A glass panel unit manufacturing method includes a bonding step, a pressure reducing step, and a sealing step. The bonding step includes bonding together a first substrate including a wired glass pane and a second substrate including a non-wired glass pane with a first sealant in a frame shape to create an inner space. The pressure reducing step includes producing a reduced pressure in the inner space through an exhaust port that the first substrate has. The sealing step includes irradiating the second sealant with an infrared ray externally incident through the second substrate to seal the exhaust port up with the second sealant that has melted.

The object of this invention is to provide a laminated automotive glazing having an obscuration area produced by printing the obscuration on a film laminated between at least two layers of plastic interlayers or directly on the interlayer rather than printing and firing an enamel frit onto the glass. This results in a laminate having superior optical quality, higher strength and a lower probability of breakage as compared to a laminate with a black enamel frit obscuration.

The glass panel unit includes: a first glass panel; a second glass panel; a seal; an evacuated space; and a gas adsorbent. The seal with a frame shape hermetically bonds the first glass panel and the second glass panel to each other. The gas adsorbent is placed in the evacuated space. The gas adsorbent includes a getter. The gas adsorbent is visible through at least one of the first glass panel and the second glass panel. The gas adsorbent has properties of changing its color when adsorbing gas.

Certain example embodiments relate to vacuum insulating glass units having edge seals based on solder alloys that, when reactively reflowed, wet metallic coatings pre-coated on the glass substrates' perimeters, and/or associated methods. The alloys may be based on materials that form a seal at temperatures that will not de-temper glass and/or decompose a laminate, and/or remain hermetic and lack porous structures in their bulks. Example alloys may be based on inter-metallics of Sn and one or more additional materials selected from post-transition metals or metalloids; Zintl anions (e.g., In, Bi, etc.) from Group 13, 14, 15 or 16; and transition metals (e.g., Cu, Ag, Ni, etc.); and excludes Pb. Thin film coatings in certain example embodiments work with the solder material to form robust and durable hermetic interfaces. Because low temperatures are used, certain example embodiments can use compliant and visco-elastic spacer technology based on lamellar structures and/or the like.

A low-cost high-performance Vacuum Insulated Glass is produced with three glass panes and bonding fiber mesh structures embedded between the glass panes. Each mesh structure is configured with elongated bonding fiber elements arranged in a grid configuration. The bonding fiber elements are formed with a fiber core covered with a low melting temperature material. The low melting temperature material melts upon heating and creates numerous vacuum sealed cells between the glass panes. The fiber core does not melt, and remains intact bonded to the glass panes, thus creating a support mechanism for supporting the glass panes at a spaced apart relationship.

A spacer member, for allowing a walkable skylight with an insulating glass unit to be created with a structural glass panel and a thermal glass panel. The spacer member includes a slab part and a tube part having substantially the same thickness. The tube part is hollow, containing desiccant material for absorbing moisture within the insulating glass unit. The spacer members may be joined together to create a spacer frame. The spacer frame defines an inner rectangular region. When the spacer frame is sealed between the structural glass panels and the thermal glass panel, an air gap is created within the inner rectangular region. The desiccant material effectively removes moisture from air within the air gap.

The invention relates to a process for manufacturing a vacuum insulated glazing wherein the glazing is assembled in a single stage by supplying glass panes, metallic spacers and corner and frame metallic seal elements which are brazed onto adhesion layers previously deposited onto the edge region areas of the glass panes.

A spacer for insulated glazing units having at least one polymeric main body with a wall thickness d having a first pane contact surface and a second pane contact surface running parallel thereto, one first glazing interior surface, one second glazing interior surface, one outer surface, one first hollow chamber, and one second hollow chamber. A groove for receiving a pane runs parallel to the first pane contact surface and the second pane contact surface between the first glazing interior surface and the second glazing interior surface. The first hollow chamber adjoins the first glazing interior surface and the second hollow chamber adjoins the second glazing interior surface. The lateral flanks of the groove are formed by the walls of the first hollow chamber and the second hollow chamber, and the wall thickness d′ in the region of the lateral flanks is less than the wall thickness d of the polymeric main body.

Methods of making a vacuum insulating glass (VIG) window unit, including edge sealing techniques relating to the same, are provided. Certain example embodiments relate to providing an infrared (IR) absorbing element(s) such as a clip or clamp proximate an edge portion of a VIG assembly during formation of an edge seal. The IR absorbing element(s) absorb applied IR radiation and heat up during an edge seal formation process. Because the IR absorbing element(s) is/are thermally conductive and in contact with at least one of the glass substrates the element(s) causes/cause heat to be transferred from the element(s) to the adjacent glass substrate(s) and to the adjacent edge seal material thereby helping the edge seal material to heat up faster during the edge seal formation process and keeping other areas of glass at lower temperatures.

The object of this invention is to provide a laminated automotive glazing having an obscuration area produced by printing the obscuration on a film laminated between at least two layers of plastic interlayers rather than printing and firing an enamel frit onto the glass. This results in a laminate having superior optical quality, higher strength and a lower probability of breakage as compared to a laminate with a black enamel frit obscuration.