IMPROVEMENTS IN PRINTING MACHINERY
Year: 1870

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to David Servante, junior, of Charlton Crescent,
in the County of Middlesex, Printing Machine Manager, for the
Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN PRINTING MACHINERY."
Sealed the 15th July 1870, and dated the 19th January 1870.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said David Servante at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
19th January 1870.
I, DAVID SERVANTE, junior, of Charlton Crescent, in the County of
Middlesex, Printing Machine Manager, do hereby declare the nature
of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN PRINTING MACHINERY," to be
as follows:-
My improvements relate to that class of printing machinery known
as rotary printing machines, and the Invention has for its object to
render these machines applicable for the better description of printing,
such as for printing books.
The main objects of my several improvements are to obtain accurate
register and to arrange the working parts, such as the type and impression
จ

page_text: cylinders, in such a manner that the "forme” may be “made ready,”
with facility. To this end the type and impression cylinders are arranged
one above the other, and in a perfecting machine there is one set of
cylinders at each end of the machine. The workman is thus enabled to
get at all these cylinders with facility. The type cylinder is mounted in
brasses which are attached or secured to the framing of the machine
by independent screws and bolts, so that when the type cylinder is
accurately adjusted in its brasses it can be removed from the machine
with its brasses and replaced again without disturbing its adjustment.
The difficulty of securing uniform margin and accurate register arises
partly from the irregular way in which the paper is fed in and carried
by the tapes to the impression cylinder, partly by imperfections in the
construction of the mechanism, and partly by the complicated and
inefficient devices. for gripping or seizing the paper as it is presented
or pushed forward from the feeding-in board. To obviate these diffi-
culties the carrying tapes are so arranged that they may be loosened
at one part and tightened at another so as to vary (that is, increase or
diminish) the distance travelled by the paper from the first to the second
impression cylinder. This is effected by means of a register drum,
which may be heightened or lowered as may be required so that the
distance travelled by the paper may be modified and adjusted to suit the
register.
In ordinary cylinder machines the drop bar for nipping or laying hold
of the paper for the purpose of carrying it in is usually worked on a
small feed drum by a cam with levers and toothed wheels, which are
uncertain and unsteady in their action. I propose therefore to dispense
altogether with the small drum, levers and gearing for actuating the
drop bar, and to bring the latter into action by means of a spring
acting in combination with a recess cut out of the ends of the impression
cylinder, forming a cam working direct, thus allowing the bar to drop
down at any precise moment desired, so as to take the sheet.
When grippers are employed for laying hold of the paper they are
closed by means of a curved shape piece attached to the frame and
made to act on a lever which draws round and closes the gripper.
When released from the curved shape the grippers are opened by a
spring, the sheets then being held by the tapes. By this arrangement
of parts the grippers are made to act with greater certainty and
0

page_text: accuracy than heretofore, and sheets with little or no margin can be
printed.
The next improvement relates to an improved arrangement of ink
distributing apparatus, the object being to distribute the ink more
uniformly over the inking roller, and to compensate for irregular con-
sumption from different parts of the roller. To this end I adapt to the
inking roller another roller mounted in bearings, which will admit of
the roller being canted first in one direction and then in the opposite
direction. By being kept in contact with the inking roller, in this
inclined position, the second roller will have a lateral motion com-
municated to it in opposite directions alternately, and will thus evenly
distribute the ink on the inking roller.
In order to render rotary machines useful for printing from stereotype
plates not specially prepared for them, I construct the type or printing
cylinder of wood, so that when the stereotype plates are bent to the right
form they may be secured thereon by screws or pins.
Lines are
marked on to the cylinders to assist the placing the "forme." Curved
plates of the right form may be held on to metal or wood cylinders
by strong metal clips placed longitudinally on the cylinders, which
will be held down from beneath by means of screws.
J
་
In order to increase the number of impressions given off from the
type cylinder, I sometimes employ an additional feeding-in cylinder
and board, so that for very long numbers double the, number of im-
pressions may be obtained from the same printing surface.
Although I prefer to construct perfecting machines it will be obvious
that single acting machines with only one printing cylinder 'may be
advantageously used.
The next improvement relates to the taking-off apparatus which..I
propose to use instead of the fly frame. It consists of tapes for con-
ducting and holding the sheet, and of a reciprocating drop frame
which will. at the proper time push the printed sheet from between
the tapes, and lay it on to a table below.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said David Servante in the Great Seal Patent Office
on the 19th July 1870.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, DAVID
SERVANTE, junior, of Charlton Crescent, in the County of Middlesex,
Printing Machine Manager, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent, Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Nineteenth day of January, in the year
of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy, in the thirty-third
year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and
grant unto me, the said, David Servante, Her special licence that. I,
the said David Servante, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or
such others as I, the said David Servante, 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 "IMPROVEMENTS. IN PRINTING MACHINERY,"
upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said David Servante,
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 within, six calendar months next; and immediately
after the date of the said Letters Patent.
-
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said David Servante, 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 Drawings, hereunto,
annexed; and to the letters and figures, marked, thereon (that is; to
say) :-
My "improvements in printing machinery relate to that class of
printing machinery known as rotary printing machines, and the In-
vention has for its object to render these machines applicable for the
better description of printing, such as for printing books.

page_text: The main objects of my several improvements are to obtain accurate
register, and to arrange the working parts (such as the type and
impression cylinders) in such a manner that the "forme" may be
"made ready" with facility. To this end the type and impression
cylinders are arranged one above the other, and in a perfecting machine
there is one set of cylinders at each end of the machine. The workman
is thus enabled when required to get at all these cylinders with facility.
The type cylinders are mounted in brasses, which are capable of vertical
adjustment in slots made in plates which are attached or secured to the
framing of the machine by independant screws and bolts, so that when
the type cylinder is accurately adjusted in its brasses it can be removed
from the machine with its brasses and replaced again without disturbing
its adjustment. The difficulty of securing uniform margin and accurate
register arises partly from the irregular way in which the paper is fed
in and carried by the tapes to the impression cylinder, partly by imper-
fections in the construction of the mechanism, and partly by the
complicated and inefficient devices for gripping or seizing the paper as
it is presented or pushed forward from the feeding-in board. To obviate
these difficulties the carrying tapes are so arranged that they may be
loosened at one part and tightened at another so as to vary (that is,
increase or diminish) the distance travelled by the paper from the first
to the second impression cylinder. This is effected by means of a
register drum, which may be heightened or lowered as may be required,
so that the distance travelled by the paper may be modified and adjusted
to suit the register.
In ordinary cylinder machines the drop bar for nipping or laying hold
of the paper for the purpose of carrying it in is usually worked on a
small feed drum by a cam with levers and toothed wheels, which are
uncertain and unsteady in their action. I propose therefore to dispense
altogether with the small drum with the levers and gearing for actuating
the drop bar, and to bring the latter into action by means of a spring
acting in combination with a recess cut out of the periphery of the
impression cylinder at the ends thereof, thereby forming a cam or cams
which act directly on the bar, and thus allow it to drop down at any
precise moment desired so as to take hold of the sheet of paper.
When grippers are employed for laying hold of the paper they are
closed by means of a curved shape piece attached to the frame and made

page_text: to act on a lever which draws round and closes the gripper. When
released from the curved shape the grippers are opened by a spring or
springs, the sheets then being held by the tapes. By this arrangement
of parts the grippers are made to act with greater certainty and accuracy.
than heretofore, and sheets with little or no margin can be printed.
In order to increase the number of impressions given off from the type
cylinder I sometimes employ an additional feeding-in cylinder and board,"
so that for very long numbers double the number of impressions may
be obtained from the same printing surface.
Although I prefer to construct perfecting machines, it will be obvious
that single-acting machines with only one printing cylinder may be
advantageously used.
The next improvement relates to the taking-off apparatus, which I
propose to use instead of the fly frame; it consists of tape in conducting
and holding the sheet, and of a reciprocating drop frame which will at
the proper time push the printed sheet from between the tapes and lay
it on to a table below.
:
In the accompanying Drawings Fig. 1, Sheet I., is a vertical section
of a perfecting machine representing the arrangement and position of
the principal working parts, and Fig. 2 a detached view shewing one end.
of the drop bar and impression cylinder. a, a, are the type cylinders,
which are mounted in adjustable bearings in the framing b; b. These
adjustable bearings are shewn detached upon an enlarged scale in
Sheet II., and will be hereafter more particularly described. The paper
to be printed is placed on the table c, and is pushed forward under the
drop bar d, which is capable of rising and falling in a slot in the framing,
and is provided at each end with a roller 1, which runs on the periphery
of the impression cylinder d', a certain portion of which is cut out, as
indicated by dots in the Figures. The drop bar d is provided with any
desired number of small nipping rollers 2, 2, which are capable of being
adjusted and fixed at any part of the bar according to the nature of the
forme." When the rollers 1 are running on the full size of the
impression cylinder the rollers 2 will be lifted up out of contact with
the cylinder, and the paper can be pushed in under the rollers 2, but
when the rollers 1 reach the cut away parts of the impression cylinder
the bar d will be allowed to drop, and the rollers 2 will nip the sheet of
paper, as shewn in Fig. 1. The sheet of paper being thus fed in to the
"

page_text: first impression cylinder d¹ is by means of the guiding tapes indicated by
the red lines carried round to the first type cylinder a¹. The paper. will
thus be printed on one side, and is then carried forward by the red tapes
in combination with another set of tapes (indicated by the blue lines),
over the second impression cylinder d², which carries it down to the
second type cylinder a³, whereby it is printed on the other side. The
printed sheet is then conducted by the short tapes on the rollers e, e, to.
a set of horizontal tapes on the rollers f.f.. The tapes of the rollers e, e,
and ff, have an intermittent motion given to them by means of a sector
rack 9 (shewn detached in elevation at Fig. 3) or its equivalent, which is
keyed on to the shaft of the intermediate gear wheel k¹, and gears into.
a pinion on the end of one of the rollers e, e. It will be evident
therefore that the tapes of the rollers e and will remain stationary until
the sector rack g acts on the pinion h, which it does when the printed.
sheet is brought within the grip of the rollers e, e. The sheet will thus
be carried forward by the tapes of the rollers f,f; so long as these
continue to rotate, and will then stop; it will be released from these"
tapes at the proper time by the reciprocating or rising and falling
L shaped bar or frame i, i, the vertical limb of which moves up
and down
in the guides j, j, which are adjustable laterally on the brackets j³, j³;
attached to the framing of the machine. The L shaped bar or frame i, i,
is lifted up and supported (in the position shewn in the Drawing) by a
cam k (shewn by dots in Fig. 1) mounted on the intermediate gear
wheel ', whereby motion is communicated to the second impression
cylinder d. This cam k acts on a bowle at the upper end of the vertical
rod 1, which is jointed to the vibrating lever m.
This latter is provided
at one end with a fork, which embraces a horizontal rod ³, which
extends across the machine and serves to connect together the L shaped
bars or frames i, i. When the bowle of the vertical rod is released
from the cam k it (with the lever m) will be pulled down by the force of
the spring n, and will carry down with it the L shaped frame, the
horizontal arms of which will draw down the printed sheet from between ;
the tapes on the rollers f, f, and deposit it on table o below. The'
continued rotation of the cam / will lift up the vertical rod l.and bring
back the several parts into the position shewn in the Drawing.
3.
The inking and distributing rollers are shewn at p, p, p, p; they are:-
for convenience of access placed immediately under the tune

page_text: Their action will be readily understood by referring to the Drawing, and
therefore need not be more minutely described.
In order to ensure accurate register in perfecting machines I increase
or decrease (as may be required) the distance travelled by the paper
from the first to the second impression cylinder. This is effected by
means of a drum or roller q, which is capable of being raised or lowered
in its bearings by means of adjusting screws, as shewn in the Figure.
Supposing it be desired to lengthen the distance travelled by the paper
between the rollers d' and d the tapes must be slackened by moving
some of the guide rollers 3, 3, 3, and the slack must be taken up by
raising the roller q so as to bend the tapes out of a straight line, as
shewn in the Drawing. If, on the contrary, it be desired to shorten the
distance this may be effected by lowering the roller q so as to bring thic
tapes nearer to a straight line.
Figures 4 and 5, Sheet II., represent an arrangement for laying hold
of the paper by means of a series of fingers or grippers adapted to the
impression cylinder. The fingers or grippers r are mounted on a rod or
shaft, which carries at one end thereof a toothed wheel which is
(through an intermediate wheel) driven by a large toothed wheel s. On
the axle of the wheels there is a tripping lever s¹ provided at one end
with a bowle, which by means of a coiled spring s² at the other end of the
lever is made to bear against a projecting curved guide u fixed to the
framing of the machine. As the impression cylinder rotates the bowle
of the lever s¹ will come against this guide and thereby cause the toothed
wheels to rotate, and by actuating the pinion or toothed whcel on the
finger rod or shaft will cause the fingers r, r, to turn over, as shewn at
Fig. 5, and nip the edge of the sheet that has been presented to it.
In order to render rotary machines useful for printing from stereotype
plates not specially prepared for them I construct the type or printing
cylinder or the surface thereof of wood, so that when the stereotypc
plates are bent to the right form they may be secured thereon by screws
or pins. Lines are marked or ruled circumferentially and longi-
tudinally on the cylinders to assist the placing the "forme" with
accuracy thereon.
Fig. 6 is a side elevation, and Fig. 7 an end elevation of my improved a
adjustable bearings for the type or printing cylinder. The brasses v in
which the axle of the type cylinder is mounted are fitted in slots w

page_text: v
in the cast-iron plate wo², which is attached to the frame 6 of the machine
by the screw bolts and nuts w². The brasses, are capable of vertical
adjustment in the slot to by means, of the adjusting screws.v¹, v¹; one of
which acts on the top and the other on the bottom of the brass bearing.
When the brasses are properly adjusted, in the slot w. of the cast-iron
plate w¹ the type cylinder with its bearings may be removed from the
machine by simply loosening and removing the screw bolts 20³ whereby
the cast-iron plate w¹ is secured to the frame b.. This having been done
the axle of the cylinder may be drawn out of the notch or opening bi
made in the frame 6 for the purpose. It will be evident that upon
replacing the cylinder and securing the cast-iron plate w by means of the
screw bolts w the adjustment of the cylinder will be the same as; before.
Fig. 8 is a sectional view of the upper part of the machine shewn at
Fig. 1 with the tapes arranged for printing in two colours. In this
instance the paper is fed in as in Fig. 1, and the impression from the
type cylinder a¹ is obtained in the same manner, but instead of carrying
the printed sheet over the second impression, cylinder d², as in Fig. 1, it
is conducted over the register drum and under the second impression
cylinder, so that the second type or printing cylinder d² may print on
the same side of the paper. Accurate register of the two colours is
secured by means of the register drum, as in the former instance.
Having now described my improvements in printing machinery, and
having explained the manner of carrying the same into effect, I claim
as the Invention secured to me by Letters Patent as aforesaid,-
"
First. The arrangement herein set forth of the impression and type or
printing cylinders one above the other with the inking and distributing
rollers below.
Second. I claim the mode herein set forth of adapting the brasses or
bearings of the type or printing cylinder to the framing of the printing
machine.
Third. I claim the use and application of the register drum or roller
for ensuring accurate register, as herein set forth.
Fourth. I claim the mode of constructing, operating, and applying the
drop bar as herein set forth. I also claim the mode shewn of operating
the fingers or grippers for laying hold of and carrying in the sheet of
paper to be printed on.

page_text: Fifth. I claim the mode of and apparatus for taking off or removing
the printed sheets; as herein set forth.
Sixth. I claim constructing the type or printing cylinders or the
surfaces thereof of wood, so that stereotype plates when bent to the
required shape to fit the cylinder may be affixed thereto by screws or
pins, as herein set forth.
Lastly. I claim arranging the tapes of a perfecting machine as herein
set forth, so that it may be used for printing in two colours.
In witness whereof, I, the said David Servante, junior, have here-
unto set my hand and seal, the Eighteenth day of July, in the
year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy.