Improvements in Machinery for Printing in Colours.
Year: 1892

page_text: Date of Application, 1st Dec., 1892
Complete Specification Left, 1st Sept., 1893-Accepted, 25th Nov., 1893
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Machinery for Printing in Colours.
I, JOHN LACEY DAVIES of Chipstead; Surrey, Civil Engineer, do hereby declare
the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
My invention is designed for the purpose of adapting ordinary lithographic
machines or other similar or analogous printing machinery for use in printing direct
from blocks of prepared colour on to paper or other suitable materials, in a similar
manner to the method described in Letters Patent No. 13,874 dated October 13th 1887
granted to William Conisbee, but without the use of an intermediate transfer cylinder
as therein described. The improvements consist first in the application to such
machines of the automatically rising bed described therein or other automatic
mechanical equivalent. Secondly, in the application and use of a roller or rollers
extending across the machine and corresponding in superficial area with the area or
surface of the bed of the machine which carries the block of colour, such roller
being supplied with turpentine or other suitable solvent and which I term a "solvent
roller," it being employed to convey and distribute a film or coating of solvent
over the surface of this block of colour, immediately before, the latter is brought
into contact with the paper or other material thus preparing it to transfer a layer
of colour on to the paper by the means adopted in ordinary lithographic or other
similar and suitable machinery. Thirdly, the improvements consist in the use and
application to lithographic or other similar or analogous printing machines of
apparatus for cleaning the "solvent roller" and for supplying it with solvent.
The surface of the colour block is moistened and partially dissolved, for each
impression, by turpentine or other suitable solvent applied thereto by means of the
"solvent roller" the upper surface of which is supplied with the solvent from
a trough or chamber by the capillary action of a cloth or series of cotton or woollen
strands or "yarns" extending between the trough and the solvent roller and as the
solvent roller rotates it moistens the block on the bed of the machine as it traverses
beneath it. This solvent roller after contact with the block is cleaned or wiped, as
it rotates, by means of a wiping cloth on each side, each of which cloths is coiled
upon and between a pair of rollers mounted above one another in a vibrating frame
at each side of the solvent roller and so actuated by a cam on the driving shaft as
to act upon and wipe the sides of the solvent roller intermittently and alternately.
The wiping cloths are caused to travel intermittently from the upper rollers to the
lower or rice versa by means of ratchet wheels on the rollers actuated by pawls so
that a clean piece of cloth is brought into contact with the sides of the solvent
roller at each revolution thereof.
Dated this 1st day of December 1892.
JENSEN & SON,
77, Chancery Lane, London, W.C., Patent Agents.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Machinery for Printing in Colours.
I, John Lacey DAVIES of Chipstead, Surrey, Civil Engineer 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:-
In the Specification of Conisbee's Patent dated 13th October 1887 No. 13874
is described a method of printing from colour blocks, but owing to the imperfect

page_text: means therein described for moistening the surface of the colour block the printing
could not be done directly on to the paper, but an intermediate transfer cylinder
had to be used. In that Specification is. described an automatically gradually
rising bed upon which the colour block rests, the latter being thus raised to the
extent of the thin film removed from its surface by each printing operation.
In the Complete Specification of my Patent application dated 18th October 1892
No. 18664 are described an improved method of and means for moistening the
surface of the colour block in colour block printing machines consisting of what
I call a "solvent roller" and means for supplying it with turpentine or other
suitable solvent and the means for cleaning the surface of the said roller whereby
I am enabled to print direct from the colour block on to the paper or other suitable
material.
My invention consists in the adaptation of ordinary lithographic machines o
other similar or analogous printing machinery to the printing from colour blocks
on to the paper or other suitable material, and such adaptation I effect firstly:
by the application therein of Conisbee's means for automatically raising the colour
block thereon but by preference in an improved form, secondly by the application
therein of my aforesaid "solvent roller" for moistening the colour block, thirdly:
by the application therein of my aforesaid means for supplying the solvent roller
with turpentine or other suitable solvent alternately during its intermittent and
partial revolutions, and fourthly: by the application of means for cleaning the
surface of the solvent roller.
In order to adapt an ordinary lithographic machine to the purpose of my inven-
tion remove the ordinary ink duct and lithographic rollers and apply to the machine
the improvements just mentioned all as hereinafter described.
Figure 1 is a half plan and Figure 2 a vertical longitudinal section of my improved
means for automatically raising the colour block. The latter rests on a plate r
contained within four upstanding walls p¹ of the travelling bed p. The underside
of the plate is provided with sloping parts or faces ¹ below which are arranged
slides o with corresponding slopes o. The screws y pass through screw threaded
lugs on the slides o and have their other ends held each against longitudinal
displacement in lugs on the travelling bed p by means of flanges q¹ and collar q
with through pins . On the ends of the screws q are fixed worm-wheels into
which gear the worms t on the spindles t' which also carry each a ratchet wheel u
that is actuated intermittently by the pawl and pawl lever v¹ each time the
latter in the travel of the bed p comes against the stop won the framing of
the machine. The colour block resting on the intermediate slope plate will
thus, at each run of the machine or travel of the bed p, by reason of the turning
of the screws 9, be raised to the very slight extent required, that is to say,
according to the layer of colour removed from the colour block.
Figure 3 is a part sectional view of an ordinary lithographic machine adapted to
this kind of colour printing. A represents the ordinary printing cylinder and
B the driving shaft. The turpentine or other solvent is contained in the supply
vessel a and is by a piece of flannel b or the like and by the rollers c and c' evenly
supplied to the upper part of the solvent roller d. The sides of the latter are
alternately wiped clean by means of a cloth e on each side. The freshly supplied
turpentine in this manner does not come in contact with the soiled parts of the
wiping cloths, which are passed over guide rolls ffff³, the two sets of rolls
being mounted in frames which by a cam on the driving shaft B and by the
rod with frame jare vibrated so that one cloth is acting against the solvent
roller d while the other is off. The rod i is supported by the lever k and held up
to the cam by the spring 1. Each cloth is at the same time at each vibration by
means of the double ended pawl n acting on one or other of the ratchet wheels o
shifted round the guide rollers ƒƒ ƒ ƒ³, thus each time presenting a clean fresh
piece of wiping surface; the pawl is free to rise and fall relatively to the frame g,
the pawl having near each end a pin working freely in a short slot in the frame g.
The cloths e are coiled off the rollers and coiled on to the rollers f³. The

page_text: swinging frames g and the solvent vessel a are supported on the machine framing m.
It will be noticed that the connections between the vibrating frame ; and the
frames g g are flexible or jointed to allow for a slight rise and fall of the swinging
frame j.
Figure 4 is a side view of another arrangement or modification in which the
cam h acts against the lever that is adjustably connected to the rod i; the lever i¹
works on the same fulcrum pin i* as the lever to which the retractile spring is
connected. The rod i is at the other end supported by the lever k and on the
fulcrum pin of the latter is fixed a lever which by connecting rod k² vibrates the
lever j around the pin j. Laterally reciprocating motion is imparted from a pin
on the lever to a slide which is guided on the plummer block or frame m for
the solvent roller d. To each end of the slide 2 is clamped or adjustably fixed a
block with guide rollers f¹ and f2 for the cloths e which coil off the rollers f
and coil on to the rollers f³. The rollers f and f³ are mounted on the framing or
plummer block bracket m. The pawl motion for shifting the cloths e is effected
from the upper hammer-headed end of the lever j by means of the rods n' adjustably
connected thereto and by the pawls n. The plummer block m is as shown in the
detail view so constructed that the solvent roller with its gudgeons can be lifted
and laterally withdrawn without removing any other parts except the blocks ³
which carry the rollers f¹ƒ.
Obviously the means for imparting vibrating motion and for shifting the cloths
so as to present new wiping surfaces to the solvent roller may be of many different
forms.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed 1 declare that what I
claim is :-
1. The adaptation of lithographic machines and other similar or analogous printing
machines to colour block printing by the application thereto of Conisbee's auto-
matically rising colour block bed, the solvent roller, the means for supplying the
same with solvent and the means for cleaning the said roller substantially as
described and shown.
2. My improved construction of Conisbee's reciprocating automatically rising
colour block bed applied to machines made or adapted for colour block printing
substantially as described and shown in Figs. 1 and 2.
3. The application to lithographic machines and other similar or analogous
printing machines of a travelling reciprocating bed with automatically rising colour
block on the improved Conisbee principle, of the solvent roller, the means for
supplying the same with solvent, and the means for cleaning the said roller,
substantially as described and shown.
Dated this 1st day of September 1893
JENSEN & SON,
77, Chancery Lane, London, W.C., Patent Agents.