WEB PRINTING MACHINES."
Year: 1880

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Joseph Foster at the Office
of the Commissioners of Patents on the 30th December 1880.
JOSEPH FOSTER, of Preston, in the County of Lancaster.
WEB PRINTING MACHINES."
"IMPROVEMENTS IN
My Invention relates to the construction and arrangement of the parts of a web
printing machine, in such a manner as to secure facility for placing and braking
the web, convenient access to place or remove the stereo-plates and ink distributors,
and to obtain increased rapidity of operation and accuracy of delivery. For the
purpose of placing the web in its bearings I provide at the front end of the
machine a transverse shaft having two projecting arms. The shaft being turned
into such a position that its arms extend forwards at a low level, the web roll is
advanced along the floor till its axis comes immediately over notches at the ends of
the arms.
The shaft is then by suitable gear caused to turn partly round, and its
arms raise the web till its axis comes over the bearings in the frame work intended
to receive it, into which bearings it is lowered by again lowering the arms.
For the purpose of braking the web, that is to say, preventing it from revolving
too quickly, I fix on its axis a brake wheel surrounded by a flexible brake strap,
and this strap is drawn against the wheel by a spring, the tension of which is from
time to time adjusted as the web roll becomes reduced in diameter.
I arrange the four printing cylinders in the following manner :-'
-The first
cylinder which carries the inner forme is situated highest, and is inked from a set
of inkers and distributing rollers situated at nearly the same level with it, and all
accessible at the top of the machine. The second cylinder which is an impression
cylinder is situated under and in front of the first type cylinder, its axis being in a
plane with that of the type cylinder inclined about 45° to the horizon. The third
cylinder which carries the outer forme is lowest, its axis being below that of the
second cylinder. This outer for me cylinder is inked by inkers and distributing
rollers which are situated in front of it, and are all accessible from above. The
3

page_text: fourth cylinder which is an impression cylinder is situated behind the third
cylinder and below the first, and from it the paper passes to the cutting cylinders.
The arrangement of cylinders above described, such that their axes occupy the
angles of a diamond or parallelogram, renders the machine more compact than when
the cylinders are otherwise arranged, whilst they and the inking apparatus are also
conveniently accessible.
From the cutting cylinders the printing paper is conducted by tapes to separating
rollers revolving at higher speed than the cutting cylinders, so that the paper in its
passage to them is divided into separate sheets. These sheets are made to travel
round rollers at such a distance apart that one sheet with the space separating it
from the next occupies the whole length of tape surrounding those rollers. On these
rollers a number of sheets are collected one over the other, and then this number
of sheets is delivered from them under the flyer, which deposits them on the
delivery board. For metropolitan use I find it convenient thus to collect first
sheets together, then 7 sheets together, and repeating this I get a collection of
26 sheets which constitute the London quire. The sheets may however be collected
in other numbers as may be desired, their collection and delivery being determined
by the action of a cam or a swing roller, which in one position guides the successive
sheets round the collecting rollers, and in another position allows the collected
sheets to pass therefrom. Instead of collecting the sheets in numbers, as above
described, they may be delivered direct from the separating rollers to folding
apparatus of any known construction.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed by
the said Joseph Foster in the Great Seal Patent Office on the 29th June
1881.
JOSEPH FOSTER, of Preston, in the County of Lancaster.
WEB PRINTING MACHINES,"
"IMPROVEMENTS IN
My Invention relates to the construction and arrangement of the parts of a web
printing machine in such a manner as to secure facility for placing and braking
the web, convenient access to place or remove the stereo plates and ink distributors,
and to obtain increased rapidity of operation and accuracy of delivery. For the
purpose of placing the web in its bearings I provide at the front end of the
machine a transverse shaft having two projecting arms. The shaft being turned
into such a position that its arins extend forwards at a low level, the web roll is
advanced along the floor till its axis comes immediately over notches at the ends of
the arms.
The shaft is then by suitable gear caused to turn partly round, and its
arms raise the web till its axis comes over the bearings in the frame work intended
to receive it, into which bearings it is lowered by again lowering the arms.
For the purpose of braking the web, that is to say, preventing it from revolving
too quickly, I fix on its axis a brake wheel surrounded by a flexible brake strap,
and this strap is drawn against the wheel by a spring, the tension of which is from
time to time adjusted as the web roll becomes reduced in diameter.
I arrange the four printing cylinders in the following manner :-The first cylinder
which carries the inner forme is situated highest, and is inked from a set of inkers
and distributing rollers situated at nearly the same level with it and all accessible at
the top of the machine. The second cylinder, which is an impression cylinder, is
situated under and in front of the first type cylinder, its axis being in a plane with
that of the type cylinder inclined about 45° to the horizon. The third cylinder
which carries the outer forme is lowest, its axis being below that of the second
cylinder. This outer forme cylinder is inked by inkers and distributing rollers
which are situated in front of it and are all acessible from above. The fourth
cylinder, which is an impression cylinder, is situated behind the third cylinder and
below the first, and from it the paper passes to the cutting cylinders. The arrange-
ment of cylinders above described, such that their axes occupy the angles of a
diamond or parallelogram, renders the machine more compact than when the
cylinders are otherwise arranged, whilst they and the inking apparatus are also
conveniently accessible.
From the cutting cylinders the printed paper is conducted by tapes to separating
rollers revolving at higher speed than the cutting cylinders, so that the paper in
its passage to them is divided into separate sheets. These sheets are made to
travel round rollers at such a distance apart that one sheet with the space separating
it from the next occupies the whole length of the type surrounding those rollers.
On these rollers a number of sheets are collected one over the other, and then this
number of sheets is delivered from them under the flyer which deposits them on
the delivery board. For metropolitan use I find it convenient thus to collect first
6 sheets together, then 7 sheets together, and repeating this, get a collection of
26 sheets which constitute the London quire. The sheets may however be
collected in other numbers as may be desired, their collection and delivery being
determined by the action of a cam on a swing roller, which in one position guides
the successive sheets round the collecting rollers, and in another position allows the
collected sheets to pass therefrom. Instead of collecting the sheets in numbers, as
above described, they may be delivered direct from the separating rollers to folding
apparatus of any known construction.

page_text: From this the paper, passing between the first forme cylinder F¹ and the first impres-
sion cylinder I', is printed on one side, thence it passes between the two impression
cylinders I and I and between Is and the second forme cylinder F, being printed
on the other side. It is then carried between the cutting rollers C¹, C², which
partly cut it into sheets that are separated by the drag of the more rapidly moving
rollers carrying the tapes T¹. By these tapes the sheets are conducted to the three
rollers Q, round which they are guided as long as the vibrating roller V is in the
position shewn, so that 6, 7, or other desired number of sheets are gathered round the
three rollers Q. When the vibrating roller V by means of a cam suitably timed is
moved out to the dotted position V1, the sheets that had been collected on the
roller Qare directed downwards, and are all delivered together from between the
tapes T on to the delivery board, as indicated at S. The first forme cylinder F¹ is
inked by the set of inking and distributing rollers D¹ mounted at the upper part
of the machine, and all easily accessible, and the second forme cylinder F2 is inked
by the set of inking and distributing rollers D' situated also in an accessible
position in front of the machine. Moreover the positions of the forme cylinders F¹
and F are such that access can be readily got to the portions of their peripheries
exposed at f¹, f2, respectively, so as to place, adjust, or remove their formes. The
arrangement of the forme and impression cylinders remaining the same relatively
to one another, their attitude relatively to the machine may be modified, as shewn
in Fig. 2, in which the parts corresponding with those in Fig. 1 are marked by
similar letters. In Fig. 2 I have shewn the apparatus for raising the roll of paper
web to its bearings and for applying a brake to prevent it from revolving too
rapidly. Fig. 3 is a front view of this apparatus. R is a rocking shaft mounted in
bearings on the front framing of the machine, so that it can be caused to turn
partly round by worm gear W worked by a winch handle H. On the shaft R are
fixed two arms E, E, presenting at their ends gabs to receive the axis a of the paper
roll, which is rolled along the floor to the position A¹ until its axis is engaged in
these gabs, as shewn at a'. The shaft R being then turned so as to raise the
arms E, E, the roll is lifted until its axis comes over gabs at the tops of the side
frames U, U, into which the axis a is lowered by causing the arms E, E, to retreat.
A brake strap b, which had been previously unhooked from its spring X, is then
passed round a brake pulley P, which is fixed on the axis a and again hooked to its
spring, the strain of which is adjusted by a handle Y having a pawl taking into a
ratchet arc fixed on the framing.
Having thus described the nature of my Invention, and in what manner the same
is to be performed, I claim in respect of web printing machines,—
First. Arranging the two forme and the two impression cylinders so that their
axes correspond with the angles of a diamond or parallelogram, substantially as and
for the purposes herein set forth.
Second. Interposing between the drag tapes and the delivery board 'a set of
rollers Q, operating in combination with a vibrating guide roller V so as to collect
a number of printed sheets and deliver them simultaneously, substantially as herein
described.
Third. The construction of apparatus for raising and braking the paper roll herein
described with reference to Figs. 2 and 3 of the accompanying Drawings.
In witness whereof, I, the said Joseph Foster, have hereunto set my hand
and seal, this Twenty seventh day of June, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and eighty one.