Improved Machine for Copper Plate and other Descriptions of Printing.
Year: 1891

page_text: Date of Application, 21st Dec., 1891
Complete Specification Left, 19th Aug., 1892-Accepted, 8th Oct., 1892
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improved Machine for Copper Plate and other Descriptions of
Printing.
I, EDOUARD JOSEPH LAMBERT of No. 16 Rue Drouot, Paris, France, Engineer
do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
Printing machines for copper plate printing have up to the present time been
constructed of two types, namely, firstly, a platen machine with reciprocating
motion and secondly a rotary cylinder machine with continuous motion, in which
the engraved copper plates are curved in the first instance to fit on to the
cylinders.
The platen machines, which are generally preferred to the rotary ones, are very
heavy, as they require a large extent of table for inking and wiping the plate. The
cylinder machines are more rapid and less complicated as regards their mechanism,
but they are not so conveniently operated as regards the wiping, and they require
curved plates.
My. invention. relates to an improved construction of printing machines with
rotary motion.in which the, engraved plates remain flat, that is to say, a machine
which combines the advantages of each of the above mentioned types, without
possessing their disadvantages.
I obtain this result by means of a conical cylinder which rolls upon a revolving
horizontal. circular table carrying the plate, these parts being arranged and operated
in the following manner.
Upon a suitable framing is mounted a horizontal circular table on a suitable
central support, such as a cylindrical pedestal of the framing over which the table
fits with a central circular opening, and which has a wide shoulder on which the
inner circumference of the table rests. The outer periphery of the table has toothed
rings formed both on its upper and its underside and with the under toothed ring
gears a toothed' bevil wheel on a shaft that is driven by suitable gearing from
a driving shaft, so as to impart rotary motion to the table. Diametrically
opposite such driving gear, the table passes between two conical cylinders, the
axes of which are supported in bearings by the framing, so that the axes lie in
an inclined position corresponding to the conicity of the cylinders. These axes
carry bevil toothed wheels that gear with the two toothed rings of the table, so
that the cylinders are thereby made to revolve accurately at the same surface speed
as the table.
The bearings of the axes are adjustable in their supports by the well known
screw adjustments, so as to bring the conical cylinders into any desired degree
of close proximity to the table. The table carries on its upper side the engraved
copper plate or plates from which impressions are to be taken, while the paper for
the impressions is fed from a register table on to the upper side of the upper
cylinder, which is provided with the usual automatically actuated grippers for
seizing the sheet and carrying it round to the under side at the moment when the
inked copper plate is passing underneath so that the cylinder being made to exercise
the requisite pressure upon the plate, an impression is thereby taken from the plate
on to the paper, the under cylinder serving as support to the table at the point
where the downward pressure is exerted. Grippers are provided upon the table
which, at the same time that the grippers on the upper cylinder are made to auto-
matically release the edge of the printed sheet, are made to seize the same and
carry it along until it has passed free of the cylinder, when the sheet is removed by
hand. Or, instead of the above arrangement, the paper may be fed on to the

page_text: copper plate and held thereon by grippers as it passes through the cylinders, the
upper one of which in that case only serves as a pressing cylinder.
The diameters of the bevil wheels on the cylinder axes are made an exact
multiple of that of the toothed rings of the table, so that for example the former
make say 4, 5 or 6 revolutions while the table makes one revolution, and thus the
maintenance of the proper relative positions of the copper plate and the cylinders is
insured.
After the copper plate has passed from under the printing cylinder and has the
printed sheet removed therefrom, it passes under inking rollers and wipers of known
construction arranged round the other part of the framing, and if requisite, it is
also subjected to wiping by hand before again passing under the printing cylinder.
By making the table of a sufficiently large diameter, it will be evident that it
may carry two or more copper plates and the necessary printing cylinders &c., so
as to print off two or more plates at the same time or for printing on one sheet with
two or more colors.
Although the above described machine is more particularly applicable for
copper plate printing, it may also be employed for lithographic, zincographic, typo-
graphic or other printing, the stone, forme, &c. being fixed on the revolving table
and operated in the same manner as with the copper plate; in this case, two or
more different kinds of printing may be effected at the same time by one machine.
Dated this 21st day of December 1891.
ABEL & IMRAI,
Agents for the Applicant.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improved Machine for Copper Plate and other Descriptions of
Printing.
I, EDOUARD JOSEPH LAMBERT, of No. 16, Rue Drouot, Paris, France,
Engineer, 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:-
Printing machines for copper plate printing have up to the present time been
constructed of two types, namely, firstly, a platen machine with reciprocating
motion and secondly a rotary cylinder machine with continuous motion, in which
the engraved copper plates are curved in the first instance to fit on to the
cylinders.
The platen machines, which are generally preferred to the rotary ones, are very
heavy, as they require a large extent of table for inking and wiping the plate.
The cylinder machines are inore rapid and less complicated as regards their
mechanism, but they are not so conveniently operated as regards the, wiping, and
they require curved plates.
My invention relates to an improved construction of printing machines with
rotary motion in which the engraved plates remain flat, that is to say, a machine
which combines the advantages of each of the above mentioned types, without
possessing their disadvantages.
I obtain this result by means of a conical cylinder which rolls upon a revolving
horizontal circular table carrying the plate, these parts being arranged and operated
as I will describe with reference to the accompanying drawing. in which Fig. 1
shews a vertical section, and Fig. 2 a plan of the machine.
Upon a suitable framing A-R is mounted a horizontal circular table ou a suit-
able central support, such as a cylindrical pedestal B of the framing over which
the table fits with a central circular opening, and which has a wide shoulder on
which the inner circumference of the table rests. The pedestal B is connected to
the framing R by a traverse frame S. The outer periphery of the table.has toothed
rings E E' formed both on its upper and its underside and with the under toothed

page_text: ring E gears a toothed bevil wheel L on a shaft O.carried in bearings V Vand
driven by suitable gearing M N from a driving shaft Q with fast and loose
pullies PP, carried in bearings X X', so as to impart rotary motion to the table.
Diametrically opposite such driving gear, the table passes between two conical
cylinders Hand K the axes of which are supported in bearings T T' and U U by
the framing, so that the axes lie in an inclined position corresponding to the conicity
of the cylinders. These axes carry bevil toothed wheels F, G, that gear with the
two toothed rings E E¹ of the table, so that the cylinders H K are thereby. made
to revolve accurately at the same surface speed as the table.
The bearings T T'U U₁ of the axes are adjustable in their supports by the well
known screw adjustments, so as to bring the conical cylinders into any desired
degree of close proximity to the table. The table carries on its upper side the
engraved copper plate or plates D from which impressions are to be taken, while
the paper for the impressions is fed from a register and feed table Y Z inclined
to correspond with the cylinder H which is provided with the usual automatically
actuated grippers a worked in the usual manner by a lever b and cam for seizing
the sheet and carrying it round to the underside at the moment when the inked
copper plate D is passing underneath so that, the cylinder being made to exercise
the requisite pressure upon the plate, an impression is thereby taken from the plate
on to the paper, the under cylinder K serving as support to the table at the
point where the downward pressure is exerted. Grippers care provided upon
the table which, at the same time that the grippers a on the upper cylinder are
made to automatically release the edge of the printed sheet, are made to seize the
same and carry it along until it has passed free of the cylinder, when the sheet
is removed by hand. The dotted lines fg and d h indicate the developed surface
of the conical cylinder H. Or, instead of the above arrangement, the paper may
be fed on to the copper plate D and held thereon by grippers as it passes through
the cylinders, the upper one of which in that case only serves as a pressing
cylinder.
The diameters of the bevil wheels F G on the cylinder axes are made an
exact multiple of that of the toothed rings E E' of the table, so that for example
the former make say 4, 5 or 6 revolutions while the table makes one revolution,
and thus the maintenance of the proper relative positions of the copper plate
and the cylinders is insured.
After the copper plate has passed from under the printing cylinder and has the
printed sheet removed therefrom, it passes under inking rollers m m and wipers n n
of known construction arranged round the other part of the framing above the
table C, and if requisite, it is also subjected to wiping by hand before again passing
under the printing cylinder.
By making the table of a sufficiently large diameter, it will be evident that it
may carry two or more copper plates, formes, &c. and the necessary pressing
cylinders &c. so as to print off two or more plates at the same time or for printing
on one sheet with two or more colors. Or the table may be arranged to effect two
or more different kinds of printing whether copper plate, typographic, lithographic,
or zincographic, at the same time.
Although the above described machine is more particularly applicable for copper
plate printing, it may also be employed for lithographic, zincographic, typographic
or other printing, the stone, forme &c., being fixed on the revolving table and
operated in the same manner as with the copper plate; in this case, two or more
different kinds of printing may be effected at the same time by one machine.
Although it is preferred to arrange the table of the machine in a horizontal
position, it will be evident that it can also be arranged inclined or vertical.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of this inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is
1. In a printing machine, the combination with a revolving circular table

page_text: carrying the impression plate, forme or stone, of a conical pressing cylinder
running in stationary bearings, beneath which the impression plate passes, the paper
being either placed upon the conical cylinder or upon the impression plate substan-
tially as described with reference to the drawings.
2. In,a,printing machine, the, combination of a; revolving table C carrying the
impression plate, forme or stone D,, and driven by gearing L E', conical pressing
cylinders HK geared with the table C by gearing, E,, E, F, G, so as to revolve at
the same surface speed therewith, and inking, rollers mand wipers n, arranged and
operating substantially as described with reference to the accompanying drawings..
3. The application of the printing machine referred to; in the previous claims
to. all descriptions of printing,, whether copper plate, typographic,. lithographic
or zincographic,. whether in one or more colours, and whether with only a single
impression plate forme &c., or with several thereof, either of the same or different
kinds, substantially, as described.
Dated this. 19th day of August 1892:
ABEL & IMRAY,
Agents for the, Applicant..