US3358596A - Printing instrument - Google Patents

Description

Dec. 19, 1967 R. DAVIS 3,358,596

PRINTING INSTRUMENT Filed Feb. 19, 1965 Inventor ROBERT L. 0/! W5 United States Patent 3,358,596 PRINTING INSTRUMENT Robert L. Davis, Alexandria, Va., assignor to Farrington Business Machines Corporation, Springfield, Va., a corporation of Massachusetts Filed Feb. 19, 1965, Ser. No. 433,913 6 Claims. (Cl. 101-269) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A printing machine comprising a base, a platen head movable over the base, a removable tray defining a printing bed seated on the base and supporting a printing plate, a spring biased clip on the tray for securing a document on the tray to overlie the printing plate and a rim integral with the base for receiving and positioning the tray in printing position under the platen head, the rim overlapping the tray thereby securing it within a fixed plane.

The present invention relates to a printing device and, more particularly, to an improved printing device for recording data on sales slip documents or the like by means of typographical plates to a kind suitable for use as identification tokens and adapted to be carried by individuals.

Objects of the invention are to provide a new and improved printing device having a portable printing bed tray which produces clean cut and uniform imprinting, which operates conveniently and with little effort, which is simple and economical in construction, which is adapted for virtually any size of documents or number of copies to be reproduced thereon, which is individually adjustable to readily accommodate any compatible printing device, which provides a portable printing bed tray enabling information to be readily written on a document fastened thereon, which allows transactions to be expeditiously accomplished, and which is durable and reliable in use.

Other objects, advantages, and capabilities of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, illustrating a preferred embodiment of the invention.

In the drawings:

FIGURE 1 is a front perspective view of the imprinter and portable printing bed tray constructed in accordance with the principles of the present invention.

The embodiment herein shown for the purpose of illustration comprises a printing device having a pair of C- frame members 11 and 12, each being in parallel relationship with the other, yet separated by a base 13 which is mounted for support on the C-frame members by suitable fastening means (not shown). Overhead of the base are located a pair of parallel guide rails 14 and 15 which are adequately spaced and fastened at their ends to the upper portions of the respective C-frame members 11 and 12. The inner sides of the guide rails 14 and 15 are channeled, to define a pair of paths 16 and 17 respectively, for guiding two pair of bearings 18 rotatably mounted on a pair of shafts 19.

The bearings 18 are employed to guide a platen head assembly, generally referred to as 21, over the base for imprinting purposes as will hereinafter be described. The platen head assembly comprises a handle 22 to which is attached a U-shaped bracket 23 having downwardly extending sides the lower ends of which are adapted to slideably receive a shaft 24 supporting for rotation a platen roller 25, whereby the platen roller is either of the dry or ink type such as that disclosed in Gilbert Patent 3,358,596 Patented Dec. 19, 1967 2,620,730 issued Dec. 9, 1952. The middle portions of the U-shaped bracket extensions and housing member 27 are each bored to receive a rod 26. Housing member 27 is additionally bored to receive shaft members 19 for carrying the housing by way of bearings 18 in the limits of paths 16 and 17, thus supporting the housing for reciprocating motion within the printing device. The housing in turn supports platen head assembly 21 in a pivotable fashion about rod 26.

The printing device is adapted to readily receive a portable print bed tray 30 on base 13 and to position the tray so that a selected area on the tray will lie directly under the path of travel traversed by the platen head assembly 21 during an imprint operation. The positioning of the tray is accomplished by a guide rim 28, which is located about three sides of the base, and lips 29 extending partly about the rear area of the base, the latter being utilized for restraining any possible rocking or vertical movement of the tray while being held in the printing device. The base 13 has a protruding front portion 13 which provides backing for enabling one to easily write information on a document 45 fastened on the print bed tray 39 while the tray is seated in the printing device 21. The print bed tray may be made of any rigid material such as heavy cardboard, Masonite, plastic, metal, or the like, however, the material must have the capacity for withstanding platen printing pressures in the area of twenty to seventy pounds. The print bed tray, as illustrated, comprises an anvil 31 fastened thereto in a fixed manner for supporting a printing plate 32 of the type having raised type thereon, which printing plate may be made of plastic, metal or any combinations of the same. To properly position the printing plate on anvil 31, there are a pair of right-angled guides 33 and a pair of pins 34 adjacent the anvil, for respectively accommodating the lower edge of plate and holes 35 in the upper edge of the plate.

The print bed tray may, if desired, also be provided with a second anvil 36 and right-angled undercut ear projections 37 for seating thereon a second printing plate 38 which could be utilized for a dealers identification or some other purpose. Alongside the second anvil might also be a cutout 39 in the print bed tray, wherein there is placed a date wheel 41 which is attached by screw means 42 to the print bed tray. Base 13 is channeled at 40 to accommodate the date wheel 41 when the printing bed tray is placed on the base. Between the upper surface of the print bed tray and each head of screw means 42 is positioned a spring (not shown) allowing date wheel adjustment at various heights for proper printing pressure, depending on the thickness of the printing plates and/or documents to be used. To provide for optimum printing pressure within the system and simultaneously allow several trays to be utilized with a single printing device, the height of the printing plate support surfaces on the anvil-s are separately adjustable by inserting shims between the anvils and the tray. By achieving the above it can be appreciated that the necessity for observing critical thickness tolerances in manufacturing the trays is alleviated.

At the head of the print bed tray is a large spring-biased clip 44 with a rubber tip 44' for frictionally fastening thereto a substantial part of one end of the document 45 to be printed. To expeditiously align the document 45 on the print bed board over the anvils 31 and 36 there are provided a guide wall 46 under the spring-biased clip 44 and a pair of guide lips 47. The print bed tray is indented or recessed at apertures 48 under the locations to be occupied by printing plates 32 and 38 adjacent the anvils 31 and 36 respectively, to facilitate the handling of the printing plates when placed on and removed from their mutual anvils. In addition to the above, by suitably fixing a low lying pin 50 in the rear of base 13 and in line with a recess 48, the printing plate 38, if displaced outwardly on anvil 36, will be properly aligned on the same due to physical engagement with pin 50 when the tray 30 has been completely inserted in the printing device.

In operation, printing plates 32 and 38 are seated on their respective anvils 31 and 36, and document 45 is fastened on the print bed tray by way of clip 4-4 to properly lie over the printing plates, against guide wall 46 and under guide lips 47. The print bed tray is then inserted into the printing device and pushed rearwardly under lips 29 until it strikes the rear of the printing device. Correct positioning as to the print bed tray can be verified by visually observing whether or not the location of the area to be imprinted on the document lies directly between guide rails 14, and 15 which rails define the printing path, and/ or by observing corresponding x markings on tray 30 and lip 29. Motion is then imparted to the platen head assembly for moving the same left to right across the printing device and over the anvils 31 and 36 causing an impression to be transferred onto the document 45 from printing plates 32), 38 and date wheel 41 by pressure en gagement therewith. Attention is called to the fact that since in the illustrated embodiment an imprint operation is preferable initiated from left to right, accordingly, the document 45 is only fastened relative to the left end of the printing device. Therefore, to avoid wrinkling document 45 on the return stroke from right to left, the platen through handle 22 will be rocked about the rod 26 for displacing the same at a greater distance from the print bed tray than that distance during imprinting, thus preventing any engagement with the document. It will be appreciated, however, that one could readily modify the present invention allowing bidirectional imprinting to be possible by either merely fastening the right hand side of document 45 or providing a rigid platen head assembly with limited movement over the document. Optimum printing on the documents during the print cycle may be obtained by properly spacing the platen relative to the printing bed tray in a manner such as that disclosed in a co-pending US. patent application No. 378,189, filed by James M. Patterson on June 26, 1964, now Patent No. 3,274,931.

It is observed that the present invention is adapted for accommodating a wide variety of document sizes. However, it has been found that it is especially useful for use with those larger types of documents which equal or exceed letter size dimensions and/ or have increased thicknesses. These large-size documents are quite often utilized in the course of commercial trade for numerous types of transactions, which appear in the form of shipping slips, order forms, bills of lading, repair and maintenance forms, inventory forms, billing forms, hospital forms, or any similar type documents where a large numher of entries is generally required. In utilizing many of the above-mentioned type forms the clear recording of certain information is most important in processing the documents. Applicant has not only presented a device which allows such recording to be clearly made by printting, but has disclosed a unique portable tray which also allows other variable information to be readily recorded by hand while the document remains on the same printing bed tray. Furthermore, several trays may readily be adjusted for use with a single printing device as shown in the present invention allowing several transactions to be simultaneously achieved and obviating the necessity for the additional manhandling of documents in transferring the same from a writing plane or holder to a printing bed for recording information. Thus, by use of such a tray, transactions may be expeditiously, conveniently, and neatly accomplished.

It should be understood, of course, that the foregoing disclosure relates to only a preferred embodiment of the invention and that numerous modifications or alterations may be made therein without departing from the spirit and the scope of the invention, it is desired, therefore, that only such limitations be placed on the invention as are imposed by the prior art and as set forth in the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

1. In the art of printing machines of the type adapted to use portable printing plates a machine comprising a base, a pair of spaced guide rails defining a path, a platen head assembly adapted for rockable motion into and out of printing position, bearing means for reciprocally moving the platen head assembly by way of said path over the base, a portable tray defining a printing bed removably seated on the base so a part of the tray completely underlies the path traversed by the platen head assembly, said tray of rigid one piece sheet material and aifording a generally rectangular planar printing bed adapted to support a printing plate for having an imprint made therefrom, a spring biased clip attached to the tray for fastening a document thereto to overlie the printing plate support area, guide means for locating a document on the tray, rim means integral with said base for receiving and positioning the tray, said rim means overlapping the tray at two opposite sides thereof for holding the tray within a fixed plane, means on the tray for temporarily securing the printing plate thereto, the document being fastened by the spring biased clip to the tray in such a manner to prevent the document from bellowing when a printing operation is taking place.

2. In the art of printing machines according to claim 1 wherein said spring biased clip is positioned on the tray perpendicular to the path traversed by the platen head assembly and also positioned to one side of the printing head assembly when in its initial start position prior to making an imprint, said spring biased clip further positioned to lie outside of the area traversed by the printing head assembly.

3. In the art of printing machines of the type adapted to use portable printing plates, the combination recited in claim 2 including indicating means for visually vertifying that the tray has been properly positioned on the base.

4. In the art of printing machines of the type adapted to use portable printing plates, the combination recited in claim 2 including recesses in the tray adjacent and partly under the printing plate support means for allowing the same to be easily removed therefrom.

5. In the art of printing machines of the type adapted to use portable printing plates, the combination recited in claim 2 including pin means on said tray for accommodating an aperture printing plate to insure that the printing plate has been properly positioned.

6. In the art of printing machines of the type adapted to use portable printing plates, the combination recited in claim 2 wherein at least two-thirds of the area of a document placed on the tray lies outside that area traversed by the platen head assembly but over the area defined by the tray to support the document for readily Writing information thereon.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,930,009 10/1933 Hammann 101-383 2,891,295 6/1959 Little 281-44 3,056,347 10/1962 Dashew et al. 101-269 3,236,177 2/1966 Perry et al 101-269 3,274,931 9/1966 Patterson 101-269 ROBERT E. PULFREY, Primary Examiner.

F. A. WINANS, Assistant Examiner.

Claims (1)

1. IN THE ART OF PRINTING MACHINES OF THE TYPE ADAPTED TO USE PORTABLE PRINTING PLATES A MACHINE COMPRISING A BASE, A PAIR OF SPACED GUIDE RAILS DEFINING A PATH, A PLATEN HEAD ASSEMBLY ADAPTED FOR ROCKABLE MOTION INTO AND OUT OF PRINTING POSITION, BEARING MEANS FOR RECIPROCALLY MOVING THE PLATEN HEAD ASSEMBLY BY WAY OF SAID PATH OVER THE BASS, A PORTABLE TRAY DEFINING A PRINTING BED REMOVABLY SEATED ON THE BASE SO A PART OF THE TRAY COMPLETELY UNDERLIES THE PATH TRAVERSED BY THE PLATEN HEAD ASSEMBLY, SAID TRAY OF RIGID ONE PIECE SHEET MATERIAL AND AFFORDING A GENERALLY RECTANGULAR PLANAR PRINTING BED ADAPTED TO SUPPORT A PRINTING PLATE FOR HAVING AN IMPRINT MADE

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