US62646A - Alfeed leighton - Google Patents

Description

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Be' it known that I, ALFRED LEIGHTON, 0f`9 Buckingham street, Strand, in the county of Middlesex, a subject ofthe Queen of Great Brita-in, have invented or discovered new and useful Improvements'in Printing and in Apparatus employed thereing and I, the said ALFRED 'LEIGHTOBL do hereby declare the nature of the .said invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following statement thereof, that is to say:

This invention has for its object improvements in printing and in apparatus employed therein, and is appli` cable more especially iu ornamenting or lettering articles of which the ,surface is not flat but curved or irregular. The printing surface consists of a flexible elastic sheet, with the device to be printed raised upon it, and this, having been suitably inked, is pressed by fluid pressure against the article to be printed. I employ a sheet of vulcanized India rubber, moulded with the pattern upon it, and it is mounted over a perforated plate, which supports it whilst the inl:v is applied. There is a chamber under the perforated plate containing air or other fluid, and means are provided for putting this air or iiuid under pressure when desired; it may be by forcing a plunger into the chamber, or by opening a valve communicating with another vessel containing fluid under ypressure or otherwise. i

The article to be printed is placed in a suitable holder. Usually it is convenient to fit it into a suitablyformed recess in a wooden board, hinged to the other parts of the apparatus, and when thus held Athe article is brought into proper position over the pattern on the llexible sheet, and there secured. lhe fluid beneath the llexiblc sheet is then put under pressure, and the pattern surface is thus caused to press sufficiently firm against and print it.

Having thus stated the nature of my invention, I will proceed more fully to describe the manner of peral forming the same.

. Description of the Drawings.

Figure l shows a longitudinal section of apparatus suitable for carrying out my invention.

.Figure 2shows a front elevation thereofg, and

Figure .3 shows a plan of the upper parts when opened out.

- a a isa plate of vulcanized India rubber, which material, by reason of its great flexibility and elasticity, is the material ll prefer to employ in constructing the printing surface. The vulcanizable India-rubber compound is moulded and vulcanized in a suitable mould, with the lettering or the other device or devices thereon. It should be stated that it is not new to produce and usc printing surfaces formed of vulcanized India rubber; but according to this invention such a printing surface is combined Ywith the pressure of iuid on its back or reverse side, by which the printing surface is made to apply itself and give olf its impressions to irregular surfaces, and again and again assume a regular form when having printing ink applied thereto. b is a perforated plate, on which the surface a is supported when being inked. The inking surface a a is as heretofore. c is a tube, com municating with a vessel or chamber, d, and with the space below the perforatedplate bf The vessel or chamber ol' may contain air or water or other liuid, so that. when subjected to pressure the fluid may act on all parts of the iiexible plate a a, and cause it to apply itself to an irregular surface. I, however, prefer to employ air for the purpose. The apparatus shown in the drawings is arranged suitably for printing a pattern upon a bottle or vessel, c e, of thin metal. The apparatus'may be arranged fol` printing in like manner upon other articles of Varied form, theparts of the apparatus used for holding the article to be printed being varied accordingly. f is a plunger, which slides duid-tight at f! intoand from the chamber cZ; or other means may be resorted to for giving therequisite pressure to the fluid contained in the vessel d. Motion isto'be communicated to the plunger f in any convenient manner. The arrangement shown in the drawing is, however, very convenient for this purpose. f2 is a shaft or axis, which has a`lever handle, f3, fixed thereon, and also two arms, f4, which, by links or conncctingrods,f5, give'motion to the plunger f when the lever handle is moved. The article to be printed is held in a sort of frisket or folding holder, which consists of two parts, g g', which are hinged together, and to the frame L 7L, which carries the other parts of thc mechanism, and such parts, g g', are formed ina suitable manner to receive and hold the article to be printed. In the arrangement shown, where the article to be printed 'is a bottle, the part g is recessed to receive it, whilst the part g has a hole through it of suitable dimensions to present a suiicient part of the surface to be printed. This part g', when necessary, may be of lexible and elastic material, xed at its edges in a frame. In fig. 1 of the drawings, the parts are shown as they would appear immediately before and immediately after the plunger is raised, the printing surface being flat on the perforated plate, so that, on causing the plungcrto rise from its position in lig. 1, the uid will be caused to press on the lower or reverse side of the flexible and elastic printing surface.

Having thus described the nature of my invention, and the manner of performing the same, I would have it understood that what I claim is- The combined arrangement of a flexible'elastic printing surface a,'with a chamber or vessel containing fluid, which, on being subjected to pressure, is caused to :1ct on the printing surface, substantially as described.

ALFRED LEIGHTON.

Witnesses:

THOS' BROWN No. 1T Gracechurch Street, London. J. LAKE,

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