Glass Processing Method

Abstract

To provide a method for processing glass that processes a glass product having a surface with an uneven pattern at low cost.SOLUTION: A method for processing glass includes: a placing step of placing a flat plate-like template glass 1 having a surface at which an uneven pattern is formed on a mold 3 in which a recess corresponding to a final processing shape is formed; and a heating step of heating the mold 3 on which the template glass 1 is placed inside a furnace to soften the template glass 1 and curve the template glass 1 so as to be shaped along the recess with the self-weight.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a glass processing method for processing glass products such as plates and lampshades having a textured surface. [Background technology]

[0002] As a method for manufacturing a glass product having a textured pattern on its surface, for example, as shown in Patent Document 1 below, a method has been proposed in which a glass ribbon 22 is passed between a pair of rotating rollers 30, 32 having a textured pattern 36 formed on one side thereof to impart a pattern to one side of the glass ribbon 22, and the glass ribbon 22 is then vacuumed in a vacuum mold cavity 14 provided on a turret 10 to be processed into a plate or the like. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 5-85756 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] In the method disclosed in Patent Document 1, in order to change the textured pattern on a glass product, the roller itself on one side on which the textured pattern is formed must be replaced, which is costly.

[0005] SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a glass processing method for inexpensively processing glass products having a textured surface. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] In order to solve the above problems, the present invention provides: a placing step of placing the flat template glass having a textured surface on a mold having recesses corresponding to the shape of the final product; a heating step of heating the mold on which the patterned glass is placed in a furnace to soften the patterned glass and cause the patterned glass to bend under its own weight so as to conform to the shape of the recess; The present invention provides a glass processing method comprising the steps of:

[0007] Patterned glass is manufactured to have a wide variety of decorative uneven patterns, and by using this patterned glass as a material for glass products, glass products having these uneven patterns on the surface can be manufactured at low cost.

[0008] In the above configuration, The heating step a first temperature-raising step of raising the temperature inside the furnace to a first temperature; a second temperature-raising step of raising the temperature inside the furnace from the first temperature to a second temperature; a holding step of holding the inside of the furnace at the second temperature for a predetermined time; a cooling step of cooling the interior of the furnace from the second temperature; It is preferable to have a configuration having the above.

[0009] In this way, the temperature inside the furnace can be made uniform by the first heating step of raising the temperature to the first temperature, and by maintaining the temperature at the second temperature for a predetermined period of time, the patterned glass can be bent uniformly and smoothly to conform to the shape of the recess in the mold.

[0010] In the holding step, The second temperature is preferably in the range of 600°C to 770°C, and the predetermined time is preferably in the range of 30 seconds to 15 minutes. When the second temperature and the predetermined time are in these ranges, a good surface condition of the processed glass product can be obtained. [Effects of the Invention]

[0011] In this invention, a flat figured glass plate having a decorative uneven pattern formed on its surface is placed on a mold having recesses corresponding to the shape of the final product, and then heated to bend under its own weight, thereby enabling glass products having the uneven pattern on their surface to be manufactured inexpensively. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0012] [Figure 1] 1A is an explanatory diagram of a glass processing method according to the present invention; (a) is a perspective view of a patterned glass sheet cut into a predetermined shape, viewed from below; (b) is a cross-sectional view of the patterned glass sheet placed on a mold; (c) is a cross-sectional view of the patterned glass sheet warped by heating; and (d) is a perspective view of a processed glass product (a plate in this embodiment), viewed from below. [Figure 2] A diagram showing the temperature change inside the furnace during the heating process. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0013] One embodiment of the glass processing method according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. This glass processing method is a method for processing a glass product 2, such as a plate or lampshade, having a decorative textured surface using a flat figured glass 1, and is mainly comprised of a placing step and a heating step.

[0014] The placing step is a step of placing a flat figured glass 1 having a decorative uneven pattern formed on its surface as shown in Fig. 1(a) on a mold 3 having recesses formed therein corresponding to the shape of the final product (such as a plate or lampshade) as shown in Fig. 1(b). This figured glass 1 is pre-cut into a predetermined shape corresponding to the shape of the final product (for example, a circle, oval, polygon, etc. if the final product is a plate).

[0015] This patterned glass 1 has a textured pattern formed on one side, and the other side is flat. In this embodiment, the patterned glass 1 is placed on the mold 3 so that one side (the textured side) faces downward. In this embodiment, a 2 mm thick patterned glass 1, which is widely distributed in Japan, is used, but it is also possible to use patterned glass 1 of different thicknesses, such as 4 mm or 6 mm, which are relatively widely distributed overseas. It is also possible to place the patterned glass 1 on the mold 3 so that the other side (the flat side) faces downward. The material of the mold 3 is not particularly limited, and metal, refractory material, etc. can be used.

[0016] The heating step is a step in which the mold 3 on which the patterned glass 1 is placed is heated in a furnace to soften the patterned glass 1, and the patterned glass 1 is bent by its own weight to conform to the shape of the recess, as shown in Fig. 1(c). More specifically, as shown in Fig. 2, this heating step mainly comprises a first heating step in which the temperature inside the furnace is raised to a first temperature T1, a second heating step in which the temperature inside the furnace is raised from the first temperature T1 to a second temperature T2, a holding step in which the temperature inside the furnace is held at the second temperature T2 for a predetermined time t2, and a cooling step in which the temperature inside the furnace is cooled from the second temperature T2.

[0017] 1(b)(c), the above series of heat treatments were carried out using an electric furnace 4 (single-phase AC 200V or three-phase AC 200V). In this embodiment, the first temperature T1 was set to 550-600°C, the second temperature T2 was set to 740-750°C, and the predetermined time t2 for maintaining the second temperature was set to 1-10 minutes. The heating rate R1 in the first heating step was set to 265°C / hour, and the heating rate R2 in the second heating step was set to the maximum heating rate of the electric furnace 4 in this temperature range (for example, approximately 100-300°C / hour, although this varies depending on the furnace).

[0018] In this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 2, after the first heating step, the furnace temperature was maintained for a predetermined time t1 (here, 30 minutes) to stabilize, and then the second heating step was performed. The first temperature T1 may be set within a range of, for example, 400°C to 600°C, and the predetermined time t1 may be set within a range of, for example, 5 minutes to 1 hour. Furthermore, if sufficient stability of the furnace temperature is ensured, the maintenance for the predetermined time t1 may be omitted (t1 = 0 minutes). The cooling step was performed by natural cooling from the second temperature T2 (with the door of the electric furnace 4 closed and the heater power turned off). After this cooling step, finishing, such as finishing the edges of the glass product 2, is performed as needed.

[0019] The second temperature T2 is set within the range of 600°C to 770°C. When the patterned glass 1 used is stained glass, it can be set preferably within the range of 600°C to 700°C. On the other hand, when the patterned glass 1 used is float glass used in architecture, it can be set preferably within the range of 730°C to 760°C, more preferably within the range of 735°C to 755°C. If the second temperature T2 is too low, the edge surface of the finished glass product 2 may become frosted, resulting in poor finish, or the glass may be less likely to warp under its own weight. If the second temperature T2 is too high, the edges of the textured pattern on the surface of the finished glass product 2 may become blunt, impairing the appearance. Therefore, it is preferable to set the second temperature within the above range depending on the type of patterned glass 1 used.

[0020] The predetermined time t2 for which the glass is maintained at the second temperature T2 can be set within a range of 30 seconds to 15 minutes, preferably 45 seconds to 13 minutes, and more preferably 1 minute to 10 minutes. If the predetermined time t2 is shorter than 30 seconds, the glass will not be sufficiently deflected by its own weight, whereas if the predetermined time t2 is longer than 15 minutes, the edges of the textured pattern on the surface of the finished glass product 2 may become dull, impairing its aesthetic appearance. Therefore, it is preferable to set the time within the above range.

[0021] In the above-described glass processing method, a flat patterned glass 1 having a decorative textured pattern formed on its surface is placed on a mold 3 having recesses corresponding to the shape of the final product, and then heated to bend under its own weight, thereby enabling a glass product 2 having the textured pattern on its surface to be processed inexpensively.

[0022] Furthermore, since the above-mentioned glass processing method comprises the heating process comprising the above-mentioned multiple steps, the temperature inside the furnace can be made uniform by the first heating step of raising the temperature to the first temperature T1, and by maintaining the temperature at the second temperature T2 for a predetermined time t2, the patterned glass 1 can be bent uniformly and smoothly to conform to the shape of the recess in the mold 3.

[0023] Furthermore, in the above-described glass processing method, the second temperature T2 is set within the range of 600°C or higher and 770°C or lower, and the predetermined time t2 for maintaining the second temperature T2 is set within the range of 30 seconds or higher and 15 minutes or lower, so that a good surface condition of the processed glass product 2 can be obtained.

[0024] The embodiments disclosed herein are to be considered in all respects as illustrative and not restrictive. Therefore, the scope of the present invention is defined by the claims, not by the above description, and is intended to include the meaning equivalent to the claims and all modifications thereof. [Explanation of symbols]

[0025] 1. Patterned glass 2. Glassware 3 Mold 4. Electric furnace

Claims

1. A step of placing a flat patterned glass (1) having a textured surface on one side and a flat surface on a mold (3) having a recess corresponding to the shape of the final product, with the textured surface facing downward; a heating step of heating the mold (3) on which the patterned glass (1) is placed in a furnace to soften the patterned glass (1) and cause the patterned glass (1) to bend under its own weight so as to conform to the shape of the recess; and The heating step a first temperature-raising step of raising the temperature inside the furnace to a first temperature (T 1 ) in the range of 400°C to 600°C; a step of maintaining the temperature for a predetermined time (t 1 ) within a range of 5 minutes to 1 hour after the completion of the first temperature-raising step; a second temperature-raising step of raising the temperature inside the furnace from the first temperature (T 1 ) to a second temperature (T 2 ); a holding step of holding the inside of the furnace at the second temperature (T 2 ) for a predetermined time (t 2 ); a cooling step of cooling the inside of the furnace from the second temperature (T 2 ); A glass processing method comprising the steps of:

2. The second temperature (T ２ 2. The glass processing method according to claim 1, wherein the temperature is in the range of 600°C or higher and 770°C or lower.

3. The predetermined time (t ２ 3. The glass processing method according to claim 1, wherein the heating time is in the range of 30 seconds to 15 minutes.

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