Heidelberger Druckmaschinen Ag

Heidelberg Harris, Inc.

Heidelberg Harns Inc.

Bertrum Scott Ramsay

Glenn Alan Guaraldi

Warren Hess Jarrard

Craig Steven Harris

A method for automatically providing a printing plate to a plate cylinder includes the steps of aligning a first edge of a printing plate against a cylinder adjacent to a plate cylinder, moving the first edge of the printing plate into a gap in the plate cylinder, and wrapping the printing plate about the plate cylinder. The present invention also includes a device for attaching a printing plate to a plate cylinder comprising a first set of grippers for gripping a printing plate and aligning the printing plate against a cylinder adjacent to the plate cylinder, and a second set of grippers for moving the printing plate toward a gap in the plate cylinder. An offset printing press having the device is also disclosed.

Method and device for automatically providing a printing plate to a plate cylinder

Printing plates can be reliably extracted from a plate cylinder with an automatic plate changer even when the plate lock has a very narrow plate gap between the trailing edge and the leading edge of the printing plate. First, the trailing edge of a printing plate is released by the locking member and the printing plate is elastically deformed at the trailing edge. This allows the guide fork of the automatic plate changer to reliably peel the printing plate away from the plate cylinder. In addition, the guide fork may engage the leading edge of the printing plate after the plate lock has been disengaged once more and peel the leading edge away from the plate cylinder by pivoting away from the cylinder.

Method of extracting a printing plate from a plate cylinder of a printing unit

A plate cylinder of a rotary printing press having a cylindrical outer surface which forms a resting surface for a printing plate which is to be clamped thereon, and having a receiving gap which is open towards the outer surface and extends transversely to the circumferential direction of the cylinder, within which gap there is a clamping device for the printing plate which has a displaceable clamping element, is disclosed. This clamping element is displaceable, for the fastening or loosening of the printing plate, along a path concentric to the axis of rotation of the plate cylinder in the circumferential direction of the cylinder.

Plate cylinder

A device (10) and a method for positioning a rotatable printing cylinder (16) for a printing press (12). A drive (24) can rotate the cylinder (16) about a cylinder axis (52) at relatively high and low speeds. A sensor (68) is positioned adjacent to the cylinder (16) for detecting rotational positions of the cylinder (16) and providing a signal which varies in response to detected rotational positions of the cylinder (16). A sensor exciting target (66) has first and second edges (74 and 76) at first and second ends, respectively, of a sector of the cylinder (16). The sensor (68) is aligned with the first edge (74) at a first rotational position of the cylinder (16) and is aligned with the second edge (76) at a second rotational position of the cylinder (16). A controller (56) controls the drive (24) in response to the signal from the sensor (68) to rotate the cylinder (16 ) at the relatively high speed when the sensor (68) is not aligned with a point on the sector and until the cylinder (16) reaches the first rotational position, to rotate the cylinder (16) at the relatively low speed when the sensor (68) is aligned with a point on the sector and until the cylinder (16) is at the second rotational position, and to cease rotation of the cylinder (16) when the cylinder (16) is at the second rotational position.

Printing cylinder positioning device and method

A rotatable plate cylinder (10) for supporting a printing plate (150) has an open passage (34) and a locking member (26) supported for movement in the passage (34). The locking member (26) is movable inward of the passage (34) to a closed position, and is movable outward of the passage (34) to an open position. The locking member (26) is subjected to a first centrifugal force which urges it to move outward from the closed position toward the open position when the plate cylinder (10) rotates. A balance member (28) is subjected to a second centrifugal force when the plate cylinder (10) rotates. Connecting pins (100) direct the second centrifugal force against the locking member (26) oppositely to the first centrifugal force.

Growing community of inventors

Wolfeboro, NH, United States of America

Bertrum Scott Ramsay