US2724330A - Rotary hectographic copying machine for selective impressions - Google Patents

Description

Nov. 22, 1955 R. BROWN ETAL ROTARY HECTOGRAPHIC COPYIN 2,724,330 G MACHINE FOR SELECTIVE IMPRESSIONS l5 Sheets-Sheet 1.

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ROTARY HECTOGRAPHIC COPYING MACHINE FOR SELECTIVE IMPRESSIONS l5 Sheets-Sheet 5 Filed Aug. 31 1951 FIG. 3.

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ROTARY HECTOGRAPHIC COPYING MACHINE FOR SELECTIVE IMPRESSIONS Filed Aug. 31, 1951 13 Sheets-Sheet 4 /r; VE0/5/15 Ra 2602i Bro 5r L. M WaZen Nov. 22, 1955 BRowN ET AL 2,724,330

[.OTARY HECTOGRAPHIC COPYING MACHINE FOR SELECTIVE IMPRESSIONS Filed Aug. 31, 1951 13 Sheets-Sheet 5 F/G. S

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ROTARY HECTOGRAPHIC COPYING MACHINE FOR SELECTIVE IMPRESSIONS Filed Aug. 31, 1951 13 Sheets-Sheet 9 FIG. I0

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ROTARY HECTOGRAPHIC COPYING MACHINE FOR SELECTIVE IMPRESSIONS l3 Sheets-Sheet 10 Filed Aug. 51 1951 F/G /3c.

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ROTARY HEdTOGRAPI-IIC COPYING MACHINE FOR SELECTIVE IMPRESSIONS Filed Aug. 51, 1951 1.3 Sheets-Sheet 12 //1 van fol-s RoZancZ Bro 71. L. H. M WaZ Zon Nov. 22, 1955 R. BROWN ET AL 2,724,330

ROTARY HECTOGRAPHIC COPYING MACHINE FOR SELECTIVE IMPRESSIONS l3 Sheets-Sheet 15 Filed Aug. 31, 1951' ROTARY HECTOGRAPHIC COPYING MACHINE FOR SELECTIVE IMPRESSIONS Roland Brown, London, and Leonard. Herbert Neville Watton, New Malden, England, assignors to Block & Anderson Limited, London, England, a British company Application August 31, 1951, Serial No. 244,654 Claims priority, application Great Britain August 31, 1950 28 Claims. (Cl. 101-1325) The invention relates to hectographic copying machines whereby copies are taken from a master sheet prepared in mirror-script with a hectographic ink and mounted on the drum of a rotary printing couple so that the lines of text run circumferentially of the drum, the copy sheet moistened with a solvent for the ink being pressed against the drum by a pressure roller forming with the druma printing couple, and has particular reference to a machine wherein themeans for securing a movable master sheet, hereinafter referred to as a clip, is movable in the length wise direction of the drum. A machineof this kind is described in British patent specificationNo. 562,502.

An object of the present invention is to provide a hectographic copying machine capable of taking a number of different selected impressions from a movable master sheet, together, if desired, with an impression from a fixed master sheet, from a fixed feeding position for the work and a fixed delivery position, these operations being carried out with an improved degree of accuracy and an economy of time and movement of both the machine and the operator.

A further object in the invention is to provide improved means for positively driving and controlling the motion of the movable clip in either direction withrespectto the drum.

According to the present invention ahectographic copy machine comprises a drum carrying a fixed clip adapted a power drive both for the clip and the pressure and damping carriage, these being separately controlled through one revolution clutches to provide for single spacing or continuous controlled movement of the clip and the carriage in the appropriate directions.

A further features of the invention relates to a construc- 3 tion and arrangement of the individual control devices controlling the motion of the movable clip end of the carriage, and means for coupling the said control devices for dual or single operation so that simultaneous travel of the clip and the carriage can be performed to bring the clip and carriage into their desired relative positions,

whilst any further positional adjustment of either the clip or the carriage may be obtained by the individual controls operated separately. t

A further feature of, the invention relates to safety mechanism for interlocking the respective control devices to secure a mask or a printing master anda movable master clip lying lengthwise of the drum and traversable lengthwise thereof when the drum is at rest, the movable clip being behind the fixed clipin the direction of rotation of the drum so that a master secured in the movable clip may be exposed for printing toa variable extent beyond the edge of an overlying master or mask inthe fixed clip, and a combined pressure roller and damping unit capable of traversing lengthwise of the drum independently of said movable clip to register with and print jacent portion of a movable master, it may be moved into another position to take an impression of the fully exposed length of the movable master up to half the length of the drum plus the said adjacent portion of the fixed master.

A further feature of the invention consists in positive driving means to move the movable clip in either direction, such motion being controlled by an escapement mechanism to provide rapid adjustment of the said clip by unitary stepwise movement. In a preferred construction the movable clip is driven by a nut and a lead screw mounted coaxially with and inside the drum and arranged to be coupled to the drumfor rotation therewith during the printing operation. It is preferred to employ for the drum, the clip and the carriage so that the drum cannot be set in motion at the same time as'the clip or carriage or vice versa.

A further feature of the invention relates to a movable indicator for displaying the position of the movable clip of the operator, and means for coupling the indicator to the driving means for the clip when the latteris in motion so that correct relationship is maintained between the positions of indicator and clip.

Further features of the invention relate to stop means for automatically arresting the carriage or the clip in their end positions, and to stop means provided on the position indicator, said stop means being operated in the end positions of the said indicator to arrest both the indicator and the movable clip.

Further features relate to a .form of clutch and to a centralizing or locating device cooperating therewith, and adjustable to vary the rest position of the driven member of the clutch.

The above and other features of the invention, and the attendant advantages, will be apparent from the following description of one example of a machine embodying the improvements according to the invention, which is shown in the accompanying drawings.

Fig. 1 is a part elevation of the right-hand side of the of the the power transmission and control gear for the drum,

for the damping and pressure carriage unit, and forthe movable clip, these being shown on a larger scale in Figs 4 and 5.

Fig. 4 is an enlarged plan view of part of the righthand side of the machine showing details of the control gear for the carriage, the movable clip and the indicator.

Fig. 5 is an enlarged plan view of part of the left-hand side of the machine showing the power transmission and control gear for the drum.

Fig. 6 is a part section through Fig. 3'on the line VI- -VI, but showing the drum in the rest' position.

Fig. 7 is a plan of the pressure roller and damping carriage.

Fig. 7a is a front elevation of an adjustable cam cen tralizing device employed in conjunction with the clutches for the carriage.

Fig. 8 is an end View of Fig. 7.

Fig. 9 is a front elevation of the damper only.

Fig. 10 is a side elevation of part of a clutch control mechanism for the reverse motion of the carriage.

Fig. ll is a side elevation of part of the clutch control mechanism for single spacing and continuous travel of the carriage in the forwarddirection. i

Fig, s a partial plan. view of a, stop-operated trip mechanism for the clutch controls in Figs. and 11.

Fig. l3a-13f is an exploded view of one form of clutch employed in themachine.

Fig. 14 is a front elevation of part of the pulley and clutch assembly controlling the movable clip and a position indicator.

Fig. is an axial section through Fig. 14.

Figs. 16 and 17 are an elevation and plan of a clutch pawl employed in the clutch shown in Figs. 13 to 15.

Fig. 18 is a diagrammatic representation of the method of coupling the clutch controls. for the movable clip and the carriage.

Fig. 19 is a fragmentary plan view of a safety mechanism for interlocking the clutch controls for the drum, movable clip and carriage.

Fig. is a rear elevation of a clip position indicator.

Fig. 21 is a part vertical section of Fig. 20.

Referring now to the drawings and more particularly to Figs. 1, 2, 3 and 6.

In the description the left-hand direction of travel of the clip and carriage viewed from the front of the machine will be referred to as forward travel, and the right-hand direction will bereferred to as reverse.

The machine has main side frame members 1 and 2, and intermediate side frame members 3 and 4, these being interconnected and supported by cross members which are shown for example at 5, 6 and 7.

The drum 8 with its shaft 9'is shown supported in main bearings 10 at either side, and the lead screw 11, extending co-axially of the drum, has plain ends 1-2 and 13 extending beyond the drum, one of which carries a locating cam'14, to be described in more detail in the following.

The lead screw nut indicated generally by 15 carries a movable clip assembly, sunk in a recess of the drum, and indicated generally by 16, this being. shown in its extreme forward position, and of a length approximating to half that of the drum. A fixed clip 17 extends over the right-hand half of the drum and is positioned behind clip 16', i. e. in front of the latter in the direction of rotation of drum 8, so that a fixed master in clip 17 may overlie a movable master in clip 16 in the well known manner. In Fig. 3 the-drum is shown rotated away from the rest position, shown in Fig. 6, and is broken to reveal the clip and nut.

A pressure roller 18 and a damper 19 are mounted on a carriage adapted to be traversed lengthwise of the drum as a single unit as will be described in more detail hereinafter. In Fig. 3 the carriage is indicated in its extreme reverse position in which it projects to the right beyond the end of the drum while its left-hand end is approximately level with the drum centre. As an example ofthe relative dimensionsthe drum lengthmay be 20 inches and the total pressure roller length 12 inches. A hinged cover 20 extends" across the machine over the-damper and has a hole 21 through which a numbered scale 22 on the damper carriage may be observed for indicating the carriage position to the operator. A feed table 23 has a transparent panel 24'through which a front delivery tray 25 may be observed, and is slotted at 26 for lateral adjustment, of a lay guide 27, which, with the adjustable backstop 28 determines the feed position ofthework. A transparent panel 29 extends across the machine in front of the drum, and, together with plate 56, forms a feeding guide for the master sheets.

Referring now more particularly to Figs. 6 to 9 the pressure roller and damping carriage unit comprises a main frame casting 30 traversable across the machine by a lead screw 31 and nuts 32 and supported rearwardly by roller 33 which runs on a fixed transverse rail (not shown). The damping carriage is supported forwardly by the damping carriage rollers 34 running on a square guide-rail 35, the rollers 34 being carried in a bearing member 36, and the damping assembly shown in Fig. 9 is so mounted as tohavea small pivotal motion imparted 4 to it by square rail 35, but is movable lengthwise with the roller 18 as a unit.

A capillary damping pad 37 gripped in a comb-shaped clip 38 is removably fitted between end plates 39 and 40 of the carriage, and is supplied with damping liquid (solvent) by means of a spray tube 41 with downwardly directed holes 42, the spray. tube being connected by a flexible tube 43 to pump 44 (Fig. 2). A pump priming hand lever 45 is connected through a linkage 46,. 47, to supply a solvent initially or for intermittent operation. During rotation of the drum automatic pumping is effected by a cam roller 48 carried by the drum shaft operating, through cam ended bell crank 49 (Fig. 2) and linkage 50, 51, 52, on the pump bell crank 47, the lower end of which moves in a slot 53 in link 46. The capillary pad controls the amount ofv solvent taken up and-any excess solvent is removed by a trough 54 (Fig. 6) discharging through a flexible tube 55 (Fig. 2).

The damping of the copy sheet is effected by a steel roller 60 extending the full width of the machine and driven from a drum gear wheel 59 through an intermc diate reversing pinion engaging spur gear 61. Roller 60 co-operates with a pivotally mounted counter pressure roller 62 of the same length, to form a pair of feed rollers feeding the moistened sheet to the printing couple constituted by drum 8 and roller 18. Roller 62 is carried in bearings in bell cranks 63 pivoted in the machine frame (Figs. 1 and 2) at either side for movement towards and away from roller 60. In therest position of the drum the rollers are separated by a gap as shown in Fig. 6, and the bell cranks 63 are cam operated in the initial movement of the drum from its rest position to close the gap. This is effected by means of a cam 64, cam roller 65 carried by lever 66, fast on square shaft 35, operating through cranks 67, 67a and connecting rods 68, to raise the roller 62 so as to grip the. moistened sheet between the feed rollers. At the same time as the sheet is gripped, the lever 66 rotates the square shaft 35 carrying the damper sufficiently to bring the damping pad into contact with theapplying roller 60. The positions of the roller 62 and the pad. arerestored bythe-cam 64 before the end of each drum rotation.

The motion of lever 66 derived from the drum through cam 64 also serves to actuate through crank 67:! a safety interlocking mechanism for the controls of the drum, clip and carriage, which will be described in more detail hereinafter.

I I A mechanism is provided for opening the movable clip 16 for reception of the master sheet only when the clip is in the fully forward position, i. e'., at, the left-hand end, and only in the rest position of the drum i. e. as shown in Fig. 6. Referring now to Figs. 3, 5- and 6, this mechanism comprises a shaft 70 (Fig. 6) extending lengthwise of and journalledinthe drum, and, carrying a series of fingers 71 rigidly secured .to theshaft 70, aligned axially, and spaced along the length thereof, which fingers in the full forward position of the clip. 16, are immediately above and in line with a seriesof similarly spaced plunger pins 72 for actuating the clip blade 73. The; shaft 70 extends beyond the left-hand end. of thedrum and it carries a striker cam 74. which in therest position of the drum lies adjacent a bell crank 75, constituting the end member of a linkage lying behindthe linkage-49, .50, 51 in Fig. Zand similar to that described above for automatic operation of the pump and operating about the samefixed pivot centres 58 and '73. whereby the clip 16 may be opened by a hand lever 76 at the left-hand side of the machine. The first link 77 connecting the hand lever 76 to the clip operating linkage is shown; in Fig. 2. After insertion of the master sheer between panel29 and guide plate 56 into the open blade 73 of the clip, the hand lever is, released and the blade'is spring returnedto grip'the edge of the master sheet.

An exactly similar mechanism to that just described consisting ofa, hand1levera81. (Fig. 3.), link 82 (Fig. 5 bell crank 8.4and a linkagepivotedon. the centres 58. 78.

and actnates a striker cam 83 for opening the fixed clip, the construction of which is similar to that of the movable clip as regards fingers similar to fingers 71 and plunger pins similar to 72. i The fixed clip and its opening mechanism are therefore not shown in detail in the drawing. The opening mechanism for the fixed clip is again arranged so that opening is only possible in the rest position with respect to the length of the drum but since the clip is. always in a fixed position the lifting fingers are always in line with and adjacent to the pins, when the drum is in the rest position shown in Pig. 6.

The driving and control mechanism forthe drum is shown in Fig. 2 and Fig. 5. The motor 90 drives the drum shaft through pulleys 100, 101, 102, 103 and fibre spur gears 104 and 105, the latter being clutched to the drum .for a single or any number of consecutive revolutions by the following mechanism.

.A ratchet 106 fast on the drum shaft is engageable by a spring pawl 107 pivoted on the gear wheel 105. The pawl is normally held out of ratchet engagement by a bell crank 108 freely pivoted on the main frame at 109 and resting on a pivotedlatcn 110, connected through connecting rod 111 and cranks 112, 118 (Fig. 1), fast on a common shaft to a Eowden control 113 at the right-hand side i of the machine, the cable connector being omitted to clarify the drawing. The Bowden control is operated from the push bar 114 through a spring-returned U-shaped plate 115 slotted at .116 to move on screws 117. Depression of plunger 114 acts through .Bowden control 113 to pull the latch, 110 to the left, thereby allowing the pawl to engage the ratchet and to drive the drum. Before the end of a complete revolution a roller 120 carried by the bell crank is engaged by cam 121 (Fig. 5) carried by the drum to disengage the pawl. The pawl being disengaged, the final movement of the drum under its own momenturn to complete one revolution allows the roller 123, carried by a spring urged lever 124, pivoted in the side frame at 125, to snap into a recess of a cam 122, fast on the drum, thus preventing further rotary motion of the drum. In this position a freely pivoted hook 126 falls overa pin 127 carried by the drum and the joint action of the said hook and the cam and roller serves to stabilize the drum in the rest position.

.A flexible coupling and locating device is provided to couple the drum 8 and the lead screw 11 when the drum rotates during printing and to allow relative rotation of the lead screw when the latter is being driven. Referring to Figs. 2 and 5, the. coupling comprises a ring 140 fast on the drum shaft and carrying a lever 139 pivoted theretoby an eccentric screw 141, which lever is loaded by spring 142 to seat a cam roller 143 in the recess of heart cam 14 fast on the lead screw shaft 12 and projecting to the left through the centre of ring 140. When the lead screw only is driven the drum is fixed in the rest position and the heart cam rides ofi the cam roller 143 and at the end of each revolution is located in the cam recess. It will be understood that the action of the coupling depends on the difference in inertia between the drum Which carries ring 140, and the lead screw and heart cam 14 of much smaller mass. When the drum is rotated as above described, the lead screw represents a comparatively small load and is carried round with the drum, the spring 142 exerting sufficient tension to keep the roller 143 engaged in the recess of the heart cam 14. The type of coupling here described cannot function with simultaneous drive to the clip and drum, and means for preventing this will be described hereinafter.

The power transmission for the movable clip and the pressureroller-damping carriage unit may be seen in Figs. 1, 2 and 4. The driven shaft 150 extends across the ma chine and carries a pulley 151 driving the pulleys 152 and 153 clockwise, these pulleys being fast on the driving members of one-revolution clutches controlling the reverse drive of the carriage and the clip respectively. Pulley 151 carries a spur gear 154en gaging spur gear 155 on pulley 156, which drives a pulley 157 counter-clockwise on the same centre as pulley 152 and a pulley 158 on the same centre as pulley 153. These pulleys carry the driving members of further one-revolution clutches controlling the traversal of the carriage and the clip respectively in the forward direction. 159 is a guide pulley for the drive from pulley 156.

Various forms of escapement may be employed for controlling the motion of the clip and the carriage, but it is preferred to use the same kind of clutch for controlling both the carriage and the clip for forward and reverse drive. A preferred form of clutch is shown disassembled in Figs. 13a to 13 and a modified clutch assembled to the pulley is shown in end elevation and section in Figs. 14 and 15. An elevation and plan of the clutch pawl are shown in Figs. 16 and 17. The clutch and pulley assembly illustrated in Figs. 14 and 15 is that used to control the forward drive of the movable clip or the carriage both for continuous traversal and for single spacing,' but the details of the clutch itself are identical with those of the clutches employed for the reverse motion of the carriage and clip, except that the clutch in Figs. 14 and 15 incorporates a housing in the form of a bevel gear which co-operates with a planetary gear for driving a position indicator to be described hereinafter.

In Figs. 13a to 1, 13a shows the clutch housing, 13b the pawl assembly, 13c the driven member, 13d the driving member, 13e the housing cover plate and 13 part of the shaft.

In Figs. 13 and 14 to 17, the pulley 158, secured to driving member 160, is free on the end 13 of the lead screw shaft. The driven member 161 is keyed to the shaft by a key 162a extending through keyway 162. The clutch housing 163 in Fig. 13a, and 163a in Fig. 15, is normally not clutched to either the driving or the driven member. The housing carries a pawl 164 pivoted thereto by pins 165, and urged in a counter-clockwise direction about pivot 165 by a spring 166 connected at one end to the pawl and at the other end to the clutch housing. The pawl is in two halves on either side of a vertical dividing plane (Fig. 17) and has a tooth 167 and a notch 168 formed in one half and a tooth 169 and notch 170, in staggered and opposite relation to tooth 167 and 168, in the other half. The driven member has a tooth 171 in the same plane as, and co-operating with notch 170. The driving member has two teeth 172 and 173 in the same plane as, and co-operating singly with notch 168. The pawl, and the driving teeth of the driving and driven members, are enclosed between the clutch housing 163 or 163a and the cover plate 174 (Fig. 13c) or 174a (Fig. 15).

In the clutch disengaged position the nose of the pawl is engaged by the arm of a lever 180 (see Fig. 11), whereby the pawl is pulled against the action of the spring 166 out of engagement with both the driving and driven members of the clutch. When the lever 180 is disengaged the spring .166 rotates the pawl about pivot pulling the respective notches into engagement with the teeth of the driving and driven members, whereby the lead screw shaft is rotated. When the lever is allowed to return, the nose of the pawl will re-engage the end of lever 180 at a given point of its existing revolution, and thereby disengage itself from the driving cated generally in Fig. l by the reference 200 and the clutch control mechanism for the movable clip is indicated generally in Fig. 1 by the reference 300, the main components of these 'clutch' control assemblies being simila'rdncach case and'varying only in two respects which of the'machine,"is pivoted a triangular crank plate 186' carryingthe-integral lever'arm'180. On the same pivot centre'is the bell crank 181 urgedin-the clockwise direction-'byspring 187. Plateltlti is pulled in the counterclockwise direction'by spring 188*and carries at its lower end pins 189 and 190 on opposite sides thereof. A notched le'ver*191 "is pivoted at 192 on'lever 193 which is itself pivoted "on-a fixed pivot post 194 secured to the frame. A further bell crank'195 carrying a pin 196 is also-pivoted on'thepost 194 (Figs; lOand' 12). The said lever is controlled by a Bowden cable 197 anchored at one end to afixed bar 201 in the frame." The other end of the Bowden cable is connected to a stop'mechanism to be further described herein; The lever 195 is'controlled by a Bowden cable 198, one end-of which is anchored in fixed bar-199 and-the other end of which is connected to the respective oneof a set of push-button keys in 'a control panel I mounted at the right hand side of the machine and indi cated by the general reference 250 in Fig.- 1. Upon depression of the respective'key the lever 193 pushes the notched lever 191 to the left against the tension of spring 202 and engages a notch of the lever with thepin 190 of plate 186, which is thereby rotated clockwise to disengage the lever 180 from the nose-of the pawl 164, in which position the mechanism is shown in Fig. 10. This oper ation engages the clutch as already described'above, and

at the same time a locking hook 205freely pivoted at 206 falls'over the pin 189 and locks-the plate 186m the clutch engaged position. So long as book 205 is locked the lead screw of the carriage will rotate clockwise viewed in Fig. land, assuming the lead screwis right-hand, the carriage unit will travel tothe'right, i. e. in reverse, and this travel will continue whetherthepush button key is released or not.

Stop means are therefore provided at theend of the reverse travel of the carriage'to disengage the clutchauto maticallyand'bring'the carriage'to'rest. The automatic stop mechanism comprises aspring stop 210 fixed at the inside of the main frame and connected to the'other end of Bowden'cable 197. Depression of the right-handspring stop "by the carriage just before-its end position'operate's theBoWde'ncontrol to depress'the'bell crank 195,which lifts the notched'lever 191against'spring208 by rneans of the pin196 thereby releasing plate 186 and disengaging the'clutch'and at the same time lifting hook 205 frornpin 189 by means of the pin 207 carriedon the hook, which then falls into the position shown in dotted lines.

In .order 'to provide for single spacing as well ascontinuous travel of the clip and' carriage; an additional control device may be provided for the clutch'controlling theforward or reverse drive or both. In the machine described both single spacing and continuous travel' are provided 'for the forward direction of the clip and the carriage, reverse'single spacing having been found not essential'for most functions of the machine.

The main elements of the continuous travel and singlecounter-clockwise drive to the--pulley.- The "direction of 2- spring tension on these-parts'is also reversed as'shown by" springs 211, 212.

The clutch control device forcontinuous travel com prises notched lever 213 pivoted in lever 215, itself pivoted I on post 194. Manual control is effected from the control panel 250 by one of the push-button keys through a i Bowdencable in a manner equivalent to that described above for the reverse control shown in Fig. 10, the notch 2160f lever 213 pulling plate 186 counter-clockwise and thus engaging the clutch. In this case however the clutch is not locked in the engaged position, andthe carriage will be arrested at the end of an existing revolution as 1 soon as the push-button key is released.

For single spacing control a second notched lever 219,1 longer than lever 213, is pivoted at 218 in a'lever 221 and has a notch 222 co-operating with pin 190j Theclutchis controlled by another push button key through aBowden is, however, positively disengaged, to give only one revolupush button key remains depressed or-isreleased;

The automatic stop mechanism for declutching at the end' of forward travel is similar to that-described for reverse travel with respect toFig. 10, except that the-bell crank227 lifts both levers 213 and219 simultaneously by;

pin 228 when operated from the left-band-stop 229(Fig;

" 2) through Bowden cable 230. The mechanism is shown" in this position in Fig. 11, the carriagehaving reached the forward end position.

In order to achieve rapid positioning of thernovable clip and the carriage, means are providedfor coupling the clutch controls so as to provide simultaneous travel ofthe" movable clip and the carriage either-inthe'same direction, orin opposite directions with combinations of single spacingand continuous travel as desired.

The c0ntrol= panel 250' for the-clutchescomprises six push button keys and it will beassumed that these are indicated by --A, B, C, D, E and F respectively, This number is provided, since in the machine described'clutchcontrols are provided for obtaining three different modes o't-travel of both the movable clip and the carriage. One

possible scheme of coupling theindividual clutch controls is indicated diagrammatically in Fig. 18, Wherein' eight" pushlevers indicated by 261268 respectively are shown. mounted on'a fixed pivot 260, 264-and 266-being coupling levers, and the remaining six each being connected by'a Bowden cable to the respective'clutch. Lever- 261 controlsthe clutch for continuous forward travel of the provided in the forward direction, whereas in the reversedirection the carriage performs continuous motion until it reaches its fully reversed position, this preferably corresponding to the initial printing position. Onthe other hand continuous reverse motion of'the clip will be-performed so long as the appropriate clutchcontrolisop erated and will cease as soonasthatcontrol'is released;

For such a scheme of 'clutchcontrol it'is appropriate to couple the'clutch controls as indicated 'diagramma'tically in Fig. 18 in which a coupling bar 270 bridges the levers 261 and 262, a further coupling bar 271 bridges the levers 263, 264 and 265, a further coupling bar 272 similarly bridges the control levers 265, 266 and 267, and finally a coupling bar 273lbridges the levers 267 and 268.

For the purpose of description it will be assumed that push button key A is connected to coupling bar 270; hence depression of this key will operate the clutch controls giving continuous forward motion of boththe carriage and the master clip until the key is released.

Key B is connected to coupling bar 273, depression of this key simultaneously operating the clutch controls giving full reverse of the carriage to the initial printing position and continuous reverse travel of the clip, either the key remains depressed.

\ Key C is connected to coupling bar 272, depression of this key simultaneously operating the clutches giving full reverse of the carriage and moving the clip one space forward. Any subsequent depression of the same key moves the clip one further space forward but leaves the carriage in its fully reversed position.

Key D is connected to the coupling bar 271, and depression of this key simultaneously operates the clutches moving the carriage and the clip each one space forward.

Key E controls lever 263 only, andvdepression of this partially if the key is released, or full reverse travel if key will operate the clutch moving the carriage one space forward.

Key F is connected only to control lever 265 and the depression of this key will engage the clutch moving the clip one space forward.

The normally required movements of the carriage and 1 clip may be controlled by the operation of the four keys namely AD. The keys E and F provide additional control in the form of single forward spacing of the carriage and clip.

It is necessary to insure that motion of the drum shall only take place whilst the carriage and movable clip are stationary and vice versa. This is provided for by a safety mechanism interlocking the controls of the drum the carriage and the clip, this mechanism being shown in elevation in Fig. l and in partial plan in Fig. 19.

The push bar 114 controlling the drum clutch is spring returned by means of a bellcrank 280 pivoted to the frame and having a forked end 281 engaging a pin 282 secured to a limb of the U-plate 115, the other arm of the bell crankbeing connected to a spring 283 anchored t to the frame. A pin 234 at the end of the bell crank is located in a slot 285 in a push bar 286 to which is secured a masking plate 287 (Fig. 19) having siX circular holes 288 larger than, but concentric with the heads of the push button keys. The plate 287 is guided for forward movement by means of slots 289 co-operating with guide screws 290. t v

Ahook 291 pivoted in the frame at 292 is urged clock- Wise by the spring 293, and is loosely connected by a hooked rod 294 to a pin 296 in lever 67a, which lever is controlled by lever 66 and drum cam 64 as described above.

The upper end of push bar 286 is slotted to slide over pin 296 onlever 67a, and is urged to the left by a spring 296 anchored to lever 67a and to push bar 286.

In the rest position of the machine the hook 291 is disengaged as shown in Fig. l. v

If push bar 114 is depressed, with the motor running, the drum clutch engages, as described above. Cam 64 and lever 66 operate in the initial motion of the drum to mask the push button keys, this action being effected through lever 67:: and push bar 286. The masked position in which the keys cannot be depressed is shown in dotted lines in Fig. 19. The plate 287 is restored by the drum cam just before the end of the revolution.

If push bar 114 is accidentally depressed without the motor running, the drum clutch engages, but at the same revolution will restore the safety mechanism.

if the push-button key controlling the full reverse of the carriage is depressed when the machine is at rest, the head of this key will remain depressed since, as above described, the clutch control is locked by the hook 205 (Fig. 10) until the carriage has fully reversed. The depressed key will therefore prevent any horizontal-motion of the masking plate 287 and will therefore lock the push bar lit-t, thus preventing rotation of the drum. The locked condition can be cleared by fully reversing the carriage.

In the case of those push button keys, which control other modes of movement of the clip and the carriage and which do not lock down in the depressed position, but are spring returned as soon as the key is released, the above described locking of the drum clutch control will, however, be operative, since whilst any one of them is depressed, masking plate, and hence the drum clutch controi mechanism, cannot be operated.

A position indicating device is preferably incorporated in the machine to display the position of the movable clip to the operator, and one form of such an indicator is illustrated diagrammatically in Figs. 20 and 21.

A replica of the matter carried on the movable master sheet, which replica may be an actual copy taken from the master, is mounted on the front panel of a framework 305, visible to the operator, by means of a spring clip comprising a horizontal rod 303 carrying a series of spaced rollers 302, the rod being pivotally mounted at either side and pressed by springs 304 into engagement with the top edge of the replica 301.

A horizontal indicator bar 306, preferably of transparent material, is supported at each end on brackets projecting through vertical slots 307, 308 in the panel 305 and carrying nuts 309 and 310 mounted on lead screws 311 and 312, the latter being connected! by bevel gears 313 to a horizontal shaft 314. Rotation of the shaft 314 in fixed relation to the motion of the movable clip will traverse the indicator bar 306 vertically and therefore give an indication of the position of the movable clip. Shaft 314 carries a spur gear 315, connected through a pinion 316 to planet carrier 317 of a differential gear, the bevel planet wheels of the planet carrier 317 engaging at each side thereof a bevel gear 313 (see Fig. 15) on the respective clutch housing controlling the forward and i reverse motions of the movable clip. When either one of the members 313 is driven the indicator bar 306 will be vertically traversed in one or the other direction. It is preferably arranged that the indicator bar 3&6 is in its topmost position when the movable clip is in the initial printing position. 3

In the foregoing description the operation of stops, located in the machine frame, has been described for arresting the movable carriage in its end positions. Although similar end stops may be provided in the machine frame for disengaging the clutches controlling the movable clip, it is preferred to incorporate the end stops for the movable clip in the position indicator device described above with reference to Figs. 20 and 21. The arrangement, comprises spring stops 320 and 321 mounted on fixed brackets 322, 323 at the top and bottom of the frame 305, these stops being connected to Bowden cables 324, 325, respectively connected to a clutch control device for the reverse and forward drive of the movable clip. Such clutch control devices operate in substantially similar manner to those for the carriage which have been described above with reference to Figs. 10, ll andl2. Consequently operation of the stops 320 and 321 of the indicator by nut 310 will disengage the respective clutches and arrest both the movable clip and the indicator.

It is often necessary for production control purposes to print a series of tickets each consisting of a heading contained on a fixed master together with a different single itemzfromt a movablel master-sand .to take a further inlpressi'on-comprisingthe same heading on. the fixed masterv carriage in. their fully forward positions, this impression includingsthe heading tonxithe ,fixed master. and all the items onzthemovable master. Themovable clip and the carriagemre no-w placedin their fully reversed position, corresponding to the initial printing position, in which the pressure roller is, set tocover thefirst item exposed beyond the edge of thetfixed master. A succession of impressions is now-taken, the movable master being ex posedstepwise beyond the edge, of the fixed master, These-operations are carried out from a fixed feeding position and a fixed delivery position determined by the guide: 27 and stop 28. The adjustment ofthe pressure roller and damping unit to account for possiblevarying widths ofwthe exposed areas of the movable master, is effected from the control panel by the appropriate push button keys hereinbefore described, these giving the required combination of movements of the movable clip and carriage to bring these into their positions for the different impressions with the minimum movement of the machine and operator.

The printed tickets are delivered from the printing couple to an inclined tray 331 (Fig. 6), and descend to pass over a deliveny roller 332, friction driven by the belt and pulley transmission of the drum at the left side of the machine. T he tickets pass between the roller and a'series'of spacedballs ,333 resting thereon and are deliveredat thefront delivery-tray, stacked in the order of. printing A-device cooperating with theclutches to ensure proper location of the carriage lead screw shaft in the rest position is shown in Figs.- 7a and 8, Fig. 7a being part of a frontelevation Lead screw shaft 35a carries cam 31a fast thereon The rest position'of cam 31a, and hence of shaft 35a and the driven clutch member 16.1 (Fig. 15), is adjustable by'means of arm 31c carrying cam roller 31a and pivoted onthe eccentric screw 31]). Adjustment of screw'3lb will therefore adjust the relative position clutch member 161 with respect to the clutch housing 163 and pawl 164 (Fig. 15). This is similar to the adjustment provided by eccentricscrew M1 (Fig. 5) for the clip lead screw.

We claim:

1. In a rotary hectographic copy machine, a rotatable printing drum, a first clip adapted to take a fixed master sheet, a second clip adapted to take a movable master sheet, means for holding said drum in a rest position, and

means for positively traversing said second clip in either direction parallel to the drum only when the drum is at rest comprising a clip drive shaft passingco-axially" sheet haesecond ,:clip; adapted-.2to..:takeaz m'ovable; master.

sheet; means for holdingsaid drum in a rest position,

and-. meansfor positively-traversingsaid second clip in either direction parallel to the drum only whenthe drum is at rest, comprising a clip'drive shaft passing co-axially through the drum, meansfor driving saidvclip drive shaft, a coupling between said drum and the clip drive shaft, said couplinghavinga member secured to the drum and a member secured to the clipdrive shaft and means therebetween for resiliently engaging said coupling member,

one of said coupling members being a locating cam defining a single angular positionof the shaft with respect to the drum, said engaging means allowing slipping of said couplingto allow the clip drive shaft to rotate when the drum is heldat rest.

3. In as-rotary hectographic copy machine, a rotatable printing drum, a first clip adapted to take a fixed master 7 sheet, a second clip adapted to take a movable master sheet, means for holding said drum in a rest position and means for positively traversing said second clip in either direction parallel to the drum only when the drum is at rest comprising a rotatable 'clipdrive shaft passing'coaxially through the drum, means for driving said clip driving shaft and means for driving thedrum; a slipping coupling between the drum and the clip drive shaftsaid coupli'ngcomprising a single'dwell cam and a cam roller and resilient means normally holding said coupling mem-- bers-inengagement' and allowing slip of said coupling when;the-clip drive shaft is driven and the drum is held means for positively traversingsaid second clip in either direction parallel to the drum only when the drum is at rest comprising a clip drive shaft passing co-axially through the drum, means for driving the drum, separate means for driving the clip drive shaft in opposite directions said means including a driving shaft for each direction and a clutch for=coupling-each of said driving shafts to the clip drive shaft, a slipping coupling between the drum and the clip drive shaft said' coupling having a member attached to the drum 'anda member attached to the shaft and resilient engaging means for said coupling members allowing slip' of said coupling forindependent driving of the clip drive shaft in either direction when the drum is held at rest.

5. In a rotary hectographic copy machine, a rotatable printing-drum, a first clip adapted to take a fixed master, sheet, a'second clip adapted to take a movable master sheet, means for drivingthe'drum, means for holding said drum ina rest'position and means for positively traversing said second clip' in either direction parallel to the drum onlywhen the-drum is at rest comprising a rotatable clip drive shaft passing co-axially through the drum, means for driving the clip drive shaft in either direction said means including a driving shaft and a one-revolution clutch for each direction of rotation and means for selectively engaging said'clutches with the clip drive shaft, a

resilient coupling between the drum and the clip drive shaft said coupling having a member attached to the drum and a member attached to the clip drive shaft, said members being normally engaged when the drum is at rest and the one-revolution clutches are disengaged, said coupling allowing slip v between said coupling members to allow the clip drive shaft to rotate within the drum when said clip'drive shaft is driven through either one of said tion, and meansfor positively traversing said second clip in:eitherrdirectionparallel to the drum only when the drunra's-reat Erestncomprising; at clipzdrive shaft passing co-' i axially through the drum, means for driving the drum, separate means for driving the clip drive shaft in either direction said means including a one-revolution clutch for each direction of rotation a resilient coupling between the drum and the clip drive shaft said coupling having a member attachedto the drum and a member attached to the clip drive shaft, said members being normally engaged to hold said clip drive shaft at rest and coupled to the drum when both one-revolution clutches are disengaged, and said coupling allowing the clip drive shaft to rotate relative to the drum when the said shaft is driven each of said one-revolution clutches having a pawl device through which the said clip drive shaft is driven in the respective direction and means for releasing said pawl devices at one point in the clutch revolution to allow the coupling between the drum and the clip drive shaft to re-engage when the clip drive shaft has completed an integral number of revolutions from its rest position. h

7. In a rotary hectographic copy machine, a rotatable printing drum, a first clip adapted to take a fixed master sheet, a second clip adapted to take a movable master sheet, means for holding said drum in a rest position, and means for positively traversing said second clip in either direction lengthwise of the drum only when the drum is at rest comprising a rotatable clip drive shaft passing coaxially through the drum shaft, means for driving the drum, separate means for driving said clip drive shaft when the drum is at rest and a coupling between said shaft and the drum said coupling having coupling members on the said shaft and on the drum shaft, and resilient means holding said coupling members engaged when the drum is driven, said coupling members being disengaged when the clip drive shaft is driven.

8. A machine according to claim 7. comprising the combination of a lead screw connected to the said clip drive shaft, a nut carrying the movable clip in engagement with said lead screw and wherein the coupling between the drum and the clip drive shaft comprises a recessed cam and a spring urged roller co-operating with the cam recess. i i

9. A machine according to claim 8 wherein the driving means for the clip drive shaft comprises almotor, two driving shafts driven by said motor in opposite directions and a one-revolution clutch between each driving shaft and the clip drive shaft said clutches providing equal unitary displacementsor the clip in opposite directions.

10. A machine according to claim 9 wherein each onerevolution clutch comprises a clutch pawl, pawl-engaging clutch members on the driving shaft and the clip drive shaft respectively, a lever for normally retaining said pawl in a position in which it is disengaged from the clutch member on the driving shaft and disengaged from the stationary clutch member on the clip drive shaft, said clip drive shaft being retained in the positionin which said pawl-engaging clutch member on the clip drive shaft is ready for engagement withthe pawl by means of the said cam and roller coupling between the clip drive shaft and the drum, manually operable means for releasing said lever to allow said pawl to engage both clutch members, and means restoring said lever to. normal.

11. A machine according to claim 9 comprising for at least one of the clutches a manually operable control lever causing engagement of the clutch in combination with a clutch throw-out device comprising a cam and a trip lever operated by said cam within the first revolution ofthe clip drive, shaft to disable said control lever and disengage theclutch thereby to provide a single stepwise displacement of the clip for each actuation of the said control lever.

12. A machine according to claim 7 including guide rails arranged parallel to the drum, a carriage mounted on said guide rails and a pressure roller and damping unit providing co-extensive pressure and damping over a length at least equal to half the length of the drum mounted on said carriage for movement lengthwise of the drum. 4 a

t 13. Amachine according to claim 12 including means for traversing said carriage comprising a lead screw, two oppositely rotatable driving shafts, a one revolution clutch between each driving shaft and the lead screw and means for selectively engaging said clutches.

14. A" machine according to claim 13 including for at least one of said clutches, a manually operable clutch engaging lever, a locking lever for locking said clutch engaging lever in theclutch engaged position, a stop in the path of said carriage, and means actuated by said i wise displacement of the carriage for each actuation of i the said control lever.

16. In a rotary hectographic copy machine, a rotatable printing drum, a first clip adapted to take a fixed master sheet, a second clip adapted to take a movable master sheet, means for driving the drum, means for holding said drum in a rest position and means for positively traversing said second clip in either direction parallel to the drum only when the drum is at rest comprising a-rotatable clip drive shaftpassing co-axially through the drum, means for driving the clip drive shaft in either direction said means including a driving shaft and 1a one-revolution clutch for each direction of rotation andmeans for selectively engaging said clutches with the clip drive shaft, a resilient coupling between the drum and the clip drive shaft said coupling' allowing slip between said coupling members to allow the clip drive shaft to rotate within the drum when said clip drive shaft is driven through either one of said one-revolution clutches and the drum is held at rest, at least one manual control lever for said clutches, a drum start control member for said drum and a mechanical interlock between said drum start control member and said manual control lever to prevent simultaneous operation thereof.

17. In a rotary hectographic copy machine, a rotatable printing drum, a first clip adapted to take a fixed master sheet, a second clip adapted to take a movable master sheet, means for holding said drum in a rest position, and means for positively traversing said second clip in either direction parallel to the drum only when the drum is at rest, comprising a clip drive shaft passing co-axially through the drum, means for driving said clip drive shaft, a coupling between said drum and the clip drive shaft, said coupling havinga member secured to the drum and a member secured to the clip drive shaft and means therebetween for resiliently engaging said coupling members,

one of said coupling members being a locating cam defining a singleiangular position of the shaft with respect to the drum, said engaging means allowing slipping of said coupling to allow the clip drive shaft to rotate when the drum is held at rest, means for driving the drum comprising a motor driven shaft, a clutch between the motor driven shaft and the drum shaft, a drum start control member foractuating said clutch, and a mechanical interlock between said drum start control member and the clip drive shaft for preventing simultaneous operation thereof. 1

18. In a rotary hectographic copy machine, a rotatable printing drum, a shaft for said drum a first clip adapted to take a fixed master sheet, a movable clip adapted ,to be moved lengthwise of the drum, means for holding said drum in a rest position; means for positively traversing said movable clip in either direction when the drum is at rest comprising a lead screw passing'co-axially through the drum shaft, two oppositely

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