US2990649A - Glass feeder combination front spout cover, burner block and burner assembly - Google Patents

Description

July 4 1961 J. L. HUSS 2 9 0 49 GLASS FEEDER COMBINATION FRONT SPOUT COVER, BURNE tR BLOCK AND BURNER ASSEMBLY 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed June 8, 1954 F IGJ a sTaww V I .Hw

INVENTOR JULIUS l HUSS BY Mow/M26? AT TOR NEYS y 1961 J. Huss 2,990,649

GLASS FEEDER COMBINATION FRONT SPOUT COVER, BURNER I BLOCK AND BURNER ASSEMBLY Filed June 8, 1954 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVEIN'TQR JULIUS l HLJSS AT TOR NEYS ports of the Burner blocks.

United States Patent This invention relates generally to'improvements in glass feeder forehearths and more particularly to improvements in the spout section of a well-known type of forehea-rth, one example of which is shown inU'.S. Patent No. 2,139,911,. issued on December 13,1938, to

K. E. Peiler et al.

A "forehearth of the type referred to has a refractory spoiit provided with an outlet opening in its bottom at the approximate center thereof. The spout is open at its rear above the level of its bottom for inflow of molten glass from a connected forehearth channel, the glass retaining wall of such sp'out' being generally U-shaped as viewed in plan and arcuately curved at the outer, front end of the forehearth. v

Firin'gofsuch a spout is from burners operatively disposedinrelation to-ports provided through a refractory burner wall resting upon theupper surface of the glassrletaining spout Wall. The front portion of this burner wall c'omprises a pair of right and left hand burner blocks, as viewed from the front of the spout section. The adjacent ends of these blocks meet at the, longitufdinal center line of the spout and their remote ends terminate at about the transverse center line of the spout, such-Burner blocks being arcuately curv'ed to conform to the euivature of the front portion of the upstanding glass retaining spout wall on which they rest. A refractory cover plate i's'provided to cover the front portion ofthe spout, including the upper surf-ace of the front burner Blocks 'on which the outer edge portion of the cover block rests-and by which it is supported.

ports in the top of the manifolds so that a gaseous fuel mixture supplied, to the manifolds may pass therefrom through the individualburner nozzles into the burner Each of the individual bamer nozzles-is sealedto the burner block at the outerend of its burner port bysuitable sealing provisions.

The refractory front spout cover may he retained in plane by an overlying metal top plate secured to face plates which coverthe outer'surfaces of the burner blocks, s uolrface plates being apertured at places to permit the airme -memes re be operatively positioned in relation to the burner ports.

In the operation of a foreheaith having. a spout section substantially as just described, access to the refractory spout may be necessary at rather frequent intervals, as

for the removalt'herefrom of stones or broken clay or'for the removal and replacement of the refractory spout itself. The "spout burner blocks frequently are in good enough condition to-last in service until another spout change will be required but such burner blocks have to be broken up in order to get the old spout out. when a new'spout has been placed in position and new burner blocks'have been supplied, the work of aligning the burner nozzles with the b'urnerports, assuringefiecti ve seals between the nozzles and the outer ends ofthe Also, J

burner ports and providing leak proof connections be- Patented July 4, 196i ice tween the burner nozzle elbow members and the manifolds, is tedious and time" consuming. There is space for only one workman who must work in a hot and dark place under generally poor working conditions. As are sult, the worker may not do the necessary installation work properly and leakage of the gaseous fuel mixture and backfiring frequently occur when the gaseous fuel mixture is turned on to the burners.

An object of the present invention is to provide a construction of the front burner blocks, frontspout cover and associate firing provisions of such acharacter that the installed spout is readily accessible for observation of the interior thereof and removal therefrom of stones, broken clay, etc., or for removal and replacement thereof, all Without breaking up the front burner blocks or front spout cover or disturbing the alignment of the individual burner nozzles with their burner ports or the gas tight seals around the burner nozzles at the outer ends of the burner ports;

A further object of the invention is to provide a forehearth spout structure of the character described in which the front burner blocks, the burner nozzles associated there with and their manifolds and the front cover blocks are arranged in two cooperative relatively right hand and left hand unitary assemblies which can be moved bodily as units relative to each other and to and from their applied positions in association with an installed refractory spout; a

In carryingout the above'and' other objects of the invention, the refractory front spout cover may be made toconsist of two relatively right and left hand parts, each integral with a front burner block of the corresponding hand. A rigid holder is provided for each of these monolithic combination front cover and burner blocks. This holder also supports an appropriately shaped manifold, either of right or left hand as the case may be. Burner nozzles for the ports through the burner block portions of the combination blocks are carried by elbow pipe members which are clamped in proper positions on the top of the manifolds to establish communication between the manifolds and the individual burner nozzles. These nozzles are aligned With their burner ports and are sealed to the outer ends of the burner ports.

Pre-assernbly of the components of each of these units may be effected at a bench or other convenient work place-away from the place of intended use and theassembly then can be moved as a unit by a hoist or other suitable means to the position where it is to be used.

Suitable means also are provided, according to the invention, to mount the co-operat'ive' right hand and left hand assemblies at their places of use so that they may be swung laterally about vertical pivotal axes respectively located'at opposite sides of the spout position fromtheir Working p'osi'tioris'to inactive positions laterally of the spout position to permit access to the spout andsubsequently swung about said vertical pivotal axes back to their working positions. The means for pivotally mounting the assemblies for horizontal swinging movements preferably are such as to permit each such assembly to be disconnected therefrom when lifted bodily, as by a hoist by whichit' may be moved to a work bench or other convenient work place for any necessary repair or for replacement by a new pre-assembly of like parts, the pivotal connection between the assembly and its mounting means being re-es'tablished when the assembly isretu'rned 'to its working position.

other objects 'and advantag'es of the invention will hereinafter be pointed out orwill' become apparent fromthe following description of a practical embodiment thereof as showninthe-accompanying drawings; in which: 3 1 FIG. 1- is a planviewof-a forehearth spout structure,

3 including co-operative right hand and left hand assemblies of parts in accordance with the invention;

FIG. 2 is a front view of the spout structure;

J FIG. 3 is a view like FIG. 1 but showing the movable right and left hand assemblies of parts in their outwardly swung, inactive positions;

FIG. 4 is a fragmentary vertical section along the line 4-4 of FIG. 1; and

FIG. 5 is a fragmentary vertical section along the line 5-5 of FIG. 1. v

In the drawings, FIGS. 1 and 3, the numeral indicates a refractory spout disposed in a suitably shaped casing 11, FIGS. 2 and 3, heat insulating material as indicated at 12, FIG. 3, being interposed between such spout plements, not shown, which depend through a suitable opening in the roof or cover of the spout section in alignment with the outlet opening 13. Thus, the rearward portion of the spout may be covered by a refractory block '14, the front edge portion of which is cut away along a semi-circle as indicated at for cooperation with front cover blocks, hereinafter described, to afford clearance of the desired feeding implements. A transversely disposed top plate 16 overlies this rear spout cover block 14 and may have down turned end portions 16a and 16b engaged by retaining screws :17 and 18 carried by fixed brackets 19 and 20 located at opposite sides of the rear portion of the spout.

The front spout cover comprises a left hand refractory block 21 and a right hand refractory block 22, FIGS. 1

and 3, these blocks being otherwise similar and each being of segmental form with an arcuately curved inner edge 21a or 22a of an angular extent of about 90. The rear refractory block 14 may be cut back at its front adjacent to its side edges as indicated at 14a and 14b,

respectively, to receive projecting portions 21b and 22b, respectively, on the distal ends of the blocks 21 and 22 when these blocks are in their closed, active positions as shown in FIG. 1. At this time, the adjacent side edges of these blocks meet as indicated at 115 in FIG. 1, at about the longitudinal center line a of the spout and the arcuately curved inner edges 21a and 22a of the blocks together form a semi-circular edge cooperative with the similarly shaped edge portion 15 of rear cover block -14 so as to define a circular opening located above and in line with the bottom outlet opening 13 of the spout.

Each of the two front spout cover blocks 21 or. 22 is formed integrally with a front burner block, the left hand burner block being indicated at 23 and the right hand burner block at 24. See FIG. 4 which shows the monolithic character of the right hand combination front cover and integral burner block. Each burner block has an arcuately curved inner surface as indicated at 23a or 24a.

Each monolithic refractory burner block and front cover block unit is disposed in a metallic holder indicated at 25 for the left hand unit and 26 for the right hand unit. Each such holder comprises a face plate, indicated at 27 for the left hand unit and at 28 for the right hand unit. Each face plate is provided with an inturned supporting flange at its bottom edge as indicated at 29 for the right hand face plate 28 in FIG. 4. Each of the front burner blocks is undercut for part of its thickness from its outer surface inward as indicated at 30 for the burner block 24 in FIG. 4 so as to receive the inturned supporting flange of its face plate. This leaves a lower remaining bottom surface as indicated at 31 for the 7 burner block 24 in FIG. 4 and the burner block rests at this surface on the underlying portion of the upper surface of the spout wall when the burner block is in its active position as shown in FIG. 1. In addition to the parts just described, each holder 25 or 26 includes a top plate, indicated at 32 for the left hand holder 25 and at 33 for the right hand holder 26. These top plates are secured, as by cap screws 34, to the associated face plates so as to cooperate with the inturned bottom flange on the face plate to retain the combination refractory front cover block and burner block unit in the holder for bodily movement therewith when the holder is moved. In this connection, the face plate 27 may have inturned extensions at its side edges as indicated at 27a and 27b, respectively, fitting snugly against the side edges of the partially enclosed burner block. The face plate 28 may have similar inturned side extensions as indicated at 2811 and 28b, respectively. The upper surface of the refractory front spout cover block 21 or 22 may be formed with a cavity or depression therein as indicated at 116 for element 22 in FIG. 4. Refractory insulating cement 117 or the like may be provided to fill such cavity or depression before top plate 32 or 33 is applied.

The left hand holder 25 is provided at its outer side adjacent to the rearward end thereof with a rigid attaching lug 25a through which a vertical screw-threaded pivot element 35 extends. The lower end of pivot element 35 is conical as indicated at 35a and fits pivotally in a suitably shaped seat 36 in the top of a fulcrum block 37. The latter is fastened, as by cap screws 38, in place on a bracket 39 which projects upwardly from a fixed support as from a portion of the spout casing 1 1. The vertical pivot element 35 has a handle 40 secured to its upper end portion by which such pivot element may be manipulated to assure seating of its lower end in the seat provided in the fulcrum block 37 when the left hand burner block is resting on the spout wall. A handle which is shown as being a conventional door pull, indicated at 41, is fastened to face plate 27 for convenience for swinging the holder 25 and the parts contained therein forwardly and laterally from its active, closed position as shown in FIG. 1 to an inactive open position thereof as shown in FIG. 3. A forwardly projecting horizontal plate .118 on the upper part of spout casing 511 may support the swingable unit so as to relieve the pivotal connection of its weight. The burner block 23 is provided with burner ports as indicated at 42, 43 and 44, respectively. A substantially straight left hand gaseous fuel manifold 45 rests upon an outturned supporting flange 46 on the bottom edge portion of face plate 27 and is fastened firmly thereto, as by cap screws '47. A similar manifold 48 is similarly secured in place on an outturned flange 49 on the bottom edge portion of face plate 28. Each of these manifolds is provided with an inlet as indicated at 50 in FIG. 4. A pipe elbow, indicated at 51 for manifold 45 and at 52 for manifold 48, is secured to its manifold, as by welding as indicated at 53 in FIG. 4, so as to provide communication between the manifold inlet and a gaseous fuel supply line. The gaseous fuel supply line may comprise an arrangement of suitable pipe connections and fittings as collectively indicated at '54, including a flexible hose or pipe section as indicated at 54a for the left hand manifold in FIG. 2.

Each manifold 45 or 48 is provided with a top outlet opening opposite the outer end of each burner port in the associated burner block. In this connection, it is to be noted that the right hand burner block has ports 55, 56 and 57, respectively, corresponding to the burner ports 42, 43 and 44, respectively, in the left hand burner block. The top manifold outlet opening opposite burner port 56 is shown in FIG. 4, being designated 48a. It will -be understood that other manifold outlet openings are similarly located with respect to their burner ports. An elbow member 58 is provided for each of such manifold openings. As shown in FIG. 4, this elbow has an some opening 581 inv its bottom overlying. port 4sa'aridfhas' an opening 58b in its rarwardly turned side A I with the correspondingburner port. A straight burner nozzle 59 has an end portion securedin theopeiiing 58b so that its other end or tip will be disposed in the outer end of its associated burner portwhen the elbow'member 58 is securedf in place on its supporting manifold. The elbows 58 are re'leasably held in placeon their manifolds by clamping bars such as those indicated 1 at 60 and 61; respectively, each of these clamping bars being fastened by affixed stud o2 on the manifold anda nut'63 ng e t -thes u twag e Opposite d' $1161 bar to exert downward pressureon two adjacent elbow members 58. A gasket 58c may be provided between the botom of each elbow 58 and the top of its supporting manifold. A packing sleeve or collar 64 may be provided on each of the burner nozzles to exert pressure on a ring of compressible asbestos or other packing material 65 provided on the nozzle against the portion of the wall of the burner block which surrounds the outer end of the associated burner port.

A vertical post as indicated at 66 in FIGS. 1, 2., 3 and is a standard element of a feeder forehearth of the kind hereinbefore referred to as that to which the improvements of the present invention are particularly applicable. Therefore the pivotal mounting for the ring hand assembly of the illustrative embodiments is such as to make use of this existing post as a fulcrum member so as to permit lateral swinging of the right hand assembly between the closed, active position of FIG. 1 and the open, inactive position of FIG. 3 about a vertical axis coincident with that of post 66. In the absence of such a post or where it may be dispensed with, the pivotal mounting means for the right hand assembly may be like that shown and described for the left hand assembly instead of that shown. and which will now be described in detail.

As shown, the right hand pivotal mounting means comprises a bracket 67 having an end portion formed as a vertical sleeve 67a fitting slidably on the post 66 and lowered over the top end of such post and downwardly thereon to a predetermined level where the bracket is fastened by fastening elements *68 to a stationary supporting member 69. An annular step bearing 70 has a counterbored lower end portion 70a fitting on the upper end portion of the bracket sleeve member 67a and fixed thereto, as by set screws 71. Step bearing 70 has an externally reduced upper end portion 70b. A hinge lug 72 is firmly fastened, as by cap screws '73, to the right hand holder 26 and has a projecting eye portion 72a fitting rotatably on externally reduced upper end portion 70b of step bearing member 70 which thus serves as a fulcrum for pivotal horizontal swinging movements of the right hand assembly of parts. A handle 74, similar to left hand handle 41, is attached to face plate 28 for convenient use by a workman to effect horizontal swinging movements of the right hand assembly between the closed, active position of FIG. 1 and the open, inactive position shown in FIG. 3. In such swinging movements the greater part of the weight of the right hand assembly will be sustained by the supporting plate 118, as in the case of the left hand assembly.

The novel structural arrangements described permit ready access to the spout, whether for removal of an old or broken spout and replacement thereof by a new one or simply for observation of conditions within the spout or removal therefrom of stones, pieces of broken clay, or other foreign matter. The right and left hand assemblies may be left intact during such an operation until one or more of the parts of one or both of the bodily movable assemblies requires replacement or repair or adjustment. If only a minor repair or adjustment is required it ordinarily may be done by a workman who is standing on a catwalk (not shown) adjacent 6 tothe spout and who can: work in compar'ative comfort. The refractorypa'rts oftliese bodily movable assemblies may be in good enough condition for continued use through several spout changes. When replacement of the refractory componentof' either assembly." is necessary or desirable, that assembly may be lifted bodily from its connection, as by a hoist (not shown) attached thereto, as by useof a screw'eye 75or 76011 the holder of that assembly, and removed to" a work bench brother convenient work place. When the work of rep cing". a refractory or other component and re a'ssemblin'g the parts has been accomplished, "the new assembly-may be returned to itspivotally attached position, tlierstoration of its pivotal connectioii' with its fulcrum member being automatic on lowering of the assembly either to its open, inactive position as shown in FIG. 3 or its closed, active position as shown in FIG. 1. .Of course, a previously prepared replacement assembly may be provided and returned immediately on removal of the old assembly, thus saving additional time and reducing to a minimum down time of the feeder because of a spout change.

Many changes in and modifications of the illustrative structure shown in the drawings and herein described will now be obvious to those skilled in the art and I therefore do not wish to be limited to the details thereof.

I claim:

1. In a glass feeder forehearth, the combination with a refractory spout having a bottom formed with an outlet for molten glass and having a glass retaining wall at its sides and front, of a pair of relatively right hand and left hand monolithic refractory units comprising integrally formed cooperative front spout burner block and cover block portions, individual holders for said monolithic refractory units, and means for mounting said holders for swinging movements about separate pivotal axes to move said refractory units bodily between active positions thereof at which their burner block portions rest upon relatively right hand and left hand front portions of said glass retaining wall and the cover block portions thereof extend rearwardly therefrom over the front portion of the spout and inactive positions thereof at which said refractory units are disposed wholly away from said glass retaining wall.

2. The combination specified by claim 1 wherein each of said individual holders comprises a face plate for the monolithic refractory unit to be held thereby, an inturned supporting flange on the face plate at the bottom edge thereof, said flange underlying the bottom surface of the burner block portion of said monolithic refractory unit from the outer surface of the latter for only part of the thickness of said burner block portion between its outer and inner surfaces, and a top plate fixed to said face plate so as to extend inwardly in overlying relation to the cover block portion of said refractory unit.

3. The combination specified by claim 1 and, in addition, a gaseous fuel manifold mounted on each of said holders to extend horizontally along the outer surface of the burner block portion of the monolithic refractory unit held by said holder, said burner block portion having spaced burner ports extending t-herethrough from the outer surface to the inner surface thereof, individual burner nozzles for the respective burner ports operatively mounted on said manifold in positions to fire into their respective ports, sealing means between said nozzles and the outer ends of said ports and gaseous fuel supply means operatively connected with the manifold and of such a character as to permit said manifold and nozzles to move with the associated refractory unit without disturbing the relationships of the nozzles with their respective burner ports or the sealing means therebetween when said holder is moved to move said refractory unit between its active and inactive positions, respectively.

4. The combination specified by claim 1 wherein the means for mounting said holders for swinging movements about separate pivotal axes comprises fixed position fulcrum means respectively located at opposite sides of the front portion of the spout and adjacent thereto, and attaohing means on said holdersengageable with said fulcrum means, respectively, to pivotally connect the holders with their respective fulcrum means so that said holders are mounted'to swing about vertical axes respectively located at the opposite sides of the front portion of the spout, and, in addition, a horizontal fixed position plate ,at the front of the spout to take the weight of the holders and the parts carried thereby when said holders are swung about their vertical pivotal axes from the active positions to the inactive positions of the refractory units carried by the holders.

5. The combination specified by claim 4 wherein the References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,946,083 Lambie Feb. 6, 1934 2,115,408 Brosse Apr. 26, 1938 2,139,911 Peiler et a1. Dec. 13, 1938 2,623,330 Griflin Dec. 30, 1952

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