CA1106217A - System for exposing and inverting printing plates - Google Patents

Abstract

Sun - 86 (Ruth) PLATE MAKINIG SYSTEM

ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE
Automatic equipment is described for making multiple plate copies for an offset printing process from a single negative. A stack of plates having prepunched locating openings is provided with the emulsion side facing down and with the pile being automatically raised so that the top plate is at a particular location. A parallelogram linkage makes vacuum connection to the back of the plate, and moves the plate immediately on top of and in registry with a negative which is installed on a negative carrier plate, The plate is then exposed through the negative, and the parallelogram linkage and plate carrier then move back to the plate stack to pick up a new plate. A plate transfer mechanism then makes vacuum connection to the back surface of the exposed plate and rotates the plate, and inverts it onto a delivery belt system for delivering the exposed plate to a plate processor.

Description

11~6217 sun- 86fRUT~I) .

BACKGROUND OF T~E IN~ENTION
This invention relates to automatic plate ma~in~
equipment, and more specifically relates to a novel high speea plate making system for producing a plurality of p1ates whic~ -can be used in a printing process, such as a newspaper printing process, from a single negative. - - -: -Daily newspapers are now converting to a prlnting process using a thin aluminum plate with a so-called '~wipe on"
coating or pre-sensitized coating in place of a letter pTess type arrangement hlost newspapers will run a large number o plates Qf the same page~ thus requiring that a large number oE plates be made from the same negative. The production o~
a large number of plates which are all appropriately aligned with a gi~en nega*ivc has bcell a time-consuming process.

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Numerous devices are kno~n to make a plurality of plates from a single negative. Devices of this type are shown in U.S. Patents 3,635,559, 3,810,694 and 3,922,087.
Thc present invention provides a novel automated process for making a large number of exactly aligned plates from a common negative at high speed while handling the . plate on its non-image or back surace.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION''OF THE PRESENT INVENTION
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The present invention provides a novel apparatus which contains a plurality of coordinated sections for the - manufacture of any desired number of wipe-on or pre-sensitized type plates from.a single negative.
The first major component of the system is the negative support drawer assembly and negative exposure unit.
The neg'ative or film support drawer assembly consists of a sliding frame having locating pins for locating a negative in an exact position on the frame and the vacuum system to insure that the negative will be snugly held onto the table. A high intensity exposure lamp unit, which contains an ultraviolet lamp or lamps, is'disposed beneath the sliding negative drawer - and is in position to illuminate the negative and any photo-.
sensitive plate above the negative at an automatically controlled.
time and after a photosensitized plate has bee'n placed atop ~ .
the negative. The negative support drawer is slidable to an outer position to where a negative can be secured to the drawer and the drawer can then slide into an accurately located posi-tion in the apparatus relative to the exposure lamp. The operator may select a suitable automatic exposure time for the exposure system, for example, 3 seconds, and the film .
change can be made in about 13 seconds. '-The next major component of the system is a plate ' supply arrangement wherein a stack of aluminum plates with photosensitive emulsions on one sur~ace, or other suitable exposable plates are provided, with their photosensitive side - facing downwardly so that the plates can be individually gripped on their upper and unsensitized surface without damaging the emulsion.
The plate stack may be carried on a cart which can be loaded into an adjustable height plate eeding system which may be controlled so that the top of the ùppermost plate is accurately controlled in height and may be jogged against three adjustment stops for accurate pre-registered positioning.
The uppermost plate of the plate stack can be sensed by a suitable photosensing device which is accurate to less than the thickness of the relatively thin plate. The upper surface of the plate is then gripped by a parallelogram supported plate to move the plate from its accurately pre-registered position into accurate registry with the film negative.
The equipment which moves the uppermost plate from the plate stack to the negative is the next major subcomponent of the system. It cons;sts of a vacuum plate carried by a parallelogram arrangement wherein the vacuum plate engages the top of the stack of plates, picks up the uppermost plate of the stack, and holds the uppermost plate in an exactly aligned position relative to the system frame by virtue of the exact alignment of the uppermost plate of the stack. The parallelo-gram mechanism then moves the vacuum plate and the photo-sensitized plate to a location immediately above the top of the film negative on the film negative table. Guide openings in the vacuum plate mating with pins on the negative frame insure the accurate location of the photosensitive plate on the film negative, with its photosensitive side facing down. A vacuum is actuated in order to hold the aluminum plate surface firmly against the negative surface and to hold the vacuum plate on the film drawer support surface, and an exposure .. ,, . .. , . ., .. , . ....... ... . .. , .. , .. ~

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is made by the ~nergization of high intcnsi~y lamps beneath the negative.
The parallelogram plate carrier is then moved away and toward the plate stac~ and toward a position where it can pic~ up the next plate of the stack.
A further major subassembly of the system then comes into operation ~hich is a transfer arm mechanism which engages the~top of the exposed plate with spaced vacuum cups, and then moves the e~posed plate and inverts it onto a set of power driven delivery belts which eed the exposed plate, with its exposed side up, into a conventional plate processor. Once the transfer arm mechanism has removed the plate from the negative drawer, a new cycle begins and a second plate is delivered, by the parallelogram mechanism, to the negative table fcr a new exposure. - -In the particular embodiment of the invention to be described herein, there is an approximately 2~ second operatina cycle for processing a single plate and about 3 plates per minute can be exposed and delivered to the ~late processing unit in an automated manner and without operator attention~ Up - -to 500 plates can be loaded into the machine and additional plates can be loaded without causing any substantial down-time of the unit. Moreover, the unit is compact and self-contained -and can be operated by per50nnel with relatively little training.
Important features of the apparatus of the present invention are that, during the entire operating cycle~ the plate is handled from its non-emulsion side and the plate is kept under positive control until it is fed into the photoprocessor apparatus. Suitable controls for operating the equipment may be adjusted to produce a given number of copies, whereupon the negative carrier, or the film frame, is automatically moved out to a loading position. The vacuum holding the film on the il~;`6~,17 frame is released, and the operator can remove the film from its register pins and attach a new neqative to the drawer. The frame is then returned to its exposure position with the new negative in place.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
Figure la is a perspective diagram of the assembled apparatus of the present invention with a covering shroud in place.
Figure 1 schematically illustrates a plan view of the apparatus of the present invention with the covering shroud removed.
Figure 2 which is an the same sheet as Figure 1, is an elevation view of the front of Fiqure 1.
Figure 3 is an elevation view of the right-hand end of Figure 1.
Figure 4 is a cross-sectional view illustrating an aluminum plate in position within the film drawer for making an exposure.
Figure 5a is a plan vièw of the plate supply sub-assembly of a specific embodiment of the present invention.
Figure 5b is an elevation view of the left-hand end of Figure 5a.
Figure 5c is an elevation view of the front of Figure5a.
Figure 6a is a plan view of the filmnegative drawer of the specific embodiment of the present invention.
Figure 6b is a partial cross-section and partial elevation view of the front of the film drawer of Figure 6a.
Figure 7a is a plan view of the film carrying plate and parallelogram mechanism of the specific embodiment of the present invention.

Figure 7b which is on the same sheet as Figure 6b is an elevation view and partial cross-sectional view of the front of -Fiaure 7a.

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Figure 8a is a plan v;e-~ of the transfer arm assembly of the specific embodi~nent of the present invent;on with the transfer arm in pOsitioll for picking up a plate from the film dra~er.
Figure 8b is a side vie-~ of the pivotal latch mechanism for one of the arms of Figure 8a.
Figure 8c is an elevation view of the rear of the assembly of Figure 8a. -Figure 8d is a diagram showing the operating linkage for the transfer arms in various positions of its operationcycle.
Figure 8e is an elevation view of the transfer arm assembly and illustra'tes the novel latching action o* the trans-fer arm assembly.
. Figure 8f is a partial view of Figure 8e taken across the section lines 8f-8f in Figure 8e. -Pigure 8g is a view of Figure 8e taken across thesection lines 8g-8g in Figure 8e.
Figure 8h is a view of Figure 8e taken,across, the section lines 8h-8h in Figure 8e, and particularly illustrates the spring connection between the latch member and one of the separable transfer arm links, '~
' Figure 9a is an elevation view of the side of the delivery belt system of a specific embodiment of the apparatus of the ~resent invention. -Figure 9b is a plan view o'f the delivery belt arrange-ment of the present invention.
DETAII.ED DESCRIPT~ON OF THE DRAWINGS
Referring first to Figure la, the novel plate making system of the invention is illustrated in perspective view with its housing in place. Figure la illustrates the film drawer 31 moved outwardly to the position where an operator can load a film negative on top of the glass plate 32 and over positioning pins 190 and 191. The film dra~er 31 in ;Zl~

Figure la is about ~ais~ high or 30 inches above floor level, and may be placed between work m~terial support tablcs, such as tables 40. A suitable control panel 41a may also be pro-vided as illustrated and will contain controls for setting copy numbers, and for programming the machine operation, and will also contain manual over-ride controls and operation indicators. The left-hand side of ~igure la has a stack of aluminum plates 41, which are loaded with their emulsion surface facing downwardly. Stack 41 is carried on a suitable carrier 42 which can move the stack 41 into the apparatus over roller conveyor 43.
Plates which have been automatically exposed in accordance with the present invention are delivered with the emulsion side facing up-~ardly on the delivery belts such as belts 449, 450, 451, 452 and 453 disposed at the rear of the -equipment. A suitable plate processor, which may be o~ any-standard commercially available type, and which is adapted to receive exposed aluminum plates with their emulsion side acing upwaraly, then receives the output plate from the belts 449 to 453.
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Figures l, 2 and 3 illustrate the equipment of Figure la in schematic fashion and with the housing shroud ~emoved.
Numerals which identify components in Figure la identiy simi-lar components in Figures 1, 2 and 3.
Pigure 2 illustrates the stack of plates 41 which might contain as many as 500 plates, where the stack ~1 and its tray 42 are schematically illustrated as being movable upwardly or downwardly under the influence of a mator, and are guided in bearings 50 and 51. The control motor is operated in order to place the topmost aluminum plate at a given vertical position lYhich is determined by a suitable stack height monitor structure 52, which can be a photoelectric cell ll~t;iZ17 system or thc like, to insurc that the plate moving equipment will register properly with the topmost aluminum plate In addition, a suitable pick-up and jogger assembly will be provided to separate the uppermost ~late from the stack and to force at least the uppermos-t plate o~ the stack 41 against three spaced stops to insure that the plate has an exactly fixed position relative to the support frame. Thus, when the uppermost plate is picked up and moved to the film negative, it will be also accurately located relative to the film negative.
The film drawer 31 of Figure la is also seen in Figures 1, 2 and 3 in the retracted position or loading a negative on the drawer. The film drawer 31 is mounted on rails, which will be later described in more detail, to enable the film drawer 31 to move upwardly in Figure 1 and -to the right in Figure 3 to place the film drawer immediately above an exposure lamp system 60. Exposure lamp system 60 may also be mounted on rails to enable access to the lamps, the reflector, and the lamp cooling system.
When the film drawer 31 is in its outward position shown, the operatar places a film negative on top of the glass plate 32, with the negative being aligned relative to the drawer 31 by having preformed openings fitted over the posi-- tioning pins 190 and 191.
A vacuum system ~not shown in Figures 1 to 3) is also provided to exhaust all of the air between the negative and the glass plate 32, to insure that the negative will be snugly held on top of the film drawer 31. An operator with relatively little training will be able to remove the previous negative and install a new negative and then close the drawer in about 13 seconds. The drawer 31 may be moved between its open and closed positions by suitable automatic operating controls which can be operated or pre-set from the control panel 41a in Figure la.
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Accurate positioning o~ the film drawer 31, when closcd, is ;nsured by a suitable tray stop 70 which may have a permanent magnet ~ixed thereto which seals against drawer 31 when it is closcd. In addltion, a V-block arrange~nent, .hich is located by a hardened pin arrangement, may also be used. Once the film dral~er 31 is closed against stop 7~ in Figure 1 and is disposed above the lamp system 60, one o the aluminum plates rom the top of stack 41 is to be deposited with its photosensitive surface facing downwardly on top of the negative, on top of glass plate 32, and accurately located relative to the negative on glass plate 32.
Lamp system 60 consists of a suitable elongated -lamp 61 contained within a suitable reflector 62 and is oper-able to direct intense light upwardly toward the film. drawer 31 to expose the photosensitive surface of an aluminum plate . -.atop the film negative on the glass plate 32 of film carrier 31.
In order to move the topmost plates from stack 41 onto the negative on the closed film drawer 31, a novel parallelogram mechanism is provided which contains parallel .
identical arms 71 to 74. Arms 71 to 74 have their lower ends pivotally mounted on the support frame of the apparatus and .
.have their upper ends pivotally mounted to the corners oE a :
plate carrier 75. A suitable drive motor 76 is connected to the parallelogram linkage in order to operate the linkage . .
through a suitable control circuit. In addition, suitable counterbalance springs can be mounted on stationary posts, and can be connected to the parallel link arms 71 to 74 in order to at least-partly support the weight of the plate 75 during its operation, thus relieving the load somewhat from the operating motor 76. Alternatively, a moving carriage and cable reel spring arrangement could be used.
A typical counterbalance spring 77 is shown in ~igure

2 connected to schematically illustrated post 78 which is .
fixed to the main support frame. The plate 75 as sho~n in 6 2~
Figure 2 is provided with vacuum line connections which arc flexible, sho-~n as flexible vacuum lines 80, 81 and 82, which are connected to small outlet openings in the bottom of plate 75. These hose nipple connections are schematically sho-~n in Figure 1 for vacuum openings 83, 85, 86 to 91, and 93. Openings 84 and 92 in plate 75 are openings which receive alignment pins 100 and 101 on drawer 31, as will be later described.
. The parallelogram linkage will now operate such that the plate 75 moves from a position directly on top of the stac~
10 41 to a position directly on top of the film drawer 31 .for transporting plates from the top of stack 41 to the film drawer without inverting the plates. Thus, the plate 75 moves with parallel motion, to engage the top of stack 41. When the plate : 75 rests on stack 41, vacuum is applied to vacuum openings 86, 87, 88, 89 and 90 so that the uppermost plate of stack 41 will adhere to the bottom of plate 75. The uppermost plate of stack 41 and plate 75 then move together when the parallelogram . linkage is operated to rotate in a clockwise direction in Figure 2. Note that the uppermost plate of stack 41 has been extremely accurately located relative to the mach;ne frame .
so that it will also be accurately located on the plate 75~
The plate 75 and the aluminum plate secured thereto is then deposited immediately atop -the glass plate 32 and in registry with the film-negative which is secured thereto. .
This position is shown in Figure 4, which schematically illus- -trates the plate 75 as it comes downwardly atop the film drawer 31. Note in Figure 4 that the film drawer 31 is carried on a .
fixed drawer track arrangement and that the film drawer 31 is held against the stops, such as stops 70, shown in Figure 1. -The film negative is shown in Figure 4 as located on pins 190 and 191 and the uppermost aluminum plate 95 of the stack 41 is shown as adhering to the bottom surface of carrier 75 by ~ir-tue of vacuum which has been applied to the openi.ngs ~6 to 9o in plate 75. The plate 95 is extremely accurately located rela-' i 11~,?62~.7 tive to the film negative on top of plate 32 by virtue ofextreme accuracy in positioning plate 95 on ~he top of the stack before it is pic~ed up by the plate 75.
The bottom su~face of plate 75, as is best shown in Figure 4, is provided with a gasket 96 which seats around and is outside of the periphery o-f the film negative and seals against the upper surface o~ the film drawer 31. As the plate 75 comes down on top of the ~ilm drawer 31, it and thus plate 95 are accurately located relative to the film drawer by virtue of locating pins 100 and 101 on the film dral~er which ente~
openings 84 and 92, respectively, in the plate 75. After the plate 95 is seated against the negative, vacuum is applled to openings 83~ 85, 91 and 93 in plate 75 to eliminate any possible air film between the aluminum plate 95 and the film negative.
The exposure lamp system 60 is then operated to pro-duce an in.tense light which passes through the glass 32 and the film negative to expose the downwardly facing emulsion on the.
plate 95. The exposure lasts about 3 seconds and, when com-plete, positive pressure is applied to the hoses connected .to openings 83, 85 to 91, and 93. This removes plate 95 .
from the parallelogram transport plate 75 so that, when the transport plate 75 is moved, the exposed plate 95 will remain on top of the film negative.
The parallelogram linkage then operates to return plate 75 to the position shown in Figure 2, in order to pick up the next uppermost plate of stack 41. Note that stack 41 has been operated through its operating motor, guided by . . . .
bearings 50 and 51 so that the next uppermost plate is moved upwardly until stopped by the stack height monitor 52. In .
an actual embodiment of the invention, a single motor, operating through a jac~, is used and the stack is guided for motion by su;table guide rods.

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It is llOW n~cessary to move the exposed plate 95 of Figure 4 from the film drawer 31. rhis operation is performed by a novel transfer system which grips the plate through vacuum means, on its upper surface and then inverts the plate to move it to a suitable d~livery belt which will deliver the plate, emulsion side up, into a sultable photo-processor.
The vacuum transfer system is schematically illus-trated in Figures 1, 2 and 3 and consists.of a transfer vacuum frame having arms 110, 111 and 112. Arm.110 has vacuum cups 113 and 114. Arm 111 has a vacuum cup 115, and arm 112 has vacuum cups 116 and 117. A suitable vacuum supply is connected to cups 113 to 117 through tubes in arms 110, 111 and 112. All of the vacuum cups 113 to 117 are fixed in a common plane and move, as a single body, with the rotation o~ pivotal support arms 120, 121 and 122. `-Support arms 120j 121 and 122 are mounted on a common pivotal support 306, as best seen in Figure 3. The entire transfer vacuum assembly is then rotatable about the pivot 3~6, such that.the vacuum cups 113 to 117 can rotate from a retracted position, in which the cups face upwaraly and are disposed in a generally horizontal plane, to an operating position in which they are rotated counterclockwise .
about the pivot 306.to face downwardly and en2age the upper back surface of plates, such as plate 95, lying atop the film drawer 31. Note that, when the vacuum cups 113 to 117 are rotated to pick up an exposed aluminum plate, they engage the exposed aluminum plate on its upper unsensitized surface.
Once the parallelogram linkage has moved plate 75 out of position, a suitable operating control operates motor 12~ shown in Figure 3 to move the vacuum transfer arms counter- ~ ;
clockwise such that the members 113 to 117 will en~age the rear surface of the plate on the drawer 31~ A vacuum is then drawn in cups 113 to 117 to cause the cups 113 to 117 ~1~621'7 to adhere to the rear surface of th~ platc. ThereaE-ter, the r otor 124 is en~rgi~ed to causc the entire frame to rotate clock~iise about the pivot 306 in Figure 3, to move the plate out of ~he film drawer and also to invert the plate so that its photo-emulsive side faces upwardly. As the transfer frame continues to rotate clockwise in Figure 3, the arms 110, 111 and 112 pass through and between delivery belts.
The vacuum holding the plate to the frame is reIeased as the belts are reached, and the plate is deposited on top o-f the 10 belt for delivery to a suitable processor.
The delivery belt system is shown in Figures 1 and

3 as consisting of two sets of belts which operate at different speeds. Thus, there is a first set of belts 415 to 418, which are each continuous belts rotating in a direction such that their top surface moves away from the film drawer 31 and toward a photoprocessor discharge region. These belts 415 to 418 -move essentially in the same plane as the second set of belts 449 to 453 ~hich were previously described in connection with Figure la. Belts 415 to 418 move at a relatively high speed 20 in order to move plates away from the region of the transfer arms as quickly as possible to enable the early recycling of the apparatus. ` Belts 449 to 453 move at a lower speed, and at a speed determined by the photoprocessor. Note that, once the plate has been moved on top of the belts which .
deliver the plate to the photoprocessor, the parallelogram linkage can move member 75 to deposit a nel~ plate on drawer 31.
Figures la and 1 to 4 schematically illustrate the device of the invention. The following figures illustrate a 30 specific preferred embodiment of the invention wllere numerals idcntifying similar components to those of Figures 1 to 4 identify similar components in Figures 5 to 9 6i2~
PLi~TE SUPPLY ~RT~I\NGE~IENT
Referring first to Figures 5a, Sb ancl 5c, there is sho~in a speciEic arrang~ment which can be used for the plate supply or supporting plate stack 41. Figures 5a and 5c show support tray 42 which can be raised and lowered by a suitable worm-drive motor 139 which drives shaft 140 connected to tray 42. Support tray 42 carries a plurality of parallel rollers 43 to assist in the loading of a stack 41. The stack of plates 41 is shown as disposed atop rollers 43.
Suitable stabilizer shafts 141 and 142, which are slidable in suitable bearings, prevent the tray 42 from tilting as it - moves up and down.
Three adjustable stops are provided adjacent to stack 41 including the adjustable side-stop position members lS0, 151 and 152 which enable the accurate positioning of `
the uppermost plate of stack 41 relative to the support --apparatus. Stops 150, 151 and 152 are resiliently biased above the level o the uppermost plate of stack 41.
A jogging means is provided for jogging the stack 41 against the stops 150, 151 and 52. The jogging mechanism is shown schematically in Figures 1 and 2 and comprises a vacuum cup 154a mountçd on a sliding arm 155 which is rotatably mounted to the rame 162 by pivotal arm 156. A suitable vacuum connection ~not shown) is connected to cup 154a. A
vibrating solenoid Cnot shown) may also be connected to the cup to help separate the upper sheet from the stack 41. The jogging mechanism operates after the stack 41 has moved to its desired height, and arm 156 moves from the dotted-line position in Figure 1 to its solid-line position, and the arm 155 then moves down so the cup 154a engages the upper - -plate of the stack. A vacuum is drawn in cup 154a and the arm 154 is slightly raised to raise the corner o-f the uppermost plate, and the arm 156 is rotated countercloc~ise in Figure 1 to move the uppermost plate slightly off the stack ~1 and ~ ~ 6 2 ~'~
into engagemCilt with the thrce-positioning stops 150, 151 and 152 (Figure 5a). The cup l5~a then releases the uppermost plate and retracts to its dotted-line position in Figure 1.
Figures 5a and 5c further illustrate the placement of a photosensing mechanism which is operable to sense the position of the top of stack ~1 and to deliver an output signal to the control mechanism so that the operating motors which raise the stack are appropriately controlled~ Thus, a lamp 158 and photosensor 159 are mounted adjacent a corner 10 of stack 41, and monitor the presence or absence o an uppermost sheet of the stac~ 41 at their level. The output of photosensor 159 then controls mot~r 139 through an appropriate control circuit. Note that lamp 158 and photo-sensor 159 can be mounted in any other desired manner.
All of the components described above in connection with Figures 5a, 5b and 5c are supported from a common - -support frame consisting of welded or bolted tubular members which are made of a suitable structural steel.
FILM NEGATIVE CARRIAGE ASSEMBLY
.., .... _ . _ Figures 6a and 6b illustrate the novel negative carriage or film drawer assembly 31. Referring to Pigures 6a and 6b, the top of the assembly is held about 30 inches from the floor by tubular frame members 160, 161, 162 and 163.
Tube 161 has a U-shaped rail 170 clamped thereto while the support member 160 has spaced rod suppoTt members, such as member 171, extending therefrom which support a guide rod 173 between them. The film drawer body 31 is then provided with a rotatable wheel 175 which rides on the track 170 and is also provided with shaft-receiving members 176 and 177 which are slidably mounted on shaft 173. Thus, the drawer assembly 31 is slidably mounted on the main support frame so that it can be moved from the position shown in Figure la, where it is exposed for use by an operator, to the closed position 11~`621'7 where an e.Yposllre can b~ nlade of an aluminum plate carried on the drawcr assembly.
Figure Ga further illustrates the glass table 32 supported within a suitable glass mount opening lgO which may be about 1/32 of an inch greater in dimension than that of the glass.
Figures 6a and 6b further illustrate ilm locating pins 190 and 191 and also pins 100 and 101 for locating the plate 75 on top of the film drawer when the plate 75 moves into position as was described in connection with Figure 4.
Figure 6a illustrates, in dot dashed lines, the boundary of the film negative, and the boundary of the pla~e which lS to be exposed from the film negative.
As is further shown in Figures 6a and 6b, plate 31 is provided with a vacuum channel for enabling the evacuation of air between the ilm negative and the glass 32 when the negative is placed in position. This vacuum channel is illustrated as the channel 200 which is a rectangular channel underlying the film negative and disposed bet-~een the glass and the carrier 31. Any suitable vacuum connection can be made to this channel. A plurality of conventional glass plate clamps 201 clamp the glass 32 against a gasket (not shown) to form the vacuum channel.
The drawer 31 of Figures 6a and 6b has a magnetic plate 210 connected thereto which is movable relative to a permanent magnet 211 which is fixed to support channel 162.
Figure 6a shows the magnet 211 sealed against plate 210, thereby to hold the drawer 32 in a fixed position relative to the support frame. Note that a V-shaped locating slot which can receive a pin on drawer 32 and a suitable ring stop (schematically shown in Figure 1) can also be used to accurately locate drawer 32 in its closed position. A

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micro-switch 215 is also fixed to the support ~rame 162 and the switch 215 is operated when the plate 75 reaches the film drawer in order to actuate suitable controls needed to lock the aluminum plate into position on the film drawer 31.
PARALLELOGRAM TRANSFER ASSEMBLY
F;gures 7a and 7b illustrate the novel plate 75 and its parallelogram support, with the plate 75 being disposed atop stack 41 ~Figure 5a). Figure 7a shows openings 83, 85, 86, 87, 89, 90, 91 and 93 which are connected to flexible vacuum hoses 230 to 239, respectively.
Figure 7a further shows the pivotal connection of arms 71 and 72 to the support frame members 163 and 162, respectively, at the pivots 250 and 251, respectively.
Similar pivotal supports are provided for the parallelogram links 73 and 74 which have a length identical to that of lengths 71 and 72. Arms 71 and 72 are pivotally connected to plate 75 at pivots 252a and 252b, respectively. Similarly, arms 73 and 74 are connected to plate 75 at pivots 252c and 252d, respectively. Any desired counterbalance can be used to balance the weight of plate 75. Figure 7a shows the type of counterbalance which includes the counterbalance spring 255 which has one end thereof connected to a spring connection end 256 of arm 71. A similar counterbalance spring arrange-ment can be provided for each of the parallelogram links. Note that other counterbalance arrangements could be used.
Also illustrated in Figures 7a and 7b are the positioning openings 84 and 92 in plate 75 which register with pins 100 and 101 on drawer 31 in Figures 6a and 6b.
In order to insure registration between the carrier 75 and the top aluminum plate of stack 41, when the plate is picked up, the surface 260 of the stack support assembly in Figure 7b contains positioning pins 261 and 262 which receive openings 84 and 92. This insures th~t the plate 75 will settle in ,~

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li~62~7 thc precisely correct location on top of stac~ 41 be:Eore the uppermost plate of stac~ fil is pic~ed up ~ith the appli-cation of vacuum to the conduits 233, 234, 235, 236 and 237.
After the plate 75 picks up the uppermost plate of stack 41, ~hich has been exactly located within the stack, it moves to the film drawer 31 to deposit the plate atop the film drawer 31 as previously discussed. Once the plate 75 settles on top of the film drawer or platform 31 of Figures 6a and 6b, vacuum is applied to vacuum conduits - 10 230, 231, 238 and 239 in order to remove any air which might be trapped between the film negative and the aluminum plate . carried by plate carrier 75. After the aluminum plate has been exposed in the position of Figures 6a and 6b, positive pressure is applied to all of conduits 230 to 239 of Figure 7a so that the carrier 75 can move away and leave the exposed aluminum plate behind on the film drawer-31. In order to insure that a good vacuum is drawn between the plate 75 and the film drawer surface 31 in Figure 6a and, as is best shown in Figures 7a-and 7b, a seal 96 ~see Figure.4) is formed around the bottom surface of plate 75 and this seal will seal against the upper surface of the film drawer 31.

: - Pigures 8a to 8d show the various components which are used to form a novel transfer arm assembly of a type slightly different from that schematically illustrated in Figures 1, 2 and 3. In the preferred embodiment, the~transer arms pick up exposed plates, from the film drawer 31, and then deposit the exposed plates with their emulsion side facing upward, at a level higher than the.drawer level, and then drop below the belts after depositing the plate on the belts.
Referring to Figure 8a, the arms 110, lll and 112 ~see Figure 1) are shown overlying the film drawer 31 and in 11~L~Z:~

position to pick up an exposed aluminum plate from the top of drawer 31. Each of arms 110, 111 and 112 contain the various vacuum cups 113 to 117 ~rhich are connected to a suit-able vacuum supply through tubes in arms 110~ 111 and 112.
The cups 113 to 117 are coplanar and, when they contact the back surface of an e~posed aluminum plate, they are coplanar ~ith its sur-~ace and the film drawer 31.
Each of the arms 110, 111 and 112 is then rigidly connected to the cross-brace member 300 which has a hollow tube extending therethrough connected to a fitting 301 to allow the connection of a flexible vacuum conduit to the arms 110, 111 and 112 and their respective vacuum cups. T~YO
identical circularly shaped arms 302 and 303 then have one o their ends pivotally connected to the member 300 at the -pivots 304 and 305, respectively, as sho-~n in Figure 8a.
The shape of arm 303 is best shown in Figure 8d where the arm 303 is shown in five positions labeled 1 through S showing the sequence of operation of the transfer system. Note that positions 1, 2 and 3 also sho~ different heights of the belts rom floor level to accommodate different style photoprocessors.
Arms 302 and 303 are then rotatably mounted rela-tive to and on shaft 306, which is rotatably supported in brackets 307 and 308 as sho~n in ~igure 8c. As will be later described, arms 302 and 303 are driven by driver arms 302a and 303a which are connected to shaft 306 and are rotated by shaft 306.
Brackets 307 and 308 are suitably supported by frame member 311 as best seen in Figure 8c which is a rear view of the transfer arm assembly. The shaft 306 is rotatably driven by the motor 309 shown in Figure 8c which is connected to shaft 306 by the belt 310 Motor 309 is then controlled in any suitable manner from a control circuit , ~ 2 1~
Rotatable shaEt 306 also carrics a central con-nection member 320 which rotates with members 302 and 303 and is shown in the five diff~rent positions la~ele~ 1 to 5 in Figure 8d> which correspond to the same lab~led positions of member 303.
The outer end o~ arcuate link 320 is pivotally connected to a second link 321 as shown in Figures 8a, 8b and 8c, where the pivotal connection 322 is a latchable pivot arranged such that links 320 and 321 can straighten out as they rotate from position number 1 to position number

4 but will remain in a straight line relative to one another as shown in positions 4 and S.
The outer end of link 321 is then pivotally connected, by the pivot 330, to connecting rod 331 which is rigidly con-nected to the arm lll.
The pivot 322 is best shown in Figures 8a and 8b~
and includes a spring 340 which tends normally to hold links 320 and 321 in the straightened condition shown in Figure 8b where the link 321 rests against interior shoulder 341.
A latchable connection is provided between driver arms 302a and 303a and their driver arcuate arms 302 and 303, respectively, as is best shown in Figures 8e and 8h. Each -of arms 302a and 303a have angle plates 340 and 341, respec-tively, bolted thereto which serve to allow the arms 302 and 302a to engage one another and move together from the position number 5 in Pigure-8e to the position number 2 in Figure 8e. Links 302a and 302 are latched together by the latch member 342 ~hich is pivotally mounted on link 302 by pivot pin 343. Latch member 342 carries a latching projection 344 at one end and a spring 345 at its other end.
A cam roller 346 is also carried at the one end of latch member 342. Spring 345 is fixed to link 302a and tends to rotate latch 342 counterclockwise in Figure 8e.

1 1~6 ~ 17 Angle plate 3~0 on arm 302 has an upwardly extending portion 350 ~hich receives one end of spring 351. The other end of spring 351 is connected to angle 341, thereby tcnding to hold arms 302 and 302a in the position shown and together.
The latch projection 344 is latched over the latching sur-face 352a of angle 340, to latch the two arms together, and to insure that they rotate together until the latch is defeated.
A fixed cam 352 is attached to support 311 and is located such that, when arms 302 and 302a reach position number 2 (in solid lines for latch arm 342), the roller 346 is pressed to the right to mo~e latch-344 out of latching relation to angle 340. Arm 302 then engages a stop (not shown) and stops in position number 1, but arm 302a continues to rotate (counterclockwise in Figure 8e) until it hits a stop 360.
During the continued rotation of shaft 306, ater arm 302 has stopped rotating, the frame 110, 111, 112 con--tinues to rotate due to continued motion of arm 320. ~owever, the continued rotation will now be around the axis of member 300 (since arms 302 and 303 are stationary) so that the arms 110, 111 and 112 can come to rest in a plane parallel to but above the plane they assume when they pick up a plate from the film negative drawer.
When the arms 302 and 302a now rotate a-~ay from their stop positions in Figure 8e, the springs 345 and 351 will reset the latch between them and they will move together to position number 5 in Figure 8e. --The operation of the novel transfer arm arrange-ment can also be understood from Figure 8d which shows thearms 111 and 112 in various operating positions. In the initial retracted position number 1 of Figure 8d, the arms . . . ... ..... .. .. ..

~ 6 Z~'7 111 ~nd 112 are retracted belo~ the level of the plate receiving bclts which will be later described. This level is vertically above the level of the plate ~hich is to be removed from the plate dra~er 31 rhich is position number 5 for the arms 111 and 112.
The novel transer arm construction permits rotation of the arms 111 and 112 (as well as arm 110) from position -number 1 to position number 5 and plate pick-up occurs when the cups 113 to 117 engage the back of the plate to be transferred. A vacuum is then applied to the various vacuum cups 113 to 117 and the transfer arms are then rotated from position 5 to the position number l. During this rotation, the plate will be inverted so that it has been grasped on its non-emulsion side at position number 1 and, as tlle transfer arms rotate to position number 5, the plate is inverted with its emulsion up, and is deposited on the --belts. Note that the vacuum on cups 113 to 117 is broken just before the belt position is reached. The arms 110 to 112 continue to rotate, and finally retract beneath the level of the belts. The latching arrangement described above permits the transfer arms to rotate from a first horizontal position to an inverted but higher horizontal position by causing the link 320 to break when the transfer -~
arms move away from the film negative drawer location 5.
DELIVERY BELT SYSTEM
_ _ . .. .
The delivery belt or take-off system is best shown in Figures 9a and 9b in connection with the plate transfer assembly of Figures 8a through 8d. In Figures 9a and 9b, the take-off system is shown as being supported within side frame members 400 and 401 which rotatably receive roller conveyor belt support members 402 to 405.
.

1 1~'6 ~ ~ 7 The supl~ort -frames 400 and ~01 also pivotally receive a rotat~ble sha~t 410 w]lic}- carries roller drive members 411 to ~14. Suitable cndless flexible belts 415 to 418, respectively, are mounted bet-~een pulleys 402 - 411, 403 - 412, fiO4 - 413, and 405 - ~14. A suitable drive motor 430 (Figure 9a) drives a shaft 431 which has a drive belt 432 connected thereto which drives the pulley 433 mounted on the le~t-hand end of shaft 410 as shown in Figure 9b, in order to ro~atably drive the shaft 410.
- 10 A second shaft 440 is rotatably mounted between end plates 400 and 401 in Pigure 9b and contains a plurality of drive pulleys 441 to 444 which are connected to ~heels 445 to 448, respectively, on the shaft 410 by the belts 449 to 453, respectively. A drive belt connection is then made from the pulley 460 on shaft 410 to the pulley 461a on shaft 440 by the drive belt 462a. ~
In operation, the upper surfaces of all of drive ~ belts 415 to 418 and 449 to 453 are driven to the right in ; Pigure 9a, and downward in Pigure 9d, and toward the discharge end of the apparatus which contains a conventional photo-processor which will receive plates from the belts with their emulsion side facing upwardly. As the transfer arms 110, 111 and 112 move downwardly between the belts 415 to 418 as shown in Pigure 9d, vacuum is released at the vacuum cups 113 to 117 and the plate carried by the transfer arms is deposited atop the belts 415 to 418. These belts then move the plate onto faster moving belts 449 to 453 which ultimately discharge plate 95 from the equipment.
Belts 449 to 453 will move at a speed determined by the rate at ~hich plates are to be supplied to the plate processor. Belts 415 to 418, however, are hi~her speed belts to remove plates from interfering with the return motion of ~
the transfer arm assembly.

i~6Z~7 It will be noted that the belts 449 to 453 travel over respec-tive pulleys 460a, 461, 462 and 463. Pulleys 460a, 461, 462 and 463 are rotatably carried on support shaft 470 and are adjusted to press upwardly against belts 449 to 453 to apply suitable tension to the belts. Pullcys 460a, 461, 462 and 463 are then fixed in the desired adjustment position by any suitable locking mechanism.
Although a pre-ferred embodiment of this invention has been described, many variations and modifications will now be apparent to those skilled in the art, and it is there-fore preferred that the instant invention be limited not by the specific disclosure herein but only by the appended clQims.

.

Claims (16)

Sun-86(Ruth) The embodiments of the invention in which an exclusive privilege or property is claimed are defined as follows:

1. A plate making system comprising, in combination:
support means for supporting a stack of aluminum photographic plates;
a film negative carrier for supporting a film negative in accurate registry with said stack; said film negative carrier having an upper surface at about the same height as the top of said stack;
plate exposure lamp means disposed beneath said film negative carrier for exposing plates disposed atop said film negative carrier through a negative fastened thereon;
output means for delivering an exposed plate from said system, with its emulsion side facing upward, to a photo-processing unit for developing said plate;
characterized in that said plates are stacked in their said support means with their emulsion side facing downward; and in having first transfer means adapted to contact the back surface of the uppermost plate of said stack of plates and to move said uppermost plate, with its emulsion surface facing down, onto said film negative carrier; and in having second transfer means adapted to contact the back surface o-f a plate on said film negative carrier and to move said plate, and invert it to have its emulsion side facing upwardly, and to deposit said plate onto said output means.

2. The plate making system of Claim 1, which is further characterized in that said first transfer means includes a flat carrier plate and a parallelogram linkage for supporting said carrier plate and for moving said uppermost plate with parallel translational motion from the top of said stack to the top of said film negative carrier.

3. The plate making system of Claim 2 which further includes first registry means on said carrier plate, second registry means on said means for supporting said stack and third registry means on said film negative carrier; said first registry means cooperating with both of said second and third registry means when said carrier plate engages said stack and said negative film carrier respectively to insure registry of the plate of said stack carried by said carrier plate with said film negative carrier.

4. The plate making system of Claim 1 which is further characterized in having stop means for accurately locating at least the top of said stack before said first transfer means engages said uppermost plate of said stack.

5, The plate making system of Claim 1, 2 or 4 which is further characterized in having vacuum connection means connected to said carrier plate to enable a vacuum connection between the bottom of said plate and the uppermost-plate of said stack.

6. The plate making system of Claim 1 which is further characterized in having slide support means for supporting said film negative carrier; said film negative carrier being slidable from an open position where an operator can secure a film negative to said carrier to a closed position where said film negative is disposed above said plate exposure lamp means.

7. The plate making system of Claim 1 or 6 which is further characterized in having stack raising means for automatically moving the top of said stack to a predetermined height,

8, The plate making system of Claim 1 which is further characterized in that said output means comprises conveyor belt means.

9. The plate making system of Claim 8 which is further characterized in that said conveyor belt means consists of a plurality of parallel spaced belts disposed at about the level of said film negative carrier and the upper surface of said plurality of belts is in a plane generally parallel to the plane of said film negative carrier, and wherein the upper surface of said belts moves away from said film negative carrier.

10. The plate making system of Claim 9 which is further characterized in that said second transfer means is adapted to move between said belts and below the upper surface of said belts after a plate is deposited on said belts.

11. The plate making system of Claim 10 which is further characterized in that said plurality of spaced belts consists of first and second sets of belts which are longitudinally displaced from one another.

12. The plate making system of Claim 1 which is further characterized in that said second transfer means comprises a transfer arm assembly, means for rotatably mounting said transfer arm assembly, and vacuum pick-up means mounted on one surface of said transfer arm assembly; said vacuum pick-up means being engageable with the back surface of a plate on said film negative carrier and being operable to pick up a plate thereon; said transfer arm assembly being rotatable to invert the plate and deposit it emulsion-side facing upwardly on said output means, and thereafter having said vacuum pick-up means move below the upper surface of said output means.

13. The method of exposing a plurality of thin printing plates from a single stationarily mounted film negative, comprising the steps of:

stacking a plurality of thin plates with their emulsion surface facing downwardly in an accurately located position;
making vacuum connection to the back surface of the uppermost thin plate of said stack, and moving said upper-most thin plate to place its emulsion side surface into contact with said film negative;
exposing said emulsion side surface of said plate through said negative;
making vacuum connection to the back surface of said plate after its exposure and removing said plate from said film negative, and depositing said plate on a plate belt carrier with the emulsion side facing upwardly, and delivering said plate to a photo processor for developing said plate;
and therafter making connection to the next upper-most thin plate of said stack, and moving said next uppermost plate through the same sequence.

14. The method of Claim 13 wherein said plate is in a horizontal plane when located on top of said stack, and when located on top of said film negative, and when located on top of said plate belt carrier.

15. The method of Claim 13 which further includes the step of mounting said film negative on a sliding drawer support, and thereafter sliding said drawer support into exposure making position.

16. The method of Claim 14 wherein said thin plate is moved with parallel translational motion when moving from said stack to said film negative.