Patent GB-534845-A (GB)
Title: Duplicating machines
IPC: B41L11/00
Filed: 1939-12-19
Abstract: 534,845. Rotary duplicating machines. BURGESS, A. F. (Smith & Corona Typewriters, Inc., L. C.). Dec. 19, 1939, No. 32495. [Classes 100 (i) and 100 (ii)] [Also in Group III] In a duplicating machine in which dampened copy sheets are fed between an impression roller and a drum carrying a mirror script master sheet, mechanism is provided, operable by a single revolution of the drum, to effect the release and discharge of a master sheet from the drum and the attachment of a new master sheet to the drum such ,mechanism being set for operation by the manual operation of a setting member during the preceding revolution of the drum, the setting member being automatically restored to normal position during the actuation of the master sheet changing mechanism. Improved sheet feeding and dampening devices, and a counter actuated from the feed mechanism are also provided. Fig. 19 shows parts of the machine during normal running conditions and Fig. 14 during the operation of inserting a master sheet. The leading end of the master sheet is held in a narrow slot 182 in the drum 20 by pins 183 carried by bell crank levers 195 pivoted to the drum at 194 and connected for operation to a rod 192 carried by a pair of bell crank levers 189 pivoted to the drum at 191, one of the levers 189 having a roller 188 projecting through an opening 190 in an end wall of the drum and contacting with a cam 165 normally rotating with the drum. A number of discs 197 free on the rod 192 are connected by pins 198 to plungers 184 movable through holes intersecting the slot 182 and springs 199 on the plungers normally hold the plungers retracted, the pins 183 projected through the master sheet, and the roller 188 in contact with the cam 165. The master sheet to be inserted is placed on a table 202 with its leading end in the bight of a pair of normally stationary feed rollers 206, 205, the roller 206 being mounted in arms 212 fixed to a shaft 207 on which the roller 205 is free to rotate. An arm 214 free upon the shaft 807 but operatively connected thereto by a spring blade carries a roller 215 for co-operation with a cam 220 pivoted at 221 on the end of the drum and carrying a roller 222 held in contact with the cam 165 by a spring 225. The cam 165 is fixed to a sleeve 174, Fig. 13, rotatable and slidable on a sleeve 170 surrounding the drum shaft 19 and fixed to the end of the drum. The inner end of the sleeve 174 and the adjacent end of a member 169 fixed to the drum are formed with co-operating clutch members 179, 178 and the opposite end of the sleeve 174 and a flange on the fixed bearing 17 of the shaft 19 are formed with co-operating clutch members 177, 176. A spring 180 normally holds the members 178, 179 in contact so that the cam 165 rotates with the drum. A setting lever 159, pivoted at 158 to the machine frame is normally held by a spring 161 so that its lower end contacts a spring blade 164 also fixed to the frame. Upon manually turning the lever 159 so that its end clears the blade, the latter springs into position to engage the edge of the lever 159 and hold it in its set position. As the drum continues to rotate, a roller 201 projecting from the side of the cam 165 engages the lower end of the lever 159 and the cam is thereby arrested and, due to the clutch members 178, 179 the cam is moved laterally so as to be locked by the clutch members 176, 177. In this movement the cam presses on a pin 181 projecting from the blade 164 to allow the lever 159 to return to normal position. The cam follower rollers 188, 222 now move round the stationary cam 168, the high part 185 of which increases first the roller 188 to withdraw the pins 183 from the master sheet and project the plungers 184 to discharge the sheet, and afterwards the roller 222 to project the cam 220 so that it actuates the roller 215 to turn the feed roller 206 into contact with the drum 20 so that the rollers 205, 206 are driven to advance the master sheet into engagement with the projecting ends 184a of the plungers 184 as shown in Fig. 14. The cam roller 188 then rides down on to the low part of the cam 165 withdrawing the plungers 184 to allow the entry of the master sheet into the slot 182 and to project the pins 183 to hold the sheet. At the end of the revolution of the drum, the spring 180 restores the cam 165 to normal position. Discs 155 mounted on a tie bar 14 of the machine and a number of spaced wires 157, prevent the trailing part of the master sheet from falling on to the feeding and damping devices. The impression cylinder 32, Figs. 1 and 11 is mounted in bearing boxes carried by pivoted arms 34 and the boxes are supported by the inwardly projecting arms of bell crank levers 37 the downwardly extending arms of which are bent to channel form to guide a square shaft 39 operable by a nut 45 on its threaded end to move the levers 37 toward or away from one another to adjust the roller 32. A graduated disc 46 fixed to the shaft facilitates the adjustment. The sheets are fed to the bight of the roller 32 and drum 20 by a pair of primary feed rollers 53, 54 and a pair of supplementary feed rollers 55, 56, the roller 56 serving also as a sheet dampening roller. Roller 53 is a knurled roller and roller 54 is a rubber roller and these rollers have registering circumferential grooves to accommodate the front ends of sheet registering stops 113. The stops 113 are centrally pivoted on a rock shaft 110 and urged by springs 115 into the position shown in Fig. 14 in which the front ends are in sheet stopping position and the rear ends engaging a rod 112 carried by arms fixed to the rock shaft 110. Another arm 115, Fig. 1, fixed to the shaft 110 carries a roller 119 urged by a spring 116 into contact with the upper edge of an arm 121 pivoted at 122 to the machine frame and carrying' a roller 124 cooperating with a cam 125 secured to the drum 20. The feed roller 53 is carried by a pair of arms loose upon a rock shaft 64 and connected by pin and slot, allowing for slight lost motion to permit of feeding sheets of different thickness, to adjacent arms fixed to the rock shaft, the end of this shaft having secured thereto an arm 67, Fig. 1, carrying a roller 69 urged by a spring 66 into contact with the arm 121. When the high part of the cam 125 engages the roller 123 as shown in Fig. 1, a condition obtaining for about three-quarters of each revolution of the drum, the rollers 69, 119 are raised so that the rollers 53, 54 are separated and the stops 113 are in lowered position to stop and register a sheet fed by hand from the table 48 between the rollers 53 and 54. When the roller 123 engages the low part 127 of the cam 125, the stops 113 are raised and the roller 53 lowered to feed the sheet forward to the bight of the rollers 55, 56. The roller 56 is carried by arms 70, Fig. 1, secured to a rock shaft 72, one of the arms 70 being pressed by a spring 73 into contact with one end of a centrally pivoted lever 139 carrying a roller 140. Just before the sheet reaches the rollers 55, 56, a block 142 on the cam 125 wipes past the roller 140 to momentarily separate the rollers 55, 56 to allow accumulated moisture in the bight of the rollers to be carried away ahead of the copy sheet. A roller 105 contacting with the roller 56 prevents moisture being carried round to the under side of the sheets. The roller 55 receives moisture from a roller 74 rotating in a shallow duct 77 the level of liquid in which is maintained constant by a bird fountain supply from a reservoir 93, Figs. 1 and 3. The inverted reservoir is secured to a block 91 having a port 95 normally registering with a port 89 in a tubular member 81 which communicates with a trough like arm 78, Fig. 14 leading to the trough 77. When the machine is inoperative the reservoir 93 and block 91 are turned about the member 81 till the port 95 registers with a second port 90 at the bottom of the member 81 so that the liquid in the trough 77 drains back into the reservoir. Roller 74 is of metal and is provided with a helical groove on its surface and is engaged by a smaller metal roller 100 also having a helical groove but of opposite hand to that on roller 74. The cam 125 is angularly adjustable so that the time at which the copy sheet reaches the drum 20 and thus the unprinted margin left at the top of the copy sheet may be varied. As each sheet passes to the rollers 55, 56 it depresses a series of feeler fingers 152 thereby rocking a shaft 150 carrying a depending arm 149 to which is connected a spring 153. The arm 149 is connected by a link 151 to a rod 147 ccnnected to the actuating crank arm 144 of a counter of ordinary construction. The rod 147 is formed with a shoulder 148 adapted, when the feelers 152 are depressed, to be moved outwardly into engagement with a shoulder 154a on the arm 121 so that the counter is actuated on the next upward movement of the outer end of the arm 121. A lever mechanism actuated by the movements of the arm 149 may be provided to prevent lowering of the roller 55 into contact with the roller 56 if no sheet is being fed. The drum 20 and rollers 54, 56 and 74 are geared together and driven by a crank 23 or by an electric motor.