METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR PROCESSING WEB MATERIAL

Abstract: A web (80) of record medium material is moved in a given direction in a press operation, such as a printing opera­ tion. Upon observing a defect in the web (80) or defective printing, the movement is stopped and then restarted. A prede­ termined time after restarting, a mark (82) is recorded by an ink spray device (32) along an edge of the web (80) at a loca­ tion corresponding to good web material. During a subsequent collating operation, the web (80) is moved in the opposite direction, and in response to the mark (82) being sensed, movement is stopped to allow for a correction operation on the defective web material, after which web movement is restarted to continue with the collating operation.

Description: Technical Field This invention relates to methods of the kind for processing a web of record medium material, including the step of moving said web in a first direction to effect a printing operation thereon. The invention also relates to systems of the kind for processing a web of record medium material, including means for moving said web in a first direction to effect a printing operation thereon. Background Art In the paper industry, it is well-known that large diameter rolls of paper are processed to provide the numerous types, styles, formats, etc. of paper media that are used in the business world. From the paper manufacturing industry to the retail supplier of the paper media, there are instances wherein defects occur in the product so as to cause wasted material and/or operations or require replacement of defective goods. In the business forms printing industry, these large diameter rolls of paper are processed to provide various types of business forms for customers to be used in their businesses. For example, one area of application in such business forms printing industry involves the use of a rotary web fed printing press and a rotary web fed collator in a process line. In a press operation, a roll of paper web is placed in position on a cradle at one end of the process line and the paper is unwound from the roll for use in one or more operations, such as printing, coating, imaging or other like operations on the paper. The paper is then rewound at the other end of the process line in either a face in or a face out manner depending upon the process and procedure employed or required in the operation. In a subsequent collating operation, the rewound web is unwound at a collating location where further operations such as slitting, unit forming etc., take place, with the web material moving in the opposite direction to the press operation movement. During the above operations, defects may occur, such as a hole in the paper, a tear in the paper, a number of holes at a certain location in the paper, defective print quality, or an uneven web splice in the paper. Such defects may give rise to unsatisfactory products. From DE-A-1 588 776 there is known apparatus wherein a paper web is unwound from a supply roller and fed to newspaper printing apparatus rollers. When the web is almost completely utilized a web from a further supply roller is glued to the remaining portion of the first web, thereby forming a double thickness web portion. The beginning and end of the double thickness web portion are sensed by a first detector device and a second detector device respectively, the outputs of the detector devices being fed via a filter to a delay device which provides a delay dependent on the paper web speed as sensed by a transducer which generates a pulse train which is applied to the delay device. The output of the delay device controls the operation of an inking mechanism which applies an ink mark to the double thickness web portion to indicate its unsuitability for further processing. Disclosure of the Invention It is an object of the present invention to provide a method and system of the kind specified which avoids the production of unsatisfactory products in a simple and effective manner. Therefore, according to one aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method for processing a web of record medium material, including the step of moving said web in a first direction to effect a printing operation thereon, characterized by the steps of: stopping said web upon observing a defect therein, restarting movement of said web in said first direction, operating a marking device after a first predetermined time interval from said restarting to provide a mark on said web at a location corresponding to good printed web quality, said marking device being operated for a second predetermined time interval to provide said mark, operating counting means after said first predetermined time interval to count the number of print impressions effected on said web, continuing with said printing operation, moving said web in a second direction, opposite to said first direction, to effect a collating operation thereon, sensing the moving web, stopping said web in response to sensing said mark to allow for a correction operation with respect to defective printed web quality, and restarting movement of said web in said second direction to continue said collating operation. According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a system for processing a web of record medium material, including means for moving said web in a first direction to effect a printing operation thereon, characterized by: means for stopping said web upon observing a defect, means for restarting movement of said web, timing means operable in response to the restarting of the movement of said web to initiate a first predetermined time interval at the termination of which marking means is operated for a second predetermined time interval to provide a mark on said web at a location corresponding to good printed web quality counting means operative after said first predetermined time interval to count the member of print impressions on said web, means for moving said web in a second direction, opposite to said first direction, to effect a collating operation thereon, sensing means for sensing said moving web, control means adapted, in response to said sensing means sensing said mark, to stop movement of said web to allow for a correction operation with respect to defective printed web quality, and restart means adapted to restart movement of said web in said second direction. An additional advantage of the invention is that the automatic marking of good regions of web material following defective regions avoids the possibility of the waste of web material which could arise if such marking were effected by manual means, since an operator could allow excess good material to pass before applying a manual markeT such as a strip of paper extending from the wound roll. Furthermore such manual operation could involve physical danger to the operator. Brief Description of the Drawing One embodiment of the present invention will now be described by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawings in which: Fig. 1 is a schematic diagram of the circuitry for applying marking on a web of paper; Fig. 2 is a diagrammatic representation of the web of paper along with a schematic diagram of the circuitry used for sensing the marking on the web; and Fig. 3 is a diagrammatic representation of the parts used in the application of the marking on the paper web. Best Mode for Carrying Out the Invention Referring now to the drawing, Fig. 1 is a schematic wiring diagram of the circuitry for connecting certain devices used in a web press application or operation wherein a roll of paper or like record media is placed in position at one end of a process line. The paper is unwound from the roll for the accomplishment of certain operations which may include printing on the paper, coating on one or both sides of the paper, or imaging or like recording of information or data on the paper. If during the unwinding of the paper from the roll in the press operation, a defect in the paper or in the printing, coating or recording is discovered, it is necessary that the process line be stopped, and the defect be corrected so as to provide a quality product for the customer. Of course, it may be discretionary with the operator in the case of minor defects as to whether the process line is stopped. In such case the problem may be corrected at a later time or during a later operation. The circuitry for the press operation includes a pair of time delay relays, as 20 and 22. The time delay relay 20 is connected by wiring 24 to a programmable electronic counter 26 having memory retention, and the time delay relay 22 is connected by wiring 28 to a solenoid coil 30 of an air brush spray head 32. The time delay relays 20 and 22 are manually set to time out after respective predetermined and appropriate times. Wiring 34 provides a 110 volt AC supply to the coil 36 of the relay 22 and wiring 38 provides a 110 volt AC supply to the coil 40 of the relay 20. The time delay relay 20 includes a pair of normally open contacts 42 and 44 and the time delay relay 22 includes a set of normally open contacts 46. A cam actuated, single pole, microswitch 48 is provided in the wiring 24 connecting the electronic counter 26 and the time delay relay 20. The switch 48 operates as an input device which is used to measure impression count for the counter 26. A push button type switch 50 is connected to the wiring connecting one contact of the coil 36 of the time delay relay 22 and one contact of the set 46 of normally open contacts of the relay 22 to provide a test switch for the air brush spray head 32. The circuitry for the collator operation is shown in Fig. 2 and includes an illuminated push button 52 having an indicator lamp 54 and a set of normally closed contacts 56. The circuitry also includes a three pole double throw relay 58 having a coil 60 and a pair of normally open contacts 62 and 64 and a set of normally closed contacts 66. A single pole toggle switch 68 is provided in wiring 70 of a collator stop circuit and is used as a bypass switch. A beam type scanner 72 is connected to wiring 74 that includes a 15 volt DC supply and a connection to one side of the coil 60 of the relay 58 at pin A. The plus side of the 15 volt DC supply is connected to the other side of the coil 60 at pin B and the minus side of the 15 volt DC supply is connected to one terminal of the normally closed contacts 56 in the push button operator 52. The scanner 72 is positioned to project a beam at a spot location 76 on the marginal portion 78 of a web of paper 80. The spot location is focused on and aligned with a line 82 of ink spray that is applied by spray head 32 at the press operation. The time delay relays 20 and 22 are on-delay type and are set to time out in an arrangement based on the fastest operating collator in a particular facility. A preferred nominal setting for the time delay relay 20 is 30 to 50 seconds, and a nominal setting for the time delay relay 22 is 1 to 2 seconds. In the press operation, a start-to-run switch or button is actuated and 110 volts is applied through wiring 38 to the coil 40 of time delay relay 20. The relay 20 starts timing out for the period of 30 to 50 seconds to allow for cleaning the printing plate (plate clean-up) so as to ensure satisfactory print quality on the web 80 of paper. The 30 to 50 seconds is a predetermined time duration to allow for such plate clean-up and to allow for a predetermined number of satisfactory print impressions, based upon the fastest operating collator, as mentioned above. At the end of the 30 to 50 seconds, the contacts 42 and the contacts 44 both close. The closing of contacts 42 enables operation of the counter 26 through operation of the cam actuated switch 48. The switch 48 is actuated by suitable means (not shown) associated with each impression of the press operation. Therefore, the counter is operated in response to and counts the number of impressions. An impression is determined by the size of the printing plate and may be a preferred length of about 560 mm (22 inches) along the length of the web 80. The closing of contacts 44 of relay 20 starts the timing of the time delay relay 22. Thus, the operation of the time delay relay 22 starts at the instant of or simultaneously with the timing out of the time delay relay 20. During this portion of the operation, the press is providing or passing good material. At the end of the 30 to 50 seconds, the relay 20 times out and contacts 46 of relay 22 close to operate the air brush spray head 32 for a period of 1 to 2 seconds to apply a mark 82 along the edge of the web 80. The relay 22 operates on the one shot principle in a cycle of operation. It is during the press operation that the counter 26 is counting impressions of the printing plate corresponding to repeated lengths of material. Therefore, the counter 26 is used to meter the number of impressions made in the press operation and which count information is important to the collator operation. It is, of course, understood that suitable start and stop means is provided for starting and stopping the web of paper in the process lines. In the operation of the present invention, when the press operator observes a defect in the material or the print quality of the web of paper 80 as it is being unwound from the roll, or a defect in a process operation that requires attention and needs to be corrected, the operator stops the press, determines the extent of the defect, and corrects the problem if feasible to do so at that time. The operator then restarts the press and after a predetermined amount of time has elapsed, as determined by the timing out of the respective time delay relays 20 and 22 (Fig. 1), an ink spray mark, as 82 (Figs. 2 and 3), is applied to the marginal portion 78 of the web 80. The ink spray mark 82 is provided to indicate the location of the defect in the web 80 and to specifically indicate the point in the web 80 at which good material is present. In effect, the mark 82 is applied after the end of the defect and at the start of good material in the web 80. The timing out of the time delay relay 22 sets the predetermined time that the ink spray mark 82 is applied to the moving web 80. The 1 to 2 second timing out of the relay 22 provides a momentary or one shot operation for marking the web 80. In a subsequent collating operation, in a reverse direction of movement of the web 80, the scanner 72 detects the ink spray mark 82 along the marginal edge 78 of the web of paper 80 (Fig. 2). The pair of normally open contacts 62 and 64 of the three pole relay 58 are closed and the set of normally closed contacts 66 of the relay 58 are opened to effect stopping the collating machine. The closing of contacts 62 allows the indicator lamp 54 to be illuminated. When the defect is corrected or the defective material is deleted or removed, the collator operator restarts the machine to continue the operation. More specifically, when the scanner 72 sees the mark 82 on the web 80, the coil 60 of the three pole relay 58 is energized, the set of contacts 62 operate to illuminate the lamp 54, and the set of contacts 64 hold the relay closed. The set of contacts 66 open to stop the collating machine. When the push button 52 is operated, the set of contacts 56 open to release the relay 58 and the lamp 54 goes out, and the stop circuit set of contacts 66 close to allow restarting the collating machine at the next cycle of operation. The various devices used in the practice of the present invention include the programmable electronic counter 26 with memory retention, Durant Model No. 5882, and supplied by Eaton Corporation, Cleveland, Ohio. The counter is a single preset type with five digit control and is capable of counting up or down. In a preferred arrangement, the counter 26 is used to count down. The counter 26 is used as a predetermined batch counter to establish the roll size of paper that is going to the collator. The counter starts counting after the time that good material is going to the collator. The counter functions used are count down, reset to preset, single pull double throw relay outputs, relay time out operation, and automatic recycle to preset. The time delay relay 20 is a delay-on-make timing relay having a 0.06 to 160 second adjustable range, double pole, double throw outputs and supplied as AR2 series by Syrelec, Dallas, Texas. The time delay relay 22 is a single shot with single pole, double throw output and supplied as BR series by Syrelec. The air brush spray head 32 is No. A-AUDR-000 and supplied by Paasche Air Brush Co., Harwood Heights, Illinois. A one gallon plastic container for the marking ink is supplied by Paasche and the marking ink is No. 16101-K16 black ink supplied by Sanford Corporation, Bellwood, Illinois. Fig. 3 is a diagrammatic representation of the parts used in applying the line 82 of ink spray on the marginal portion 78 of the paper web 80. The one gallon plastic container 84 of ink is connected with a line 86 to an ink manifold 88, in turn connected by means of a line 90 to the spray head 32. An air supply line 92 is connected to a filter 94, to a regulator 96 and air is supplied through a line 98 to an air control valve 100. Air is then supplied through a line 102 to an air manifold 104 and then through a line 106 to the spray head 32. The several devices including the relays 20 and 22 and the counter 26 are contained in a control panel 108. The wiring 28 is connected as shown in Fig. 1. The scanner 72 is a light/dark type sensor having a convergent modulating photo cell and is available as No. SM312CV from Banner Engineering Corporation, Minneapolis, Minnesota. The push button 52 is a push to test/reset device, TW series as supplied by Banner. The relay 58 is a three pole double throw relay, No. RR3PUDC12 supplied by Banner, and an appropriate power supply is No. PS120-15 by Banner.

Claims: 1. A method for processing a web (80) of record medium material, including the step of moving said web (80) in a first direction to effect a printing operation thereon, characterized by the steps of: stopping said web (80) upon observing a defect therein, restarting movement of said web (80) in said first direction, operating a marking device (32) after a first predetermined time interval from said restarting to provide a mark (82) on said web (80) at a location corresponding to good printed web quality, said marking device (32) being operated for a second predetermined time interval to provide said mark (82), operating counting means (26) after said first predetermined time interval to count the number of print impressions effected on said web (80), continuing with said printing operation, moving said web (80) in a second direction, opposite to said first direction, to effect a collating operation thereon, sensing the moving web (80), stopping said web (80) in response to sensing said mark (82) to allow for a correction operation with respect to defective printed web quality, and restarting movement of said web (80) in said second direction to continue said collating operation. 2. A method according to claim 1, characterized in that said marking device (32) includes a spraying device. 3. A method according to claim 2, characterized in that said mark (82) is provided along an edge (78) of said web (80). 4. A method according to claim 3, characterized in that said step of sensing the moving web (80) includes directing a beam towards said edge (78) of said web (80). 5. A system for processing a web (80) of record medium material, including means for moving said web (80) in a first direction to effect a printing operation thereon, comprising : means for stopping said web (80) upon observing a defect, means for restarting movement of said web (80), timing means (20,22) operable in response to the restarting of the movement of said web (80) to initiate a first predetermined time interval at the termination of which marking means (32) is operated for a second predetermined time interval to provide a mark (82) on said web (80) at a location corresponding to good printed web quality, counting means (26) operative after said first predetermined time interval to count the number of print impressions on said web (80), means for moving said web (80) in a second direction, opposite to said first direction, to effect a collating operation thereon, sensing means (72) for sensing said moving web (80), control means (58) adapted, in response to said sensing means (72) sensing said mark (82), to stop movement of said web (80) to allow for a correction operation with respect to defective printed web quality, and restart means (52) adapted to restart movement of said web (80) in said second direction. 6. A system according to claim 5, characterized in that said timing means includes a first time delay relay (20) operable to provide said predetermined time interval, and a second time delay relay (22) operable to control said marking means (32) to provide said mark (82). 7. A system according to claim 6, characterized in that said marking means (32) includes an air brush spray head, adapted to deposit ink along an edge (78) of said web (80). 8. A system according to any one of claims 5 to 7, characterized in that said record medium material is paper.

Inventors: COFFEY, JAMES, B., DUNGAN, HARVEY, H., MONTGOMERY, TIMOTHY, J., WHITELEY, DAVID, C.
Applicants: NCR INTERNATIONAL INC.
Application year: 1988
Main classification: B65H26
IPC codes: B65H20, B65H26, B65H23