JPH0363953B2 - - Google Patents

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to printing presses, and more particularly to an ink fountain with a new and improved device for metering ink to an ink fountain roller.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Devices are known which extend along the ductor roller of a printing press and meter the ink to the roller. Such devices typically each independently
It includes segments that can be moved toward or away from the roller to adjust the amount of ink delivered to each area of the roller. Such examples include, for example, U.S. Patent No.
No. 3312166, No. 3559573, No. 3978788, No.
It is disclosed in No. 4000695 and No. 4058058.
In such devices, e.g.
As disclosed in Nos. 4241691 and 4328748,
A spring is used to bias the metering segment toward the roller, and an actuator is used to oppose the spring to bias the segment away from the roller.

For good functioning of such devices, it is necessary to adjust the position of the metering lip relative to the rollers very precisely. For example, if the metering edge is not strictly parallel to the roller, the ink film on the roller will vary along the edge. Furthermore, when a screw-type actuator is used, accurate control cannot be achieved due to the backlash of the screw threads.

OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to provide an ink fountain that allows accurate control of the ink film on the ink fountain roller.

Structure of the Invention That is, the ink fountain according to the present invention includes: a rotatably supported roller; a tray member provided adjacent to the roller; and an ink fountain movable toward and away from the roller in one plane. a plurality of metering segments attached to the member and forming, together with the gutter member and the roller, an ink reservoir for storing ink to be applied to the surface of the roller as the roller rotates; a metering actuator associated with the metering segment; a nut set in a transverse hole formed between the leading and trailing edges of the metering segment with which each actuator is associated in a direction generally perpendicular to said plane, with a central axis generally perpendicular to said plane; a nut having a cylindrical outer surface having a cylindrical outer surface such that an associated metering segment can pivot about the nut; and a nut extending generally in the direction of movement of the metering segment and threadably engaged with the nut and connected to the groove member. a metering actuator comprising a threaded screw; and means for relatively rotating said nut and screw in one and opposite directions to move said associated segment toward or away from the roller; are spaced apart from each other by a predetermined distance to enable the above-mentioned pivot movement.

Embodiments Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in detail based on embodiments shown in the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 1 shows an ink fountain according to the invention in its normal operating position. The ink fountain has a frame or housing 10, which frame is journaled on a pivot 11,
It is releasably secured in the illustrated operative position by a toggle device 12. In the operating position, the metering segment 13 is positioned adjacent the surface 14 of the roller 16. The roller is supported on a shaft 17 and is rotatable.

As the roller is rotated counterclockwise, the ink in the ink well 18 is carried along the surface of the roller through the metering lip 19 and transferred to another row (not shown).

A plurality of similar metering segments 13 are included in frame 1.
8 to create an ink film of desired thickness on the roller surface 14. Each segment can independently adjust its position relative to the roller, allowing the thickness of the ink film on the roller to be individually adjusted.

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the metering segment 13 is a rectangular block with an upper surface 21 and a lower surface 2.
2, the lower surface of which engages with the support surface 23 of the frame 10. The measuring edge 19 has a top surface 21 and a front end surface 24.
It is formed by the intersecting edges of the

A spacer plate 26 is arranged across the width of the frame 10 behind the segments 13 and is supported by the support surface 23 of the frame 10.
The thickness of the spacer plate 26 is the measurement segment 1
A cover plate 27, which has a thickness slightly greater than 3 and is attached to the upper surface of the plate 26, extends with a slight gap over the upper surface of the metering segment 13, allowing adjustment of the metering segment 13. Cover plate and support surface 23
form a guide surface for guiding the metering segment so that it can adjust its position relative to the roller 14.

The spacer plate 26 has a stepped hole 31 that is aligned with the center of each metering segment 13 and defines a shoulder 32 rearwardly spaced from the rear surface 33 of the segment 13. Spring 34 extends within stepped hole 31 between shoulder 32 and the rear surface of segment 13. Spring 34 is compressed to bias the metering segment toward roller surface 14 .

A screw actuator is provided for each metering segment, which actuator has a screw 36 with a thread 37 at its front end. The screw 36 passes through the stepped hole 31 and the spring 34 with a gap and enters a blind hole 38 in the segment 13. The blind hole 38 has a gap with respect to the screw 36.

The nut 39 has a threaded hole 41 that receives the thread 37 of the screw 36. The nut is formed with a cylindrical outer surface 42 and inserted into a transverse hole 43 provided in metering segment 13. Such a cylindrical nut and a transverse hole are pivotally connected between the nut 39 and the metering segment 13. The height of the nut 39 is smaller than the thickness of the segment 13 (FIG. 3) so that it floats freely within the transverse hole 43.

A shoulder 46 is provided at the rear end of the screw 36 and is normally engaged by a spring 34 to a rear surface 47 of the spacer plate 26. This engagement restricts the screw 36 from moving to the right (as viewed in FIGS. 2 and 3) into the position shown.

To adjust the metering segment 13, each screw is provided with a motor 51 having an output shaft 52 (FIG. 3) that fits into a hole 53 in the outer end 54 of the screw. The shaft 52 has a transverse pin 56 that enters an axially extending slot 57 in the rear end of the screw.
The transverse pin 56 is spaced from the inner end of the slot and the drive shaft 52 is spaced from the inner end of the bore 53 to allow screw 36 to move to the left from the position shown.

In the illustrated construction, each spring 34 urges a segment 13 toward the roller surface 14.
The screw 36 together with the nut 39 can be adjusted to move the metering segment 13 away from the roller surface 14 against the action of the spring 34. All backlash of the threads of screw 36 and nut 39 is compensated by the spring force. Each metering segment 13 can thus be precisely adjusted relative to the roller surface 14 by means of screws and nuts 39.

To ensure that all play due to backlash etc. is eliminated, each spring 34 is designed to develop sufficient spring force to overcome any hydrodynamic forces on the segment, and by adjustment of the actuator. To enable precise determination of the position of the segment.

Due to the adjustment device of the metering segment, no excessive forces are generated. After the metering segment has engaged the roller, if the screw 36 is rotated in a direction that pushes the metering segment further, the screw simply moves rearward and the shoulder 46 separates from the rear end face 47 of the plate 26. The maximum engagement force between the edge 19 of the metering segment and the roller surface 14 is therefore the force exerted by the spring. Such forces do not damage the roller surface or the metering segment.

Furthermore, because the nut is cylindrical and rotatably positioned within the transverse bore 43, the actuator does not exert any forces on the metering segment except for forces in the axial direction of the screw. Each metering segment is thus left free to float relative to the gutter housing assembly and properly aligned with the roller surface 14. Small deviations in the dimensions of the parts of the device do not adversely affect the ink metering.

Preferably, the metering segment is dimensioned to form a small transverse gap within the device, such that such gap is filled with grease to prevent ink leakage. See US Pat. No. 4,000,695 for this grease system.

FIG. 4 shows the toggle device 12 released, allowing the housing 10 to pivot downwardly about the pivot 11, allowing the metering segment to be easily removed. In this position, the cover plate is separated from the roller by at least the length of the metering segment. When removing the metering segment, rotate the screw so that the nut 39 clears the end of the screw 36. Then, lift the segment as shown by the dashed line and remove it. Insert a replacement segment and thread the screw into the nut on that segment. Thereafter, the housing 10 is returned to the operating position of FIG. 1 and the toggle device 12 locks the housing.

Effects of the Invention As can be seen from the description, in the ink fountain according to the present invention, the bumps and gaps that occur between parts such as the actuator and the metering segment are eliminated by the biasing of the spring, so that the metering segment can be adjusted accurately and , it is not necessary to make the manufacturing tolerances of these parts very strict, so manufacturing costs can be reduced. Also, the maximum force that the metering segment can apply to the rollers is limited to the spring force so that it does not damage those parts. In addition, since the nut constituting the actuator is rotatably provided within the metering segment, the metering segment is basically only subjected to force in the direction towards or away from the roller, ensuring accurate alignment of the segment to the roller. Become something. Further, in this device, since the grate housing assembly can be moved as a unit, maintenance of the metering segment can be performed without disassembling other parts.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a side view of an ink fountain according to the present invention;
2 is a view taken along line 2--2 in FIG. 1; FIG. 3 is a longitudinal sectional view of the ink fountain; and FIG. 4 is a side view of the ink fountain in the maintenance position. 13...Measuring segment; 16...Roller; 1
8...Tail member; 34...Spring; 36...Screw;
39...Natsuto.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A rotatably supported roller; a trough member provided adjacent to the roller; a trough member attached to the trough member so as to be movable toward and away from the roller in one plane; a plurality of metering segments forming, together with the member and the roller, an ink reservoir for storing ink to be applied to the surface of the roller as the roller rotates; metering actuators associated with the metering segments, each actuator having an associated metering segment; a nut set in a transverse hole extending in a direction substantially perpendicular to said plane between the leading and trailing edges of a metering segment having a cylindrical outer surface having a central axis substantially perpendicular to said plane; a metering nut having an associated metering segment pivotable about the nut; and a screw threadably engaged with the nut and extending generally in the direction of movement of the metering segment and connected to the gutter member. an actuator; means for relatively rotating the nut and screw in one direction and the opposite direction to move the associated segment toward or away from the roller; An inkwell characterized in that the inkwells are spaced apart from each other at a predetermined distance so that the inkwells can be placed at predetermined intervals. 2. An ink fountain according to claim 1, wherein the metering segment can be removed by unscrewing the nut. 3. An ink fountain according to claim 2, wherein the gutter member is mounted for pivoting between an operating position and a maintenance position, such that the required metering segment can be removed with the gutter member in the maintenance position. . 4. An ink fountain according to claim 3, wherein the trough member is fixable in the operating position. 5 The means for relatively rotating the nut and screw includes a motor for rotating the screw;
An ink fountain as claimed in claim 1, further comprising means for allowing relative rotation between the motor and the screw. 6. An ink fountain as claimed in claim 1, wherein said metering segment is biased towards a roller by a spring. 7. The ink fountain according to claim 1, wherein the height of the nut is smaller than the height of the transverse hole and is floated within the transverse hole.