Patent GB-981166-A (GB)
Title: Mechanism for handling and printing indicia on articles
IPC: B41F17/14
Filed: 1963-08-19
Abstract: 981,166. Printing on curved surfaces. MONSANTO CO. Aug. 19, 1963 [Aug. 24, 1962], No. 32640/63. Heading B6C. [Also in Division B8] An apparatus suitable for printing indicia on the curved surfaces of generally cylindrical or conical plastic bottles &c. 7 comprises a turret 6 rotatable about a vertical axis, a plurality of article supports circumferentially spaced on said turret and each including a mandrel 25 which extends horizontally above the turret, a horizontally reciprocable pusher 105 for pushing a bottle 7 on to a mandrel 25 at a feed station 1, means for rotating the bottle at a registration station 2, Fig. 1, and means for interrupting said rotation when the bottle has attained a predetermined position, a silk screen 302 arranged at a printing station 3 above the path of movement of the bottles, means for elevating said turret to bring a bottle into a printing position relative to said screen and lowering said turret after printing, means for rotating the bottle in its raised printing position, brake means associated with each mandrel and including a brake rod 27 and brake pad 28, Fig. 2, to hold each mandrel against rotation during movement of the turret, and a delivery arm 401 for swinging a printed bottle from a mandrel 25 on to a conveyer 402 at a delivery station 4. Feeding.-The bottles 7 descend down a shoot 101 guided by a plate 104 and are pushed in turn on to a mandrel 25 provided with an axial air passage, Fig. 9 (not shown), by the fluid operated pusher 105. When the turret is next rotated the mandrel supported bottle forces open a pivoted gate 102 which swings back to restrain and position the next bottle. Registration.-At the station 2 a plate 201 is moved horizontally towards the base of the bottle 7 and the bottle is rotated by jaw members 205 on arms 204 until a detent on the plate 201 engages a recess in the base of the bottle, Fig. 3 and 4 (not shown). Stencilling.-The frame 301 supporting the screen 302 is horizontally reciprocable on rails 303, 304 by an arm 312, Fig. 8 (not shown), connected to the main drive of the apparatus by an eccentric pin. The squeegee 318, Fig. 2, is mounted above the screen on a vertically adjustable and retractable frame 319 which is moved downwardly on application of fluid pressure to a cylinder 321. The squeegee is raised after printing by said cylinder to allow the screen to be returned to its initial position. Threaded rods 323 are provided to adjust the height of the screen. The screen is horizontally adjustable on rails 301c, 301d on rotation of a hand crank 301e. Each bottle is supported at the station 3 by an end plate 325 and a pair of truncated conical rollers 326 mounted on a vertically adjustable and fluid-operated assembly 327. When the turret 6 is raised at station 3 a disc 26 engages a bar 36, Fig. 2, and causes the mandrel 25 to rotate so that the periphery of the bottle moves tangentially with the screen and at the same speed. Conical articles are printed by tilting each mandrel 25 about its support axis 24 to the required degree. Delivery.-The delivery arm 401 is provided with a pair of gripping arms 404, 405 having jaws 406, 409, Fig. 5. The jaws are operated on fluid actuation of a double-toothed rack 413. An arm 419 which is journalled to the fluid cylinder 416 and an arm 429 are adapted to be swung about a stub axle 428 on movement of a crank arm 430 by an hydraulic motor 433. The extent of the swinging movement may be varied by adjusting the position of the motor. A crank arm 426 is fixed to the end of the cylinder 416 and is provided with a cam follower 427 which extends into a cam-slot 438 so shaped as to cause the jaws to withdraw the bottle radially of the turret, to swing the bottle through ninety degrees to an upright position, and to maintain this orientation during the remainder of the swinging movement at the end of which the bottle is placed on the endless conveyer 402.