Year: 1897

page_text: I, LOUIS LAMBKIN, of 24, Wellington Road, Dublin, Ireland, Wine Clerk, do
hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
My invention relates to machinery or apparatus for labelling bottles, jars, tins
and other articles and comprises the devices and improvements hereinafter indi-
cated.
According to my said invention I provide a hollow pad of a shape suitable to
that of the label to be affixed, and which pad is either faced with india-rubber
or is entirely made of that or other suitable material. The face of the pad is
pierced or perforated with holes and the space in the interior thereof is connected
by a pipe or passage to an air pump or other mechanism by means of which the
air inside the pad may be alternately exhausted or brought to a pressure below,
or pumped in and brought to a pressure above, that of the atmosphere.
To use my improved apparatus a label is applied to the face of the pad and the
air exhausted from the interior thereof so that the pressure of the atmosphere
will hold the label upon the pad whilst the label is being gummed or otherwise
rendered adhesive, so long as the air pressure inside the pad is maintained lower
than the atmospheric pressure. Upon being brought in contact with the surface
of the bottle, jar, or other article to be labelled, and the pressure inside the pad
changed from below to above atmospheric pressure, the said label will be blown
or forced from the face of the pad by the air passing through the above men
tioned perforations and caused to adhere to the surface of the bottle, jar, or other
article.
In the case of apparatus of small size, the alternate partial vacuum and pres-
sure of air in the interior of the pad may be advantageously obtained by con-
necting the pad alternately to the inlet and outlet of a bellows arrangement by
an automatic arrangement of valves or cocks.
In the case of apparatus of larger dimensions the interior of the pad may
be alternately connected to one or other of two reservoirs, one of which is kept
at a suitable pressure above, and the other below, that of the atmosphere by any
suitable arrangement of air pumps.
It will be seen that the pad may be used simply to handle the labels neatly
and cleanly, being placed suecessively in contact with the label the adhesive sub-
stance and the bottle, and it will be readily understood that the bellows or other
arrangement for alternately exhausting the air from, and raising the pressure
in, the interior of the said pad may be worked by the feet of the operator, or any
simple mechanical means may be employed for rendering these movements inter-
connected, automatic and machine driven.

page_text: affixed to a horizontal table so that the surface of the said pad will be flush, or
approximately so, with the surface of the said table, an adjustable distance piece k
being fixed in the required position and the base of the bottle j being rolled in
contact with this distance piece over the surface of the pad a.
The automatic
closing of the valve d is provided for in this case by the neck of the bottle j com-
ing into contact with a rod or projection on the valve spindle whilst the said
bottle is being rolled or passed over or across the centre of the pad a.
To use my improved apparatus a label is applied to the face of the pad a and
the air is exhausted from the pipe c¹ so that the pressure of the atmosphere will
hold the label upon the pad so long as the air pressure in the said tube c¹ is main-
tained lower than the atmospheric pressure and the said label is being gummed
or otherwise rendered adhesive either by means of the gumming or pasting
device or otherwise. Upon being brought in contact with the surface of the
bottle or other article to be labelled, either in the manner described with refer-
ence to Figures 2, 3 and 4, or to Figures 5 and 6, and the valve d closed either
by hand or automatically the said label will be left adhering to the surface of
the bottle or other article. I sometimes add to the apparatus a horizontally
hinged connecting pad and turn table, and the pad may be arranged to pick up
a label from a packet placed in front, the valve d being opened so that the label
will be held to the pad a by atmospheric pressure. In this case the turn table e
is then first turned to the right and the slide f moved towards it bringing the
label into contact with the gummed surface h, and the said turntable e is then
turned towards the left so as to bring the label into contact with the bottle j
or other article upon the stand 2. The valve d being then closed the slide f is
moved to its central position and the labelled bottle j or other article is removed
from the said stand i.
In the case of apparatus of small size, the partial vacuum in the interior of
the pad a may be advantageously obtained by connecting the said pad a to the
inlet of a bellows arrangement by an automatic arrangement of a suitable valve
or cock. Or in cases where I employ an air pressure to blow off or force the label
from the surface. of the pad a on to the bottle j or other article, I may produce
the requisite alternate partial vacuum and pressure of air in the interior of the
pada or in the pipe or air passage c¹ by connecting the latter alternately to the
inlet and outlet of a like bellows arrangement through automatically operated
valves or cocks.
In the case of apparatus of larger dimensions the pipe or passage c¹ or the in-
terior of the pad a may in the first case be connected to a reservoir wherein a
vacuum or partial vacuum is maintained, and in the second case be alternately
connected to one or other of two reservoirs, one of which is kept at a suitable
pressure above, and the other below, that of the atmosphere by any suitable
arrangement of air pumps.
It will be seen that the pad a may be used simply to handle the labels neatly
and cleanly, being placed successively in contact with the label, the adhesive
substance, and the bottle or other article, and it will be readily understood that
the bellows or other arrangement for alternately exhausting the air from, and
raising the pressure in, the interior of the said pad may be worked by the feet of
the operator, or any simple mechanical means may be employed for rendering
these movements inter-connected, automatic and machine driven.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said in-
vention and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what
I claim is:
1. The pad for holding and affixing labels by atmospheric pressure to bottles
and other articles substantially as set forth.
2. A labelling machine or apparatus so constructed that the label is held to
a pad by atmospheric pressure whilst it receives an adhesive substance and is

page_text: then pressed on to the bottle or other article and the said pressure removed sub-
stantially as set forth.
3. The combination, in a labelling machine or apparatus, of a pad for holding
and affixing the labels by atmospheric pressure, a travelling bed, and a stand or
support for the bottle or other article substantially as described.
4. The combination, in a labelling machine or apparatus, of a label-holding
device, a pasting or gumming device, a bottle-holding device, and means for
bringing the label-holding device alternately into contact with the pasting device
and bottle-holding device substantially as set forth.
5. In a labelling machine or apparatus the combination of a pad for holding
and affixing labels by atmospheric pressure to bottles and other articles with
means for automatically controlling the valve governing the air pipe or passage
to the said pad, substantially as set forth.
6. The labelling machine or apparatus constructed substantially as described
and as illustrated in the accompanying drawings.
D
A. F. SPOONER,
323, High Holborn, London, Agent for the Applicant.