Improvements in the Trimming Mechanism of Linotype Machines.
Year: 1895

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in the Trimming Mechanism of Linotype Machines.
We, THE LINOTYPE COMPANY, LIMITED, of No. 6 Serjeant's Inn, Fleet
Street, in the City of London, Sole Proprietors of the Linotype Patents and
Sole Manufacturers and Licensors thereunder, and FERDINAND JOHN WICH Of
No. 11 Hulme Street, Oxford Road, Manchester, in the County of Lancaster,
Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
Our invention relates to improvements in the trimming mechanism of linotype
machines, and the object of it is to prevent loss and damage, and to expedite work,
when the machine is engaged in producing linotypes some of which begin with
2-line capitals.
Those who are familiar with the machine production of linotypes or printing
bars, are aware that there is a certain amount of trimming to be done to both their
sides. The 2-line capital at the head of a linotype has the lower half of it,
projecting beyond the adjacent side of the linotype. Such projection therefore
renders the trimming of the sides of such linotype, by its being passed between a
pair of parallel trimming knives as long as itself, impracticable, for the reason that
such passage would result in the lower half of the capital being shorn off. To
prevent such shearing off, it has been proposed to make the respective knife
end capable of being moved out of the way before the advance of the 2-line
capital linotype to the trimming mechanism and of being replaced in its normal
position before the advance of the next normal linotype. The provision at present
in use for so moving the said knife end out of the way has been essentially of a
type for hand manipulation only, and for that reason demanding alert attention on
the part of the mind, the eye and the hand of the operator; or loss of time and
material, damage to linotypes and delayed output, are more or less inevitable.
The details of the provisiou above mentioned will be found in the Specifications
of Letters Patent No. 82581594 and are as follows. The respective knife end is in
a separate piece from the rest of the knife but it is pivotted thereto so as to
be capable of being turned by a winch handle through a quarter of a circle and
that in the plane of the whole knife. The pivot is so positioned that the tail of
the knife end, i.e., the piece of the latter on the side of the pivot opposite to the
trimming edge, stands, after the winch handle has been turned through the
distance stated, at a distance from the rest of the knife greater than the width of
the projection of the 2-line capital thereby establishing a clear way for the
passage of such projection. But if the operator does not turn the winch handle
at the right moment, the 2-line capital linotype will lose the said projection and if
he does not turn the winch handle back in time, the next normal linotype will be
imperfectly trimmed.
The present invention consists broadly in an automatic provision for moving
the knife end above described out of the way and for bringing it back again.
This provision consists of the combination of a trip lever adapted to be tripped
through a short but certain distance by the naturally small rigidity of the
projection on the end of the linotype bar, in the direction of being moved out of
the path of a stud or block on or connected to the knife; a device constantly
urging the said knife in the direction of its edge out of the way of the advancing

page_text: projection, and mechanism for completing the motion of the knife and also for
returning the latter.
In carrying the invention into effect, the knife on the projection side of the
linotype is made to slide in a suitable guide and in the direction of its edge, under
the action of a spring in tension, or of some other suitable agent. The length of
the travel of the said knife is just enough to provide a clear way for the projection.
It should be noted that the trimming knives of a present day linotype machine
are vertical.) The knife is held up in its normal position by the engagement of
two detents with a stop on the knife. The stop consists of a stud fast on the knife
and a bar pivotted on a stud at a short distance from the side of the knife block
and into a short slot in which bar the stud enters. One of the two detents above
mentioned is the end of a trip lever described further on. This end stands under
the bar near the end of the latter, which has a convex bottom corner. On the
other side of the trip bar end, the pivotted bar carries a downward extension the
lower edge of which is engaged by a bar slid under it once during each cycle of
the casting operations, and adapted thereby to act as a firm support during the
engagement last referred to, for the knife against the above mentioned action of
the spring in tension. The last mentioned bar carries vertical extension on the
upper edge of it close to one end, and it is this extension that engages with the
downward extension above mentioned. The opposite end of the said last mentioned
bar is connected to the mould slide of the machine. These two corners of the two
extensions which are the last in touch as the vertical extension is slid past the
downward extension, are preferably rounded off convex.
The trip lever extends from the bar already mentioned as being in contact with
it, to as far as the path taken by the projection on the linotype on its way from
the mould to the trimming apparatus. It has its fulcrum on some convenient
fixed point. That end of it which is on the opposite side of its fulcrum to the
end already mentioned, stands in the path of the projection on the linotype, at a
distance from the trimming apparatus sufficient to allow of the motions leading
up to the drop of the knife in question, being effected before the linotype reaches
the trimming edges.
The action of the invention is as follows. When the projection on the linotype
comes up to the end of the trip lever, the opposition thereof to the progress of
the projection being less than the rigidity of the latter although it is made of
nothing harder than type metal, the opposite end of the said trip lever is pulled
away from the horizontal edge of the pivotted bar on to the convex corner
thereof. The mould slide is now in motion and pushes the vertical extension or
support above mentioned past the downward extension. The pivotted bar is now
practically unsupported, because the trip lever end is under a convex corner of it
instead of under its horizontal edge. Consequently, the tension spring, pulls the
knife down out of the path of the projection on the linotype. The return motion
of the mould slide makes the vertical projection or support engage the downward
extension on the pivotted bar, and, by raising it, lift the knife into its normal
position, whereupon a returning spring re-engages the trip lever under the
horizontal edge of the said bar.
It will thus be seen that it is the 2-line capital that compels the trimming
apparatus to modify its position so as to spare the projection, and some one of the
cycle of casting operations that replaces the adjusted knife, so that the machine
itself keeps its trimming apparatus always set for normal linotypes and changes it
only when the 2-line capital has made its presence felt, so demanding no attention
whatever from the operator.
Dated this 21st day of January 1805
PHILLIPS & LEIGH,
Agents for the Applicants.

page_text: Improvements in the Trimming Mechanism of Linotype Machines.
We THE LINOTYPE COMPANY, LIMITED, of No. 6 Serjeant's Inn, Fleet
Street, in the City of London, Sole Proprietors of the Linotype Patents_and
Sole Manufacturers and Licensors thereunder, and FERDINAND JOHN WICH
of No. 11 Hulme Street, Oxford Road, Manchester, in the County of Lancaster,
Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention, and the manner in
which it is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and
by the following statement :-
•
Our invention relates to improvements in the trimming mechanism of linotype
machines; and the object of it is to prevent loss and damage, and to expedite work,
when the machine is engaged in producing linotypes some of which begin with
2-line capitals.
Those who are familiar with the machine production of linotype or printing bars,
are aware that there is a certain amount of trimming to be done to both their sides.
The 2-line capital at the head of a linotype has the lower half of it, projecting
beyond the adjacent side of the linotype. Such projection or apron therefore,
renders the trimming of the sides of such linotype, by its being passed between a
pair of parallel trimming knives as long as itself, impracticable, for the reason that
such passage would result in the lower half-the above mentioned projection or
apron of the capital being shorn off. To prevent such shearing off, it has been
proposed to make the respective knife-end capable of being moved out of the way
before the advance of the 2-line capital linotype towards the trimming mechanism
has brought it up to the cutting edges of the latter, and of being replaced in its
normal position before the advance of the next normal linotype. The provision at
present in use for so moving the said knife-end out of the way, has been essentially
of a type for hand manipulation only, and for that reason, one demanding alert
attention on the part of the mind, the eye, and the hand of the operator; or loss
of time and material, damage to linotypes and delayed output, are, more or less,
inevitable.
The details of the provision above mentioned will be found in the Specifications
of Letters Patent No. 8258184 and are as follows. The respective knife-end is
in a separate piece from the rest of the knife but it is pivotted thereto so as to be
capable of being turned by a winch through a quarter of a circle, and that in the
plane of the whole knife. The pivot is so positioned that the tail of the knife-end,
i.e., the piece of the latter on the side of the pivot opposite to the trimming edge,
stands, after the winch handle has been turned through the distance stated, at a
distance from the rest of the knife greater than the width of the projection or
apron of the 2-line capital, thereby establishing a clear way for the passage of such
projection or apron.
But if the operator docs not turn the winch handle at the
right moment, the 2-line capital linotype will lose the said projection or apron, and
if he does not turn the winch handle back in time, the next normal-linotype will be
imperfectly trimmed.
The present invention consists, broadly in an automatic provision for moving the
knife above described out of the way and for bringing it back again. This
provision consists in the combination of a trip lever adapted to be tripped
through a short but certain distance by the naturally small but sufficient
rigidity of the projection or apron on the end of the linotype bar, in the sense
of being moved out of the path of a stud or block on or connected to the said
knife; a device constantly urging the said knife, in the direction of its edge, out
of the way of the advancing projection or apron aforesaid, and mechanism for
completing the motion of the knife and also for returning the latter.

page_text: .
Referring to the accompanying drawings which are to be taken as part of this
Specification and read therewith,
Figure 1 is a side elevation, from the right hand of the operator, of part of the
vice frame, one of the knives, the mechanism for actuating it, the ejector-blade, and
part of the mould-wheel-slide.
Figure 2 is a rear elevation corresponding with Figure 1, but omitting the
ejector-blade and the mould-wheel-slide.
Figure 3 is a plan of Figure 1 including the mould-block and part of the mould-
wheel, both in section.
Figure is a rear elevation of the moveable knife and knife-guide.
Figure 5 is a side elevation from the right hand of the knife-guide.
Figure 6 is a plan of the trip lever.
Figure 7 is a rear elevation thereof.
Figure 8 is a side elevation from the right hand of the stop lever.
A is part of the pivotted vice frame; B, one of the fastening screws of the top
of the latter; C, the stationary jaw of the vice; D, the mould-wheel; E the
mould-wheel-slide; and F the ejector-blade. These parts are substantially the
same as are described in the Specification of Letters Patent No. 145821880.
The mechanism for actuating the mould-wheel-slide and the ejector-blade are both
omitted from the figures, for the reason that they, as well as the members they
actuate, are outside the present invention.
G, H are the two triniming knives; and g h their cutting edges. They are both
supported on the rear face of the vice frame A in a vertical position, parallel with
each other, and at the proper distance apart, as heretofore, for the passage of the
linotype and the ejector-blade F, but instead of both being stationary as hereto-
fore; only one of them, the one on the left. hand (looking at the machine from the
front) is stationary, the other G, being moveable. The reason why it is the right
hand knife that is moveable, is that the 2-line capital linotype presents itself
to the trimming knives with its projection or apron projecting to the right
hand.
The knife G is moveable in the direction of its cutting edge g in a guide J.
The latter may be of any suitable construction. It is made fast to the same
surface of the vice frame as the knife H. It is obvious that the length of the
travel in the guide which the knife G must be capable of, may not be less than
the width of the apron i¹, measuring across it in the direction of the length of the
linotype. This dimension presents itself in a vertical sense in connection with the
accompanying figures. The apron i¹ being at the top of the linotype, the travel of
the moveable knife G to clear the said apron must be downwards; and its return
travel to its normal position so as to be ready to trim the respective side of
the next linotype, which would be one not having a. 2-line capital, must be
upwards.
jis a stud projecting laterally from the right hand side of the moveable knife G
to which it must be made fast so that one cannot move without the other. According to
the construction illustrated, the stud is fast to a plate which is itself made fast
to the knife G by a series of holding screws j, j passed through a vertical slot ja in
the guide J. k is the stop-bar. It is pivotted on a stud 1 standing in front of the
stud and points towards the rear of the machine, past the side of the knife G; the
stud engaging in a slot in the bar k. Provided that the bar k is held in a
horizontal position, it obviously acts as a stop against the downward motion of
the knife G.
is a spiral spring in tension between 1, its fixed point or that from which it
pulls, and the outer end of the studj to which its opposite end is made fast, and on
which it pulls constantly. The action of this spring is, therefore, to constantly
urge the knife G in the direction of its cutting edge g, out of the way of, or to
clear the path of, the apron ; and the device in question may, for the purpose
of the present invention, be replaced by any other capable of doing the same
work.

page_text: n,
The device for holding the knife G up in its normal position for trimming the
adjacent side of an ordinary linotype, consists of a horizontal part k³ of the under.
side of the front end of the stop-bar k, which horizontal part merges in a convex
contour extending upwards to the rear end of the said bar, and a trip lever
the right hand end of which stands under the said horizontal part 2 of the stop-
bark, thereby holding up the knife G so long as the said lever is not tripped.
This trip lever n has its fulcrum in a vertical pivot n' supported in horizontal
brackets n², n² projecting from the rear face of the guide J. The opposite end n³
of the trip lever n, stops short of the cutting edge y, so as not to stand in the
path of the linotype proper i; but it presents its rear face full to the apron i.
The position of this rear face, is such with reference to the linotype and the
knife edge g, as will provide for the motions leading up to the downward travel of
the knife G, being effected before the linotype proper i reaches the knife edge g.
n is a spiral torsion spring about an upward continuation of the pivot n¹ and
adapted, by having one edge of it made fast to a fixed point and the opposite end
to the lever n at a suitable distance from the axis of the latter, to return it to its
normal position after it has been tripped, and as soon as the upward travel of the
convex contour ³ has made it possible for its right hand end to again stand under
horizontal part of the stop-bar k.
The mechanism for returning the knife G to its normal position, or in other
words, for imparting to it its upward travel already explained, consists of a
downward extension of the stop-bar k, an upward extension o of a bar o¹ adapted
to stand under the extension and in touch with it so long as the knife G is in
its normal position and the moulding mechanism in its rearward position; a
horizontal slot in the bar o'; a fixed stud o³ projecting laterally from the right
hand side of the vice frame A through the slot o³, thereby serving as a guide for
the motion of the bar o'; and a link o establishing a connection between the bar o'
and the mould-wheel-slide E through a stud e. The latter is one of a pair holding
the vet bar e' to the said slide. The latter slides to and fro in e³, part of the
frame of the machine; e³ being an intermediate bushing. The link o is detachable
from the slide E by means of the hasp like connection between the two indicated
in Figure 1.
The trip lever n serves as one detent to hold the mould knife G up against the
pull of the spring 1; and the upward extension o, as a second one. The former
is the one relied on for the purposes of the present invention.
The bottom front corner of the extension k³ and the top front corner of the
extension o, being destined to rub over each other, are convex to each other so as
to smoothen their mutual contact.
The action of the invention is as follows. The advance to the front of the
mould-wheel-slide E, pushes the detento to the front away from under the downward
extension of the pivotted bark, thereby leaving the moveable knife G held up
only by the trip lever n against the pull of the spring 1. The said advance has
also brought the said wheel and a subsequent partial revolution of the mould-
wheel D about its own axis into the position illustrated in Figure 3, in which it
is held steady by its engagement with the steadying pin d; the advanced position
of the mould-wheel-slide E being indicated in dotted lines. The ejector-blade F
is next pushed to the front, as indicated in the same figure, by its actuating
mechanism, and pushes the linotype i forward. The apron i¹ on the latter engages
the end of the trip lever n and trips the latter, throwing it into the position
indicated in dotted lines in the said figure. The knife G is pulled down by the
spring before the apron i reaches the vertical plane in which stand the cutting
edges g and h. The completion of the forward motion of the ejector-blade F
pushes the linotype i past the edges g, and h, thereby effecting the trimming of
both its sides, while the apron i passes unharmed either over the top of the
knife or through a notch therein. It is explained further on how the clear way
over the top of the knife, or that through the notch are the equivalents of each
other.

page_text: The return motion of the mould-wheel-slide E, makes the upward extension or
detento engage the downward extension on the pivotted bark and, by raising
it, put the knife G through its upward travel. As soon as the said knife has
attained its normal position, the torsion spring n swings the trip lever n under
the above horizontal part 2 of the stop-bar k, thereby holding the said knife up
in its normal position.
It will thus be seen that it is the 2-line capital that compels the knife G to
modify its position so as to spare the apron ', and some one of the cycle of casting
operations that replaces the adjusted knife, so that the machine itself keeps its
trimming apparatus always set for normal linotypes and changes it only when the
2-line capital has made its presence felt, so demanding no attention whatever from
the operator.
From the foregoing it will be gathered that so long as the construction and
operation of the machine, present the linotype to the trimming knives with the
projection at the top, so long must the latter pass over the top of the adjusted
knife: G excepting when the knives G and H are much longer than the linotypes
of the series of which the 2-line capital linotypes being made in the machine, are
individual members. In the latter case, the formation of a square notch or
gating in the edge g in the proper position, provides for the passing of the
projection, the bottom of the notch being treated by the said projection as if it
were the top of the moveable knife.
It must be understood that we do not limit ourselves to the detents or to the
mechanism for returning the moveable knife to its normal position in the precise
forms illustrated and described, as any modification thereof may be used, provided
that they are capable of discharging the respective functions specified. Farther,
it must be borne in mind that the bar o' may be linked to any member of the
machine, other than the one illustrated and described, provided that it reciprocates
regularly with the casting mechanism.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of our said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, we declare that what we
claim is :-
1. The combination with the trimming mechanism of a linotype machine, of
automatic mechanism for moving one knife out of the path of the projection or
apron on a 2-line capital linotype, said automatic mechanism being adapted to be
operated by the advance of such projection or apron, and a mechanism for returning
the said knife to its normal position, operated by the linotype machine itself.
2. The combination with the trimming mechanism of a linotype machine, of
automatic mechanism for moving one knife out of the path of the projection or
apron on a 2-line capital linotype, said automatic mechanism being adapted to be
operated by the advance of such projection or apron; mechanism for holding the
said knife to its normal position, operated by the linotype machine itself, and an
automatic device for holding the knife up in its normal position.
3. The combination of fixed trimming knife; trimming knife capable of motion
in the direction of its cutting edge; an automatic device for moving it in that
direction so as to clear the path of the projection or apron on a 2-line capital
linotype; trip lever adapted to support a stop for the moveable knife and to be
tripped by the advance of the above mentioned projection or apron; mechanism
operated by the retiring moulding mechanism to return the stop; and an automatic
device for returning the trip lever under it.
Dated this 21st day of November 1895.
PHILLIPS & LEIGH,
No. 22 Southampton Buildings, Chancery Lane, London, W.C.,
Agents for the Applicants.