There is provided a thin glass elongated body that can be prevented from being broken when subjected to processing or treatment by a roll-to-roll process. A thin glass elongated body of the present invention includes: a main body that includes an elongated thin glass; and a handling section that includes tough films connected to both ends of the main body in a length direction of the main body.

A glass heating furnace is illustrated. Rollers of the glass heating furnace are pivotally connected to a movable frame, and a roller driver of the glass heating furnace controls the rollers to rotate to a direction of an X axis, and a movable frame driver controls the movable frame to displace reciprocatively along a Y axis, such that the rollers displace along the Y axis at the same time. The glass displaces reciprocatively in multiple directions to be heated up more uniformly, which effectively reduces formation of the thermal stress marks on the glass. Since the rollers displace along the Y axis at the same time, the glass on the rollers does not have the displacement of the Y axis in respect to the rollers, such that friction of the displacement of the glass is reduced, which more effectively reduces formation of the thermal stress marks on the glass.

A forming apparatus includes a frame, an air grid system, and a forming system; the air grid system includes a plurality of upper air grids and a plurality of lower air grids; the upper air grids are mounted at an upper part of the frame through a lifting mechanism, and the lower air grids are mounted in the forming system at a lower part of the frame; a gradual transition section is arranged at an inlet side of the forming system to enable a glass pane to be gradually arched in a transverse direction, and the gradually arched glass pane is conveyed into the forming system; and the forming system includes two groups of longitudinal forming and arching mechanisms and a plurality of transverse forming and arching mechanisms arranged in a glass pane conveying direction.

A glass heating furnace is illustrated. Rollers of the glass heating furnace are pivotally connected to a movable frame, and a roller driver of the glass heating furnace controls the rollers to rotate to a direction of an X axis, and a movable frame driver controls the movable frame to displace reciprocatively along a Y axis, such that the rollers displace along the Y axis at the same time. The glass displaces reciprocatively in multiple directions to be heated up more uniformly, which effectively reduces formation of the thermal stress marks on the glass. Since the rollers displace along the Y axis at the same time, the glass on the rollers does not have the displacement of the Y axis in respect to the rollers, such that friction of the displacement of the glass is reduced, which more effectively reduces formation of the thermal stress marks on the glass.

A method for manufacturing a plurality of vacuum insulating glass (VIG) units, wherein the method comprises providing a plurality of first glass panes, applying a soldering material arranged for subsequent connection with a second glass pane to provide a seal between an outside of the VIG unit and an inside void of the VIG unit, moving the first glass panes comprising the soldering material into a treatment compartment, wherein the treatment compartment is pre-heated, drying the soldering material in a heating step by evaporating solvent, wherein the heating is forced convection heating, moving the first glass panes to a cooling compartment, cooling first glass panes and the soldering material thereon in a cooling step, wherein the cooling is by forced convection cooling, moving the first glass panes from the cooling compartment, and subsequently connecting the first glass panes to second glass panes using the dried soldering material.

A forming apparatus includes a frame, an air grid system, and a forming system; the air grid system includes a plurality of upper air grids and a plurality of lower air grids; the upper air grids are mounted at an upper part of the frame through a lifting mechanism, and the lower air grids are mounted in the forming system at a lower part of the frame; a gradual transition section is arranged at an inlet side of the forming system to enable a glass pane to be gradually arched in a transverse direction, and the gradually arched glass pane is conveyed into the forming system; and the forming system includes two groups of longitudinal forming and arching mechanisms and a plurality of transverse forming and arching mechanisms arranged in a glass pane conveying direction.

Disclosed are apparatuses and methods for non-contact processing a substrate, for example a glass substrate, overtop a gas layer. The support apparatus includes a plurality of gas bearings positioned on a pressure box supplied with a pressurized gas. Some embodiments are directed to a method of supporting and transporting softened glass. The method includes placing the glass in proximity to a gas bearing device having a support surface with a plurality of outlet ports disposed therein. Some embodiments are in directed to a glass processing apparatus comprising an air table configured to continuously transport and support a stream of glass and a plurality of modular devices supported by a support structure and disposed above the air table. Some embodiments are directed to a method for flattening viscous glass using a two-sided gas bearing device or a one-sided gas bearing device.

A method for manufacturing a plurality of vacuum insulating glass (VIG) units, wherein the method comprises providing a plurality of first glass panes, applying a soldering material arranged for subsequent connection with a second glass pane to provide a seal between an outside of the VIG unit and an inside void of the VIG unit, moving the first glass panes comprising the soldering material into a treatment compartment, wherein the treatment compartment is pre-heated, drying the soldering material in a heating step by evaporating solvent, wherein the heating is forced convection heating, moving the first glass panes to a cooling compartment, cooling first glass panes and the soldering material thereon in a cooling step, wherein the cooling is by forced convection cooling, moving the first glass panes from the cooling compartment, and subsequently connecting the first glass panes to second glass panes using the dried soldering material.

A glass heating furnace is disclosed. The glass heating furnace allows glass to be heated up more uniformly, which reduces effectively the formation of the thermal stress marks on the glass. The glass heating furnace uses primarily a roller power module to control the rollers to displace reciprocatively, allowing the glass to be heated up uniformly and reducing significantly the formation of the thermal stress marks in the heating process of the glass, through the reciprocative displacement of the rollers. A glass is made by the glass heating furnace. The glass displaces in a chamber of the glass heating furnace along an S-shaped moving path or an 8-shaped moving path.

A titania and silica glass body that includes a first glass section having a crossover temperature of about 10 C. to about 60 C. and a second glass section comprising an average striae height of about 10 microns or less, wherein the average striae height of the second glass section is less than an average striae height of the first glass section, and wherein the first glass section and the second glass section form a single, monolithic glass body.