A method of forming a glass ribbon including flowing molten glass into a sheet forming device to form formed glass. The formed glass having a first portion and a second portion, the first portion having a larger thickness than the second portion. The method further includes volumetrically heating the formed glass using an electromagnetic heating device, so that the first portion has a lower average viscosity than the second portion, and drawing the formed glass into a glass ribbon, such that the first portion is drawn with a higher rate of elongation than the second portion.

A furnace (2) has at least one furnace chamber (20) delimited by a wall (25); at least one opening (5) is provided in the wall (25). The opening is provided with at least one nozzle (50), configured to generate a sealing air flow. A glass semi-finished product (4) can be introduced into the furnace chamber.

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 and a second substrate with a first sealant 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 melting a second sealant inserted into the exhaust port by locally heating the second sealant, and deforming the second sealant by pressing the second sealant toward the second substrate, to seal the exhaust port up with the second sealant melted and deformed.

A non-contact shaping device includes a first fixture including a fixing section structured to alternately blow out and suck in gas. The fixing section may fix, through suction of gas, a glass plate thereon. An optic heat source processing device is selectively set above predetermined portions of the glass plate to heat, in a non-contact manner, and thus soften, in a temperature-controlled manner, the portions for curving and suspending downward along an edge of the fixing section. The curved glass plate is then lifted up through blowing gas from the first fixture. The second fixture selectively covers the curved glass plate and blow gas therefrom to flow, in collaborative combination with the gas blown from the first fixture, around surfaces of the curved glass plate for cooling and fixing a shape of the curved glass plate in a non-contact manner to form a three-dimensional curve-surfaced glass product.

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 and a second substrate with a first sealant 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 a second sealant, inserted into the exhaust port, with an infrared ray through a region, where a low emissivity film is nonexistent, of the second substrate.

A system for use in glass production technology such as for production of glass packaging, glassware, glass home equipments, wherein the system allows all kinds of design additions such as color, pattern, texture, decor, seal and form changing processes to be applied to the product without requiring re-firing of the product, after removal of the product from the moulds in the production lines while the product is still hot and the temperature is kept constant.

A non-contact shaping device includes a first fixture including a fixing section structured to alternately blow out and suck in gas. The fixing section may fix, through suction of gas, a glass plate thereon. An optic heat source processing device is selectively set above predetermined portions of the glass plate to heat, in a non-contact manner, and thus soften, in a temperature-controlled manner, the portions for curving and suspending downward along an edge of the fixing section. The curved glass plate is then lifted up through blowing gas from the first fixture. The second fixture selectively covers the curved glass plate and blow gas therefrom to flow, in collaborative combination with the gas blown from the first fixture, around surfaces of the curved glass plate for cooling and fixing a shape of the curved glass plate in a non-contact manner to form a three-dimensional curve-surfaced glass product.

A manufacturing process for realizing increased precision in forming elements using computational masks. Some embodiments include a thermal source that may be computationally patterned, and a subsystem coupled to the course, the subsystem comprising an element that may be computationally patterned.

Disclosed herein are systems for shaping glass structures, comprising a shaping mold; a magnetic field generator; and a susceptor plate positioned substantially between the shaping mold and the magnetic field generator. Also disclosed herein are systems for shaping a glass structures, comprising a magnetic field generator comprising at least one induction coil and a one power supply connected to the at least one induction coil; and a susceptor plate having a first surface proximate the at least one induction coil and an opposing second surface proximate the glass structure. Further disclosed herein are methods for heating glass structures, comprising positioning the glass structure on a shaping mold; introducing the shaping mold and glass structure into a furnace; and indirectly heating at least a portion of the glass structure using at least one induction heating source.

A method for manufacturing a formed glass includes using a heating apparatus. The heating apparatus includes a heating element and a heat reservoir having a transmittance of 50% or more in a wavelength of 0.5 m to 2.5 m. The heat reservoir is arranged between the heating element and a glass substrate as an object to be heated. The glass substrate is heated with the heating element, and the glass substrate is formed into a desired shape.