APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR MANUFACTURING PATTERNED TEMPERED GLASS
An apparatus for manufacturing tempered glass. A heating unit heats a glass substrate that is intended to be tempered. A pattern-forming unit forms a pattern on a surface of the glass substrate heated by the heating unit. A dielectric heating unit increases the temperature of the inner portion of the glass substrate, on which the pattern is formed by the pattern-forming unit. A cooling unit cools the glass substrate, the inside temperature of which is increased by the dielectric heating unit.
1 . A method for manufacturing patterned tempered glass, comprising:
heating a glass substrate;
forming a pattern on a surface of the glass substrate; and
quenching the glass substrate.
2 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising dielectrically heating the glass substrate between the forming the pattern and the quenching the glass substrate.
3 . The method of claim 2 , wherein the dielectrically heating the glass substrate comprises performing high-frequency dielectric heating of the glass substrate so that a temperature of an inner portion of the glass substrate is increased to be higher than a temperature of the surface of the glass substrate.
4 . The method of claim 1 , comprising transporting the glass substrate up in the air.
5 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the heating the glass substrate comprises heating the glass substrate using at least one of an infrared heater or an electrical heating element.
6 . An apparatus for manufacturing patterned tempered glass, comprising:
a heating unit which heats a glass substrate;
a pattern-forming unit which forms a pattern on a surface of the glass substrate heated by the heating unit; and
a quenching unit which quenches the glass substrate on which the pattern is formed by the pattern-forming unit.
7 . The apparatus of claim 6 , further comprising a dielectric heating unit which heats the glass substrate before the glass substrate on which the pattern have been formed by the pattern-forming unit, is quenched by the quenching unit.
8 . The apparatus of claim 7 , wherein the dielectric heating unit comprises a high-frequency dielectric heater which increases a temperature of an inner portion of the glass substrate to be higher than a temperature of the surface of the glass substrate.
9 . The apparatus of claim 7 , wherein the pattern-forming unit comprises a screen which blocks air from communicating between the heating unit and the dielectric heating unit.
10 . The apparatus of claim 6 , further comprising a transportation unit which transports the glass substrate,
wherein the transportation unit comprises a substrate-floating section which makes the glass substrate float up in the air.
11 . The apparatus of claim 6 , wherein the heating unit comprises at least one of an infrared heater or an electrical heating element.
12 . The apparatus of claim 6 , wherein the pattern-forming unit comprises a pattern transfer roller having a pattern thereon.