US1108223A - Rotary lithographic-printing machine. - Google Patents

Description

R. P. & J. W. PAYNE. ROTARY LITHOGRAPHIG PRINTING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED HAB.29, 1913.

Patented Aug. 25, 1914.

2 SHEETSSHEET 1.

R. P. & J. W. PAYNE.

ROTARY LITHOGRAPHIG PRINTING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED MAR.29, 1913.

' Patented Aug. 25, 1914.

2 SHEETSSHEET 2.

RAYMOND PERCIVAL PAYNE AND JOHN WILLIAM PAYNE, LEEDS, ENGLAND.

ROTARY LITHOGRAPHIC-PRINTING MACHINE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented. Aug. 25, 1914.

Application filed March 29, 1913. Serial No. 757,569.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, RAYMOND PERCIVAL PAYNE and JOHN WILLIAM PAYNE, both subjects of the King of Great Britain, residing at Leeds, in the county of York, England, engineers, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Rotary Lithographic-Printing Machines, and of which the following is a specification.

This invention has reference to rotary lithographic offset printing machines such as are employed for printing upon paper, card or the like either in the form of sheets or from a continuous roll, or upon sheets of metal or like hard substance which can be bent around a cylinder. Hitherto, the impression cylinder in these known machines has been of a diameter equal to or a submultiple of that of the transfer and planographic cylinders; but in employing a machine having its cylinders so arranged, it has only been possible to print one sheet in one color per each revolution of the impression cylinder-or one sheet per every two revolutions of the impression cylinder when printing in two colors.

Now the object of this resent invention is to construct a rotary lithographic offset printing machine in such a manner as to render the same capable of printing two or more sheets in one, 'two or more colors simultaneously per each revolution of the impression cylinder.

According to our invention, the machine 1S provided with an impression cyllnder of a diameter whichis a multiple of that of either. the transfer or planographic cylinders or both and having on its periphery two or more impression surfaces, each of which latter, in the case Where the material to be printed is in sheet form, is fitted with a complete set of gripping and releasing machanism with grippers to hold the sheet upon the said impression cylinder. The proportional increase in diameter given to the impression cylinder over that of the transfer and planographic cylinders enables one, two' or more of said transfer and planographic cylinders to be grouped around its periphery whereby the machine is rendered capable of printing two or morevsheets in one, two or more colors simultaneously per each revolu- Such a machine, by bringing into use any i or all of the printing surfaces and by suitable ad-justments'of the gripping and releasing mechanisms, can be arranged to print in one, two or more colors upon either side or both sides of the material according to the immediate requirements of the machine operator.

In the accompanying drawings the two figures, which are shown by way of example, are diagrammatic sections through the cylinders of printing machines constructed according to the invention.

Figure 1 represents a machine adapted for printing in one or two colors upon one or both sides of the material. a and a are planographic cylinders carrying the respective designs on printing plates ,0 of zinc, aluminium or like material secure y fastened to the respective planographic cylinders a and a by adjustable clamps 2', each planographic cylinder being provided with a complete set of damping and inking mechanism 12. and 0 respectively for damping and inking the printing plates p in the known lithographic manner; and the said planographlc cylinders may be ada ted for both lateral and circumferential a justment for obtaining register with each other. 6 and b are intermediate transfer cylinders covered with rubber or like material of a suitable nature to receive inked impressions from the printing plates 70 on the respective lanogra hic,

cylinders a and a at each revo ution o the said planographic and transfer cylinders, when the latter are in printing position.

The transfer cylinders 79 and 6 having been put into printing position by eccentrics g operating in known manner, receive as they rotate inked impressions from the printingplates p with which they are associated and subsequently transfer the said inked impressions to the material to be printed, which is carried on and by an impression cylinder G. This cylinder 0 is provided with two or more impression surfaces 25 (in the drawing two only are shown) covered with rubber or like material each printing surface 2? being provided with a complete set of gripping mechanism h, g, f; while 6 is the feed board on which is supported the material to be printed in sheet form.

The impression cylinder G is common to both the transfer cylinders 72 and b and is twice the diameter of the transfer and planographic cylinders; while the grippers f on the shafts g are operated by the grooved slides h secured on the ends of the said shafts g which, as the impression cylinder C rotates, engage fixed pins j and 70 to close and open the grippers f.

When printing in one or two colors upon one side of the material, the sheets to be printed are fed down the feed board e, being automatically gripped by the grippers f and carried around by the impression cylinder C as it rotates until printing contact is made between the sheet to be printed and the transfer cylinders b and 5 After the sheet has made printing contact with the transfer cylinder 5 the grippers f are opened by pin 70 engaging the grooved slide it, thereby releasing the printed sheet and allowing it to pass to the delivery 7'.

When printing upon both sides of the material in the positive hand, the impression cylinder 0 becomes both an impression and transfer cylinder, and as it rotates is allowed to make alternate revolutions without sheets being taken from the feed board e. During the first revolution of the impression cylinder C the transfer cylinder 6 only is put by its eccentric g into printing position, subsequently making printing contact with the rubber-covered printing surfaces 6 on the impression cylinder C. Transfer cylinder 5 is then automatically tripped by its eccentric g, and at each succeeding alternate revolution of the impression cylinder 0 sheets are taken by the grippers f and carried around by the impression cylinder 0 (transfer cylinder b having been put meanwhile by its eccentric 9 into printing position), the sheet being conveyed around and printed simultaneously upon both sides by coming into a double printing contact with the inked impressions on the transfer cylinder 5 on the outer side and with the inked impressions on the rubber-covered printing surfaces 25 of the impression cylinder C on the inner side. After the sheet has made printing' contact with the transfer cylinder 5 the gripper f are opened by the pin 70 engaging the grooved slide it, thereby releasing the printed sheet and allowing it to pass to the delivery 1*.

Either of the transfer cylinders b and b may be caused to remain out of printing position when it is desired to print in one color only; while in all cases where the sheet is printed in the positive hand on the inner side through the rubber-covered printing surfaces 25, the designs on the printing plates p to which they refer are in the negative hand.

Fig. 2 represents a machine fed from a reel u for printing in one, two or three colors; all the cylinders having continuous printing surfaces with the exception of narrow apertures w through which pass the printing plates 39 and rubber blankets to be secured in the respective cylinders. The cylinders in this example revolve in the op posite direction to those shown in Fig. 1, the damping mechanism n being altered to suit the opposite rotation of the cylinders.

When operating the machine, the transfer cylinders 6 b 6 are thrown out of printing position by the eccentrics g and the lanographic cylinders a a a carrying their respective printing plates 39 are then allowed to rotate until the said plates are fully damped and inked by the damping and inking mechanisms n and 0. The machine is then slowed down and the material to be printed in web form is conveyed by hand from the reel u'around jockey rollers w and threaded between the transfer cylinders 6 b 6 and impression cylinder G into the cutting and drawing cylinders o. The transfer cylinders 6 V, b are now put by the eccentrics q into printing position, and the machine subsequently set running at full speed; the web after receiving inked impressions as it comes into printing contact with the transfer cylinders passes between the rotating cutting cylinders 11 where it is severed into sheet form, subsequently passing to the delivery 8.

Multicolor printing on both sides of the .web is effected, in said reel-fed machine, Fig.

2, by employing additional planographic cylinders a a (with their requisite damping and inking mechanisms n 0) having printing contact with the rubber-covered surfaces on the impression cylinder C at a point prior to where the web enters the machine from the reel M. In the arrangement shown the web enters and leaves the machine as when printing on one side of the web only, as above described.

What we claim as our invention and desire to secure by Letters Patent is A rotary lithographic ofiset printing machine for the production of multi-color printing continuously and simultaneously upon one side or both sides of the material to-be printed upon,-comprising in combina- In witness whereof We have hereunto set tion a plurality of planographic and transour hands in the presence of two Witnesses. fer cylinders arranged around a common lmpression cylinder having a plurality of RAYMOND PEROIVAL PAYNE. 5 rubber-covered printing surfaces capable of JOHN WILLIAM PAYNE.

receiving inked impressions from any of the contactingcylinders, said impression cyl- Witnesses: inder being of a diameter divisible equally JOHN Jownrr, by the diameter of both the planographic VANCE EWART GALLOWAY.

10 and the transfer cylinders.

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