US1540295A - Art of making one-piece window envelopes - Google Patents

Description

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w. E. swam- ART OF MAKING ONE-PIECE WINDOW ENVELOPES' June 2, 1

Filed July 1, 1921 Patented June 2, 1925.

UNITED STATES I 1,540,395 PATENT OFFICE.

WILLARD E. SWIFT, OF WORCESTER, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR TO UNITED STATES ENVELOPE COMPANY, OF SPRINGFIELD, MASSACHUSETTS, A CORPORATION 0]? MAIN E.

ART OF MAKING ONE-PIECE WINDOW ENVELOPES.

Application filed July 1,

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, WILLARD E. Swim, a citizen of the United States, reslding at Worcester, in the county of Worcester and Commonwealth of Massachusetts, have invented a new and useful Improvement in the Art of Making One-Piece Window Envelopes, of which the following, together with the accompanying drawings, is a specification.

The present invention relates to the manufacture of window envelopes of the one piece type, viz, those in which an integral portion of the face of the envelope is rendered transparent or semi-transparent, for the disclosure through same of the address on the enclosure. Such window envelopes are to be distinguished from the two piece type, wherein a separate transparent patch 1s secured, b adhesive or the like, over an opening cut 1n the face of the envelope.

The process of making a one piece window envelope involves, among other things, the treatment of a portion of the envelope blank with a suitable penetrating varnish which has the faculty of so reacting on the fibers of the paper as to partially destroy the opaque character of the same. Such varnish is applied, preferably, to the inside surface of the flat or extended envelope blank, so that when said blank is folded, the outer surface of the envelope is devoid of the stickiness that the use of such a varnish inevitably entails. Heretofore in the manufacture of one piece window envelopes, the application of the varnish, for the purpose of producing a transparent or a semi-transparent window in the unfolded blank has been carried out as a separate, detached, and independent step in the manufacture of such envelo es; after receiving their imprints of varnis 1, the blanks have to be removed separately from the imprinting mechanism and placed in trays, in such manner as to revent their sticking together or smearlng. The trays are then placed in an oven and after the varnish has penetrated and has sufliciently dried the trays are removed and the blanks are assembled, by hand, into stacks, in readiness for the subsequent folding operation. The manufacture of one iece window envelopes by the process above described is wasteful of time, space and 1921, Serial 1W0. 4a1,s5a.

material; moreover, it requires a large amount of special equipment, in the form' their stacking, preparatory to folding, be-.

ing accomplished automatically, by a series of related steps. Themode or manner in which such continuous manufacture is obtained, will be fully set forth in the following description, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, wherein Figure 1 is a sectional representation of the connected 'instrumentalities for successively conveying, imprinting, drying and stacking the blanks, in accordance with the invention.

Figure 2 is a perspective diagrammatic showing of the successive steps in the treatment of the blanks.

Like reference characters refer to like parts in the different figures.

As indicated at the left hand side of Fig. 1, a suitable stack of untreated blanks, represented by the numeral 1, is disposed in operative relation to a, suction of other pickup mechanism 2, the blanks being uniformly arranged in the stack 1 with their inside surfaces uppermost, The pick-u mechanism 2 may be of any type, well known in the art, and adapted to seize successive topmost blanks of the stack 1, and present them, flatwise, to a suitable feeding mechanism 3, here shown as consisting of horizontal sets of endless belts or bands 4, 4, which run on suitable rollers 5, 5. Each blank as conveyed flatwise on the feeding mechanism 3, is adapted, before its delivery from said feeding mechanism to be definitely centered and squared; any suitable means may be employed for this purpose, as for instance a set of gaging stops 6 which are moved by a cam 6' intermittently, into and out of the path of the successively fed blanks.

Disposed in relation to receive the inditutes a bed plate, being suitably covered for this purpose, and it is also provided with a gripper 10, the latter operating 1n synchronlsm with the gripper 8 of cylinder-,7, so that when said gripper 8 is opened to release the blank, the gripper 10 closes thereon and thus secures the transfer of the blank from the cylinder 7 to the cylinder 9, the latter rotating in a counterclockwise dlrection.

I It is to be noted that the blanks have their inside surfaces uppermost on the cylinder 7,.

but when transferred to the cylinder 9 their outside surfaces are uppermost. This affords opportunity for printing on the face of the envelope a suitable margin to define the transparency, as indicated at 11, Fig.

2. Such printing, while the blank is sup ported on the bed late afforded by cylinder 9, may be accomp ished by the cooperatio'n of a printing 0 linder 12, the latter carrying a sultable ova or rectangular printing die 13 which receives its supply ofink, at each revolution, from suitable transfer mechanism of well known form, here shown as composition rollers 14, 14, cooperating with a feed cylinder 15, the latter being supplied by a vibrating roller 16 from an ink fountain 17. These printing instrumentalities, per se, form no part of the present invention, and hence need not be described in detail.

After each blank has received on its outer surface the printed margin, it is carried by the cylinder 9 and gripper '10 into tangenial relation to a third feed cylinder 18, the latter having a grip er 19 which closes on the forward edge of t 1e blank as the latter is released by the gripper 10. The cylinder 18 acts as a bed plate for a die 20 on a var- ,nish imprinting cylinder 21, the die 20 being of the size and shape suitable for imprinting an oval or rectangular window or transparency in the blank, as shown at 22, Fig. 2. The operation of the several arts is so synchronized that the die 20 whic receives at each revolution a supply of var-* nish from transfer rolls 23, 23, is brought into contact with the blank'on cylinder 18 just as the printed impression 11 becomes tangent to the cylinder 21. The varnish penetrates the fibers of the paper, being 'prevented from spreading bv the printed margin; thereafter said blank is transferred to a final gripper cylinder 24, whose gripper 25 releases the blank as the latter approaches the plane of a horizontal conveying mechanism 26.

Said conveying mechanism 26 is shown here in the form of a pair of endless chains 27 27 the latter providing suitable spaced pins or projections 28, 28, which move the at blanks along suitable stationary bars or skids 29, 29. Chains 27, 27, pass over guide pulleys 30, 30, at each end of the conveying mechanism. Intermediate said guide pulleys the chains pass through an elongated heating chamber or oven 31, the latter providing any suitable heating means, such as steam, gas, or electricity, for assisting the penetration and for evaporatin the excess moisture in the varnish. The eating chamber 31 may be as long as required for this purpose, it being understood that the blanks are successively conveyed therethrough in a continuous manner by the conveying mechanism, so as to emerge from the right hand end of said heating chamber in a substantially dried condition. Chains 27,27, deliver the blanks one by one, to gripping devices 32, 32, here shown as'applied to an overhead band or belt 33,; the movement of the latter causes the release of the gripper 32, by a cam 34, ust as the blank is registered over a set of guide rods 35. Successive blanks pile up or collect in this way by gravity on a p ate 36, in a uniform stack, and are thus in readiness, without any handling whatsoever for resentation to folding devices not shown, 0 any well known type.

I claim,

1. The improvement in the art of making one-piece envelopes which consists in printing window margins on the outer surface of successive blanks, applying a liquid transparentizing material to the inner surfaces of said blanks, within the space defined by said printed margins, moving said treated blanks successively, with their inner surfaces uppermost, through a heated chamber to dry the same, and procuring their formation into a stack, by continuanceof said movement beyond said chamber.

2. The combination with means for applying a liquid transparentizing substance to successively fed envelope blanks, of a travelling conveyor on which said treated blanks are successively deposited flatwise with their treated faces uppermost, a drying chamber through which said travelling conveyor passes, and means operable to remove successive blanks from said conveyor, and by further movement thereof to assemble theminto a stack or pile.

3. The herein described method of making one-piece window envelopes in a continuous manner, which consists in applying a liquid transparentizing substance to successively presented blanks, drying said blanks, successively, by movement of the lIU same, one by one, through a heated chamber and rocurin the stackin of saidblanks, by gravity, by continuance of said movement.

4. The combination with means for applying a liquid transparentizing substance to successively fed envelope blanks, of a travelling conveyor on which said treated blanks are successively deposited, a drying chamber through which said travelling conveyor passes, gripping means by which each blank is seized from above as it leaves said conveyor, and means for releasin said gripping means to permit the piling or stacking of said blanks by gravity.

Dated this 25th day of June, 1921.

WILLARD E. SWIFT,

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