US2676540A - Ductor roll controlling mechanism - Google Patents

Description

April 27, 1954 jw. FAEBER nuc'roa ROLL CONIROLLING MECHANISM 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Jan. 14, 1950 INVENTOR. HARRY w. FAEBER HIS ATTORNEYS.

April 1954 H; w. FAEBER DUCTOR ROLL CONTROLLING MECHANISM 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Jan. 14, 1950 .m winin j w l I I/ I l i INVENTOR. HARRY W. FAEBER 2,74! 9- $4M HIS ATTORNEYS.

April 7, 1954 H. w. FAEBER 2,676,540

DUCTOR ROLL. CONTROLLING MECHANISM Filed Jan. 14,1950 3 SheetsSheet 3 T0 IMPRESSION THROW-OFF SYSTEM POWER SUPPLY IN VEN TOR. WAR/2v W 515552 A TTORNEVS chine.

Patented Apr. 27, 1954 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 2,676,540 DUCTOR aoLL CONTROLLING MECHANISM Harry W. Faeber, Larchmont, N. Y., assignor to Time, Incorporated, New York, N. Y., a corporation of New York Application January 14,- 1950, Serial No. 138,617

for controlling the lateral movement of a ductor roll for a printing press or paper coating nia- It has become conventional practice to mount ductor rolls on oscillating arms. In modern high speed printing presses, ductor rolls so mounted must necessarily oscillate at high frequencies. "(In practice it has been found that ductor rolls mounted on arms oscillating at high frequencies have a tendency to bounce from the adjacent distributor or fountain roll instead of making 'firm contact with them.

In accordance with the present invention, a ductor roll is mounted for rotation and for lateral movement back and forth between a first terminal position, in which the ductor r011 makes contact with a fountain roll, and a second termi- --na1 position, in which the ductor roll makes contact with a distributor roll. In addition, means are provided for releasably locking the ductorg roll against lateral movement and thereby interrupting the transfer of ink or the like from a fountain roll to a distributor roll.

In a preferred embodiment of the invention,

each end of the ductor roll shaft is mounted-for rotation in a bearing which in turn is eccentri- -cally mounted in a housing that is adjustably secured to a stationary frame member of -:the machine, i. e., the ductor roll bearing is movable about an axis in the housing that is parallel to but laterally displaced from the axis of rotation of the ductor roll. The ductor roll bearing is mounted on an eccentric shaft member inthe housing and, during the operation of themachine, the shaft member is rocked back and forth through an angle of substantially 180 by the .By positioning the axis of the eccentric shaft I in such a manner that it lies in a plane of reference intersecting both terminal positions of-the ductor roll bearing and the axes of the adjacent fountain and distributor rolls, the ductor roll is momentarily locked against bouncing when it I makes contact with either of the two adjacent rolls.

A locking device is provided to selectively lock the eccentric shaft member against rotation on its own axis of rotation when the axis of rotation 6 Claims. (o1. 101,-351) 2 of the ductor roll isnear the terminal position adjacent the distributor roll. While the eccentric shaft member is so locked, thetransfer of ink or the like will be interrupted. In the preferred embodiment of the invention, means are provided automatically to actuate the locking device when, e. g., the web to be printed or coated is broken or the impression system is thrown into the off position. Upon release of the locking device, the ductor roll will be free to oscillate laterally between the distributor roll and the ductor roll.

One advantage of the present invention is that it provides an oscillating ductor roll mechanism that effectively and momentarily locks the ductor roll against lateral movement in each of its terminal positions and therefore insures firm contact with adjacent rolls and prevents objectionable bouncing.

Another advantage is that it provides a mechanism for automatically or manually interrupting the lateral movement of an oscillating ductor roll and consequently, of interrupting the transfer of ink or other material from a fountain roll to a distributor roll.

A further advantage is that it provides a mechanism for moving a ductor roll back and forth for alternate contact with a fountain roll and a distributor roll wherein the speed of lateral movement of the ductor roll follows a harmonic curve and the ductor roll is thus eased into a1- ternate contact with the adjacent rolls.

One embodiment of the mechanism of this invention is illustrated, by way of example only, in the accompanying drawing wherein:

Figure 1 is a plan view of the device as mounted on one side of the frame only;

Figure 2 is a part sectional view in elevation of the mechanism illustrated in Figure 1 taken along section line 2-2;

Figure 3 is a detailed end view in elevation of the bearing for a ductor roll;

Figure 4 is apart sectional end view in elevation taken along section line 4--4 of Figure 2;

Figure 5 is a sectional view in elevation take on section line 5-5 of Figure 1; and

Figure 6 is a schematic illustration of an auto matic control system for actuating the locking device.

While the following description of the invention with reference to the drawing describes a preferred embodiment of the mechanism as it is applied to one side of the machine, it is to be .understood that, a similar device will be utilized at the other side of the machine to support the other end of the ductor roll. The description of the invention will be confined to one of these mechanisms only in order to avoid unnecessary duplication.

Referring now to the drawing, one end of a ductor roll I is shown supported in a split journal ductor roll bearing I having an eccentric shaft member I2 extending into a housing I4 secured aidjustably to a frame member I5 by bolts I'I passing through slots IS in the base of the housing. One end of a lateral adjusting screw 21 is in threaded engagement with the housing I4 at 22 and the other end is provided with a flange member 23 and hexagonal head member 24- rotatably secured against axial movement relative to the frame member I6 by means of a bracket 26.

The shaft member I2 of the ductor roll bearing I I is mounted for rotation in the housing Hand,

one end thereof is provided with a gear 21 that meshes with the spur-gear 23 of; an idler shaft s -A pinion 3! keyed by key 32 to the auxiliary Shaft 36 is in meshing engagement with a springbiased rack 34 slideable vertically in'the housing I4 and actuated by a rocker arm 36 attached to a rocker shaft 31-.

, The lower end of the rack 34 is provided with a moose 38 engageable, when the rack is just belowits upper terminal position, by a locking finger 39 pivoted ona stud 40 and actuated by a springbiased control rod 4| provided with spring 42, a washer 43, a stop 44, a pair of notches 4G and 41, ,and a knob 48. To allow the finger 39 to enter the recess 38, the relationship of the recess to the rack 34 is such that the top of the recess 38 is slightly-above the engagement-position with the locking finger when ductor roll I6 is in contact with the distributor roll. The clearance between the recess 38 and the finger 39, whilein engagement, is sufficient to permit the rocker arm 36 to move t'oits uppermost position in 'a succeeding stroke without subjecting any of the working to excessive stress. The rod 4| is movable through a guard member 48 having a fixed plate 50 adapted to engage with the notches 46 and 41.

.- a In operation, each end of 'theshaft IIlaof the ductor roll I3 is rotatably secured in the split journal bearing II by tightening the wing nut "56 to close the cap552., If itis desired toistop the oscillating motion of thegductor-roll til for interrupting the ink ifeed, notch-411s lifted out of engagement with plate it by: means of .kndb348. .Then, when the-rack 34 is just below its 'uppermost position, as shown in phantom in Figure 4, the control rod 4| is urged, by spring .42, to engage the finger 39 with the'recess 38 so as to prevent urther substantial eccentric movement of the ductor roll bearing I I about the longitudinal axis of the shaft member I2, the clearance between the finger 39 and the top and bottom'of the recess -38 being sufficient, however, to permit the rocker 'arm 36 to continue its motion without subjecting any of the parts to excessive stress or damage.

, .TIIh control rod M will then be-lockd in'the pos iati'on shown-in phantom in'Figuresrrsnd zby en- 4 gagement of the plate 50 with the recess 46. When the locking finger 39 is disengaged from the recess 38 by disengaging notch 46 and moving the control rod 4| to engage with the other notch 41, the rack 34 and the ductor roll II) are free to resume their respective motions.

When the machine is set into operation, the rockershaft 31 acting through rocker arm 36 in cooperation with the spring 62 acting on the rack 34 will cause the rack to reciprocate in a vertical direction. The gear teeth 35 on the rack 34 engage with the pinion 3I of the auxiliary shaft 30 to impart a rocking motion thereto and the gear 29 on said auxiliary shaft 30 engages with the I gear 2''! on the shaft member I2 so as to transmit the rocking motion to the ductor roll bearing II.. Due to the eccentricity of the ductor roll bearing relative to the shaft member I2, the cen ter line of the ductor roll will be displaced laterally from one side of the center line of the shaft member to the other and so on so that the ductor roll will come into alternate contact with the fountain roll BI and the distributor roll In the preferred embodiment, the eccentric shaft member I2 is rocked back and forth through an angle of substantially 180 so that the axis of the ductor roll will lie in a plane of reference intersecting the axe of the shaft member I2, the distributor roll and, the fountain roll when the ductor roll reaches a terminal position adjacent either of the other rolls. The shaft member I2 is therefore directly in line with reaction force applied to the ductor roll when it makes contact with an adjacent roll and thereby momentarily locks the ductor roll against bouncing.

It is within the scope of this invention to actuate the locking mechanism automatically so that the transfer of ink or other liquid will bev interrupted immediately upon interruption of the printing operation for any reason. One embodiment of an apparatus to accomplish this desirable result is illustrated in Figure 6. In this arrangement, wherein a plate cylinder, impression cylinder and Web, are shown schematically and designated by reference numerals B2, 64 and 65, respectively, a Web follower 61, mounted on a lever I53 of a web break detector switch pivoted at I0, is urged by a spring 1| tobear against the moving web 56. The control rod 4Ia, which is slideably -mounted in a fixed guard member 49a or the like, i normally urged in an inwardly direction by a compression spring 42a hearing at one'end against member 491'; and at the other against a collar 44a secured to the rod. If the web 66 should break, the spring H will cause the lever arm 69 to rotate in a clockwise direction about the fulcrum "l0 and open'an electrical circuit to deenergize a solenoid l2 'andthereby releasethe rod 4Ia for '-r'n'ovement' inwardly under the influence of the compression spring 42 a and urge the finger-'33 to engage thereces's and thereby lock thc ductor "roll against furtlie'rsubstantial lateral motion.

When the web is replaced in operative position, the circuit is closed again by the web detector switch and the solenoid 12 is energized to withdraw the finger 39 from engagement with the recess 38L If, on the other hand, the printing opera- "tion is halted for any reason by withdrawing the mechanism'herein described may .be alte'redpr m'odifi'ed considerably without departing from the scope of this invention. Thus, for example, the

eccentric mechanism need not necessarily be rocked through an angle of substantially 180, the rack and pinion arrangement may be replaced by a suitable crank and pin arrangement and the electrical system illustrated in Figure 6 may be replaced" by any other suitable actuating system such as an air or hydraulically operated system. All such modifications and alterations are intended to be included within the scope of this invention as defined in the appended claims.

I claim:

1. Ductor roll controlling mechanism comprising a housing, a shaft rotatable in the housing, a ductor: roll bearing member mounted eccentrically on the shaft for movement back and forth between two terminal positions, the axis of the shaft lying in a plane of reference intersecting both terminal positions of the bearing member, a rack reciprocable in the housing, gear means connecting the shaft and the rack for rocking the shaft to move the bearing member from one terminal position to the other, a movable finger adjacentthe rack, and a recess in the rack engageable by the movable finger for releasably locking the bearing member adjacent one of its terminal positions.

2. Ductor roll controlling mechanism c0mprising a housing, a shaft rotatable in the housing, a

bearing member for supporting a ductor roll for rotation on an axis parallel to the axis of the shaft, said bearing member being mounted eccentrically on the shaft, means for rocking the shaft to move the bearing member back and forth between two terminal positions and in a direction perpendicular to the axis of the shaft, and means for releasably locking the shaft against rocking when the bearing member is adjacent one of its" terminal positions, said releasable locking means comprising a member spring-biased for engaging with the rocking means releasably to lock the shaft against rocking in the housing, said member normally being maintained out of engagement with the rocking means by an energized electromagnetic means, and a web follower spring biased to ride on a web under tension, said web follower being adapted, upon a release in tension of the web, to open the circuit energizing the electro-" for rotation on an axis parallel to the axis of v the shaft, said bearing member being mounted eccentrically on the shaft for movement about the shaft; means for rocking the shaft to move the bearing member back and forth between the first and second contact positions of the ductor roll, the axes of the shaft, the ductor roll and one of the fountain and distributor rolls lying in a plane of reference when the ductor roll is in contact position with said one of the fountain and distributor rolls; and means for releasably locking the shaft against rocking when the ductor roll is in one of its first and second contact positions.

4. Control mechanism for a ductor roll movable laterally between a first contact position with a fountain roll and a second contact position with a distributor roll, which comprises a housing; a shaft rotatable in the housing; a bearing member for supporting the ductor roll for rotation on an axis parallel to the axis of the shaft, said bearing member being mounted eccentrically on the shaft for'movement about the shaft; a rack reciprocable in the housing; gear means connecting the shaft and the rack for rocking the shaft to move the bearing memberback and forth between the first and second contact positions of the ductor roll, the axes of the shaft, the ductor roll and one of the fountain and distributor rolls lying in a plane of reference when the ductor roll is in contact position with said one of the fountain and distributor rolls; a movable finger adjacent the rack; and a recess in the rack engageable by the movable finger for releasably locking the bearing member adjacent one of the contact positions of the ductor roll.

5. Control mechanism for a ductor roll movable laterally between a first contact position with a fountain roll and a second contact position with a distributor roll, which comprises a housing; a shaft rotatable in the housing; a bearing member for supporting the ductor roll for rotation on an axis parallel to the axis of the shaft, said bearing member being mounted eccentrically on the shaft for movement about the shaft; means for rocking the shaft to move the bearing memher back and forth between the first and second contact positions of the ductor roll, the axes of the shaft, the ductor roll, the fountain roll and the distributor roll lying in a plane of reference when the ductor roll is in contact position with one of the fountain and distributor rolls; and means for releasably locking the shaft against rocking when the ductor roll is in one of its first and second contact positions.

6. Control mechanism for a ductor roll movable laterally between a first contact position with a fountain roll and a second contact position with a distributor roll, which comprises a housing; a shaft rotatable in the housing; a bearing member for supporting the ductor roll for rotation on an axis parallel to the axis of the shaft, said bearing member being mounted eccentrically on the shaft for movement about the shaft; a rack reciprocable in the housing; gear means connecting the shaft and the rack for rocking the shaft to move the bearing member back and forth between the first and second contact positions of the ductor roll, the axes of the shaft, the ductor roll, the fountain roll and the distributor roll lying in a plane of reference when the ductor roll is in contact position with one of the fountain and distributor rolls; a movable finger adjacent the rack; and a recess in the rack engageable by the movable finger for releasably locking the bearing member adjacent one of the contact positions of the ductor roll.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 441,790 Cox Dec. 2, 1890 1,383,945 Henderson July 5, 1921 1,809,632 Lang June 9, 1931 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 168,173 Great Britain Sept. 1, 1921

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