Owens Corning Fiberglas Technology, Inc.

Owens-corning Fiberglas Corporation

Jack L Emerson

Timothy A Sullivan

William L Streicher

Bruno Andre Purnode

Ramin Dowlati

Kevin Dewayne Smith

David Herman Wolf

Byron Bemis

Robert O Slonaker

Kenny Alan Brown

James P Tracy

James L Hare

A plurality of different structural members for reinforcing a plate-like structure, such as a bushing tip plate for intended use in forming fibers from a fluid material supplied to a bushing assembly, are disclosed. Each reinforcing member includes a body having a first portion for attachment to the structure and a second portion having a profile with a variable height including at least one apex. The body may be integrally formed of a single piece of material, or two or formed from more separate pieces of material bonded or secured together. The body may be T-shaped, L-shaped, or F-shaped in cross-section. The second portion of the body may have an inverted V-shaped profile, an inverted W-shaped profile, or an arcuate profile. The at least one apex may be located at the midpoint or elsewhere along the length of the body.

Reinforcement member for a bushing tip plate and related method

A bushing including a terminal ear and a method of manufacturing the bushing are disclosed. The bushing includes a bushing body which can include side plates, end plates, a bottom plate, and terminal ears coupled to the bushing body. Clamps are attached to the terminal ears to supply electrical current to the bushing to maintain the glass inside in a liquid state. Each terminal ear includes an upper portion and a lower portion. The upper portion is coupled to a side plate of the bushing. A clamp is attached to the lower portion of the terminal ear. The upper and lower portions are oriented at an angle with respect to each other. Support portions are provided along the side edges of the upper portions of the terminal ears. Support portions stiffen the terminal ear, thereby increasing its resistance to bending and fatigue stresses. Support portions do not contact the bushing and therefore do not directly conduct current to the bushing. Accordingly, the temperature of the support portions during operation of the bushing will be lower than the conducting portion of the terminal ears. Since the support portions operate at a lower temperature, the thermal degradation of the terminal ear is reduced.

Bushing including a terminal ear

A bushing tip plate support assembly for a bushing in a filament forming apparatus is disclosed. The support assembly improves the flatness of the tip section within the spans between the external support and the center support. The filament forming apparatus includes a bushing having a bottom plate from which nozzles or tips depend. The disclosed support assembly is an improvement on the internal support assemblies in conventional bushings because it has several functions. The support assembly includes two vertical dividers mounted in the bushing. The bottom ends of the dividers are welded to the tops of tip plate gussets in the bushing. The dividers are attached to side plates of the bushing as well. An upper portion of each divider serves as an upper side wall for the bushing and defines part of the throat of the bushing into which the molten glass flows. The dividers also include middle and lower portions with perforations through which the glass in the bushing may flow. The openings permit the dividers to thermally mix and homogenize the glass within the bushing. The dividers provide additional tip plate support to conventional tip plate gussets and resistance to long term creep and sag of the bottom plate, especially at the point of maximum deflection of the tip plate.

Bushing tip plate support assembly for a bushing in a filament forming apparatus

A heat-absorbing finshield assembly, which is located adjacent the discharge area of a furnace for producing glass fibers, includes fins spaced along a fluid-cooled manifold such that the fins extend between, but not in contact with, the molten glass fibers emerging from the furnace. The fins may have microfins in their bases which are in contact with the cooling fluid. The fins also may be of variable thicknesses relative to each other along the manifold to absorb different quantities of heat from the emerging fibers.

Finshield assemblies for fiber-forming apparatus

The disclosure embraces a support arrangement for a stream flow section or area of a feeder or bushing adapted to flow a large number of streams of glass or other fiber-forming mineral material for attenuation to fibers or filaments wherein the support arrangement includes a tubular support means for the stream flow section connected with transversely arranged tubular members adapted to be attached to a mounting frame, the tubular means and members accommodating circulating cooling fluid for conveying away heat from an area of the feeder floor to eliminate sagging of the feeder floor section and to promote thermal stability of the heat-softened glass throughout the area of the feeder floor.

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Newark, OH, United States of America

Jack L Emerson