A NEW OR IMPROVED METHOD OF PRINTING OIL CLOTH FOR FLOOR AND TABLE COVERS, PAPER HANGINGS, AND OTHER SURFACES
Year: 1854

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Richard Leicester Antrobus, of Birmingham, in the
County of Warwick, Commercial Clerk, for the Invention of "A NEW OR
IMPROVED METHOD OF PRINTING OIL CLOTH FOR FLOOR AND TABLE COVERS,
PAPER HANGINGS, AND OTHER SURFACES."
Sealed the 21st November 1854, and dated the 27th June 1854.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Richard Leicester Antrobus
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
27th June 1854.
I, RICHARD LEICESTER ANTRODUS, of Birmingham, in the County of War-
wick, Commercial Clerk, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention
for "A NEW OR IMPROVED METHOD OF PRINTING OIL CLOTH FOR FLOOR AND TABLE
COVERS, PAPER HANGINGS, AND OTHER SURFACES," to be as follows:-
I take as many pairs of rolls as I wish to print colours; I place these pairs
of rolls one in advance of the other, so that a piece of cloth or paper, after
passing between one pair, may be introduced between the next, and so on,
through the whole series. The bottom roll of cach pair is a plain one, and
the top roll of each pair is engraved with the pattern to be impressed in the
colour to which the roll is devoted, the said pattern being in relief. The first
pair of rolls prints a ground colour; the second pair of rolls prints the colour
next in extent to the ground colour, and so on for the several colours.
fabric passes through the series of rolls, it becomes impressed in various colours
As the

page_text: in its passage, and emerges with the design complete. The printing rollers are
fed with colour by rollers placed over them, the said feeding rollers receiving
the colour from a brush situated at the bottom of a trough, there being a
narrow opening at the bottom of the trough through which the colour runs to
the brush.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of, the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said. Richard Leicester Antrobus in the Great Seal Patent Office
on the 21st December 1854.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, RICHARD
LEICESTER ANTROBUS, of Birmingham, in the County of Warwick, Commercial
Clerk, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Twenty-seventh day of June, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and fifty-four, in the eighteenth year of Her reign,
did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the said
Richard Leicester Antrobus, Her special licence that I, the said Richard
Leicester Antrobus, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others
as I, the said Richard Leicester Antrobus, 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 "A
NEW OR IMPROVED METHOD OF PRINTING OIL CLOTH FOR FLOOR AND TABLE COVERS,
PAPER HANGINGS, AND OTHER SURFACES," upon the condition (amongst others) that
I, the said Richard Leicester Antrobus, by an instrument in writing under my
hand and seal, should particularly describe and ascertain the nature of the said
Invention, and in what manner the same was to be performed, and cause the
samo to be filed in the Great Seal Patent Office within six calendar months
next and immediately after the date of the said Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said Richard Leicester Antrobus, do hereby
declare the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same is to
be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the
following statement thereof (that is to say):-
My Invention consists of a method herein-after particularly described of
printing oil cloth, paper hangings, and other surfaces.
Figure 1 represents, in side elevation; a machine constructed according

page_text: to my Invention; Figure represents an end elevation of the same;' and
Figure 3 represents the same in transverse vertical section. It consists of a
series of pairs of rolls a, b, c, d, e, f, there being as many pairs of rolls as there
are colors to be printed the 'said rolls are supported by and work in suitable
framing, as represented. The lower roll. of each pair of rolls is plain; the
upper roll of each pair is engraved with that portion of the pattern which is
to be printed in the colour to which the said roll is devoted, the said pattern
being in, relief. g, h, are fast and loose pullies on the axis of one of the upper
rolls, by which said pullies the said roll is thrown into and out of gear with the
driving power. The upper rolls are geared to the lower rolls by toothed
wheels, as seen at i, k, Figure 1. Over each pair of rolls is situated an inking
or coloring roll 1, m, n; over the said inking or coloring rolls are troughs
o, P. q, for containing tlic colours to be printed. A slit extends from end to end
in the bottom of each of the troughs o, p, q, through which slits the colour
passes to the brushes r, s, t, by which brushes the said colours are delivered
on to the inking or coloring rolls l, m, n. In order to effect a uniform. dis-
tribution of the colour of the inking or colouring rolls. l, m, n, a reciprocating
motion is communicated to the troughs o, p, q; a camb u, see Figure 1, on the
axis of the inking or colouring roll, giving a reciprocating motion to the lever v,
which said lever, communicates the said motion to the trough o. Each of the
troughs is provided with similar mechanism. The bearings of the printing
rolls a, c, e, are capable of a vertical motion, whereby the said rolls may be
raised, for the purpose of arresting the printing, or for other
purposes. The
way in which this vertical motion is effected will be understood by reference to
Figure 2. The bearings w, a,,y, of the rolls a, c, e, respectively, rest upon a
rod; the lower ends of the said bearings w, x, y, are inclined, as represented,
and those parts of the rod z on which the said bearings w, x, y, rest are also
inclined, as represented. When the rod is moved in the direction of the
arrow, Figure 2, by acting on the lever 1, the inclined portions of the said
rod, acting against the inclined bottoms of the bearings w, x, y, 'cause the
said bearings to rise vertically. The printing rolls work in bearings 2, 3, 4,
jointed to tlie framing at 5, 6, 7, and are capable of rising and falling; 8 is
the fabric to be printed, which passes over the roller 9 before entering the
machine. The toothed wheels on the ends of the printing rolls are not keyed
thereto, but dises, one of which is shown on a large scale in Figure 4, are
keyed to the axis of the said roll, and the toothed wheel placed upon the axis
of the said roll is connected with the said disc by a pin passing through the
slot 10. One of these discs is seen at 11, Figure 1, keyed to the toothed
wheel i. Instead of placing a separate roll under each of the printing rolls,

page_text: as shown in Figures 1, 2, and 3, I sometimes substitute one large roll, as shown
in Figure 5, the cylindrical surface of the wheel or drum 12 supporting the
fabric to be printed as it passes under the several printing rolls 13, 14, 15,
and 16. As the other arrangements of the machine, Figure 5, resemble in all
essential respects the arrangements of the machine represented in Figures 1,
2, and 3, I do not think it necessary to describe the same with reference to
Figure 5.
My Invention is applicable to the printing of oil cloth for floors and table
covers, paper hangings, calico, and other surfaces.
Having thus described the nature of iny said Invention, and the manner of
carrying the same into effect, I wish it to be understood that I do not limit
myself to the precise methods herein described, as the same may be varied
without departing from the nature of my said Invention; but I claim as my
Invention, the method herein described, and illustrated in the accompanying
Drawing, of constructing a machine for printing oil cloth, paper hangings, and
other surfaces.
In witness whereof, I, the said Richard Leicester Antrobus, have here-
unto set my hand and seal, this Fifteenth day of December, in the year
of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and fifty-four.
Witness,
GEORGE SHAW.
RICHARD LEICESTER ANTROBUS. (L.S.)