CA1104875A - Cartridge-type ink supply device for labeling machines - Google Patents

Abstract

Canada SATO-55 CARTRIDGE-TYPE INK SUPPLY DEVICE
FOR LABELING MACHINES

Abstract of the Disclosure An ink supply device for use with a portable, one-hand-operable labeling machine of the type including a rotatable printing drum with relief characters arranged on its cylindrical surface for imprinting inscriptions on each of a series of labels traveling along a predetermined path through the machine toward a dispensing opening. The ink supply device comprises a cartridge holder pivotally supported at one end within the labeling machine in a readily detachable manner and having a replaceable inking roller cartridge on the other end, the cartridge including a rota-table inking roller. The cartridge holder is spring-biased to urge the inking roller into circumferential contact with the printing drum of the labeling machine. When the inking roller cartridge is used up, the cartridge holder can be taken out of the machine together with the used cartridge.
A cartridge box for housing a suitable supply of identical inking roller cartridge is provided separately.

Description

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CARTRIDGE-TYPE i~ 7rL ~ D~_E F R L~BELINC~ MACIIINES
Background of the Inventi.on This invention relates to improvements in or relating to portable labeling machines of the -type disclosed, for example, in ~.S. patent No. Re. 27,889 issued on January 15, 197~ to Yo Sato, Kiyoji Nagashima, Yoshio Murata, Kazuno-suke Makino, Eiichi Matsushi.ma, and Sozo Izumihara. More specifically, the invention deals with a device utilizing cartridges for supplying ink -to the ink printing mechanism of a labeling machine.
The printing mechanism of the labeling machine under consideration includes a ro-tatable printing drum having selectable relief characters on its cylindrical surface~ Upon manual actuation of the machine, the printing drum descends on-to successive blank labels passing therebelow to leave the inked impressions of the relief characters thereon. The printing drum is customarily inked by a roller which is made of spongy material impregnated with ink and which is usually spring-actuated into circumferential contact with the drum~
Upon exhaustion o~ the ink that has impregnated the inking roller, a suitable squirt has heretofore been employed to manually re-impregnate the roller in situ with a fresh supply of ink. In this manner, however, the ink tends to permeate unevenly through the roller, with the result that the printed characters on the labels.are of inconsistent ink density and are sometimes undecipherable. Moreover, the ink squirted inadvertently or in an excess amount is liable to smear the machine, the articles to be labeled, and the operator's hands and clothes.
; 30 In another known method, the exhausted inking roller is replaced by a new, identical roller. The prior art ink supply device constructed according to this method requires the direct handling of the rollers for their replacement, so that the operator's hands and clothes:are.also likely to be smeared.
An:additional difficulty.accompanying the prior art device is that the inking roller cannot ~e readlLy mounted on and dismounted Erom the roller holder on the labeling machine.
It has also been proposed to replace the exhausted inkiny roller together with its holder by a new roller complete wi-th its own holder. This scheme is not sufficiently practical in view of the high expenses involved.
The labeliny machine in question is perhaps best adapted for affixation of price 1ags to merchandise in stores, supermarkets and like com~ercial establishments. As will be surmised from the abovenoted stat:e of -the art, one of-ten finds tays that are illegible, due obviously to the impr~per supply of ink to the printing drum of -the machine. Recently, in large supermarkets and the like, there is a growing trend to employ automatic optical readers to sense the data printed on the price tags. This is all the more reason why the tags are required to bear even more clear-cut inscriptions than heretofore.
Summary of the_Inve tion According to this invention, there is provided an improved ink supply device for the printing mechanism of a labeling machine in which device the above described difficuIties and inconveniences are overcome in a simple and thoroughly practicable manner.
A feature of the invention is the provision of an ink supply device employing inking rollers in the form of readily replaceable cartridges so that inscriptions of sharp, clear outline can always be imprinted on the labels.
Another feature of the invention is the provision of an ink supply device which permits replacement of the inking rollers without any possibility of smearing the operator's hands and clothes and o~her objects.
A further feature of the invention is the provision of an ink supply device well adapted for combined use with a cartridge box conveniently housing a plurality of spare inking roller cartridgés for ready replacement of the cartridge in use.
In accordance with this invention there is provided

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an ink supply device for a labeling machi.ne of the type having a rotatable printing drum with relief characters arranged on its circumference. The in~ supply device comprises essentially a cartridge holder pivotally supported at one end adjacent the printing drum in a readily detachable manner, and a replaceable inking roller cartridge also detachably mounted on.a cartridge seating at the other end of the cartridge holder. The cartridge holder is spring-biased to urge the inking roller of the cartridge into circumferential contact with the printing drum.

More particularly, the invention comprehends an ink supply device for supplying ink to a prin-ting mechanism in a labeling printing machine wherein the label printing machine includes.a frame, a pin.affixed to the frame, and the printing mechanism includes a printing device with imprintable characters arranged on its surface. The ink supply device comprises a ~` cartridge halder pivotally supported at one of its ends on and detachably to the pin. The cartridge holder includes a first fingerhold tab formed at the pivotal end of the cartridge holder and having.at least one first gripping jaw, and.a second fingerhald tab pivotable with respect to the flrst fingerhold .~ tab and having a second gripping jaw which cooperates with the first gripping jaw for relatively loose gripping engagement of the pin. Spring means bias the first.and second gripping jaws :~ : toward each other. Thus the cartridge holder can be mounted on ~; and di~smounted from the pin as the first.and second gripp1ng ~ : jaws are manipu.lated into.and out of gripping engagement with the pin whlle a compressing pres~sure is being exerted on the first and second fingerhold tabs against the bias of the spring means. The cartridge holder has a cartridge seating located ~30 away from~its pivotal end and posltionable near the printing . : ~ ~3~

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device. ~ replaceable in]cing roller car-tri~ge is mounted on the cartridge seatiny in a detachable manner, the inking roller cartridge including an inking roller and a roller support rotatably suppor-ting -the inking roller. Biasiny means bias the cartridge holder to pivot around the pin with respect to the label printing machine to urge the inking roller into con-tact with the printing ~evice characters, whereby the inking roller inks the characters.

Thus, when the inking roller is exhausted, the cartridge holder may be taken out of the machine together w.ith the used cartridge. As the cartr.idge is typically attached to the cartridge holder in a mortise-and-tenon-joint fashion, the used cartridge is readily replaceable with any of several spare cartridgeshoused in a cartridge box. Throughout the complete procedure of cartridge replacement, the operator is required to grasp the cartridge holder only, there being no need for him to directly handle the inking rollers,or the cartridges.

~ Further features of the invention will be apparent : from the following detailed description when read :in ~.~nj.unction with the.accompanying drawings, in which like parts are designated by like reference numerals.

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Brief Description of the Drawings , ;~ Fig. 1 i9. a side elevational view of.a labeliny machine incorporating the novel concepts of this invention, in which one of the side walls of the machine is shown partly broken.away to clearly reveal the ink supply device.according to the inventlon.an~d.associated parts;
Flq. 2 is.a similar view showing the labeling machine in.actuated state;
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Fig, 3 is a longitudinal sectional view oE a car-tridge holcler with an inking roller cartridge ctctachably mounted thereon;
Fig. 4 is a similar view of -the cartridge holder;
Fig. 5 is a perspective view of the cartridge holder from l~hich a second ~ingerhold tab is removed;
Fig. 6 is a perspective view o the second :Einger-head tab of the cartridge holder;
Fig. 7 is a perspective view showing means on which the cartridge holder is to be mounted;
Fig. 8 is a perspective view of a leaf spring used in the cartridge holder;
Fig. 9 is a fragmentar~ end elevational ~iew o-E
the cartrldge holder as seen in the direction of the arrows IX in Fig. 4;
Fig. 10 is a perspective view o-f the inking roller cartridge shown in Fig. 3;
Fig. 11 is a longitudinal axial sectional view o the inking roller cartridge shown in Fig. 10;
~20 Fig. 12 is a perspective vieu of the roller SUpport of the cartridge shown in Figs. 10 and 11;
Fig. 13 is a top plan view of a cartridge box for use with the inking roller cartridge shown in Figs~ 10-12, inclusive;
Flg.~ s~a secti~onal view of~the cartridge bo~
taken along the~plane of llne~XIV-XIV~in Fig.~13;
;Fig.~lS is a perspective;view of the cartridge box shown~in F1gs~. 13~and~l4~and 15 explanatory of the manner in ~ ~
which~the 1nking rol~ler cartrldge~housed~in the cartridge~ -0~ bo-`-s m~unt~d on~ he ca~tr1dge ~older sho.n io Fig. 4;~ ;

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~ ig. 16 is a fragmentary, partly brokcn-away, side elevational vielr of the :labeling machine incorporating an ink supply device constituting another preEerred embodiment of the invention, Fig. lY is a perspective view of the cartridge holder shown in Fig. 16;
Fig. 18 is a perspective view of an alternative cartridge box for use with the ink supply device according to the invention;
Pig. 19 is an end elevational view of the car-tridge box as seen in the direction of the arro~s XIX in Fig. 18;
Fig. 20 is a sectional view of the cartridge box taken along the plane of line XX-XX in Fig. 18, Fig. 21 is a view similar to Fig. 16 but showing the labeling machine incorporating still another preferred embodiment o-f the invention;
Fig. 22 is a perspective view of the cartridge holder shown in ~ig. 21; and Fig. 23 is a perspective view of a leaf spring used in the cartridge holder shown in Fig. 22.

Det'ail'ed Des'cription o-f Pre-ferred Embodiments L : Figs. 1 to 15, inclusive, are directed to the illustration o-f the first preferred embodim~nt of the inven-tion. Wi*h particular reference to Fig~ 1, the illustrated : : ~
labeling machine has a frame including a pair of side walls , ~ 1 rigidly connected to each other in spaced parallel rela-tionship. A palm-grip handle 2 integrally e~tends rear-wardly (i.e., toward the right as vie~Yea in ~ig~ 1) of the side walls 1. A grip~lever 3 is pivotally supported under ~:
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the palrn-grip halldle 2 so ~s to be manually turncd to-~ard and a~ay -from the latter.
Over the machine frame there is mounted a roll holder 4 rotatably supporting a roll 5 of label tape coated on one surface with a suitable adhesive and adapted to be severable into individual 'label.s of a speci-fic size~ ~ach ~ime the grip lever 3 is turned to~ard the palm-grip handle 2 against the.bias of a return spring ~not shown) b~ manual squeezing operation, as illustrated in Pig. 2~ the label ~' 10 tape unwound from its roll 5 is fed a constant distance I along a predetermined path within the machine frame toward its dispensing opening shown at 6.
Arranged along the path of travel of the label tape within the machine frame is a tape advancing mechanism ~not shown) driven by movements of the grip lever 3 to advance and guide the label tape with indexed movement along ~, the path; a tape cutting mechanism ~not shown~ also driven by movements of the grip lever to sever the label tape into individual labels; a printing mechanism 7 also driven by movements of.the grip lever to imprint desired:inscriptions ; on the labels; and a~label applying mechanism 8 positioned adjacent the dispensing opening:6 and operating to press each printed label against an article and thereby;to cause the adhesive to stick~the label to the article. : ~ , The portable, one-hand-operable labeling machine 1 of the above.~outlined~general character is shoYn and des-; cribed in:the aforementioned U.S. Patent No. Re. 27,889. ~
1~: This~:invention is directed to improvements in or relatlng to : the'printing mechanism 7 in the labeling machine of the :
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~ lore specifically, the invention provides a car-tridge--type ink supply device to be incorporated in the printing mechanism 7 of the labeling machine, the preferable form of the device being best illustrated in Fig. 3. The illustrated ink supply devices comprise essentially a car-tridge holder 9 detachably pivoted on a transverse pin 10 extending between the opposed side walls 1 oE the machine frame, as will be seen by referring back to Figs. 1 and 2, and a replaceable inking roller cartridge 11 also detachably mounted on the -free end of the cartridge holder. The cartridge holder 9 is illustrated in greater detail in Figs.
4 through 9, inclusive, and the inking roller cartridge ll in Figs. 10~ 11 and 12.
As will be seen from Figs. 4 and 5 in particular, -`~ the cartridge holder 9 includes a slightly bent, generally rectangular portion 12 having a pair o-f upturned flanges 13 along both lateral edges and terminating at its upper end in a first fingerhold tab 14 angled away from that side of the portion 12 on which the flanges 13 are formed. The first fingerhold tab 14 lS assoclated with one or more ttWo in the illustrated example) first gripping jaws 15 which substan-tially extend from the tab toward the :Elange~ side of the portion 12 in transverse alignment with each other~ A pair of centrally~apertured ears 16 are formed between the~first fingerhold tab 14~and~the respective~first gripping jaws l5 The~lower or free end of~th~e cartridge holder 9 is suitably thickened to~provide a seating on which the inking roller~cartridge ll is to be detachably mounted, as will be ~, ~ later described~in more detail. The cartridge seating has a pair of oppositely opening grooves 17 which are intended to . ~ . . . . . ... . .

~ 75 shape the thickened lower end oE the cartridge holder into a ~enon 18 of substantially T-shaped cross section extending the full transverse length of t:he cartridge holder. One of the grooves 17 has a small semlcircuiar projection 19, Fig.
9, located centrally therein. Pre~erably, a relatively deep~ wide groove 20 should be formed to longitudînally divide the tenon 18 into two spaced apart parts. The car-tridge holder 9 further includes a longitudinal slot 21 i formed centrally in the rectangular portion 12 adjacen* the ¦ 10 upper end thereof.
The reference numeral 22 denotes a second fingerhold tab which cooperates with the firs* fingerhold tab 14 to detachably mount the cartridge holder 9, and hence the inking roller cartridge 11, in position on the labeling machine. As best illustrated in Fig. 6, the second finger-hold tab 22 is integrally provided with a pair of transversely aligned second gripping jaws 23 adapted to coopera*e with ~` the respective first grlpping jaws 15 for relatively loose gripping or clamping engagement of the transverse pin 10 -20 extending between the opposed side walls 1 of *he machine frame~ A pair of centrally apertured ears 24 are formed betwee~n the second fingerhold tab 22 and the respective second gripping ~aws 230 The second fingerhold tab 22 has a slo*~25 formed~centrally~therein so as to be disposed in vertical register;with the slot 21 in the rectangular por-tion l2 of~*he cartridge holder 9 when the second fingerhold *ab is mounted~ in position on the latter as shown in Figs~ 3 ` ` and 4. ~ ~ ~
The~second~ingerhQld *ab 22 with its gripping jaws 23 is adap-ted to be pivotally mounted over the firs*

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~ 7 5 fingerhold tab l4 by a pivot pin 26 inserted into and through the transversely aligned apertures in th~ ears 16 and 24. Installed between the -first and second fingerhold tabs l4 and 22 is a leaf spring 27, Fig. 8, which biases the first and second gripping jaws 15 and 23 toward each other.
Thus, for mounting the cartridge holder 9 with its inking roller cartridge ll in position on the labeling machine shown in Figs. l and 2, a compressing pressure should be applied to the first and second tabs l4 and 22 by the ingers against the bias of the leaf spring 27 thereby causing the irst and second gripping jaws 15 and 23 to turn relatively away from each other about the pivot pin 26. The tabs 14 and 22 may be released while the transverse pin lO between the opposed side walls l of the machine -Erame is held between the gripping jaws 15 and 23~ with the result that the pin is positively but rotatably clamped or gr1pped by the jaws.
~ hile the second fingerhold tab 22 is shown to be an independent part in Fig. 6~ it will be appreciated from ; the foregoing description that this tab constitutes an :
¦ ~ 20 essentially integral part o-f the cartridge holder 9.
With particular reerence to Fig. 7, a second transverse pin 28 is supported by the opposed side walls l ~: ~
of the machine frame substantially in vertic~l register with -the~-fir~st ment1oned transverse pin lO.~ A stationary member 29 having an ~ipwardly projecting tongue ~0 is mounted ~er- -tically~on the f1rst and second pins 10 and Z8. A torsion spring 31 coiled~around;the first transverse pin 10 has~bo~h of its terminal hooks extending downwardly to engage the second transverse pin 28, and th0 mid-portion 32 of the ~
torsion spring is deformed into the shape o an 1nverted U

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and extends upwardly ~o be urged against the tongue 30 o:E
the stat;onary member 29.
When the cartridge holder 9 is mounted in position by clamping -the first transverse pin 10 between the gripping jaws 15 and 23 as above explained, the stationary member 29 is partly received with clearance in the slots 21 and 25 of the cartridge holder, with the tongue 30 projecting upwardl~
through the slot 25, as best illustrated in Fig. 3. At this juncture, the inverted U-shaped mid-portion 32 of the tor-sion spring 31 becomes pressed clockwi.se, as viewed in Pig.3, by the second -fingerhold tab 22~ so that the entire - cartridge holder 9 as well as the inking roller cartridge 11 is yieldably urged to turn counterclockwise about the -first transverse pin 10. It will be seen that the second trans-verse pin 28 functions as a stop limiting the counterclock-wise motion of the cartridge holder 9.
Referring to Pigs. 10 to 12, inclusive, the inking : roller cartridge 11 comprises essentially an inking roller assembly 33 and a U-shaped roller support 34. The inking roller assembly 33 includes an ink.ing roller 35 o~ spongy .or ~:; like material uni-formly impregnated wlth suitable amount of . ~ : : :
ink and ixedly mounted on a rod-shaped core 36 between a pair of flanges 37. A pair o trunnions 38 projecting axially;:outwardly~:o:f the respective flanges 37 are~rotatably~
journaled:in~the respe~ctive legs~39 af;the roller support 34,~so that~ the~lnklng roller assembly 33 as a~whole is ;rotatablè relative to the roller support 34. ;~ :~
; As best illustrated in Figs. lO and:12, the U-shaped roller~:support 34 has a pair of:inwardly Ianged rims 30 ~ 40 formed along the respective lateral edges of its top : . ' '.,, . ~ ' ~ ' ' ' ~ 4~5 surface. One of the flanged rims 40 has a small sernicir-cular inden-tation 4:L located centrally therein. It will be seen t}lat the flanged rims 40 are adapted to de~ine a mortise 42 capable of slidably receiving the tenon 18 on the free ~nd of the cartridge holder 9.
Thus, as will be seen by referring also to Fig. 3, the inking roller cartridge 11 can be readily mounted on the cartridge holder 9 as the tenon 18 of the latter is slid into the mortise 42 of the former. It should be noted that the inking roller cartridge 11 can be securely held in the correctly aligned position on the cartridge holder 9 because the indentation 41 in one o~ the flanged rims 40 of the roller support 34 releasably engages the projection 19 , formed correspondingly in one of the groo~es 17 of the ! cartridge holder.
The cartridge holder 9 and the inking roller car-tridge 11 can mostly be conveniently molded of plastic material.
~ Figs. 13,~14 and 15 illustrate a cartridge box 43 ;~ 20 well adapted for combined use with the ink supply device - according to the invention. The cartridge box 43 houses a plurallty~(three according to the illustrated example~ of inking~roller cartTidges 11 of identical makeO The cartridge - box~comprises a bottom wall 44~and side walls 45, 46, 47 and 48, being~open at~the top. The 5ide wall 45 is significantly thlcke~than the~other slde~walls 46 to 48 or the bottom wall 44, ~nd a~plurality of guide hannels 49 are ~ormed transversely in the;top surface~of the side wall 45 in parallel spaced~relationship~ The internal sur~ace o~ the 3a side wall 45 and the opposed lnternal surface of the side wall 47 are~correspondingly recessed at 50 and 51, respec-~,. ~ - -............ - ~ - . .
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, ~ 5 tively, to neatly accommodate the U-shaped roller supports 34 of the respective inking roller cartridges ll. The cartridges are thus housed in the cartridge box 43 in closed side-by-side arrangement, with their inking roller assemblie5 33 disposed downwardly.
It will be noted that the aforesaid guide charmels 49 in the top surface of the side wall 45 are arranged in alignment with the respective cartridges housed in the car-tridge box 43. Moreover, the bottom surfaces 52 oE these guide channels must be flush with the top surfaces 53, Pigs.
lO to 12, of the roller support 34 of the cartridges when the latter are properly mounted within the cartridge box, -for reasons hereinafter set forth.
For mounting one of the in~ing roller cartridges 11 housed in the cartridge box 43 on the cartridge holder 9, the tenon 18 of the latter may be slid into the mortise 42 in one o~ the cartridges via the adjacent guide channel 49, as illustrated in Fig. 15. The sliding motion of the tenon 18 into the mortise 42 will be arrested as the leading end ZO of the former abuts against the cartridge box side wall 47 when the projection 19 in one of the grooves 17 of the cartridge holder releasably engages in the indentation 41 in the corresponding flanged rim 40 of the cartridge. The cartridge holder 9 wlth the attached inking roller~cartridge 11 ~ay now be~pulled upwardly away from the cartridge box 43. The inking roller cartridge can then be easily removed from within the cartridge box without~suf-fering any lateral displacement relative to the cartridge holder.
With reference again to Fig. l; the printing mechanîsm 7 of the illustrated labeling machine includes a , . . . . . .

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printing drum 54 comprising a plurality of type discs arranged in coaxial, side-by-side relationship. Each type disc has a plurality o~ relie-f characters formed on its circumference at constant spacings. Above the printing drum 5~ there may be provided a plurality of toothed wheels 55 arranged coaxially in driving relationship to the respective type discs o-f the printing drum. Thus, by selectively manually rotating the toothed wheels 55, the angular positions of the respective type discs can be changed as desired, so that any selected ones o~ the relie-~ characters on the respective type discs can be brought to predetermined printing positions which are transversely aligned on the underside o-f the printing drum 5~.
When the cartridge holder 9 with the inking roller cartridge 11 attached thereto as above described is pivotally mounted in position on the illustrated labeling machine by clamping the first transverse pin 10 bet~reen the gripping jaws 15 and 23, the inking roller 35 of the cartridge is yieldably urged by the torsion spring 31, Fig. 7, into circumferential contact with the printing drum 54 thereby inking the relief characters that are arranged in the afore-said printing positions on the underside of the drum.
For printing one of the labels shown at 5a in Figs. 1 and 2, the palm-grip handle 2 and the gr~p lever~3 may be grasped in one hand, and the latter may be turned toward the former against the bias of the unshown return spring, as illustrated in Fig. 2. Thereupon the printing drum 54 as well as the toothed wheels 55 descends onto one of the labels 5a to leave thereon the clear-cut impressions of the relief characters that are located in the pr;ntin~
positions on the drum. The descending printing drum 54 - ~ .
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shoves aside, in effect, the inking roller 35, causing the cartridge holder 9 together with the cartridge 11 to turn clockwise, as viewed in Pigs. 1 and 2, about the Eirst transverse pin 10 against the in-fluence of the torsion spring 31. As the grip lever 3 is succeedingly released, the printing drum 54 and the toothed wheels 55 return from their ~ig. 2 positions to those shown in Fig. 1, so that the cartridge holder 9 together with the inking roller cartridge 11 also return to the Fig. 1 position to cause the inXing roller 35 to ink the printing drum again.
When the supply of ink that has impregnaked the inking roller 35 is used up by the repetition o the above described procedure, the -first and second fingerhold tabs 14 and 22 are held by the fingers and turned toward each other to cause the gripping jaws 15 and 23 to release the first transverse pin 10 between the opposed side walls 1 o-f the machine frame. The used inklng roller cartridge 11, upon withdrawal -from within the machine together with the car-: ~
-tridge holder 9, is brought back into the cartridge box 43 by sliding the U-shaped roller support 34 down into the latter along one of the opposed pa;irs of recesses 50 and 51.
The cartridge holder 9 is easily removab}e from the used inking roller cartridge as the former is succeedingly pulled away~from~the cartridge box 43 via~the-adjacent guide channel 49~ ;
The~cartridge holder 9 is then slid back ~into the cartridge~box~43 via some other guide channel 49 to guide its tenon 18 lnto~the mortlse 42 of a -resh inking roller cartridge~. Thereafter the cartridge holder with the fresh~
30~ inking roller cartridge can be mounted in position on t~e~
; labellng ma~hin_ ~hrou~b ex~ctly the sam- pro_edur- as that previously set -Eorth.
Pigs. 16 and 17 illustrate a modification of the cartridge holder 9. The modified cartridge holder 9a, which also can be molded of plastic material, integrally comprises one or more ~two in the illustrated example) pai~s of gripping jaws 60 adap-ted -for relatively loose gripping or clamping engagement of the first transverse pin 10 between the opposed side walls 1 of the machine rame and a fingerhold tab 61 to be held by the fingers in manipulating the gripping jaws into and out of engagement with the first transverse pin. A
window 62 may be formed between the pairs of gripping jaws 60.
By virtue of the inherent resiliency o~ the plastic material in use, each pair of the gripping jaws 60 is yieldable away from each other when being manipulated into and out of gripping engagement with the first *ransverse pin 10, so that the cartridge holder 9a can be readily mounted on, and dismounted fxom~ the pin. Other details of construction concerning the modlfied cartridge holder 9a are substantially j ~ 20 the same as those described earlier in connection with Figs.
'~ 3, 4, 5, 7 and 9. It will also be apparent that the cartridge holder~ 9a is well,adapted for combined use with the inking , roller cartridge 11 shown in Figs. 10~ ll and 12, and that~
the cartxidge~holder 9a with the inking roller cartridge 11 I mounted thereon functions in exactly the same manner as that above~stated in conjunction with the preceding example with reference to ~igs. l and Plgs. 18,~19 and 20 illustrate an alternative form of the cartridge box~adapted to~house a plurality of inking roller cartridges;identical with that shown in ~igs. 10 and ~- ~ 11. The alte-rnative cartridge box 43a is furnished with a r3~r~

sliding cover 70 so tha-t the car-tridges will no-t fall off when, for instance, the cartridge box is turned upside downO
As in the preceding example, the cartridge box ~3a comprises a bottom wall 71 and side walls 72, 73, 74 and 75 and is open at the top. The side wall 72 is considerably thicker than the other side walls 73 to 75 or the bot-tom wall 71 and has the transverse guide channels 49 formed in its top sur~ace in parallel spaced relationship~ The re-cesses 50 and 51 are formed correspondingly in the opposed internal surfaces of the side walls 72 and 74, respectively, to neatly receive the U-shaped roller supports 34 of the respective inking roller cartridges 11.
Characteristic of this alternative cartridge box 43a are a plurality of partitions 76 extending between the opposediside walls 72 and 74 to divide the interior of.the cartridge box into several chambers each designed to accommo-date a single inking roller cartridge. Furthermore~ the external surfaces oE the side walls 72 and 74 are knurled at ; ~ ~ .
their lower port.ions to afford a firm grip, as indicated by the numerals 77 and 78, and slots 79 and 8~0 are formed along the upper boundaries o:E the knurled portions 77 and 78~
:~ respectively. The remaining upper~portions of the external .
surfaces of~these side walls 72 and 74 are set inwardly with respect to the respective knurled lower portions 77 and 78.
The cover 70 is generally of inverted U-shaped :
: ~ cross sectlon~ comprising a.top plate 81 and a pair o* side ; plates 82. The side plates 82 terminate in inwardly directed guid~e flanges or rims 83. The covér 7Q is.thus adapted to be mounted: astride the cartridge box 43a, l~ith the guide flanges 83 of the former slidably fitted in the respec~ive slots 79 and 80 of the latter. In order to permit the cover .

~ 75i 70 to be retained in its open position shown in Pigs. 18 and 20 without falling off the cartridge bo~ 43a, a pair oE
stops may be formed as at 84 on the cover. These stops are designed to abut against the cartridge box side wall 75 when the cover 70 is moved to its open position, and against the opposite wall 73 when the cover is slid back to its closed position as indicated by the arrow in Fig. 18.
Figs. 21, 22 and 23 illustrate another possible modification of the cartridge holder, which differs from the example shown in Figs. 3 through 9, inclusive or in Figs. 16 and 17 in that a leaf spring 90 is employed for holding the linking roller cartridge 1] in the correctly aligned posi-tion on the modified cartridge holder 9b by resiliently engaging in the indentation 41, Fig. 10, in the roller ` support 34 of the cartridge.
- As best illustrated in Fig. 22, the leaf spring 90 is mounted adjacent a tenon 91 at the lower or free end of the cartridge holder 9b, the tenon being here provided in plate-like form. The leaf spring 90 is centrally crimped to pro~ide a projecting portion 92 adapted to enter the inden-tation 41 in the roller support 34 of the inking roller cartridge 11 when the tenon 91 is fully inserted into the ~ . -~;~ mortise 42 ln the }atter. ~
At the other en~ of the cartridge~holder 9b there is pivotally mDunted a fingerhold tab 93 integrall~ com-prising a pair o-f elongate gripping jaws ~4. Unlike the preceding~examples, these~gripping jaws 94 are adapted to snugly but detachably fit over a beam lOa of rectangular cross secton extending between the~opposed side walls 1 of ~30~ the labellng~machine ln place of the transverse pin 10, as will be seen from a consideration o~ Fig~ 21. A torsion spring shown at 95 i.n Fi.g. Z2 biases the cartridge holder 9b counterclockwise, as viewed in Fig. 21, about a pivot pin 96. Thus, the inking roller 35 of the cartridge ll mounted on the free end o:~ the cartridge holder 9b is urged into circumferential contact with the printing druul 54 to ink the relief characters that are arra:nged in the mentioned print-ing positions on the underside of the drum.
Although the ink supply apparatus according to the invention has been shown and described hereinbe:Eore in very specific aspects thereof, it is to be understood that the invention itself is not to be restricted by the exact showing of the accompanying drawings or the description thereof.
For example, while the cartridge holder is provided with the tenon, and the inking roller cartridge with the mortise, in the examples disclosed herein, it is of course possible to ~' provide the cartridge holder with the mortise and the car-tridge with the tenon. This and other modi-fications or ~' changes within the usual knowledge of the specialists are considered to be comprehended within the scope o~ the inven-tion.

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Claims (8)

The embodiments of the invention in which an exclusive property or privilege is claimed are defined as follows:

1. An ink supply device for supplying ink to a printing mechanism in a labeling printing machine; said label printing machine including a frame; a pin affixed to said frame;
said printing mechanism including a printing device with imprintable characters arranged on its surface;
said ink supply device comprising:
a cartridge holder having one end and being pivotal-ly supported at the one end thereof on and detachably to said pin;
said cartridge holder comprising:
a first fingerhold tab formed at said one end of said cartridge holder and having at least one first gripping jaw;
a second fingerhold tab pivotable with respect to said first fingerhold tab and having a second gripping jaw which cooperates with said first gripping jaw for relative-ly loose gripping engagement of said pin; and spring means biasing said first and second gripping jaws toward each other;
whereby said cartridge holder can be mounted on and dismounted from said pin as said first and second gripping jaws are manipulated into and out of gripping engagement with said pin while a compressing pressure is being exerted on said first and second fingerhold tabs against the bias of said spring means;
a cartridge seating located away from said one end of said cartridge holder and positionable near said printing device;

a replaceable inking roller cartridge mounted on said cartridge seating of said cartridge holder in a detachable manner; said inking roller cartridge including an inking roller and a roller support rotatably supporting said inking roller;
biasing means for biasing said cartridge holder to pivot around said pin with respect to said label printing machine to urge said inking roller into contact with said printing device characters, whereby said inking roller inks said characters.

2. The ink supply device as recited in Claim 1, wherein said cartridge seating of said cartridge holder has a tenon adapted to slide into and out of a mortise;
a mortise formed in said roller support of said inking roller cartridge; said mounting of said cartridge on said cartridge holder comprises said tenon being slid into said mortise.

3. The ink supply device as recited in Claim 2, including aligning means for causing said inking roller cartridge to be mounted on said cartridge seating in a position of correct alignment with said cartridge holder.

4. The ink supply device as recited in Claim 3, wherein said aligning means comprises a projection formed on said tenon, and an indentation formed in said roller support of said inking roller cartridge, said projection being adapted to releasably engage in said indentation as said tenon is inserted fully into said mortise.

5. The ink supply device as recited in Claim 4, wherein said projection is constituted by part of a leaf spring.

6. The ink supply device as recited in Claim 2, in combination with an open-top cartridge box adapted to house a plurality of inking roller cartridges identical with said inking roller cartridge in such a manner that any of the inking roller cartridges is readily removable from said box by inserting said tenon of said cartridge holder into the mortise of the desired inking roller cartridge and pulling said cartridge holder upwardly away from said car-tridge box.

7. The ink supply device as recited in Claim 6, wherein said cartridge box includes a plurality of side walls, including a said side wall which is thicker than the other said side walls and which has a plurality of guide channels formed transversely in its top surface in parallel spaced relationship, said guide channels being adapted to guide therethrough said tenon of said cartridge holder into said mortises of the respective said inking roller cartridges housed in said cartridge box.

8. The ink supply device as recited in Claim 6, including a cover slidable between an open and a closed position on said cartridge box.