IMPROVED MACHINERY FOR BRONZING PRINTED WORK."
Year: 1868

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Benjamin George George, of Hatton Garden, in
the County of Middlesex, Printer, for the Invention of "IMPROVED
MACHINERY FOR BRONZING PRINTED WORK."
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Benjamin George
George at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his
Petition, on the 24th July 1868.
I, BENJAMIN GEORGE GEORGE, of Hatton Garden, in the County of
Middlesex, Printer, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention
for "IMPROVED MACHINERY FOR BRONZING PRINTED WORK," to be as
follows:-
This Invention relates to a novel arrangement of machine for applying
bronze powder and powdered colour to printed surfaces in a manner that
will economize the use of the powder, save a large amount of labour, and
produce a good finish. To this end I provide a gripper or clips mounted
on a rotating drum or wheels for carrying the printed work through the
machine, and this gripper I operate by means of a fixed cam and springs.

page_text: The gripper draws the work over a fixed or it may be a rotating table,
and it is opened to receive the edge of the work by an arm or projection
on its hinge spindle coming in contact with the fixed cam. When this
arm or projection has passed the cam pressure or tension springs will
come into action and close the gripper on the work, and the rotation of
the gripper will serve to carry forward the work, whether it be a sheet of
paper printed with adhesive composition or a length of paperhanging or
other material similarly prepared for bronzing. To suit the machine for
this latter work the gripper must be thrown out of action so soon as the
paper by its coils gets a proper hold on a delivery roller provided to
receive it. Or if the paper is allowed to coil on the rotating drum then
the gripper must be quiescent during the charging of the drum with the
bronzed paper. The work as it is advanced is brought under the action
of a rotary brush or bronze distributor, which is mounted in a traversing
box formed with a semicircular bottom. This box carries at its upper
part a hopper, the bottom of which is closed by a roller. In the hopper
the bronze or colour powder is placed, and rotary motion being given to
the roller it will take up a certain portion of bronze and transmit it to
the brush below, and the brush in its rotation will work over the bottom
of the box, which will serve to spread the bronze evenly on the brush by
which it is to be applied to the printed surface. The axle of the brush
is fitted with a spur pinion which is designed to engage with a spur
wheel driven from the main axle. The box is mounted on guides, and
it is caused to advance (so as to bring the brush pinion into gear) by a
crank lever or its equivalent, which lever is set in action by a cam or
wiper carried by the drum or wheels carrying the gripper or clips. This
cam or wiper is lengthened or shortened, or it may be made continuous
to suit the work in hand, the object being to enable it to keep the
bronzing apparatus in action only so long as work is presented to the
action of the distributing brush. When therefore in printing sheets
(that being the general run of work) so soon as the sheet has passed the
bronze distributor the cam will allow the bronzing apparatus to retire, a
spring or springs serving to draw the brush pinion out of gear. A strap
from a pulley on the brush axle will serve to give rotary motion to the
roller in the hopper. As the work leaves the bronzing apparatus it is
carried round by the gripper or clips to a rotary bush which removes
the superfluous or loose bronze powder from the face of the work, and
a bar placed across this brush serves to flick the powder from the bristles
and discharge it into a receptacle below. After the work has passed

page_text: under the action of this brush it may be submitted to a polishing roller
which will finish the work by adding brilliancy to the bronzed im-
pression. The work (if sheets in contradistinction to pieces are being
bronzed) is then discharged on to an endless apron, the gripper or clips
being opened to release the work. The rotary motion of the cleaning
brush which is derived from the central shaft may be arrested in the
same manner as described with reference to the bronze distributor. To
keep a good surface or to prevent the bronze from clogging on the dis-
tributor a reciprocating brush is provided which is caused to move
across the surface of the distributor by the action of a tappet wheel upon
a rock lever to which the brush is connected.
Although I have described the bronze distributor as a brush, yet a roller
covered with velveteen or equivalent soft substance may be used in place
thereof. When the cylindrical table is fixed I propose to attach to the
gripper or clips flannel or other soft substance to cover the part of the
table on which the work is placed. Any bronze that would otherwise fall
on this part of the table will be received by the blanket, which will in its
rotation be cleaned by the dusting off brush. I would also remark that
to prevent the powder from getting at the back of the impression I
propose to hang in front of the distributor metal shields which will
cover the edges of the work and prevent the distributor working the
powder over the edges thereof.
SPECIFICATION filed in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters
Patent, and of an Order of the Lord Chancellor, by the said
Benjamin George George in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
8th February 1869.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, BENJAMIN
GEORGE GEORGE, of Hatton Garden, in the County of Middlesex,
Printer, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Twenty-fourth day of July, in the year
of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-eight, in the thirty-
second year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors,
give and grant unto me, the said Benjamin George George, Her special
licence that I, the said Benjamin George George, my executors, adminis-

page_text: trators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said Benjamin George
George, 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
"IMPROVED MACHINERY FOR BRONZING PRINTED WORK," upon the condition
(amongst others) that I, the said Benjamin George George, my executors
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 on or before the Eighth day of February, One thousand
eight hundred and sixty-nine.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said Benjamin George George, do hereby
declare the nature of my 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 Drawing here-
unto annexed, and to the letters and figures marked thereon (that is
to say):
--
This Invention relates to a novel arrangement of machinery for
applying bronze powder and powdered color to surfaces prepared by
being printed with an adhesive material to receive the bronze or color,
the objects being to economize the use of the powder by stopping the
delivery of the same when the printed work is not in contact with the
distributing roller, to save a large amount of labor, and to produce a good
finish.
In the accompanying Drawing Fig. 1 shews my improved machine in
side elevation, and Fig. 2 is a vertical section taken through the centre
of the machine.
A is one of a pair of cast-iron standards for providing bearings or
supports for the spindles, shafts, stud axles, and other parts of the
machine; B is a rotating drum for presenting the printed paper to the
bronzing roller and carrying it through the machine. This drum is
keyed to a shaft B¹ which receives an axial motion from a winch handle
or other suitable means. The periphery of the drum is cut away at one
part to allow of the application thereto of a gripper C which is composed
(by preference) of a segment plate carried by arms keyed to a rock

page_text: shaft C' having its bearings in the sides of the drum B; keyed to this
rock shaft (within the drum) is a roller c to which an elastic band c¹ is
secured, its other end being made fast to the drum for the purpose of
holding it at tension, and thus giving it a tendency to pull over the
gripper and cause it to take hold of the paper presented thereto. For
releasing the grip at the proper time I provide a segment cam C* which
is fixed to the upper part of the standard A (Fig. 1) in the path of a cam
or tappet C³ keyed to the extremity of the rock shaft C¹ that is protruded
from the side of the drum B. As this cam or tappet C is brought (by
the revolution of the drum) into contact with the fixed cam C³ the
shaft C¹ will be caused to rock and throw back the gripper into the dotted
position of Fig. 2, thereby releasing the paper that has been carried
through the machine and providing for the feeding in of a fresh sheet.
When the tappet has passed the cam C³ the tension spring c¹ will come
into action and close the gripper on the work, and the rotation of the
cylinder will serve to carry forward the work, whether it be a sheet of
paper printed with adhesive composition or a length of paperhanging or
other material similarly prepared for bronzing. It should be here
remarked that to suit the machine for this latter work the gripper must
be thrown out of action at the proper time to free the gripped end of
the paper and allow of its being taken up by a delivery roller provided
to receive it. The work as it is advanced is brought under the action
of a rotating bronze distributor D which may consist of a wooden roller
covered with felt or velvet, or a roller composed of some suitable elastic
substance, or a soft brush may be used for the purpose. The bronze
distributor is mounted in sliding bearings carried by the standards, and
below it is fitted a hollowed or segment-shaped block d which is free to
slide (upon guides that carry it) with the roller D. This roller fits the
block d in order that as the roller rotates it may act as a spreader to
equalize the supply of bronze on the periphery of the roller. The
distributing roller D is held in a backward position by means of a spring
or a weighted cord to keep it out of action. Above the roller D is
mounted a box D¹ which carries at its upper part a hopper d' the bottom
of which is closed by a roller d' that revolves in contact with the
distributing roller D. In the hopper the bronze or color powder is
placed, and rotary motion being given to the roller dit will take up
a certain portion of bronze and transmit it to the roller or brush D
below, and the roller or brush will in working over the bottom of the
block d as before mentioned have the bronze spread evenly over its

page_text: surface. In order to regulate the supply of bronze according to the
work in hand I provide for the driving up of the hopper by the insertion
therein of transverse dividing plates, and I can thus limit the supply of
bronze to portions instead of the entire length of the hopper. The
axle of the distributing roller is fitted with a spur pinion (the pitch
line of which is shewn at 1, Fig. 1). This pinion is designed to
engage with a spur wheel 2 mounted on a stud axle on the standard A
and carrying at its boss a pinion 3 which gears into a spur wheel 4
keyed on the main axle. The roller D is caused to advance (so as
to bring its pinion into gear) by a pair of crank levers E or their
equivalent, which levers are set in action by cams or wipers F fitted to
the sides of the drum. The crank levers E are fitted at their lower ends
with a bowl to receive the pressure of the cams or wipers F, and their
upper ends bear against the axle of the distributing roller to press it
towards the drum. One of these crank levers has an extension (shewn
by dots at Fig. 2) which carries a tension pulley e for the purpose to be
presently explained. The cams or wipers F are composed of segment
pieces in order that they may be lengthened or shortened (or made
continuous) to suit the work in hand, the object being to enable them to
keep the bronzing apparatus in a position for action only so long as work
is presented to the action of the distributing roller. In printing sheets
therefore (that being the general run of work), so soon as the sheet has
passed the bronze distributor the cams F will allow the bronze distributor
to retire, the spring or counterweight serving to draw the pinion 1 out of
gear. A strap 5 from a pulley 6 on the driving shaft passes round a
pulley keyed on the axle of the roller d² for the purpose of giving
motion thereto. This strap however only acts when brought to tension
by the depression of the pulley e which is occasioned by the action of
the cam F on the crank lever that carries the roller D, the tension
therefore of the strap is retained only so long as the cams F are in
contact with the bowles of the crank levers E, and consequently the
rotation of rollers d* and D will cease together. As the roller d' rotates
it will carry on its surface a supply of bronze or other powder, which it
will deliver to the distributing roller below, and the roller D having
been brought into contact with the work by the action of the cams F
it will impart to the printed surface a supply of bronze or other powder
which will whenever it meets with the tacky substance imparted to the
paper by the preparatory printing operation adhere firmly thereto. As
the work leaves the bronzing apparatus it is carried round by the gripper

page_text: or clips to a rotary brush G which removes the superfluous or loose
bronze powder from the face of the work, and a bar G¹ placed across this
brush serves to flick the powder from the bristles and discharge it into a
receptacle below. After the work has passed under the action of this
brush it may be submitted to a polishing roller which will finish the
work by adding brilliancy to the bronzed impression. The work (if
sheets are being bronzed in contradistinction to pieces) is then discharged
on to an endless apron, the gripper or clips being opened to release the
work. The cleaning brush, the rotary motion of which is derived from
the central shaft (through a train of wheels 7, 8, and 9, gearing into the
spur wheel 4), is brought into action in the same manner as described
with reference to the bronze distributor, in order that it may act only
when in contact with the work, and thus be kept from imparting bronze
to the periphery of the drum when that is not covered with paper. The
brush is mounted in bearings which are free to slide vertically in guides,
and connected therewith is a crank lever H which is pivotted to the
standard A. The upper end of this lever carries a bowle which is so
placed as to stand within the circuit of the cam F when the brush is out
of gear and at its lowest position. When therefore the cam F is brought
by the rotation of the drum into contact with the bowle of the crank
lever H that lever will lift the brush into gear and retain it in acting
position, but so soon as the cam has passed the bowle the brush will fall
(by its own weight) out of action. To keep a good surface or to prevent
the bronze from clogging on the distributor D a brush having a
reciprocating endway motion may be provided, which being caused to
move across the surface of the distributor by the action of a tappet wheel
upon a rock lever to which the brush is connected, will prevent the
bronze accumulating in rings or ridges on the roller. Or the like result
may be obtained by giving the roller D a slight endway motion as is
common to doctor rollers of printing machines.
An obvious modification of my Invention for stopping the delivery of
the bronze powder when the printed work is not in contact with the
distributing roller is to make the distributing roller and the clearing
brush stationary and to form a raised bed on the periphery of the drum
to receive the printed work, and thus to enlarge the diameter of the
drum sufficiently to bring the work into contact with the distributing
roller. This bed may, like the cams F for which it will be a substitute,
be formed of segment pieces, say of india-rubber or other suitable sub-

page_text: stance which may be added to or diminished in number to suit the size
of sheet intended to be operated upon by the distributing roller.
To avoid as far as possible all waste in the use of the bronze or other
powder I box in the above described parts, as shewn in the Drawing,
and I also provide a tray I below the hopper box to catch any powder
that may fall in the act of transferring it from the distributing roller to
the paper.
Having now set forth the nature of my Invention of improved
machinery for bronzing printed work, and explained the manner of
carrying the same into effect, I wish it to be understood that under the
above in part recited Letters Patent I claim,-
First. Fitting to the distributing roller or brush of bronzing machines
a spreader for the purpose above set forth.
Secondly. Throwing the bronze distributor and the clearing brush out
of action in the manner and for the purpose above described.
In witness whereof, I, the said Benjamin George George, have
hereunto set my hand and seal, the Eighth day of February,
in the year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-
nine.