The disclosure relates to a method for producing an optical element (202), wherein a blank of transparent material is heated and/or provided and, after heating and/or after being provided between a first mold (UF) and at least one second mold (OF), is press molded, for example on both sides, to form the optical element (202) and is then exposed to a treatment atmosphere.

A method of molding an optical element includes: preparing a molding material; preparing an upper mold having an upper surface molding surface, a lower mold having a lower surface molding surface, and a side mold having a side surface molding surface; inserting a neck portion of the upper mold and a neck portion of the lower mold into a hole portion of the side mold; positioning a distal end of the neck portion of the lower mold below an opening rim of the hole portion, and electing oxygen that is in the molds through a gap formed between the opening rim of the hole portion and the molding material that has been placed on the lower surface molding surface; heating up the molding material; and press molding the molding material by bringing the upper mold and side mold, and the lower mold, closer to each other.

A method for producing a component with portions of a rare earth metal-doped quartz glass, an intermediate product containing voids and consisting of a SiO.sub.2 raw material doped with rare earth metal is introduced into a sinter mold the interior of which is bordered by a carbonaceous mold wall, and is melted therein into the component by gas pressure sintering at a maximum temperature above 1500 C. A shield is arranged between the mold wall and the intermediate product. In order to indicate a modified gas pressure sintering method that ensures the production of rare earth metal-doped quartz glass with reproducible properties, a bulk material of amorphous SiO.sub.2 particles with a layer thickness of at least 2 mm is used as the shield, the softening temperature thereof being at least 20 C. higher than the softening temperature of the doped SiO.sub.2 raw material, and the bulk material being gas-permeable at the beginning of the melting of the intermediate product, and the bulk material sintering during melting into an outer layer that is gas-tight to a pressure gas.

The present disclosure relates to a method for manufacturing an optical element out of glass, wherein a blank made of glass is laid on an annular contact face of a supporting body having a hollow cross section, and is heated on the supporting body, in a cavity of a protective cap that is arranged in a furnace cavity, such that a temperature gradient is established in the blank in such a way that the blank is cooler inside than on an outside region, wherein the contact face is cooled by means of a cooling medium flowing through the supporting body, wherein following heating the glass blank is press molded to form the optical element.

A micro- and nano-hot embossing method for an optical glass lens array, including: preparing a mold with a micro-hole array by micro EDM, where the micro-hole array matches an optical glass lens array and the mold is made of a hard metal material which is conductive and meets strength and temperature requirements; preparing a nano nitride-based graded composite coating on a surface of the mold by magnetron sputtering; and pre-fabricating a glass preform and then placing the glass preform on the surface of the mold; heating the glass preform and hot embossing by a glass molding machine in vacuum; cooling in nitrogen atmosphere; and demolding to produce the optical glass lens array. The micro- and nano-hot embossing method of the present invention improves the surface quality of the optical glass lens array and reduces the cost and difficulty for manufacturing.

Provided is a method of molding an optical element to obtain the molded optical element. The method includes: preparing a die set including an upper die having an upper molding surface, a lower die having a lower molding surface, a side die in which a through hole is formed, and a sleeve configured to accommodate the upper die, the lower die, and the side die; disposing a mold material on the lower molding surface after inserting the lower die into the through hole of the side die; heating the mold material; press molding the mold material with the upper die and the lower die to integrally move the side die and the lower die with respect to the upper die and the sleeve; and pushing the optical element upward by raising the lower die with respect to the side die and the sleeve.

A production apparatus making continuously curved crystalline glass as a cover or container includes a melting device, a drainage device, a molding device, and a crystallizing device. The melting device melts glass raw material to form a glass melt. The drainage device drains the glass melt to the molding device. The molding device includes a rotating table and a plurality of molding molds thereon. Each molding mold can be moved toward or away from the drainage device by the rotating table. Each molding mold has a molding cavity. At least one part of the molding cavity includes a plane, and at least one part of the molding cavity includes a curved surface to extrude the glass melt with such different surface forms. The crystallizing device crystallizes the curved glass member to achieve the curved crystallized glass member. A method for manufacturing such glass is also provided.

The current disclosure relates to highly homogeneous glass sputter targets with a large aspect ratio and a high relative density. The glass sputter targets have properties that are desirable for forming thin films by physical vapor deposition processes such as sputtering.

A glass manufacturing apparatus configured to manufacture glass through a process of lowering the temperature of a non-contact supported glass material. The glass manufacturing apparatus comprises a heating unit configured to heat the glass material; and a forming unit configured to form the molten glass material while its temperature decreases after the heating by the heating unit has stopped.

A product conveyance apparatus includes an actuator, a movement portion, a first position detection portion, a second position detection portion, and a controller. The controller performs a process of causing the actuator not holding a product to move to a predetermined position, detecting the position of the actuator and storing the position as a first position, a process of causing the actuator to move on a basis of a movement instruction value and hold the product, causing the actuator holding the product to move to the predetermined position, detecting the position of the product held by the actuator, and storing the position as a second position, and a process of correcting and updating the movement instruction value on a basis of difference between the first position and the second position.