Patent GB-664713-A (GB)
Title: Cylindrical stencil and method of making the same
IPC: B41C1/14
Filed: 1949-06-09
Abstract: 664,713. Stencils and stencilling-apparatus. BEHR-MANNING CORPORATION. June 9, 1949 [June 17, 1948], No. 15442/49. Class 100 (ii). [Also in Group VIII] A stencil is made by bonding a mask, in the form of a sheet perforated to delineate the required design, to a mesh and forming the bonded material into a cylinder. The design is traced on vellum paper or other sheet material such as newsprint, bond, tissue paper or the like and a thin coating of vinyl solution or other stiffener composition is applied to the side carrying the tracer, and allowed to set for several hours. The coated material or mask is then bonded by means of rubber cement to a heavy manila paper about 0.02 inches thick, or other flat backing member. The design is cut out of the mask with, a stencil knife, not cutting into the backing member, and the remaining areas including isolated portions, are retained by the cement. A wire mesh screen, of wire diameter 0.012 to 0.0135 inches, is secured by heating to the exposed and coated surface of the mask, and the backing member is removed by coating or impregnating it with a solvent such as xylot. The free face of the wire screen is brush-coated with a stiffening composition such as a relatively thin vinyl solution, and heated with a flat iron to cause slight. boiling of the solution, which thereby more completely envelops the wire strands. The screen stencil is then formed into a semi-rigid cylinder by a butt solder seam through a pattern area of least concentration. The mask is applied over the screen and brass cylinder heads or ring fittings are soldered into one or both ends of the cylinder around the inner periphery thereof. The remaining open mesh background area is then filled. The stencil, Fig. 1, comprises a semi-rigid body 10 consisting of an open mesh screen 11 bonded to a mask 12 containing perforated parts 13 corresponding to the design, and is fitted at either end with brass rings or other annular supports 14, 15. A printing machine 21, Fig. 5, comprises a driving and impression roller 22 driven by a motor 26 and mounted to rotate in a tub or pan 24 containing solvent to wash off ink or colour from the roller 22. The stencil 10 is freely mounted over a stationary hollow tube 27, which is longer than the stencil and clamped at its ends by clamps 28, adjustable stops being provided to prevent lateral movement of the stencil. The tube 27 has a slot to allow ink or colouring matter to pass through, a squeegee blade 30 projecting through the slot to bear against the stencil. Dam side pieces 31 of hardened soap or other readily removable material are provided at both ends of the tube 27 to contain the colour or ink, which can be added to the tube above the dams. The dams are removable for cleaning or removal of the ink or colouring material. A strip 16 of textile, paper or other material is unwound from roll 17, passes guide rollers 19, 20, is nipped between the stencil 10 and roller 22, which is covered with a rubber blanket or rubber vulcanised to the roller, over tensioning roller 33, guide roller 35, through drying apparatus 36 and to take-up roll 37, being fed by the driving roller 22. The roller 22 rotates the stencil about the tube 27. The tensioning roller 33 may be omitted. For multicolour printing, the material is temporarily pasted or tacked to a continuous rubber blanket which carries it to successive roller 22-stencil 10 couples, drying equipment being provided between successive cylinders. Alternatively, the cylindrical stencil could be rolled along the surface of the material, and a plurality of cylinders could be so used, each having parts of the design or containing a different colour. For use in flocking web material (Group VIII), adhesive is used instead of ink or colouring matter, the tub 24 contains an adhesive-removing solvent, and an electrostatically operated flock box 34 is positioned in the path of the web. Multi-colour flocking can be effected by using a plurality of roller 22-stencil 10 couples.