EP1727676B1 - Printing machines having at least one machine element that can be adjusted by a setting element - Google Patents

Description

The invention relates to a printing press with a plurality of machine elements each adjustable with an actuator according to the preamble of claim 1.

By the US 5,546,861 A a method for color control in a printing machine is known, wherein during a printing process with a detection means image signals of the color in non-image areas are generated on the substrate, these image signals are fed to a control device, the control means the temperature of the ink in dependence detected Image signals controls.

The DE 199 17 773 A1 relates to a control element for determining registration deviations of a print image consisting of a printing substrate of a plurality of partial colors, wherein determined register deviations are fed as actual values to a control device which generates control variables for register setting devices from a comparison with nominal values which cause a minimization of the register deviations.

By the EP 0 767 059 A2 It is known, based on a difference between a currently recorded image and a target image to track a printed image generated by a printing press in its position on a substrate or in its color representation by means of a control device to minimize this difference.

By the EP 1 048 461 A1 a method for register control in the overprinting of multiple partial colors is known, wherein a register setting device is provided, which adjusts the phase position of a forme cylinder with respect to the phase position of a transfer cylinder.

By the DE 197 24 171 A1 a method for controlling the color of a printing machine is known in which by means of an image pickup device, a print image reproducing signals are obtained, which is to be improved by a comprehensive Störgrößenkompensation print quality, wherein the Störgrößenkompensation by influencing components of an inking unit to perform a color control.

The DE 43 02 149 A1 relates to a device for adjusting the lateral and oblique register on the plate cylinder of rotary printing presses.

By the DE 198 30 490 A1 a method for register control on a printing machine is known, wherein a running of a control device with adjusting cylinders diagonal register adjustment of a plate cylinder is possible.

By the DE 44 13 735 A1 a method for controlling or regulating the dot size when printing on a substrate is known, wherein with an image pickup device actual value signals for halftone dot size are generated by a connected to the image pickup means a distance change between axes of a plate cylinder, a transfer cylinder and a printing cylinder is performed to effect a change in the halftone dot size by the change in pressure between the respective co-operating cylinders to compensate for a deviation between the actual value signals and the desired value signals stored in the control device.

By the US 4,534,289 A is a chill roll with various pre-selectable cooling zones known.

By the EP 0 722 831 A2 are methods and an arrangement for an electric motor for driving a rotary body, in particular a pressure-generating cylinder of a printing press, known, wherein the electric motor is operated in the context of a timing chain or a closed loop, wherein it for realizing a regulated circumferential register position as an actuator for the rotary or angular position of the cylinder is formed.

The DE 1 241 464 B refers to a device on a rotary printing press for tilting the axis of the forme cylinder with respect to that of the co-operating with him printing cylinder by adjusting the bearings of the forme cylinder.

The FR 2 391 073 A relates to a device for diagonal adjustment of the forme cylinder, in particular a web-fed rotary offset printing press.

By the DE 100 13 876 A1 is a method for controlling the color when printing with a printing press is known in which an inertia value is calculated from an additive superimposition of the temporal changes of previous manipulated variable changes, wherein the steady state value is used to calculate a new manipulated variable.

By the DE 100 30 572 A1 a registration control system for a web-processing machine with a sensor system for detecting registration marks is known, wherein the registration control system comprises a control unit for controlling the transport of the web in response to the detection of registration marks by the sensor system, the sensor system comprises at least one camera.

By the US 5,500,801 A is a device for compensating register deviations in a sheetfed press with multiple printing units wherein at least one opto-electrical sensor is provided, wherein the sensor detects values of at least two image areas of the printed product, wherein register errors between different color separations are compensated.

By the EP 1 167 035 A2 is known a synchronous control with automatic register adjustment functions for cutting and printing in a rotary press, comprising a plurality of printing mechanisms for multicolor printing on a paper web, at least one cutting mechanism for cutting the multicolored printed paper web into predetermined units of printed images, wherein the pressure mechanisms and the cutting mechanism be driven by separate drive means, and a control section for controlling the drive means, wherein the control is based on detected register marks.

By the US 5,740,054 A a control unit for controlling a cut register of a rotary printing machine is known, wherein a plurality of sensors are connected to the control unit, of which one sensors detect a rotation angle of printing cylinders of the rotary printing press and another sensor the position of a printed image on a printing material.

By the US 5,452,632 A a method for adjusting the cutting register on a web press downstream cross-cutting device is known in which the position of the cut edges is changed depending on the position of the printed image on a moving web, wherein the signals of at least one scanning device for the printed image of a control device are supplied and the Control means provides signals to actuators for setting the cut register.

By the EP 0 835 755 A2 a device for scanning colored register marks is known, wherein the register marks are printed on a web and are detected during their transport through a multi-color printing machine, wherein a Control unit based on the detected register marks adjusts a rotation angle of a printing cylinder relative to a rotation angle of a downstream cutting cylinder.

By the US 4,847,775 A For example, a method and a device for controlling and adjusting the organs of printing presses are known, wherein the information coming from the organs to be controlled and adjusted is acquired, whereby this information is collected, formatted and stored, this information being for display in graphic and alphanumeric Form are processed, these graphic and alphanumeric representations are displayed on the screen of a terminal, wherein the graphical and alphanumeric representations are used to control the organs of the machine by manually touching the corresponding graphical and alphanumeric representation and set.

By the US 2003/0010236 A1 a device for correcting the lateral position of a printing material web in a web-fed rotary printing press is known, comprising a correction roller which can be pivoted via guide surfaces arranged at an angle to the web running direction and roller elements interacting with them, and a web guide roller arranged downstream of the web running direction over which the printing material web is guided, wherein the correction roller is arranged downstream of a drying section of the web-fed rotary printing press, in which the printing material web is levitated by the action of blowing air, and wherein the guide surfaces are arranged with respect to the web running direction in such a way that the movement of the correction roller on a substantially circular path with a in the Compared to the length of the correction roller large radius takes place, the center of which is considered in the web running direction in one of the correction roller upstream path portion, wherein one on the correction roller acting tipping moment is used to interrupt the continuous printing operation of the printing press in the event of breakage of the printing substrate and / or to activate a web catcher.

By the DE 37 30 625 A1 is a positioning system of the quality control functions, such as color guide, color register, web guide register and other such ancillary functions, known for rotary printing machines, wherein in each printing unit and in each folding or auxiliary operation control at least one primary station is integrated, wherein at each primary station a plurality of secondary stations are connectable, each of the Secondary stations in the assembly, which fulfills the corresponding quality management function, is integrated, with multiple application converter can be connected to a secondary station, each application converter has at least one tracking control loop.

By the DE 199 10 835 C1 a method for controlling a cutting position for a cut register on a printed web for a web-fed rotary printing press with two scanners is known, wherein the scanning detect the light reflected from the web along a line in the transport direction to a last printing unit and before a cutting device, wherein on the web periodically follow the same printed matter and a clock is present which outputs clock signals in synchronism with a working angle position of the printing press, the clock signals of one clock being switched to the two scanners, each scanning device detecting the light reflected from the printed web within a scanning window as an integral intensity value , wherein these sampled intensity values of both sampling devices are supplied to a correlation method, wherein the correlation method uses an offset between the sampled intensity values of both A is determined and wherein the cut register is readjusted with the determined offset.

By the US 6,644,184 B1 a web offset printing press is known whose printing cylinder are driven by individual electric drives.

By the EP 0 649 744 A1 there is known a system for controlling a printing press and accessories and means therefor, wherein a control unit is provided which controls a plurality of machine parts of the printing machine, accessories and / or auxiliary means.

By the EP 0 763 426 B1 and its priority-giving DE 195 33 822 A1 are a method for controlling the color when printing with a printing press, in particular an offset sheet printing machine with multiple printing units, known in the z. B. colorimetric actual values are obtained with an image recording unit at a plurality of selected, distributed over the entire surface of a recording medium locations and stored as setpoints for at least one subsequent pressure, wherein in the subsequent pressure to the previously selected locations matching actual locations actual values are obtained, the coloration in the print run is regulated exclusively at the most strongly changing measuring locations with actuators which are effective at these measuring locations. As actuators acting in zones control elements for the layer thickness of the ink, adjusting elements for the amount of dampening solution and control elements for the register are named. There is provided a control unit controlling the respective control elements and an image pickup unit detecting the entire printed surface of a sheet. Inputs to a computing unit connected to the control unit can be made via a keyboard.

By the EP 0 598 490 A1 For example, a color register system for a printing press is known wherein a computer with a camera or group of cameras determines a misalignment of colors of a print image by comparing a current image with a stored reference image, and with printing control a longitudinal, lateral and rotational position of cylinders the printing press relative to a moved by the printing press, web to be printed aligns so that they produce a multi-color image with mutually correctly arranged colors.

By the EP 0 882 588 A1 a device and a method for registered registration of printing cylinders of a web-fed rotary press are known, wherein a printing on one side of the first cylinder by a first motor and a printing on the same side of the second cylinder are driven by a second motor and the angular position of second cylinder is tuned in register by a controller to the first cylinder, wherein from the cylinders on the web printed registration marks with a rear of the last cylinder in the direction of production sensor, z. As a CCD camera, recorded and evaluated using characteristics as a reference variable for the controller.

By the DE 197 36 339 A1 is a printing machine with printing cylinders for printing a substrate with a forme cylinder associated with an inking unit having inking known, wherein at least one inking roller and preferably also the forme cylinder are each associated with temperature control, wherein the temperature control means have a control or a control device, in the basis of Default values are temperature set values of the ink at least for an inking unit can be set, the default values of a measured on the substrate with a photometric sensor or a conventional density meter in the printing industry density can be dependent and thus derived in particular from a print image analysis drawn from current production printed copies ,

By the DE 102 18 359 A1 a rotary printing machine with a printing unit is known, by means of which printing ink can be brought to a printing unit passing through the printing material, wherein at least one cooperating with the ink and controllable by a tempering device component is provided by means of the tempering the harshness of the printed ink is adjustable to a certain range.

By the post-published EP 1 512 531 A1 a method and a device for controlling the coloration in a printing press are known, wherein a color recognition device is provided with a plurality of fixedly attached to the press color sensors for area-wide optical detection of the entire width of the printed product, wherein a fast primary color measurement signal per color zone is detected along the printing direction over a predeterminable color image area of the printed product is integrated, wherein the total actual area coverage is calculated for at least one ink, wherein a comparison with a target area coverage is carried out and wherein a color correction signal for the ink zone and the ink is generated.

By the post-published WO 2005/016806 A1 a method for controlling the cut register of a web printing press is known in which certain image information or measurement marks of printed webs are detected by sensors and fed to a control device, wherein before and / or on the common knife cylinder for the deviation of the position of the printed image relative to its desired position relative to the location and time of the cut, ie for the cut register error, suitable image information or measurement marks at least one of the printed webs using at least one sensor detected, evaluated and / or converted to an actual value, which is used to control the cutting register error of at least one web, and in order to correct the cutting register error of the at least one web, either the speed of at least one clamping point located in front of the knife cylinder and / or the position of the knife cylinder is changed so that the cutting register error of the at least one web is determined by the actual value is corrected to a predetermined setpoint.

By the post-published US 6,796,227 B1 is a printing machine with a plurality of successively arranged printing units known, the printing units each having a dampening unit is assigned, each dampening unit moistening a arranged on a form cylinder of the printing units printing form in several juxtaposed in the longitudinal direction of the forme cylinder zones, wherein a control device with a camera in each of Zones measures a color density of the ink applied in the printing press on a printing substrate, wherein the control device adjusts a dosage of dampening solution in the zones based on a derived from the measurement of the color density correction signal.

By the post-published US 6,796,240 B2 a printing machine with a plurality of successively arranged printing units is known, wherein the printing units print different color separations of the same printed image, wherein a control device with a camera detects a printed on a substrate Farbmessbalken, wherein the control device controls both a color register and a color density.

By the post-published US 6,782,814 B2 a method and a device for detecting register errors and an automatic register control for a multi-color rotary printing press are known, recorded on a paper web registered register marks with a CCD camera and evaluated a center of gravity of register marks compared to a reference position.

By the GB 2 119 505 A Aiming at avoiding registration errors in multicolor printing, a method and apparatus are known which, in a two-head web press, sense two marks printed on the web transverse to their direction of transport and compensate registration errors as a function of comparison successively sensed marks set a length of the material web between two spaced apart in the transport direction points. A determination the distance between the two on the web transversely to the transport direction spaced marks and a compensation of a transverse strain of the web is not provided. The length of the material web between two spaced-apart in the transport direction points is adjusted by a control device by raising or lowering a roller, wherein each printing unit of multi-color printing web press such a roll can be provided, wherein the control device adjusts this roller of the respective printing unit. Other adjustable by this control device machine elements as these liftable and lowerable rollers are not disclosed. In particular, there is no indication to counteract with different adjustable machine elements in each case disturbing influences of different cause and different timing or different surface impact on the pressure.

The known devices for influencing a quality of the print essentially follow a singular approach by considering a single disturbing influence detached from its interaction with another disturbing influence with another cause. This does not do justice to the actual situation in practice.

The quality of a print executed by a printing press is subject to ever greater demands from the client of the printing, with the term "print job" being used Quality of a pressure by existing copies of the pressure properties forms a complex, usually characterized by a variety of parameters level, which of the one who made the printing with the printing press, possibly taking into account a tolerable tolerance and for all possible copies of the Pressure is to be maintained. For economic reasons alone, therefore, there is a need on the part of the printmaker to minimize waste by non-salable copies of the print both in proof and in print.

Since pressure engineering measures alone can not guarantee a reproducibility of the copies comprising the print mostly because machine elements of the printing press manufactured in the current printing even with high precision z. As wear-related changes and high-quality materials processed in the printing z. B. are subject to thermal changes, additional printing process measures are required to ensure achievement and a constant adherence to the client of the print assured quality of the print and thus the quality defining properties. These properties relate to z. Example, in particular the coloring of the print, the extent of reproduced in the color hue values, the sharpness and contrast of printed halftone dots, the precision of the overprinting involved in printing, belonging to a particular print image separations and the registration of printed on both sides of a substrate print images.

These properties can be used individually or in combination, inter alia, by the nature of the materials involved in the printing, for. As the ink and / or the printing material, by their behavior during their leading through the printing press transport and by the setting of the machine elements involved in the pressure and / or the time behavior with a change in their setting, ie the time required to reach a respect to the pressure stable Operating state after a change in the setting of one or more machine elements, sustainably influenced. In this approach results for the printing machine, a complex control system in which the quality of the pressure as a disturbing influences counteracting, to be controlled track is taken.

The invention has for its object to provide a printing press with a plurality of each adjustable with an actuator machine elements, wherein a quality of the pressure is adjustable and stable at the set level in the continuous printing.

The object is achieved by the features of claim 1.

The achievable with the present invention consist in particular in that a quality of the pressure is adjustable and can be maintained at the set level in the production pressure. A disturbing variable which negatively influences the quality of the print is effectively counteracted in a coordinated manner with other disturbance variables as soon as the detecting device detects the negative effect of the disturbance on the quality of the print. This is possible because with the detection device all affecting the quality of the pressure disturbances can be detected. Simultaneous detection of all disturbances, both in real time and close to the location at which the quality of the print is produced, allows a fast-acting control by evaluating the output of only one detector, so in terms of pressure after a very short time a stable operating condition with a good quality is achievable. The holistic detection of the quality of the pressure in conjunction with an evaluation of the correlated with her data in terms of several, preferably all the quality of the pressure affecting interference means for a press operator operating a considerable amount of work, because this is not a variety of different tax and / or monitor and / or operate controls got to.

Embodiments of the invention are illustrated in the drawings and will be described in more detail below.

Fig. 1

eine vereinfachte Darstellung einer Offsetbogendruckmaschine in einer Seitenansicht;

Fig. 2

eine vereinfachte Darstellung einer Offsetrollendruckmaschine in einer Seitenansicht;

Fig. 3

ein vereinfachtes Blockschaltbild eines die Qualität eines Druckes regelnden Regelkreises.

Show it:

Fig. 1

a simplified representation of an offset sheet printing machine in a side view;

Fig. 2

a simplified representation of a Offsetrollendruckmaschine in a side view;

Fig. 3

a simplified block diagram of the quality of a pressure regulating control loop.

The Fig. 1 shows a printing machine, which is exemplified as a sheet-fed press. Alternatively, however, the printing machine can also be designed as a web-fed printing machine. The printing machine is designed in particular as an offset printing machine. However, it can also be provided that the printing press prints using a waterless offset printing process. The in the Fig. 2 illustrated printing machine is a waterless, ie printing without the addition of a dampening printing press.

The printing press preferably has a plurality of printing units 01, each of which prints the same printing substrate with one printing ink. In the example of Fig. 1 are in the transport direction of the printing material in series construction following each other five printing units 01 provided. It then followed by a painting in the form of a coating tower 02 and a delivery extension 03 and at least one boom 04. At the opposite end of the sheet printing machine, a sheet feeder 06 is arranged.

The number of successive printing units 01 can be selected lower or higher as needed in the example shown. An extension to ten printing units 01 is quite possible. At least one of the plurality of printing units 01 may be formed as an imprinter, so that on the printing machine, a flying plate change, d. H. a change of printing plates on one or more cylinders 08 in the ongoing production of the printing press due to a separation of the relevant forme cylinder 08 from the current printing process is possible. Also, the sheet-fed printing machine can be provided for a perfecting, d. H. for a two-sided printing on the sheet-fed printing machine passing through the substrate, and to realize this function z. B. have a turning device. The Imprinterfunktion can for the perfecting, d. H. be provided on both sides of the printing material. Imprinterfähige printing units 01 can also u.ä for the printing of spot colors. be used. Apart from an arrangement of the printing units 01 in a row construction, an arrangement in the form of a tower with a substantially vertical guidance of the printing material can also be provided.

In the case of forming the printing machine as one in the Fig. 2 By way of example, the web printing press known to the person skilled in the art is preferably supplied by one or more roll changers 21 to one or more printing units 01, wherein the printing couples 01 can be stacked one above the other to form a printing tower. After passing through the printing units 01, the printing material is preferably fed to a web press or at least a part of their printing units 01 associated folding apparatus 22, wherein the folding apparatus 22 as a Querfalzapparat 22 and / or longitudinal folding apparatus 22 may be formed.

The substrate is different depending on the type of press used Material in the form of sheets or a material web, each preferably consisting of a material made from digested plant fibers and, depending on their application and their basis weight of the product type paper (<150 g / m ² ), cardboard (150 to 600 g / m ² ) or cardboard (> 600 g / m ² ) are attributable. The size of a sheet can be longitudinal to its transport direction by the printing machine z. B. more than 1,000 mm and transverse to its transport direction z. B. be more than 700 mm. Also, a web can along its transport direction through the printing press a width z. B. of more than 1,000 mm.

To improve the printability of the printing material, in particular a paper consisting of printing material can be coated on one side or both sides on its surface, ie with a white, single-layer or multi-layer coating amount of pigments, binders and additives, eg. B. optical brighteners, be provided, whereby the surface of the printing material is selectively influenced in terms of their brightness, hue and / or their production-related structure or roughness. The basis weight of the amount of ink is z. In the range between 5 and 20 g / m ² ; preferably between 5 g / m ² and 10 g / m ² . Also, after painting the surface of the printing material whose calendering, ie a smoothing of the surface of the printing material in a calender, take place, which in turn also affects the optical properties of the printing material and its printability. The surface of the printing material can z. B. for use as banknote paper or document paper also have an embossed or embossed structure, which structure may be flat or formed as a relief.

During a passage of the printing material through the printing machine, its influence by moisture from ambient air, from an ink applied to its surface or from a dampening medium supplied to the printing process or from an attack of mechanical forces is unavoidable. Depending on its nature, these influences have a different effect on stretching it Surface transverse and / or longitudinal in its running through the printing machine direction of transport, which is to be distinguished depending on the cause between a wet stretch and / or a mechanical strain. These effects on the substrate affect its printability.

The printing usually involves several printing inks which, after the overprinting of several color separations in an autotypical color mixing process, complement one another to produce a multicolored print image, each color separation printing only one of the printing inks involved in the printing onto the printing substrate. Frequently, the primary inks used are magenta, cyan and yellow inks, from which a variety of other shades are mixed. In order to reduce the technological effort for the production of black or a gray tone as a mixture of the three previously mentioned bright colors and thereby save high-quality colors, usually ink in the color black is used. In addition, one or more spot colors can be printed to create a custom tone or effect in print. The colorimetric properties of the printing inks used in the printing, in conjunction with the nature of the printing material to which the printing inks are applied in the printing press, considerably influence the color gamut reproducible in the printing process. The colorimetric properties of the printing inks are u. a. also dependent on the chemical composition of their color pigments. For the most part, comparatively expensive color pigments can, for example, expand the color space reproducible with this printing ink. Moreover, the substrate used z. B, the color contrast reproducible with an ink. For coated papers, it is possible to achieve an optical density of about two density units in the overprint of the primary inks for the full tone.

In the autotypical color mixing process, the multicolored print image is composed by color separations having dots in each case, wherein for all In each case, a color separation is provided on the printing inks involved and the screen dots of different color separations are applied to the substrate both free-standing side by side and one above the other. The quality of the print is influenced by the type and fineness of the screening, ie the shape and arrangement of the screen dots. In an offset printing method, halftone dots can typically be reliably transferred from a size of about 10 .mu.m, with screen rulings between 50 and 80 lines per cm being common in multicolor printing. Fine grids for the reproduction of filigree structures have up to 150 lines per cm, because the finer the screening, the higher the resolution of the print and thus the reproducibility of fine structures. In order to avoid moire, ie an interference phenomenon, or a rosette formation in multicolor printing, it is advisable to form the screening non-periodically. By combining a periodic and a non-periodic screening, the quality of the print can be further increased. By a suitable screen angle of color separations involved in the printing at angular intervals of z. B. each 15 ° Moiré can be largely avoided.

Grid points can z. B. have a circular, square or elliptical shape and be arranged in an amplitude-modulated, frequency-modulated or intensity-modulated screening. In the case of an amplitude-modulated grid, the individual grid points have a constant center point spacing and vary in their areal extent, whereas with a frequency-modulated grid, the individual grid points have a constant areal extent with varying center distances. In the case of intensity-modulated screening, the layer thickness of the screen dots applied to the printing substrate is varied, whereby the optical density of the screen dots is changed. Hybrid forms of screening with multidimensional modulation are possible. In multicolor printing, the relative positioning of the halftone dots of different color separations involved in the printing process and the degree of the areal distribution of the halftone dots in each of these color separations increases when the halftone dots are printed on the quality of the halftone dots Pressure influence. When overprinting the relative position of the color separations is referred to each other as a color register or as a passport.

The nature of the printing inks used in printing has a lasting effect on the quality of the print: The nature of the ink also includes their rheological behavior, d. H. their fluidity and their adhesion to the substrate as well as on screen dots at least one previously printed color separation. The fluidity of the ink is determined by its viscosity. The higher viscosity a printing ink is, the tougher it is, with the result that it runs worse and is more difficult to distribute to a homogeneous film. The adhesion of the ink is specified by its speed. The higher the tack of the ink indicated in the form of a tack value, the worse it is cleavable, so that it requires higher forces to transport a film of this ink through an array of bodies of revolution and transferred to the substrate, resulting in the printing press higher frictional resistance leads to heat generation.

The viscosity and tack of an ink are temperature dependent. Also, a production speed of the printing press, with which the substrate is transported through the printing press and the z. B. in a sheet-fed press 18,000 sheets / h or 16 m / s may be in a web printing press, at least indirectly on the viscosity and speed of the ink influence. In order for a subsequently printed ink to adhere to a previously printed ink when overprinting several inks, the subsequent ink must have a lower tack value ("trapping").

In the examples of the Fig. 1 and 2 shown printing machine has at least one adjustable with an actuator 07 machine element 08, wherein an adjustment of at least one machine element 08 on the quality of the executed by the printing press pressure as a controlled system 09, ie, a controlled path works, wherein a detection device 11, preferably an optical detection device 11, with a directed onto a surface of a printed substrate in the printing press sensor detects the quality of the pressure and wherein a data received from the optical detection device 11 control device 12 with the actuator 07, the at least one machine element 08th preferably set after reaching or exceeding an allowable tolerance limit in a manner minimizing the difference between the desired value and the actual value as a function of a difference between a quality of the pressure determined as the desired value and the quality of the pressure detected by the optical detection device.

The at least one with respect to the quality of the pressure adjustable machine element 08 is z. B. a temperature control for controlling the temperature of at least part of a lateral surface of a rotary body of the printing machine, wherein the rotary body is involved in the transport of a printing ink to the printed in the printing machine with the printing material. In this case, the temperature control can perform the temperature control with a gaseous and / or a liquid temperature control, ie the temperature z. B. with air or make with water, wherein the temperature control z. B. jacket surface near channels of the body of revolution flows through. The tempering ensures that the u. a. on a arranged in the printing unit 01 form cylinder and then in a further transmission path to the substrate to be transferred ink their temperature z. B. in a range between 20 ° C and 40 ° C holds.

The tempering device acts on at least one rheological property of the printing ink, wherein the rheological property of the printing ink is preferably its viscosity or tackiness. The tempering keeps the viscosity of the ink in a relation to the ambient air of the printing press temperature range of z. B. 20 ° C to 40 ° C to a preferably in the range between 1 and 150 Pa * s constant value, in particular to a range between 10 Pa * s and 100 Pa * s lying value. The tack of the printing ink is preferably maintained by the tempering device in the temperature range between 20 ° C and 40 ° C to a tack value in the range between 6 to 9.5, in particular to a tack value in the range between 7 to 8.5, and in the respective area Tack values preferably to an approximately constant tack value.

The tempering device may be set such that it alternatively or in addition to their setting in the temperature range between 20 ° C and 40 ° C, the tack of the ink for a production speed of the printing press of 3 m / s to 16 m / s to a tack value in the range between 4 and 12 stops. Preferably, the tempering device keeps the tack of the printing ink for a production speed of the printing press of 3 m / s to 16 m / s to an approximately constant tack value.

When printing several printing inks on the same substrate, the tempering preferably sets the tack value of the printed inks differently. Thus, the inks printed by at least two printing units on the same substrate have mutually differing tack values. In order to achieve a good adhesion in the overprinting of printing inks, the tempering device is preferably set such that preferably reduces the tack value of the printed inks from the first to the last printed ink when continuously printing on multiple printing inks on the same substrate. For this purpose, it is advantageous that each printing unit 01 has at least one tempering device for tempering at least part of the lateral surface of at least one rotational body of the printing unit 01 and that, furthermore, each tempering device is adjustable independently of another tempering device in the same or in another printing unit 01. In the preferred embodiment, the tempered rotary body is formed as a forme cylinder 08 in a printing unit 01 or as an anilox roller in an ink on the forme cylinder 08-applying inking unit 13.

Another machine element 08 may be formed as a metering device of the inking unit 13 for metering the amount of ink to be transferred to the printing substrate. This metering device can in the axial direction of the forme cylinder 08 more, z. B. between 30 and 60 zones, wherein the dosage of the ink to be transferred to the printing ink in different zones is adjustable. The metering device can, for. B. controllable zone screws, wherein in the multi-color printing printing machine a total of several hundred individually controllable zone screws can be provided. The metering device meters a quantity of the printing ink to be transferred to the printing substrate by adjusting its layer thickness and / or its application time. Thus, the metering device can also be used as an ink supply system using at least one paint pump, e.g. Example, as a Pumpfarbwerk be formed, wherein ink is brought to a Farbduktor an inking unit and the Farbduktor preferably zonally by means of individually acting on the different inking areas adjusting agent is metered, wherein the adjusting means z. B. a drivable by at least one electrically actuable actuator color dosing, z. B. at least one color meter or a paint slide, having the actuator z. B. is designed as a controllable by a control unit servomotor. The inking unit can be configured as a roller inking unit consisting of many rollers or as a short inking unit. Alternatively, the inking unit can also be designed as a spray-inking unit which atomises ink, preferably printing ink, on a paint ductor and sprays it on an ink fountain roller.

In an offset printing machine, at least one forme cylinder 08 and a cooperating with this forme cylinder 08 transfer cylinder 14 are provided, it is advantageous that the forme cylinder 08 and the transfer cylinder 14 as the actuators 07 preferably each one independently z. B. electrically controllable, preferably position-controlled drive. The printing machine is therefore preferably formed undulating, the drives of the forme cylinder 08 and / or the transfer cylinder 14 are mechanically decoupled from a drive of an associated impression cylinder 16, and the drives the cylinder 08; 14; 16 rotatively drive during printing. Although it may be provided that the forme cylinder 08 and the transfer cylinder 14 z. B. are mechanically coupled with gears and have a common controllable, position-controlled drive, but that this common drive is mechanically decoupled in any case by a drive of the impression cylinder 16. With at least one of the controllable drives is a phase angle or angular position between the forme cylinder 08 and / or the transfer cylinder 14 relative to the impression cylinder 16 or relative to another forme cylinder 08 of the printing press adjustable and preferably adjustable, the phase position or angular position for setting a circumferential register usable is. But it can also be provided for positive adjustment of the forme cylinder 08 to the impression cylinder 14, an actuator for phase adjustment. The circumferential register influences the positional accuracy of a color separation relative to a reference edge or reference line of the printing material directed transversely to the transport direction of the printing material.

The printing material is passed between the impression cylinder 16 and a cooperating with the impression cylinder 16 transfer cylinder 14. Furthermore, each printing unit 01 in the Fig. 1 each illustrated an inking unit 13 cooperating with the forme cylinder 08 and a dampening unit 17, wherein the printing inks printed by at least two printing units 01 on the same printing substrate preferably have different shades from each other.

Another provided in the printing press actuator 07 may be an adjusting device for adjusting a contact force, wherein a roller of the inking unit 13 or a roller of a dampening solution on the forme cylinder 08 transferring dampening 17 the contact pressure on the forme cylinder 08 or on a respective other roller of the inking unit 13 or dampening unit 17 exercises. This adjusting device can, for. B. be designed as a remotely operable roller lock, in which the ends of the roller of the inking unit 13 or the dampening unit 17 are mounted, wherein the roller lock by actuators arranged in it, the force exerted by a roller pressing force, the width of a roller strip or a gap width between the lateral surface of two cooperating rollers. Preferably, at least two rollers of the inking unit 13 or the dampening unit 17 each have an independently controllable drive, wherein a further actuator 07 of the printing machine z. B. is a control device which controls a relative speed between the independently driven rollers. In particular, the control device changes the relative speed between the rollers of the dampening unit 17 for metering the amount of dampening solution transferred to the forme cylinder 08 as a function of the quantity of ink transferred from the inking unit 13 to the forme cylinder 08.

It is advantageous that the printing machine has as an additional actuator 07 an actuator for setting a relative to the printing substrate inclined position of a arranged in the printing press forme cylinder 08. As a result, the so-called "cocking" effect can be compensated if a printed image on a printing form and / or a printing forme is arranged obliquely on a forme cylinder 08 relative to the axial direction of the forme cylinder 08. For example, at least one axial end of the forme cylinder 08 is mounted in an eccentrically adjustable bearing, wherein the actuator for the inclination of the forme cylinder 08 its storage in the eccentrically adjustable at least one eccentrically adjustable bearing relative to the storage in which the other end of the forme cylinder 08 stored bearing eccentrically adjusted. At least one bearing of the forme cylinder 08 is z. B. formed as an eccentric bushing. If the inclination of the forme cylinder 08 is not effected by pivoting of the forme cylinder 08 about one of its bearing points, but about a pivot point arranged between the two bearing points, then the actuator adjusts to adjust the inclination of the Form cylinder 08 this centrally symmetrical with respect to a perpendicular standing on the surface of the printing medium axis.

Another actuator 07 of the printing press may be an adjusting device for the axial displacement of the forme cylinder 08. Furthermore, as an actuator 07 may also be an adjusting device for the axial displacement of at least one arranged on the forme cylinder 08 printing plate. The adjusting device for axial displacement of at least one arranged on the forme cylinder 08 printing form shifts this z. B. relative to at least one other on the same forme cylinder 08 arranged printing form. The adjusting device for the axial displacement of the forme cylinder 08 or the adjusting device for the axial displacement of at least one printing forme arranged on the forme cylinder 08 can move the printing forme arranged on the forme cylinder 08 also relative to a printing forme on another forme cylinder 08 arranged in the same printing machine. The adjusting device for the axial displacement of the forme cylinder 08 or the adjusting device for the axial displacement of at least one printing forme arranged on the forme cylinder 08 can be used to adjust a side register and / or at least partially compensate for a moisture-induced transverse expansion of the printing material during its transport through the printing press, d. H. to compensate for fan-out. The page register influences the positional accuracy of a color separation relative to a reference edge or reference line of the printing material directed in the transport direction of the printing material.

In particular, to compensate for fan-out can be provided as a further machine element 08 a transverse stretching of the printing material at least partially compensating image controller, the image controller acting on the surface of the printing material rollers or nozzles and between two printing units 01 in the transport direction of the printing material preferably close the printing material 01 subsequently printed on the printing material is arranged.

To detect the quality of the printing, an optical detection device 11 is provided with a sensor directed onto the surface of the printing material printed in the printing press. The optical detection device 11 is preferably designed as an inspection system, in particular as an in-line inspection system inspecting the printing material during its transport through the printing press. An inspection system extends the functionality of an optical detection device 11 to the effect that, alternatively or in particular in addition to the detection of the z. B. densitometrically detectable optical density of a printed ink applied to the substrate, the colorimetric, in particular spectral photometry detectable hue of color separations to each other occupied color register or the circumferential register and / or the page register of a color separation also possible disturbances in the pressure, the z. B. caused by the transport of the printing material or the printing process, detected and appropriate measures can be taken to eliminate the fault or to discharge the faulty printed product. Disturbances detected by an inspection system are e.g. As scratches, kinks, paper or dirt particles, paint deposits or slugs.

The optical detection device 11 detects contactlessly in its basic function an assumption of at least one ink involved in the printing on the printing material printed in the printing press. When at least one printing ink used in the printing is present on the printing material printed on the printing press at the detection location of the optical detection device 11, the optical detection device 11 detects the presence of the printing ink on at least one condition of this printing ink.

The nature of the printing ink can be its colorimetric hue, an optical density or a layer thickness, a shape, a position, an angle or a surface distribution of its screen dots applied to the printing substrate. The optical detection device 11 can also z. B. a location of at least one grid point a printing ink involved in the printing relative to a position of at least one halftone dot of at least one other ink involved in the printing or a position of at least one halftone dot of an ink involved in the printing capture in a printed on the substrate print image, wherein the first-mentioned detection option a relative measurement and the second detection option is an absolute measurement, ie a determination of coordinates of the screen dot with respect to the print image to be printed.

In particular, if the printing press printed on both sides of the substrate, d. H. As a sheet-fed printing machine works in perfecting, the optical detection device 11 can capture on opposite sides of the same substrate printed images and their relative position to each other, d. H. a so-called Wenderegister. It is understood that the printed image printed on the substrate preferably consists of several color separations.

It can be provided that the optical detection device 11 detects a condition of the printing material printed in the printing press. The nature of the printing material is in particular a property of its printability or its printability. Thus, the nature of the printing material may be a wet expansion and / or a mechanical elongation of the surface thereof transversely and / or longitudinally in its direction of transport extending through the printing press. The nature of the printing material may also be a coating amount applied to the surface thereof, in particular a coating quantity applied to the surface of the printing material having a coating weight of more than 5 g / m ² . The nature of the printing material can also affect a degree of whiteness of its surface.

The optical detection device 11 detects z. B. at least one mark associated with a color separation. Preferably, the optical detection means 11 detects two associated with a color separation, transversely to the transport direction of the printing material spaced apart marks simultaneously to z. B. to detect a disturbing influence by fan-out. It is advantageous to make the mark as a micro-mark with a width of at most 0.2 mm, that is, in an extent that is below the resolution of the human eye.

As an alternative or in addition to the detection of at least one mark, the optical detection device 11 can detect at least one measuring field assigned to a color separation, wherein the measuring field z. B. is a section of a color separation and contains halftone dots at least one ink. The measuring field can also be designed as a measuring strip, which is preferably arranged outside of a printing area of the printed image. The optical detection device 11 may, for. B. in each case a position of two a color separation associated transversely to the transport direction of the printing material not congruent measuring fields simultaneously detect to each other by the position of the measuring fields z. B. to detect a disturbing influence by fan-out.

With the mark detected by the optical detection device 11 or the measuring field detected by the optical detection device 11, a position of a color separation relative to another color separation and / or relative to a reference line of the printing material can be recognized by an evaluation of data correlating with the detection Reference line of the substrate z. B. whose lateral, directed longitudinally to the transport direction edge. With a detection of the position of at least one printed on the surface of the printing substrate color separation relative to at least one reference line of the printing substrate is z. B. a center control of the substrate or it may be at least one position occupied by the substrate relative to the printing press, z. B. to the frame determined. The center control is z. B. realized in that the control device 12 in response to the data provided by the optical detection means 11 data at least one arranged in the printing press guide element for guiding the printing substrate during its transport through the printing press or at least passes a signal to a control device that controls this guide element. On the other hand, the guide element for the center control of the printing material may also be included as another control element 12 controlled by the control device 12 via an actuator 07 in the control of the quality of the pressure. In the preferred embodiment, a plurality of control elements 12, which are each controllable via an actuator 07, are provided in the printing press for center control of the printing material.

The optical detection device 11 can in particular by the use of an optical device, for. As an objective, be designed such that it detects at least one transverse to the transport direction width of a color separation completely, preferably even a transverse to the transport direction width of the printing material.

The optical detection device 11 is preferably arranged behind the last printing unit 01 in the transport direction of the printing material. In a perfecting sheetfed printing machine, the optical detection device 11 is disposed in front of a turning device of the printing material.

The sensor of the optical detection device 11 is preferably formed as an image sensor. The optical detection device 11 can have a plurality of sensors, including a plurality of image sensors. The sensor is z. B. formed as a photodiode, the image sensor z. As a CCD chip or as a CMOS chip. The sensor preferably senses several shades, in particular simultaneously. The optical detection device 11 has z. B. a line camera or an area camera.

For the optical detection device 11, a lighting device 18 is preferably provided. The lighting device 18 can emit their light permanently or pulsed and z. B. be designed as a cold light source, ie as a light source with a very low or virtually nonexistent amount of infrared in their light. As lighting means 18 z. B. brought several LEDs or laser diodes used. It is advantageous to provide a cooling device in the illumination device 18, in particular for its light source. The cooling device can perform the cooling of the lamps with a gaseous or liquid coolant. The illumination device 18 may consist of a plurality of modules which can be aligned with one another for easier adaptation to a width of the measuring field, the color separation or the printing material directed transversely to the transport direction of the printing material.

The illumination device 18 is preferably close to the printing ink on the substrate to be transferred cylinder, z. B. the transfer cylinder 14, or arranged close to the impression cylinder 16. In a sheetfed press, the lighting device 18 z. B. under a kick behind the last printing unit of the printing press. The illumination device 18 has a distance to the surface of the printed substrate z. Example, in the range between 30 mm and 200 mm, preferably between 80 mm and 140 mm, whereas the sensor of the optical detection device 11 to the substrate has a dimensioned in the range between 10 mm and 1,000 mm, preferably between 50 mm and 400 mm distance , The distance of the illumination device 18 to the surface of the printed substrate is chosen such that on the one hand a uniform, intensive illumination of the surface of the substrate takes place, but on the other hand contamination of the illumination device 18 is largely avoided by raised during transport of the substrate dirt particles or a color spray.

The optical detection device 11 provides at its output according to the detection of its sensor data, for. B. digital image data, which are received by a connected to the optical detection device 11 controller 12. The optical detection device 11 may preferably via the Control device 12 to offset a systematically occurring difference between the setpoint and the actual value and a signal s to a imaging device for imaging of a color separation printing printing form.

The control device 12 can also control a marking device for identifying the printing substrate as a function of the data provided by the optical detection device 11, wherein the marking device z. B. as an ink-jet printer, as a typographic printing printing printing device or as a punching device is formed or has a laser. When the marking device is designed as a printing device that prints in a typographical printing method, it works z. B. in a high pressure similar method or in a Lettersetverfahren similar to a numbering. Furthermore, in particular when the printing press is designed as a sheet-fed printing press, the control device 12 can control a switch for changing the transport path of the printing material depending on the data provided by the optical detection device 11, the switch, which can also be referred to as a waste gate , one of the control device 12 for well-found printed product of a first display and a bad for printed product z. B. zuleitet a second display.

If the printing machine is designed as a web-fed printing machine, it can further be provided that the optical detection device 11 in turn emits a signal s via the control device 12 to a control device for controlling a folding device 22 downstream of the printing couples 01, this signal s in particular for controlling a cutting cylinder of the folder 22 is used to cut or perforate a printed with the printing units 01 of the printing press web transversely to its transport direction in dependence on the position of the printed image. The cutting device or perforating device can be used as a cutting cylinder arranged in the folding apparatus 22 be formed, wherein the control device 12 controls or regulates a phase position or angular position of the cutting cylinder relative to the detected by the optical detection device 11 position of the printed printed image. The control device 12 then controls or regulates the so-called cut register.

It can also be provided to position a cutting device or a perforating device at a position that is transversely to the transport direction of the material web depending on the position of the printed print image detected by the optical detecting device 11 for carrying out a cut directed longitudinally of the transport direction of the web Substrate longitudinal cutting cutter or longitudinal perforating perforating z. B. is arranged before the entry of the printing material in the folder 22 or in this. In this way, the entire trimming of the printing material can in each case be carried out as a function of the position of the printed printed image recognized by the optical detection device 11. The position of the printed image may be relative to a reference edge or reference line of the substrate or relative to a machine-fixed location reference, z. B. to the center of the printing cylinder or to a laterally extending to the substrate frame of the printing press, and / or monitored. The optical detection device 11 may, for. B. be arranged on a guide roll in front of a Querfalzapparat 22 and / or before a Längsfalztrichter.

If the substrate, z. B. a paper web, transverse to its transport direction has a plurality of juxtaposed partial webs, the control device 12, the cutting register also control or regulate that controlled the web length of at least one of the partial webs in response to the detected by the optical detection device 11 position of the printed image or is regulated by one or more in each case one of the sub-webs conductive register rollers are changed in their respective position by the output from the control device 12 signal s, whereby the respective track length of at least one of the sub-webs relative to another Part track changed, wherein the correlating partial webs the same cutting device or perforating, z. B. in the folder 22, are supplied. The difference between a cutting position given by the nominal value and a position of the printed printed image detected by the optical detecting device 11 defines a cutting position deviation which is e.g. B. can be determined by the fact that from the known from the prepress print image in the transport direction of the printing material, a first profile, z. B. a brightness profile of the digital image content, created and compared with a created in the printing process from the currently acquired print image similar second profile, ie, for example, with a brightness profile of the digital image content, with an offset between the two profiles correlated with the cutting position deviation. The determined cutting position deviation is then used to control the cutting device or perforating device.

If several each printed with a printed image webs or partial webs of the substrate before reaching the z. B. arranged in the folder 22 arranged cutting device or perforating and are stacked, they form a strand. The control device 12 can also be used for controlling or regulating a so-called string register by z. B. the phase angle or angular position between the participating in the pressure of the individual webs or partial webs of the strand form cylinder 08 and / or transfer cylinder 14 is changed relative to each other, so that the position of the printed on the individual webs or partial webs of the strand printed images changed relative to each other. The individual printed respectively with a printed image webs or partial webs of the strand are then brought together and stacked so that in their common cut or their common perforation by cutting or perforating the strand, the printed images of the respective webs or partial webs come to lie one above the other in the correct position and none of Print images will be damaged during cutting or perforation due to a cutting position deviation.

Moreover, it may be provided on a web-fed printing press that in turn preferably with a signal s of the control device 12 z. B. depending on the detected by the optical detection device 11 position of the printed image, a web catcher or a Bahnkappungseinrichtung or the printing machine is brought to a standstill, when the controller 12 from the data of the optical detection device 11 due to a significant deviation of the currently recorded printed image recognize, from its expected position, a web break or other serious disruption in the production performed by the printing press. The web catching device may have at least one catching roller. The Bahnkappungseinrichtung has z. B. on a discount knife. The significant deviation of the position of the printed printed image may be in excess of a preset threshold. Also, the controller 12 may send a signal s to a controller when the controller 12 detects a hole in the substrate from the data of the optical detector 11.

In a determination of a difference between the desired value and the actual value, the control device 12 determines z. B. Furthermore, a change in a distance between two transversely to the transport direction of the printing material in the distance or at least in their respective position not congruently arranged marks or fields, the optical detection means 11 detects the two respective same color separation associated brands or measuring fields preferably simultaneously and the control device 12 as a function of the determined change in the distance with the actuator 07, the at least one machine element 08 sets. In this way, interference can be counteracted by fan-out, ie a width change of the printing material during the printing process.

If the printing press has a dryer, through which the substrate is passed after the application of ink, the detection device 11 z. B. after a dryer, d. H. be arranged at the output.

It is advantageous that the control device 12 carries out the process of adjusting the at least one machine element 08 in the printing continuously, wherein the control intervention preferably takes place when a permissible tolerance limit is repeatedly reached or exceeded by currently detected actual values. The permissible tolerance limit can be z. B. allow deviations from the setpoint of 10%. The permissible tolerance limit can also be specified z. As a positional deviation of the halftone dots of less than 10 .mu.m, as a colorimetry error of .DELTA.E.gtoreq.3 or as an error accuracy of the optical density of .DELTA.D> 0.02, this last tolerance value is based thereon, which tonal fluctuations are still typically straight can be perceived. Minor tone value fluctuations are virtually no longer perceived by the human eye as a non-uniform application of color and therefore also require no control intervention by the control device 12.

The regulator 12 provided as a reference available setpoint of the quality of the pressure is z. For example, data is taken from a precursor precursor to printing or a reference substrate transported prior to printing by the printing press. Alternatively or additionally, the desired value of the quality of the pressure with at least one input means of the control device 12 may have been entered prior to printing, so that the control device 12 can take the setpoint from this input data. In this case, the input of the setpoint value defining data may be the meeting of a selection from a set of data by the setpoint z. From a set of defaults according to the current application. It can also be provided that at least one actual value of printing material previously printed in the printing press the target value for in the printing press Subsequent printed substrate forms. In addition, it can be provided that an average value over a plurality of actual values of printing material previously printed in the printing machine forms the setpoint value for printing material subsequently printed in the printing press. In this respect, the control device 12 can be designed as an adaptive, self-learning system.

It is advantageous that the control device 12 displays the difference between the desired value and the actual value on a display device, outputs an acoustic and / or optical warning message in the case of a difference between the desired value and the actual value and / or the difference between the desired value and the actual value registered and logged. In this case, the holistic detection of the quality of the print by the optical detection device 11 facilitates a protocol which is preferably produced over all produced copies of the print and which can be used by the printer as proof to the client.

In one embodiment, the controller 12 sets at a difference between the setpoint and the actual value with the actuator 07, the at least one machine element 08 only after a release by an operator in a manner minimizing the difference. In another embodiment, with a difference between the desired value and the actual value with the actuator 07, the control device 12 sets the at least one machine element 08 automatically in a manner minimizing the difference. It can be provided that the control device 12 adjusts the at least one machine element 08 with the actuator 07 only when the difference between the desired value and the actual value reaches or exceeds a predetermined threshold value. Advantageously, the control device 12 is integrated in a control room belonging to the printing press.

The at least one machine element 08 adjusting actuator 07 is z. B. as an electrical, as a hydraulic or as a pneumatic drive, wherein the actuator 07 z. B. is electrically operated. Preferably, a separate actuator 07 is provided for each adjustable machine element 08, wherein the actuators 07 different machine elements 08 of the control device 12 are independently adjustable.

It is advantageous that at least the optical detection device 11, the control device 12 and at least one of the actuators 07 are connected to a common data bus.

The printing machine described above thus has as an adjustable with respect to the quality of the pressure machine element 08 z. As cylinders, rollers, a tempering, a metering device of an inking unit 13 and / or an image regulator. As actuators 07 z. B. individual drives for the cylinders and / or rollers, an adjusting device for an inclined position of the cylinder, an adjusting device for adjusting a force exerted between rollers contact pressure and / or a control device for controlling a roller existing between relative speed. The adjustment of each of these machine elements 08 made with the respective associated actuator 07 has a direct effect on the quality of the print, the optical detection device 11 sensing the quality of the print currently produced by the printing press preferably continuously or at least in a fast cycle and correlates with the quality of the pressure correlating data of the control device 12, which in turn with at least one actuator 07 at least one of the machine elements 08 as a function of a difference between a specified as the setpoint quality of the pressure and the detected as the actual value of the optical detection means 11 quality of the pressure in a manner that minimizes this difference between the setpoint and the actual value. This results in a closed loop, as shown schematically in a simplified block diagram according to the Fig. 3 is shown.

The machine elements 08 of the printing press act, on the one hand, on the position, which can be determined by coordinates, of screen dots printed on the printing substrate, namely on the position of the screen dots relative to a reference line of the printing material, the reference line being e.g. B. may be a lateral edge of the printing material, and / or on the location of halftone dots of different printing ink, which occupy these grid points relative to each other. On the other hand, the machine elements 08 of the printing machine influence the color appeal of the printing inks, d. H. their physically measurable, colorimetric properties, both for a single ink and in cooperation with other participating in the construction of the same print image inks. Properties of the printing material also have an effect on the position of screen dots printed on the printing substrate and their color appeal, which is why these are advantageously to be included in the control circuit regulating the quality of the printing.

To regulate the quality of the pressure results with the influencing variables described above, a matrix of parameters that can be combined with each other, with certain combinations of the pressure on the quality settings for adjusting the quality of the pressure z. B. in the pressure of the printing machine and to stabilize the quality of the print at the set level, particularly in the production of the printing press are particularly advantageous because they occur during printing, z. B. wear-related, thermal or climatic disturbing influences that affect the reproducibility of the quality of the pressure and thus the controlled system 09 negative, particularly effective counteract. Wear-related interference influences arise on the machine elements involved in the pressure, thermal interferences have an effect on the printability of the participating inks and climatic disturbances such as ambient temperature and humidity influence the printability of the printing material. All these disturbances can affect the quality of the print in any, usually unpredictable combination and intensity, ie they impair, so that a continuous control of the quality of the print is advantageous. The timing of the individual disturbing influences can be very different and vary from slow to fast variable or oscillating. Furthermore, the disturbing influences in the pressure can occur uniformly or unevenly and thus have a stochastic distribution.

All disturbances acting on the controlled system 09 are independent of their respective cause, their respective time behavior or their areal effect on the pressure in the Fig. 3 provided with the reference numeral z. The data output by the optical detection device 11, which correlate with the detected quality of the pressure and form a controlled variable x for the control device 12, are shown in FIG Fig. 3 regardless of their physical nature summarized by the reference numeral x. The setpoint of the control device 12 as a reference variable w is in the Fig. 3 indicated by the reference w. The control device 12 acts with a in the Fig. 3 summarized by the reference y provided signal y at least on an actuator 07 of the control loop, but it may also additionally in particular additionally another marked with the reference symbol s signal s to one or more other control devices.

Regarding the quality of the pressure and thus the system 09 influencing combinations, it is z. B. advantageous that the at least one machine element 08 is a tempering for controlling at least part of a lateral surface of a rotating body of the printing machine, wherein the rotational body is involved in the transport of a printing ink to the printed in the printing machine with the printing substrate, because with the tempering can be influenced on the rheological properties of the ink.

It is advantageous to provide in a further combination that the actuator 07 is an actuator for setting a relative to the printing material inclined position in the Printing machine arranged forme cylinder 08 is because it can be counteracted the "cocking" effect.

Further, it is advantageous to provide in a further combination that the actuator 07 when printing of several printing inks on the same substrate at the printed inks each set their tack value differently to allow overprinting with good adhesion of printing inks involved in printing.

It is advantageous to provide in a combination that the controller 12 in a determination of a difference between the desired value and the actual value, a change in a distance between two transversely to the transport direction of the printing material in the distance or at least in their respective position not congruent arranged marks or measuring fields determined, wherein the optical detection device 11 detects the two respective same color separation associated brands or fields simultaneously, the control device 12 depending on the determined change in the distance with the actuator 07, the at least one machine element 08 adjusts z. B. counteract the fan-out and compensate for its interference at least partially.

It is also advantageous to provide in a combination that the machine element 08 is a metering device of an inking unit 13 for metering the amount of ink to be transferred to the printing material by the amount of ink to be transferred to the printing material by adjusting its layer thickness and / or their duration of application. The layer thickness of the ink applied to the substrate is z. B. in the range between 1 micron and 3 microns.

Likewise, it can be provided that at least in one of the printing units 01, the ink-carrying rollers and cylinders, in particular the rollers of the inking unit 13, of a control device provided for this purpose are initially set in relative position relative to each other as a function of the production speed of the printing press against each other and then starting from this speed-dependent positioning of the control device 12 as a function of the detected by data of the optical detection device 11 currently produced quality of the print be managed. The speed-dependent positioning of at least one of the ink-guiding rollers and cylinders in their relative position to another roller or to another cylinder thus forms a basic setting which forms an initial level for control associated therewith depending on the currently produced quality of the print. The speed-dependent positioning of the ink-guiding rollers and cylinders in their relative position to each other can, for. Example, by attached to the rollers preferably remotely operable roller locks, wherein the roller associated with a roller locks cause their actuation the roller in question to a radial stroke and thus change the position of this roller relative to at least one further adjacent roller. If out of the data provided by the optical detection device 11 z. B. can be removed, that the currently performed by the rollers amount of ink for the quality of the printed product to be produced is not suitable, the controller 12, the position of one or more color-guiding rollers or cylinders in the current printing process change again, ie to achieve a good Track the quality of the print. To carry out the positioning of these rollers or cylinders, a roller lock is preferably provided in each case at both ends of each of these rollers or cylinders, each roller lock having at least one actuator, but preferably a plurality of actuators, wherein the preferably remotely actuable actuators z. B. are formed as acted upon by compressed air pressure chambers and are arranged such that an adjustment of the associated roller or the associated cylinder is possible at least in two directions. The roller lock may externally act on one of the ends of the associated roller or the associated cylinder, but it may also be inside this Roller or cylinder may be arranged, although it causes the roller or the cylinder to a radial stroke in any case upon actuation of its actuators.

In the case of the formation of one or more printing units 01 as an imprinter, it can be provided that the control device 12 is supplied with a signal p which informs the control device 12 which of the printing units 01 are involved in the current printing process and / or which printing group 01 from the current printing process is disconnected. Depending on the signal p, the control device 12 can determine which one of the printing units 01 associated machine element 08, z. B. which metering device of the printing units 01 associated inking unit 13 for metering a quantity of the ink to be transferred to the printing ink, by an actuation of its actuator 07 can influence the currently produced quality of the print.

If z. B. two in the transport direction of the printing material immediately successive, each designed as an imprinter printing 01 the same ink, z. B. black, but for different elements of the printed image, z. For example, for a text and a graphic or for two texts of different language, can print separately, ie independently, the difference between the associated setpoint and the actual detected by the optical detection device 11 actual value determined and in a difference minimizing manner are evaluated by each of the two printing units 01 its optimal setpoint for the target-actual comparison is used. An in the transport direction of the printing material below the currently produced quality of the pressure influencing machine element 08, z. B. a printing ink other printing ink 01, can be set in this way in a shorter time to a favorable for the quality of the print value by z. B. the phase angle or the angular position between the forme cylinder 08 and / or the transfer cylinder 14 of the imprinter currently involved in the printing and a subsequent printing in the transport direction of the printing unit 01 each is set depending on the currently involved in the pressure imprinter.

The above-described features influencing the quality of the print and their combinations have in common that the optical detection device 11 senses the quality of the print currently produced by the print engine and supplies data correlating with the quality of the print to the control device 12, which in turn receives a detected actual value is adjusted with a predetermined setpoint value and the current setting of at least one machine element 08 so new sets or nachzuführen that the currently produced quality of the pressure is brought to the setpoint and held there as possible. The control device 12 thus examines the data of the optical detection device 11 with respect to the presence of a disturbing influence and analyzed in the presence of a disturbing influence the data in terms of its cause, timing and / or surface pressure. As a result of the analysis, the control device 12 sends at least one signal y to an actuator 07 in order to counteract the interference. Preferably, all, but at least a plurality of control interventions required to achieve the currently produced quality of the print are initiated from the analysis of the same data provided by the optical detection device 11. The signal y can therefore be very complex in terms of data technology and act on a plurality of actuators 07, which may also apply to the signal s for controlling a control device connected to the control device 12.

It is advantageous to provide, in a combination of machine elements 08 which act on the quality of the pressure, those which counteract disturbing influences of different causes and different time behavior or areal influence. In the preferred embodiment, at least one of machine technology and at least one machine element 08 which acts on the properties of the material involved in the printing, in particular the ink, is preferably provided independently of each other by at least one actuator 07 of the control device 12 corresponding to from those of the optical Detector 11 detected data resulting need to be used.

In addition, the control device 12 by integrally detecting the quality of the pressure with the optical detection device 11 to analyze the received data according to different criteria and output as a generated from the analysis control intervention in the controlled system 09 a signal y that various actuators 07 and / or Machine elements 08 in common, d. H. at the same time or at least coordinated with one another, leads to actions which, in their combination, counteract synergistically different disturbing influences on the pressure. Thus, the controller 12 does not respond singularly to interference, but evaluates their behavior on the pressure in their overall impact. An undesirable under- or overreaction of individual actuators 07 and / or machine elements 08 can thus be minimized.

The holistic detection of the quality of the printing with the optical detection device 11 does not necessarily mean that the optical detection device 11 basically detects all the characteristics of the printing, but rather refers to those properties of the print that the performer of the print has assured his client and whose Compliance is therefore to be monitored.

Because the quality of the print is preferably detected close to the place of its production with the optical detection device 11 and several, preferably all relevant disturbance variables are determined from the data acquired simultaneously and preferably continuously evaluated in real time, a fast-acting control is possible, so With regard to the pressure, a stable operating state with a good quality can already be achieved after a very short time, which leads to a low start-up waste due to a short reaction time of the control device 12 and can be maintained in the production pressure. The processing, evaluation and storage of the By the optical detection means 11 accumulating amount of data requires a preferably electronically formed control device 12 with a high process speed, wherein different, detected from the data of the optical detection device 11 disturbances in the control device 12 are preferably evaluated in mutually parallel process branches.

LIST OF REFERENCE NUMBERS

01

printing unit

02

coater

03

delivery extension

04

boom

05

-

06

sheet feeder

07

actuator

08

Machine element; Cylinder; form cylinder

09

controlled system

10

-

11

detector

12

control device

13

inking

14

Cylinder; transfer cylinder

15

-

16

Impression cylinder

17

Cylinder; dampening

18

lighting device

19

-

20

-

21

reelstands

22

Folder, cross folder, longitudinal folder

p

signal

s

signal

w

command variable

x

controlled variable

y

signal

z

interference effect

Claims (22)

1. Printing press with a number of adjustable machine elements (08) in each case with at least one control member (07), an adjustment of the machine elements (08) acting on a quality of the print carried out by the printing press, an optical detecting device (11) with a sensor directed at a surface of a print substrate printed in the printing press detecting the quality of the print on the print substrate transported through the printing press and a control device (12) receiving data from the optical detecting device (11) adjusting with the respective at least one control member (07) at least one of the machine elements (08) as a function of a difference between a quality of the print specified as a target value and the quality of the print determined as an actual value by the optical detecting device (11) in a manner minimizing the difference between the target value and the actual value, the optical detecting device (11) in each case detecting two marks or measuring fields arranged transverse to the transport direction of the print substrate at a distance or at least not identical in their respective position, characterized
   in that the optical detecting device (11) simultaneously detects the two marks or measuring fields assigned in each case to the same colour output, the control device (12) determining a change in the distance between the two marks or measuring fields directed transverse to the transport direction of the print substrate in the case of a determination of a difference between the target value and the actual value, the control device (12) adjusting at least one of the machine elements (08) with the respective at least one control member (07) depending on the determined change of this distance,
   in that the control members (07) of different machine elements (08) are adjustable independently of each other by the control device (12), and
   in that the control device (12) controls a strand register prior to a trimming of the print substrate depending on the position of a printed print image identified by the optical detecting device (11).
2. Printing press according to Claim 1, characterized in that at least one machine element (08) is a temperature control device for temperature control of at least one part of an outer surface of a rotating body of the printing press, the rotating body being involved in the transport of a printing ink to the print substrate printed with the printing ink in the printing press.
3. Printing press according to Claim 1, characterized in that the control device (12) carries out the process of adjustment of the at least one machine element (08) continuously in print.
4. Printing press according to Claim 1, characterized in that at least the optical detecting device (11), the control device (12) and the control member (07) are attached to a common data bus.
5. Printing press according to Claim 1, characterized in that the control device (12) controls at least one guide element arranged in the printing press for guiding the print substrate during its transport through the printing press depending on the data provided by the optical recognition device (11) or controls the guide element by means of a control member (07).
6. Printing press according to Claim 1, characterized in that the control device (12), in the case of a difference between the target value and the actual value, prompts a number of control elements (07) and machine elements (08) to a mutual, synergistic reaction matched to each other to the disturbing influence causing the difference.
7. Printing press according to Claim 1, characterized in that the control device (12) evaluates different disturbing influences identified from the data of the optical detecting device (11) in parallel process branches.
8. Printing press according to Claim 1, characterized in that the control device (12), depending on the data provided by the optical detecting device (11), controls a web catching device with a signal (s) in the case of a detected web break.
9. Printing press according to Claim 1, characterized in that the control device (12), depending on the data provided by the optical detecting device (11), controls a web clipping device with the signal (s) in the case of a detected web break.
10. Printing press according to Claim 1, characterized in that the control device (12), depending on the data provided by the optical detecting device (11), controls a switch for changing the transport path of the print substrate.
11. Printing press according to Claim 1, characterized in that the control device (12) initiates a number of control interventions necessary for achieving the currently produced quality of the print from the analysis of the same data provided by the optical detecting device (11).
12. Printing press according to Claim 1, characterized in that the optical detecting device (11) provides digital image data as data at its output corresponding to the detection of its sensor.
13. Printing press according to Claim 1, characterized in that the target value of the quality of the printing made available to the control device (12) as a reference is extended from data from a preliminary stage preceding printing, or from a reference print substrate transported through the printing press before printing.
14. Printing press according to Claim 1, characterized in that the control device (12) extracts the actual value of the quality of the printing from data, which have been entered before printing using at least one input means of the control device (12).
15. Printing press according to Claim 1, characterized in that the control device (12) indicates the difference between the target value and the actual value on a display device.
16. Printing press according to Claim 1, characterized in that the print substrate has a number of partial webs running next to one another transverse to its transport direction, the control device (12) changing one or more registration rolls in each case conducting one of the partial webs in their respective position by the signal (s) emitted by it, whereby the respective web length at least of one of the partial webs changes relative to another partial web.
17. Printing press according to Claim 1, characterized in that a number of webs or partial webs of the print substrate in each case printed with a print image are brought together and laid on each other to give a strand before reaching the cutting device or perforating device, the control device (12) for the control or regulation of the strand register changing the phase position or the angular position between the forme cylinder (08) and/or transfer cylinder (14) involved in the printing of the individual webs or partial webs of the strand relative to one another such that the position of the print images printed on the individual webs or partial webs of the strand changes relative to one another.
18. Printing press according to Claim 1, characterized in that one of the control elements adjusts a phase position of one forme cylinder (08) relative to the phase position of another forme cylinder (08).
19. Printing press according to Claim 1, characterized in that the optical detecting device (11) detects printed print images and their relative position to one another printed on opposite sides of the same print substrate.
20. Printing press according to Claim 1, characterized in that the optical detecting device (11) has a line camera or an area camera.
21. Printing press according to Claim 1, characterized in that one of the control elements (07) is a control device for the axial movement of the forme cylinder (08).
22. Printing press according to Claim 1, characterized in that one of the machine elements (08) is an image controller at least partially compensating a transverse elongation of the print substrate.

Images