Multiple Gob Feeder, Gob Feeding Method and Related System, and Feeder Orifice Dropping Several Streams of Molten Glass Straight Into Their Moulds

This patent describes a feeder that delivers several streams of molten glass, known as gobs, into the moulds of a glass container machine at the same time, along with the method and the orifice hardware that make it work. The aim is to align each falling gob accurately with its own mould so that high-speed container glass production runs more cleanly.

The Problem

Mass-produced glass bottles and jars are formed on machines that shape many containers in parallel, of which the individual section machine is the classic example. Molten glass is cut into measured lumps called gobs, which fall and are guided into blank moulds where forming begins. When a single feeder supplies several moulds across a row, keeping every gob on the correct path is difficult. If the falling axis of a gob does not line up with the centreline of its mould, the glass can land off-centre, leading to defects, uneven wall thickness and rejected containers. As lines run faster and moulds sit closer together, this alignment problem becomes harder.

What This Invention Does

The patent provides a multiple gob feeder built so that the centrelines of its outlets and orifices are kept coaxial, meaning the path each gob falls along is set to match the centreline of the blank mould waiting below it. The feeder vessel has laterally spaced outlets, and matching feeder orifices with orifice pipes and tips establish the falling axes for each gob. The method describes producing gobs from these laterally spaced orifices and receiving them into laterally spaced blank moulds whose centrelines correspond to the falling axes. The orifice design itself is also claimed, since the precise geometry of the orifice pipe and tip is what sets each gob on its intended course.

Key Features

• Coaxial alignment. Outlet centrelines, orifice centrelines and gob falling axes are kept in line with the blank mould centrelines.
• Multiple parallel gobs. The feeder delivers several gobs at once into laterally spaced moulds.
• Dedicated orifice hardware. Orifice pipes and tips are shaped to fix the falling path of each gob.
• System-level claim. The patent covers the feeder, the feeding method and the related forming system together.
• Defect reduction. Better alignment supports more consistent containers and fewer rejects.

Who Is Behind It

The applicant is Owens-Brockway Glass Container Inc., a glass container manufacturing arm of O-I Glass, one of the largest makers of glass bottles and jars in the world. The named inventors are Javier Reyes, Walter Anderson, Alexandra Fuller, Bernhard Altendorfer and John Holmes-Libbis. The application is a divisional of an earlier filing.

Why It Matters

Glass packaging is a high-volume, low-margin industry where small improvements in yield and speed add up quickly. More accurate gob delivery means fewer defects, less wasted glass and energy, and steadier output on demanding lines. Protecting the feeder and orifice design in Australia supports the company’s manufacturing and licensing interests in the local glass packaging market.

Related Concepts

• Container glass – the bottles and jars this equipment helps produce.
• Glass production – the broader manufacturing process the feeder is part of.
• Individual Section machine – the classic forming machine that gobs are fed into.
• Viscosity – the property of molten glass that governs how a gob forms and falls.
• Manufacturing – the industrial context where yield and alignment matter.

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AU 2026201899 was published in the Australian Official Journal of Patents on 2 April 2026 and is open for public inspection. Patent applications represent inventions that are sought to be protected and do not necessarily reflect commercially available products.