IMPROVED MEANS AND APPARATUS FOR AUTO- MATICALLY FEEDING SHEETS OF PAPER INTO PRINTING PRESSES, AND THE DELIVERY OF SUCH SHEETS AFTER THE PRINTING
Year: 1878

page_text: JETTERS PATENT to James Graddon, of Barnes, in the County of Surrey,
Engineer, for the Invention of "IMPROVED MEANS AND APPARATUS FOR AUTO-
MATICALLY FEEDING SHEETS OF PAPER INTO PRINTING PRESSES, AND THE
DELIVERY OF SUCH SHEETS AFTER THE PRINTING."
Scaled the 24th December 1878, and dated the 3rd July 1878.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said James Graddon at the Office
of the Commissioners of Patents on the 3rd July 1878.
66 IMPROVED
JAMES GRADDON, of Barnes, in the County of Surrey, Engineer.
MEANS AND APPARATUS FOR AUTOMATICALLY FEEDING SHEETS OF PAPER INTO
PRINTING PRESSES, AND THE DELIVERY OF SUCH SHEETS AFTER THE PRINTING."
According to iny Invention, I arrange sheets of paper to be printed within a box
or frame in a superposed manner. The box or frame is capable of being raised a
distance proportionate to the thickness of the paper by vertical rods which carry
the base plate. The rods are threaded, and their lower ends are fitted with bevil
pinions geared into by corresponding wheels upon a cross shaft, this carrying a
ratchet wheel operated by a paul through a lever, which can be adjusted to the
throw as to suit the thickness of the paper to be operated upon.
The upper part of the apparatus is provided with pushers or pressers to act upon
the top sheet of paper, to shift it from its position to enable one edge to project, and
to permit a knife edge, blade, or a series of them to slide in under the sheet and
lift it slightly above for a further travel of the blade to take the sheet entirely upon
its surface, the blade being then carried end on along with the sheet of paper under
the type for the printing operation to be effected. The centre portion of the front
end or edge of the blade is preferably rounded and in advance of the other part, so

page_text: that the blade finds its own entry under the paper after the rounded portion has
entered.
The blade, according to the above description, acts as the table of the printing
press, but it may be of skeleton form to under-run and carry the paper to and over
a fixed table, the skeleton frame lodging in grooves clear of the table surface.
The reverse movement of the table or of skeleton frame takes the printed
paper partly back towards the layer of paper, where it becomes released and falls
off, the table or the skeleton frame continuing its travel for a fresh sheet to be
printed!

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed by
the said James Graddon in the Great Seal Patent Office on the 3rd January
1879.
JAMES GRADDON, of Barnes, in the County of Surrey, Engineer. "IMPROVED
MEANS AND APPARATUS FOR AUTOMATICALLY FEEDING SHEETS OF PAPER INTO
PRINTING PRESSES, AND THE DELIVERY OF SUCH SHEETS AFTER THE PRINTING."
According to my Invention, I arrange sheets of paper to be printed within a box
or frame in a superposed manner. The box or frame is capable of being raised a
distance proportionate to the thickness of the paper by vertical rods which carry
the base plate. The rods are threaded, and their lower ends are fitted with bevil
pinions geared into by corresponding wheels upon a cross shaft, this carrying a
ratchet wheel operated by a paul through a lever, which can be adjusted to the
throw as to suit the thickness of the paper to be operated upon.
The upper part of the apparatus is provided with pushers or pressers to act upon
the top sheet of paper, to shift it from its position to enable one edge to project, and
to permit a knife edge, blade, or a series of them to slide in under the sheet and
lift it slightly above for a further travel of the blade to take the sheet entirely.
upon its surface, the blade being then carried end on along with the sheet of paper
under the type for the printing operation to be effected. The centre portion of
the front end or edge of the blade is preferably rounded and in advance of the
other part, so that the blade finds its own entry under the paper after the rounded
portion has entered.
The blade, according to the above description, acts as the table of the printing
press, but it may be of skeleton form to under-run and carry the paper to and
over a fixed table, the skeleton frame lodging in grooves clear of the table surface.
The reverse movement of the table or of the skeleton frame takes the printed
paper partly back towards the layer of paper, where it becomes released and falls
off, the table or the skeleton continuing its travel for a fresh sheet to be printed..
My Invention will be clearly understood by the accompanying Drawings,
which represents sufficient of a printing press with my feeding apparatus for that.
purpose.
Figure 1 is a top view of a table A with a slot or opening over which the
sliding plate B is arranged. This plate has a thin or knife edge at its front, and
a tongue C for running under a sheet of paper that is placed in its path, so as
to lift the paper from the pile and cause it to fall upon tho plate in a position to
be printed upon when the plate and paper move under the type, which is effected
by a back travel of the plate.
The pile of paper in sheets is upon a plate D at, say, the lower end of a frame,
fitted directly under the press head E, and the plate has a rising motion by screw
and pinion gear F, G, from a slotted rod H, by which an adjustment of motion can
be made by a tightening nut I, on the lower end of a lever J, operated from a crank
or other agent, as found convenient.
The paper frame is supported and guided by four ✓ shaped corner pieces of
metal K, which also serve as guides to the paper to keep the sheets square, as in
Figures 2 and 3.
The plate D on which the paper rests bears upon a spring K', and a lever L is
fitted and acted upon by a paul M engaging into the teeth of a rack N depending
from the side of the machine frame P.
The rack N is hung from a pin Q fitted in a slotted hole of the frame P, and at
each backwards travel of the sliding plate B, a wedge piece R, connected to the
sliding plate, forces itself under the pin to lift it a short distance, and thus cause a
depression of the pile of paper that the plate B may pass freely without in-
fluencing the then top sheet of the pile.
-
At each forward travel of the sliding plate B a gathering foot R' presses
lightly upon the top sheet and slides it along to one of its edges, projects beyond

page_text: the pile, at the same instant a knife-edged lifter S is caused to lift the exposed edge
sufficiently high as to bring the paper into the path of the sliding plate B, for
that top sheet to be removed, as before explained. The edge-lifter plate S is
operated from a rock lever S¹ by a knob or lug connected to the sliding plate B.
The four shaped upright corner guides K, K, are adjustable in slots a to suit
different size sheets of paper, as will be understood by Figure 4.
T is the inking table, and U is the roller carrier, which in its to-and-fro travel
cause the rollers V, V, to take ink from the table and apply the ink to the surface
of the type, which is arranged with its face downwards within the chase arranged
in the press head or "force" E.
Figure 5 shows how my Invention can be applied to a "Cropper" machine.
In this case, instead of the paper sheets being in superposed order, they aro
arranged upon edge upon a plate Y, along which they can be slid gradually by a
back rest Z, this being operated by a screw band nut from any moving part of the
machine in an intermittent manner.
As cach paper sheet is presented the sliding plate B moves downwards and
separates it froms the remainder; the sheet then resting against the plate B, with
the paper in position for the printing operation to be effected by the type in the
hinged table E.
As each sheet is separated, dog levers d, d, are caused to bear against the paper
as to hold it in a vertical position until the printing is completed, and when the
table E falls back again for a fresh inking of the type the dogs d, d, leave their
hold of the paper to permit it to fall through a gap on to a receiving board.
Figure 6 is a view of a circular table, by which small sheets of paper can bo
separated from several piles by the plates B, B, which correspond to the sliding
plates before referred to, so that more than one sheet can be printed in the same
imachine at a time, instead of only one sheet as by the reciprocating sliding-plate
method described with reference to Figures 1, 2, and 3.
Having now described the nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the
same is to be performed, I declare that I claim,—
The appliances herein-before mentioned, and shown in the annexed Drawings,
Figures 1, 2, 3, 4, for enabling sheets of paper to be separated from a pile
which has a gradual rising motion imparted, said sheets of paper in succession
being brought into position by and upon a sliding plate to be printed thercon, as
set forth.
"
Secondly. The apparatus shown at Figure 5 and described, by which paper in
sheets can be separated by and held against a sliding plate in combination with
dogs," that the printing of said sheets may be effected in a "Cropper" or like
machine.
Thirdly. I claim fitting sliding lift plates in or to a circular frame printing press
for lifting or separately sheets of paper or cards from a pile to present them to the
type for printing purposes, as described with reference to Figure 6 of the annexed
Drawings.
In witness whereof, I, the said James Graddon, have hereunto set my hand
and scal, this Third day of January, in the year of our Lord One