Improvements in Printing Machines.
Year: 1887

page_text: COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Printing Machines.
I, ALFRED GODFREY, of 69 Old Street, Saint Lukes, London, E.C. Printers
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 :-
My present invention relates to certain improvements on the reciprocating platen
printing machine patented to me on the 29th day of March 1883 by Her Majesty's
Letters Patent No. 1591 and on the 11th day of August, 1883 by Her Majesty's
Letters Patent No. 3895, and the said improvements are designed to simplify the
construction of the said machine, whereby its cost is materially reduced, and its
operation rendered more rapid and reliable, and the machine less liable to derangement
by unskilful handling.
My patents above referred to embody the first successful example of the platen
printing machine embracing an automatic sheet registering and feeding mechanism,
whereby each sheet is taken from the feed table, drawn up on to the face of the platen
by grippers, presented to the printing surface, withdrawn from the said surface
when the impression has been made, and delivered on to the delivery board or table
direct.
Now my improved machine accomplishes all that the patented machine is capable
of: but employs a much less number of operative parts.
The Improvements hereinafter described by which a greatly simplified structure,
capable of an unusually high rate of speed is produced, contemplate:
1st. The mounting of the platen on an axis, so that a radial motion towards and
from the impression is imparted thereto, instead of mounting the same on blocks
sliding in the frame.

page_text: friction rollers on race plates at each side of the platen beam, but in my presen
invention all of the auxiliary mechanism is dispensed with. Moreover in my said
patented construction it was essential to have two complete sets of gripper driving
mechanism, whereas in the present construction, by reason of having the
supporting frames M. M connected by the gripper frames N, which are bolted
directly on to the arms of the said frames, one set of driving mechanism only is
required.
The pawl mechanism for driving the grippers may be the same in this machine as
in my aforesaid patented machine; or as shown in a simplified form in figure 11. In
this figure, is the pawl pivotted on a pin fixed on the collar 2, which runs loose on
the end of the platen beam and receives a quarter reciprocating revolution from the
connecting rod 3, which is operated by a rocking lever 4 (figure 1) driven by a cam
roller 5 travelling in a cam P attached to the driving spur wheel H. The engagement
of the said level pawl 1 into the ratchet 6 on the gripper frame serves to communicate
the reciprocating movement of the connecting rod etc. to the said frames M M in the
form of an intermittent rotary motion, the said frame remaining stationary while the
pawl is drawn back for the next forward feed stroke. The gripper frame is held in
position during the return stroke of the pawl by a spring pressed brake R. I find in
practice that where a high speed of my machine is required, it is advisable to use a
hooked pawl as described in my aforesaid patent and illustrated at figure 12, and to
combine with this hooked pawl a locking device. This device 7 (figures 1. 2. and 12.)
is pivotted upon the loose collar 2, and is spring pressed so as normally to lie upon
the top of the hooked pawl, so as to prevent its disengagement. When however it is
necessary for the lock to be disengaged, as in figure 12, the tail of the said locking
device is caused to strike against a stud 8 on the platen supporting arm B¹. The
pawl is thus unlocked and tree to disengage by the action of the pawl mechanism.
In my aforesaid patented machine, instead of the vibrating motion employed in the
present construction, the platen has a parallel reciprocating movement to and from
the type by means of blocks sliding in the sides of the frame, and in that construction
the grippers rotate around the platen only when the latter is advancing towards the
type, remaining stationary on their axis during the backward movement of the platen
to the feed board while partaking of the backward movement of the sliding blocks.
in the present construction, the grippers rotate while the platen is both going towards
the type and receding therefrom; A portion of the said rotary motion being effected
while the platen is advancing towards the type, and the remainder while it is receding
therefrom and advancing towards the feed board, the grippers stopping momentarily in
their motion around their axis while the sheet is being printed, and also while the grippers
are taking the sheet from the feeding board, the intervals of rest being effected by
the dead portions of the cam P. By this arrangement the grippers rotate at a slower
speed on their axis than in the said before patented machine, notwithstanding that the
machine travels at the same speed; or the present machine may rotate faster than the
aforesaid patented machine and yet the grippers will only rotate at a safe speed.
When the rotary travel of the gripper carriages is completed, and the one carrying
the sheet to be printed is in front of the type, the said gripper partaking of the
vibratory movement of the platen arms B B₁, the final adjustment or registering of
the sheet is effected by means of contact studs 9, fixed to the grippers figures 1. 2.
and 3. by means of the said sliding vibratory travel upon projecting inclines 10 fixed
to the inside of the frames D D, thus compensating any inaccuracy in the ratchet
teeth. There are a pair of such stud screws or projections 9 carried by the ends of
each carriage, and inclines 10 project inwards from the respective sides of each frame.
The paper has also to be registered on the feed board, and this is effected in the
present construction as follows: and as illustrated in figures 1. 6. 7. 8. and 9. The
front lays 11 are attached to a lay frame, the opposite ends of the said frame being
provided with slots, through which pass pins 11", fixed to the framing of the machine
and on which the lay frame pivois. The said lay frame is adjustable by set screws 11°.
Compression springs 13 keep the ends of the slots or the set screws 11° home against

page_text: The
the pivots 11, and also serve to keep the lay frame in contact with cams 14, which
are fixed to the shaft 23 receiving motion from any convenient moving part.
cams 14 are proportioned so that as they rotate they lower the lay frame, and thus
the front lays 11 against the reaction of the compression springs 13 below the level
of the feed board Q, which permits the grippers when they seize the sheet to remove
it therefrom. Abutments 15 are secured to each side of the lay frame, and occupy a
position in line with the travel of the registering screws or projections 9 on the
grippers. As these registering screws travel towards the feed board Q, they come in
contact with the said abutments 15, and move them into an exact position against the
reaction of the said springs 13, and thereby register the sheet in an exact position on
the feed board relatively to the gripper, immediately before the grippers close on the
said sheet.
The opening and closing of the grippers is effected as follows:-
The Gripper jaws 16 are provided with tail levers 17, figures 1. 2 and 3, which, as
the grippers are brought to their final position for receiving the sheet, come in contact
with a stud 18, projecting from the frame (figures 1. 2. 3. 6 and 7) and are thus
opened against the reaction of the spring which normally keeps the jaw closed. The
Grippers are opened for depositing the sheet on the delivery Board by a Rocking
lever 19, pivotted on the supporting platen arm B, which is kept in normal position
out of the line of rotation of the tappets 7 by the spring pressed Rod 20 and
collar 20 projecting from Arm B, through which the Rod passes, and operated by
the vibrating movement of the said arms. This is shewn in figure 3, where the spring
pressed rod 20 has come in contact with a portion of the framing D, and thereby
operates the lower end of the rock lever 19, and so opens the grippers. The side lays
and their method of operation are shewn in detail in figures 6 and 7, and in a
modified form in figures 8 and 9. The said lays 21 are, in figures 6 and 7, operated
by 2 face cams 22 upon the rotary shaft 23. driven for instance by a pair of connecting
rods 24 with throws at right angles driven from the 2nd motion shaft I. The said
cams operate on friction rollers 22 working on a pin fixed to a spring pressed
sleeve 22 sliding in the framing D D, the lay bars 22 being adjustable laterally, and
then fixed in the sliding sleeve, the whole partaking of the lateral movement imparted
by the cams 22. In my modified arrangement, figures 8 and 9, I attach projecting
horns 25 to the platen supporting arms B B¹, the said horns, operating on the before
mentioned friction rollers 22" are of such suitable contour as will serve to move the
said lays as the platen beam descends towards the feed Board. To cause the front
lays 11 in the simplified form (figures 8 and 9) to drop at the required moment, to
permit the sheet to be removed from the feed board by the Gripper which has already
seized it, I attach a cam face 26 to the revolving gripper arms, figures. 1. 2. and 3,
which in its descent strikes against a roller 27, fixed to the feed board Q,
which is hung on centres Q¹, and kept in normal position by the spring pressed rod 7,
having lock nuts at its extremity. The said lock nuts come in contact with an
abutment projecting from the frame D through which the Rod passes, and serve to
keep the feed board accurately in line with the face of the fixed gripper jaw, which is
bolted to the frames M M, while the sheet is being seized, and also, by pressing upon a
roller 28 (Figures 3. 8 and 9) fixed on the lay frame near to its fulerum, thereby
cause the lay frame to be depressed with a greater travel than the feed board, and the
end lays 11 to sink below the level of the feed board.
from;
To ensure that the grippers, in spite of wear or irregularities of motion, shall always
move to exactly the same place at the feed board when about to seize the sheet there-
I affix a friction roiler, 29 running on the pin 30, figures 1, 2, 3, 6, 7, and 10
fixed in the framing D of the machine, against which a pin 31, fixed to each gripper
arm, comes in contact as the gripper approaches the feed board, the gripper being thus
accurately adjusted to its required position.
I adapt this machine for double inking and interleaving as follows, and as illustrated
in figures 1, 6 and 7. In order to effect double inking of the frame for one impression,
I attach an automatic "throw off," and thus prevent the platen from coming home on

page_text: the frame every alternate revolution of the machine, the grippers continuing their
revolution as in ordinary work.
I effect the automatic "throw off" as follows:-Through the platen beam passes a
shaft 32. The ends of this beam by which the connecting rod pressure is coin-
municated to the platen are eccentric to the body. To throw off the platen then it is
only necessary to give the said shaft 32 a quarter turn. I effect this automatically as
follows:
On the extremity of the eccentric platen beam shaft 32 is a crank and pin 34, to
which a connecting rod 35 is attached. The further end of this connecting rod is
provided with a slot 36, in which works a crank pin 37 on a gear 23, fixed to a
rotating shaft 38, supported in the framing D, which is driven by half speed gear 23,
fixed to the aforesaid rotating cam shaft 23. As the shaft 38 thus rotates at half speed
with the machine, the crank pin is brought at the proper moment to such a position
that the aforesaid connecting rod 35, partaking of the oscillatory motion of the platen
beam. causes the bottom of the slot 36 to strike against the said pin, and thus to
partially rotate the platen beam shaft 32 and throws off the impression. As it is
necessary, during this operation, to prevent each alternate gripper from seizing the
paper on the board, I cause the depression of the feed board below the feed line of
every alternate gripper by means of a lever 40 fixed to the feed board, which is hung
on centres as aforesaid, operated by a cam 41 upon the aforesaid shaft 38, revolving
half speed with the machine. To effect interleaving, I throw this automatic depressing
devise out of gear, and feed the interleaving paper alternately with the paper to be
printed upon from right and left handed feed boards.
Owing to the automatic feed of my gripper machine being always to a dead line
upon the platen, it is necessary, whatever the size of the forme, that it shall always he
set to one edge with that feed line, and thus probably in many cases to quite the top
of the type back. This irregularity of the position of the type will tend to cause an
unequal pressure upon the surface of the platen, and so tend to throw it from its true
vertical printing position. In order to obviate this tendency, I place at the four
corners of the platen, projections 42, so that when the said platen is forcing the paper
against the typo, the said projecting regulators will, simultaneously with such action,
slide into recesses 43, and come into contact with the, type bed supporting the forme,
and thereby uniformly support the platen and counter as the tendency that otherwise
would exist of unevenness of pressure or battering of the type at the time the
impression is being given. This arrangement I have already patented in combination
with a horizontally moving platen in my aforesaid patent, but in addition to the
above advantages where the movement of the platen is radial, as in the present
instance, the tendency in practice, when printing heavy formes especially, is for the
lower edge of the platen to come into contact with the impression before its top edge;
and to obviate this inequality of movement in the top and bottom of the platen I find
the employment of the pressure regulators above described to be of special value in
all platen machines having radially moving platens.
In order to facilitate easy handling and adjustment of the frisket fingers 44,
figures 5. 1 and 2.1 mount these fingers between the faces of a fixed and movable clamp 45
and 46 respectively. The fixed clamp forms part of and is mounted on arms 47 upon
the shaft C, and the arms are held over by the tension spring 48 against the action of
the cam 49 on the Second motion shaft I. To release and secure the said clamp at
will a hand lever 50 is mounted on the extremity of the shaft 51, the loose clamp 46
which swivels with the said shaft 51, which passes through bosses on the frisket bar 47,
being locked in place by a projection 52 on the aforesaid handle 50. The said locking
projection 52 of the handle 50 produces the lock by sliding down an incline 53, and
is secured normally in that position by a spring 54. When it is desired to adjust the
said frisket fingers, a partial turn of the handle 50 raises the locking projection 52 in
the direction of the arrow up the incline 53, till it reaches a check pin 55, and thus
releases the pressure on the loose clamp. By lifting also the handle upwards, the
frisket fingers are brought up home to the face of the type and can be there readily

page_text: adjusted to exact position with regard to the type, by sliding the friskets between the
clamp faces as may be desired. To re-secure the clamp it is necessary only to
drop the handle, whereby the clamp is once more automatically locked and the
frisket fingers brought into proper position by the reaction of the two tension
springs 54 and 48.
On account of the small relative movement of the platen as compared with the
ordinary platen machine, a difficulty will be experienced in getting at the platen for
the purpose of making ready. To obviate such difficulty, the ends of the platen beam
are turned and fitted into holes on the supporting arms B B', as before described, and
are free to rotate therein when not locked in position. One end of the said platen
beam projects through the supporting arms B, and on the said projecting end is keyed
a metal collar 56, to which is hinged, by means of a pin 56, or lever 57. On the
supporting arm B is formed a projection or boss 58, with which the screw 59, which
is tapped through the metal collar 56, comes into Contact, when the platen is in
position for printing figures 1. 2. and 3. A projection 60 on the hand lever 57
engages with the other side of the said boss 58 when the lever 57 hangs vertically on
its pivot, thereby automatically locking the platen in position and dispensing with the
locking lever described in my aforesaid patented machine.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said invention,
and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I claim is :-
1st. In a platen printing machine, a platen mounted upon an axis supported in
arms vibrating upon a fixed pivot, combined with a series of gripper carriages carried
by supporting arms having their bearings on the said platen axis.
2nd. In a platen printing machine the construction of the Mechanism for imparting
to the said gripper frames intermittent rotating motion around the platen axis whilst
receding from, as well as whilst advancing to, the impression, substantially as
described.
3rd. In a platen printing machine the gripper frames having their bearings upon
the axis of the beam of the said platen, and provided with a series of automatic
gripper carriages mounted directly upon the said frames, combined with a feed board
on which separate sheets of paper are automatically registered, a receiving board on
which the printed sheets are deposited, and mechanism whereby the said frames are
intermittently rotated in a continuous direction upon the axis of the said platen beam
during the vibration of the platen substantially as described.
4th. In a platen printing machine in which a vibrating platen is employed, a series
of gripper carriages mounted upon frames combined with a single set of gripper
driving mechanism, namely:-connecting rods, bell crank, and pawl and ratchet
mechanism, and a suitable cam and gearing movement, whereby the proper inter-
mittent rotating motion is imparted to the said frames, substantially as described.
5th. In a platen printing machine the combination with a vibrating platen of the
locking device pivotted to the collar, and coacting with the pawl for the purpose of
keeping the said pawl firmly locked in the recesses in the teeth of the ratchet, and
thus preventing the momentum of the grippers from disengaging the pawl from the
ratchet, substantially as described.
}
6th. The rotating gripper carriages provided with registering screws or projections,
combined with automatic feed board mechanism, whereby said registering screws or
projections register the paper on said feed board, in addition to the function of
registering the paper on the platen; substantially as described.
7th. The feed board in combination with a pivotted frame carrying front lays and
spring pressed, in combination with revolving grippers which co-act with the said
feed board and grippers so that each gripper, as it arrives, lowers the front lays below
the feed board to receive the paper therefrom substantially as described.
Sth. In platen printing machines, the operation of the side lays by means of
projecting horus of suitable incline attached to the platen supporting arm substantially
as described. -

page_text: 9th. In a platen printing machine an automatic throw off adapted to admit of
double inking to one impression and adaptable for use with interleaving or without,
in combination with automatic revolving grippers substantially as described.
10th. In a platen printing machine a self locking tilting handle secured to the
platen beam for bringing the platen into position for making ready, substantially as
described.
11th. The construction of a special frisket clamping device with hand lever by
which the friskets may be instantaneously released for adjustment and lifted to be in
contact with the type and reclamping substantially as described.
12th. The combination of any two or more of the arrangements or parts as defined
in the above claims.
Dated this 26th day of Sentember 1887
FELL & WILDING,
1, Queen Victoria Street, London, E.C.,
Agents for the Applicant.