Improvements in Printing Machines.
Year: 1897

page_text: This Print is in accordance with the Original Specification as it stands after
Amendment (under Section 11 of the Patents, &c. Act, 1883) as required by
the decision of the Comptroller General of the 2nd day of March 1898.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Printing Machines.
I, CHARLES PERCY SHREWSBURY of 50 Queen Anne's Gate, in the County of
London Engineer and WALTER DAVENPORT of Wakeford Lodge Hampton Hill,
Middlesex Gentleman, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as
follows:-
-
This invention relates to improvements in printing machines such as described
and illustrated in the Specifications and drawings of British Letters Patent
No. 1603700 granted to Hermann Grauel.
We have found in practice that an elastic pad is not well suited for printing
on tiles, glass, china or other more or less flat articles inasmuch as considerable
6: suction is set up between said elastic pad and the article, thereby not only
rendering the separation of the elastic pad from the article more or less difficult
but also endangering the clearness of the print.
The especial object of our invention is to obviate the defects referred to and
we accomplish this by employing a printing roller instead of a pad, said printing
roller being preferably made of, or coated or covered with, suitable soft and
elastic material or composition upon which printing roller the design or other
matter is first printed from blocks or type having the ink, ceramic color, or other
color supplied to said blocks or type in any usual manner, and the said printing
roller being then brought in contact with and the impression transferred to the
tile or other article either by causing the said printing roller to travel over the
tile or other article or vice versa.
If it be desired to print a design in two or more colors on the tile or other
article we arrange a series of blocks or forms one for each color, said blocks or
forms being each provided with an inking roller or equivalent in the usual
manner. When all the blocks or forms have been inked or provided with the
suitable ink, ceramic, or other color, we cause the said printing roller to traverse
the whole series of blocks or forms the relative dimensions of the printing roller
and blocks being such that the differently coloured patterns are impressed or trans-
ferred in proper register on the said printing roller. After said printing roller
has traversed the whole series of blocks or forms it is caused to traverse the tile
or other article and thereby the impression of each block or form and in all
the colors of said blocks or forms will be transferred on to the said tile or other
article.
We wish it to be understood that we do not confine ourselves to any particular
arrangement of the different parts constituting our invention nor to any particular
means for causing the necessary movements.
As it is necessary that the relative dimensions of the printing roller and the

page_text: blocks or forms be maintained we may mount the elastic printing roller on expand-
ing or other suitable spindle so that in the event of the said printing roller becoming
reduced in diameter by wear or shrinkage, we may expand said roller by means
of the expanding spindle.
Datal thin 9th day of Ionum 1808
CHARLES PERCY SHREWSBURY.
WALTER DAVENPORT.
By his Agents, Horn, Son & Co.,
151, Strand (next to Somerset House), London.
We, CHARLES PERCY SHREWSBURY of 50 Queen Anne's Gate in the County of
London Engineer and WALTER DAVENPORT of Wakeford Lodge, Hampton Hill,
in the County of London Gentleman do hereby declare the nature of this inven
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly described
and ascertained in and by the following statement:-
This invention relates to improvements in printing machines such as described
and illustrated in the Specifications and Drawings of British Letters Patent
No. 160370 granted to Hermann Grauel. A defect appertaining to such machine
is that tiles or other articles of china, glass or other material & having a more
or less flat surface cannot be so successfully printed as bottles or like round
articles which are rolled over the printing pad inasmuch as when the printing
pad has been brought in contact with the flat surface of the article being printed,
considerable "suction" is set up between the said surfaces when the article is
being separated from the pad, thereby not only rendering the employment of
considerable force necessary to separate the parts but also endangering the clearness
of the impression or print.
In order that our invention may be readily understood reference is made to the
accompanying drawing wherein like letters of reference indicate corresponding parts
in both figures and in which-
Fig. 1, is a plan view of our improved printing machine, some of the details
being shown cut away for clearness, and
Fig. 2, is an end elevation thereof.
In carrying this invention into practise we employ an impression or printing
roller A supported in suitable bearings B said bearings being capable of being
slid along slides C with which the table T of the machine is provided. The ends
of the roller-spindle a are provided with toothed wheels D which gear with the
toothed wheel'd carried in the bearings b, depending from & preferably integrally
formed with the bearings B. The spindles d¹ of the toothed wheels d are also
provided with toothed wheels E which mesh with racks e with which the under
side of the table T is provided the dimensions of the parts being such that if
the spindles d¹ be revolved, the bearings B will be caused to slide along the
slides C and the printing roller will simultaneously be caused to revolve at the
proper speed so that there will be no rubbing contact between said roller and
any flat article placed on table T. We provide each side of our improved machine
with gear wheels D and E and racks e so as to obviate any tendency to twist
which would arise if one side only were geared as described. At about each end of the
frame F we provide a girder G running transversely of the table T and supported
on opposite standards H, said standards being sufficiently high so that the girders
are well clear of the printing roller and its mechanism when moved along the

page_text: table as described. Each such girder supports a shoe or the like J which shoes
are retained their proper distance apart by means of rods K so that said shoes may
be simultaneously slid transversely across the table T. Said shoes support two
inking rollers L and a friction roller M in contact with said inking rollers L & for,
the purpose of causing the inking rollers to revolve when the shoes are being slid
across the table we provide each girder G with a rack g with which a toothed
wheel gl gears, the rotary motion of said toothed wheel g₁ being imparted to the
friction roller M by means of gear wheels k k¹ and the friction in turn imparting its
rotary motion to the inking rollers with which it is in contact, the dimensions
of the parts being such that when the shoes are pushed along the girders G the
inking rollers L will be revolved at a proper speed so that there will be no rubbing
At a
contact between said inking rollers and any flat article on the table T.
suitable distance from one side of the table T we support a series of inking discs N
one such disc for each colour in which it is desired to print, the inking rollers L.
receiving their ink or ceramic colour from said discs N in the usual manner.
For the purpose of printing tiles or other flat articles in say four colours, we
place & fix in any suitable manner a printing block with the required design
properly adjusted relatively to the other blocks on each of the four parts p of
the table T, we next move the the printing roller A to the opposite end of the
table T to that shown in Fig. 1, we then, each of the inking discs having pre-
viously been supplied with ink or ceramic colour-pass the printing rollers across
the discs N and across the table T the adjustment being such that the inking.
rollers will roll across and ink each of the blocks on the parts p. The tile or
other article is placed on the part t of the table-being adjusted with reference
to the printing blocks and the printing roller A is moved from end to end of.
the machine when the said roller will roll in contact with the inked surface of
each of the printing blocks and will take an impression from each in register &
said printing roller with its four impressions will then roll across the tile or
other article and will transfer its four impressions on said tile.
If our improved machine is being employed to print in a less number of colours
than it is capable of printing, we prefere to provide the discs N adjacent to the
tiles to be printed with the colour or colours to be used, so that it will then not be
necessary to move the printing roller A beyond the exact number of printing blocks
than that being used for the time being.
In order to enable the inking rollers L to be adjusted so as within limits-
to enable any thickness of printing block to be employed, we provide arms o
which carry the ends of the spindles of said inking rollers said arms being
supported and capable of sliding in bearings r, said arms being clamped, when
adjusted by set screws. The inking discs L-which may be rotated in any usual
manner are also adapted to be adjusted vertically but we do not confine ourselves
to any particular means or mechanism for enabling the parts to be adjusted
as described. Further, in order that any wear taking place on the racks e or
the wheels E shall not interfere with the proper working of the machine, we
provide two wheels E on each spindle d said wheels being adjustable so as to take up
any looseness or "back lash."
The inking rollers L are preferably grooved as shown so that one colour of
ink or ceramic colour will not run on a part covered with differently coloured ink
or ceramic colour. In example shown in the drawing the shoes carrying the inking
rollers are to be pushed across the table by had and motion is imparted to the print-
ing roller A by means of grooved roller R-one at about each end of the table-a
cord or equivalent passes across said rollers R, and also around a drum S situated
on the spindle so that if one of the rollers R be revolved the printing roller will
be caused to travel and revolve along the table.
It will be readily understood that our improved machine may be made so as
to enable tiles or other more or less flat articles to be printed in any desired
number of colours and also that by merely removing one or more printing blocks

page_text: one or more of the colours will be left out of the printing. Also that two sets of:
printing blocks may be supported on the table one on the parts marked P herein-
before referred to and another set on the parts marked 21 so as to enable two tiles to
be simultaneously printed.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of our said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed we would have it understood
that we are aware that it has been previously proposed to print upon tiles and other
articles by means of a roller, faced with elastic or yielding material, the said roller
being caused to travel successively over the printing surface and over the article
to be printed receiving the impression of the design from the former and setting
it off upon the latter, but we declare that what we claim is:-
1. An improved printing machine having in combination a table adapted to
receive one or more printing blocks and the article to be printed an inking roller
adapted to be moved transversely across said table so as to ink said printing blocks
and a printing or impression roller adapted to be moved along said table so as to
take the impression or impressions from the printing block or blocks and transfer
said impressions in register to the tile or other article substantially as set forth, and
illustrated in the accompanying drawings.
2. In a machine such as claimed in Claim 1 a table T having slides C on which
bearings B supporting a printing or impression roller A are adapted to slide, gear
wheels D, d¹ and E and racks e all for the purposes and substantially as described
and illustrated.
3. In a machine such as claimed in Claim 1 girders G having racks 9 shoes J
adapted to slide along girders G, gear wheels g¹k k¹ a friction roller M inking
rollers L all for the purposes described and illustrated.
4. A printing machine as herein described and illustrated for printing tiles and
other articles, in which a roller of soft or elastic material controlled by guides and
gearing is caused to travel successively over surface printing blocks and over the
article to be printed receiving impressions in different colours from the former and
transfering them to the latter.
Dated this 4th day of May 1897.