Fraunhofer has developed a fully automatic screening apparatus which it claims can produce 20 different glass types within 20 hrs, starting from a melting programme of 2 hrs - continuous observation of the process is not necessary. The apparatus starts with a robot taking one empty crucible at a time & placing it onto a mobile scale. Ten containers of raw material can make up a 100g glass batch, usually enough for the composition of most important glass properties. The robot can put two crucibles at a time into the furnace, which is run with a variable temperature programme to a maximum of 1700 deg C. At the end of the programme, the furnace opens, the robot takes the crucible & pours the melt into preheated brass moulds. The empty crucibles are put down & the robot can start the whole process again, so that 20 samples can run automatically.
