IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS EMPLOYED IN THE ENGRAVING, MILLING, OR CHASING OF ROLLERS OR CYLINDRICAL SURFACES
Year: 1876

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to George Moulton, of the City of Manchester, in the County
of Lancaster, Engineer, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS
EMPLOYED IN THE ENGRAVING, MILLING, OR CHASING OF ROLLERS OR
CYLINDRICAL SURFACES."
Sealed the 17th April 1877, and dated the 27th October 1876.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said George Moulton at the Office
of the Commissioners of Patents on the 27th October 1876.
GEORGE MOULTON, of the City of Manchester, in the County of Lancaster,
Engineer. "IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS EMPLOYED IN THE ENGRAVING, MILLING,
OR CHASING OF ROLLERS OR CYLINDRICAL SURFACES."
My Invention relates principally to apparatus employed in the engraving or
chasing of metal printing rollers, but is also applicable wholly or in part to
apparatus used or suitable for use in the engraving, milling, or chasing of rollers or
cylindrical surfaces.
In certain apparatus the roller to be engraved revolves at the same time that a
carriage carrying a cutting tool is caused to traverse, whereby diagonal or spiral
lines are cut upon the surface of the roller. Previously to my said Invention,
motion has been imparted to the said carriage by means of a rack and pinion.
According to the first part of my Invention I employ a screw in lieu of a rack,
and I impart movement to the said carriage by means of a nut which is mounted
upon the said carriage and is caused to revolve upon the said screw when the
carriage is traversed. A second part of my Invention relates to means whereby is
effected the "indexing" which determines the distance apart of the lines cut upon
the roller or cylindrical surface.
According to this part of my Invention I employ the said screw and also a shaft
which is arranged to revolve in unison with the said nut and which transmits
motion to the body to be chased, say for example a copper roller, and I effect the
said "indexing" by rotating the said screw at the required intervals and to a
suitable extent.
In apparatus which I have devised for the purpose, the said screw is mounted in
bearings and the said shaft is also mounted in bearings and arranged in position
parallel with the said screw, the said nut being arranged to be rotated by the

page_text: operator. The said carriage may be guided and sustained by the said screw and
shaft alone, or be fitted to slide upon the bed, as preferred. The said shaft is con-
nected by gearing with the said nut, the connection permitting the traverse of the
said nut, and the shaft is connected at one end by means of gearing or change
wheels with a worm which works in a wheel which is connected with the said
roller. On one end of the said screw is fixed a worm wheel with which gears a
worm which is connected by change wheels with a handle or lever which works in
conjunction with a notch plate. A rack is arranged to be actuated by means of a
treadle, and when moved in one direction gears with a spur pinion, and thereby
imparts movement to the train of gearing which gives motion to the said screw.
An incline or part carried by the said rack disengages the said handle from the
notch plate and permits the said motion to be effected. The said rack is moved out
of gear with the said pinion before making a return movement. The said rack is
guided by means of a piece which is mounted on a fixed stud and is shunted from
one to the other of two connected grooves as the said rack commences its acting or
its return movement.
This arrangement may be varied, and if preferred the rack may remain in gear
with the said pinion and the latter be fitted to revolve in one direction without
actuating the train of gearing. The entire arrangement enables the operator to
effect the said "indexing" by simply pressing upon the said treadle with his foot
without removing his hands from the handles by means of which he governs the
action of the chasing tool.
The arrangement for rotating the screw may also be employed when milling or
when engraving or chasing other than diagonal or spiral lines.
Other appliances may be substituted for the said treadle, as for example, a sliding
rod actuated by hand may give motion to the aforesaid rack, or a revolving rod also
actuated by hand may impart motion to the said train of gearing, in which latter
case the dividing motion or notch plate and handle may be mounted on the
carriage.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed by
the said George Moulton in the Great Seal Patent Office on the 27th April
1877.
GEORGE MOULTON, of the City of Manchester, in the County of Lancaster,
Engineer. "IMPROVEMENTS IN APPARATUS EMPLOYED IN THE ENGRAVING, MILLING,
OR CHASING OF ROLLERS OR CYLINDRICAL SURFACES."
My Invention relates principally to apparatus employed in the engraving or
chasing, that is to say, lining of metal printing rollers, but is also applicable wholly
or in part to apparatus used or suitable for use in the milling of rollers or cylindrical
surfaces.
In certain apparatus the roller to be engraved revolves at the same time that a
carriage carrying a cutting tool is caused to traverse, whereby diagonal or spiral
lines are cut upon the surface of the roller. Previously to my said Invention,
motion has been imparted to the said carriage by means of a rack and pinion.
According to the first part of my Invention I employ a screw in lieu of a rack,
and I impart movement to the said carriage by means of a nut which is mounted
upon the said carriage and is caused to revolve upon the said screw when the
carriage is traversed.
A second part of my Invention relates to means whereby is effected the
"indexing" which determines the distances apart of the lines cut upon the roller or
cylindrical surface, and is also applicable wholly or in part to machines employed in
milling or in the engraving or chasing of other than spiral lines.
In apparatus for cutting the said spiral lines I employ the said screw and also a
shaft which is arranged to revolve in unison, with the said nut, and which transmits

page_text: motion to the body to be engraved, say for example a copper roller, and I effect the
said indexing by rotating the said screw at the required intervals and to a
suitable extent. When milling or when engraving or chasing other than spiral.
lines I employ the arrangement for rotating the screw or a similar arrangement to
rotate the roller.
And in order that my said Invention may be more readily described and
understood have appended hereunto two Sheets of Drawings marked with
letters of reference, corresponding marks indicating the same parts in the various
Figures.
Referring in this place to Sheet 1 of the said Drawings, Fig. 1, drawn to a scale
of about three inches to a foot, represents a front elevation of an engraving machine
fitted with the said screw and indexing apparatus; Fig. 2 is a front view,
and Fig. 3 a side view, partly in section, of the parts of the machine to which
my Invention more nearly relates, the two last named Figures being drawn about
half size.
The bed A of the machine is provided with standards and with other ordinary
appliances for sustaining, securing, and adjusting the roller to be engraved which is
represented by B. At each end of the said bed are formed bearings a in which a
screw b is fitted to revolve.
It is convenient for most classes of work to make the said screw of a coarse pitch
as indicated in the Drawing. A carriage C is fitted to slide upon the said bed as is
usual. In a part c which is formed on or attached to the said carriage a nut & is
fitted to revolve and is cut to suit the threads of the said screw, so that when the
said nut is revolved it will traverse upon the screw and thereby cause the said
carriage to slide upon the bed. A bevil wheel is formed on one end of the said nut
or is fixed thereon as the case may be and gears with a bevil wheel or pinion f which
is fixed upon a short shaft. In the example the said shaft is connected by spur
gearing, indicated by dotted lines, with a second shaft which is provided with a
handle h. The said spur gearing consists of two sets of gearing either of which can
be readily thrown into action, one set transmitting an increased speed and the other
set a reduced speed to the bevil pinion f, the object being to obtain a quick return
movement of the carriage. This quick return not being an important part of the
arrangement may be dispensed with, and if preferred the handle h may be mounted
or fixed on the same shaft as the bevil pinion f. The nut d is provided with lock
nuts in order that endwise play of the said nut in its seating may be avoided, and
if considered necessary the said nut may be formed in halves capable of being
adjusted so as to prevent or lessen the back-lash.
The second part of my Invention is also partly illustrated by the same Figures.
A shaft i is fitted to revolve in bearings at each end of the bed and is arranged to
be parallel with the screw b, and the said shaft is connected by change gearing k
with the spur wheel which is fixed on the roller mandril as is usual. A spur
wheel m is fixed upon a bush which is fitted to revolve in a bored bearing in the
part c, or the said spur wheel may be formed in one piece with the said bush. The
said bush is bored to slide upon the shaft i and is provided with a fast key which is
fitted to slide in a groove planed in the shaft i in order that the said bush and shaft
may revolve together, or other arrangements to obtain the same result may be
employed. The wheel m gears with a spur wheel n which is fixed on the nut d.
The effect of the arrangement is that when the said nut is rotated by means of
the handle the carriage is caused to slide upon the bed and thereby to traverse the
cutting tool in the direction of the length of the roller, and at the same time the
shaft is rotated and the roller B is thereby caused to rotate, the speeds of traverse
of the cutting tool and of rotation of the roller being always in proportion one to
the other, whereby the required diagonal lines may be engraved upon the roller.
Upon one end of the screw b is fixed a worm wheel o with which gears a worm on
a shaft p. The last-named shaft is connected by means of spur gearing with a
shaft q. The said gearing is indicated by dotted lines and is changable in order

page_text: .
that the extent of each movement transmitted to the screw may be increased or
decreased to suit the work in hand. The intermediate wheels are carried by
adjustable stud plates f¹. On the shaft q is fixed a wheel r which gears with a
racks which is formed or fixed on a part t. In the back of this part are formed
two grooves which run into each other at their ends, as seen in Fig. 2.
A guide represented separately in Fig. 4 is formed with a shaft which is
mounted in a hole bored in a part which is on the bracket D, which latter is fixed
to the bed of the machine. The said guide is arranged to slide in the said grooves
and is provided with a weight which tends to turn the said guide in the direction
indicated by the arrow. The lower end of the part t is jointed to one end of a
lever w which is mounted on a. stud fixed in the framing. The other end of the said
lever is connected by means of a spring a with a treadle y which by preference
extends from end to end of the machine or thereabouts. When the operator
depresses the said treadle by means of his foot the part t is pushed upwards, the
spring being intended to prevent any violent shock from being transmitted to the
gearing. When the treadle is released the part t is moved downwards. When the said
part is rising the guide u is in the groove 1 and the rack s is in gear with the wheel?"
and imparts a revolving movement thereto. When the part t reaches the limit of
its upward movement the weight turns the guide u so that the point thereof which
is the highest in the Drawing is moved into the entrance to the groove 2. On the
descent of the said part the said guidė is shunted into the groove 2, whereby the
rack is moved out of gear with the wheel r and the said rack descends without
turning the said wheel. When the part t is moved upwards again the said guide
becomes shunted into groove 1, and the rack is thereby moved into gear with the
wheel.
Upon the shaft q is mounted a handle z which furnishes means for rotating
the said shaft by hand and also for determining the amount of its rotation. The
said handle is hinged by means of pointed set screws or by other suitable means to
a frame a¹ which is secured to the said shaft. On a part fixed or formed on the
bracket D are formed two inclines 61 which are curved to suit the path of rotation
of the handle and between the highest parts of these inclines a recess to fit the said
handle is formed, the arrangement being such as that when the said handle is
rotated it runs up one of the inclines and enters the said recess, being acted upon by
a spring which tends to force the handle into the said recess. The arrangement will
be readily understood being similar to arrangements employed in wheel cutting and
other apparatus, and such, arrangement may be modified, the object being to limit
each movement of the handle to exactly one revolution.
If considered desirable the handle may be arranged to move a portion of a
revolution, say for example, one half. A part c¹ which I will term a trigger is fitted
to slide in a socket formed in a fixed part on the bracket D, and is formed with an
incline upon which the handle z acts when approaching the aforesaid recess, the said
trigger being pushed inwards towards the part t by the said handle. Upon the
part t is fixed or formed an incline (which acts upon one end of the said trigger
and causes it to slide within its socket, whereby the other end of the said trigger is
caused to bear against the handle and to push it out of the said recess preparatory
to a rotating movement of the said handle.
"
2
The action of the arrangement is as follows:-At about the time when the
operator runs back" the carriage preparatory to the commencement of each
engraved line he presses upon the treadle with his foot, whereby the part t with the
rack is pushed upwards and the incline d'acting upon the said trigger effects the
release of the handle z. The first tooth of the rack now strikes a tooth of the
wheel r, and the rack gearing with the said wheel rotates it until the handle has
made an entire revolution, when the handle enters the said recess and the rotation
of the wheel r ceases. The rotatory movement thus imparted to the roller is
communicated through the change gearing and the worm and worm wheel to the
screw b, which is caused to make a partial rotation, thereby effecting the indexing
or spacing between the last line cut and the next line to be cut. It will be seen

page_text: that the tooth with which the leading tooth comes into contact is made longer and
stronger than the other teeth, as I have found this to be a good formation, but I do
not confine myself thereto.
When the rack approaches the limit of its upward movement an adjustable
screw e¹ comes in contact with the said longer tooth of the wheel r and imparts the
last movement to the said wheel required to complete its revolution. When the
operator releases the treadle the rack descends, moving out of gear with the wheel r,
in manner as herein aforesaid.
The indexing may also be effected by means of the handle z, which also furnishes
means for sliding the tool carriage greater distances than the interval between two
engraved lines.
The Figures on Sheet 2 are drawn about half the full linear dimensions and
illustrate the application of my Invention to "milling machines." In this example
the method of rotating the screw bis employed to rotate the roller during the
milling operations. A revolving shaft E is employed to actuate the rack in lieu of
the treadle, the said shaft also actuating the parts of the machine which raise and
lower the mill. The rack is formed upon a lever F which is hinged by its lower end
to a slotted lever G which is arranged to vibrate upon a stud H. Upon the shaft E
is fixed a snail cam I, to which is fixed a stud which works in a block which is
fitted to slide in the slot in the lever G. As the said cam revolves the lever is
caused to vibrate by the action of the stud and the rack is moved up and down,
the arrangement furnishing a "quick return" movement, the downward movement
of the rack being effected more quickly than the upward movement. The upper
part of the lever F is slotted, and a pin or bowl J which is carried by the upper
end of a lever K enters the slot in the lever F. The lever K is mounted upon a
stud L which is carried by a part fixed to the bed of the machine. The lower end
of the lever K is formed with a bowl which works in the groove of the cam I; as
the said cam revolves it causes the lever K to vibrate to and fro on its fulcrum,
whereby the bowl on the upper end of the said lever moves the rack towards and
from a wheel M which is connected by intermediate changeable gearing with the
spur wheel which is fixed on the roller mandril, and is indicated by the dotted
line N.
The shaft of the wheel M is provided with a lever O which acts in conjunction
with a notch plate to regulate the extent of revolution of the said wheel, as in the
example illustrated in Sheet 1; The wheel M is also formed with one enlarged tooth
in this example. The parts are represented in the positions assumed when the rack
has been moved into gear by the action of the cam, and has been raised by
the lever G until the first tooth of the rack bears against the enlarged tooth of the
wheel M. The upward movement of the rack continuing the lever O leaves the
notch or recess in the notch plate and the rack engages with the teeth of
the wheel M and causes it to make a revolution. When the rack approaches the
limit of its upward movement an adjustable screw, P comes into contact with the
aforesaid enlarged tooth and imparts the last movement to the wheel required to
complete the revolution thereof, as in the case of the screw e¹ in Sheet 1; as the
cam continues its revolution the rack is drawn back by the bowl J and the said
rack is drawn downwards by the lever G, to be in readiness for the next action
upon the wheel M. Each movement is communicated to the roller, being milled by
means of the intermediate gearing, the proportions of which are adjusted to the
nature of the work in hand. As the rotation of the roller is intermittent, and as
the roller may be arranged to remain at rest during all the period during which the
mill is lifted or withdrawn from contact with the roller, or from action thereupon,
the impressions of the mill may be caused to be close together; that is to say,
without intervals or without blank spaces between the impressions, whereby a
connected pattern resulting from several impressions may be produced.
When required intervals or blank spaces may be obtained between the said
impressions, and the comparative extent of each interval may be regulated by

page_text: means of the changable gearing, and if necessary by regulating the comparative
duration of each lift of the mill.
Having now fully described and indicated the nature of my said Invention, and
means whereby the same may be carried into practical effect, I would have it to be
understood in conclusion that I do not limit myself to the precise details described
and illustrated, as such details may be modified, so long as the actions of the
principal parts are retained, but that I claim,-
First. The employment of a screw in connection with a revolvable nut carried by
the tool carriage, substantially as and for the purposes set forth and indicated.
Secondly. The employment of a screw to actuate the tool carriage in conjunction
with a parallel shaft actuating the roller or body to be engraved and connected
with the said revolvable nut, substantially as set forth and indicated.
Thirdly. The employment of a spur wheel and pinion actuated at intervals by
means of a spur rack, which is arranged to be moved into and out of gear, sub-
stantially as and for the purpose set forth and indicated.
And, lastly. The combination and arrangement of parts formed and acting sub-
stantially as and for the purposes set forth and indicated herein-before and in and
by the accompanying Drawings.
In witness whereof, as the said George Moulton, have hereunto set my hand
and seal, this Twenty-sixth day of April, in, the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and seventy-seven.
Signed and sealed by the
said George Moulton
in the presence of
EDWARD K. DUTTON,
Agent to the Patentee,
3, Princess Street,
Manchester.
GEORGE MOULTON. (L.S.)