AN IMPROVE- MENT IN TYPOGRAPHIC PRINTING BETWEEN PLAIN OR FLAT SURFACES
Year: 1827

page_text: TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, GEORGE
CLYMER, of Finsbury Street, Finsbury Square, in the County of Middlesex,
Engineer, send greeting.
WHEREAS His present most Excellent Majesty King George the Fourth
did, by His Letters Patent under the Great Seal of Great Britain, bearing
date at Westminster, the Sixth day of September, One thousand eight hundred
and twenty-seven, in the eighth year of His reign, give and grant unto me,
the said George Clymer,. His especial licence, that. I, the said George Clymer,
my exors, adiñors; and assigns, or such others as I, the said George Clymer,
my exors, admors, or assigns, should at any time agree with, and no others,
from time to time and at all times during the term of years therein expressed,
should and lawfully might make; use, exercise, and vend, within England,
Wales, and the Town of Berwick-upon-Tweed, my Invention of "AN IMPROVE-
MENT IN TYPOGRAPHIC PRINTING BETWEEN PLAIN OR FLAT SURFACES;" in which
said Letters Patent there is contained a proviso, obliging me, the said George
Clymer, by an instrument in writing under my hand and seal, particularly to
describe the nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the same is
to, be performed, and to cause the same to be inrolled in His said Majesty's
High Court of Chancery within six calendar months next and immediately
after the date of the said in part recited Letters Patent, reference being there-
unto had, will more fully and at large appear.
NOW KNOW YE, that in compliance with the said proviso, I, the said
George Clymer, do hereby declare that the nature of my said Invention, and

page_text: the manner in which the same is to be performed, are particularly described
and ascertained in and by the Drawing hereunto annexed, and the following
description thereof (that is to say) :-
My improvements in typographic printing between two plain or flat surfaces
'consist in the general arrangement of the parts of a printing machine or press
for taking off impressions from types, blocks, or other like surfaces in relief, by
which arrangement I am enabled to print between plains or flat surfaces
sheets of paper of much larger dimensions than have hitherto been printed by
means of flat tables and platens. Indeed, by this new-contrived press, I propose
to print two forms of double royal paper at one time, being a surface of four
feet six inches by three feet three inches, which is twice the size of the largest
newspaper at present printed. The accompanying Drawing, which is upon a
scale of one-tenth the real size of the machine, represents the new arrange-
ment of the parts, which, however, are not claimed by me as new taken sepa-
rately, but only when combined in the way exhibited.
'
Fig. 1 is a side view of the machine; Fig. 2, a front view of the same,
some of the parts being omitted in the second Figure to avoid confusion. a, a,
is called the winter or base, to which the ribs or brackets are fixed that the
table rests upon; b, b, the table, having a flat surface on the upper side, made
of the dimensions stated above; c, c, is the head or top part of the frame work;
and d, d, d, d, are the cheeks or side standards, connected at top and bottom,
and held fast by straps of iron e, e, e, e, secured by keys; f, f, is the platen,
suspended by what is called a piston and perpendicular bar g, the upper part
of which is connected by gudgeons or trunnion joints to the infinite levers h and
i, the upper of which is held to the head by gudgeons passing through screw
boxes or loops. The infinite levers h and i are connected together by a joint
at K, and to this joint the rod 7 is attached, which rod is also connected to the
crank m.
In giving an impression the handle or lever n is to be swung out-
ward, which, bringing the crank m and the rod 7 nearly into a straight line,
will straighten the joint of the infinite levers, and force down the platen on to the
face of the types in order to give the impression, as seen at Fig. 2. When the
levers n is moved back again into the situation shewn at Fig. 1, the crank m
will be thrown up, and the rod l be made to draw back the infinite levers,
which raises the platen from the types. It is to be here observed that in order
to assist the rising of the platen I have suspended it by rods o, o, to weighted
levers p, p, which balance the platen, and enable it to be worked with very
little exertion of the pressman. The types are to be inked by means of the
ordinary kind of elastic inking rollers, introduced at the sides of the machine,
and when this is doing (the platen being raised to admit the inking roller,) the

page_text: sheets of paper are to be placed upon the tympan g, g, which, by means of
small carrier wheels, runs in and out of the press upon the side rails r, r.
The types being inked, and the sheets of paper properly laid upon the tympan,
so as to register, the tympan carriage is now run in between the table and
form of types below and the platen above, when the lever being swung out-
wards, as described, the platen is brought down with very great power, and the
impression given. On the platen rising, the tympan is again run out, and the
form being inked for the next impression, another tympan at the opposite end
of the press receives the sheets of paper, which are then ready to be run into
the press, as in the former instance. It is only necessary to add that I do not
confine myself to placing the crank shaft as exhibited in the Drawing, as it
may be in any other situation which might be found convenient and suited to
project the rod, and the impression may be given by either pushing or pulling
the joint of the infinite lever; and, lastly, that the movement of the crank
may be effected by a lever, or by any other means if preferred.
In witness whereof, I, the said George Clymer, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Sixth day of March, One thousand eight hundred
and twenty-eight.
Inrolled the Sixth day of March, in the year of our Lord One thousand
eight hundred and twenty-eight.