Method of controlling the level of printing ink in an ink fountain and

Abstract

A method of controlling a level of printing ink in an ink fountain, including, by the use of an ink metering device, topping off printing ink along an ink fountain roller that dips into the printing ink; by a level sensor, determining signals relating to the actual level along the ink fountain roller, feeding the signals relating to the actual level to a control device; in the control device, comparing the signals fed thereto with signals relating to a desired level; forming actuating signals from the derived comparative signals, for an actuating element in the ink metering device, so that printing ink is topped off along the ink fountain roller in accordance with ink acceptance from the ink fountain; from a container with a limited supply of printing ink, dispensing the printing ink for topping off and, if necessary or desirable, renewing the supply of ink in accordance with ink demand, which further includes, for each measurement location of the level sensor, determining the change in the actual level per unit time, continuously determining the residual amount of printing ink in the container and, whenever the residual amount of printing ink falls below a specific value, removing the residual amount of printing ink from the container and feeding it into the ink fountain in a manner proportional to the change in level per unit time at the respective discharge location.