CONTROL SYSTEM FOR MONITORING AND CONTROLLING THE PROCESSING OF GLASS SHEETS IN A GLASS BENDING AND TEMPERING SYSTEM

摘要

A microprocessor-based control system for monitoring and controlling the processing of pairs of sheets of glass in a glass bending and tempering system. The glass sheets are conveyed by a horizontal roller conveyor which is driven by a drive motor. The roller conveyor conveys pairs of sheets of glass along the longitudinal length of an elongated heating chamber to a bending station where the glass sheets of each pair are simultaneously lifted by a bending apparatus. The glass sheets are controllably moved within the heating chamber while on a plurality of rolls adjacent the bending apparatus independent of glass sheet conveyance on the other rolls of the conveyor. The control system includes a photoelectric sensor pair mounted on the conveyor for sensing the glass sheets as the glass sheets are conveyed by the conveyor. The photoelectric sensor pair provides a glass sense signal to a control computer. An incremental encoder coupled to the output shaft of the drive motor provides a signal representation of the angular displacement of the output shaft to the control computer. The control computer is programmed to respond to the glass sense signals and a transport signal of the encoder to provide control signals to coordinate the glass bending and tempering system including the bending apparatus and a roll operator.