IMPROVEMENTS IN PRINTING MACHINERY
Year: 1856

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to William Edward Newton, of the Office for Patents,
66, Chancery Lane, in the County of Middlesex, Civil Engineer, for
the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN PRINTING MACHINERY."-A com-
munication.
Sealed the 12th August 1856, and dated the 27th May 1856.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said William Edward Newton
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
27th May 1856.
I, WILLIAM EDWARD. NEWTON, of the Office for Patents, 66, Chancery Lane,
in the County of Middlesex, Civil Engineer, do hereby declare the nature
of the said Invention for IMPROVEMENTS IN PRINTING MACHINERY, to be as
follows:-
This Invention of improvements in printing machinery relates to that
description of printing machinery in which the types are secured to the surface
of a cylinder, which, being inade to rotate in contact with a sheet of paper,
transfers an impression thereto from the types on the cylinder, and consists in
a novel or improved mode of securing the types on the surface of the cylinder,
and in "locking up "the forms.
In the present improved machinery, the types are held in their place by
means of the column rules, which divide the columns one from the other.

page_text: These column rules are made of a wedge form, as described in the Speci-
fication of a Patent granted to me for improved printing machinery, and
bearing date July 18th, 1848, and the lower edge of these column rules is
provided with a projecting ledge, whereby they are held down by being placed
in rebated grooves made in the type bed, and are further held by means of
segmental pieces, which are made to rest on the same rebates or ledges of the
column rules. These segmental pieces are let into spaces made in the type bed,
and may be said to form part thereof. The columns of type are locked up by
a novel arrangement of wedge pieces, which enable the workman to secure the
type on the bed with greater facility and security than by the ordinary plans.
Instead of using quoins, and shooting them along a-channel in the "form," as
usual, two metal bars, having a series of wedges formed on the face thereof,
are employed. By dividing the face of the bars into a series of wedges it has
been found that the pressure is more evenly distributed over the side of the
mass of type, and that the type may be more securely locked up, and with a
less expenditure of power than usual. These wedge bars are worked by means
of screws or toothed gearing; or one of the bars may be dispensed with, and
a set of quoins used, by causing them to act against the wedges of the remain-
ing bar.
It will be understood by practical printers that these improvements
present considerable advantages, inasmuch as the arrangements abovedescribed
ensure great durability, compactness, and economy of time in locking up the
form. It is not liable either to break the end or side plates of the bed, as is
sometimes the case when screws are used to lock up the type, in consequence
of the unequal strain imposed on certain points.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said William Edward Newton in the Great Seal Patent Office on
the 27th November 1856.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, WILLIAM
EDWARD NEWTON, of the Office for Patents, 66, Chancery Lane, in the County
of Middlesex, Civil Engineer, send greeting...
WHEREAS Her Most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Twenty-seventh day of May, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and fifty-six, in the nineteenth year of Her reign,
did, for Herself, Her heris and successors, give and grant unto me, the said
William Edward Newton, Her special license that I, the said William
Edward Newton, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as

page_text: I, the said William Edward Newton, my executors, administrators, and
assigns, should at any time agree with, and no others, from time to time and
at all times thereafter during the term therein expressed, should and lawfully
might make, use, exercise, and vend, within the United Kingdom of Great
Britain and Ireland, the Channel Islands, and Isle of Man, an Invention
for "IMPROVEMENTS IN PRINTING MACHINERY," being a communication from
abroad, upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said William
Edward Newton, by an instrument in writing under my hand and seal,
should particularly describe and ascertain the nature of the said Invention,
and in what manner the same was to be performed, and cause the same to be
filed in the Great Seal Patent Office within six calendar months next and
immediately after the date of the said Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said William Edward Newton, do, hereby
declare the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same is to
be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the
following statement, reference being had to the Drawings hereunto annexed,
and to the letters and figures marked thereon (that is to say):
This Invention, of "Improvements in Printing Machinery," relates to that
description of printing machinery in which the types are secured to the
surface of a cylinder, which, being made to rotate in contact with a sheet of
paper, transfers an impression thereto from the types on the cylinder, and
consists in a novel or improved mode of securing the types on the surface of
the cylinder, and in "locking up" the forms.
In the improved machinery, which forms the subject of the Invention that
has been communicated to me by my foreign correspondent, the types are
held in their place by means of the column rules, which divide the columns
one from the other. These column rules are made of a wedge form, as
described in the Specification of a Patent granted to me for improved
printing machinery, and bearing date the Eighteenth day of July, One
thousand eight hundred and forty-eight; and the lower edge of these column
rules is provided with a projecting ledge, whereby they are held down by
being placed in rebated grooves made in the type bed, and are further held
by means of segmental pieces, which are made to rest on the said rebates or
ledges of the column rules. These segmental pieces are let into spaces made
in the type bed, and may be said to form part thereof. The columns of type
are locked up by a novel arrangement of wedge pieces, which enable the
workman to secure the type on the bed with greater facility and security than
by the ordinary plans. Instead of using "quoins," and "shooting"them along
a channel in the "form," as usual, two metal bars, having a series of wedges

page_text: formed on the face thereof, are employed. By dividing the face of the bars
into a series of wedges, it has been found that the pressure is more evenly distri
buted over the side of the mass of type than heretofore, and that the typemay
be more securely locked up, and with a less expenditure of power than usual.
These wedge bars are worked by means of screws or toothed gearing; or one of
the bars may be dispensed with and a set of quoins used, by causing them toact
against the wedges of the remaining bar. It will be understood by practical
printers that these improvements present considerable advantages, inasmuch
as the arrangements above described ensure great durability, compactness, and
economy of time in locking up the form. It is not liable either to break the
end or side plates of the bed, as is sometimes the case (when screws are used
to lock up the type), in consequence of the unequal strain imposed on certain
points.
In order, however, that the present improvements may be clearly understood,
I have shewn in the accompanying Drawings various views of several plans
of effecting the object of the Invention.
Figures 1, 2, 3, and 4 are intended to represent the type beds of a rotary
printing machine, with the application of what the Inventor believes to be
a new and useful manner of securing the type firmly in a body. A, Fig. 1,
is a type bed, in which are made rebated grooves for receiving the feet of the
column rules a, and for securing them in their proper places by means of the
intermediate pieces b, which are made to fit exactly the said. rebated grooves,
and overlap the feet or projections on the column rules. The surfaces
of the pieces b, b, are made to coincide or correspond with the surface of the
bed. B'and Care two flat pieces of metal, having each one straight edge,
while the opposite edges are cut into a series of inclined planes parallel one
with the other, and operating precisely in the same manner as a simple wedge
and "gib," the only object in cutting the edges into several planes being simply
to reduce the distance which it will be necessary to made the piece C travel.
The piece is the wedge, which when driven forward compresses the type.
The gib piece B is secured to the bed by means of feet, that enter the rebated
grooves, and are overlapped and held down by the intermediate pieces b, in the
same manner as the column rules.
The wedge piece C is prevented from
falling out by the insertion of pins c projecting from the side thereof, and
which pins enter grooves in the said side plate. These grooves allow the
pins ca sufficient distance to travel, but confine the wedge to the bed. When
it is necessary to take the wedge Cout, provision is made for that purpose by
a vertical groove, communicating with the longitudinal one in which the pins
c, c, slide. D and E are pieces similar to B and C respectively, except instead

page_text: of being flat they are curved, to conform to the surface of the bed, the wedge E
being held in its position in the same manner as the wedge C; but the gib D
is secured by mortices made in it, opposite to the ends of the column rules, for
the reception of projections made for the purpose on the ends of the said
column rules.
The foregoing description applies to all the Figures, viz', 1, 2, 3, and 4,
the only difference in the various plans being in the manner of driving or
drawing the wedges.
In Fig. 1 the wedges are drawn by means of screws e, e, underneath the
surface of the bed, the nuts having projecting nibs that traverse in slots in the
surface of the bed, and extend into mortices in the ends of the wedge pieces
E and C.
In Fig. 2 the wedges are pushed forward by the screws ff, which are
tapped into the end or side plate, their points being in contact with the rear
ends of the wedges E and C.
In Fig. 3 the wedges are drawn by the screws g, g, which are tapped into
the smaller ends of the wedges, after passing through holes in the side or end
plate, the screws g, g, having shoulders on the outside to form the point of
resistance.
In Fig. 4 the wedges are urged forward by means of toothed pinions h,
gearing into racks i made on the under side of the wedges. Loose handles,
cranks, or wrenches are applied to the spindles of the pinions h, which are
also provided with ratchets j and pawls, in order to prevent the pinions from
running back when they are rotated to "lock-up" the type.
In Fig. 5 I have shewn a method of locking up the form by means of
the ordinary "quoins," which must be shot forward with an ordinary shooting-
stick.
The arrangement or means of locking up shewn at Fig. 4 is preferred by
the Inventor, and is considered by him to be superior to the others, or to the
plans in present use, for the following reasons, (viz), it is more durable, as
it will last in good order as long as the bed itself; it is compact, which is a
feature often of the first importance; and it economizes the time required to
lock up the form. It is free from the risk or danger of breaking the end or
side plates of the bed, which is frequently the case where screws are used, in
consequence of the unequal strain imposed on certain points by those methods,
but which is obviated in this arrangement by the equal distribution of the
whole pressure over the whole surface of said plates. The above are con-
siderations of the most vital importance to the interests of the daily journal
press.

page_text: Having thus fully and clearly described the nature of the said Invention of
"Improvements in Printing Machinery," so that any one skilled in the
mechanical arts would be enabled to make and use the same, I hereby claim
the combination of the column rules a, a, with the picces b, b, whereby they
are held down in grooves in the bed A, and also the use of the series of wedges
combined in one piece, when used in combination with any type revolving
bed, substantially as herein described and set forth.
I claim the methods shewn and described of forcing, driving, or drawing
the wedges forward as described, or any equivalent method of effecting the
same result.
In witness whereof, I, the said William Edward Newton, have hereunto
set my hand and seal, the Twenty-fifth day of November, in the year
of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty-six..
Witness,
J. W. MOFFATT,
66, Chancery Lane.
W. E. NEWTON. (L.S.)