Improvements in Paper-feeding and Folding Mechanisms for Printing Machinery.
Year: 1897

page_text: Date of Application, 4th May, 1897-Accepted, 19th June, 1897
[Communicated from abroad by Robert Hoe, of 504 Grand Street, in the City
of New York, State of New York, United States of America, Printing Press
Manufacturer.]
:/
1
Improvements in Paper-feeding and Folding Mechanisms for Printing
Machinery.
I HENRY EDWARD NEWTON of The Office for Patents, 6 Bream's Buildings,
Chancery Lane, in the County of London, Patent Agent, 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:-
The object of the present invention is to provide improved feeding devices for
advancing sheets or webs of paper or similar material, and especially to secure a
constant and uniform feed under proper pressure, by rollers or similar feeding
devices which operate by pressure upon the paper. While the feeding devices
embodying the broad invention are applicable to many other uses, the invention
has been designed especially for use in that class of folding mechanism generally
known as longitudinal folders, and the invention consists, in part, of features of
construction in such folders.
The class of folding mechanisms referred to are those which operate to impart a
longitudinal fold to material passing over or through them on the run, and more
particularly to such as are provided with a pair of converging internal folding
guides or formers, in passing over which, the material has its sides carried toward
each other, so as to be doubled or folded longitudinally. In such longitudinal
folders, adapted to fold sheets, tapes were formerly employed for advancing the
sheets over the folder, two series of tapes being used, or a series of external tapes
co-acting with internal plates. Such constructions were not entirely satisfactory
in operation, as it is difficult to secure and maintain by tapes the proper tension
at all points of the sheet, to assure its proper feed and accurate folding; the
construction requires careful attention to secure the best results; and there is
some danger of offsetting, as it is found in practice that several series of tapes,
engaging different parts of the sheets, are required for efficient action, the tapes
necessarily having but a slight hold upon the paper, as otherwise they would offset
too much for practical use Various feeding means engaging the margin of the
paper have been used, therefore, to avoid these objections to tape folders, such as
feeding rollers on the opposite sides of the folder converging from the internal
guides, as shown in British Letters Patent No. 10286 of 1892, tapes engaging the
margin of the paper, and pressed together by supports, so as to secure a positive
grip upon the paper, and grippers seizing the margin of the paper, both as shown
in British Letters Patent No. 18515 of 1893; and other feeding devices having a
positive hold upon the paper, as distinguished from tapes running upon the printed
portion of the paper, and necessarily having but a slight hold upon the paper, to
avoid offsetting.
The special object of the present invention is to provide an improved
construction of longitudinal folders employing positive feeding devices, and while
the invention is applicable in connection with such feeding devices or other forms

page_text: than rollers, and the invention, broadly considered, includes such other positive
feeding devices, results of especial value are secured by a construction employing
such rollers, and the invention consists, in part, of special combinations, including
such feeding rollers, and will be described and illustrated in connection
therewith.
In the use of such roller folders, it is found, in practice, that the rollers, being
preferably rubber faced, to secure the required feeding grip, are liable to wear
unequally, and, moreover, inaccuracies in the original form of the rollers, and
differences in thickness of paper sometimes occur, which, although slight, interfere
materially with that positive and uniform pressure of the rollers upon the paper
which is important for the feeding of sheets with certainty at the very high rates
of speed required of such folders. This difficulty is avoided by the use of an
elastic abutment co-acting with the rollers, and arranged to compensate for any
irregularities in the surface of the rollers or paper, this abutment preferably
being formed of a thin spring-pressed plate against which the rollers act, this
construction being found to secure the proper constant, uniform pressure, notwith-
standing irregularities in the surface of the feeding rollers, due to inaccuracies in
original form, wear, softening, etc., and variations in thickness of the paper.
Another feature of the invention relates to securing the feed of imperfect sheets,
or sheets that, for any reason, are not properly fed by the rollers or other positive
feeding devices. In using such roller folders in connection with printed paper,
it is important that the rollers should engage only the unprinted margin of the
paper, as these rollers, which are preferably made of rubber or similar gripping
material, are liable to offset and mut, if run upon the printed portion of the
paper. If the sheets are perfect, and fed accurately, such a construction, with
the rollers running upon the margin of the paper, is efficient, but it sometimes
happens, especially in running from a high-speed press, that the margin of the
paper may be turned under or torn or fractured, either being torn away for a
short distance, or, as is liable to happen, perforated and partially detached at the
inner edge of the margin by the edge of the printing form or plate. It may
sometimes happen also that the leading edge of the paper will catch upon the
edge of one of the rollers, so as to be turned under, and not fed properly by the
latter.
This difficulty is avoided by adding to the marginal rollers one or more tapes
on the opposite sides of the folder, converging from the internal guides, a single
tape on each side preferably being used in combination with plates serving as
abutments for the tapes, although it will be understood that inside and outside
tapes may be used, if preferred, as is common in the old and well-known tape
folders of this class. Both inside and outside rollers may be used, or only inside or
outside rollers coacting with a plate or other abutment. As the tapes may have
such a slight hold upon the paper that they do not offset and smut, and still assure
the proper feeding of the sheets in conjunction with the rollers, a construction of
roller folder is thus provided which secures the desired positive feed without
smutting, as the rollers run only on the margins, while at the same time the
tapes assure the feeding of sheets having defective margins, or not properly fed
by the rollers, for any other reason.
For a full understanding of the invention, a detailed description of a construction
embodying the same in its preferred form, will now be given in connection with the
accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification in which :-
Fig. 1 is a sectional side elevation of the folder in its preferred form, embodying
all the features of the invention.
Fig. 2 is a plan view, with the top plate broken away at the upper end.
Fig. 3 is a front elevation, with the top plate broken away at the point.
Fig. shows the rollers and abutment in detail.
Fig. 5 is a view similar to Fig. 3, showing a modified construction.
Referring to said drawings, it will be understood that the frame A may be of any
suitable construction, such as is common in web-printing and other machines

page_text: employing longitudinal folders of this class. B, C, are the internal guides, over
which the sides of the sheet are bent to form the fold, these internal guides being
shown as consisting of bars converging between the external guides or rolls D, and
to the pair of rolls E forming the fold-laying device, and from which the folded
sheet may be delivered directly, or pass to a delivery mechanism of any suitable
form.
The internal guides B, C, are supported, at their upper ends, by a bar G
extending across the top of the folder, and at their lower ends by a cross bar H,
pivottally mounted, so as to be vertically adjustable on a bar I, extending rearward
under the folder, and mounted in a bracket on the frame A in any suitable manner,
preferably so as to be adjustable longitudinally as usual in such constructions, the
proper position of the guides B, C, being thus secured. The folder may be left
open at the top, only the internal guides B, C, being used, but a top plate L,
extending between the internal guides, will preferably be used, to aid in supporting
the middle of the sheet, and to co-act with the tapes hereinafter described in feeding
the sheet, and this top plate L is shown as extended beyond and rearward of the
upper ends of the guides B, C, to a feeding roll M, coacting with a series of
pulleys N and tapes in advancing the sheets to the folder. This roll M is preferably
formed of a series of disea, or grooved as shown, so as to receive a series of fingers O,
which act as guides to direct the sheets from the roll M onto the plate L, these
The
fingers entering slots in the plate L and the grooves in the roll M.
construction thus far described is common in this class of folders, and may be
varied widely.
Referring now to the features embodying the invention, there are on each side
of the folder, sets of marginal rollers c, converging on opposite sides of the folder.
to the rolls D, the rollers e coacting with clastic abutments, which, in the pre-
ferred form shown, consist of spring-mounted plates d, which are shown as carried
by pins adjustably mounted in support 10, and spring-pressed towards the rollers c
by springs 2 coiled on the pins. The plates are preferably made of thin flexible
metal, so as to bend readily, thus preserving contact with all the rollers, in case of
wear on one or more, but a rigid-spring mounted plate, or a series of plates, may
be used. These rollers may be driven by any suitable means, but are preferably
driven by endless belts or chains, sprocket wheels 11 and chains 12 being shown,
these chains 12 running from a sprocket wheel on the upper roller c, on each side,
over sprocket wheels on the other rollers c, to and about sprocket wheels on the
rolls D, which are driven from the rolls E by suitable gearing.
The rollers c are preferably rubber faced, or provided with surfaces roughened
in any suitable manner, to give a better grip upon the paper, as above stated, and
are preferably mounted, as shown, to engage the under or inner side of the sheet
with the plates d outside the sheet, although it will be understood that the position
of these parts may be reversed.
With these marginal feeding rollers are preferably used one or more sets of
tapes e, at each side of the folder, converging from the internal guides B, C, one
set being shown, and these tapes are preferably continuous from the pulley N,
running over the edges of the plates L and the guides B, C, downward on the
sides of the folder, so as to feed the sheet over the top of the folder, and to the
rollers.
It will be understood, however, that the upper ends of the tapes e may be at
the internal guides B, C, a second set of tapes or other suitable means being used
to feed the sheet over the top of the folder to the guides. These tapes not only
aid in feeding the sheet, but act to secure the passage of the sheet through the
folder, as above described, in case the rollers c, which are preferably placed so as
to engage only the margin of the sheet, should not advance the sheet properly.
These tapes e pass around rolls D and folding laying_rolls E, and return around
pulleys 13 and tightening pulleys 14, to the pulleys N, and coact with plates L,
which acts as abutments against which the required pressure of the tapes e is
secured. A central set of tapes fare preferably added at the top of the folder,

page_text: these tapes running from pulley N above the plate L to the point of the folder,
thence over pulley 15, and back to the pulley N. It will be understood that other
arrangements of tapes may be used for this purpose.
It is not absolutely required that guides should be used upon the side of the
folder converging from the side guides B, C to the rolls D, but such guides are
preferably employed, and, in combination with other features, form a part of the
invention. There are shown narrow guides h, carried by a shaft or bar 16,
extending under the folder from the frame A. These guides h, h are placed on
both the inner and outer sides of the paper close together, so as to guide the leading
edge of the sheet positively, and prevent its catching on the edges of the rolls or
other parts of the construction. The inner guides h extend downward between the
rolls D, converging to a point just above the rolls E, and between the rolls E and
downward in the path of delivery of the sheet, being arranged in grooves in the
rolls E, so that the sheet is positively guided downward to the delivery mechanism,
these guides being shown as carried by shafts or bars 17 mounted in the frame A.
The guides i, on one side of the sheet, are shown as adjustably mounted, so as to
secure the proper distance between the guides, the shafts 17 being adjustable in
slots 3 in the frame A, and held in position by set nuts 4, as usual in such
constructions.
It will be understood that the feature of the invention relating to the marginal
feeding rollers and the elastic abutment coacting therewith, may be used without
the feeding tapes running inside the margin, and that the latter feature also may
be applied in longitudinal folders having other positive feeding devices for
advancing sheets by engagement of the margin. In Figure 5 there is shown, by
a view similar to Fig. 3, a construction employing feeding tapes e and guides h, h¹, i,
in the same manner as heretofore described, but the marginal feeding devices consist
of inner and outer sets of rollers arranged in the same manner as in British Patent
No. 10286 of 1892 above referred to.
The interior rollers c of the construction previously described, coact with exterior
rollers c', these interior and exterior rollers being placed opposite each other, so as
to grip the sheet on the margin, and positively carry it onward. The interior
rollers c are carried by short shafts 20 supported in bars 21 extending across the
rear of the folder, and mounted in standards on the frame A, or in any other suitable.
manner. The exterior rollers care mounted in arms 23 sleeved on the studs 24
carried by the bars 21, and held in adjustable position on the studs by any suitable
means, so that, by adjustment of the arms on the studs, the position of the rollers c¹
of each pair relatively to the coacting rollers c, may be varied independently of the
other pairs, to secure the proper pressure on the sheets at all points. The
rollers e, c, are preferably rubber-faced, or provided with surfaces roughened in
any suitable manner, to give a better grip upon the paper, as in the construction
previously described.
While sets of three feeding rollers on each side of the folder are shown, and this
number forms a convenient and efficient construction for longitudinal folders of the
size common in newspaper printing machines, it will be understood that the rollers
may be of any suitable size or number, and this will vary with the size of the
folder.
While the construction has been described as applied to folding sheets, it will
be understood that it is applicable also to associating two or more sheets or
webs led over the opposite sides of the folder, the improved construction being
admirably adapted for this use.
It will be understood, also, that a slitter, and other devices in use with present
longitudinal folders, are equally applicable to folders embodying the invention.
The elastic abutment may be used with pressure feeding devices of other form
than the rollers shown, and is claimed broadly, and feeding devices employing
such an abutment are of general application in mechanisins for feeding paper and
similar material, and the broad features of the invention are not to be limited
to folding mechanisms. By the term "stationary" applied in the claims to the
-

page_text: abutment, is meant that the abutment does not travel with the paper, but it will
be understood that the abutment may have movement toward and from the feeding:
devices.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of the said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, as communicated to.
me from abroad, I declare that what I claim is :-
1. The combination with a series of feeding rollers arranged longitudinally of
the line of feed, of a stationary elastic abutment coacting with said rollers,.
substantially as described.
2. The combination with a series of feeding rollers arranged longitudinally of
the line of feed, of a stationary elastic flexible abutment coacting with said rollers,.
substantially as described.
3. The combination with a series of feeling rollers arranged longitudinally of
the line of feed, of a stationary elastic abutment coacting with said rollers, and
consisting of a spring-mounted plate extending in the line of feed of said rollers,
substantially as described.
4. The combination with a series of feeding rollers arranged longitudinally of
the line of feed, of a stationary elastic abutment, consisting of a flexible spring-
mounted plate extending in the line of feed of said rollers, substantially as.
described.
5. In a longitudinal folder, the combination with converging internal guides, of
feeding rollers or other feeding devices on opposite sides of the folder, converging
from the internal guides, and acting by pressure on the paper, and stationary
converging elastic abutments coacting with said feeding devices, substantially as
described.
6. In a longitudinal folder, the combination with converging internal guides, of
feeding rollers or other feeding devices on opposite sides of the foller, converging
from the internal guides, and acting by pressure against the paper, and stationary
converging elastic abutments adjustable toward and from the feeding devices,.
substantially as described.
7. In a longitudinal folder, the combination with converging internal guides, of
feeding rollers on opposite sides of the folder, converging from the internal guides,.
stationary converging elastic abutments coacting with said rollers, and converging
side guides for the paper, substantially as described.
8. In a longitudinal folder, the combination with converging internal guides, of
feeding rollers on opposite sides of the folder, converging from the internal guides,
and arranged to engage the margin of printed paper, stationary converging elastic
abutments coacting with said rollers, feeding tapes converging from the internal
guides, and arranged alongside the feeding devices, and engaging the paper inside.
the margin, and converging side guides for the paper, substantially as described.
9. In a longitudinal folder, the combination with converging internal guides, of
feeding rollers on opposite sides of the folder, converging from the internal
guides, and arranged to engage the margin of printed paper, stationary converging.
elastic abutments coacting with said rollers, and feeding tapes converging from
the internal guides, and arranged alongside the feeding devices, and engaging the.
paper inside the margin, substantially as described.
10. In a longitudinal folder, the combination with converging internal guides, of
rollers or other positive feeding devices on the opposite sides of the folder,.
converging from the internal guides, and arranged to engage the margin of
printed paper, and feeding tapes converging from the internal guides and arranged
alongside the feeding devices and engaging the paper inside the margin substantially
as described.
11. In a longitudinal folder, the combination with the converging internal guides,.
of rollers or other positive feeding devices on the opposite sides of the folder,
converging from the internal guides, and arranged to engage the margin of
printed paper, internal and external guides on the opposite sides of the folder,.

page_text: converging from the internal guides, and feeding tapes converging from the
internal guides, and arranged inside the margin, substantially as described.
12. In a longitudinal folder, the combination with converging internal guides, of
rollers or other positive feeding devices on the opposite sides of the folder.
converging from the internal guides, and arranged to engage the margin of
printed paper, a fold-laying device, and feeding tapes converging from the
internal guides to the fold-laying device, and arranged inside the margin, substan-
tially as described.
13. The combination with converging internal guides B, C, of external guides D,
fold-laying rolls E, rollers or other positive feeding devices on the opposite sides
of the folder, converging from the internal guides to the external guides D, and
arranged to engage the margin of printed paper, feeding tapes converging from the
internal guides to the fold-laying rolls E, and arranged inside the margin, and
internal and external guides h, h', i, converging from the interual guides to the
fold-laying rolls E, substantially as described.
NEWTON & SON,
Agents for the Applicant.