MOUNTING DIES AND PRINTING PLATES

Abstract: Apparatus for mounting printing dies and die cutting dies comprises a support member, e.g. a rotatable cylinder (10), having a mounting surface (46) upon which a die (48) is mountable, and a connection (16) for applying vacuum to an interior portion (26). A plurality of valves (54) selectively apply the vacuum to the surface (46) from the interior portion (26). These valves (54) have depressible actuating members (54) protrudable above the mounting surface (46). Those actuating members (54) contacted by the die (48) when applied to the mounting surface (46) are depressed thereby to effect application of vacuum to beneath the die (48) to draw the die against the support member. Vacuum distribution grooves (50) may be provided in the surface (46) of a printing cylinder (10). Advantageously, a printing die may have a thin, highly flexible and deformable fringe along its trailing edge to seal the grooves (50) at that location. A cutting die may have vacuum distribution grooves formed in its underside and a seal around its periphery. This mounting arrangement facilitates quick changing of dies during printing and die cutting operations.

Description: This invention relates generally to printing and die cutting apparatus, particularly to rotary printing and soft anvil die cutting apparatus, and arrangements for mounting printing plates or dies and cutting dies. The corrugated paperboard industry uses flexible printing plates or dies on a rotating cylinder to transfer ink to the surface to be printed and serrated edge cutting rules on a rotating cylinder acting against a soft anvil roll to die cut the printed sheets. Such apparatus is generally called flexographic printer die cutters which apparatus, among other things, feeds individual sheets of corrugated paperboard past a rotating printing die to print indicia on the sheets and past a rotating die cylinder to die cut the sheets. One problem associated with such machines has been the mounting of the printing die to the print cylinder, particularly, quick mounting of the printing die so as not to delay set-up of the machine during a change from one sheet size to another and/or a change in the indicia to be printed on the sheet. The printing dies themselves are usually made of a type of rubber or plastic mounted on a backing sheet of heavy paper, rubber, or plastic material. The backing sheet is flexible so that it can be wrapped around the print cylinder. An early means of mounting the printing die to the cylinder was merely to staple the backing sheet to a wooden covering on the cylinder. This left much to be desired since the staples eventually ruined the wooden covering and the backing sheet making it necessary to recover the cylinder and, more often, to replace the backing sheet or the complete die. In addition, if the printing die was not placed properly on the cylinder, it had to be removed and repositioned thus resulting in additional set-up time. Since then, various means have been employed to mount the printing die to the print cylinder. One such means required a rigid strip on each end of the die backing of which one was captured in an immovable slot in the print cylinder and the other captured in a movable slot. The movable slot included a hinged portion movable in a direction away from the immovable slot so as to tension the backing sheet. The hinge portion was moved by a pneumatically expandable tube. The die backing had to be made quite precisely and tube failures were not uncommon. Another means uses a rigid U-shaped hook strip on one end of the backing sheet that hooks in a mating U-shaped slot in the print cylinder, the so-called "Dorr" system. The other end of the sheet is made similar to a roll-up window blind with the roller placed in a slot in the print cylinder. A special tool is used to wind up the roller to tension the backing sheet to hold it tightly against the cylinder. Making the backing sheet is quite complex and expensive. In addition, relatively considerable time is required to roll up the backing sheet in the cylinder. Probably the most popular means in current use is the so-­ called "Matthews" system which includes a U-shaped hook strip on one end of the backing sheet that hooks in a mating U-shaped slot in the print cylinder. A number of elastic straps are fastened to the other end of the backing sheet. Each strap has a U-shaped hook that hooks into a mating U-shaped slot in the cylinder. The elastic straps tension the backing sheet tightly against the cylinder. Making the backing sheet with straps is fairly complex and expensive and some time is required to fasten each individual strap in the slot in the cylinder. All of the above means rely on tension to hold the backing sheet tightly against the printing cylinder. However, tension is not always necessary as evidenced by the so-­ called "Magna Graphics" system which uses a backing sheet of ferrous material held to the cylinder by permanent magnets embedded in the cylinder's surface. Thus, both the backing sheets and the cylinder are expensive to make. In addition, any loose ferrous materials around the press are attracted to the cylinder which can damage the ink transfer roll that transfers ink to the printing die. One problem associated with rotary die cutters is that considerable time is required to mount the cutting die on the die cylinder. It should be recognized that a different die is needed for each order of sheets to be die cut because the sheet size and configuration varies from order to order. Sometimes several orders are run in the course of a single shift thus requiring a die change prior to each order. When several minutes are required to change each die, this amounts to many minutes, and sometimes hours, of downtime each day. Rotary die cutting is often done at the same time that the sheets are printed on the adjacent printing apparatus so that the sheets need be fed but once into the printing and die cutting apparatus. Thus, if steps are taken to reduce the amount of set-up time needed to change the printing dies, then a means of rapidly mounting die cutting dies is especially needed to reduce the total set-up time. Die cutting dies include steel rules having serrated cutting edges permanently mounted in a curved plywood blanket that is mounted on the die cylinder. An example of such die rules and blanket is shown in U.S. Patent Re. 26,192 which shows a small hand-hole die mounted on a small plywood blanket. However, for larger die cuts to, for example, cut out a complete sheet which is more common, the die may completely cover the die cylinder from end to end and its entire circumference. In this event, the plywood blankets are made the length of the die cylinder and one-half its circumference to permit two halves to be mounted on the cylinder to form a sub­ stantially completely annular die. The plywood blanket is substantially rigid but may warp slightly due to inherent stresses in the wood. Thus, the conventional means of mounting them is to bolt each half onto the die cylinder. The cylinder is provided with pre-­ tapped bolt holes and the blanket is made with bolt clearance holes in alignment with the tapped holes. Drawing down the bolts outward from the center of the blanket overcomes any warp in the die blanket so that it conforms to the curvature of the die cylinder. A great many bolts are required to hold the blanket in place which accounts for the extraordinary amount of time required to mount them. It will be well understood by those skilled in the art that the length of the die blankets will frequently be less than the entire length of the die cylinder and often only a single blanket of one-half or less of the circum­ ference is required to die cut a particular blank. Accordingly, an object of the present invention generally is to provide a rapid mounting means for printing and die cutting dies. A feature by which the above object is achieved is the utilization of subatmospheric pressure, i.e. vacuum, in a die support member to hold the die against the support member in combination with valves which have protruding actuating members actuated by the die itself, whereby the subatmospheric pressure is only applied to the area beneath the die. This has the advantage that the die is held firmly on the support member by vacuum, and the size and shape of the die automatically determines where the vacuum is to be applied. According to the present invention, therefore, there is provided an apparatus for mounting a printing or cutting die and having a member with a surface on which the die is mountable, characterized by: means for connecting an interior portion of said member to a source of vacuum; a plurality of valves associated with said member for selectively applying vacuum to said surface from said interior portion; said valves having depressible actuating members which protrude above said surface when said valves are closed; and those of said actuating members contacted by said die when applied to said surface being depressed thereby to effect application of said vacuum to beneath said die to draw said die against said surface. Grooves for distributing the vacuum beneath the die may be disposed in the support surface or in the die. At least some of these grooves may be parallel and communicate with the valves. Each valve may have a pivotable valve member part of which extends above the support surface when the valve is closed, this part comprising the actuating member of the respective valve. Preferably, however, each valve has a valve member movable through and resiliently urged towards a valve seat, an upper part of each valve member extending above the support surface when that valve member engages its valve seat to close the valve, said upper part comprising the actuating member of the respective valve. The valve seat preferably comprises a knife edge, and the valve member preferably has a frustoconical land which engages the valve seat when the valve is closed. When the die is a printing die said member is preferably a rotatable cylinder. Grooves may advantageously be disposed in the surface of the cylinder and extend transversely to and be spaced apart along an axial direction of the cylinder. A stop bar may be recessed in the cylinder surface, extend in said axial direction, and traverse said grooves to form closed beginnings of the grooves. The valves communicate with said grooves. When the die is a cutting die grooves may be formed in an underside of the cutting die, and a seal may be disposed adjacent an outer periphery of the cutting die for sealing between the cutting die and the support surface to prevent leakage of the vacuum applied beneath said die. A plurality of passages are preferably disposed between the interior portion and the support surface of the support member. The valves may be disposed to control communication between these passages and the support surface. According to another aspect of the present invention there is provided a printing die for use with or in combination with the above apparatus and characterized by a flexible body portion having a leading edge and a trailing edge; a strip of highly flexible and pliable sheet material connected to said body portion and forming a fringe extending from said trailing edge; said sheet material having a thickness less than that of said body portion; and said fringe being readily deformable by vacuum into vacuum distribution grooves disposed in said surface when said printing die is mounted on said surface and held in position by vacuum, said fringe sealing such grooves adjacent said trailing edge. Preferably, the sheet material of the fringe is also resiliently deformable, and may be significantly thinner than the material of the body portion of the printing plate. Advantageously, a magnetic strip may be connected to the body portion adjacent the trailing edge thereof to facilitate initial mounting of the printing plate on the cylinder and also to help retain the printing plate on the cylinder when the vacuum is not being applied. Other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become more fully apparent from the following detailed description of the preferred embodiments, the appended claims and the accompanying drawings. In the accompanying drawings: FIG. 1 is a front elevation in partial cross-section showing a printing cylinder according to the invention with laterally spaced annular recesses and grooves for applying subatmos­ pheric pressure, to a printing die placed on the cylinder, from a suction means connected to the end of the cylinder; FIG. 2 is a front elevation of the printing die mounting surface of the printing cylinder of Fig. 1 rotated 90 degrees from that shown in Fig. 1; FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of the cylinder of Fig. 2 taken along the line III-III of Fig. 2; FIG. 4 is an enlarged plan view of a portion of the stop bar and valves on the printing cylinder shown in Fig.1; FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view of the stop bar and valves of Fig. 4 taken along the line V-V thereof and showing a valve blocking the flow of subatmospheric pressure from within the cylinder; FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view similar to that of Fig. 5 showing the valve opened by mounting of the printing die to direct subatmospheric pressure into the grooves; FIG. 7 is an enlarged plan view of a portion of the auxiliary gate bar on the printing cylinder shown in Fig. 2; FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view of the auxiliary gate bar of Fig. 7 taken along the line VIII-­ VIII thereof and showing the mounting of the auxiliary gate bar; FIG. 9 is an enlarged sectional view similar to Fig. 8 showing the use of a groove damper to prevent escape of subatmospheric pressure from the grooves at the trailing end of a printing die; FIG. 10 is an isometric illustration showing the use of a flexible groove damper according to the invention to prevent the escape of subatmos­ pheric pressure from the grooves at the trailing end of the printing die; FIG. 11 is a perspective view of another embodiment of a printing die according to the invention; FIG. 12 is a section on the line 12-12 of Fig. 11; FIG. 13 is a section on the line 13-13 of Fig. 14 of a suction valve according to the invention; FIG. 14 is a top plan view of the valve of Fig. 13 FIG. 15 is a bottom plan view of the valve of Figs. 13 and 14; FIG. 16 is a partial view of the upper portion of the valve of Fig. 13, but in an open position; FIG. 17 is a fragmentary elevational view showing a modification of the printing cylinder of Figs. 1, 2 and 3 and incorporating the valve of Figs. 13 to 16; FIG. 18 is an enlarged sectional view similar to Fig. 6 showing the arrangement of the invention for a die cutting cylinder; FIG. 19 is an enlarged sectional view similar to Fig. 18 showing the trailing end of one half of the cutting die on the die cutting cylinder butting against the other half of the cutting die; FIG. 20 is a side view schematically illustrating a die holder of a flat bed die cutter modified for holding a cutting die by subatmospheric pressure according to the present invention; and FIG. 21 is an enlarged sectional view of the die holder of Fig. 20 taken along the line XXI-XXI of Fig. 20. The preferred embodiment of the invention is illustrated in Figs. 11 to 17. This is a modification of the embodiment of the invention illustrated in Figs. 1 to 8 which will be described first, followed by the modifications shown in Figs. 9 and 10. Thereafter the preferred embodiment will be described followed by embodiments of the invention illustrated in Figs. 18 to 21. As used herein the term "die" is generic for printing die or cutting die, and printing plate means the same as printing die. Referring now to Fig. 1, a printing cylinder, generally denoted by numeral 10, is journaled for driven rotation between a pair of stationary support members 12 and 14 by means of journals 16 and 18 supported in roller bearings 20 and 22 themselves retained in support members 12 and 14 by bearing retainers 24. Printing cylinder 10 is rotated in the conventional manner by a gear (not shown) secured to the end of journal 18 that is itself driven by other gears (not shown) in the gear train of the machine. Printing cylinder 10 has a hollow interior 26 sealed to atmosphere but connected to a suction means 28 which creates subatmospheric pressure, i.e. a vacuum, in the interior 26. Suction or vacuum means 28 may be, for example, a model VFC 503A-7W ring compressor (blower) made by the Fuji Electric Corp. of America and available from Virginia Fluid Power, 8412 Sanford Drive, Richmond, Va. 23230. The suction means 28 is supported on a bracket 29 mounted to the support 12. Journal 16 includes an air passage 30 in communication with the interior 26 of cylinder 10. A ring seal 32 surrounds a necked-down portion 34 of journal 16 and is encased within a seal holder 36 secured to the support means 12. A flexible hollow tube 38 connects a chamber 40 of seal holder 36 to an intake manifold 42 of the suction means 28. The seal mounting arrangement permits the cylinder 10 to rotate while providing a substantially air-­ tight connection between the suction means 28 and cylinder 10. Thus, upon operation of suction means 28, air is withdrawn from within the hollow interior 26 of cylinder and discharged to atmosphere through an exhaust manifold 44 of suction means 28 thereby creating subatmospheric pressure within the hollow interior 26 of cylinder 10. Still referring to Fig. 1, cylinder 10 includes an annular die mounting surface 46, for holding a printing die in the form of a flexible printing plate 48 (shown schematically by phantom lines in Fig. 3 and spaced away from the surface 46 for clarity), the mounting surface 46 extending from one end of the cylinder to the other. Suction means for holding the die or printing plate 48 onto the surface 46 includes a number of laterally spaced annular grooves 50 formed in the surface 46 in communication with adjoining recesses 56 (see Fig. 5). A hole 52 in the cylinder 46 beneath each recess 56 connects each recess to the hollow interior 26 thereby directing subatmospheric pressure into each groove 50. Since subatmospheric pressure is directed into each groove 50, it can be seen that, if there is to be no leakage of atmosphere between the die 48 and the die mounting surface 46, the die 48 must cover the entire cylinder completely around its circumference and from end to end. However, printing dies with printing areas as large as the complete die mounting surface 46 are seldom required. Although a backing sheet portion 49 of the die 48 can be as large as the mounting surface 46 with smaller printing areas thereon, such arrangement is not desirable. Instead, it is preferable to have the backing sheet only slightly larger than the printing areas of the die such as indicated schematically in Fig. 3. Accordingly, the invention preferably includes a selectively operable adjustment means on the cylinder 10 for directing the subatmospheric pressure to only that portion of the die mounting surface 46 beneath the printing die 48 when the die is placed on the cylinder. Such adjustment means includes lateral adjustment means for controlling the width in increments along the cylinder to which subatmospheric pressure is applied and annular adjustment means for controlling the circumferential length in increments around the cylinder to which subatmospheric pressure is applied. The lateral adjustment means includes a pivotable valve 54 (as shown in detail in Figs. 4-6) recessed in the recess 56 formed in alignment with each groove 50. Each recess 56 may be formed in the cylinder 46 but is preferably formed as a notch 56 in a stop bar 62 to be described. The valve 54 is loosely pivoted about a pin 58 pressed in a groove 60 (see Fig. 4) in the bottom of the laterally extending stop bar 62 recessed in the die mounting surface 46. When a printing die 48 is not in place over the valve 54, the subatmospheric pressure in hole 52 causes valve 54 to pivot counterclockwise as viewed in Fig. 5 and thereby close the hole 52, and keep it closed, to subatmospheric pressure within the hollow interior 26. Thus, without a printing die in place, all the holes 52 are closed and no subatmospheric pressure is present in grooves 50. A conventional vacuum relief valve (not shown) is preferably connected to the intake manifold 42 so that when all the holes 52 are closed by either the valves 54 or by being covered by a die 48, atmosphere will be drawn through the relief valve and into the suction means 28 to prevent overheating of the suction means. The relief valve is pre-set to the pressure desired to hold the die 48 to the die mounting surface 46. As shown in Fig. 6, when a printing die 48 is placed over the valves 54, the die automatically pivots the valves 54 clockwise that are beneath the die, thereby opening the holes 52 to apply subatmospheric pressure to the grooves 50 that are beneath the die and which then hold the die firmly against the die mounting surface 46. As shown in Fig. 2, the width of the backing sheet portion 49 of the die (shown in phantom lines for clarity) is made such that its lateral edges cover the grooves 50 at the edges of the sheet. In this way, the subatmospheric pressure is limited to those grooves 50 that are beneath the die 48. The incremental width of the backing sheet 49 is deter­ mined by the printing areas of the die and the spacing between the grooves 50. The annular adjustment means includes a first stop bar 62 recessed in the die mounting surface 46 and extending transverse to the direction of the grooves 50, as shown generally in Fig. 1 and in greater detail in Figs. 4-6. It is held in place by screws 63 extending through the bar and threaded into surface 46 (see Fig. 1). Stop bar 62 serves to form a leading end 64 and a trailing end 66 in each of the grooves 50 (see Fig. 5). Although not essential, the bar 62 preferably includes an upstanding portion 68 that functions as a stop for the leading end of the die 48 when it is first placed on the die mounting surface 46. This permits the die 48 to be placed squarely on the die mounting surface 46 and also assures registration of the die in the circumferential direction as will be readily understood by those skilled in the art. A second gate bar 70 is placed at 180 degrees from the first stop bar 62 to conform to industry practice as to circumferential location (see Fig. 3). As shown in Figs 2, 7 and 8, the second bar 70 also extends transverse to the direction of grooves 50. Bar 70 serves to form another trailing end stop 72 in the grooves 50 so that a shorter die 48 may be used when the printing surface of the die does not extend completely around the cylinder 10. The second bar 70 is recessed in groove 74 in the die mounting surface 46 as best shown in Figs. 7 and 8. It is held in place by several retaining plates 76 spaced across the width of the surface 46 (see also Fig. 2). The retaining plates 76 are recessed in slots 78 and held in place by screws 80 threaded into the die mounting surface 46. The top of the bar 70 is flush with the die mounting surface 46 except for notches 82 between the grooves 50 as best shown in Fig. 7. The notches 82 also pass beneath the retaining plates 76 which are secured in the recesses 78 so as to hold the bar 70 snugly in groove 74 but still permit it to slide laterally in the groove 74. Thus, in the position shown in Fig. 7, the bar 70 blocks the grooves 50 and forms the trailing end stop 72. In this way, the subatmospheric pressure extends in grooves 50 from the leading end stop 64 at the first bar 62 to the trailing end stop 72 and, in conjunction with the valves 54, limits the application of the subatmospheric pressure in grooves 50 to only the area beneath the backing sheet. Thus, the backing sheet need only extend from just over the first bar 62 to just over the second bar 70 as shown schematically in Fig. 3. However, when it is desired to use a full wrap die (substantially 360 degrees circumferential length), the bar 70 is merely pushed laterally (upward as viewed in Fig. 7) by hand until the notches 82 in bar 70 are aligned with grooves 50 in the die mounting surface 46. This permits the subatmospheric pressure to continue in grooves 50 to the trailing end stop 66 thereby accommodating a full wrap die. In this manner, there is provided a selectively operable adjustment means to direct the subatmospheric pressure to only that portion of the printing die mounting surface that is beneath the die 48. Again, to conform to industry practice, another bar 84 is provided at about 270 degrees from the first stop bar 62 in the counterclockwise direction as viewed in Fig. 3. Bar 84 is in all respects like bar 70, including its installation in die mounting surface 46; thus, no further description is required. Bar 84 permits the use of a printing die whose circumferential length is approximately three-fourths of the circumference of cylinder 10. Although not essential, the first stop bar 62 may include a U-shaped slot 86, as best shown in Figs. 5 and 6, to accommodate a mating U-Shaped strip 88 on the leading edge of the backing sheet. The strip 88 may be of the type used with the Matthews system previously described. It is stapled and/or glued to the backing sheet and, when inserted in the slot 86, provides a firm anchor for the leading edge of the backing sheet. This is helpful, especially when full wrap dies are used, because of limited accessibility to the print cylinder in letter presses. Thus, the die 48 may be hooked to the first stop bar and the cylinder 10 rotated slowly by electrical means, as will be readily understood by those skilled in the art, so that the operator can hold the trailing end or sides of the die during such rotation and guide it into place on the die mounting surface 46. The size of grooves 50, their lateral spacing, and the magnitude of the subatmospheric pressure are not critical. It has been found, with a nominal 66 inch (1.68 meters) circumference print cylinder 10, that grooves 50 laterally spaced about 2 inches (5.lcm) on center with the sub­ atmospheric pressure at about 27-30 inches (68.6 to 76.2 cm) of water, the die 48 is held firmly on the cylinder at rotations up to 170 R.P.M. with the width of the grooves about .312 inches (7.9 mm) and their depth about .187 inches (4.7 mm). However, the depth of the grooves may be very shallow, of the order of 15 to 20 thousandths of an inch (0.4 to 0.5 mm) deep. There seems to be no point in making them deeper than .187 inches (4.7 mm) since distribution of the subatmospheric pressure is not enhanced by greater depth. If the grooves are wider than about .312 inches(7.9 mm), the backing sheet may belly into the groove, depending on the stiffness of the flexible backing sheet, which is detrimental to the printing operation. An alternative groove damper arrangement is illustrated in Fig. 9. In this, instead of providing the gate bars 70 and 84, short strips of material 71 are secured to the trailing end of each printing die 48, these strips 71 serving as a groove damper to prevent the escape of subatmospheric pressure from the grooves at the trailing end of the die. Fig. 10 illustrates another, and advantageous, groove damper arrangement for sealing the grooves at the trailing end of the die 48. This involves securing to the end of the die a piece of thin, flexible plastic material 73 that will deform, under the influence of the subatmospheric pressure in grooves 50, into the grooves 50 along the trailing edge of the die 48. When this method is used, the grooves 50 are preferably rounded as shown to enable the plastic piece 73 to conform to the shape of the groove. The flexible material 73 may take the form of a thin ( e.g . .020 inches, i.e. 0.5 mm) strip of flexible magnetic material, such as sold commercially by the 3M Company, that will adhere to the ferrous surface 46. The preferred embodiment of the invention illustrated in Figs. 11 to 17 will now be described. This embodiment is similar to the printing plate mounting apparatus previously described with reference to and illustrated in Figs. l to 6 and 10. The printing cylinder 10, its connection to the vacuum source 28, and the manner of automatically applying vacuum only to the surface 46 of the printing cylinder 10 immediately below, and covered by, the printing die or plate 48 are essentially the same. The main improvements in the preferred embodiment relate to the valves for controlling supply of the vacuum to the printing plate and the construction of the trailing end of the printing plate. Fig. 11 illustrates a preferred flexible printing die 200 in its flat orientation before it is applied to and curved around the printing cylinder. The leading end of this printing die is shown having an inturned, U-shaped, hook-­ like portion 202 of the "Dorr" type for hooking into the stop bar 62 (see Fig. 3) of the printing cylinder. However, any other suitable form of leading end could be employed, such as the "Matthews" type shown in Fig. 6. The trailing end of the printing die 200 is provided with a very thin, highly flexible, and stretchable fringe 204, a flexible magnetic strip 206, and an adhesive strip 208 securing the fringe 204 and the magnet 206 to the main body portion 209 of the printing die. A printing block 207, having embossed thereon the matter to be printed, is secured on the main body portion 209. Fig. 12 shows a section on the line 12-12 of Fig. 11 of this trailing end assembly without the remainder of the printing die. The magnetic strip 206 is bonded with a suitable adhesive to a strip of flexible elastomeric material 210 which forms the fringe 204 extending to the rear ( i.e. to the right in Fig. 12) of the magnetic strip 206. The strip 210 also extends a short distance forward ( i.e. to the left in Fig. 12) of the magnetic strip 206. The adhesive strip 208 is applied, adhesive side down, over approximately half its width onto the forward portion of the elastomeric strip 210. The lefthand half of the adhesive strip 208 extends forwardly of the plastic strip 210 with an adhesive layer 212 downwardly exposed for securing to the main body portion of the printing die. Before being applied to the printing die a tearoff protective strip may cover the adhesive layer portion 212. Preferably, the plastic strip 210 is formed from very thin latex sheet material approximately 0.006 inch (0.15 mm) thick which is highly flexible and resiliently stretch­ able in any direction. This enables the fringe 204 to readily deform to the shape of the grooves in the printing cylinder 10 to form a seal thereagainst. Such deformation is illustrated in Fig. 10 with the fringe 73. Preferably, the edges of the grooves 50 at the mounting surface of the printing cylinder are bevelled or otherwise chamfered. Suitable latex material for this fringe is made by The Hygenic Corporation of 1245 Home Avenue, Akron, Ohio 44310 and sold under the designation "Latex Rubber". The magnetic strip 206 is made by the 3M Company of St. Paul, Minnesota 55144 and sold under the designation "Magnetic Tape". Typical dimensions of this assembly in the widthwise direction of Fig. 12 are: adhesive layer 212 one and a quarter inches (3.2 cm); adhesive strip 208 two and a half inches(6.3 cm); magnetic strip 206 one inch (2.5 cm); elastomeric strip 210 two and three quarter inches (7.0 cm) of which the fringe 204 extends one and a quarter inches (3.2 cm) to the right of the magnetic strip 206, and also the elastomeric material 210 extends a quarter inch (0.6 cm) to the left of the magnetic strip 206. The magnetic strip 206 is 0.035 inch (0.89 mm) thick. The magnetic strip 206 enables the trailing end of the printing plate to be readily positioned on the printing cylinder and held in position by magnetic attraction between the magnetic strip and the printing cylinder. The printing cylinder is usually made of steel or other metal having a ferrous content. This is particularly advanta­ geous to retain the printing plate in position if the vacuum source 28 is not drawing a vacuum inside the printing cylinder 10, for example when the printing press is shut down overnight, or possibly during some printing plate changing operations. Figs. 13 to 15 show a preferred valve assembly 216 for mounting in the printing cylinder. Fig. 13 is a longitudinal section of the valve assembly 216 on the line 13-13 of Fig. 14. A movable valve member 218 is resiliently biased by a coil spring 220 upwardly against a knife edge seat 222. The spring 220 is compressed between a shoulder 224 on the lower end of the valve member 218 and a shoulder 226 on a flat partition 228 extending diametrically across the interior of a cylindrical valve housing 230 and secured thereto. A reduced upper portion of the partition extends into a blind bore 232 in the valve member 218 to function as a guide for the latter. The exterior of the valve housing is screw threaded at 234 to enable the valve assembly to be screwed into a corresponding screw threaded hole in the printing cylinder 10. For this purpose the holes 52 in Figs. 3, 4 and 6 may be screwthreaded. The upper end of the valve housing 230 is formed with a flange 236 having a frustoconical lower seating surface 238 and a frusto­ conical inner surface 240 which inclines downwardly and inwardly to the knife edge seat 222. The valve member 218 has a frustoconical land 242 adjacent the top and which seals against the knife edge seat 222. A small actuating stud 244 extends upwardly from the top of the land 242, through the open center of the flange 236, and protrudes a short distance x above the top surface of the flange 236. Preferably, the distance x is of the order of one tenth of an inch (2.5 mm). The top of the stud 244 is dome shaped. When the valve assembly 216 is screwed into the printing cylinder, the upper surface of the flange lies in, or just below, the printing cylinder mounting surface 46 (indicated in broken lines). The flange 236 has two diametrically opposed slots 246 formed therethrough, which when the valve assembly is installed in the printing cylinder communicate with the respective groove 50 in the surface 46 of the printing cylinder. To facilitate this communication, preferably the cylinder surface 46 is countersunk at 247 (shown in Fig. 13 in broken lines) around each screwthreaded hole 52, such countersinking being frustoconical, outwardly and upwardly inclined, and forming an air space around the flange 236 of each valve assembly. Thus, the exact disposition of the slots 246, when the valve assembly 216 is installed, is not important. However, it is possible to omit the counter­ sinking 247 if the slots 246 are caused to align with the respective groove 50 in the cylinder surface 46. Fig. 14 is a top plan view of the valve assembly 216 and shows the diametrically opposed slots 246 through the flange 236, the stud 244, and the frustoconical surface 240 and land 242. Fig. 15 is a bottom plan view of the valve assembly 216 and shows the plate-like partition 228 extending diametrically across the interior of the cylindrical valve housing 230. Fig. 16 is a similar view to the upper portion of Fig. 13, but indicating by arrows 248 the air flow through the valve when open. This occurs when a flexible printing plate, such as printing plate 200 shown in broken lines, is placed on the mounting surface of the printing cylinder so contacting and automatically depressing the stud 244 so that it no longer protrudes above the surface of the printing cylinder. The land 242 is moved downwardly out of contact with the seat 222, and air is drawn by the vacuum inside the printing cylinder from the associated cylinder groove 50, through the slots 246, past the seat 222, and through the interior of the housing 23O into the interior of the printing cylinder via the hole 52 in which the valve is mounted. When the printing plate 200 is removed, the spring 220 closes the valve again. As previously explained with the embodiment of Figs l to 6 and 10, any valves not covered by a printing plate, when positioned on the printing cylinder, will remain closed; in this instance these valves will be closed by the springs 220, and not by the vacuum in the printing cylinder. The knife edge seat 222, in conjunction with the frustoconical land 242, also function to minimize the risk of paper fragments, and other debris associated with paper and cardboard sheets or cartons being printed, from collecting in and clogging the valve or otherwise adversely affecting its functioning. The knife edge seat 222 and the frustoconical land 242 provide a self clearing arrangement, with any such debris being swept away by the air flow. Fig. 17 shows a partial elevational view of a modification of the printing cylinder of Fig. 1. A valve assembly 216, as shown in Figs. 13 to 16, is screwthreaded into each hole 52 (Fig. 6), these valve assemblies extending in a line axially across the printing cylinder adjacent the trailing side of the stop bar 62. The slots 246 in each valve assembly are randomly disposed and communicate, via the appropriate countersinking 247, with the circum­ ferential groove 50 in which the valve assembly is located. Due to these slots 246, the previously described recesses 56 may be retained if desired; however, such recesses 56 are preferably now more simply formed as the countersunk frustoconical seats receiving the flanges 236 with an air space therearound the latter arrangement being illustrated in Fig. 17. The circumferential grooves 50 may be separate annular grooves perpendicular to the rotational axis of the printing cylinder. However, as shown in Fig. 17, the grooves 50 are formed as one continuous helical groove which is interrupted and divided into separate grooves 50 only by the stop bar 62. Such a helical groove gives manufacturing advantages over machining a plurality of parallel annular grooves. With this helical groove arrangement, when the printing plate is positioned, one of the helical sections communicating with an opened valve 216 may extend from under the right hand side edge (as viewed in Fig. 10 or 17) of the printing plate;this would provide leakage of the vacuum being drawn in that groove. However, such leakage associated with one such side extending groove has not been found to have any adverse effect. Should it be desired to prevent such leakage, then this could be accomplished by temporarily plugging that groove where it exits the side of the printing plate, or by forming a side fringe along all or a part of that side of the printing plate the side fringe being similar to the trailing fringes 73 and 204. When the valve arrangement of Fig. 17 is used with the printing plate of Figs. 10 or 11, the gate bars 70, 84 (see Fig. 3) serve no function and may be omitted if desired. Typical dimensions employed for the grooves 50 of Fig. 17 are width one quarter of an inch (6.3 mm), depth one eighth of an inch (3.2 mm), with the plurality of helical grooves at two inch (5.1 cm) axial spacing between centers. As will be appreciated, the invention is applied a little differently for mounting a die cutting die to the cutting die cylinder. As well understood by those skilled in the art, the cutting rules are mounted to a rigid curved plywood die board (die blanket) which is mounted to the die cylinder. The die blanket includes narrow slots in which the rules are placed in the configuration of the size and shape that the sheet of paperboard is to be cut. The rules extend completely through the thickness of the die blanket so that their bottom edges are supported on the underlying steel die cylinder. Such support is desirable since considerable force is exerted on the rules as they penetrate through the sheet and into an adjacent anvil cylinder covered with a so-called "soft" cover of urethane or similar material. The rules may be formed into many different shapes such that some of the rules would cross any grooves in the cylinder while others might extend annularly and possibly lie directly over a groove. In this event, there would be no support for the rule. Accordingly, instead of having the annular vacuum grooves in the cylinder as previously described, these "grooves" are formed in the plywood die blanket. Thus, they may be placed in each individual blanket in a position such that a cutting rule will not extend through them. This is best illustrated in Figs. 18 and 19 which show a portion of a die cylinder 100 upon which a cutting die generally denoted by numeral 102 is mounted. The die 102 includes a wooden die blanket 104 in which cutting rules 106 are secured in the conventional manner In most respects, the suction means is the same as that shown in Figs. 4 to 6 and are denoted by the same reference numerals with whatever differences there are to be explained. Thus, the cylinder 100 includes a longitudinally extending axial recess 55 in which the notched bar 62 is secured. The upstanding portion 68 may be omitted, if desired, as shown in Fig. 18. Pivotable valves 54 are retained by pins 58 and operate as previously described to let subatmospheric pressure into the recesses 56 through the holes 52. Preferably, the bar 62 is notched, as previously described, to form recesses 56 although it does not include a hook portion 86 such as described for the printing die. However, instead of grooves 50 (Fig. 5) being formed in the cylinder 100, annular grooves 108 are formed in the die blanket 104 as shown in Fig. 18. Since these grooves must be spaced laterally to miss the cutting rules 106, which themselves may be in longitudinal alignment with the recesses 56, a longitudinally extending groove is formed in blanket 104. Groove 110 extends across the recesses 56 that are beneath the blanket 104 but terminates short of the edges of the blanket so that the groove 110 is not vented to atmosphere; similarly, the grooves 108 terminate short of the leading and trailing edges of the blanket for the same purpose. The longitudinal or lateral groove 110 serves to connect all the annular grooves 108 so that subatmospheric pressure is confined to only the area beneath the blanket 104. Groove 110 need not be a continuous groove so long as its longitudinal segments overlie a recess 56, it being understood that various segments may have to be shifted circumferentially to miss a longitudinally extending cutting rule. The only requirement is that it connect all the grooves 108 that themselves do not overlie a recess 56. Since the die 102 is substantially rigid and quite heavy in relation to the weight of a printing die, it could be damaged by loss of subatmospheric pressure during operation. Accordingly, a holddown bolt 112 may be used in each corner of the die to retain the die on the cylinder in the event of a loss of vacuum. The bolts 112 may be threaded in the cylinder 100 as shown in Fig. 19. A series of threaded holes 116 may be spaced across the cylinder 100 to accommodate dies of different widths. Fig. 18 shows a full wrap die 102; that is, one that extends substantially completely around the cylinder 100. However, since the die is rigid, it must be made in two halves to permit its being mounted on the cylinder. Fig. 19 shows where the two halves meet half way around the cylinder with the corners bolted directly into threaded holes 116 in the cylinder 100. It should be understood that if the die 102 is only a half-wrap die (that is, it only extends half way around the cylinder 100), then the groove 108 will terminate short of the trailing edge of the die 102 as denoted by the dotted line 118. Otherwise, the groove 108 continues uninterrupted in both halves of the die as shown. Since the die blanket 104 is conventionally made of substantially rigid curved plywood, it may not fit perfectly against the surface of the cylinder 100 when first placed upon it. Thus, subatmospheric pressure in the grooves 108 may leak past the edges of the blanket 104 when first applied so that the blanket will not be drawn tightly against the cylinder. It is therefore desirable to place a seal 121 in a groove 123 formed around the periphery of the blanket 104 as shown in Fig. 18. The seal may be in the form of a ribbon of deformable rubber or plastic material that completely fills the peripheral length of groove 123. In its free state, the cylinder contacting face of the seal should extend beyond the bottom surface of the blanket from about .032 to .250 inches (0.8 to 6.3 mm), preferably about .125 inches (3.2 mm). Thus, when the blanket 104 is first placed on the cylinder, the first contact will be made by the seal. Then, when subatmospheric pressure is applied, it will not leak beyond the edges of the blanket which will be drawn into tight contact with the surface of cylinder 100. In doing so, the seal 121 will be deformed into groove 123 and coplanar with the underside of the blanket as shown in Fig. 18. In the event there should be any leakage through the grooves in which the cutting rules 106 are seated, the underside of the blanket 104 may be covered with a sealing material such as a coat of urethane paint. The principles of the invention may also be applied to flat bed or platen type die cutters such as schematically illustrated in Figs. 20 and 21. Such die cutters include a platen 120 upon which a blank 122 to be die cut is placed either manually or automatically. It also has a cutting die generally denoted by numeral 124 consisting of a number of cutting and creasing rules 126 mounted to a die board 128 in much the same manner as the rules previously described for a rotary die cutter. The main difference is that the rules usually have straight rather than serrated cutting edges which penetrate through the blank 122 and against the steel platen 120. The die board 128 is mounted to a support frame 130 which is arranged to pivot about a hinge 132 to bring the die 124 against the platen 120 as denoted by arrow 132 in Fig. 21. When the support frame 130 is pivoted, the cutting rules 126 die cut the blank 122 which is then removed from the machine after the frame 130 is returned to its upright position. The invention is applied to the platen type die cutter of Figs. 20 and 21 by modifying the support frame 130 in much the same manner as the die drum 100 of Fig. 18. More specifically, recesses 134 are formed in the support 130 and spaced across its width as shown in Fig. 20 (the die 124 has been omitted from Fig. 20 for clarity). A hole 136 extends from the bottom of each recess to the back of the support 130. A manifold 138 covers all of the holes 136 on the back of support 130 as shown in Fig. 21 and defines an interior portion of the support member 130. Flexible hose 140 connected to manifold 138 supplies subatmospheric pressure to all the holes 136. The suction keeps the pivotable valves 142 in the position shown in Fig. 21, except for those that are beneath a die board 128 placed on the support 130 in which event the pivotable valves 142 will pivot to a flat position beneath the die board such as shown in Fig. 18. The flexible hose 140 permits the continuous application of vacuum to the recesses 134 as the support frame 130 pivots towards the platen 120. A groove 144 connects all the recesses 134. A block 146 is secured in the groove 144 between each of the recesses 134 by screws 147. Each block itself includes a round groove 148 for pivotally supporting a pin 150 that passes through each pivotable valve 142. This arrangement retains the valves 142 in the recesses 134 while permitting them to pivot therein. The die 124 is made very similar to the curved die 102 shown in Fig. 18. A number of grooves 152 are formed in the back, or underside, of the die board 128 as illustrated in Fig. 21. They are connected by a lateral groove 154 that passes across the recesses 134. Thus, vacuum in the recesses 134 covered by a die board 128 passes to each of the grooves 152 via the lateral groove 154 to hold the die 124 tightly against the support 130. Since the groove 154 and grooves 152 terminate short of the edges of the die board 128, the vacuum is confined to the area beneath the die board 128. Preferably, a peripheral seal may be incorporated in the die board such as was described in connection with the blanket 104 and shown in Fig. 18. A few bolts (not shown) may be used to secure the die board 128 to the support 130 in the event that suction is lost during operation such as described in connection with Figs. 18 and 19. In preferred arrangements, pivotal valves 54 and 142 would be replaced by valve assemblies 216 as shown in, and described in relation to, Figs. 13 to 16. With these the springs 220 normally keep the valves closed, the valves only opening when the respective studs 244 are contacted and depressed by the die 102 or 124. In operation of the various above embodiments of the printing plate mounting apparatus, the compressor 28 is turned on to apply subatmospheric pressure to the interior 26 of cylinder 10. A printing plate is selected for use; it can be a full-wrap plate extending from U-shaped hook 86 to the upstanding portion 68 of bar 62 (counter-­ clockwise as viewed in Fig. 3), or a shorter one extending to bar 84 or still shorter, extending to bar 70 as previously explained. If a full-wrap plate is used, the bars 70 and 84 are pushed up (as viewed in Fig. 7) to place the notches 82 in alignment with the grooves 50 so that subatmospheric pressure can flow from the recesses 56 to the ends of the grooves 50 abutting the stop bar 62. If a three-quarter wrap plate is used, bar 84 is positioned to close off the grooves 50, and if a one-half wrap plate is used the bar 70 is positioned to close off the grooves 50. The U-shaped leading edge of the printing plate 48 is hooked in the U-shaped slot 86. In so doing, the valves 54 or studs 244 beneath the die 48 are contacted and caused to pivot clockwise or be depressed by the pressure of the printing plate thereby opening ports 52 which permits the subatmospheric pressure to be applied to the grooves 50 beneath the die. Of course, when the modified printing plate 200 is used, the bars 70 and 84 are not required, regardless of how long the plate 200 is. The flexible printing plate 48, 200 is guided around the cylinder 10 and held in place on the mounting surface 46 by the subatmoshperic pressure in the portions of the grooves 50 beneath the plate. The printing section of the machine may then be operated in the normal manner. If a printing plate 48 or 200 is used that does not include a U-shaped strip 88 at the leading edge, then the leading edge of the plate is merely placed against the upstanding portion 68 of bar 62 to align the plate on the cylinder. Doing so will also pivot the valves 54 or depress the valve members 218 in the same manner as described above so that installation of the die remains essentially the same. When the printing run is completed, the compressor 28 is turned off which stops the application of subatmospheric pressure and automatically releases the printing plate from the mounting surface 46. The plate 48 is then merely unhooked from the U-shaped slot 86 and the cylinder 10 is ready for the next set-up. With the modified printing plate 200, the magnetic strip 206 should first be lifted off the printing cylinder. The operation of the rotary die cutting die mounting apparatus of Figs. 18 and 19 is similar to that described above in connection with the printing die. Either a full wrap or half wrap cutting die may be used. There are no adjusting bars (similar to bar 70, Fig. 7) to be used. After the cutting die is mounted to the die drum 100 and held in place by the subatmospheric pressure, the bolts 112 may be used to secure the die to the drum should the supply of subatmoshperic pressure fail; if desired, the die may first be secured by the bolts 112 and then the suction applied to hold the undersurface of the die in tight engagement with the drum. Likewise, the flat die 124 of Fig. 21 may be initially secured to the support 130 by a few bolts and then the suction pressure applied to pull the die flatly against the support. The die board 124 depresses and activates only those valves 142 (or 216) that are beneath the die board so that the suction is limited to only those areas beneath the die. If desired, a conventional vacuum pressure switch (not shown) may be connected, for example, to the chamber 40 to detect the loss of subatmospheric pressure which might release the printing plate during operation. The switch can be connected to a stop circuit of the machine to stop it if subatmospheric pressure is lost. It has been found that it takes about 12 seconds for the subatmospheric pressure to bleed down enough to release the die whereas the machine will usually stop in about 6 seconds, giving a factor of 100% for stopping the machine prior to the printing plate being released. Since the printing plate is relatively light and flexible, no damage is likely to occur should it be released in this manner. However, when using the modified printing plate 200, the magnetic strip 206 would tend to retain the plate in position and resist release. It will be appreciated that the above embodiments of the invention provide simple and improved ways of mounting printing and die cutting dies, and require less time for mounting than is required by prior art arrangements. It will also be appreciated that existing flexible printing plates can readily be modified in accordance with the present invention by application of the new trailing end assembly described above. The above described embodiments, of course, are not to be construed as limiting the breadth of the present in­ vention. Modifications, and other alternative con­ structions, will be apparent which are within the scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims.

Claims: 1. Apparatus for mounting a printing or cutting die (48; 102; 124; 200) and having a member (10; 100; 130) with a surface (46) on which the die is mountable, characterized by: means (16; 140) for connecting an interior portion (26; 138) of said member (10; 100; 130) to a source of vacuum; a plurality of valves (54; 142; 216) associated with said member (10; 100; 130) for selectively applying vacuum to said surface (46) from said interior portion (26; 138); said valves having depressable actuating members (54; 142; 244) which protrude above said surface (46) when said valves are closed; and those of said actuating members (54, 142; 244) contacted by said die (48; 102; 124; 200) when applied to said surface (46) being depressed thereby to effect application of said vacuum to beneath said die (48; 102; 124; 200) to draw said die against said surface (46). 2. The apparatus of Claim 1, further including said die (48: 102; 124; 200) and characterized in that grooves (50; 108; 152) for distributing said vacuum beneath said die are disposed in said surface (46) or said die (102; 124). 3. The apparatus of Claim 2, characterized in that at least some of said grooves (50; 108; 52) are parallel and communicate with said valves (54; 142; 216). 4. The apparatus of any preceding claim, characterized in that each valve (54; 142) has a pivotable valve member (54; 142) part of which extends above said surface (46) when the valve is closed, said part comprising the actuating member of the respective valve. 5. The apparatus of any one of Claims 1, 2 or 3, characterized in that each valve (216) has a valve member (218) movable through and resiliently urged towards a valve seat (222), an upper part (244) of each valve member (218) extending above said surface (46) when that valve member engages its valve seat (222) to close the valve, said upper part (244) comprising the actuating member of the respective valve. 6. The apparatus of Claim 5, characterized in that said valve seat (222) is a knife edge, and said valve member (218) has a frustoconical land (242) which engages said valve seat (222) when the valve is closed. 7. The apparatus of Claim 2 and wherein said die is a printing die (48; 200), characterized in that said member (10) is a rotatable cylinder; said grooves (50) are disposed in said surface (46), extend transversely to and are spaced apart along an axial direction of said cylinder (10); a stop bar (62) is recessed in said surface (46), extends in said axial direction, and traverses said grooves (50) to form closed beginnings of said grooves (50); and said valves (54; 216) communicate with said grooves (50). 8. The apparatus of Claim 2, further including said die (48; 102; 124; 200) and wherein said die is a cutting die (102; 124), characterized in that said grooves (108; 152) are formed in an underside of said cutting die (102; 124); and a seal (121) is disposed adjacent an outer periphery of said cutting die for sealing between said cutting die (102; 124) and said surface (46) to prevent leakage of the vacuum applied beneath said die (102; 124). 9. The apparatus of any preceding claims, characterized in that a plurality of passages (52; 136) are disposed between said interior portion (26; 138) and said surface (46), and said valves (54; 142; 216) are disposed to control communication between said passages (52; 136) and said surface (46). 10. A printing die for use with or in combination with the apparatus of Claim 1, characterized by: a flexible body portion (209) having a leading edge and a trailing edge; a strip of highly flexible and pliable sheet material (210) connected to said body portion (209) and forming a fringe (204) extending from said trailing edge; said sheet material(210) having a thickness significantly less than that of said body portion (209); and said fringe (204) being readily deformable by vacuum into vacuum distribution grooves (50) disposed in said surface (46) when said printing die (200) is mounted on said surface (46) and held in position by vacuum, said fringe (204) sealing such grooves adjacent said trailing edge. 11. The printing die of Claim 10, characterized in that: said sheet material (210) is resiliently stretchable; and a strip of magnetic material (206) is connected to said body portion (209) and disposed adjacent said trailing edge.

Inventors: HARRISON, EDWARD H., HARRISON, JOHN R., PARR, DENNIS J., SARDELLA, LOUIS M., WEST, JOHN B.
Applicants: THE WARD MACHINERY COMPANY
Application year: 1986
Main classification: B41F27
IPC codes: B41F27