Kimble develops new process to cut picture tube weight

[Newspaper]

Publication: The Muncie Star

Muncie, IN, United States
vol. 86, no. 55, p. 12, col. 5-7


Lighter TV Tubes Possible


Kimble Glass Process Gains OK

 

Muncie Kimble Glass Co. plant Macedonia Avenue, figures prom­inently in the manufacture of a revolutionary new process of making lighter television tubes. The new process, called KIMCODE, has been undergoing exhaustive testing by both Un­derwriter’s Laboratories and the Canadian Standards Association since February of this year.

Kimble’s home office, located at Toledo, Ohio, was notified Tuesday that KIMCODE has been recognized as an acceptable sys­tem.

The process reduces the weight of components needed for sheild­ing a 23-inch tube from 11 3/4 pounds (previously the lightest known tube) to two pounds.

Ed Spence, manager of the Muncie Kimble plant, said that approximately half of the local plant’s facilities is devoted to the manufacture of the glass parts needed for the KIMCODE pro­duct.

Describing the new process as the most important development in TV picture tube manufacture since 1949, John P. Kearney, Kimble vice president and gen­eral manager of its Industrial and Electronic Products Division, de­clared it would have a "profound and healthy effect on the tele­vision industry," Kimble was credited with introducing the first mass-produced rectangular blub 1949.

KIMCODE stands for "Kimble Method for Controlled Devacuation." It elimiates [sic] eliminates the presently-used safety shield on TV picture tubes. Today’s shields are either separate pieces of glass placed in front of the tube or a more costly method of laminating the glass to the tube face.

"The weight-saving factor is particularly important in the por­table and table model field, Kearney said, "and it should also have heavy impact on the styling of all sets in the future."

Kearney also said that the simplicity of the new Kimble process is the result of years of research. "Instead of using a heavy safety shield, we build the necessary safety factors into the tube itself," he added.


Keywords:Hemingray : Owens-Illinois Glass Company : Kimble Glass Company
Researcher notes: 
Supplemental information: 
Researcher:Bob Stahr
Date completed:January 30, 2023 by: Bob Stahr;