Didde-glaser, Inc.

Glen H Ensminger

Terry N Faddis

A low cost, variable, modular, web-fed offset lithographic printing unit or tower is disclosed which allows significant economies in production and maintenance, and can be easily and quickly modified in the field using interchangeable modules so as to vary printing characteristics. The printing tower, in the straight-through variable perfector form thereof, is preferably provided with a printer module having upper and lower web-printing blanket rollers; in addition, the tower has corresponding upper and lower inker modules for the respective blanket rollers. The upper inker module is mounted for pivotal movement about a horizontal axis so that it can be shifted between a normal inking position over the printer module to a retracted, printer module-clearing position allowing removal and/or replacement of the printer module by essentially vertical shifting of the printer module. By virtue of modular construction, the supporting sidewalls for the separate tower modules can be of varying thicknesses sufficient for support of the intended module components, and thus the necessity of uniformly thick, expensive tower sidewalls, and the manufacturing problems associated therewith, is completely avoided. In addition, the modular tower permits mass production of certain universally used modules to lower costs, and also allows the user to stock extra and/or different tower modules to facilitate field repair or alteration of the tower.

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Emporia, KS, United States of America

Glen H Ensminger