FR2763536A1 - INK UNIT COMPRISING A DEVICE FOR FILLING INKERS WITH PRINTING INK - Google Patents

Abstract

The invention relates to the inking unit comprising a device for filling with printing ink into inkwells. In this printing unit (1) comprising an inkwell (2) and a device for filling with printing ink inkwell, this device is arranged in the form of a magazine (11) comprising several ink tanks (10) which can be positioned in a filling position and can be emptied into the inkwells. impression.

Description

The invention relates to an inking unit in a printing machine.

  comprising an inkwell and a device

  to fill the inkwell with printing ink.

  According to German patent application DE 195 12 727 A1, such an inking unit is already known. The device for filling the inkwell comprises here as an ink reservoir a cartridge, which is emptied using compressed air. The cartridge is fixed to a carriage which can be moved parallel to the longitudinal axes of the rollers of the inking unit. A sensor detects the filling state of the printing ink inside an inkwell so that the cartridge can bring printing ink into certain areas of the inkwell, so as to obtain, in all locations of the inkwell, a uniformly low filling state. Therefore the quantity

  ink should be set by zones.

  Known cartridges used as ink tanks for printing ink have a filling capacity of for example 2 kg of printing ink. In the case of larger printing orders, the problem arises that the service personnel must replace at fairly short intervals of time.

  short, the cartridge empty by a new cartridge.

  The invention aims to improve the inking unit of the type indicated above so that the intervention of service personnel is no longer necessary when replacing an ink tank with

another.

  This problem is solved in an inking unit of the type indicated above thanks to the fact that the device is arranged in the form of a magazine comprising a multiplicity of ink tanks containing a multiplicity of printing inks and which can be positioned in a filling position for filling the inkwell and can be emptied into the inkwells. According to another characteristic of the invention, the magazine is a revolver magazine or a magazine disposed on

an endless band.

  According to another characteristic of the invention, the store is movable by means of a crosspiece

between the side walls.

  According to another characteristic of the invention, the

  store is arranged on a mobile transport cart.

  According to another characteristic of the invention, ink tanks are arranged on a circulating strip

on the transport cart.

  According to another characteristic of the invention, ink tanks are arranged on the transport carriage to be connected to supply lines

  ink, which for their part are connected to inkwells.

  According to another characteristic of the invention, the ink tanks can be removed from the transport carriage by a withdrawal device, they can be moved using the withdrawal device on a

  cross and can be emptied into a position above

above one of the inkwells.

  According to another characteristic of the invention, the store includes a device for emptying the tanks

ink.

  According to another characteristic of the invention, the ink tanks are arranged in the form of cartridges, which can be emptied by means of a cover which can be moved using compressed air, or by

  through a lifting piston.

  According to another characteristic of the invention, the ink tanks are arranged in the form of ink bags, which have flexible outer walls and whose outer walls can be compressed from the outside to the inside using compressed air so that the printing ink comes out through an opening in

out of the ink bags.

  According to another characteristic of the invention, the magazine, which contains the ink tanks, or the ink tanks themselves carry information concerning their content, which is readable by a machine for

  reading, including a barcode reader.

  According to another characteristic of the invention, near the inking unit is arranged a movable gripping member, which takes up an ink tank to

  from a store, brings it to a position above

  above an inkwell and empty, in this place, the tank

ink in the inkwell.

  According to another characteristic of the invention, the inkwells are each equipped with a sensor, in particular an optical sensor, by means of which respectively the level of the printing ink in the inkwell can be recorded so that a controller, which controls the replenishment of printing ink from the ink tanks, can be controlled via

  of a signal transmission line.

  According to the invention, a store is obtained which comprises a multiplicity of ink tanks containing a printing ink. The magazine is arranged for example in the manner of a revolver magazine, or else it is for example an endless band. According to the invention, it is also easily possible to quickly switch between different printing inks, without large quantities remaining.

printing ink.

  Other features and advantages of the

  present invention will emerge from the description given

  hereinafter taken with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: - Figure 1 shows a cross section of the ink unit comprising a filling device; - Figure 2 shows a plan view of the filling device of Figure 1; - Figure 3 shows a front view of the inking unit comprising a filling device according to Figure 1, which further is movable laterally; - Figure 4 shows a plan view of an inking unit and a device having an endless belt; - Figures 5 and 6 show a device for discharging printing ink from a cartridge; - Figure 7 shows a front view of an inking unit, the filling device comprises a transport carriage; - Figure 8 shows a plan view of the inking unit and the filling device according to Figure 7; and - Figure 9 shows a front view of an inking unit, the ink fountains of which are connected via pipes to a filling device. A printing machine comprises an inking unit 1 (FIG. 1) comprising an inkwell 2 filled with printing ink. In the inkwell 2 rotates a plunger roller 3, which transfers the printing ink to a transfer roller 4, against which a doctor blade 5 is clamped to scrape off the excess printing ink. The printing ink is supplied via cartridges 6 to 10, which can rotate in a revolver magazine 11. The cover arranged as a piston can be pushed back down, using compressed air which is supplied via a compressed air line 12, on the upper front face of the cartridge, which is located in the filling position, here the cartridge 6, so that the printing ink can be introduced by a filling tube 14 from the cartridge 6 into

inkwell 2.

  A sensor 15, for example an optical sensor, controls the filling level of the inkwell 2. The sensor 15 is connected to the compressed air supply system by means of a control device not shown here so that, when the sensor 15 registers an overshoot by lower values of the set level, the cartridge 6 is emptied by sending compressed air through the compressed air line 12. The emptying process can be carried out continuously so that a determined level inside the inkwell 2 is permanently respected, or else can be carried out as soon as, as described above, a set level is exceeded by lower values. Similarly, the operation passing from one cartridge 6 to a next cartridge 7 is triggered by

  a signal produced by the sensor 15.

  The revolver magazine 11 has a vertical axis of rotation 16 (Figure 2). The revolver magazine 11 is rotated so that a pneumatic cylinder 18, loaded with compressed air via a compressed air line 7, moves a lever 19. The lever 19 is articulated on a lower end of the axis of rotation 16 and is fitted with a freewheel bearing so that when the piston is withdrawn from the pneumatic cylinder 18, the lever cannot again execute a

retrograde displacement.

  During each movement of the piston of the jack 18, the revolver magazine 11 advances by an angle corresponding to the distance of the cartridges 6 to 10, under the effect of the movement of rotation of the lever 9. To improve the positioning accuracy of the cartridge 6 located in the filling position, there is provided a roller 23, which engages in recesses 20 in the bottom 21 of the revolver magazine 11 against the force of a tension spring 22 and which is fixed to a lever 24. The revolver magazine 11 is fixed to a bent U-shaped plate 25, which for its part is retained by a support plate 26 (FIG. 1). The revolver magazine 21 is mounted, by means of the support plate 26, on a crosspiece 26a (FIG. 3) so as to be able to move in the transverse direction of the printing machine, that is to say parallel to the longitudinal axes of the plunger roller 3 and the ink transfer roller 4. This mobility guarantees good accessibility to the inkwells 2, 2 ', 2 "and 2"' (see FIG. 7) arranged side by side. When the revolver magazine 11 is movable, maximum accessibility to each of the ink tanks 2, 2 ', 2 "and 2"' is guaranteed. The inkwells can be easily cleaned and likewise the printing forms can be easily removed in the area of each of the inkwells 2 to 2 ". When a revolver magazine 11 to 11" 'is associated respectively with each of the inkwells 2 to 2 2 "', the width of the side walls 27 is large enough to move a revolver magazine 11 to bring it into a position 11 * in the side wall 27. To make the middle inkwells 2" and 2' accessible, two displacements are respectively revolvers magazines 11 and 11 'in the direction of the side walls 27. Each of the revolvers magazines 11 to 11 "' contains such a number of cartridges 6 to 10 that the printing ink contained in these cartridges is sufficient in connection with the quantity of ink already introduced into the inkwells 2 to 2 "'at the start of the printing process, in order to be able to satisfy a printing order without additional filling of the respective revolver magazine 11, 11', 11" or 11 "'with new cartridges. It is also possible to introduce cartridges 6 having different printing inks inside each revolver magazine 11 to 11 "'. When replacing the printing ink, a bar code reader 18 (figure 2) registers, on the basis of a bar code strip arranged on the outside of the cartridges 6 to 10, which printing ink is contained in the respective cartridge 6 to 10, and sends a signal to a control device , which controls, by means of compressed air via the compressed air line 17, the continued movement of the revolver magazine 11 until the desired cartridge 6 to 10 containing the suitable printing ink is located in the filling position above the inkwell 2. Instead of revolver 11 magazines, one can also use

other stores.

  Similarly, ink cartridges 30 to 34 are arranged on an endless strip 29 (FIG. 4), the endless strip 29 being movable around centers of rotation, 36 in the direction of an arrow A. Thanks to the movement of rotation of the endless belt 29, the cartridges 30 to 34 can be brought into an emptying position 37. When the cartridges 30 to 34 have reached the emptying position 37, they are moved with the endless belt 29, being standing on the latter, on a cross 38 of

  so that the emptying position 37 is located above

  above one of the inkwells 39 to 39 "'. The corresponding cartridge can then be emptied. Similarly, in connection with the endless belt 29, a sensor, for example a bar code reader, can also be provided, making it possible to identify the moment when one of the cartridges 30 to 34 containing the desired printing ink is located in the emptying position 37. The part disposed laterally with respect to the inkwells 39 to 39 "'is sufficiently wide, including the width side walls 40, 41, to receive the endless belt 9, when the inkwells 39 to

39 "'must be cleaned.

  The revolver magazine 11 (FIG. 5) has an upper plate 42 having recesses 43 used to receive cartridges 6 to 10. The cartridge 6 is inserted like the cartridges 7 to 10 from the top into the revolver magazine 11 and then it is closed. the magazine with a cover 44, the latter being applied in an airtight manner by means of a sealing lip 45 against the external wall 46 of the cartridge 6. On the upper face of the cover plate 2 are arranged blanks 47, by means of which protruding appendages 48 of the cover 44 are tightened firmly against the cover plate 42. Respective free intermediate spaces are arranged between the projecting parts 48 so that the cover 44 can be apply to the upper cover plate, while the blanks 47 apply in the intermediate spaces between the protrusions 48. Then, the cover 44 is rotated so that the protrusions 48 are located below the blank clamps 47 and that a fixed contact is established between the cover 44 and the plate

top cover 42.

  The compressed air line 12 has, on its end facing the cover, a pneumatic cylinder 49, the piston 50 of which is pushed down by compressed air supplied by a compressed air line 51, at the against the return force of a spring 52, the end of the compressed air line 12 being pushed down simultaneously, so that a conical end element 53 of the compressed air line 12 is pushed back into a conical recess 54 formed in the cover 44. The conical recess 54 is extended by a passage 55 for the compressed air leaving the compressed air line 12. The end element 53 is pushed back into the recess 54 by means of the compressed air leaving the compressed air line 51 (FIG. 6) in a sealed manner such that the compressed air leaving the compressed air line 12 passes through the passage 55 in the area 56 located between cover 44 and c upper opening 13 of the cartridge 10 and pushes this cover downwards so that the printing ink comes out of the filling tube 14 of the cartridge 6 to enter the inkwell 2. At the end of the emptying process, the compressed air is evacuated from the compressed air line 51 so that the spring 52 pushes the piston 50 up again and therefore the cover 44 is released again to allow the next cartridge 7 to be brought to 10 in the filling position above

inkwell 2 (see Figure 1).

  An inking unit i (FIG. 7) comprises the

  inkwells 2, 2 ', 2 ", 2"' between the side walls 40, 41.

  These inkwells are supplied with printing ink via a transport cart 56. The transport cart 56 comprises a magazine provided with a multiplicity of ink tanks 57 containing a printing ink and which are by example ink cartridges or ink bags or other containers. In the picking position 58 (Figures 7, 8), one of the ink tanks 57 is picked up by the picking device 59 from the transport carriage 56. The picking device 59 has for example a gripping member , which collects

  one of the ink tanks 57 of the transport cart 56.

  Similarly, the sampling device 59 has a pneumatic device, of the type described with reference to Figures 1 to 3 and Figures 5, 6, or a lifting piston as shown in Figure 7. The sampling device 59 can be moved with a gripping member or without the latter on a crosspiece 61 parallel to the longitudinal axes of the rollers and cylinders of the printing machine. Depending on the printing ink, which fills the respective reservoir 57, which the withdrawal device 59 has withdrawn from the transport carriage 56, the printing ink is emptied from the inkwell 57 by means of the lifting piston. 60 using compressed air, in one of the ink tanks 2, 2 ', 2 "or 2"'. Preferably there is also provided, in each of the ink fountains 2 to 2 "', a sensor which measures the respective state of filling of the printing ink and, when a certain level is displaced by lower values, delivers a signal to a control device, on the basis of which the withdrawal device 59 draws a new ink reservoir 57 from the transport carriage 56 and empties this

  last in the corresponding inkwells 2 to 2 "'.

  For example, as shown in FIG. 8, the withdrawal device 59 withdraws from the transport cart 56 an ink tank 57 containing the printing ink "4" and the vacuum above the inkwell 2 "'. The ink tanks 57 are preferably arranged on a circulating strip 62 on the transport carriage 56. A reading device 63 identifies, on the basis of a code, the color of the printing ink and fills the ink tank 57 located in the pick-up position 58, so that depending on the printing ink, which is to be introduced into the respective ink tank 2 to 2 "', a tank of ink 57 filled with the corresponding printing ink is brought into the sampling position 58 under the effect of the rotation of the circulating strip 62. The code is placed either on the ink tanks or on

  the housing of the strip 62, that is to say of the magazine.

  In another exemplary embodiment (FIG. 9), on the inkwells 2, 2 ′, 2, 2 "" are arranged ink supply lines 66 to 69, by means of which the printing inks necessary for the respective ink fountains 2 to 2 "'are brought from a transport cart 70. The transport cart 70 has a magazine comprising ink tanks 71 to 74, to which the ends of the supply lines are connected. ink 66 to 69, for example via a bayonet closure system so that the printing ink flows from the ink tanks 71 to 74 in the ink tanks 2 to 2 "'. When the ink tanks 71 to 74 are empty, the transport carriage 70 moves to a replenishment station, and in this embodiment, sensors can be used to determine the filling status of the ink tanks 2 to 2 "'as well as ink tanks 71 to 74. A signaling eg ut be sent to the driver's station via signal transmission lines so that the operator can see on the control panel the moment when a replenishment of the ink tanks 71 to 74 located on the transport cart 70 is necessary. The transport carriage 70 is preferably positioned laterally with respect to the side wall, while the ink tanks 71 to 74 are emptied. However, the trolley can also be placed in the area located

  upstream of the ink tanks 2 to 2 "'.

  Unlike the embodiments shown here, ink bags, ink cartridges or other containers containing printing ink can be taken from a mobile transport cart or from an installed ink supply fixedly, using a movable gripping member, the gripping member withdrawing the ink tank from the ink store, bringing it into a position above the inkwell and emptying, in this place, the ink tank in the inkwell. Insofar as ink bags are used as ink reservoirs, they are placed in a pressure container so that only a filling tube leaves the pressure container, this tube being then connected for example to the end of one of the ink supply lines 66 to 69. Compressed air introduced into the pressurized container pushes back the flexible walls of the ink bags and empties the contents of the bags via the brought

  of ink 66 to 69, in inkwells 2 to 2 "'or 39 to 39"'.

  The invention creates an inking unit 1 located in a printing machine and which comprises at least one inkwell 2, preferably a multiplicity of inkwells 2 to 2 "'arranged side by side as well as a device for filling the inkwells 2 with printing ink, the device being arranged in the form of a magazine, in particular a revolver magazine 11, a magazine disposed on an endless belt 29 or a transport cart 56 or 70 comprising ink tanks 6 to 10, 30 to 34,

57, 71.

Claims (13)

  1. Inking unit (1) in a printing machine comprising an inkwell (2, 2 ', 2 ", 2"'; 39, 39 ', 39 ", 39"') and a device for filling with printing ink the inkwell (2, 2 ', 2 ", 2"'; 39, 39 ', 39 ", 39"'), characterized in that the device is arranged in the form of a magazine (11 , 29, 62) having a multiplicity of ink tanks (6 to 10; 30 to 34; 57; 71 to 74) containing a multiplicity of printing inks and which can be positioned in a filling position for filling inkwell (2, 2 ', 2 ", 2"'; 39, 39 ', 39 ", 39"') and can be emptied in the   inkwells (2, 2 ', 2 ", 2"'; 39, 39 ', 39 ", 39"').   2. Inking unit (1) according to claim 1, characterized in that the magazine is a revolver magazine   (11) or a magazine arranged on an endless belt (29).   3. Inking unit (1) according to one of   claims 1 or 2, characterized in that the magazine   (11, 29) is movable by means of a crosspiece   (26a, 38) between the side walls (27; 40, 41).   4. Inking unit (1) according to any one of   Claims 1 to 3, characterized in that the magazine   (62) is arranged on a mobile transport cart (56,). 5. Inking unit (1) according to claim 4, characterized in that ink tanks (57) are arranged on a circulating strip (62) on the carriage transport (56).   6. Inking unit (1) according to claim 4, characterized in that ink tanks (71 to 74) are arranged on the transport carriage (70) to be connected to ink supply lines (66 to 69), which for their part are connected to the inkwells (2, 2 ', 2 ", 2"'). 7. Inking unit (1) according to claim 5, characterized in that the ink tanks (57) can be removed from the transport carriage (56) by a removal device (59), they can be moved to using the sampling device (59) on a crosspiece (61) and can be emptied into a position located above   above one of the inkwells (2, 2 ', 2 ", 2"').   8. Inking unit (1) according to any one of   Claims 1 to 6, characterized in that the magazine   (11, 29, 62) has a device for emptying the   ink tanks (6 to 10; 30 to 34; 57; 71 to 74).   9. Inking unit (1) according to claim 8, characterized in that the ink tanks are arranged in the form of cartridges (6 to 10; 30 to 34; 57; 71 to 74), which can be emptied by means of a cover (13) movable by means of compressed air, or by   via a lifting piston (60).   10. Inking unit (1) according to claim 8, characterized in that the ink tanks are arranged in the form of ink bags, which have flexible outer walls and whose outer walls can be compressed by outside inward using compressed air so the printing ink   comes out through an outlet opening for the ink bags.   11. Inking unit (1) according to any one of   Claims 1 to 10, characterized in that the magazine   (11, 29, 62), which contains the ink tanks (6 to 10; to 34; 57; 71 to 74), or the ink tanks (6 to 10; 30 to 34; 57; 71 to 74 ) themselves carry information concerning their content, which can be read by a reading device (28, 63), in particular a code reader with bars.   12. Inking unit (1) according to any one of   claims 1 to 7, characterized in that close to   the inking unit (1) is arranged a movable gripping member, which takes an ink tank from a magazine, brings it to a position located above an inkwell (2 to 2 " '; 39 to 39 "') and, in this empty place the   ink tank in the inkwell (2 to 2 "'; 39 to 39"').   13. Inking unit (1) according to any one of   Claims 1 to 12, characterized in that the ink fountains   (2 to 2 "'; 39 to 39"') are each equipped with a sensor (15), in particular an optical sensor (15), by means of which respectively the level of the printing ink in the inkwell (2 to 2 "'; 39 to 39"') can be registered so that a controller, which controls the replenishment of printing ink from the ink tanks (6 to 10; 30 to 34; 57; 71 to 74), can be ordered via a line of signal transmission.