided glass plate Gd; and a transfer mechanism 50 provided between the first and second conveying lines 15 and 17 adjacent to each other, capable of transferring the glass plate G1 on the first conveying line 15 to the second conveying line 17 for extracting the glass plate G2 having a size smaller than that of the glass plate G1 extracted in the first conveying line 15 and for forming a vertical cut line L for using the glass plate G1 as the glass plate G2 having a smaller size.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an apparatus for manufacturing a glass sheet. [Background technology]

[0002] In the process of manufacturing glass sheets by the float process, glass molten in a melting furnace is formed into a smooth, band-like glass ribbon in a float bath and sent to an annealing furnace. This band-like glass ribbon is then cut with a cutting tool to form glass sheets of a predetermined size (see, for example, Patent Document 1). [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Patent No. 5267957 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] Meanwhile, efficient production is required when manufacturing glass sheets, and therefore, in a production line for manufacturing glass sheets, a downsizing process is carried out in which, when a defect is detected in a glass ribbon and an unprocessable region that cannot be processed into a glass sheet of a predetermined size is processed into a glass sheet of a smaller size rather than discarded, thereby reducing waste.

[0005] However, this downsizing process involves removing the glass sheet from the unprocessable area from the production line and cutting it into smaller sizes at a location away from the production line, which results in low work efficiency and calls for improvement.

[0006] SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a glass sheet manufacturing apparatus that can efficiently manufacture glass sheets of different sizes. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] The present invention comprises the following configurations. A glass plate manufacturing apparatus for cutting a band-shaped glass ribbon to manufacture a rectangular glass plate, a main line for dividing the fed glass ribbon in a conveying direction while conveying the glass ribbon into divided glass sheets; at least two conveying lines connected to the main line for cutting and removing glass sheets of different sizes from the divided glass sheet; a transfer mechanism provided between the adjacent conveying lines, for transferring a glass sheet on one of the conveying lines to the other conveying line that takes out a glass sheet smaller in size than the glass sheet taken out on the one of the conveying lines, and for forming a cutting line on the glass sheet to cut the glass sheet into a smaller size glass sheet; Equipped with Glass plate manufacturing equipment. [Effects of the Invention]

[0008] According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a glass sheet manufacturing apparatus that can efficiently manufacture glass sheets of different sizes. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0009] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a glass plate manufacturing apparatus according to this embodiment. [Figure 2] FIG. 2 is a schematic front view of a transfer mechanism provided in the manufacturing apparatus. [Figure 3] FIG. 3 is a schematic front view illustrating the operation of the transfer mechanism. [Figure 4] FIG. 4 is a schematic front view illustrating the operation of the transfer mechanism. [Figure 5] FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram showing a processing pattern when manufacturing a glass plate. [Figure 6] FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram showing a processing pattern when performing downsizing processing. [Figure 7] FIG. 7 is a schematic plan view of the first transfer line, the second transfer line, and the transfer mechanism for explaining the downsizing process. [Figure 8]FIG. 8 is a schematic plan view of the first transfer line, the second transfer line, and the transfer mechanism for explaining the downsizing process. [Figure 9] FIG. 9 is a schematic plan view of the first transfer line, the second transfer line, and the transfer mechanism for explaining the downsizing process. [Figure 10] FIG. 10 is a schematic plan view of the first transfer line, the second transfer line, and the transfer mechanism for explaining the downsizing process. [Figure 11] FIG. 11 is a schematic plan view of the first transfer line, the second transfer line, and the transfer mechanism for explaining the downsizing process. [Figure 12] FIG. 12 is a schematic plan view of the first transfer line, the second transfer line, and the transfer mechanism for explaining the downsizing process. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0010] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a glass plate manufacturing apparatus 100 according to this embodiment.

[0011] As shown in FIG. 1 , a glass sheet manufacturing apparatus 100 according to this embodiment includes a main line 11, a branch line 13, a first conveyor line 15, a second conveyor line 17, and a control unit 19. This manufacturing apparatus 100 processes a strip-shaped glass ribbon Gr into a first size glass sheet G1 or a second size glass sheet G2 and removes the processed glass sheet. The manufacturing apparatus 100 also includes a transfer mechanism 50. In this manufacturing apparatus 100, the control unit 19 controls the operations of the main line 11, the branch line 13, the first conveyor line 15, the second conveyor line 17, and the transfer mechanism 50.

[0012] The glass plates G1 and G2 to be manufactured are large-sized glass plates made of an alkali-free glass material used for flat panel displays (FPDs) such as LCDs (Liquid Crystal Displays) and OLEDs (Organic Light-Emitting Diodes).

[0013] The glass plate G2 is a glass plate smaller in size than the glass plate G1. The glass plate G1 is, for example, a glass plate of 11th generation size (long side 3,000 mm or more, short side 3,000 mm or more), and the glass plate G2 is a glass plate of 8th generation size (long side 2,000 mm or more, short side 2,000 mm or more).

[0014] A strip-shaped glass ribbon Gr is fed into the manufacturing apparatus 100 from the upstream end 11a of the main line 11. The main line 11 feeds the glass ribbon Gr in the conveying direction X and splits the glass ribbon Gr in the conveying direction X. The branch line 13 is arranged at the downstream end 11b of the main line 11, and divided glass sheets Gd obtained by splitting the glass ribbon Gr are fed from the main line 11 to this branch line 13. The first conveying line 15 and the second conveying line 17 are each connected to a side of the branching line 13 and are arranged parallel to each other. The divided glass sheets Gd are fed from the branching line 13 to these first conveying line 15 and second conveying line 17. In the first conveying line 15, the fed divided glass sheets Gd are made into glass sheets G1 of a first size, and this glass sheet G1 is carried out. In the second conveyor line 17, the fed divided glass sheets Gd are formed into second-size glass sheets G2 that are smaller than the first-size glass sheets G1, and these glass sheets G2 are carried out. In this way, in the manufacturing apparatus 100, the fed belt-like glass ribbon Gr can be processed into glass sheets G1 or G2 of different sizes and carried out.

[0015] The main line 11 includes, for example, a conveying device 20 having a plurality of conveying rollers, each having a rotation shaft provided with a plurality of rings made of an elastic material, and the glass ribbon Gr and the divided glass sheets Gd are conveyed in the conveying direction X by this conveying device 20. The main line 11 is provided with, in order from the upstream side, an inspection machine 21, a vertical cutting machine 23, a horizontal cutting machine 25, a horizontal folding machine 27, and a main line hopper 29.

[0016] The inspection machine 21 detects defects in the conveyed glass ribbon Gr. The vertical cutting machine 23 forms vertical cutting lines in the glass ribbon Gr along the conveying direction X. The horizontal cutting machine 25 forms horizontal cutting lines in the glass ribbon Gr along the width direction. The horizontal folding machine 27 cuts the glass ribbon Gr along the horizontal cutting lines formed in the glass ribbon Gr to produce divided glass sheets Gd. The main line hopper 29 is capable of swinging about a horizontal axis on the upstream side. The main line hopper 29 swings and tilts the downstream side downward, thereby sending out and discarding divided glass sheets Gd determined to be defective by the inspection machine 21 and ear portions cut off from both edges of the glass ribbon Gr.

[0017] The branch line 13, for example, ejects air from a plurality of ejection holes (not shown) provided on the conveying surface to slightly lift and convey the divided glass sheets Gd that are fed in. As a result, the divided glass sheets Gd are fed into the first conveying line 15 or the second conveying line 17 while maintaining their posture.

[0018] The first conveyor line 15 is equipped with, for example, a conveyor device 30 having a plurality of conveyor rollers, each having a rotation shaft with a plurality of rings made of elastic material attached thereto, and the divided glass sheets Gd are conveyed by this conveyor device 30 in a conveying direction Y1 perpendicular to the conveying direction X. The first conveyor line 15 is provided with, in order from the upstream side, a vertical folding machine 31, a first hopper 33, a turning machine 35, a paper winding machine 37, and a carry-out robot 39.

[0019] The vertical folding machine 31 cuts the divided glass sheet Gd along a vertical cutting line perpendicular to the conveying direction Y1 to separate it into two glass sheets G1. The first hopper 33 discards the broken glass sheet G1. The turning machine 35 turns the glass sheet G1 by 90 degrees. The paper winding machine 37 layers a protective interleaf paper on the glass sheet G1. The carrying-out robot 39 removes the glass sheet G1 from the conveying device 30 and carries it out. Note that there may be multiple carrying-out robots 39.

[0020] The second conveyor line 17 is equipped with, for example, a conveyor device 40 having a plurality of conveyor rollers, each having a rotation shaft with a plurality of rings made of elastic material attached thereto, and this conveyor device 40 conveys the divided glass sheets Gd in a conveyance direction Y2 perpendicular to the conveyance direction X. The second conveyor line 17 is provided with, in order from the upstream side, vertical folding machines 41 and 43, a second hopper 45, a paper winding machine 47, and a carry-out robot 49. Note that there may be multiple carry-out robots 49.

[0021] The vertical folding machines 41 and 43 cut the divided glass sheet Gd along a vertical cutting line perpendicular to the conveying direction Y2 to separate it into two glass sheets G2 and blanks, which are excess portions generated when the glass sheets G2 are separated. A second hopper 45 discards the broken glass sheets G2 and blanks. A paper winder 47 layers interleaf paper, which is a protective sheet, on the glass sheet G2. A carrying-out robot 49 removes the glass sheet G2 from the conveying device 40 and carries it out.

[0022] The transfer mechanism 50 is provided between the first conveyor line 15 and the second conveyor line 17. This transfer mechanism 50 is a mechanism for transferring glass sheets between the first conveyor line 15 and the second conveyor line 17. In this example, transfer means moving the glass sheet on the first conveyor line 15 to the second conveyor line 17 and replacing it. The transfer mechanism 50 is arranged between the vertical folding machine 31 and the first hopper 33 on the first conveyor line 15, and is arranged between the vertical folding machine 41 and the vertical folding machine 43 on the second conveyor line 17.

[0023] FIG. 2 is a schematic front view of the transfer mechanism 50 provided in the manufacturing apparatus 100. As shown in FIG.

[0024] As shown in FIG. 2, the transfer mechanism 50 includes a first transfer machine 51, a second transfer machine 53, and a transfer table 55.

[0025] The first transfer machine 51 and the second transfer machine 53 are supported by a gate-shaped support frame 59 having a support beam 57. The support beam 57 is disposed so as to straddle the conveying device 30 of the first conveying line 15 and the conveying device 40 of the second conveying line 17, and extends horizontally along the width direction perpendicular to the arrangement direction of these conveying devices 30, 40.

[0026] The first transfer machine 51 has a support mechanism 61 and a suction mechanism 63. The suction mechanism 63 is suspended from a support beam 57 by the support mechanism 61. The support mechanism 61 is movable in the longitudinal direction relative to the support beam 57 by, for example, a linear motion device. The support mechanism 61 also raises and lowers the suction mechanism 63. The suction mechanism 63 has, at its bottom, a plurality of suction pads 65 arranged in a lattice pattern in a horizontal plane. The suction mechanism 63 sucks and grips the glass plate G by each suction pad 65 sucking the glass plate G. Each suction pad 65 is made of an elastic material such as rubber, and is formed in a bellows shape to absorb impact when it comes into contact with the glass plate G.

[0027] The second transfer machine 53 has a support mechanism 71 and a suction mechanism 73. The suction mechanism 73 is suspended from the support beam 57 by the support mechanism 71. The support mechanism 71 is movable in the longitudinal direction relative to the support beam 57, for example, by a linear motion device. The support mechanism 71 also raises and lowers the suction mechanism 73 and rotates it about a vertical axis. The suction mechanism 73 has, at its bottom, multiple suction pads 75 arranged in a grid pattern in a horizontal plane. The suction mechanism 73 sucks and holds the glass sheet G by using each suction pad 75 to suck the glass sheet G. Each suction pad 75 is formed from an elastic material such as rubber and has a dish shape. The suction mechanism 73 of the second transfer machine 53 has more suction pads 75 than the suction pads 65 of the suction mechanism 63 of the first transfer machine 51.

[0028] The transfer table 55 is disposed between the conveying device 30 of the first conveying line 15 and the conveying device 40 of the second conveying line 17. The upper surface of the transfer table 55 serves as a placement surface 81, and the glass sheet G is placed on this placement surface 81. The transfer table 55 has a plurality of vertical slicers 83 on its upper portion. These vertical slicers 83 are movable along the width direction perpendicular to the arrangement direction of the conveying devices 30, 40. These vertical slicers 83 form vertical cutting lines on the glass sheet G placed on the placement surface 81.

[0029] Next, the operation of the transfer mechanism 50 will be described. 3 and 4 are schematic front views illustrating the operation of the transfer mechanism 50. FIG.

[0030] 3, in the first transfer machine 51, when the suction mechanism 63 suctions and grips the glass sheet G on the transport device 30 of the first conveyor line 15, the suction mechanism 63 is raised by the support mechanism 61 and then moved above the transfer table 55. Next, the suction mechanism 63 is lowered by the support mechanism 61, the suction mechanism 63 is released from suction on the glass sheet G, and the glass sheet G is placed on the placement surface 81 of the transfer table 55. Thereafter, the support mechanism 61 raises the suction mechanism 63 and moves it above the transport device 30 of the first conveyor line 15, which is no longer above the transfer table 55.

[0031] On the transfer table 55, when a glass sheet G is placed on the placement surface 81, the vertical slicer 83, which has been disposed at a standby position at the end of the placement surface 81, moves and forms a vertical cutting line on the glass sheet G placed on the placement surface 81. After that, the vertical slicer 83, which has formed the vertical cutting line on the glass sheet G, moves to the standby position.

[0032] When a vertical score line is formed on the glass sheet G on the placement surface 81 of the transfer table 55, as shown in Fig. 4, in the second transfer machine 53, the suction mechanism 73 is moved above the transfer table 55 by the support mechanism 71. Next, the suction mechanism 73 is lowered by the support mechanism 71, and the glass sheet G on the placement surface 81 of the transfer table 55 is adsorbed by this suction mechanism 73. Thereafter, the suction mechanism 73 is raised by the support mechanism 71, and then moved to above the conveying device 40 of the second conveying line 17, and then rotated 90 degrees about the vertical axis and lowered, so that the suction mechanism 73 releases the glass sheet G from its adsorption, and the glass sheet G is placed on the conveying device 40 of the second conveying line 17.

[0033] In this way, the transfer mechanism 50 transfers the glass sheet G from the first conveyor line 15 to the transfer table 55, forms a vertical cutting line on the transfer table 55, and then transfers the glass sheet G to the second conveyor line 17.

[0034] In the manufacturing apparatus 100 having the above configuration, a processing pattern is set according to the size of the glass plate to be manufactured, and the control unit 19 controls the operation of the main line 11, branch line 13, first conveying line 15, and second conveying line 17 based on the set processing pattern to manufacture the glass plate.

[0035] FIG. 5 shows an example of a processing pattern when manufacturing a glass plate G1 of the first size. When the processing pattern for the first size glass sheet G1 shown in Figure 5 is set, the control unit 19 operates the main line 11, the branch line 13, and the first conveying line 15 to process the glass ribbon Gr into the first size glass sheet G1.

[0036] However, there are cases where a defect C is detected in the glass ribbon Gr, resulting in an area that cannot be processed into a glass sheet G1. In such a case, the control unit 19 of the manufacturing apparatus 100 drives the transfer mechanism 50 to perform downsizing processing, in which a glass sheet G2 of a second size smaller than the glass sheet G1 is cut and taken out from the unprocessable area G1n that cannot be processed into a glass sheet G1 of the first size.

[0037] Next, the downsizing process performed by the manufacturing apparatus 100 will be described. Fig. 6 is a schematic diagram showing a processing pattern when downsizing is performed. Figs. 7 to 12 are schematic plan views of the first transfer line 15, the second transfer line 17, and the transfer mechanism 50 for explaining the downsizing.

[0038] When an unprocessable area G1n that cannot be processed occurs in the glass plate G1 based on the detection result of defect C from the inspection machine 21, the control unit 19 changes the processing pattern of the glass plate G1 (see Figure 5) to a processing pattern for cutting and extracting a glass plate G2 that is smaller than the glass plate G1 from the unprocessable area G1n.

[0039] 6 shows an example of a processing pattern changed when a non-machinable area G1n occurs in the glass sheet G1 due to a defect C. This processing pattern is a pattern for cutting and removing the glass sheet G2 from the non-machinable area G1n when a second-size glass sheet G2, which is smaller than the first-size glass sheet G1, can be processed in the non-machinable area G1n. In this case, a processing pattern is set in the non-machinable area G1n, in which blank portions Gb1 and Gb2 including the glass sheet G2 and the defect C are set, and downsizing processing is performed based on this processing pattern.

[0040] In this downsizing process, the vertical cutting machine 23 and the horizontal cutting machine 25 are controlled to form vertical cutting lines and horizontal cutting lines on the glass ribbon Gr fed into the main line 11 in a processing pattern changed based on the detection result of the inspection machine 21. Then, the glass ribbon Gr is cut along the horizontal cutting lines by the horizontal folding machine 27 to form divided glass sheets Gd, which are fed into the first conveying line 15 by the branch line 13.

[0041] As shown in Figure 7, when a divided glass plate Gd including a glass plate G1 and an unprocessable area G1n is sent to the first conveying line 15, as shown in Figure 8, on the first conveying line 15, a vertical folding machine 31 cuts the divided glass plate Gd along a vertical cutting line and divides it into the glass plate G1, a glass plate G2 including a blank portion Gb2, and the blank portion Gb1.

[0042] 9, the first transfer machine 51 of the transfer mechanism 50 transfers the glass sheet G2 including the blank portion Gb2 from the conveying device 30 of the first conveying line 15 onto the transfer table 55. Here, the multiple suction pads 65 of the suction mechanism 63 of the first transfer machine 51 are formed in a bellows shape, and therefore can absorb the impact when the glass sheet G2 including the blank portion Gb2 on the conveying device 30 is suctioned, thereby suppressing damage to the glass sheet G2 including the blank portion Gb2.

[0043] The glass sheet G1 and the blank portion Gb1 are transported downstream by the transport device 30 of the first transport line 15. After the glass sheet G1 is rotated 90 degrees by a swivel 35 to change its orientation, interleaf paper is stacked on the glass sheet G1 by a paper winder 37 and the glass sheet G1 is transported by a transport robot 39. The blank portion Gb1 is discarded by a first hopper 33.

[0044] As shown in Figure 10, a vertical cutting line L is formed on a glass plate G2 including a blank portion Gb2 transferred to a transfer table 55 by a vertical cutting machine 83 of the transfer table 55 at the boundary between the glass plate G2 and the blank portion Gb2.

[0045] 11, the glass sheet G2 including the blank portion Gb2 is rotated 90 degrees in one direction (the direction of arrow R in FIG. 11) by the second transfer machine 53 of the transfer mechanism 50 from the transfer table 55 to the transfer device 40 of the second transfer line 17 and transferred. In this way, the second transfer machine 53 rotates the glass sheet G2 including the blank portion Gb2 on the transfer table 55 by 90 degrees and transfers it to the second transfer line 17. Therefore, even if the width of the second transfer line 17 is narrower than that of the first transfer line 15, for example, the glass sheet G2 including the blank portion Gb2 can be changed to a direction corresponding to the narrower second transfer line 17 and loaded. Here, the suction mechanism 73 of the second transfer machine 53 has more suction pads 75 than the suction pads 65 of the suction mechanism 63 of the first transfer machine 51, and these suction pads 75 are formed in a dish shape. This allows the glass plate G2 including the blank portion Gb2 on the transfer table 55 on which the vertical cutting lines L have been formed to be sucked evenly and accurately, and in particular, cracks at the vertical cutting lines L can be suppressed.

[0046] 12, the glass sheet G2 including the blank portion Gb2 transferred onto the conveying device 40 of the second conveying line 17 is cut along the vertical cutting line L by the vertical folding machine 43, divided into the glass sheet G2 and the blank portion Gb2, and conveyed downstream by the conveying device 40. Then, interleaf paper is laminated on the glass sheet G2 by the paper winding machine 47, and the glass sheet G2 is conveyed downstream by the conveying robot 49. The blank portion Gb2 is discarded by the second hopper 45.

[0047] As described above, the glass plate manufacturing apparatus 100 according to this embodiment is equipped with a first conveying line 15 and a second conveying line 17 for cutting and removing glass plates G1, G2 of different sizes, namely, a first size and a second size, and therefore can easily manufacture glass plates G1, G2 of different sizes from a strip-shaped glass ribbon Gr.

[0048] Furthermore, by using the transfer mechanism 50 to transfer the glass plate G1 on the first conveying line 15 to the second conveying line 17 by forming a vertical cutting line L, a smaller second size glass plate G2 can be manufactured by the second conveying line 17 while the glass plate G1 is being manufactured on the first conveying line 15.

[0049] Therefore, even if the glass sheet G1 cannot be processed on the first conveying line 15 due to the presence of defect C, the glass sheet G1 can be cut and removed into a glass sheet G2 of the second size on the second conveying line 17, thereby reducing waste.

[0050] Furthermore, with this manufacturing apparatus 100, regardless of the presence or absence of defects, it is also possible to manufacture a glass sheet G2 of a second size, which is a smaller size, intentionally when manufacturing a glass sheet G1 of a first size, which is a larger size.

[0051] The manufacturing apparatus 100 may be configured to further increase the number of conveyance lines and cut and take out glass plates smaller than the glass plate G2.

[0052] As such, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and the present invention also contemplates the mutual combination of the various components of the embodiments, as well as modifications and applications by those skilled in the art based on the description in the specification and well-known techniques, and these modifications and applications are included in the scope of protection sought.

[0053] As described above, the present specification discloses the following: (1) A glass plate manufacturing apparatus for cutting a strip-shaped glass ribbon to manufacture a rectangular glass plate, a main line for dividing the fed glass ribbon in a conveying direction while conveying the glass ribbon into divided glass sheets; at least two conveying lines connected to the main line for cutting and removing glass sheets of different sizes from the divided glass sheet; a transfer mechanism provided between the adjacent conveying lines, for transferring a glass sheet on one of the conveying lines to the other conveying line that takes out a glass sheet smaller in size than the glass sheet taken out on the one of the conveying lines, and for forming a cutting line on the glass sheet to cut the glass sheet into a smaller size glass sheet; A glass plate manufacturing apparatus comprising: According to this glass sheet manufacturing apparatus, at least two rows of conveying lines for manufacturing glass sheets of different sizes are provided, so that glass sheets of different sizes can be easily manufactured from a band-shaped glass ribbon. Furthermore, by using a transfer mechanism to form a cutting line on a glass plate on one conveying line and transfer it to the other conveying line, while a glass plate is being manufactured on one conveying line, a smaller-sized glass plate can be manufactured on the other conveying line. Therefore, even if a glass sheet cannot be processed into a glass plate on one of the conveying lines due to a defect, a small-sized glass plate can be manufactured from that glass sheet on the other conveying line, thereby reducing waste. Furthermore, regardless of the presence or absence of defects, when manufacturing large-sized glass sheets, it is also possible to intentionally manufacture small-sized glass sheets.

[0054] (2) The transfer mechanism is a transfer table onto which the glass plate on the one conveying line is transferred and placed; a cutting machine for forming a cutting line on the glass plate on the transfer table; The apparatus for manufacturing a glass plate according to (1), According to this glass sheet manufacturing apparatus, a glass sheet on one of the conveying lines can be placed on a transfer table, a cutting line can be formed on the glass sheet by a cutting machine, and the glass sheet can be transferred to the other conveying line.

[0055] (3) a first transfer machine that transfers the glass plate from the one of the conveying lines to the transfer table; a second transfer machine that transfers the glass plate on the transfer table on which the cutting line has been formed by the cutting machine to the other conveying line; The apparatus for manufacturing a glass plate according to (2), According to this glass plate manufacturing device, a glass plate on one conveying line can be placed on a transfer table by a first transfer machine, a cutting line can be formed by a cutting machine, and the glass plate can be transferred to the other conveying line by a second transfer machine.

[0056] (4) The glass plate manufacturing apparatus according to (3), wherein the second transfer machine rotates the glass plate on the transfer table by 90 degrees and transfers it to the other conveying line. According to this glass sheet manufacturing device, even if one conveying line is narrower than the other conveying line, the glass sheet can be loaded by changing its orientation to correspond to the other conveying line having a narrower width.

[0057] (5) an inspection machine provided on the main line to detect defects in the glass ribbon; a control unit that controls the main line and the conveying line to process the glass sheet based on a processing pattern set based on the size of the glass sheet to be manufactured; Equipped with The control unit Based on the detection result from the inspection machine, changing the processing pattern to one for cutting and extracting a small-sized glass plate from the area having the defect in the processing pattern; The apparatus for manufacturing a glass plate according to any one of (1) to (4), wherein the transfer mechanism is controlled based on the changed processing pattern to cut and remove glass plates of different sizes. According to this glass sheet manufacturing device, the processing pattern is changed based on the detection results from the inspection machine to one for cutting and extracting a small-sized glass sheet from the defective area in the processing pattern, and the transfer mechanism is controlled based on the changed processing pattern to manufacture glass sheets of different sizes. This makes it possible to efficiently manufacture glass sheets from the glass ribbon without waste. [Explanation of symbols]

[0058] 11 Main Line 15 First conveying line (conveying line) 17 Second conveying line (conveying line) 19 Control Unit 21 Inspection machine 50 Transfer mechanism 51 1st transfer machine 53 2nd transfer machine 55 Transfer table 83 Vertical Slicer (Slicer) 100 Manufacturing equipment C Defect G, G1, G2 glass plates Gd split glass plate Gr Glass Ribbon L Vertical cutting line (cutting line) X conveying direction

Claims

1. A glass plate manufacturing apparatus for cutting a band-shaped glass ribbon to manufacture a rectangular glass plate, a main line for dividing the fed glass ribbon in a conveying direction while conveying the glass ribbon into divided glass sheets; at least two conveying lines connected to the main line for cutting and removing glass sheets of different sizes from the divided glass sheet; a transfer mechanism provided between the adjacent conveying lines, for transferring a glass sheet on one of the conveying lines to the other conveying line that takes out a glass sheet smaller in size than the glass sheet taken out on the one of the conveying lines, and for forming a cutting line on the glass sheet to cut the glass sheet into a smaller size glass sheet; Equipped with Glass plate manufacturing equipment.

2. The transfer mechanism includes: a transfer table onto which the glass plate on the one conveying line is transferred and placed; a cutting machine for forming a cutting line on the glass plate on the transfer table; Equipped with The apparatus for producing a glass sheet according to claim 1 .

3. a first transfer machine that transfers the glass plate from the one conveying line to the transfer table; a second transfer machine that transfers the glass plate on the transfer table on which the cutting line has been formed by the cutting machine to the other conveying line; Equipped with The apparatus for producing a glass sheet according to claim 2 .

4. The second transfer machine rotates the glass plate on the transfer table by 90 degrees and transfers it to the other conveying line. The apparatus for producing a glass sheet according to claim 3 .

5. an inspection machine provided on the main line to detect defects in the glass ribbon; a control unit that controls the main line and the conveying line to process the glass sheet based on a processing pattern set based on the size of the glass sheet to be manufactured; Equipped with The control unit Based on the detection result from the inspection machine, changing the processing pattern to one for cutting and extracting a small-sized glass plate from the area having the defect in the processing pattern; Based on the changed processing pattern, the transfer mechanism is controlled to cut and remove glass sheets of different sizes. The apparatus for producing a glass sheet according to any one of claims 1 to 4.

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