JPH0354054B2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION Field of Industrial Application This invention relates to a method of applying a printing plate to a film base and an apparatus for carrying out the method.

Prior Art When installing a printing plate on the printing cylinder of a rotary printing press, as shown in FIG. A fixed rapid die type is generally used. Furthermore, as a printing machine that can arbitrarily change the printing length without being limited by the total circumference of the plate cylinder, there is a belt-type printing machine that has a mechanism shown in FIG. 2. In this printing press, an endless belt 20 based on a flexible resin film is wound between a plate cylinder 16 and an adjustment cylinder 18 arranged to adjust the center distance with respect to the plate cylinder 16. Printing on the continuous sheet 24 is performed by the pressure action of the printing plate 12 attached to the endless belt 20 and the impression cylinder 22.

Problems to be Solved by the Invention In both the rotary type and belt type printing presses, the printing plate is laminated to a flexible film base to form the plate surface, but the color difference during multicolor printing is In order to eliminate misalignment, the print must be accurately affixed to a predetermined position on the film base. For this reason, in the past, it has been necessary to manually mark out the positions on which the printing plates will be attached on the film base, and then press and adhere the prints one by one to the marked positions. However, this process relied on years of experience and intuition, and was extremely inefficient as it took a long time, making it difficult to improve efficiency at the printing preparation stage.

Purpose of the Invention The present invention mechanizes the work of pasting prints onto film bases, which conventionally relied on the operator's experience, eliminates pasting errors, and shortens the time required in the preparation stage before printing. , was proposed with the aim of improving work efficiency.

Means for Solving the Problems In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, the method of attaching a printing plate to a film base according to the present invention includes determining a predetermined position for placing a printing plate on the upper surface of a horizontal substrate, and adhering means to the back surface. Place the printing plate upside down on the above-mentioned predetermined position on the upper surface of the horizontal substrate, and vacuum-adsorb the film base on the downward suction surface of the vacuum suction box located above the level of the upper surface of the horizontal substrate. by holding the horizontal substrate horizontally and moving the horizontal substrate and the vacuum suction box relatively close to each other in the horizontal direction, the printing plate in the upside down state is positioned directly below the film base in parallel, and then the horizontal substrate and the vacuum By bringing the suction box relatively close to each other in the vertical direction, the back side of the printing plate is brought into contact with the film base, thereby pasting the printing plate at a predetermined position on the film base via the adhesive means. Features.

In addition, in order to suitably carry out the above-mentioned method, a printing plate pasting device for a film base according to another invention of the present application is provided, in which a predetermined position for placing a printing plate is indexed, and a printing plate is placed at the predetermined position. a printing plate positioning device as a first unit having a horizontal substrate on which the film base is placed upside down; and a film base as a second unit having a vacuum suction box that vacuum suctions the film base onto a downward suction surface and holds it horizontally. a holding device, and the upper surface of the horizontal substrate in the first unit is
The horizontal level of the second unit is set to be slightly lower than the downward suction surface of the vacuum suction box, and both units are relatively close to each other in the horizontal direction so that the horizontal substrate is parallel to the bottom of the vacuum suction box. The present invention is characterized in that the two units are configured so that they can approach each other by a predetermined stroke relative to each other in the vertical direction.

Embodiments Next, preferred embodiments of the apparatus for applying a printing plate to a film base according to the apparatus invention of the present application will be explained with reference to the accompanying drawings, and the method invention of the present application will also be explained. FIG. 3 is a perspective side view of the internal mechanism of a film base printing and pasting apparatus according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing the schematic configuration of the embodiment apparatus.

The apparatus according to the embodiment basically consists of a printing plate positioning device 26 as a first unit and a film base holding device 28 as a second unit, and both units 26 and 28 are horizontally and vertically disposed relative to each other. It is now possible to approach and separate from each other. Therefore, in the illustrated embodiment, the first unit 26
The explanation will be made assuming that the second unit 28 is configured to be able to move toward and away from the second unit 28 horizontally, and the second unit 28 is configured to be able to move toward and away from the first unit 26 vertically. In addition, the film base holding device 28 is exemplified as a device suitable for forming a printing plate used in the belt-type printing machine in the illustrated embodiment, but with some modifications, the film base holding device 28 can be used to form a printing plate for a rotary printing press. It can also be used for forming.

In FIGS. 3 and 4, the printing plate positioning device 26 includes a cart 34 which is configured to be horizontally movable via wheels 32 on parallel rails 30, and this cart 34.
4 and a rectangular flat substrate 36 horizontally arranged and fixed on the top surface of the substrate 4. The horizontal substrate 36
As will be described later, a predetermined position for placing the printing plate 38 is determined on the upper surface of the plate, and the printing plate 38 is placed upside down at the predetermined position, and is a kind of position setting standard. Functions as a board surface.

As a means for determining a predetermined position for placing a printing plate on this horizontal substrate 36, as shown in FIG. For example, the tracing paper 40 is marked out as shown by reference numeral 42, and then the tracing paper 40 is set at a fixed position on the horizontal substrate 36 and fixed with adhesive tape. Further, a cursor unit that freely moves in the X-Y coordinate system may be provided on the horizontal substrate 36, and this cursor unit may be used to determine a predetermined position on the horizontal substrate for placing the printing plate.

Plate positioning device 2 shown in FIGS. 3 and 4
6 shows an embodiment in which a cursor unit that moves in the X-Y coordinate system is provided. Trolley 3
A unit driving main body 44 is disposed adjacent to the horizontal base on the top surface of the cart so as to be horizontally movable along the longitudinal direction of the cart, and a cursor unit 46 is connected to this unit driving main body 44. That is,
A servo motor 47 is incorporated in the unit drive main body 44, and bevel gears 50 are connected to both ends of a common rotating shaft 48 driven by the servo motor 47.
2 through a bevel gear 54 provided at its tip. As shown in the figure, the feed screws 52, 5
2 extends in the horizontal direction in parallel with a predetermined distance apart, and is located on the horizontal substrate 36;
54 through-threaded. Therefore, the feed screw 5
2, 52, the traveling supports 54, 54
travels on the horizontal substrate 36 in the X coordinate direction.

Further, the traveling supports 54, 54 are connected to the feed screw 5.
2, and a slider 58 is disposed so as to be freely movable along this connecting plate 56. The slider 58 is
Using the built-in servo motor 60 as a drive source, Y is moved on the connecting plate 56 via a rack and pinion mechanism, for example.
It is designed to be able to run on its own in the coordinate direction. Further, a plotter 62 is disposed on the slider 58 so as to be movable up and down. As a result, by rotating the servo motor 47 in the unit driving body 44, the traveling supports 54, 54 can freely travel and stop in the X coordinate direction on the horizontal substrate 36, and the servo motor 60 of the slider 58 can be rotated. By rotating the slider 58, the slider 58 can move and stop freely on the horizontal substrate 36 in the Y coordinate direction, so by controlling the elevation of the plotter 62 as appropriate, indexing and marking at a predetermined position on the horizontal substrate 36 can be performed. You can do brats.

In this case, the positioning of the cursor unit 46 in the X-Y coordinate system is performed by detecting the number of revolutions using a pulse generator (not shown) connected to each servo motor 47, 60, converting this into a digital signal, and determining the feed amount. It is preferable to control the Furthermore, since the cursor unit 46 is needed only when indexing the position for placing a printing plate on the horizontal substrate 36, after the indexing operation is completed, the cursor unit 46 is used together with the unit drive main body 44. It is designed to retreat to the left (this retreat position is indicated by a broken line in Figure 3).

In FIG. 4, reference numeral 64 indicates a fixing cylinder, and this cylinder 64 is used to securely fix the unit drive main body 44 in a fixed position so that it does not move slightly during indexing work by the plotter 62, and to fix the cursor unit. After the unit drive body 46 is retreated, it is effectively used to fix the unit drive body 44 again.

Next, the film base holding device (second unit)
28 consists of a vacuum suction box 68 horizontally disposed on the top of a pair of gates 66, 66 standing upright across the parallel rail 30, and the suction surface 70 of this vacuum suction box 68 has a suction surface 70 as shown in FIG. is placed facing downwards. That is, the entire area of the suction surface 70 provided on the bottom surface of the vacuum suction box 68 is provided with a large number of through holes, as shown in FIG. flexible duct 72
are connected. Note that the suction surface 70 is
As will be described later, since the film base 74 is suctioned and held thereon, it has approximately the same contour size as the horizontal substrate 36.

Further, the upper surface of the horizontal substrate 36 of the film base holding device 28 is set so that its horizontal level is slightly lower than the downward suction surface 70 of the vacuum suction box 68 as shown in FIG. ing. However, the level difference a in this case must be set to always be larger than the thickness of the printing plate placed on the horizontal substrate 36. As a result of the upper surface level of the horizontal substrate 36 being set to be lower than the lower surface level of the suction surface 70, the first unit 26 and the trolley 34 are moved on the parallel rails 30, and the second unit 28
, the horizontal substrate 3 of the first unit 26
6 will be located directly below the vacuum suction box 68.

Further, the vacuum suction box 68 has a horizontal substrate 3 directly below it.
6 reaches the arrival position, it is configured so that it can descend by a predetermined stroke from the normal position shown in FIG. 3 and approach the horizontal substrate 36. Therefore, a preferred example of the elevating mechanism for the vacuum suction box 68 to be lowered by a predetermined stroke from a normal fixed position, and then raised and returned to the fixed position will be described with reference to FIG.

As shown in FIG. 4, rack posts 76 are fixed upright at each of the four corners of the top of the gates 66, 66 (total of 4), and are rotatably mounted on the left and right sides of the vacuum suction box 68, respectively. A pinion 80 fixed to both ends of the supported rotating shaft 78 is configured to mesh with the rack support 76. That is, the vacuum suction box 68 is supported so as to be horizontally movable by engaging the four pinions 80 disposed on both the left and right sides of the vacuum suction box 68 with the respective rack supports 76. A sprocket 82 and a large-diameter pinion 84 are fixed to the protruding end of one rotating shaft 78 (the right side in FIG. 4), and a sprocket 82 and a large diameter pinion 84 are fixed to the protruding end of the other rotating shaft 78 (the left side in FIG. 4). Sprocket 86 is fixed, and both sprockets 8
2 and 86 are connected by an endless chain 88.

Further, a double-acting pneumatic cylinder 90 is fixedly arranged in parallel to one upright column of the gate 66, and a rack 94 attached to a piston rod 92 of this cylinder 90 is arranged so as to mesh with the pinion 84. . Therefore, if the cylinder 90 is energized to lower the rack 94, the pinion 84
rotates counterclockwise, and the two rotating shafts 78, 78 connected by the endless chain 88 and sprockets 82, 86 also rotate in the same direction, so each pinion 80 rotates while meshing with the rack support 76. The vacuum suction box 68 is horizontally lowered evenly.
Moreover, if the cylinder 90 is reversely biased to raise the rack 94, each pinion 8
0 rotates clockwise while engaging with the rack support 76, causing the vacuum suction box 68 to rise horizontally.

Next, for the sake of convenience, mechanisms additionally provided in each of the first unit 26 and the second unit 28 constituting the printing plate applicator according to the embodiment will be described. The film base holding device 28 as the second unit shown in the illustrated embodiment has specifications suitable for forming a printing plate for a belt-type printing press, as described above. That is, the film base 74 has round holes continuously formed at predetermined intervals along both longitudinal edges thereof, and is wound up as a long roll 96.
is rotatably mounted on a supporting device 98. The film base 74 fed out from the roll 96 is transferred to the direction changing roller 1 as shown in FIG.
00, the film passes horizontally along the downward suction surface 70 of the vacuum suction box 68, and the leading end of the film is fixed by another roller 102. In this case, each roller 100, 102 has a pin implanted on the outer circumferential side edge of the roller that engages with a circular hole in the film base 74, thereby ensuring reliable feeding without slipping. Therefore, when forming the plate surface of a belt-type printing machine, if the vacuum suction box 68 is operated under vacuum in this state,
The film base 74 facing the suction surface 70 is
It can be reliably sucked and held on the suction surface 70 in a spread state. In the figure, reference numeral 104 indicates a roller with a pin for feeding out the film base 74 on which a printing plate is attached, and numeral 106 indicates a weight roller.

Further, the printing plate positioning device 26 as the first unit shown in the embodiment of FIG. 3 is provided with an auxiliary device for testing a printing plate formed for a belt-type printing machine. That is, reference numeral 108 indicates a printing cylinder, and an adjustment cylinder 110 is disposed with respect to this printing cylinder 108 so that the distance between the axes can be freely adjusted.
08, 110, the endless belt 112 on which the printing plate has been pasted is wrapped around the belt 112 so that a test printing can be performed. Further, reference numeral 114 indicates an anilox roll, 116 an ink roll, and 118 an impression cylinder. The impression cylinder 118 is driven up and down by a pneumatic cylinder 120 as shown in FIG. 4, and is incorporated into the unit drive main body 44.
It is now possible to retreat.

Function of the Embodiment Next, the function and effect of the film-based printing plate affixing device according to the embodiment configured as described above will be explained below in relation to the method of affixing a printing plate to a film base according to another invention of the present application. do.

First, on the horizontal substrate 36 of the first unit 26,
The exact position where the printing plate should be placed is determined. For example, in the embodiment shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, a cursor unit 46 is used to index a predetermined position. That is, the horizontal substrate 36
A tracing paper 122 is preferably pasted on top with adhesive tape 124 (see Figure 6a),
The servo motors built into the unit drive main body 44 and the slider 58 are controlled to rotate as appropriate to move the plotter 62 to the X on the tracing paper 122.
By moving the plotter 62 freely in the -Y coordinate system and driving the plotter 62 up and down at a desired position, it is possible to determine an accurate position for placing the printing plate and to perform marking. In addition, if the cursor unit 46 is not placed on the first unit 26, use a drafting table to find an accurate predetermined position for placing the printing plate on the tracing paper cut to a certain size. Then, this tracing paper may be attached to a fixed position on the horizontal substrate 36.

Next, a printing plate 38 with, for example, double-sided tape 126 pasted on the back side is prepared, and this printing plate 38 is placed upside down at the indexed predetermined position on the horizontal substrate 36 (see FIG. 6b). . In the end, printing plate 38 is
It is left still with the protruding surface of the type characters in contact with the horizontal substrate 36 and the back surface to which the double-sided tape 126 is attached facing upward.

Also, the vacuum suction box 68 in the second unit 28
The film base 74 fed out from the roll 96 is placed horizontally on the downward suction surface 70, and the tip of the film is engaged with the pinned roller 102 to position it, and then the vacuum suction box 68 is vacuum-suctioned. Then, the film base 74 is suctioned and held horizontally against the downward suction surface 70. and the first
If the unit 26 is moved together with the cart 34 on the parallel rails 30 and brought close to the second unit 28 (see FIG. 6c), the horizontal board 36 is moved as described above.
Since the horizontal level is lower than the downward suction surface 70 of the vacuum suction box 68, the horizontal substrate 36
passes below the downward suction surface 70. Therefore, if the first unit 26 is stopped at a predetermined position, the printing plate 38 placed upside down on the horizontal substrate 36 will be placed on the downward suction surface 7 as shown in FIG. 6d.
It is located directly below the film base 74 which is held by suction at zero.

Next, the vacuum suction box lifting mechanism described above is activated. That is, when the cylinder 90 is energized to lower the rack 94, the pinions 84 are driven, and each pinion 8 meshing with the rack support column 76 is driven.
0 is also driven counterclockwise, the vacuum suction box 68 descends horizontally, and the film base 74 is eventually moved toward the printing plate 3.
8 (see Fig. 6e). The descending stroke of the vacuum suction box 68 can be adjusted as appropriate depending on the thickness of the printing plate 38, and a stopper or other safety mechanism is installed to prevent excessive pressing force from being applied to the printing plate 38 and damaging it. is installed.

When the film base 74 comes into pressure contact with the back side of the printing plate 38 in this way, the double-sided tape 126 provided on the back side of the printing plate (instead of double-sided tape, a suitable adhesive may be applied) is removed. Through the printing plate 38
is reliably bonded to the film base 74. Moreover, the printing plate 38 is placed at a predetermined index position on the horizontal substrate 36, and the tip of the film base 74 is set in advance to be at a predetermined position corresponding to the stop position of the horizontal substrate 36. By bringing the film base 74 into contact with the back surface of the printing plate, the printing plate 38 is pasted onto the film base 74 at a predetermined position. Next, in this state, the vacuum suction box 68 is raised to a fixed position by the rack and pinion mechanism, and the first unit 26 is retreated from the second unit 28.
The printing plate pasting work as a cycle is completed.

Note that in the embodiment apparatus shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, a film base wound into a roll was used to form the plate surface of a belt-type printing machine.
When forming a printing plate for a rotary printing press as shown in the figure, it is sufficient to engage a film base cut to a predetermined size in a predetermined position on a downward suction surface and vacuum suction, and no major changes are required in the mechanism. do not have.
In addition, the plates for belt-type printing machines are generally long, but the surface dimension of the downward suction surface 70 cannot be made very large, so it is impossible to attach all the printing plates to the film base in one operation. There are many cases.
At this time, as shown in FIG. 4, the film base 74 on which the printing plate has been pasted is fed out by a fixed distance above the vacuum suction box 68, and new film bases are continuously brought onto the downward suction surface 70, and the same Further, in the illustrated embodiment, the first unit 26 moves horizontally toward the second unit 28, and the vacuum suction box 68 of the second unit 28 moves toward the horizontal substrate of the first unit 26. 36, but since these operations are relative, it goes without saying that the configuration may be reversed. That is, even if the second unit 28 moves horizontally towards the first unit 26 and the horizontal substrate 36 of the first unit 26 approaches the vacuum suction box 68 of the second unit 28 upwardly, , it is possible to eliminate work irregularities during lamination and to achieve a significant improvement in work efficiency.

Effects of the Invention As described above, according to the method of attaching a printing plate to a film base and the apparatus for carrying out the method according to the present invention, the method of attaching a printing plate to a film base according to the present invention enables The work of pasting the printing plate onto the base can be mechanized all at once, thereby eliminating work irregularities during pasting and achieving a significant improvement in work efficiency. In addition, since the film base is held by suction by the vacuum suction box, it is possible to effectively prevent positional displacement during attachment of the printing plate.

Further, since the pasting operation can be carried out by bringing the film base and the printing plate close to each other while facing each other in parallel, the entire printing plate can be brought into contact with the film base with uniform pressure. That is, when a printing plate is attached to a film base, it is possible to prevent the attachment position from shifting due to uneven pressure being applied to the printing plate.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

Fig. 1 is a schematic explanatory diagram of mounting a printing plate on the plate cylinder of a rotary printing press, Fig. 2 is a schematic configuration diagram of a belt-type printing press, and Fig. 3 is a printing plate pasting device on a film base according to an embodiment. 4 is a schematic perspective view of the configuration of the embodiment apparatus, FIG. 5 is an explanatory view showing an example of fixed position indexing means for placing a printing plate, and FIGS. 6 a to e
FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram showing each step of a method for attaching a printing plate to a film base according to the present invention. 26...Print plate positioning device, 28...Film base holding device, 36...Horizontal substrate, 68...Vacuum suction box.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A predetermined position for placing the printing plate 38 on the upper surface of the horizontal substrate 36 is determined, and the printing plate 38 with the adhesive means 126 applied to the back side is placed.
The downward suction surface 70 of the vacuum suction box 68 is placed upside down at the predetermined position on the upper surface of the horizontal substrate 36, and is located above the level of the upper surface of the horizontal substrate 36.
Then, the film base 74 is held horizontally by vacuum suction, and the horizontal substrate 36 and the vacuum suction box 68 are brought relatively close to each other in the horizontal direction. The back surface of the printing plate 38 is brought into contact with the film base 74 by placing the horizontal substrate 36 and the vacuum suction box 68 relatively close to each other in the vertical direction. A method for attaching a printing plate to a film base, characterized in that the printing plate is attached to a predetermined position of the film base 74 via the adhesive means 126. 2. A printing plate positioning device 26 as a first unit having a horizontal substrate 36 on which a predetermined position for placing the printing plate 38 is determined and on which the printing plate 38 is placed upside down; and a film. Film base holding device 2 as a second unit having a vacuum suction box 68 that vacuum suctions the base 74 onto the downward suction surface 70 and holds it horizontally.
8, and the upper surface of the horizontal substrate 36 in the first unit 26 is connected to the vacuum suction box 6 in the second unit 28.
The horizontal level is set to be slightly lower than the downward suction surface 70 of the vacuum suction box 68, and both units 26 and 28 are relatively close to each other in the horizontal direction, so that the horizontal substrate 36 is parallel to and directly below the vacuum suction box 68. 1. A printing plate pasting device for a film base, characterized in that it is configured such that both units 26 and 28 can approach each other by a predetermined stroke relative to each other in the vertical direction.