IMPROVEMENTS IN THE PRODUCTION OF CURVED ELECTROTYPE PRINTING PLATES
Year: 1874

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to William Loftin, Trading under the Name of
William Richardson, of 14, Charles Street, Camberwell Road,
William Koolman, of 163, Stamford Street, Blackfriars Road, and
Alfred Joel Isger, of 2, Laburnum Villas, Lausanne Road, Queen's
Road, Peckham, all in the County of Surrey, for the Invention of
"IMPROVEMENTS IN THE PRODUCTION OF CURVED ELECTROTYPE PRINTING
PLATES."
Sealed the 4th May 1875, and dated the 3rd December 1874.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said William Loftin,
William Koolman, and Alfred Joel Isger at the Office of the
Commissioners of Patents, with their Petition, on the 3rd December
1874.
We, WILLIAM LOFTIN, Trading under the Name of William Richard-
son, of 14, Charles Street, Camberwell Road, WILLIAM KOOLMAN, of
163, Stamford Street, Blackfriars Road, and ALFRED JOEL Isger, of 2,
Laburnum Villas, Lausanne Road, Queen's Road, Peckham, all in the
County of Surrey, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention

page_text: for "IMPROVEMENTS IN THE PRODUCTION OF CURVED ELECTROTYPE PRINTING
PLATES," to be as follows:-
This Invention has for its object improvements in the production of
curved electrotypo printing plates. For this purpose we deposit the
copper in the ordinary way upon a flat surface, having the design upon
it, except that we deposit all around the desigh a plain broad band or
margin of the full thickness of the plate. We back the electrotype with
the ordinary electro backing metal, and we then protect the printing
surface by filling it with wax or other plastic composition, or it may be
simply by covering it with paper or cardboard. We then place the
electrotype plate between other plain metal plates united by much
stiffer plates than the electrotype itself, we employ steel plates by
preference, and wo pass the whole together between bending rollers, and
so we bend the electrotype to any radius we may require.
By bending stiffer plates together with the electrotype distortion is
avoided and a truc curve is obtained. The broad plain margins also aid
in preventing distortion; they are cut off when the bending operation is
complete.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, 2
filed by the said William Loftin, William Koolman, and Alfred
Joel Isger in the Great Seal Patent Office on the 3rd June 1875.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, wc, WILLIAM
LOFTIN, Trading under the Name of William Richardson, of 14, Charles
Street, Camberwell Road, WILLIAM KOOLMAN, of 163, Stamford Street, 2
Blackfriars Road, and ALFRED JOEL ISGER, of 2, Laburnum Villas,
Lausanne Road, Queen's Road, Peckham, all in the County of Surrey,
send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Third day of December, in the 3
year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-four, in
tho thirty-eighth year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and
successors, give and grant unto us, the said William Loftin, William
-

page_text: Koolman, and Alfred Joel Isger, Her special license that we, the said
Willian Loftin, William Koolman, and Alfred Joel Isger, our executors,
administrators, and assigns, or such others as we, the said William
Loftin, William Koolman, and Alfred Joel Isger, our executors, admini-
strators, 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 THE PRO-
DUCTION OF CURVED ELECTROTYPE PRINTING PLATES," upon the condition
(amongst others) that we, the said William Loftin, William Koolman,
and Alfred Joel Isger, our executors or administrators, by an instru-
ment in writing under our or their hands and seals, or under the hand
and seal of one of us or them, 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 dato of the said Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that we, the said William Koolman and Alfred Joel
Isger, on behalf of ourselves and the said William Loftin, 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 thereof, that is to say :-
-
This Invention has for its object improvements in the production of
curved electrotype printing plates. For this purpose we deposit the
copper in the ordinary way upon a flat surface, having the design upon
it, except that we deposit all around the design a plain broad band or
margin of the full thickness of the plate. We back the electrotype
with the ordinary electro backing metal, and we then protect the
printing surface by filling it with wax or other plastic composition, or
it may be simply by covering it with paper or cardboard. We then
place the electrotype plate between other plain- metal plates unitedly
much stiffer than the electrotype itself, we employ steel plates by pre-
ference, and we pass the whole together between bending rollers, and so
we curve the electrotype to any radius we may require.
By bending stiffer plates together with the electrotype distortion is
m1
1

page_text: In place of bending rollers a bending press may be employed.
In the Drawing hereunto annexed we have shown the machine we
employ for effecting the curving of the plates.
Figures 1 and 2 shew opposite side views of the upper part of the
machine, and Figure 3 shews the machine in perspective.
Figure 4 is a transverse section of the rollers shewing their action
upon the plates.
5
a, a, are the pair of rollers between which the plates are first intro- 1
duced; these are geared together on one side of the machine by the
toothed wheels b, b, and on the opposite side of the machine there is
fixed upon one of them a toothed wheel c into which gears a pinion d, the
axis of which can be driven by a crank handle as shewn; e is a table
upon which the plates to be curved are placed and are pushed forward 1
until their forward ends are taken hold of by the rollers a, the bearings
which carry the upper roller are adjustable by the screws fas shewn, so
that the rollers may be adjusted to nip the plates to any extent desired;
g, is the third roller by which the curving is effected; the bearings which
carry it can be raised or lowered by the screws has shown, and the 2
curve to which the plates are bent thus adjusted.
In carrying the electrotype plates by the machine above described, the
electrotype plates after they have been backed in the ordinary manner
are by preference placed on to three or four sheets of thin steel. A
sheet of thin cardboard or a few sheets of paper are then placed over the 2
printing surface of the electrotype, and again over this two or three
sheets of thin steel; the steel plates are as shewn at Figure 4 set to over-
lap the edge of the electrotype plate which is to enter first between the
rollers, and the lower plates to project more than the upper ones, so that
as the plates are moved forward by the rollers the curving of the plates 8
commences gradually, and no difficulty is experienced in commencing
the curving of the plates. In place of steel other metal plates may be
employed as before stated. In place also of the plates being placed both
above and below the electrotype plate, one or more metal plates may be
placed either above or below the electrotype plate, only according to the 3
nature of the design, the surface of the electrotype being protected by

page_text: paper or cardboard, either with or without the protecting composition,
according to circumstances.
Having thus described the nature of our Invention and the manner of
performing the same, we would have it understood that we claim the
production of curved electrotype printing plates, substantially in the
manner herein described.
In witness whereof, we, the said William Koolman and Alfred Joel
Isger, have hereunto set our hands and seals, this Third day of
June, in the year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and
seventy-five.
WILLIAM KOOLMAN. (L.S.)
ALFRED J. ISGER.
(L.S.)