Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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TITLE OF THE INVENTION
INKING ARRANGEMENT FOR PRINTING PRESSES
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to inking
arrangements for printing presses.
Usual printing presses have an ink fountain
roller disposed close to an ink fountain member forming
an ink fountain, from which ink is applied to the outer
peripheral surface of the fountain roller, then trans-
ferred by a vibrating roller to an ink distributing
roller and further supplied to the printing surface
via a plurality of other ink distributing rollers.
The ink fountain member, which is usually in
the form of a plate, and the fountain roller define an
ink channel, through which the ink in the fountain is
applied to the otuer peripheral surface of the fountain
roller.
With the printing press described, the kind
of ink to be used is changed depending on the print to
be made. In such a case, completion of the preceding
printing operation is followed by a procedure for
replacing the ink within the fountain by the one to be
used for the subsequent printing operation. This
replacement procedure includes collection of the old
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ink from inside the fountain and cleaning of the
fountain member and the rollers.
With the conventional printing press, the
vibrating roller and the ink distributing rollers are
automatically cleaned by so-called inker cleaning,
whereas the fountain roller and the fountain member
are difficult to clean automatically and are therefore
cleaned manually in the following manner. After the
preceding printing operation has been completed, the
old ink remaining in the fountain is removed by
manual work with the fountain roller at rest, and the
portions of the fountain roller and the fountain
member in contact with the ink are manually cleaned.
Accordingly, the old ink is cumbersome to collect,
and the fountain member and the fountain roller need to
be cleaned by hand, necessitating similarly cumbersome
work. Since it is only after these components have
been cleaned that new ink can be placed into the
fountain, the replacement is a time-consuming procedure
and requires a long period of time before starting
the next printing operation.
There are also cases wherein the size (width)
of the ink channel is altered depending on the print to
be produced by the printing machine. In such a case,
the size of the ink channel is adjusted conventionally
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by varying the position or angle of the fountain
member, but the adjustment is also cumbersome.
Furthermore it is desired with the printing
press to adjust the width of the ink fountain in
accordance with the width of the printing surface,
whereas this is generally difficult.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
An object of the present invention is to an
inking arrangement for printing presses which makes it
easy to collect old ink and to clean the fountain
roller to shorten the replacement time.
Another object of the invention is to provide
an inking arrangement for printing presses which
obviates the need to clean the fountain member for the
replacement of ink to shorten the replacement time.
Another object of the invention to provide an
inking arrangement for printing presses wherein the
ink channel is easy to adjust in size.
Still another object of the invention is to
provide an inking arrangement for printing presses
wherein the ink fountain is easy to adjust in width.
The present invention provides an inking
arrangement for printing presses which comprises an
ink fountain member having at least one fountain-
forming face for forming an ink fountain, an ink
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fountain roller defining an ink channel together with
the fountain member and having an outer peripheral
surface to be inked through the channel, a plurality of
rollers for supplying the in)c applied to the peripheral
S surface of the fountain roller to a printing portion,
and a cleaning tank disposed below the fountain member,
the ink arrangement being characterized in that the
cleaning tank is provided with a cleaning blade at
least alternatively shiftable to a cleaning position
in which the cleaning blade is pressed against the
peripheral surface of the fountain roller or to a stand-
by position in which the cleaning blade is away from the
fountain roller so that the ink applied to the peri-
pheral surface of the fountain roller through the
channel is scraped off by the cleaning blade in the
cleaning position and collected in the cleaning tank.
When a usual printing operation is to be
conducted, the cleaning blade is changed over to the
stand-by position away from the fountain roller.
Accordingly, the ink applied from the ink fountain to
the peripheral surface of the fountain roller through
the ink channel is supplied to the printing surface as
in the prior art. For the replacement of ink, the
cleaning blade is changed over to the cleaning position
and pressed against the peripheral surface of the
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fountain roller. In this state, the fountain roller
is rotated. The rotation of the fountainer roller
causes the old ink remaining in the fountain to come out
through the ink channel onto the outer peripheral
surface of the fountain roller as in the case of print-
ing, whereas the ink is scraped off by the cleaning
blade and collected in the cleaning tank. After the
whole ink remaining in the fountain has been taken out
by the fountain roller and collected by the cleaning
blade into the cleaning tank, the fountain roller is
held in rotation as it is for some time, whereby the ink
remaining on the peripheral surface of the fountain
roller is almost completely scraped off by the cleaning
blade. When required, the portions of the fountain
roller peripheral surface and the fountain member which
were in contact with the ink are thereafter thoroughly
cleaned manually, a new ink is placed into the foun-
taro, and the next printing operation is stated. In
this way, the ink remaining in the fountain is auto-
matically collected into the cleaning tank by the
cleaning blade in the cleaning position, and the ink
remaining on the fountain roller peripheral surface
scraped off almost completely by the blade for the
replacement of the ink. The surfaces of the fountain
roller and the fountain member only need to be cleaned
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by hand when so desired. Consequently, the present
invention makes it easy to collect the ink and clean
the arrangement to result in a shortened replacement
time.
For example, the fountain member is posi-
tionable in a plurality of work positions by being
rotated about an axis of rotation parallel to the
fountain roller, and has a plurality of fountain-
forming faces arranged along the periphery thereof
in the direction of rotation and each having an ink
channel-defining portion at one end thereof. Each of
the fountain-forming faces forms the ink fountain
with its channel-defining portion positioned close to
the peripheral surface of the fountain roller when the
fountain member is in the corresponding work position.
In this case, for example, the fountain member is
approximately in the form of a quadrangular prism and
has four fountain-forming faces along its periphery.
Further for example, the plurality of fountain-forming
faces are different from one another in the distance
from the axis of rotation of the fountain member to
the channel-defining portion. Further for example,
the positioning angle of the fountain member in each
of the work positions is finely adjustable.
When an ink of different kind is to be used
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to produce a different print, the fountain-forming
face which forms the ink fountain can be replaced by
rotating the fountain member and positioning the
member in a differnt work position. For the replace-
ment of ink, therefore, the fountain member is rotated
to the different work position to form the ink fountain
with a fresh fountain-forming face for use in the
next printing operation, and the new ink is placed into
the fountain, whereby the next printing operation can
be initiated before cleaning the fountain-forming face
used for the preceding printing operation. The
fountain-forming face used for the preceding operation
can be cleaned during the next printing operation.
Accordingly, the time required for the replacement
can be shortened by the length of time needed for
cleaning the fountain-forming face. In the case where
the fountain member is in the form of a quadrangular
prism, a plurality of fountain-forming faces can be
easily formed along the periphery of the fountain
member which has a simple shape. In the case where
the channel-defining portions of the fountain-forming
faces are different from one another in the distance
from the axis of rotation of the fountain member to
the channel-forming portion, different work positions
give different sizes to the ink channel. When the
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positioning angle of the fountain member in each
work position is made finely adjustable, the size of
the ink channel can be finely adjusted in each work
position by finely adjusting the positioning angle.
For example, the fountain roller and the
fountain member are each at least partly made of a
magnetic material, and the inking arrangement further
comprises barrier plates each including a permanent
magnet having a face for magnetically attracting the
fountain roller in intimate contact with the peripheral
surface thereof and a face for magnetically attracting
the fountain member in intimate contact with the
fountain-forming face forming the ink fountain.
In this case, the barrier plates can be
installed in place and removed easily, and are shiftable
longitudinally of the fountain roller. The width of
the ink fountain is variable as desired by shifting
the barrier plates. The barrier plates merely attract
the fountain roller thereto magnetically and therefore
cause no trouble to the rotation of the fountain
roller. Even when having a plurality of fountain-
forming faces, the fountain member is rotatable with
the barrier plates removed from between the fountain
roller and the fountain member.
For example, the inking arrangement comprises
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a strip of sheet which has a lengthwise intermediate
portion placed over the fountain member so as to cover
the fountain-forming face in intimate contact there-
with.
The term "sheet" as used herein includes
all flexible materials which are thin plates having
a very small thickness as compared the length and
width thereof. The sheet is not limited in thickness;
the term sheet includes a sheet having a relatively
large thickness and a film having a small thickness.
When the arrangement including the sheet
is used for usual printing, the sheet portion covering
the fountain-forming face of the fountain member is
in intimate contact with the face and remains immovable
in any direction. The fountain-forming face covered
with the sheet and the fountain roller form an ink
fountain, in ,which ink is placed. One end of the
fountain-forming face covered with the sheet and the
fountain roller define an ink channel. When the
fountain roller is rotated in this state, the ink in
the fountain comes out onto the peripheral surface of
the fountain roller through the ink channel. As in the
prior art, the ink applied to the surface of the
fountain roller is supplied to the printing surface.
For the replacement of ink, the old ink remaining in
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the fountain is collected, the ink remaining on the
fountain roller peripheral surface is scraped off
almost completely, and the fountain roller is cleaned
by hand when required. On the other hand, the sheet
is moved longitudinally thereof, whereby the sheet
portion so far in use in intimate contact with the
fountain forming face and having the old ink adhering
thereto is moved away from the fountain-forming face,
and a fresh sheet portion before use is brought into
intimate contact with the fountain-forming face. The
fresh sheet portion and the fountain roller form an
ink fountain, into which a new ink is placed, and the
next printing operation is conducted as described
above. Since the fountain-forming face of the foun-
taro member is covered with the sheet, no ink will
adhere to the face. For replacement, the sheet needs
only to be so moved as to move the used sheet portion
away from the fountain-forming face and to bring the
fresh sheet portion before use into intimate contact
with the face without the necessity of cleaning the
fountain member. This ensures a simple replacement
procedure and takes a shorter period of time.
The inking arrangement includes, for example,
roll support means for rotatably supporting the sheet
as rolled up before use and take-up means for winding
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up the sheet after use. The sheet is paid off from the
roll on the support means, placed over the fountain
member and guided to the take-up means.
In this case, a predetermined length of sheet
needs only to be wound up by the take-up means to pay
off the sheet from the roll on the support means for
the replacement of ink, whereby the used sheet portion
can be moved away from the fountain-forming face, with
the unused sheet portion brought into intimate contact
with the fountain-forming face.
For example, the roll support means has a
roll support member in the form of a trough for
supporting the roll thereon.
The sheet roll can then be rotatably supported
when merely placed into the support member.
For example, the take-up means has a hollow
or solid cylindrical take-up member for winding the sheet
thereon, and a drive device for rotating the take-up
member. For example in this case, the take-up member
is removably mounted on the drive device, and the take-
up member is formed in its outer peripheral surface
with a groove for the leading end of the sheet to be
fixedly inserted in. The groove extends to at least one
end of the take-up member.
The sheet can then be wound up on the take-up
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member merely by rotating the take-up member with the
drive device, merely with the leading sheet end inserted
in the groove of the take-up member. The entire sheet
as wound up on the take-up member can be removed from
the member easily for disposal by slipping the roll
off in the direction in which the groove extends to the
take-up member end.
For example, the fountain member is position-
able in a plurality of work positions by being rotated
about an axis parallel to the fountain roller, and has
a plurality of fountain-forming faces arranged along
the periphery thereof in the direction of rotation and
each having an ink channel-defining portion at one end
thereof, each of the fountain-forming faces forming
the ink fountain with its channel-defining portion
positioned close to the peripheral surface of the
fountain roller when the fountain member is in the
corresponding work position, the channel-defining por-
tions being different from one another in the distance
from the axis of rotation of the foundation member to
the channel-defining portion.
In this case, the distance from the axis of
rotation of the fountain member to the channel defining
portion can be easily altered merely by rotating the
fountain member and thereby changing the work position,
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whereby the size of the ink channel can be varied.
For example, the fountain roller and the fountain
member are each at least partly made of a magnetic material
and the inking arrangement further comprises barrier plates
including a permanent magnet having a face for magnetically
attracting the fountain roller in intimate contact with the
peripheral surface thereof and a face snugly fittable to the
fountain-forming face forming the ink fountain with the
sheet interposed therebetween to magnetically attract the
fountain member.
The barrier plates can be installed in place and
removed easily, and the width of the ink fountain is
variable as desired by shifting the barrier plates
longitudinally of the fountain roller. The barrier plates
can be removed when the sheet is placed over the fountain
member or moved. The barrier plates merely attract the
fountain roller thereto magnetically and therefore cause no
trouble to the rotation of the fountain roller. Even when
having a plurality of fountain-forming faces, the fountain
member is rotatable with the barrier plates removed from
between the fountain roller and the fountain member.
Thus, in a broad aspect, the present invention
provides an inking arrangement for a printing press
comprising an ink fountain member having at least one
fountain-forming face for forming an ink fountain, an ink
fountain roller defining an ink channel together with the
fountain member and having an outer peripheral surface to be
inked through the channel, and a plurality of rollers for
supplying the ink applied to the peripheral surface of the
fountain roller to a printing portion, the ink arrangement
being characterized in that a strip of sheet has a
lengthwise intermediate portion placed over the fountain
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member so as to cover the fountain-forming face in intimate
contact therewith, the sheet usually remains immovable, and
for replacement of ink, after old ink remaining in the
fountain is collected, the sheet is moved longitudinally
thereof,' whereby the sheet portion so far in use in intimate
contact with the fountain-forming face and having the old
ink adhering thereto is moved away from the fountain-forming
face, and a fresh sheet portion before use is brought into
intimate contact with the fountain-forming face.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 is a side elevation partly broken away
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and showing the main portion of a printing press
inking arrangement as a first embodiment of the
invention;
FIG. 2 is a side elevation partly broken away
and corresponding to FIG. 1 to show the arrangement
in a state different from that shown in FIG. l;
FIG. 3 is a side elevation partly broken away
and corresponding to FIG. 1 to show the same in a state
different from that shown in FIG. 2;
FIG. 4 is a side elevation partly broken away
and corresponding to FIG. 1 to show the same in a state
different from that shown in FIG. l;
FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing the main
portion of FIG. 1;
FIG. 6 is a side elevation partly broken away
and showing the main portion of another printing press
inking arrangement as a second embodiment of the
invention;
FIG. 7 is a plan view partly broken away of
FIG. 6;
FIG. 8 is a side elevation partly broken away
and showing part of FIG. 6 on an enlarged scale;
FIG. 9 is a side elevation partly broken away
and corresponding to FIG. 8 to show the same in a state
different that shown in FIG. 8;
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FIG. 10 is a side elevation partly broken away
and corresponding to FIG. 8 to show the same in a state
different from that shown in FIG. 9; and
FIG. 11 is a side elevation partly broken away
and showing the main portion of another printing press
inking arrangement as a third embodiment of the
invention.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
Several embodiments of the invention will be
described below with reference to the drawings.
FIGS. 1 to 5 show a first embodiment.
FIGS. 1 to 4 show the main portion of a
printing press inking arrangement in four different
states, respectively, and FIG. 5 is an enlarged
fragmentary view of the same in the state of FIG. 1.
In the following description of the first embodiment,
the right-hand side of FIGS. 1 to 4 will be referred
to as the "front," and the left-hand side thereof as
the "rear." The terms "right" and "left" are used
for the arrangement as it is seen from the front
rearward. More specifically, the front side of the
plane of FIGS. 1 to 4 will be referred to as "left,"
and the rear side thereof as "right." Further the
direction of rotation will be expressed with reference
to FIGS. 1 to 4.
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An ink fountain roller 1 extends horizontally
in the right-left direction. Disposed in front of and
below this roller is the first of a plurality of ink
distributing rollers, i.e., roller 2, in parallel to
the roller 1. A vibrating roller 3 is disposed
between these rollers 1 and 2 in parallel thereto. The
fountain roller 1 and the distributing roller 2 are
rotatably supported at their opposite ends by a press
frame 4 and are rotated at a predetermined speed in
synchronism with each other in the direction of arrows
shown by an unillustrated suitable drive device. At
least the outer peripheral portion of the fountain
roller 1 is made of a magnetic material, and the
peripheral surface thereof can be attracted by a
permanent magnet. Although not shown in detail, the
vibrating roller 3 is alternatively shiftable by a
suitable change-over device to a position where the
roller 3 is away from the distributting roller 2 and
in contact with the fountain roller, or to a position
where it is away from the fountain roller 1 and in
contact with the distributing roller 2. Such an
arrangement of vibrating roller 3 and distributing
roller 2 is known and therefore will not be described
in detail.
An ink fountain member 5 made of magnetic
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material and extending horizontally in the tight-left
direction is disposed in the rear of the fountain
roller 1. The fountain member 5 is, for example, in
the form of a quadrangular prism having a square
cross section, and is provided with a support shaft
portion 6 extending outward from each of its opposite
ends and rotatably supported by the frame 4. The
fountain member 5 is rotatable in a desired direction,
for example, by hand and positionable in four work
positions at an angular spacing of 90 deg and can be
fixed in each work position by an unillustrated lock
pin or like suitable means. The four laterals faces
of the fountain member 5 along its periphery serve as
fountain-forming faces 7a, 7b, 7c, 7d. The lateral
edges at the clockwise ends of the fountain-forming
faces 7a to 7d serve as ink channel-defining portions
8a, 8b, 8c, 8d corresponding to the respective
fountain-forming faces 7a to 7d. These fountain-
forming faces will be designated collectively by the
reference numeral 7, and when there arises a need to
make distinction, these faces will pe referred to as
the first fountain forming face 7a, second fountain-
forming face 7b, third fountain-forming face 7c and
fourth fountain-forming face 7d as arranged clockwise
in order. Similarly, the ink channel-defining portions
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will be designated collectively by the reference
numeral 8, and when there is a need for distinction,
these portions will be referred to as the first ink
channel-defining portion 8a, second ink channel-
s defining portion 8b, third ink channel-defining portion
8c and fourth ink channel-defining portion 8d in the
order of clockwise arrangement. The illustrated end
face of the fountain member 5 is marked with the
numerals 1 to 4 in corresponding relation with the
channel-defining portions 8 to represent the respective
portions 8. Each fountain-forming face 7 form an
ink fountain when the fountain member 5 is positioned
in the corresponding work position, and the channel-
defining portion 8 corresponding to the face 7 is
positioned close to the peripheral surface of the
fountain roller 1 to define an ink channel 9 together
with the fountain roller 1. The work position in
which the first fountain-forming face 7a forms the
ink fountain as shown in FIG. 1 will be referred to as
the first work position, and the work position in which
the second fountain-forming face 7b forms the ink
fountain as shown in FIG. 4 will be referred to as the
second work position. Similarly, the work position in
which the third fountain-forming face 7c forms the ink
fountain will be referred to as the third work position,
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and the work position in which the fourth fountain-
forming face 7d forms the ink fountain will be referred
to as the fourth work position. The size of the ink
channel 9 is dependent on the distance between the
axis la of rotation of the fountain roller 1 and the
axis 7a of rotation of the fountain member 5, the
diameter of the fountain roller 1 and the distance from
the axis 5a of rotation of the fountain member 5 to the
ink channel-defining portion 8. In this case, at
least two channel-forming portions 8 are different
in the distance from the axis 7a of rotation of the
fountain member 5 to the channel-defining portion 8.
Different work positions are then made different in the
size of the ink channel 9.
A pair of right and left barrier plates 10
serving as the side plates of the ink fountain are
removably fixed in a space between the fountain roller
1 and the fountain member 5. Each barrier plate 10
comprises a permanent magnet and approximately tri-
angular in shape. The portions corresponding to the
two sides of the triangle are formed with a face l0a
in the form of a portion of cylinder for attracting
the fountain roller thereto, and a planar face lOb for
attracting the fountain member thereto, respectively.
The barrier plates 10 are removed from the fountain
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roller 1 and the fountain member 5 when the fountain
member 5 is to be rotated. During printing, the
roller attracting face l0a is in intimate contact with
the peripheral surface of the fountain roller 1,
magnetically attracting the roller thereto, and the
fountain member attracting face lOb is in intimate
contact with the fountain-forming face 7 which is
forming the ink fountain, magnetically attracting the
member thereto, whereby the barrier plates 10 are
fixed in position by these roller and member to
constitute the side plates of the fountain. At this
time, the barrier plates 10 hold the fountain roller
1 merely attracted thereto magnetically and are
therefore unlikely to cause trouble to the rotation of
the fountain roller 1. Further because the barrier
plates 10 magnetically attract the fountainer roller 1
and the fountain member 5, the plates are easy to
install and remove, and interchangeable for use. In
conformity with the width of the printing surface,
the barrier plates 10 are shiftable longitudinally of
the roller and the member, whereby the width of the
ink fountain is variable. The barrier plate 10 is
integrally formed, for example, of a metal magnet,
plastics magnet, rubber magnet or the like.
Alternatively, the barrier plate 10 may comprise a
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main body made of a suitable material, and a permanent
magnet fixed to the main body and providing the roller
attracting face l0a and the member attracting face lOb.
A cleaning tank 11 is disposed below the
fountain member 5. The tank 11 has a cleaning blade 12
fixed to its front portion and projecting obliquely
forwardly upward from the front end thereof. The blade
12 is made, for example, of a resilient steel plate
having a thickness of about 0.5 mm. The width in the
right-left direction of the tank 11 and the blade 12
is slightly larger than the length of the fountain
roller 1. The tank 11 is supported so as to be movable
forward and rearward by an unillustrated drive device.
The tank 11 is alternatively movable forward to a
cleaning position in which the blade 12 is in pressing
contact with the peripheral surface of the fountain
roller 1 as seen in FIG. 2, or rearward to a stand-by
position in which the blade 12 is away from the fountain
roller 1 as shown in FIG. 1.
When the printing press according to the
first embodiment operates for printing, the tank 11 is
in the rearward stand-by position, the fountain member
is fixed in one of the work position, and the barrier
plates 10 are fixed in the space between the fountain
roller 1 and the fountain member 5. An ink A is then
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placed into the ink fountain formed by the fountain
member, fountain roller 1 and opposite barrier plates
10. FIG. 1 shows the fountain member 1 as fixed in the
first work position.
When the fountain roller 1 rotates in the
state shown in FIG. 1, the ink A in the fountain comes
out onto the peripheral surface of the fountain roller
1 through the ink channel 9. The ink applied to the
surface of the roller 1 is transferred to the outer
peripheral surface of the vibrating roller 3 while the
roller 3 positioned in contact with the fountain roller
1 upon a change-over. The ink is then transferred
from the vibrating roller 3 to the ink distributing
roller 2 while the roller 3 is positioned in contact
with the roller 2 upon a change-over. The ink is
further supplied to the printing surface via the other
ink distributing rollers. The amount of ink to be
supplied to the printing surface is adjusted by
controlling the period of time during which the
vibrating roller 3 is in contact with the fountain
roller 1.
When the printing operation in the first work
position is to be followed by another printing
operation in the second work position, for example, the
following replacement procedure is executed.
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When the printing operation in the first
work position has been completed, the tank 11 is first
shifted to the forward cleaning position to press the
blade 12 against the surface of the fountain roller 1,
and the fountain roller is rotated in this state as
seen in FIG. 2. This causes the ink A remaining in the
fountain to come out through the ink channel 9 onto the
peripheral surface of the fountain roller 1 as in the
printing operation, whereas the ink is scraped off by
the blade 12 and collected in the tank 11. After the
whole ink A remaining in the fountain has been taken
out by the roller 1 and collected by the blade 12 into
the tank 11, the fountain roller 1 is held in rotation
as it is for some time, whereby the ink remaining on
the peripheral surface of the fountain roller 1 is
almost completely scraped off by the blade 12. As seen
in FIG. 3, the tank 11 is thereafter shifted to the
rearward stand-by position, the fountainer roller 1 is
stopped, the opposite barrier plates 10 are removed,
and when required, the peripheral surface of the
fountain roller 1 is thoroughly cleaned. When the
roller 1 has been cleaned, the fountain member 5 is
rotated through 90 deg counterclockwise and fixed in
the second work position as shown in FIG. 4, a pair of
new barrier plates 10 are thereafter fixed in position,
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a new ink A is placed into the fountain and the next
printing operation is started.
At a suitable time after the completion of
the preceding printing operation and before the next
printing operation is initiated, the vibrating roller,
ink distributing roller 2, etc. are cleaned in the same
manner as in the prior art by inker cleaning. Further
after the next printing operation has been started,
the old ink collected in the tank 11 is discarded, and
the barrier plates 10 and the first fountain-forming
face 7a used for the preceding operation are cleaned.
With the printing press described, the ink
remaining in the fountain is automatically collected
after the completion of the printing operation into the
tank 11, and the ink remaining on the peripheral surface
of the fountain roller 1 scraped off almost completely.
Accordingly, the surface of the fountain roller 1 and
the fountain-forming face 7a only need to be cleaned
by hand as required. The present arrangement therefore
ensures facilitated cleaning work and a shortened
replacement time. Before the first fountain-forming
face 7a used for the preceding operation is cleaned,
the fountain member 5 is rotated to the second work
position to start the next printing operation, and the
fountain-forming face 7a can be cleaned during the
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next printing operation. Consequently, the replacement
time can further be shortened by the length of time
needed for cleaning the first face 7a.
The fountain member 5, tank 11, blade 12,
etc. are not limited to those of the above embodiment
in construction but can be modified suitably. With
the foregoing embodiment, the distances from the axis
5a of rotation of the fountain member 5 to at least two
channel-defining portions 8 are made different to give
different sizes to the ink channel 9 in different
work positions. However, in the case where there is
no need to alter the size of the ink channel 9 for
different work positions, the distances from the axis 5a
of the fountain member 5 to all the channel-defining
portions 8 may be made equal. In addition to this
modification, the positioning angle of the fountain
member 5 in each work position may be made finely
adjustable. The position of the channel-defining
portion 8 can then be finely adjusted to finely adjust
the size of the ink channel 9, by finely adjusting the
positioning angle in each work position. Furthermore,
the positioning angle of the fountain member 5 in each
work position may be made finely adjustable while
making at least two channel-defining portions 8
different in the distance from the axis 5a to
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the portion 8 as in the foregoing embodiment. For
example, the fountain member 5 may be automatically
rotated by a suitable drive device. The fountain
member 5 may be, for example, approximately in the
form of a triangular prism having an approximately
regular triangular cross section to form three
fountain-forming faces along its periphery so as
to be fixed in three work positions at an angular
spacing of 120 deg. Furthermore, the fountain member
may be i.n the form of a plate having two fountain-
forming faces on opposite sides thereof so as to be
fixed in two work positions spaced apart by 180 deg.
Although the tank 11 is movable forward and rearward
in its entirety to shift the blade 12 upon a change-
over according to the embodiment described, only a
portion including the blade may be made shiftable.
FIGS. 6 to 10 show a second embodiment.
Throughout FIGS. 1 to 10, like parts are designated by
like reference numerals.
FIGS. 6 to 10 show the main portion of another
printing press inking arrangement. FIGS. 8 to 10 are
enlarged fragmentary views showing the arrangement in
three different states. In the following description
of the second embodiment, the right-hand side of FIGS.
6 and 7 will be referred to as the "front," and the
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left-hand side thereof as the "rear." The terms
"right" and "left" are used for the arrangement as it
is seen from the front rearward. More specifically,
the front side of the plane of FIG. 6 (lower side of
FIG. 7) will be referred to as "left," and the rear
side thereof (upper side of FIG. 7) as "right."
Further the direction of rotation will be expressed
with reference to FIG. 6.
The second embodiment has an ink fountain
member 15 made of magnetic material and extending
horizontally in the right-left direction. The member
is disposed in the rear of approximately upper half
portion of a fountain roller 1. The fountain member
15 is, for example, in the form of a triangular prism
15 and is provided at opposite ends thereof with support
shaft portions 16 fixed respectively to opposite frames
4. The fountain member 15 has a face extending
obliquely rearwardly upward and serving as a fountain-
forming face 17. The face 17 has at its front end
(lower end) a lateral edge serving as an ink channel-
defining portion 18. The fountain roller 1 and the
fountain-forming face 17 form an ink fountain. The
channel-defining portion 18 is positioned close to
the outer peripheral surface of the fountain roller 1
for the roller 1 and the portion 18 define an ink
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channel 9. Preferably, the fountain member 15 is rotated
about the shaft portions 16 to finely adjust the
positioning angle thereof and to thereby finely adjust
the size of the ink channel 9. An upper face having a
small width in the front-rear direction is formed at
the upper end portion of the fountain member 15 between
the upper end of the fountain-forming face 17 and the
upper end of a substantially vertical rear face of the
member 15. A groove 20 semicircular in cross section
is formed in the upper face over the entire length
thereof .
Roll support means 21 is disposed in the rear
of the fountain member 15, and sheet take-up means 22
is provided under an approximately rear-half portion
of the fountain member 15.
The roll support means 21 has a roll support
member 23. The support member 23 is in the form of a
trough extending horizontally in the right-left direc-
tion and has opposite ends fixed to the respective
frames 4.
The sheet take-up means 22 has a sheet take-
up member 24 and a drive device 25 therefor. The
drive device 25 comprises an electric drive motor 26
and a support rotary shaft 27 which are opposed to each
other and attached to the left and right frames 4,
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respectively. The motor 26 is mounted as directed
rightward to the inner side of the left frame 9 and has
a motor shaft 26a extending horizontally rightward.
A conical bearing member 28 is secured to the right end
of the shaft 26a. A support sleeve 29 extending
horizontally leftward is fixed to the inner side of the
right frame 4. A rotary shaft 27 extending horizontally
leftward is rotatably and axially moably supported by
the sleeve 29. The rotary shaft 27 is in alignment
with the motor shaft 26a and fixedly carries a conical
bearing member 30 at its left end. Although not shown,
the rotary shaft 27 and the bearing member 30 are biased
leftward by a spring or like elastic member provided
inside the support sleeve 29. The take-up member 29 is
in the form of a cylinder having a relatively large
wall thickness and made of a suitable material such as
aluminum or like metal or plastics. I'he lake-up
member 24 is fitted between the opposed bearing members
28, 30 and extends horizontal in the right-left
direction. The forward end of each of the bearing
members 28, 30 slightly fits in the end of the take-
up member 29 opposed thereto and is pressed into contact
with the inner peripheral edge of the end of the member
24. The motor 26, when driven in this state, rotates
the take-up member 24 counterclockwise. The member 24
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can be readily installed and removed by moving the
shaft 27 and the bearing member 30 axially thereof.
The take-up member 24 is formed in its peripheral
surface with a groove 31 extending over the entire
length thereof and terminating at opposite ends thereof.
The groove 31 extends from the outer periphery of the
member 24 toward the inner periphery thereof as
inclined in a direction opposite to the direction of
rotation, i.e., in a clockwise direction, with respect
to the diametrical direction.
A sheet 33 made of plastics or the like is
wound around a core tube 32 of paper or the like into
a roll 34, which is freely rotatably accommodated in
the support member 23. The sheet 33 paid off from the
roll 34 in the support member 23 is placed over the
fountain member 15 to cover the fountain-forming face
17 and then guided to the take-up means 22. The
leading end of the sheet 33 is fixed to the take-up
member 24 by being inserted in the groove 31. A
tensioning member 35 comprising a metal or like round
bar is fitted in the groove 20 of the fountain member
15 with the sheet 33 interposed between the member 35
and the grooved face. The take-up member 24 is rotated
in the direction of arrow shown, whereby the sheet 33
is wound up on the take-up member 24, causing the roll
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34 to rotate within the support member 23 and to pay
off a fresh portion of the sheet 33. With the sheet
33 locally nipped between the tensioning member 35 and
the wall face of the fountain member 15 defining the
groove 20, predetermined tension is imparted to the
sheet 33 between the nipped portion and the take-up
member 24, whereby the portion of the sheet 33 covering
the fountain-forming face 17 is held in intimate
contact with the face 17. In actuality, the fountain
roller 1 and the portion of the sheet 33 covering the
fountain-forming face 17 form an ink fountain, and
the portion of the sheet 33 in intimate contact with
the channel-defining portion 18 and the fountain roller
1 define the ink channel 9.
The second embodiment includes barrier plates
10 which are the same as those of the first embodiment.
The barrier plates 10 are removed from the fountain
roller 1 and the fountain member 15 when the sheet 33
is to be placed over the fountain member 15 or to be
moved. During printing, the fountain roller attracting
face l0a attracts the roller 1 thereto in intimate
contact with the roller peripheral surface, and the
fountain member attracting face lOb snugly fits to the
fountain-forming face 17 of the fountain member 15 with
the sheet 33 interposed therebetween to attract
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the member 15 thereto, whereby the barrier plates 10 are
fixed in position to provide the side plates of the
ink fountain.
When the printing press of the second embodiment
operates for printing, the tank 11 is in its rearward
stand-by position as shown in FIG. 8, and the barrier
plates 10 are fixedly positioned between the fountain
roller 1 and the fountain member 15. The take-up member
24 is held at rest. The portion of sheet.33 in intimate
contact with the fountain-forming face 17 remains
immovable in either direction. An ink A is placed into
the ink fountain formed by the sheet portion covering
the face 17 of the fountain member 15, the fountain
roller 1 and the opposed barrier plates 10. At this
time, the fountain-forming face 17 is covered with
the sheet 33 and is therefore held out of contact with
the ink A.
The inking arrangement operates in the same
manner as the first embodiment for printing.
When the printing operation is to be followed
by the next printing operation, for example, the
following replacement procedure is executed.
When the preceding printing operation has been
completed, the tank 11 is first shifted to the forward
cleaning position as shown in FIG. 9, and the fountain
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roller 1 is rotated, whereby the ink A remaining in
the fountain is collected into the tank 11, and the
ink remaining on the surface of the fountain roller 1
is almost completely scraped off as in the first
embodiment. The tank 11 is thereafter shifted to the
rearward stand-by position, the fountain roller 1 is
stopped, the opposed barrier plates 10 are removed,
and when required, the peripheral surface of the foun-
taro roller 1 is thoroughly cleaned. As shown in FIG.
10, on the other hand, the take-up member 24 is
rotated to move the sheet 33 longitudinally thereof
while winding the sheet 33 on the member 24, whereby
the portion of the sheet 33 used in intimate contact
with the fountain-forming face 17 and having the old
ink adhering thereto is moved toward the take-up member
24 out of contact with the face 17. This causes the
roll 34 to pay off an unused fresh portion of the
sheet 33, which is made to cover the face 17 in intimate
contact therewith. When the used portion of the sheet
33 is released from the fountain-forming face 17 with
the fresh portion thereof brought into intimate contact
with the face 17, the take-up member 24 is halted. A
pair of new barrier plates 10 is then fixed in the
ink fountain, a new ink is placed into the fountain,
and the next printing operation is conducted as
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previously stated.
At a suitable time after the completion of
the preceding printing operation and before the start
of the next operation, the vibrating roller 3, the
distributing roller 2, etc. are cleaned by inker
cleaning as in the prior art also in this case. After
the start of the next printing operation, the old ink
collected in the tank 11 is discarded, and the barrier
plates 10 used for the preceding printing operation
are cleaned.
When the sheet 33 has been entirely paid off
from the roll 34 by repeating the printing operation for
making different kinds of prints, the take-up member 24
is rotated to completely wind up the sheet 33. The
take-up member 24 is then removed from between the
opposed bearing members 28, 30, the sheet 33 is slipped
off as wound up from the member 24 by pulling the sheet
33 longitudinally of the member 24, and the roll of
sheet 33 only is discarded. Since the groove 31 having
the leading end of the sheet 33 inserted therein extends
to opposite ends of the take-up member 24, the sheet
33 can be readily slipped off by pulling the sheet in
either direction. The take-up member 24 from which
the sheet 33 has been removed is installed between the
opposed bearing members 28, 30 again, and the subsequent
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printing operation is carried out in the same manner as
described above using a fresh roll of sheet.
In the case of the printing press of the
second embodiment as in the case of the first embodi-
ment, the ink remaining in the fountain is automatically
collected after the completion of the printing opera-
tion into the tank 11, and the ink remaining on the
peripheral surface of the fountain roller 1 scraped
off almost completely. Accordingly, the surface of the
fountain roller 1 only needs to be cleaned by hand when
so required. The arrangement therefore ensures
facilitated cleaning work and a shortened replacement
time. Since the fountain-forming face 17 of the
fountain member 15 is covered with the sheet 33, no ink
will adhere to the face 17. For replacement, the sheet
33 needs only to be so moved as to release the used
sheet portion from the fountain-forming face 17 and to
bring a fresh sheet portion before use into intimate
contact with the face 17 without the necessity of clean-
ing the fountain member 15. This results in a further
shortened replacement time.
The roll support means 21, the take-up means
22 and the means for tensioning the sheet 33 to hold
the sheet in intimate contact with the fountain-
forming face 17 are not limited to those of the above
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embodiment but can be modified suitably. For example,
rotary shafts the same as the rotary shaft 27 of the
take-up means 22 may be provided at the respective
right and left sides of the roll support means so as
to removably support the core tube 32 of the roll 34
with an elastic force acting between the shafts. If
suitable resistance is given to the rotary shaft in
this case, the sheet 33 can be thereby tensioned and
held in intimate contact with the fountain-forming
face 17. A sheet roll with a core tube, sheet roll
having no core tube, or sheet not in the form of a
roll may merely be placed in a suitable position
of the printing press without providing particular
roll support means. Although the drive device 25
rotates the take-up member 24 with a tutor 26 in the
foregoing embodiment, the device may be one adapted to
rotate the take-up member manually. The take-up
mmember may be made, for example, of paper so as to be
disposable along with the sheet wound thereon. The
take-up member may be made supportable in a cantilever
fashion so that the sheet wound thereon can be slipped
off from the free end thereof. The used sheet portion
may be guided into a disposal box disposed below the
fountain assembly without providing the take-up means.
FIG. 11 shows a third embodiment. Throughout
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the drawings showing the first to third embodiments,
like parts are designated by like reference numerals
or symbols.
The third embodiment differs from the second
embodiment only in respect of the fountain member 5
and is otherwise the same as the second. The fountain
member 5 of the third embodiment, although similar
to the corresponding member of the first embodiment,
has four ink channel-defining portions 8 which are
different from one another in the distance from the
axis 5a of rotation of the fountain member 5 to the
channel-defining portion 8. Accordingly, all the
work positions are different in the size of ink channel
9. Preferably, the angle of rotation of the fountain
member 5 is finely adjustable to thereby finely adjust
the size of the ink channel 9.
The sheet 33 is placed over the fountain
member 5 so as to cover at least the fountain-forming
face 7 in intimate contact therewith which face is
forming an ink fountain. Although not shown in FIG.
11, suitable means is provided for holding the sheet
in intimate contact with the fountain-forming face 7
by suitably tensioning the portion of the sheet 33
between the roll 34 and the take-up member 24. In
actuality also in this case, the portion of sheet 33
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covering the fountain-forming face 7 and the fountain
roller 1 forms the ink fountain, and the portion of
sheet 33 in intimate contact with the channel defining
portion 8 and the fountain roller 1 defines the ink
channel 9.
When the fountain member 5 is to be rotated,
barrier plates 10 are removed from the fountain roller
1 and the fountain member 5. As in the second embodi-
ment, the peripheral surface of the fountain roller 1
is attracted to the plates 10 magnetically, and the
face 7 of the fountain member 7 forming the fountain
is similarly attracted to the plates 10, with the sheet
33 interposed therebetween, whereby the barrier plates
10 are fixed to the roller 1 and the member 5 during
printing.
The fountain member 5 is fixed in one of the
work positions during printing, and the arrangement
operates in the same manner as the second embodiment
for printing.
When the first printing operation is to be
followed by the next printing operation without the
necessity of altering the size of the ink channel 9,
the same replacement procedure as is the case with
the second embodiment is executed after the completion
of the first operation, with the fountain member 5 held
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fixed in the same work position.
If it is necessary to alter the size of the
ink channel 9 for the printing operation to be conducted
after the first operation, the work position is changed
by rotating the fountain member 5 during the replace-
ment procedure as is the case with the second embodi-
ment.
With the third embodiment, the size of the
ink channel 9 is readily variable by rotating the
fountain member 5 and thereby changing the work position.
Even when having a plurality of fountain-
forming faces, the fountain member is not limited to
this member of the third embodiment in construction
but can be modified suitably.
In the case of the foregoing three embodi-
ments, the fountain members 5, 15 each have such a
simple configuration that a prismlike body is provided
with support shaft portions 6 or 16 at its opposite
ends integrally therewith, and are therefore easy to
make with readily improved accuracy at a considerably
reduced cost. However, the fountain members 5, 15
are not limited to those of the foregoing embodiments
but can be, for example, conventional fountain members.
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