Patents
DeWitt Lampman, CEO
DeWitt is an inventor on thirteen patents which have benefited the automotive, aircraft, and architectural glass industries.
Patent Title
Summary
Patent Number
1. Method and Apparatus for Handling Glass Sheets for Shaping and Cooling
Top vacuum glass forming mold with lifting ring and quench ring. Production sidelite process used for forming and tempering sidelites and backlites.
2. Tempering Glass Sheets by Cooling Comprising Sublimation Quenching
High heat transfer quench using sublimation of liquid CO2. Used in tempering samples for new lighter weight aircraft transparencies for the Boeing 757/767 aircraft.
3. Ribbon Severing Support
Moving glass convective heat support with part edge heating and severing. Intended to cut parts from a moving float ribbon while still hot enough to bend and temper.
4. Discrete Glass Sheet Cutting
A float glass ribbon is removed from the bath and supported by a convective heated bed. Localized focused high temperature burners heat a glass line across the glass followed by severing along the line. A glass shape is the cut from the flat glass followed by removal to a bending and tempering operation. No reheating of the glass occurs.
5. Horizontal Press Bending Using a Splitting Vacuum/Pressure Pickup
A flat ceramic pickup that utilizes both vacuum and pressure to levitate the glass over a press, then splits apart when dropping the heated glass onto a press.
6. Glass Sheet Quench
The design of this equipment provides for removable quench bars. In an automotive backlite quench, the geometry of the quench can be changed for various parts by fabricating new bars rather than an entire new quench.
7. Apparatus for Thermal Treatment of Glass and Method and Thermally Treated Glass Therefrom
This concept utilizes a specialized glass edge support with high heat transfer to match the glass cooling rate, thus minimizing edge tension stresses and mold marks from the support ring.
8. Apparatus and Method for Tempering Glass Sheets
Method to thermally temper thick glass without breakage to very high temper levels. Quenches are designed to temper B737 cockpit windows to either reduce weight by 28% and maintain current strength or increase strength so failures from bird strikes can be eliminated. SAE paper Int. J. Aerosp. 17(2):2924 written covering the design process.
9. Asymmetric Glazing Laminates with High Impact Resistance
Provide a thinner and stronger asymmetrical windshield construction. This construction supports lightweight glazing by maintaining the strength of a standard symmetrical construction while saving weight. 2.1/1.2 mm versus 2.1/2.1 mm standard production.
10. Symmetric Glazing for Improved Sound Attenuation
A process for making a symmetrical glazing that has the same nominal weight as an asymmetrical glazing. This affords enhanced glazing strength, glazing rigidity, or stone impact resistance wherein the symmetric glazing has improved acoustic attenuation over coincidence frequencies of the asymmetric glazing design.
11. Solar Control Thin Green Glass Composition
A dark green composition for thin glass and method for using. This composition was developed to control the solar performance of a lightweight windshield for the 2.1 mm outer ply to use with a patented thin glass construction utilizing a 1.2 mm clear inner ply.
12. Automotive Glazing for ADAS Camera Systems
Methods for mounting infrared cameras for behind the windshield viewing using openings and specialized composition glass. Enables behind the windshield use of infrared cameras for night vision.
13. Multi-Pane Glazing for Improved Sound Attenuation
Multiple plies of a triple ply laminate eliminate the coincidence dip in standard symmetrical 2-ply automotive laminates for windshields and doors thereby improving acoustic performance. Total weight of multiple plies can be less than a symmetrical laminate.
[Patent pending]