US30495A - oakes - Google Patents

Description

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

W. H. OAKES, OF NEV YORK, N. Y.

PLATE-PRINTING.

Specification of Letters Patent No. 30,495, dated October 23, 1860.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, IV. H. OAxns, of the city, county, and State of New York, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Plate-Printing; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description of the same, reference being had to the annexed drawings, making a part of this specification, in which- Figure l, is a side elevation of a press constructed and arranged to print according to my invention. Fig. 2, a back view of the same in elevation. Fig. 3, a vertical section of the same, taken in the plane indicated by the line az, Fig. 2. Fig. Ll, a detached neath the latter and through proper perforations therein, the ink being injected into the plate with sutiicient forceand while the paper, or other substance to receive the impression, is being pressed upon its face side toleave an impression on the paper corresponding to the configuration formed by the sunken portions of the plate, the ink being drawn from the recesses of the plate as soon as an impression has been given, in order to admit of the adjustment of a succeeding sheet and a repetition of the operatlon.

To enable those skilled in the art to fully understand and construct my invention I face view of the engraved plate to be printed l will proceed to describe it:

from. Fig. 5, a detached face view of the bed-piece on which the plate to be printed from rests. Fig. 6, a detached inverted plan 0f the same. Fig. 7, a detached face view of the block on which the bed rests.

Similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts in the several iigures.

This invention relates to an improvement in printing from engraved plates, or those which have the design, figure, pattern, or lettering to be printed sunk in their surfaces and which has hitherto required the paper or other substance which is to receive the impression to be pressed into the recesses or sunken portions in order to receive the impression, the recesses or sunken portions being iilled with ink and the raised portions wiped perfectly clean. This kind of printing, commonly termed copper-plate printing, compared with the operation of a typographical press is very slow and tedious work. In the former process the plate requires to be covered or smeared over entirely with ink in order to fill the sunken portions, and the surplus ink must then be wiped off and the surface of the plate left perfectly clean in order that the sheet to receive the impression be not soiled. In the latter process the design being a raised surface no wiping and but little manipulation is required.

The object of the within described invention is to expediate the process of plate printing and4 at the same time perform equally as good work as by the old process. To this end I employ an ink of a fluid nature and inject the same into the recesses or sunken portions of the plate from underof the press.

A, represents the framing of a printing press. B, a platen operated by a toggle C, cam D, and springs E, E. These parts constitute an ordinary plat-en press, are well known and therefore do not require a minute description besides other forms of platen presses might be used in printing according to my invention.

In the framing A, and directly underneath the platen B, there is a fixed block F, the upper surface of which is grooved as shown at ax, in Fig. 7, said grooves all diverging from a common center a, and communicating at that point with a tube G, which passes out through the side of the block and communicates with a horizontal pipe I-I. One end of the pipe I-I, is connected to a pipe I, which extends upward and communicates with an ink reservoir J, and the opposite end of pipe H, communicates directly with another ink reser- Voir K, an ink reservoir being at each side The pipe H, extends below its connection with the pipe I, and communicates with a box L, on which a cylinder of a pump M, is placed, the box L, having a valve opening inward at its junction with pipe I-I.

N, is a pipe the lower end of which communicates with the box L, and the upper end with the ink reservoir J. The lower end of pipe N, has a valve opening upward.

On one end of a shaft O, on the framing on which shaft the cam D, is placed, there is a crank pulley a, to which the piston rod b, of the pump M, is attached and on the same shaft O, adjoining the pulley a', there is placed a wiper P, which actuates a lever Q, attachedto the frame and whichY lever has a cord c, connected to it, said cord passing around a pulley d, of a valveV stem, the valve being in pipe I, at its lower end,V

the lower end of cord 0, is attached to a spring e, which spring has a tendency to keep the valve in pipe I, closed. i

At the end of the shaft O, the end oppo-f shown in Fig. 2. The slide S, isconnected in any proper way with the stem i, of a valve in the pipe H. Y Y

T, is a tube which forms a direct communication between the two reservoirs J, K.

U, is a bedon which the plate to be printed from rests. This bed has its upper surface grooved longitudinally and transversely the grooves intersecting each other and forming sunken passages over nearly the entire surface of the bed U, see Fig. 5. The'under surface of bed U, is grooved in zig-zag form as shown at j and the bed is perforated with holes k, the perforations extending entirely through the bed and communicating withthe grooves j. Ther bed U, is placed on the block F, the grooves j, communicating with the grooves a", in the upper surfacev of the latter.

V, is the plate to be printed from having the design engraved punched or otherwise sunken in its upper surface. A music plate is shown in Fig. 4. This plate is perforated with holes Z, one hole at least being in each isolated sunken portion of the plate. The

Vplate V, is placed on the bed U, and there is a direct communication between the sunken portions in the plate, the grooves in cam D, toggle C, and springs E, E. Just previous to each descent of the plunger B, a sheet of paper or o ther substance or material to receive the impression is placed on vthe plate V, and as the platen B, descends,

the wiper P, Von shaft O, actuates lever Q, and the cord c, opens the valve in-pipe I, so that when the platen B, has descended on the sheet which was placed on plate V, and

is kept pressed thereon by the actionof the cam the valve in pipe I, .will be open and the ink from reservoir J, will pass down pipe I, and through pipes H, and G, into the grooves amy', inthe block F, and bed U, and then pass throughA the perforations Z, into the surface portions of plate V, and be forced against the sheet on the same with a pressure due tothe weight of reservoir J, above the plate. This pressure (hydrostatic) causes the'impression on the sheet, the configuration of course coinciding with that of the' sunken portions ofr the plate. The valve in the pipe I, now closes and the pistonV of the pump M, rises the rod b, being drawn up by theV crank pulley a. pump M, draws the ink from the recesses in the plate V, and said ink passes into the boxV L, leaving the recesses in plate V, perfectly empty by the time the platen B, has reached its culminating point.V Another sheet is now placed on the plate V, the printed one being previously removed, and as the platen B, descends the plunger of pump M, also descends and forces theink which was drawn into box L, from plate V, at the upward movement of the plunger up through vtube N, into reservoir J. At the commencement of the downward movement of platen B, the slide S, is actuated and the valve stem z', turned so as to open the valve in pipe H, and allow ink to pass into the tube G, and grooves ax, y', and recesses of plate V, in advance of the ink from reservoir J, the latter serving only as a means for giving the pressure.. The employment of reservoir K, is essentialas it insures a quick operation of the press, saving the time which would be otherwise consumed in the passage of the ink from the reservoir J, after the platen B, has descended. The slide S, is operated to close the lvalve in pipe H, as the platen B, commences to rise. The ink reservoir K, is kept supplied from J, by the tube T.

The l From the above description it will be seen that the manipulation of wiping ofi' the plate and the tedious manner of giving the impression which attends the ordinary plate printing process is avoided.

The platen B, may be perforated as shown at am, to allow the escape of air from between it and the sheet as the latter is pressed down upon the plate V, the air also being allowed to escape from between the sheet and the plate, the air passing up through the-sheet as the plate is pressed down.

Having thus described my invention, what YI claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. Printing from engraved plates by having the sunken portions thereof, which form the design to be printed, charged or filled iwith fluid ink from below the plate, the ink being forced up through perforations in the plate against the paper or substance to reoeive the impression, While said paper or other substance is pressed upon or against the plate.

2. The arrangement of the ink reservoirs J, K, with the pipes I, H, tubes T, Gr, pump M, and grooves ax, y', in the block F, and bed U, in connection With the perforated plate V, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

W. H. OAKES. Witnesses:

M. M. LIVINGSTON, J. H. COOKE.

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