US3601239A

US3601239A - Line-finding feed device for continuous forms for typewriting and such machines

Info

Publication number: US3601239A
Application number: US803659A
Authority: US
Inventors: Attilio De Ambrogio
Original assignee: Olivetti SpA
Current assignee: Telecom Italia SpA; Olivetti SpA
Priority date: 1968-03-07
Filing date: 1969-03-03
Publication date: 1971-08-24
Anticipated expiration: 1988-08-24
Also published as: FR1598043A; DE1909924C3; DE1909924A1; DE1909924B2; CH490192A

Abstract

Feed apparatus in a printing machine for feeding forms having registration apertures to a printing position comprising a rotatable platen, a star wheel operating in conjunction with said platen to sense said apertures by entering said apertures and rotating with the movement of said apertures, and electrical means responsive to the sensing of said apertures to halt said platen at predetermined writing lines relative to said apertures.

Description

United States Patent Inventor Attllio De Ambrogio Milan, Italy AppL No. 803,659 Filed Mar. 3, 1969 Patented Aug. 24, 1971 Assignee lug. C. Olivetti 8: C., S.p.A.

lvm (Torino), Italy Priority Mar.'7, 1968 I Italy LINE-FINDING FEED DEVICE FOR CONTINUOUS FORMS FDR TYPEWRI'I'ING AND SUCH MACHINES 18 Claims, 5 Drawing'lip.

US. Cl 197/133, 197/ 127 Int. Cl. Bdlj 15/00 Field olSearch 197/127, 128, 133

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,985,178 12/1934 Loeb 197/127 2,246,969 6/1941 Antrim 197/133 2,307,351 1/1943 Antrim 197/133 2,558,947 7/1951 Furman 197/127 2,831,561 4/1958 Speh 197/133 UX 3,211,272 10/1 965 Holladay et al. 197/127 3,247,944 4/ 1966 Templeton 197/127 3,356,200 12/1967 De George 197/133 X Primary Examiner-Ernest T. Wright, Jr Attorney-Kevin C. McMahon ABSTRACT: Feed apparatus in a printing machine for feeding forms having registration apertures to a printing position comprising a rotatable platen, a star wheel operating in conjunction with said platen to sense said apertures by entering said apertures and rotating with the movement of said apertures, and electrical means responsive to the sensing of said apertures to halt said platen at predetermined writing lines relative to said apertures.

PATENTEU AUB24I971 3.601.239

sum 1 or 2 Fig. 1

INVENTOR. ATTILIO DE AMBROGIO ATTORNEY PATENTEU AUG24 19m SHEET 2 0F 2 Fig. 3

Fig. 5

INVENTOR. ATTILIU DiyBROGIO BY M ATTORNEY LINE-FINDIN FEED DEVICE FOR cONTINuous FOR S FOR T-YPEWRITING AND suc r MACHINES CROSS-REFERENCETO RELATED AFPLICATION Italian patent application No. 50823-Al68 filed in Italy on Mar. 7, 1968 now Pat. NO. 831,161 issued Dec. 12, 1968 on which convention priority is based.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a feed device for continuous forms in typewriting machines, teleprinters, high-speed printers, and other such machines, including a platen and means actuatable by motor to rotate the platen for the advance of the forms. The device is for use in conjunction with a form provided with a hole in correspondence with a predetermined writingline.

2. Description of the Prior Art Various feed devicesof the aforesaid type are known which include a hole-sensing element in the form of'a tongue with a reciprocating motionfor stopping the form at a predetermined line. In these devices, however, the tongue frequently causes jerking or snatching of the paper during its entry into the holes, so that they are'not suitable for highspeed printers.

SUMMARY or THE INVENTION According to the invention there isprovided a fect! device for a continuousform provided with a hole in correspondence with a predetermined writing line in a typewriting machine, teleprinter, high-speed printer, or other such machine including a platen and means, actuatable by motor to rotate the platen for the advance'of the forms, wherein a cylindrical wall movable rigidly with said platen is engaged by a roller fast with a star wheel having rounded pegs normally sliding on the wall and adapted to enter a hole in the formby rotation of the star wheel due to the friction exerted by the cylindricalwall on the roller, the star wheel being. adapted to renderthe actuatable means inoperative sothatthe form is arrested in correspondence with the writing'line.

The invention will be described in more detail; by way of example,- with the aid ofthe accompanying drawing.

BRIEF DESCRIPTIONOF THE DRAWING DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The feed device of FIG. I is incorporated in a high-speed serial printer of the type having a type carriage slidable transversely on two guides'll secured to the fixedframe' 9 of the machine. The printer moreover comprises a platen 12' which is fixed on two shafts l3 and 14 (FIG. 2) rotatable in the fixed frame 9 of the machine. A knob 15 is fixed in known manner on the shaft 13; while on the shaft 14 there is fixed a gear 16 in mesh witha second gear 17. The latter gear 17 is adapted to be rotated by a motor to effect the line spacing or continuous advance of the paper under the control of actuatable means, comprising an electromagnet indicated by" the reference 18 in FIG. 5, in the manner described in the specification of the copending US. Pat. application 'Ser; No. 774,375 tiled in thename of Alessandro Cortona and'Pietro Musso.

The platenlZ is adaptedtofeed continuous forms 19(FIG. l), for example of the-type folded in zigzag form, which are guided by a paper guide plate 20 and are held 'so'that they bear pressing rollers 21. At the'top, theforms 19are held so that they bear against the platen 12 by a series of upper paperpressing rollers 22, which are carried' by a paper-holding frame or ball constituted by a bar 23 and two arms 24 pivoted at 26 on the frame 9' of the machine. A spring 25 normally urges the

bail

23,24 to cause the rollers to press the forms 19 on the platen 24. The continu'ousforms 19 are separated from one another by a series of perforations 8 parallel tothe writing lines and disposed in correspondence with each fold.

' In the vicinity of the left-hand margin of the forms 19, astride the fold,there is a rectangular hole 27 (FIG. 2) adapted to be sensed to determine the phasing of the forms 19 on the platen l2.

According to the first embodiment of the invention, at the left-hand end of the platen 12, between the latter and the knob 15, a hollow cylindrical cup 28 (FIG; 2) Ofthe same diameter as the platen 12 is fixed on the shaft 13. Between the cup 28 and the platen 12 a space is left in which there is disposed a star wheel 29 (FIG. 1) having three rounded pegs 30 arranged in accordance with the vertices of an equilateral triangle A roller 31 fast with the star wheel 29 engages an inner cylindrical wall 32 of the cup 28. The roller 31 is rotatable on a pin 33 fixed to a lever 34. This lever 34 is pivoted at 35 on a crank 36 fixed to a sleeve 43 (FIG. 2) rotatable on the shaft 13. The lever 34 (FIG. 1) is moreover connected tothe crank 36 by means of a spring 37 which holds the roller 31' pressed against the wall 32 of the cup 28. Y

Outside the cup 28, a second sleeve 44 is rotatable on the shaft 13 and to it there is fixed a lever 38 actuated manually by means of a key 39 fixed thereto. The lever 38 is provided with a slot 40guidedona fixed pin 41 to which there are fixed two rollers 42 which hold the lever 38 by frictionfromtime to time in the position reached. Each sleeve 43 and 44 (FIG. 2) is fast with two like gears 45 and 46 with which there mesh two

pinions

47 and 48 fixed ona pin 49 rotatable eccentrically on a disc of the cup 28; The pegs 30 (FIG. 1) of the star wheel 29 are adapted to cooperate with a plunger 50 of an electric switch 51 fixed to a bentlug52 of an'arm 53 of the lever 38. When the electric switch 51 is closed, it is adapted to send a signal to a first input of a flip-flop 54(FIG. 5). Another input of the flip-flop 54 is adapted toreceive a signal on the closing of a switch 5 5 and then emits an outputsignal'which, via an amplifier 56, energizesthe electromagnet-18'(FIG. 5 The feed device operates in the following manner. Let it be assumed that the switch 55 has been closed and holds the flipflop 54 in the active state. This causes the gear 17 (FIG. 2) to rotate through the amplifier 56 and the electromagnet 18. This gear 17, acting through the gear 16, causes the shaft 14 to rotate together with the platen 12, the shaft 13 and the cup 28.

By rotating anticlockwise, the platen 12 (FIG; 1) causes the forms'l9 to advance upwardly. The cup 28 carries the pinions 47 and 48'round and they roll onthe gears 45 and 46. The

inner wall 32of the cup 28, in turn, tends to cause the roller 31 and the star'wheel29 to rotate anticlockwise. The star wheel 29 therefore bears against the form 19 by means of one of its pegs 30, as shown in FIG. 1, but is immediately arrested by the form 19 and compels the roller 31 to slip on the surface 32.

I When a fern-1 19 presents a rectangular hole 27 in correspondence with the bottom peg 30 of the star wheel 29, the peg 30 is no longer held or clamped by the form 19 and the roller 31' is again carried along anticlockwise together with the star wheel 29. The peg 30 thus enters the hole 27 and actuates the plunger50, which closes the electric switch 51 (FIG. 5). The switch 51 sends a signal to the flip-flop 54, which is returned to the inactive state. The flip-flop 54 now no longer supplies the electromagnet 18, which is deenergized, and the platen 12 stops with the form 19 phased so as to present the first line at the writing point. After the roller 31 (FIG. 1) and has entered the hole 27 emerges at the top, while the following peg 30 is arrested against the form 19 and the roller 31 begins to slip on the inner surface 32 again. It is also possible to adjust the position of the star wheel 29 so to phase the forms 19 differently.

To this end, the lever 38 is actuated manually through the key 39. By rotating the lever 38 clockwise, the gear 46 rotates the pinion 48 which, through the pinion 47, rotates the gear 45 together with the crank 36 clockwise through the same angle as the lever 38. The lever 34 then shifts the star wheel 29 downwardly, advancing the sensing of the holes 27 of the forms 19. Similarly, by rotating the lever 38 anticlockwise, it causes the shifting of the star wheel 29 anticlockwise, via the

pinions

47 and 48 and the gears 45 and 46, thereby retarding the sensing of the forms 19.

In the second embodiment of the invention, the continuous forms 19 are sensed by a star wheel 57 (FIG. 3) having five rounded points 58. The star wheel 57 is disposed in correspondence with a circular groove 59 in the platen 12 and is fast with a sleeve 60 (FIG. 4) rotatable on the upper paper-holding bar 23. The sleeve 60 is fast with two rollers 61 of the same diameter as the upper paper-pressing rollers 22. The rollers 61 are therefore in engagement with the outer surface of the platen 12 through the action of a spring 62 (FIG. 3) acting on an arm 63 of the upper paper-holding bar 23. Fast with the two rollers 61 is a cam 64 in the form of a pentagonal prism, which is disposed between the rollers 61 and is adapted to actuate the plunger 50 of the electric switch 51, which is now fixed to a lug 67 of the arm 63.

When a hole 27 in the form 19 is presented in front of th bottom point 58 of the star wheel 57, the rollers 61 are rotated by the platen 12 together with the star wheel 57 and the can 64, which temporarily closes the electric switch 51 via the plunger 50 by means of a comer or angle 68. A form phasing signal is therefore sent to the flip-flop 54 (FIG. bringing the flip-flop 54 back to the inactive state and thus arresting the platen 12 as hereinbefore described.

lclaim:

1. A feed device for a continuous form provided with a hole in correspondence with a predetennined writing line in a machine comprising:

a platen, means actuatable to rotate the platen for the advance of said form, a cylindrical wall movable rigidly with said platen, a roller slidably frictionally engaging said cylindrical wall, a star wheel fixed to said roller having rounded pegs for entering a hole in said form by rotation of the star wheel due to the friction exerted by the cylindrical wall on the roller, and means responsive to the rotation of said star wheel to render the means actuatable inoperative so that the form is arrested in correspondence with the writing line.

2. A device according to claim 1, wherein said platen is fixed on two rotatable shafts, said cylindrical wall is the inner surface of a cylindrical member fixed on one of the shafts and having an external diameter equal to that of said platen, said star wheel being disposed at one end of said platen.

3. A device according to claim 2, wherein said star wheel is carried by an arm pivoted on a crank rotatable on said one of the shafts, adjustment means is connected to said crank for adjusting its angular position and resilient means is connected to said arm so as to press said roller against the inner surface of said cylindrical member.

4. A device according to claim 3, wherein said crank is connected to a manually operable lever rotatable on said one of the shafts, the lever being disposed at the opposite end of said cylindrical member with respect to the crank.

5. A device according to claim 4, wherein said crank is connected to said lever by a pair of pinions fast with each other and rotatable eccentrically on said cylindrical member, and two gears fast respectively with said crank and said lever, said two gears meshing with said pair of pinions and coaxial with the cylindrical member to permit the rotation of the crank via the lever.

6. A device according to claim 5, wherein said lever is retained by a friction element in the position to which it is set.

7. A device according to claim 4, wherein the pegs of said star wheel actuate an electric contact to render said means actuatable inoperative.

8. A device according to claim 7, wherein said contact is fixed to said lever, the peg of said star wheel actuating the contact being the same peg which enters the hole in the form.

9. A device according to claim 1, wherein said roller engages the outer surface of the platen, the star wheel being disposed in correspondence with a circular groove in the platen.

10. A device according to claim 9, wherein said star wheel is mounted on in upper paper-holding bar of said platen.

11. A device according axially claim 10, wherein said star wheel is fast with a lobed cam coaxial therewith and operative to close an electric contact carried by said paper-holding bar to render said means actuatable inoperative.

12. A device according to claim 11, wherein said cam has the fonn of a prism with the cross section of a regular polygon having a number of sides equal to the number of pegs of said star wheel, the contact being closed by means of the vertices of said prism.

13. A device according to claim 7, wherein said means actuatable is controlled by a flip-flop which is brought to an active state by an advance signal, the flip-flop being returned to the inactive state by a signal generated on the closing of said contact.

14. A line registration device for operation in conjunction with a rotatable platen of a writing machine to register lines to be written on a fonn relative to registration holes in said form comprising:

a. a cylindrical wall movable rigidly with said platen;

b. a roller frictionally slidably engaging said wall;

c. a star wheel axially fixed to said roller having pegs that enter said registration holes due to the friction exerted by the cylindrical wall on said roller; and,

d. means actuated by said star wheel to halt rotation of said platen whereby said form is arrested in correspondence with a line to be written.

15. A line registration device according to claim 14 wherein said cylindrical wall is a continuation of said platen.

16. A registration device according to claim 15 wherein said cylindrical wall has a circumferential groove positioned to underlie said registration holes, said roller engages said cylindrical wall externally and said pegs enter said registration holes from the exterior surface of said form so as to enter said groove.

17. A registration device according to claim 14 wherein said cylindrical wall is an interior wall of a cylinder concentric with said platen and said device further comprises means to support said roller and said star wheel in the interior of said cylinder.

18. A registration device according to claim 14 wherein said means actuated by said star wheel is an electrical switch responsive to rotation of said star wheel for changing the state of an electrical circuit controlling the rotation of said platen.

Claims

1. A feed device for a continuous form provided with a hole in correspondence with a predetermined writing line in a machine comprising: a platen, means actuatable to rotate the platen for the advance of said form, a cylindrical wall movable rigidly with said platen, a roller slidably frictionally engaging said cylindrical wall, a star wheel fixed to said roller having rounded pegs for entering a hole in said form by rotation of the star wheel due to the friction exerted by the cylindrical wall on the roller, and means responsive to the rotation of said star wheel to render the means actuatable inoperative so that the form is arrested in correspondence with the writing line. A device according to claim 1, wherein said platen is fixed oN two rotatable shafts, said cylindrical wall is the inner surface of a cylindrical member fixed on one of the shafts and having an external diameter equal to that of said platen, said star wheel being disposed at one end of said platen.

12. A device according to claim 11, wherein said cam has the form of a prism with the cross section of a regular polygon having a number of sides equal to the number of pegs of said star wheel, the contact being closed by means of the vertices of said prism.

14. A line registration device for operation in conjunction with a rotatable platen of a writing machine to register lines to be written on a form relative to registration holes in said form comprising: a. a cylindrical wall movable rigidly with said platen; b. a roller frictionally slidably engaging said wall; c. a star wheel axially fixed to said roller having pegs that enter said registration holes due to the friction exerted by the cylindrical wall on said roller; and, d. means actuated by said star wheel to halt rotation of said platen whereby said form is arrested in correspondence with a line to be written.