IMPROVEMENTS IN PRINTING MACHINES, MORE ESPECIALLY DESIGNED FOR PRINTING CARDS
Year: 1870

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to William Robert Lake, of the "International
Patent Office," Southampton Buildings, London, Consulting En-
gincer, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN PRINTING MACHINES,
MORE ESPECIALLY DESIGNED FOR PRINTING CARDS."-A communication
from abroad by William Henry Bush, of Paris, in the Empire of
France.
Sealed the 5th August 1870, and dated the 10th February 1870.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said William Robert Lake
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition,
on the 10th February 1870.
I, WILLIAM ROBERT LAKE, of the "International Patent Office,"
Southampton Buildings, London, Consulting Engineer, do hereby declare
the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN PRINTING MACHINES,
MORE ESPECIALLY DESIGNED FOR PRINTING CARDS," a communication, to be as.
follows:-
My Invention relates to a machine whereby I am enabled to obtain
rapidity of action, a superior quality of work, and great accuracy of
register. The said machine feeds, inks, delivers, and counts the work
:

page_text: automatically, and may be operated by hand or by steam or other
power.
The said machine is provided with a table to hold the cards, which
must be cut accurately to one size. These cards are placed in a pile one
above the other, and are held in a perpendicular position by a vertical
surface plate and corner pieces, the latter being so arranged that they
may be adjusted to cards of any size. On the top of the pack is placed
a weight, by which the cards are made to descend while they are with-
drawn one by ono. For thus withdrawing the cards the machine.is
furnished with fingers, which move transversely across the under side of
the pack; these fingers may be so adjusted as to take one card at a time-
no matter what may be the thickness or size of the said cards: The
machine has a spring guide which is adjustable to the size and thickness
of the card. As each card is taken from the pack it enters the guide,
which keeps the card in close proximity to the bed plate without
allowing it to touch it except when pressed by the descending type
holder.
.
I'
..
The type holder is so constructed that it may be casily removed for
the composition and corrections. In the operation of the machine the
said type holder is. made to descend by a cam at the proper moment
necessary to give the impression to the card. The said cam is of such a
construction that the instant the impression is finished it releases the
holder, and a spring raises the platen with the type holder to its normal
position. The type líolder is adjusted to its proper position so as to give
an even impression by means of screws.
4
The ink is held in a fountain of ordinary construction, and is
withdrawn by means of a roll operated by a ratchet. A distributing:
roll of gutta percha or other suitable substance touches the ratchet roll
at each revolution of the press, and taking up a small portion of ink
distributes it over the ink table by the aid of rollers and other woll
known appliances. The inking rollers are arranged to pass over the ink
table, and are carried at each revolution of the machine across the face
of the type, being pressed firmly against the type by spring rails, which
also keep the rolls from touching the card, which at the same time
passes beneath the rolls to its position under the platen. The inking
-rollers are supported by a frame which is so hinged to a swinging bar as
to allow the rolls to adjust themselves to the surface of the ink table and
to be guided by the rails along the surface of the type.

page_text: The cards, after having received the impressions, are pushed forward
through an aperture which is formed under the ink table; the cards are
conducted through the spring guide above mentioned, which is so con-
structed that each card pushes the one before it into a drawer arranged
beneath the said aperture, into which drawer the cards are dropped.
The bed plate over which the cards rest while receiving the impression
may be easily removed and replaced for convenience in "making
ready."
The counting or numbering of the impressions is effected by means
of a rotating plate having a series of numbers on its face and operated
by a ratchet connected with any convenient working part of the
machine.
Although my improvements are chiefly designed for printing cards,
yet with very slight modifications in some of the parts the machine may
be adapted to print circulars, bill heads, and other work of a like
character.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said William Robert Lake in the Great Scal Patent
Office on the 10th August 1870.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, WILLIAM
ROBERT LAKE, of the "International Patent Office," Southampton
Buildings, London, Consulting Engineer, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Tenth day of February, in the year
of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy, in the thirty-third
year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and
grant unto me, the said William Robert Lake, Her special licence that
I, the said William Robert Lake, my executors, administrators, and
assigns, or such others as I, the said William Robert Lake, my executors,
administrators, 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
PRINTING MACHINES, MORE ESPECIALLY DESIGNED FOR PRINTING CARDS," a com-
munication to me from abroad by William Henry Bush, of Paris, in

page_text: the Empire of France, upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the
said William Robert Lake, my exccutors or administrators, by an
instrument in writing under my, or their, or one of their hands and
seals, 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 date of the said Letters
Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, tho said William Robert Lake, do hereby
declaro 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, reference being had to the accompanying
Drawing forming a part of this Specification :-
My Invention relates to a machine whereby I am enabled to obtain
rapidity of action, a superior quality of work, and great accuracy of
register. The said machine feeds, inks, delivers, and counts the work
automatically, and may be operated by hand, or by steam, or other
power.
The said machine is provided with a bed or table to hold the cards,
which must be cut accurately to one size. These cards are placed hori- |
zontally in a pile one above the other, and the pile is held in a perpendicular
position by a vertical surface plate and corner pieces, the latter being
so arranged that they may be adjusted to cards of any size. On the top
of the pack is placed a weight, by which the cards are made to descend
while they are withdrawn one by onc. For thus withdrawing the
cards the machine is furnished with fingers, which move transversely
across the under side of the pack. These fingers may be so adjusted
as to take one card at a time no matter what may be the thickness or
size of the said cards. The machine has a spring guide, which is
adjustable to the size and thickness of the card. As each card is taken
from the pack it enters the guide, which keeps the card in close
proximity to the bed plate without allowing it to touch it except when
pressed by the descending type holder.
The type holder is so constructed that it may be easily removed for
the composition and correction. In the operation of the machine the
said type holden is made to descend by a cam at the proper moment
to give the impression to the card. The said cam is of such a con-
struction that the instant the impression is finished it releases the holder

page_text: and a spring raises the platen with the type holden to its normal position.
The type holder is adjusted to its proper position so as to give an even
impression by means of screws.
The ink is held in a fountain of ordinary construction and is with-
5 drawn by means of a roll operated by a ratchet. A distributing roll of
gutta percha or other suitable substance touches the ratchet roll at cach
revolution of the press, and taking up a small portion of ink distributes
it over the ink table by the aid of rollers and other well-known
appliances. The inking rollers are arranged to pass over the ink table,
and are carried at each revolution of the machin; across the face of the
type, being pressed firmly against the type by spring rails which also keep
the rolls from touching the card, which at the same time is passing
beneath the rolls to its position under the platen. The iuking rollers
are supported by a frame, which is so hinged to a swinging bar as to
allow the rolls to adjust themselves to the surface of the ink table
and to be guided by the rails along the surface of the type.
The cards are conducted along the spring guide above mentioned,
which is so constructed that cach card pushes the one before it through
an aperture under the ink table into a drawer arranged beneath the
said aperture, into which drawer the cards are dropped. The bed plate
over which the cards rest while receiving the impression may be easily
removed and replaced for convenience in "making ready," access being
preferably had to it by removing the drawer under the bed plate.
The counting or numbering of the impressions is effected by means
of a rotating plate having a series of numbers on its face and operated
by a ratchet connected with any convenient working part of tho
Figuro 1 is a side elevation of my improved machine for printing
O cards; Figure 2 is a horizontal section on the line x, x, Figure 1;
Figure 3 is an end elevation partly in section of the said machine;
Figure 4 is a sectional view of detached portions of the machine;
Figure 5 and 6 aro a side and end elevation of another detached portion
of the said machine; Figure 7 shews a section of another portion of the
said machine detached and drum to an enlarged scale. Like letters
indicate the same parts throughout the Drawing.

page_text: •
"
A is the stand or base of the said machine, which may be made.of.
cast iron or other suitable material. On one end of the top of this
stand is formed or secured the bed or table a, on which the pile of
blank cards is placed. The surface plate 6 herein-before described is
preferably constructed or shown in Figure 5 with a slight projection b
at each end. These projections rest upon the bed or table, while thọ.
space between them corresponds with the thickness of the cards, so that.
only one card can pass through at once. I prefer to interpose between:
these projections and the bed or table a thin layers of india-rubber..
or other suitable material. By means of the screws c which secure the
plate upon the table this india-rubber or other material is more or
less compressed, and the width of tho aperture under the plate b.is
increased or diminished to suit any thickness of cards; d is the weight.
which is placed on the, pile of cards to cause them to descend as each.
card is taken from the bottom of the pile or pack; d, d, are the vertical. 1
corner pieces. The fingers c, whereby the withdrawal of the cards one
by one from the bottom of the pile or pack is effected are clearly shewn
in Figures 2 and 3. The adjustment of these fingers to the thickness
of the card may be effected in any convenient and suitable manner, .but
I prefer for this purpose to use the guide pieces f, which are held on 2
the bed a by the screws g, and which have interposed between them
and the bottom of the bed thin pieces of india-rubber. that allow the
fingers to be raised or lowered by turning the said screws. The spring.
guide is composed of two bars 7, one of which is shewn in transverse
section in Figure 7. These bars are preferably formed of three strips 2
of thin steel, the upper and lower strips, projecting beyond the
intermediäte strips h³ to form the groove in which the cards slide. The
said strips are formed with projecting lugs or feet 7, through which are"
passed screws i to secure the rails upon the top of the stand or base.
It will be seen that these lugs have long slots or apertures, so that the a
guide may be readily adjusted to cards of any ordinary width. By
making cach guide of three picces the depth of the guide groove may
be varied according as more or less margin is given to the cards.
Furthermore by inserting strips of various thickness in place of the
intermediate strip ³ the guides are adapted to cards of any thickness.
The lower strip keeps the cards slightly above the surface of the bed
so that the advancing card will not displace the pieces of paper which
are pasted thercon in "making ready."

page_text: The
By referring to Figures 1 and 4 it will be clearly seen that the type
holder is formed with dovetailed sides ¹. These sides fit over a block Z
which is dovetailed in the platen m. The removal of the type holder
from the platen is easily effected by sliding the said type holder endwise
from the block Z. The adjustment of the type holder to ensure the
even impression of the type is effected by means of the screws n.
arrangement and formation of the cam o for operating the platen and
with it the type holder is clearly shewn in Figure 4. The said cam is
fixed on the shaft p which is fitted to turn freely in bearings p² on the
standards A', and on whose projecting end is fixed the balance wheel q..
From the platen there extends upward the rod or bar m³ which is formed
with a circular aperture or ring m²; this ring encloses the cam o. It
will be seen that this cam is shorter than the diameter of the aperture m³..
On the top of the bar m³ is a spiral or coiled spring m³, which tends
continually to raise the platen against the action of the cam that forces
it down to bring the type with the type holder down upon the cards..
By making the cam shorter than the aperture as above described I
impart to the platen instead of a continuous reciprocating motion an
intermittent motion, which causes a pause in the motion of the platen
while the ink rollers pass and return across the face of the type and
while at the same instant the blank card is passing to its position under
the type. The ink fountain is a metal trough of any convenient size
and form, which has on it brackets 71 for supporting in proper bearings
the journals of the ink roller 8. This roller has fixed on it a ratchet
wheels' which is rotated by the pawl rod s³, the said rod being pivotted
on the curved bar or arm t. The bar t is jointed at to the fixed arm u
which projects from the standards A'. The curved bar & has jointed
to its outer extremity a link, which is jointed to the carriage or
frame of the ink carrying rollers v². The bar t is operated to impart
to the said rollers a to-and-fro motion under the platen by means of
the excentric wo through the connecting rod 20' which is jointed to the
bar at w. By thus connecting the bar t to the roller frame v by
the link the said frame as it moves to and fro below the platen works
freely on its guides and adjusts the rollers to the ink table ¹ and the
type without any tendancy to follow the circular movement of the end
of the bar t. The roller frame or carriage is mounted upon small
whicels to which run on the spring rails y herein-before described. It
will be seen that these spring rails keep the ink rolls c³ properly in
contact with the surface of the type as the said rolls are moved to and
0

page_text: fro under the typo plate, and they also give a clear space below the
rollers between the same and the bed or plate on which the card lics
to receive the impression, so that the operations of inking the type and
advancing the cards are effected at the same time without interfering
with each other, and there is no danger of the cards being soiled by
coming in contact with the rollers. I prefer that the plate or disc s¹
for automatically counting or numbering the impressions should be
placed on the end of the roller 8, but it may be arranged on a separate
shaft or spindle if desired. The drawer into which the cards fall
after being printed is found to be very convenient in practice, but if
desired it is obvious that the cards may be allowed to fall into any other
suitably arranged receptacle. The bed plate on which the cards rest
while being printed is made detachable preferably by constructing it to
slide in grooves at the back of the drawer. By removing the drawer
the bed plate becomes accessible and can be drawn out below the ink:
table.
..
Having thus fully described the most advantageous manner of
carrying the said Invention into practice, as communicated to me by
my foreign correspondent, I wish it understood that although these
improvements relate chicfly to the machine for printing cards con- 2
structed as illustrated in the accompanying Drawing, yet it is obvious
that with very slight modification in the construction and arrangement
of some of the parts without such changes as will deprive them. of
their peculiar and distinctive features the said machine may be adapted
for printing other work, such as circulars, bill heads, and the like; and 2
although I consider that the objects of the various improvements
specified are most advantageously effected when they are arranged and
combined substantially as hercin set forth, yet such improvements or
some of them may be differently arranged together and in combination
with other machines for printing cards and other work of a like nature
(without loosing their distructive character) for accomplishing results
similar to these which are the objects of my said Invention; I therefore
wish it understood that I do not limit myself to the precise details
of construction and arrangement shewn in the said Drawing, but I
claim,―
3
3

page_text: -
Second. The type holder and platen with the ring or circular aperture
in the shaft or bar of the said platen arranged to operate in combination
with the peculiarly formed cam o and spring m³, substantially as specified.
for the purpose set forth.
=
Third. Constructing the bed plate so that it may be readily removed
from the machine, substantially as specified for the purpose set forth.
Fourth. The devices for moving the ink rollers' across the bed of the
machine below the type plato constructed and operating substantially
as herein set forth.
Fifth. The spring rails or bars y, for the purposes set forth.
Sixth. A machine for printing cards with parts constructed, combined,
and operating together, substantially as described, and as shewn in the
accompanying Drawing..
In witness whereof, I, the said William Robert Lake, have
hereunto set my hand and seal, this Ninth day of August, in the
year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy.
Witness,
W. J. LOWE.
WILLIAM ROBERT LAKE. (L.S.)