IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR THE MANUFACTURE OF LOZENGES, MEDALS, AND OTHER PROAL
Year: 1881

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to William Sharp, of Birmingham, in the County of
Warwick, Manufacturing Confectioner, for an Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS
IN MACHINERY FOR THE MANUFACTURE OF LOZENGES, MEDALS, AND OTHER
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said William Sharp at the Office
of the Commissioners of Patents on the 25th June 1881.
WILLIAM SHARP, of Birmingham, in the County of Warwick, Manufacturing
Confectioner. "IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR THE MANUFACTURE OF
LOZENGES, MEDALS, AND OTHER LIKE ARTICLES OF CONFECTIONERY, AND
BISCUITS."
My Invention has reference to the printing mechanism of the said machinery by
which the strip or sheet of sugar or other paste is printed, with a series of
separated inscriptions, designs, or ornaments, which printed parts of the sugar or
other paste are subsequently cut out by the cutters into. lozenges, or other like
articles of confectionery.
My Invention is especially applicable to the machinery described, represented,
and claimed in the Specification of Letters Patent granted to William Crosby on
the 20th day of October 1875, No. 3644, of which Patent I am the assignce; but
my Invention may be applied to other machinery for the manufacture of lozenges
and other like articles of confectionery.
I will describe my Invention as applied to a lozenge machine.
In constructing the printing mechanism according to my Invention, I give to the
printing bar carrying the series of separated types or dies a rising and falling
motion, and also a motion through a semi-circle, so as to invert or turn over the
types or dies for the purpose of bringing them alternately in contact with the
sugar paste and with the pad containing the colour; I also combine with the said
rising and falling and turning over printing bar a cleansing rotatory brush for
cleansing the types or dies as they rise from the sugar paste, and before they are
again brought against the colour pad for receiving a charge of colour.
''

page_text: The said rotating cleansing brush has a rocking motion given to it so as to
bring it in contact with the printing bar as it is turned over. The rotating cleansing
brush is carried by rocking arms, which are worked by an eccentric on one of the
shafts of the machine.
The pad containing the colour consists of layers of cloth impregnated with
colour, the said impregnated layers of cloth being contained in a trough having a
cloth bottom, against which the types or dies on the printing bar are pressed, and
from which they receive the printing colour.
The sliding and turning over motions of the printing bar are effected in the
following manner :-
The ends of the said printing bar turn in bearings carried by horizontal arms
connected with the cutter slides, the said printing bar receiving its sliding motion
from the said cutter slides.
The ends of the printing bar work in vertical slots in fixed uprights. One of
these uprights is furnished with a rack, and that end of the printing bar which
works in the racked upright is furnished with a tooth, which engages with the
rack and gives the turn over motion to the printing bar.
The action of the parts is as follows:-
When the printing bar makes its descending stroke, the series of types or dies
which have been pressed against and have received colour from the colour pad is
turned over, and the said charged types or dies presented to the strip or sheet of
sugar paste passing underneath them, and by the continued descent of the printing
bar the said types or dies are pressed upon and made to print across the sugar
paste at the required places the inscriptions, designs, or ornaments. On the
printing bar making its ascending stroke, it is again turned over so as to present
its types or dies to the printing or colour pad, the said types or dies as they are
turned over coming in contact with the cleansing brush which has made it
advance stroke. The types or dies are thereby cleansed of adhering particles before
they reach the colour pad.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed by
the said Willian Sharp in the Great Seal Patent Office on the 16th December
1881.
WILLIAM SHARP, of Birmingham, in the County of Warwick, Manufacturing
Confectioner. "IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY FOR THE MANUFACTURE OF
LOZENGES, MEDALS, AND OTHER LIKE ARTICLES OF CONFECTIONERY, AND
BISCUITS."
My Invention has reference to the printing mechanism of the said machinery by
which the strip or sheet of sugar or other paste is printed, with a series of
separated inscriptions, designs, or ornaments, which printed parts of the sugar or
other paste are subsequently cut out by the cutters into lozenges or other like
articles of confectionery.
My Invention is especially applicable to the machinery described, represented,
and claimed in the Specification of Letters Patent granted to William Crosby on
the 20th day of October 1875, No. 3044, of which Patent I am the assignee; but
my Invention may be applied to other machinery for the manufacture of lozenges
and other like articles of confectionery and biscuits.
I will describe my Invention as applied to a lozenge machine.
In constructing the printing mechanism according to my Invention, I give to the
printing bar carrying the series of separated types or dies a rising and falling
motion, and also a motion through a semicircle, so as to invert or turn over the
types or dies for the purpose of bringing them alternately in contact with the pad
containing the colour and with the sugar paste.
I also combine with the said rising and falling and turning over printing bar a
cleansing rotary brush for cleansing the types or dies as they rise from the sugar
paste, and before they are again brought against the colour pad for receiving a
charge of colour.
The said rotating cleansing brush has a rocking motion given to it so as to
bring it in contact with the printing bar as it is turned over. The rotating
cleansing brush is carried by rocking arms which are worked by an eccentric on
one of the shafts of the machine.
The pad containing the colour consists of layers of cloth impregnated with colour,
the said impregnated layers of cloth being contained in a trough having a cloth
bottom against which the types or dies on the printing bar are pressed and from
which they receive the printing colour.
The sliding and turning over motions of the printing bar are effected in the
following manner:―
The ends of the said printing bar turn in bearings carried by horizontal arms
connected with the cutter slides, the said bar receiving its sliding motion from the
said cutter slides.
One of the ends of the printing bar works in a vertical slot in a fixed upright.
This upright is furnished with a rack, and that end of the printing bar which works
in it is furnished with a tooth which engages with the rack, and gives the turn
over motion to the printing bar.
The action of the parts is as follows:-
When the printing bar makes its descending stroke the series of types or dies
which have been pressed against and have received colour from the colour pad is
turned over, and the said charged types or dies presented to the strip or sheet of
sugar paste passing underneath them, and by the continued descent of the printing
bar the said types or dies are pressed upon and made to print across the sugar
paste at the required places the inscriptions, designs, or ornaments. On the
printing bar making its ascending stroke it is again turned over, so as to present its

page_text: types or dies to the printing or colour pad, the said types or dies as they are turned
over coming in contact with the cleansing brush, which has made its advance stroke.
The types or dies are thereby cleansed of adhering particles before they reach the
colour pad.
I will now proceed to describe with reference to the accompanying Drawings the
manner in which my Invention' is to be performed.
Figures 1 and 2 represent partly in longitudinal vertical section and partly in
elevation, and Figure 3 in plan, a portion of a lozenge machine provided with
printing mechanism constructed according to my Invention. In Figure 1 the types
or dies carried by the printing bar are represented in the act of printing the sugar
paste beneath them, the cleansing brush being represented out of action, and in
Figures 2 and 3 the said types or dies are represented in the middle of their up
stroke, the cleansing brush being represented brought into action for cleansing the
types or dies from adhering particles. Figure 4 represents in longitudinal section
the same view of the machine as Figures 1 and 2, with the types or dies at the
top of their up stroke, and receiving colour from the colour pad, the said Figure 4
being drawn of the full size; Figure 5 represents a cross section, partly in end
elevation, of the printing bar, its types or dies and parts connected with them
drawn to the same scale as Figure 4; Figures 6, 7, 8, and 9 represent opposite
ends of the printing bar and parts connected with the said ends drawn of the full
size.
The same letters indicate the same parts in the several Figures of the
Drawings.
a is the strip or sheet of sugar paste from which the lozenges are to be cut,
carried by the intermittent endless travelling band b, as described in the Specifi-
cation of the Patent before referred to; c, c, are the hollow or tubular cutters
arranged in a row across the sugar paste for cutting out the lozenges; and d, d,
are the fixed pistons or ejectors for ejecting the cut out lozenges from the hollow
cutters.
The said cutters are fixed to the dovetail slides e, e, and the latter are raised and
lowered by means of eccentrics on the shaft f working in eccentric clips on the
lower ends e² of the said dovetail slides e, c. One of the eccentrics on the shaft f
is marked g, and the eccentric clip is marked g. is the printing bar crossing
the sugar paste a, carried by the endless travelling band b, the said bar having a
rising and falling motion as well as a turn over or semi-circular motion effected in
the manner hereinafter described; i, i, are the separated types or dies carried by
the plate k, the said plate being fixed to and adjusted on the printing bar h by the
screw bolts and lock-nuts n (see Figures 3 and 5). The printing bar is carried
by the horizontal arms m, m, connected with the cutter slides e, e, (best seen in
Figure 3), and the ends of the said printing bar & turn in bearings m², m³, on the
said arms m, m.
The trunnion end of the printing bar working in the bearing m² projects
beyond the said bearing, and carries a block m, which on the rising and falling
motion of the printing bar bears against the face of the fixed upright p, which
upright has a gap or recess p2 made in it for the purpose herein after explained.
The other trunnion end of the printing bar h projects beyond the bearing m³, and
the projecting end works in a slot in the upright q of the machine. The last
named projecting end of the printing bar is provided with a tooth ² for engaging
at the proper times with the rack on one side of the slot q2 for giving the turn
over or semi-rotation to the printing bar h. The shape of the toothed end ² of the
printing bar is best seen in Figure 6, which Figure 6 represents the racked slotted
upright q, the toothed end 2 of the printing bar h, and the arm m fixed on the
cutter slide e.
Figure 7 represents the other end of the printing bar with the arm m fixed to
the cutter slide e, and the fixed upright p having the gap or slot p² in it. The
printing bar h in Figures 6 and 7 is represented at the top of its upstroke for
receiving colour from the colour pad.

page_text: .
Figure 8 represents the two ends of the printing bar when the said printing
bar is at the bottom of its downstroke for printing the sugar paste; and Figure 9.
represents the two ends of the printing bar when the said printing bar is in its
middle up stroke ready to be cleansed from adhering particles by the brush r.
The printing-pad consists of a troughs having a cloth bottom t. In the said
trough are layers of cloth impregnated with colour, the colour contained in the said
layers of cloth being squeezed from them and supplied as required to the cloth
bottom or pad t by means of the pressure block t² acted upon by the screws (³
carried by the clamping bars t' which are fixed in their places by wedges. By
pressing the types or dies on the printing bar h against the cloth bottom or pad t
they receive colour from the said pad.
is
The axis of the rotating cleansing brush is carried in bearings made in the
upper arms 7² of the levers 72, 73, the said levers having a rocking motion on the
centres. The rocking motion of the levers 72, 73, is effected by eccentrics, one of
which is marked u, on the shaft f, the straps of the eccentric clips u² being jointed
to the bottom arms of the levers, as seen in Figure 2. The rotating brush
worked by the band v passing over the pulley x, the said band receiving motion
from the shaft which drives the endless band cleansing brush of the machine.
When the printing bar reaches the middle of its upstroke, as represented in
Figure 2, the cleansing brush is brought into the position represented in the said
Figure 2 by the operation of the rocking levers, and the driving band vis
tightened on its pulley. The rotating brush is thereby made to cleanse the
types or dies i froin adhering particles before the said types or dies reach the colour
pad t.
During the time that the printing bar is receiving color from the pad t, and is
making its down stroke for printing the sugar paste a, the cleansing brush is out
of action, that is, occupies the position represented in Figure 1, the said cleansing
brush only coming into action when the printing bar is moving from the position
represented in Figure 1 to that represented in Figure 2.
The action of the parts is as follows:-
By the reciprocating rising and falling motion of the arms m, m, effected through
the cutter slides e, e, a rising and falling motion is given to the printing bar h, and
also a turning over motion or an alternate semi-rotation, that is, as the printing
bar h rises its toothed end h³ working in the slot q engages with the rack q³ and
gives the turn over motion in one direction, the printing bar moving from the
position represented in Figures 1 and 8 to that represented in Figure 4. As the
printing bar descends a semi-rotation in the opposite direction is given to it so as
to return it to the position represented in Figures 1 and S. As the toothed end /²
of the printing bar h gears with the rack q, the block m' on the opposite end of
the said bar comes opposite the gap or slot p² in the upright p, which gap permits
of the semi-rotation of the bar h by the action of the tooth h² and rack 93.
On the printing bar h reaching the top of its stroke (see Figure 4) the series of
types or dies i, i, is pressed against and receive color from the pad t, and on the
said bar making its descending stroke it is turned over and the charged types or
dies presented to the strip of sugar paste b passing underneath them, but which
has temporarily been brought to rest, and by the continued descent of the said
printing bar the said types or dies are pressed upon and made to print across the
sugar paste at the required places the incriptions, designs, or ornaments to be
produced (see Figure 1). On the printing bar h making its ascending stroke after
printing the sugar paste it is again turned over for receiving a fresh supply of
color, but when at the middle of its upstroke its types or dies i, i, are presented to
the cleansing brush 7, which has made its advance stroke, so as to cleanse the
said types from adhering particles before they reach the color pad t, as will be
understood by an examination of Figures 2 and 3.
The printing mechanisın described and illustrated may be applied to the printing
of sugar and other paste for the manufacture of other articles of confectionery
besides lozenges, and also to the manufacture of biscuits as well as to machines, the

page_text: general construction of which differs from that I have described in the accompanying
Drawings.
Having now described the nature of my Invention, and the manner in which
the same is to be performed, I wish it to be understood that I claim as my
Invention,―
The construction and combination of parts of the printing mechanism of
machinery for the manufacture of lozenges, medals, and other like articles of
confectionery, and biscuits, herein before described and illustrated in the accom-
panying Drawings, that is to say, giving to the printing bar carrying the types or
dies a rising and falling motion, and also a motion through a semi-circle so as to
invert or turn over the types or dies for the purpose of alternately bringing them
into contact with the colour pad and with the sugar or other paste to be printed,
the rising and falling motion of the printing bar being taken by preference from
the cutter slides, and the turning over motion of the bar being produced by means
of the toothed end of the bar engaging with a toothed rack in a vertical slot in one
of the fixed uprights of the printing apparatus, the several parts being constructed,
arranged, and working, substantially as described and illustrated.
Also the combination with the said printing mechanism of the rotating type
or die cleansing brush having a rocking or oscillating motion given to it for
bringing it into and taking it out of action at the proper times, substantially as
described and illustrated.
Also the construction and combination of the parts of the color pad or color
receptacle, herein before described and illustrated in the accompanying Drawings.
In witness whereof, I, the said William Sharp, have hereunto set my hand
and seal, this Eighth day of December, in the year of our Lord One thousand
eight hundred and eighty one.
Witness,
RICHARD SKERRETT,
37, Temple Street,
Birmingham,
WILLIAM SHARP. (L.S.)