A METHOD OF PRINTING BY MEANS OF MACHINERY
Year: 1810

page_text: TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, FREDERICK
KOENIG, of Camden Town, in the County of Middlesex, Printer, send
greeting.
WHEREAS His most Excellent Majesty King George the Third did, by
His Letters Patent under the Great Seal of the United Kingdom of Great
Britain and Ireland, bearing date at Westminster, the Twenty-ninth day of
March, in the fiftieth year of His reign, give and grant unto me, the said
Frederick Koenig, my. exors, adñiors, and assigns, His especial licence, full
power, solo privilege and authority that I, the said Frederick Koenig, my
exors, adñiors, and assigns, should and lawfully might, during the term of years
therein mentioned, make, use, exercise, and vend, within England, Wales, and
the Town of Berwick-upon-Tweed, my Invention of "A METHOD OF PRINTING
BY MEANS OF MACHINERY;" in which said Letters Patent there is contained a
proviso, that if I, the said Frederick Koenig, shall not particularly describe
and ascertain the nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the same
is to be performed, by an instrument in writing under my hand and seal, and
cause the same to be enrolled in His Majesty's High Court of Chancery
within six calendar months next and immediately after the date of the said
Letters Patent, that then the said Letters Patent, and all liberties and advan
tages whatsoever thereby granted, shall utterly cease, determine, and become
void, anything herein-before contained to the contrary thereof in anywiso
notwithstanding.
NOW KNOW YE, that in compliance with the said proviso, I, the said
Frederick Koenig, do hereby declare that the following written description
and Drawings hereunto annexed contain a particular description of my said
Invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, that is to say:-

page_text: Table I. Figure 1 exhibit an elevation or front view of the said machine,
and will serve to give a general idea of its action before I shall enter upon
the description of the single parts thereof.
A is the press, with a plattin e, as in other presses; B is the frame of an
inking apparatus, consisting of several cylinders, of which the lower ones f and
g are designed to lay the ink on the form. . The form b upon the coffin a (the
same things are indicated by the same letters or figures of references in all the
Drawings) is moved from E to C and back to E by the band wheel F, and in
passing under and in contact with the cylinder G is thereby once inked, and in the
very same time the tympan d and the frisket C are opened in the space between
A and B, in a manner which will be more amply explained herein-after. The
coffin being arrived in C is stopt for a short time to change the sheet, which is
performed by two boys, placed at the two opposite sides of the machino in X, X,
(see the plan.) The coffin is then moved to the press, and in repassing the form
receives a second inking from the cylinder f, in the same time the frisket and
tympan are shut or laid down again upon the form; the coffin being arrived just
under the platin is stopt again, the impression is given, the coffin is returned
to its former place C, and the same circle of action is continued.
Table II. Figure 5 exhibits an elevation of that part of the machine which
performs the operation of inking in a lateral perpendicular section before the
cylinder f. K is a screw, the connexion of which with the first mover will be
explained hereafter; m is a cross bar, having a nut in I; G is the ink box
filled with printers' ink; this box has at the bottom, from h to i, a very thin
slit or opening, like a crevice. H is the piston, fitting exactly the inside of
the ink box. It is evident from tho Drawing, that when motion is commu-
nicated to the screw K the piston H will be forced down in the ink box, and
ink will be pressed out through the slit between h and I, which is thus
communicated to the upper cylinder n. The cylinder G is connected with
the first mover, and gives motion to the four other cylinders n, o, p, f, by
means of the fluted pinions.q, t, and the wheels r, s, i. By the constant
revolution of the cylinders, the ink is distributed or spread on their surfaces.
In order to secure a perfect distribution of the ink, I have adopted not only
the number and size of the cylinders as shewn in the Drawings, whereby
the ink is spread over a largo surface, but I moreover give to the two middle
cylinders o and p different diameters, that when they are revolving the points
of contact may be constantly changed; and it is for the same purpose that
I cause o and p, at the same time that they are revolving, to be shifted
sideways in a horizontal and opposite direction from V to W and back to V,
by which motion, the points of contact being changed every moment, the most

page_text: perfect distribution of the ink is obtained. The two bottom cylinders fand g
are to lay the ink on the form. It is already mentioned that this is done
when the form is passing and repassing under the cylinders, and it is obvious
that that cylinder which is .brought into contact with the form must move
in the same direction as the form; for this reason, two bottom cylinders are
wanted revolving in opposite directions, as marked by the arrows X and X.;
f and g-revolve upon a frame or carriage Y, moveable round the centre pins
A c, resting upon the supporters A d, and connected so as to form one piece
by the cross bar Z; if g be pressed down so far as to come in contact with
the types, fis thereby raised above the level of the form, so as to be out of
its reach, and vice versa. It is by two spiral springs A b, acting upon the
opposite arms of the moveable frame y at A b, (see plan,) that the one and
the other cylinder is alternately applied to the form, the one spring being
disengaged while the other is to act. The mechanism for disengaging the
springs A 6 is connected with the motion of the coffin, which, having two
projecting pieces A e underneath; moves down by them the bar A d, (A e
and A d aro marked in the front view only by dotted lines, being covered
by other parts of the machine,) on its passage to c, first at I and then at K,
Ad having a fixt centre in A f. Two arms Ag and A g, fixed to A d,
communicate the motion of the latter to A h, picces of brass moving up
and down in sockets, and round which the spiral springs A b are attached.
When Ad is pressed down on one side, the arm A g is thereby raised, on the
opposite side, Al is lifted, and one spring compressed or prevented acting
upon Y, and so alternately, in consequence of the bar Ad being pressed
down either at I or K. It remains to give.a description of the interior
construction and composition of the inking cylinders.
Tablo I.: Figure 2 is a section of a cylinder on a larger scale. Al is the
spindle or axis, which is hollow, like the barrel of a gun; A K is a brass
tube or cylinder, fixed upon the spindle; A is a cylindrical piece of felt,
covering A K, and serving as a bed to the leather A m; which forms the
outside of the cylinder; A m is a particular sort of leather made for the
purpose, which I call oil leather, with the grain, being sheepskin, dressed in
oil, in order to keep the said leather in such a moist and soft state as is
required for printing. The spindle of the cylinder has several holes in the
diametrical direction communicating with the longitudinal hole in it, through
which from time to time steam or water is let in to the interior of the
cylinders. The water is admitted through a great number of small holes in
the brass tube. A K, to the felt, which, communicating its dampness from the
inside to the leather, keep it always in a proper state. Some parts of tho

page_text: cast-iron frame B require an explanation. The rollers n, o, p, have each
separate and moveable bearings, which are so adapted to the frame that
each cylinder may be taken out separately. These bearings are secured side-
ways by the screws M, and are mado to slide up or down in the frame by
means of the regulating screws N, in order to adjust them to the proper
distance from the form and to each other. The frame of the machine by
which the several parts thereof are either connected or supported are
inarked D. 0, 0, are supports for A h, and serve at the same time to stop
the impulse of the springs A b, by the arms of Y being brought to bear
or rest upon o, whereby that cylinder, which is to be lowered, is prevented
from sinking deeper as to the level of the form. An is a handle for screw-
ing up occasionally the piston; II, P, are ribs with grooves, upon which the
coftin d slides; A o is a strap attached to the band wheel F, passing over the
pulleys A p, and tied to both ends of the coffin, which is thereby moved when
the form is inked.
The next operation in printing is to lay the frisket (which secures the sheet)
upon the tympan, and to lay tympan and frisket together upon the form. Tho
manner in which this is performed in my machine merely by mechanical
means is explained in Table I., Figure 1. I must observe previously that
this motion is effected by connecting coffin, tympan, and frisket in a manner
which differs from that in the common press in three points: (1), the joints or
hinges R, which connect coffin and tympan, are fixed to the opposite end of the
coffin, compared with their place at the common press; for though the said
joints are at the right hand of the coffin, as in all other tympans, their situation
is, nevertheless, quite the reverse with respect to the arrangement of the whole,
since in my machine the coffin is moved under the press from left to right,
whereas in other presses this is done from the right to the left. This will be
more distinctly understood by observing, that in my machine, in consequence
of this arrangement, it is the back of the tympan which faces the press when
the tympan is in the vertical position; whereas in the common press, when the
tympan is in the same position it is the inside of it, or that side upon which
the printed sheet and frisket are laid which faces the press. (2), my frisket
does not move upon hinges fixed at the top of the tympan, as is the case with
the presses now in use, but it has the same centre with the joints R, and
turns upon the centre points of the pin of the said joints. (3), in the common
press the tympan is fixed close to the coffin; in my machine, coffin, tympan,
and frisket have each two extending arms one foot long, all meeting in the
joints R, which are thus always one foot distant from either of the three.
When tympan and frisket are laid upon the form they must of course cover

page_text: it, as in other presses, and when opened the coffin with the form is to the left
hand of the cylinders, extending from Q to K. The joints R are in S, and
the armis T, extending from the coftin, are between S and Q, just affording
room for the inking cylinders f and g, which are thus between the form and
tympan.
I proceed now to give such further explanation of this motion as to
make, it intelligible in all its particulars. The parts belonging to it, besides
coftin, tinpan, and frisket, are U, a chain attached to the press frame in Aq,
and at V to the tympan. Ar is the support of a bar A s, extending across
the machine (see plan); A t, are two springs fixed to the back of the tympan;
Au are two iron arms fixed to the frisket, and extending beyond its centre
in R; Av, two counterweights, fixed upon A u, and just heavy enough to
overbalance the frisket; A w is a string, one end of which is attached to Au
and the other end to a weight, to which I shall give the letters of reference
A 2, although it is only supposed in the Drawing, because it sinks under the
ground upon which the machino stands. Suppose the coffin now to be return-
ing from the press with the tympan and frisket upon it, as represented in the
Drawing of the front view, it is obvious that when it is arrived so far that the
chain U is entirely stretched, tho said chain will begin to raise the tympan, and
U having its fixt centre in Aq, the other end of it V will strike the line
VA x as its periphery, and it would continue to move in the direction of
the dotted line A y, if there were no impediment on its way; but when arrived
in Aa, the cross bar A s prevents that part of the chain from As to A q
from moving, or U receives a new centre in As, and the end of it strikes the
lino Aa, Bd, as its new periphery; that point of the tympan marked v
must follow the line V, B a, which determines the whole motion; for suppose
the joints R to have proceeded as far as No. 1, V must be in B6, the line 1
and 1 must be the situation of the tympan, and Bb, A q, that of the chain;
and if R has proceeded to No. 4, V is at B c, tho tympan in 4 and 4, and U
in B c, A 8, A q, &c. &c. For the sake of perspicuity, the different positions of
the chain are marked with yellow dotted lines, and those of the tympan with
dotted black lines. When the tympan has passed the vertical line No. 8 the
chain U becomes slack and has no further influence upon the motion; the
tympan sinks by its own weight on the cross bar As, and slides along it until
R arrives in S. The springs A t are to mitigate the jolt when d falls back
upon A s. When the carriage is returning to the press, A s will force the
tympan to rise to the vertical line, and having passed the same, the tympan
will sink down again upon the form by its own weight, guided by the end of
the chain, as before. In order to avoid confusion I have first explained the

page_text: motion of the tympan alone, although that of the frisket is of the same time
inseperably connected with the former. The purpose of the frisket, as is. well.
known to the printers, is to secure the sheet upon the tympan, and it must
be removed from the same or opened as often as the sheet is to be changed;
the frisket in my machine, moving likewise upon the centre R, and having
upon the arms A u, the counterweights A v, overbalancing the opposite side
of it, has a constant tendency to be erect, or in a perpendicular position, but
in the situation which is supposed, Plan 1, Figure 1, namely, when the tympan
is down, the superior weight of the latter overbalances Av; but as soon as
the tympan rises, the counterweights A v begin to act by lifting the opposite
part of the frisket and holding the same with the sheet close to the tympan,
as shewn by the dotted red lines; those counterweights will produce the
desired effect as far as to the situation No. 8, but not farther, for this being
the situation to which the frisket always tends, it would separate from the
tympan between No. 8 and 10 if there were nothing else to prevent it. It is,
however, obvious that the sheet on the tympan, if it were left to itself in the
situation No. 10, would slip off and drop down; some additional contrivance
is therefore wanting to keep the frisket close to the tympan until the latter
is arrived in such a position (as for instance No. 15) where the sheet may
rest safe upon it by its own weight; this effected by that other weight Az,
which is attached to the string A w, whose other end is attached to Au;
this weight has a constant tendency to keep the frisket in a straight line
to the point Z, which is on the periphery of two pulleys, marked with the
same letter, by pulling A u in the direction to Z, and thus secures the sheet
upon the tympan from No. 8 to 15; but as soon as the tympan has passed
that position, which is in a straight line to the point Z between 14 and 15, the
frisket begins to separate from it, and in the same time that the tympan passed
from 15 to 18 (see the dotted black lines), the frisket always keeping in a
line to Z, rises successively to 15, 16, 17, and 18 (see the dotted red lines); on
the return of the coftin the action of the frisket is the same, with the difference
only resulting from the opposite direction of the motion. The successive situa-
tions of the string Aw, 'from Be to Z, are marked with blue dotted lines,
and the figures of reference from No. 1 to 18 corresponding always with the
respective situation of the several parts concurring in this motion will give the
most distinct idea of the action of this part of the machine...
In Table II., Figure 2, which exhibits an elevation of the press, the form is
supposed to be under the platin to receive the impression. A is the cast-iron
frame of the press; Bf are pieces of cast iron across the press, supporting
Pa, hc and d, letters referring to parts that have been already described, and

page_text: which appear here in a lateral perpendicular section; e is the platin, which is
fixed, by means of the screws B g, to the four arms B h, extending from Bi,
a round piece of cast iron; Bi has four other arms B K, extending to the
cheeks of the press and fitting then to B i, the guides for Bk projecting from
the cheeks. Bm is the nut of B n, the screw for the impression; Bn has
for its bearing the square and hollow head Bo of the adjusting screw B p.
Bq is the nut for Bp, and, as shewn by the dotted lines, is extending through
A to the top of the press, where a screw wheel Br is fixed to it. Bs is an
endless screw taking into Br; Bt are pins or bolts fixed in B o, and take
into a groove turned in the same place in Bn, which is thereby attached
to B o, though it is at liberty to revolve therein; thus the several parts of this
press from Bg down to e are suspended to the top of the press frame A and
to each other, for B q is suspended in A; Bo and B p, which are only one
picce, are suspended in Bq; Bn, in Bo; and Bi, with all the parts fixed
to the same, are suspended at the screw Bn, by means of the nut Bm, which
is fixed in Bi, but they are secured in their respective places by the cross
piece B u, which is fitting exactly to Bo, and by the arms and guides B K.
Be, Br, Bw, Bx, By, and Ba, are the divers arms and parts of a compound
lever, which, being well known to every mechanist, need no further description.
The purposes of every individual part of this press will be evident from a
description of its action. When motion is communicated to the compound lever
by the bar B, the screw Bn will be caused to move about one quarter of
a revolution; but Bu, being confined in Bo by the pins Bt, it is not the
screw which is moved in the perpendicular direction, but the nut of the screw
Bm, and the parts fixed to the same, namely, Bi, Bk, Bh, B g, and the
platen e, and thus the impression is given; the said parts in descending and
rising aro guided by Bl, and prevented by the same from moving in any
other but the perpendicular direction; the screws Bg are for adjusting the
platen to an exactly level position. The double lever being moved by the
machinery constantly to the same point or distance, will produce an exactly
equal impression upon every sheet as long as the point of bearing of the
screw B n, which is in B o, is not altered; but the different size of forms
requiring a different degree of pressure, I have placed the point of bearing
of the printing screw into the bead of another screw, and by turning the nut
of the latter, either the one VI the other way, the point of bearing itself is
altered, and the power of the impression may be lessened or increased thereby,
as the size of forms and other circumstances may require.
Having thus described the conformation of the principal parts of my machine,
I shall further describe the manner in which I give motion to the same, and

page_text: the connexion between them and the first mover.
This is explained, Table 3,
Figure 1, which exhibits the plan of the whole machine in the time or
situation when the sheet is to be changed; the frame or carriage, supporting
the wheelwork, and other parts belonging to the same, is marked W. Ca, tho
main shaft, is connected with a steam engine or any other first mover, and
receives motion from the same in the direction of the arrow C 6; upon C a
is fixed the bevel wheel C c, which communicates motion to C d, and C e, to
other bevel wheels, which appear in the plan in an eliptical shape, an account
of their oblique position; Ce works into the wheel of which communicates
motion to the inking cylinders by means of the spindle C g. Ch is a
coupling or clutch box, of the common construction, for the purpose of stoping
the motion of the cylinders if required; Ci and C k are two universal joints
on Cg; Ci is for the purpose of allowing the cylinder g to drop and rise a
little way, as it is explained in the description of the inking apparatus; and
Ck permits the cylinder to keep always in an exactly level position, though
that of the spindle from Ci to Ch is oblique. The next motion is that by
which the coffin with the form is pulled under the press and returned to its
former place beyond the cylinders; because the form must stop under the
press to receive the impression, and when returned must stop again to allow
time for changing the sheet, this motion must be not only a reciprocating
but likewise an interrupted one.
I shall first explain the principle by which I obtain an interrupted motion.
The wheel C is fixed upon the shaft C a, whose end is in C m, as shewn by
the dotted lines; the wheel Cn is fixed upon the shaft Cv, whose end is
likewise in C m; Cp is a sheave, hung upon the end of the two shafts C d
and C o, but not fixed to either of them; the two axis consequently meet in
the centre of the sheave C p, but they are at liberty to revolve therein in
opposite directions. C 9 is another wheel, which is fixed in the sheave Cp,
and whose teeth are taking into those of the wheels Cl and C n, the sheave
Cp being close upon its centre; the wheel C q has likewise no fixed centre,
and for that reason I call it the wheel with the loose centre. Suppose, now,
that C is impelled by C1, the former will be thereby caused to revolve,
but it cannot communicate motion to Cn, because it has no fixed bearing;
the only effect produced by the revolution of C will be, that C q is carried
round the whole periphery of C n, climbing up as it were on one side of Cn,
and descending on the other, and taking always the sheave C p along with
it; Cq, after one revolution of C 1, will be in the situation Cr, marked by
dotted lines, and, in short Cq must change its place every moment as long as
the impelling power of C I continues without producing any effect upon Cn;

page_text: but suppose that some obstacle is thrown in the way of the periphery of the
sheave C p, which prevents the same from revolving, it is obvious that in that
very moment the wheel C q.receives a fixt centre, having then one bearing at
the periphery and the other in the centre of the said sheave, and C q must
now instantaneously communicate motion to C n; when the obstacle is
removed from the periphery of C p, C q is thereby set again afloat, and C n
is again stationary; thus, by this combination of three wheels a regular and
securo interrupted motion is obtained, although the teeth of the said wheels
are constantly engaged in each other.
Having explained this principle of the motion sufficiently intelligible to a
mechanist, I need only describe the means by which the periphery of the
sheave is alternately stopt and loosened. The spur wheel Cs communicates
motion to the wheel Ct, which is fixed upon the shaft Cn; upon the same
shaft are likewise fixed the sheaves Cv and Cw; Cx is a strong bar of
iron, moveable round its centro pin in Cy, and having the friction rollers C
attached to it; the sheave Cv is excentric on two separate parts of its
periphery, and it acts successively with the same against one of the friction
rollers C, whereby the stopping bar Cx is shifted in the situation marked
by dotted lines, and into one of the notches Da in the sheave Cp, (see
Table II., Figure 3,) which exhibits a side view of Cp; the sheave Cw has
similar projecting or. excentric parts upon such places of its periphery as to
shift the stopping bar Ca in proper time in the opposite direction, without
the reach of Cp, and into a notch on the periphery of the sheave D b, whereby
Cp is loosened, and Db, which is fixed upon Co, is stopt as often as the
wheel Cn is going; the motion is further communicated to the wheel Dc,
which works into a pinion placed just underneath it, and therefore not visible
in the Drawing. Dd is the spindle of the said pinion. Dd has a universal
joint close to the pinion underneath the drum Dh; this universal joint leaves
the other end of the said spindle at liberty to rise and fall, which is required
for the action of another pinion De, (De is likewise not visible in the plan,
but in the front view,) fixed upon Dd, and working into Df, one of that well-
known kind of wheels in which the pinion works alternately inside and outsido
of the teeth of the wheel, and whereby the motion is reversed. The band
wheel F, whose connection with the coffin is already described, is fixt upon the
same spindle with Df; as often as the latter is moved as far that the pinion
changes its situation from the inside to the outside of the teeth, or vice versa,
a reciprocating motion will be communicated to the coffin. The clutch
box Dg is for stopping occasionally the motion of the coffin. Dh and Di
are two drums, of a conical shape, fixed upon the axis D1 and D n, and con-

page_text: nected by the string Dk, upon Dl.
Underneath the screw wheel D m, (and
consequently hidden by the latter) is an endless screw, taking into Dm; upon
the spindle of D m, is Dc, another endless screw, working into a screw wheel
underneath it; upon the spindle of the latter is the endless screw Dp, work-
ing into the screw wheel D q, which, being fixt at the top of the screw K,
drives the piston into the ink box by a very slow motion. The drums D
and D are placed in such a manner that the greatest diameter of Dh is
exactly opposite the smallest of D i, and vice versa, so that the same string
will fit all the subdivisions on the said drums which are marked in the Draw-
ing, and by changing the place of the string the velocity of this motion is
regulated to the quantity of ink required for the different sizes of forms and
types. Upon the shaft Dr is fixt the bevel wheel Ds, which takes its motion
from Cc; upon Dr is likewise fixt the band wheel Dv, which communi-
cates motion to another band wheel Du, by means of the string Dv; the
spindle of Du is formed into a crank at D w, and upon the said spindle is
fixt a spur wheel D x, working into another wheel of an equal size underneath
it; the spindle of the latter wheel is likewise formed into a crank Dy; the
connecting rods D are attached with one end to the crank D w and Dy,
and the other end is attached to the spindles of the inking cylinders o and p
by means of the joint Ea and Eh. When the band wheel Du is revolving,
the two spur wheels in Dx will cause the cranks Dw and Dy to move in
opposite directions, and the said cranks will communicate to the cylinders o
and p at the same time that they are revolving round their axis or lateral
reciprocating motion, for purposes that have been already explained in the
description of the inking apparatus.
It now remains only to describe the manner in which motion is given to the
press, or, more properly, to By of the compound lever, by which the printing
screw is moved. It will be observed that this motion must be likewise an
interupter one, for the press is only to act when coffin and form are under it.
The same contrivance for an interupted motion employed for the coffin is there-
fore adopted here, to move at intervals a crank used for the impression. The
continual motion first necessary for the interupted one is here taken from the
bevil wheel Ec, which is fixt upon the shaft Dr, and communicates motion
to two bevel wheels fixt upon a perpendicular shaft ending in the centre of the
sheave Ed; those two wheels are not visible in the Drawing of the plan,
because they are covered by the wheel Ef, which is of the same size; and
exactly above them upon the shaft Ei, whose lower end is likewise in the
centre of Ed, is fixed the sheave Eh, and the bevel wheel Ef; between
Eh and Ef, the said shaft Ei is bent into the form of a crank, marked

page_text: Eg. The bevel wheel Ee, which is here the wheel with the loose centre, is
fixed in E d. Ek is the stopping bar; and El, its bearing or carriage, is in
the middle between Eh and Ed; Em are friction rollers, fixed to the stop-
ping bar, which bears with them against the frame; Eh is a weight attached
to the stopping bar E k, and is to strike the same into the notch Dd on the
sheave Ed; E o is a sheave, similar to C v and Cw, fixed upon C u, in
such a position, that with the excentric part of its periphery it strikes the
bar Ek out of the notch Ed, into that of E h, and keeps the same therein
until the said projecting or excentric part of Eo is passed by, and En is
then again at liberty to strike the stopping bar in the opposite direction
into the notch of Ed. By inspecting the Drawings, and the relative position
of the wheels, it will be easily seen that it is the same combination of the
wheels, sheaves, &c. as for the interupted motion of the coffin, seen only from.
another side, the shafts laying perpendicular in one and horizontal in the other
instance. The connecting rod Be is attached to the crank E g, and its oppo-
site end to By; ono revolution of the crank moves the arm B y from E p
to Eq (as shown by the dotted lines), and back again to Ep, and performs
thereby the impression; the motion of the crank is then stopped by the means
described until the proper time for its action returns.
In witness whereof, I, the said Frederick Koenig, have hereunto set
my hand and seal, this Twenty-seventh day of September, in the year