Improvements in Multi-color Printing and in Apparatus therefor.
Year: 1897

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Multi-color Printing and in Apparatus therefor.
I, IVAN ORLOFF, of 142, Fontanka, St. Petersburg, in the Empire of Russia,
Gentleman, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:
My invention relates to multi-color or polychromatic printing in typographic
printing presses by means of a single stereotype or block.
In order to produce polychromatic proofs by typographic printing it has hitherto
been the practice to print each color upon paper from a special stereotype or
block, that is to say, to successively superpose the colored proofs upon paper.
By my invention, owing to the special arrangements of typographic presses,
hereinafter described I produce a polychromatic proof with a single impression
and with a single stereotype or block or a single forme, each color being distributed
according to the required designs, over the corresponding parts, either alone or
mixed with other colors.
The forme is fixed on the type cylinder, as in rotary presses, and the margin
sheet is placed on the printing cylinder; when the forme and margin sheet at a
certain moment during the rotation, come together, the printing takes place. On
the type cylinder carrying the forme are arranged two or more engraved plates
fixed in the same manner as the forme; above the type cylinder are the required
number of ink rollers serving to distribute the colors and transfer them on to
composition rollers which serve to ink the engraved plates. The distance
between the latter rollers and the cylinder carrying the forme is sufficient to
prevent contact with the engraved plates as well as with the forme; at a given
period of the movement each roller is lowered and touches the corresponding
plate (this may be effected in a simple manner by means of a suitable eccentric)
to ink the relief of the plate (the design). During the subsequent movement of
the type cylinder the plates come in contact with composition rollers on which
they deposit the colors. These rollers are operated by means of an arrangement
of toothed wheels gearing with a large pinion fixed on the shaft of the type
cylinder; upon coming in contact with the said rollers the forme takes the colors
from them and, in its turn, at the following impression, produces upon the paper,
stretched over the margin sheet, the multi-color or polychromatic proof the designs
of which are determined by the stereotypes of the forme and the distribution of
the colors by the designs of the engraved plates employed.
Instead of placing engraved plates on the type cylinder I may employ engraved
metal cylinders placed around the said cylinder, the rollers receiving the colors
from the engraved cylinders and depositing them upon the forme in designs
agreeing with the designs of the engraved cylinders.
The described arrangement for multi-color or polychromatic printing with a
single forme is equally applicable to steam printing machines. In this case the
engraved plates, as well as the forme, operate over the press stone or bed. The
ink rollers transfer the colors onto other rollers each of which inks the corres-
ponding plate which passes underneath the said rollers. Rollers receive the colors

page_text: from the plates and transfer them on to the forme. The sheet of paper placed
over the margin sheet of the printing cylinder moves over the forme when the
stone or bed moves towards the left hand and receives the polychromatic proof.
The rollers are actuated by means of toothed wheels mounted upon their shafts
and gearing with a rack arranged along the press stone or bed:
Dated the 12th day of MA. 1907
G. F. REDFERN & Co.,
4, South Street, Finsbury, London,
Agents for the Applicant.
I, IVAN ORLOFF, of 142, Fontanka, St. Petersburg, in the Empire of Russia,
Gentleman, 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:-
This invention relates to improvements in multicolour printing and in apparatus
therefor.
To print in several colours from one forme at one impression it is necessary
to apply the different colours to the different parts of the forme. The arrange-
ments hitherto proposed and used for this purpose have not been successful,
especially for fine work, in consequence of the difficulty of keeping the colours
from running or mingling together, and also because of the deterioration of the
coloured design in passing from one part of the machine to another, especially
when working with elastic, easily deformed parts, which must be used for trans-
ferring the colours.
According to this invention I employ for distributing the colours, perfectly
hard pattern-blocks preferably of metal plates which may be plain or provided
with a raised design. The raised design of each of these pattern-blocks is inked,
by means usually employed in printing, with ink of a predetermined colour. The
design thus coloured is taken from each of the pattern blocks by a separate elastic
roller and is transferred to the hard printing forme, preferably of metal the surface
of which is not deformed under the ordinary conditions of printing.
When all the colours are transferred from the pattern-blocks to the forme a
single impression taken from the latter on paper or another suitable surface
reproduces the coloured design.
With this construction of machine the following advantages are obtained:-
The coloured design of the pattern-block when passing the elastic roller is
somewhat changed by the deformation of the roller resulting from its pressure
against the pattern-block, but as the conditions of deformation are exactly the
same for the transfer of colour from the elastic roller to the printing forme, the
coloured design on the forme will be the same as on the pattern-block. The same
will occur with all the colours so that the perfect register of the colours will be
preserved, as also will the clearness of the design. Furthermore, as each colour
from the pattern-blocks is transferred to the forme by a separate roller, the forme
serving as a collector for all colours, the mingling together or running of the
colours is reduced to a minimum and is practically imperceptible.
Two or more colours can be collected on the same elastic roller in cases of
specially complicated designs which from their character and colour distribution
are not liable to give rise to the mingling of the colours.

page_text: The printing forme is of ordinary construction; it can be composed of type,
ornamental woodcuts, half-tone or other blocks. The metal pattern-blocks are
made in the form of printing plates and may be provided with designs.
If the forme has a plain surface, the coloured designs from the pattern-blocks
are transferred to it, and from it to the paper as exact copies of the pattern-blocks,
but if the forme has its own design the ultimate impression on paper will have
the design of the printing plate or cliche in the various colours which have been
obtained from the corresponding pattern-blocks. Two different designs are thus
arranged on one and the same surface, the first being composed of lines or surfaces
of any colour with white spaces and the second being produced by the different
colours applied to the lines or surfaces of the first design.
By these means there will be combined in the final impression the designs of
the forme and those of the pattern-blocks, thereby enabling infinitely varying
effects to be obtained such as are unattainable by consecutive printing. In art
reproductions by three colour printing the pattern-blocks are replaced by three
primary cliches red, blue and yellow, and the forme is replaced by a plain surface;
or instead of a plain plate special woodcuts or half-tone blocks could be used.
Instead of the metal pattern-blocks, other perfectly hard substances could be
used; for example, I can substitute for the said pattern-blocks and printing forme,
lithographic stone and the invention is thus adapted for lithographic printing.
The elastic rollers for transferring the colours from the pattern-blocks to the cliche
or forme are made of a suitable elastic material such as the usual roller composition,
leather, india-rubber, etc.
To obtain a perfect transfer of the coloured designs from the pattern-blocks
to the forme it is of course necessary that all the three parts, viz., pattern-blocks,
rollers and the forme must be connected together and to this end they are actuated
from each other by means of toothed gearing, as in all similar arrangements, but
in order to comply with the above mentioned condition that each colour must be
taken from its pattern-block by a separate roller, special provision is made for
lifting one end of the rollers without throwing the pinions at the other end out
of gear.
To enable the invention to be fully understood I will describe it by reference
to the accompanying drawings in which:-
Figures 1, 2 and 3 are diagrammatic views illustrating three machines made
according to the invention.
In the construction illustrated in Figure 1 the pattern-blocks A, B, C, D and the
forme g are placed on the common cylinder E.
On the cylinder F there is placed the arrangement h for carrying the paper.
The printing occurs when the forme g comes in contact with the surface h. The
rollers a, b, c, d apply the colours to the pattern-blocks and the rollers k, 7 transfer
the colours from the pattern-blocks to the forme; on the drawing only two
transfer rollers are represented but usually there are four, one for each pattern
block and colour. The rollers a, b, c, d and k and I can be raised and lowered
during the operation of the machine and they can be lowered on to any one of the
pattern-blocks as desired. In the ordinary course of work the roller a is lowered
on to the pattern-block A and after having applied the colour is raised from the
cylinder E. The roller b is lowered in the same way on to B, c on to C and d on
to D. Similarly under ordinary conditions of work the rollers k and each take
colour from one of the pattern-blocks, for example, the roller k is lowered on to
the pattern-block A and, having taken the colour, is lifted from the cylinder E
until it reaches the forme g on to which it is lowered and to which it transfers
its colour.
The arrangement which effects the raising and lowering of the rollers at the
predetermined moments during the operation, and which arrangement may be
of any suitable construction, makes it possible to vary the work, for example, the
roller k can take the colour from the pattern-blocks A. B, C, and transfer it, not

page_text: to the forme, but to the pattern-block D from which the roller will take a multi-
coloured design and transfer it to the forme g. In this modification the condition
of the transfer of the colour by the elastic roller from one hard surface to the hard
surface of the forme is still observed. It is clear from the foregoing that the
taking up of several colours by one roller k can be effected without mingling the
colours, but only for special designs as pointed out above. The manifold com-
binations obtainable in this way by the aid of four pattern-blocks and one forme
give complicated designs defying imitation by other means, which is especially
important for the printing of bank notes and the like.
In the construction shewn in Figure 2 the cylinder E carries only the forme,
the colour plates or pattern-blocks, being replaced by pattern-rollers A, B, C from
which each colour is taken by the elastic rollers k, l, m and transferred to the
forme g so that in this case also the hard printing forme serves as a collector for
the coloured designs. This modification of the machine can be used for printing
on endless paper for the more common kinds of work. The raising and lowering
of the rollers is unnecessary in this case.
In Figure 3 there is represented a construction similar to that shewn in
Figure except that the forme and the pattern-blocks are fixed on a flat bed as in
ordinary printing machines with flat printing formes. The inking devices apply
colour to the rollers a, b, and the pattern-blocks A, B passing under the rollers a, b
receive the colours, the roller a being lowered on to the block A and on to B.
The rollers and take colour, one from A the other from B, and at a certain
moment transfer the colours to the forme g. The raising and lowering of the
rollers and only takes place at one end thereof without putting the pinions
at the other ends of the rollers out of gear with the rack E.
It will be obvious that the construction of the machine can be varied without
any departure being made from the principle of the invention as above described.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is:-
1. In a machine for printing in several colours from one forme, the combination
of hard colour pattern-blocks, which may be plain or be provided with a design,
with a hard printing forme, also plain or with a design, and with intermediate
elastic rollers, for directly transferring the colours from the pattern-blocks to the
forme, each colour being transferred by a separate roller, substantially as herein-
before described.
2. In a machine for printing in several colours from one forme, the combination
with the printing forme and several colour-plates or pattern-blocks placed on
the surface of a cylinder, of intermediate elastic rollers, provided with an arrange-
ment for bringing the rollers into contact with the pattern-blocks as desired, sub-
stantially as herein before described.
3. In a machine for printing in several colours from one forme, the combination
of flat pattern-blocks and of a printing forme placed on the ordinary flat bed of
a printing machine, with elastic rollers for transferring the colours from the
pattern-blocks to the forme and with means for bringing the above mentioned
rollers into contact with any one of the pattern-blocks, substantially as herein-
before described.
4. In a machine for printing in several colours from one forme, the combination
of cylindrical pattern-blocks, arranged around the cylinder carrying the forme,
with elastic rollers for transferring the colours from the pattern-blocks to the
forme, each colour being transferred by a separate roller, substantially as herein-
before described.
5. In a machine for printing in several colours from one forme, the combination
of toothed gear connecting the pattern-blocks with elastic rollers for transferring
the colours and with the printing forme, with an arrangement for lowering the

page_text: elastic rollers, as desired at predetermined moments on to any of the pattern
blocks, and for lifting the rollers without putting them out of gear, substantially
as herein before described.
6. The improved multicolour printing machines hereinbefore described and
illustrated respectively in Figures 1, 2 and 3 of the accompanying drawings.
Dated this 11th day of March 1898
G. F. REDFERN & Co.,
4, South Street, Finsbury, London,
Agents for the Applicant.