Improvements in Printing Presses.
Year: 1889

page_text: Date of Application, 16th Sept., 1889-Accepted, 2nd Nov., 1889
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Printing Presses.
We, WILHELM HEIDENHAIN mechanic, and HERMANN HOFFMANN, priuter both of
24, Alexandrinen Strasse, Berlin, in the Kingdom of Prussia Germany, and WILHELM
HEIDELMANN, manufacturer of 3 Hauff Strasse, Stuttgart in the Kingdom of Würtem-
berg, German Empire do hereby declare the nature of this invention and in what
manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained
in and by the following statement :-
In all printing presses which have been offered for sale up to the present each sheet
which is to be printed must be placed separately on to the lifters fitted on to the
cylinder of the machine by the operator.
To accomplish this automatically, is the object of the present invention.
In short,
the invention consists of a transmitting belt on which the sheets of paper which to be
printed will be spread out, by being "rubbed out."
This belt is moved forwards at intervals in such a manner that the sheets which
are to be printed will be brought, one after the other into such a position that they
may be conveniently picked up by the lifters.
As this invention does not involve a reconstruction of the ordinary printing
machines it has not been considered necessary to introduce the printing machine
itself into the accompanying drawings which are for the purpose of making the
description of my invention more clear.
In the drawings similar letters denote similar parts thronghout the several views.
Fig. 1 is a front elevation of my apparatus.
Fig. 1 shows the manner in which the sheets are brought into position.
Fig. 2 is a side elevation of the apparatus.
A is the cylinder on which the lifters are fixed. These lifters are to pick up the
sheet which has been placed ready by the transmitting belt a as soon as the last sheet
picked up has been printed. The transport belt a is an endless belt, running over two
rollers bb having their bearings fixed in the machine frame at a suitable distance
from each other. Of these two rollers 6 b one situated close by the cylinder of the
printing machine. On the outer end of the roller shaft s³ is fixed the friction
wheel s.
The friction wheel s¹ is at intervals brought in contact with the friction wheel s
which runs on the end m of the swinging lever arm m m³.
The other arm m¹ of the lever which swings on the bar 68 firmly fixed in the
machine frame, is under the influence of the electro-magnet f³. The lever is so
constructed, that when the armature m¹ is attracted to the magnet, the two
friction wheels s and s¹ are brought together and the wheels communicates its
motion to the wheel s'.
A cog wheel is keyed to the friction wheels into which a second cog wheel r
gears. This second cog wheel r¹ and the bevel wheel are keyed to the bar 68.
Through the bevel-wheels 34, which revolve continually,-being in connection
with main driving shaft, the two wheels 2 will be driven. As soon therefore,
as the armature m is attracted by the electro-magnet f³ the two friction wheels s
and will be coupled. This causes the transport belt to be moved forwards in
consequence of the revolving of the rollers b b. It will now move forwards until
the electric current is again broken.
The connecting and breaking of the electric current takes place automatically
by means of the hinged circuit closers 2¹¹ against which the sheet-which is
laid ready for the lifters-touches, pushing the same back and thereby breaking
the contact.

page_text: The bar J lies across the machine from one side of the frame to the other―
between the printing cylinder and the transport belt. We shall call this bar "the
bridge" for the future in this description.
The angle piece a is screwed on to the bridge in the middle of the same and
insulated from it by means of ebonit. To this angle piece are binged the two
strips of metal 2¹¹ which form the circuit closers. Underneath these hinged pieces
and insulated from. the bridge by means of ebonit b¹ is fastened a. strip of metal e¹
which is connected with the current and serves for connecting or breaking the
contact.
When now the bridge is in the machine, the strip e¹ is placed in connection
with the current by means of the insulated wire c¹ coming from the contact piece
of circuit closer ¹. The strips 2¹¹ on the other hand stand in connection with
the source of the electricity by means of wires ff¹ and circuit closer h h'. In
order to be able to remove the bridge conveniently at any time, the circuit
closers h¹¹ on the end of the bridge are in two parts, the upper parts being
simply pressed on the lower parts by means of springs.
The working of the apparatus is as follows:
The current passes through the electro magnetic coils, then along wire f
through the circuit closer h h¹, along wire
strips z¹ 21 piece e¹,
through the
wire c', circuit closer i ¹, wire f2 back to its original source.
As soon as the current is connected in this manner, the armature m¹ will be
drawn on by the magnet f³, the longer arm m¹ of the lever sinks and the friction
wheels is brought into contact with the larger friction wheel s¹.
The friction wheel s¹ will in consequence be set in motion, for as already
explained the smaller friction wheel s revolves continually by means of the system
of wheels 2 ppp and shaft H. As long as the wheel s¹ revolves the trans.
port belt will also remain in motion, and with it the sheets which have previously
been rubbed out on it. As soon as the fore-corner of the first sheet being carried
along, touches on the strips z¹ 2¹, they will be pushed away from the conducting
plate e¹. The current is of course immediately broken, the friction wheels falls
back and the larger friction wheel with the transport belt remains still. The sheet
will now be picked up by the lifters, placed on the cylinder and printed. The con-
ducting trips fall back when the current is again connected.
In order to hold the sheet which is to be printed properly on to the transport
belt, the roller c is fixed over the transport belt. The weight of this roller c
causes sufficient friction between the sheets to be printed and the transport belt
for the transport of the former.
The roller c has adjustable bearings, and may be placed at any height corre-
sponding to the amount of paper which is placed on the transport band.
The sheets pass from the transport hand 6 on to the cross piece n and after
having pushed back the circuit closers 2¹¹, will be picked up by the lifters g."
As will be seen from fig. 1ª, the sheets are rubbed out on the transport belt
and the roller c is placed at such distance from the cross bar n that just as the
lifters grasp the bottom sheet d' at its one end, its other end is released, having
passed under roller c. This roller c however is still pressing on the other sheets,
the end of the next sheet above d¹ still lying under the roller, so that it is
not possible for any other sheets to be drawn out with the bottom sheet in which
case they would be crumpled up and would necessitate stoppage of the machine.
By the next movement of the transport belt sheet end d² will be brought into
exactly the same position as d', and thus the sheets will be picked up and drawn
out one after the other.
In the above, an apparatus is described, in which the transport belt is moved
at intervals by the working of an electro magnet. Electrical power has been here
more nearly described on account of its particular appropriateness, but other means
such for instance as mechanical or pneumatical contrivances could of course by
brought into use just as well. The important feature of the invention is that the

page_text: sheets to be printed are automatically brought to the lifters by a transport belt
which shall be moved at intervals and receives its motion from the printing press
itself.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion, and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is:
In printing presses:
1.) The combination of a transport belt, consisting of an endless band running
on two rollers and moved forwards intermittently, for the purpose, substantially
as described.
2.) The combination of a transport belt a a, having rollers bb intermittently
moved forwards by means of electricity the advancing sheet of paper breaking
the contact by means of hinged circuit closers, the circuit being closed
again as soon as the sheet has been picked up by the lifters, in the manner sub-
stantially as described.
3.) The combination with a transport belt intermittently moved forwards, of the
rollers c having adjustable bearings and being adjustable at different distances from
the hinged circuit closers 2¹ z¹, in the manner and for the purpose, substantially
as described.
r
4.) The combination of a transport belt a a having rollers bb revolved by means
of friction wheels s s¹, lever m pivoted on 68 and having armature m¹; cog wheels r
and bevel wheels with hinged circuit closers z¹ z¹ and piece el on bridge J,
for causing intermittent movement of said transport band and with roller c for
holding the paper in place, in the manner substantially as described.
1000
WILHELM HEIDENHAIN.
HERMANN HOFFMANN.
WILHELM HEIDELMANN.
By Rayner & Cassell,
37, Chancery Lane, London, Agents for the Applicants.