US994705A

US994705A - Electrotype and process of making same.

Info

Publication number: US994705A
Application number: US5034701A
Authority: US
Inventors: Alexander Elliott; Michael Shaen; Mary Lavinia Elliott
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1901-03-08
Filing date: 1901-03-08
Publication date: 1911-06-06
Anticipated expiration: 1928-06-06

Description

Patented June 6, 1911.

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A. ELLIOTT & lM

APPLICATION FILED MAR. 8, 1901.

M. L. ELLIOTT, EXEGUTEIX 0F A. ELLIOTT, DEOD.

1 ELEGTROTYPE AND TROGEYSS 0F MAKING SAME.

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ELEGTROTYPE AND PROGBSS OP MAKING SAME.

. APPLICATION FILED MAR. 8, 1901. l 9,759 Patented June 6,1911.

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STATES lPATENT oFFicE.

ALEXANDER ELLIOTT AND nMICHAEL SHAEN, OF WASHINGTON, DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA; MARY LAVINIA ELLIOTT EXECUTRIX 0F SAID ALEXANDER ELLIOTT,

DECEASED.

ELECTBOTYPELALND PROCESS 0F MAKING SAME.

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To all 'whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, ALEXANDER ELLIOTT and MICHAEL SHAEN, citizens of the United States, residing at Washington, in the District of Columbia, have invented new and useful Improvements in Electrotypes and Processes of Making' the Same, of which the following is a specification.

Our invention relates to electrotypes, and consists, first-in a process of backing copper or electrotype shells whereby a perfect electrotype is produced much more expeditiously and at'considerably less expense than by the processes now in vogue, and secondin the electrotype the product of the process.

The invention will be fully understo from the following description and claims,

when taken in conjunction with the accomp anying. drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is a longitudinal-vertical section ofthe apparatus, whichwe prefer to employ in 1carrying out our process; the same being shown with acopper shell on its heating plate, and with'its casting box open and holding a cast plate in itsvtop section. Fig.k

2 is a plan view ofthe same. Fig. 3 is a vdetail side elevation, partly in section, illustrating by full lines the manner in which the casting box is swung on the supporting frame, and, by brokenv or dotted lines, the

position which the` said" box is caused to mass.

Similar letters of reference, designate cor- I responding parts in all of the several views of the drawings.

In carrying out our improved process, the type, cut or other subject of the electrotype to be produced is first molded in wax, after the usual 'manner, and the mold is then shaved, preferably through the medium of a power shaver, this with a' view of remov- Specication of Letters Patent.

Application led March B, 1901.

Patented J une 6, 1911.

serial No. 50,347.

ing the splurge of wax caused by the pressing of the type, cut or other subject into the waXand leaving the plane surface of the mold smooth and level and eliminating all building up of the mold. The wax mold or impression is then coated with powdered graphite, and immersed in an electroplatin bat-h when a copper shell A will be deposite thereon.

We prefer t0 shave the mold with a power shaver as stated, because the shaving knife thereof, when properly set or adjusted, is enabled to make a perfectly true cut and leave the plane surface of the mold smooth and level, but it is obvious that `any other kind of shaver or means calculated to render the planel surface of the mold smooth and' l level-z'.4 e., free from depressed portions, protuberances or unevennesses, may be employed. p 4

In backing the copper shell a plate of the required .thickness and composed of what is known as electrotype metal or other suitable metal is cast or otherwise produced, and the back side of the copper shell is soldered to the face thereof.

By virtue of the wax mold being provided as stated with a smooth'and level plane surface, the copper shell deposited thereon has a smooth and level back-side whichrests in a plane parallel to that o f the face of its type or other subject. advantageous because when the backing plate is applied in the manner described, the shell is uniformly joined to and supported throughout its area by`the backing plate` and is not liable to -buckleyincident to the setting of the two kinds of metal, 'and form sinks or depressions in the face of the electrotype which would have to be hammeredout by repeated blows applied to the back of the backing plate before the electroty e could be used. When the subject of t e electrotype produced Ain accordance with our invention embodies no blank spaces of large size into which the paper would be liable to sag -in printing, the improved electroty e is ready for use as soon as produced wit out furthertreatment, except the usual shaving of the back of the backing plate. When, however, the subject of the improved electroty'pe embodies blank spaces of such size that 4the paper would be liable to sag into same and be blackened lin-printing, depressions can be provided by routing out the This is materially blank spaces in the manner ordinarily practiced by electrotypers. -v

In the preferred embodiment of our invention the soldering of the copper shell to the plate of electrotype or other metal is accomplished as follows, viz.; the plate which is lettered B, in' Figs. l, 6 and 7, is taken while in a heated state, and its face is brushed with muriate of'zinc or any other suitable'tlux, afterwhich a sheet of tin foil lettered C in Fig.A 6 is applied to its face. By reason of the plate B being heated as stated, the tin foil will spread over its tace and by virtue of the flux'employed will adhere thereto. The inner or back side of the copper shell'is brushed with muriate of zinc or any other suitable tlux, and a sheet of tin :toil is applied to the same, after which the shell is heated, when the tin foil will be melted and caused to adhere thereto. Such sheet of tin foil is lettered D in Fig. 6, and after its application to the shell in the manner described, the cups ofthe letters or other matter on the shell vare lilled by pouring molten electrotype or other suitable metal therein; such metal being indicated by E in Fig. 6. The tinned face of the cast plate B, and the back side of the copper shell to which the tin foil D and electrotype metal E are applied, are then brought together while all are still in a heated state, and are subjected to suicient pressure to hold the shelll rmly on the plate until the solder employed to ee'ct the union of plate and shell is set,

when a perfectly straight and true electrotype will be the result.

It will be appreciated from the foregoing that our process of backing a' copper shell and producing an'electrotype is very simple and expeditious, and is much cheaper than the process now commonly practiced, because it obviates the necessity of building up the mold to produce depressions in the shell and in fact could not -be practiced if the shell were produced on a built up mold on account of the protuberances which such a shell would present to the backing plate, because it removes the necessity'of hammering the electrotype to clear it of imperfections caused by pouring molten electrotype metal on the thin copper shell lto back the same which is the practice extant, and because the electrotype produced is ready for use without .further treatment except the usual shaving of the back of plate and, when thev subject of the electrotype embraces large blank spaces, the routingout of said blank spaces usually 'resorted to. It will also be appreciated ,that in the electrotype the.

product of our process, the plate B, sheets ofk tin foil C, D, and electrotype metal E, are fused or blended into oneness, and'form c a solid backing for the 'copper shell which will enable all parts of the same to Withstand .greater pressure.

.in any other manner suitableto thepurposes of our invention without departing from the .spirit thereof.

The apparatus which we prefer to employ in carrying out our improved process comprises a main frame a, a heating plate b arranged thereon over .hydrocarbon burners c, or any other suitable heater, and a casting box d. The casting box comprises, in turn, a bottom section e having trunnions f journaled in the frame, and adapted to rest, when in its horizontal position, on a cross bar g ot' the frame and flush with the heating plate b, a top section /L loosel connected to the bottom section and a' apted when the box isopened as shown in Fig. l,

to rest on a braclret'z' projecting from the frame, posts j'rising from the' bottom section, a cross bar s pivotally connected to one of the posts j and having a hook Z adapted to be swung into engagement with the other post j, and a hand screw m bearing in a threaded aperture in the cross bar k and adapted to be turned down on the top section L of the box when the same is closed, as

shown, whereby it is enabled to hold the said plate in the section h.

In addition to the elements named, the apparatus is provided with a transverse shaft g Which is equipped with stops 7 for engaging the'bottom of the box and holding the same in a horizontal position, and a hand lever s through the medium of which the stops are thrown out of Aengagement with the box so as to permit of the latter being swung on the frame after the manner indicated by full and broken lines in Fig. 3.

1n operating the apparatus and carrying out our improved process, a suitable flux such as muriate of zinc, and a sheet of tin foil are applied in the order named to the back or inner side of the shell, and said shell is placed on the late b, when the heat imparted to it will me t the tin foil. While the casting box d is in the position shown by broken lines in Fig. 3, sufficient rmolten metal to form a plate such as .B in Fig. 1, is poured therein, and then when the cast metal is cooled suHicient-ly `to permit of the box being opened, said box is swung in the direction indicated by arrow iii-Fig'. .3, bac-lr on the cross bar g of the frame, and' is thenv being engaged by the vclip fn.. Muriate of zinc or any other suitable flux is applied t0 the face of the plate B, together with a sheet of tin foil, when thev latter will be melted by the heat retained in the plate and caused to spread over and adhere to the face of the same. Molten electrotype metal is poured on the tinned copper shell so as to fill the cups of the letters or other matter thereof, and with this done the copper shell is mved from the heating plate I) over on the bottom section c of the casting bdX', and the box is then closed, and the sec` tion l1. is pressed down on section e, through the medium of screw m sufficiently to hold the plate Z) firmly down on the copper shell until the tinned surfaces of the shell and plate set, when the electrotype is removed.

It will be observed from the` foregoing that the heat retained in the cast plate B is utilized. to melt the tin foil app-lied to said plate, and that this simplifies the process and renders the same very expeditious'since it obviates the necessity of reheating the plate for the purpose stated. It Will also be observed that in accordance of our process and with the aid of our apparatus a perfect electrotype may be expeditiously produced with but a minimum amount of effort on the part of the attendant of the apparatus.

By virtue of the copper or electrotype shell having a flat back, due to the plane surface of the mold employed, when the backing plate is pressed down on the shell in the lmanner described, the shell is held perfectly flat, a good union is effected between the flat back side of the shell and the flat face of the plate, and the shell is efectually prevented from buckling.

We have entered into a detail description of the preferred embodiment of our invention, in order to impart a. full, clear and exact understanding of the same. We do not desire, however, to be understood as confining ourselves tol the specific' materials lemployed or the relative arrangement of the same, as such changes or modifications may be made in practice as fairly fall Within the scope of our claims.

Having described our invention, what We claim. and desire to secure'by Letters-Patent, is:

1. The process of producing an electrotype which consists in molding the subject mat-ter of the electrotype to be produced in Wax, rendering the plane surface of the wax mold smooth and level, forming an .electrotype-shell on the mold having the smooth and level plane surface by electro-deposition,

vfilling the cups of the letters or other matside of the shell, heating the shell, filling I the cups of the letters of other matter of the shell With molten metal, heating a metallic backing plate, applying tin and a flux tothe plate, ,and brmging the back side of the shell and the face of the plate together and subjecting them to pressure While in a heated state.

3. The process of producing an electrotype which consists in molding the subject matter of the electrotype to be produced in wax or other suitable material, rendering the plane surface of the mold perfectly smooth and level, depositing metal on the said mold and thereby producing an electrotype shell having a smooth and level back side which rests in a plane parallel to that of the face of the subject matter of the shell, and oining the back side of the shell to the face of a metallic backing plate through the medium of metal which is interposed between the shell and the plate at all points throughout the area thereof.

4. The process of producing an electrotype which consists in producin an electrotype-shell having al flat back si e, casting a metallic backing plate, and joining the fiat back side of the shell to the face of the plate by solder While the said plate retains a portion of the heat due to the casting thereof.

In testimon whereof We have hereunto set our hands 1n prese-nce of. two subscribing- Witnesses.

ALEXANDER ELLIOTT. MICHAEL SHAEN.

Witnesses:

ORA A. BRADY, Gno. JOHANNES.