Patent Grant
7370581
This is a nationalization of PCT/EP03/04950 filed May 9, 2003 and published in German.
1. Field of the Invention
The invention concerns a changing station for sleeves of printing machines.
2. Description of the Prior Art
It is often necessary to change the print impression subjects on the printing rollers in order to implement print job orders. In order to be able to carry out a job order change as quickly and simply as possible, only the so-called printing sleeves that carry the subjects of the print impression are changed.
The as yet unpublished patent application DE 101 12 522 shows a take-up device with a plurality of carrier bars for receiving printing sleeves. This take-up device is set up in the proximity of a printing group. For this purpose, it possesses wheels, by which it is movable over the floors of the machine hall. Also, in order to set up the take-up device at an appropriate distance away from the more highly situated printing groups, the take-up device can be positioned on a lifting platform positioned alongside the printing machine. Removed sleeves are manually pulled off from the printing roller and/or from the anilox roller by the operating personnel, are lifted over to the take-up device and are slid onto a carrier bar of the take-up device. As a rule, the take-up device also carries the sleeves for the new print job order, which are also manually moved and pulled on to the printing roller and/or the anilox roller. In the case of the described operations, the operating personnel stands on the aforementioned lifting platform and lifts the sleeves to be changed from the printing machine to the take-up device and vice versa.
This work obviously made hard by the weight of the sleeves and the necessity of pulling up the bar to be changed up to the printing cylinder or up to the carrier bar is often rendered even more difficult when the position of the sleeve to be changed in the take-up device is greatly offset in terms of the axis of the printing roller or of the anilox roller.
The task of the current invention consists in facilitating this operation.
The task is achieved by the characteristic features of the invention described herein, in which an additional conveyance option is provided for a magazine in the horizontal direction, which ensures that the magazine is conveyable on both a horizontal and a vertical plane alongside the printing machine. In this case, a magazine in accordance with the invention can also simply comprise a take-up device. A take-up device can comprise a carrier bar but also of a shelf-like or drawer-shaped repository or of other types of structural elements suitable for the storage of sleeves.
The horizontal displacement capability of the magazine can be advantageously achieved by one or several crane-like devices, whereby steering of the magazine from several crane cables introduces the possibility of tipping over the magazine. Advantage can be taken from this possibility when several take-up devices of the magazine are to be simultaneously aligned with several rollers. If the axes of these rollers do not lie on one horizontal plane, the possibility of tipping over the magazine can be very useful. Of course, to realize this possibility, devices other than the setup of several cranes also come under consideration.
The horizontal displacement capability can advantageously be secured by the aid of linear guidance. When combining the devices mentioned above to realize the capability of displacement, it is recommended to use the crane and track system presented in the description of the invention.
In the case of magazines with several take-up devices, supplementary means are useful to change the position of at least one take-up device inside of the magazine. With the aid thereof, a “fine adjustment” of the position of the take-up device can be made relative to the axis of a roller without requiring that the entire magazine be moved. In the claims and in the description of the invention subject matter, various possibilities for realizing this fine adjustment are disclosed. First, a revolving magazine based on a disc is claimed, said revolving magazine rotating the take-up devices around a rotational center. A similar underlying principle consists in an endless belt or in a chain belt that runs circularly in the magazine and hereby leads the take-up devices on with itself. Also, devices that are based on a shaft-like or shelf-like organization system and that remind us in their function of the conventional cigarette machines can be advantageously applied in the framework depicted.
Of all the means for changing the position of at least one of the take-up devices in the magazine, it is a great advantage if at least two take-up devices can be set up in the same position, one behind the other. If this possibility exists, an empty take-up device can first be brought into a favorable position relative to a roller axis for the purpose of exchanging the sleeves. This take-up device can then be loaded with the sleeve used in the preceding printing process and then be brought into another position. The very take-up device carrying the “new” sleeve to be applied in the printing machine will then assume the favorable position relative to the roller axis.
Another advantageous characteristic lies in the spacing distance that separates the take-up devices from one another. If, for example, the anilox roller sleeve as well as the printing roller sleeve of an inking unit must be changed simultaneously to save time, then the spacing of the take-up device assigned to the two rollers should correspond to the mutual spacing between the rollers so that the position favorable for changing the two rollers can be “simultaneously” attained. No subsequent additional adjustment of the magazine or of the take-up devices in the magazine is then required.
As initially stated, the changing operation to be performed by the operating personnel will be facilitated by any improvement in the alignment of the take-up devices relative to the anilox or printing rollers. When the alignment of the take-up devices is especially good, the sleeve can be directly moved over from the roller onto the take-up device, whereby the sleeve is always carried together either by the take-up device, the roller or by both of the two structural elements. To this end, it is necessary that the spacing between the free end of the take-up device and the free end of the roller or of its shaft be smaller than the axial length of the sleeve.
To facilitate the realization of this form of embodiment, drawer-like slide-in units (i.e., inserts) can also be provided to extend the loading surface of the take-up devices. When changing the sleeves, these slide-in units can extend the take-up device in the direction of the free end of the rollers and, in this manner, they can carry the sleeve during sleeve change so that the operating personnel has less burdensome work to do. When applying carrier bars as take-up devices, these slide-in units, as a rule, comprise tubes that can be pulled out of the carrier bars when needed. This special form of embodiment is also more specifically detailed in the description of the subject matter.
In particular, with the use of carrier bars as take-up devices, it is advantageous if the axis of the printing roller is indeed actually in alignment with the axis of the associated carrier bar. Then the spacing distance between the end of the carrier bar and the free end of the associated roller can be extremely reduced during the changing operation. The sleeve then only needs to be pulled over from the roller onto the bar or from the bar on to the roller.
The individual figures show:
Further scope of applicability of the present invention will become apparent from the detailed description given hereinafter. However, it should be understood that the detailed description and specific examples, while indicating preferred embodiments of the invention, are given by way of illustration only, since various changes and modifications within the spirit and scope of the invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art from this detailed description.
When changing an anilox roller sleeve 12 or a printing roller sleeve 15 in the upper area of the printing machine 1, the checker plate for footboard 6 is first pulled out by hand in the direction of arrow A so as to be subsequently positioned beneath the printing group to be accessed. For this purpose, the footboard 6 is slidably supported in the platform 3. For reasons of stability, the platform 3 is additionally supported by a support 4 on the side stand 2. On the side opposite where the footboard 6 is positioned, steps 5 fold out. The operating personnel can now access one of the upper inking units 25 via the steps 5 and the footboard 6. In order to facilitate the climb, step railings 8 are secured on the side stand 2. Falling from the footboard 6 is prevented by a side railing 7.
If the inking unit to be accessed is located in the lower area of the printing machine, then the footboard 6 and the steps 5 will create an obstruction. The footboard 6 can be moved to the side respectively opposite the counter-pressure cylinder and the steps 5 can be folded in their vertical resting position. The printing group is now openly accessible.
The steps necessary to carry out the sleeve change procedure are easy to recognize in
For transporting away the sleeves 12, 15, a magazine 17 with carrier bars 18 for sleeves 12, 15, which magazine 17 can be equipped with casters for conveyance, which are not represented here, is lifted by the aid of a crane 19. This crane 19 essentially comprises of a winding drum and of a motor. On a sliding carriage, the crane 19 is movable along the runway rail 21 running parallel to the side stand, whereby the displacement of the take-up devices 18 is ensured in the horizontal direction (x). In the shown exemplary embodiment, the magazine 17, which is closed on three sides and open on one side, is secured to the crane in such a manner that the carrier bars 18 run parallel to the rollers 13, 16 and the open side of the magazine 17 faces the printing machine 1, as is represented in
In order to do away with repositioning the entire magazine 17 when new sleeves 12, 15 are to be slipped on to the printing rollers 16 or on to the anilox rollers 13 during one same work operation, the magazine 17 can be equipped with carrier bars 18 exhibiting the same spacing distance as the axes of the two cylinders 13, 16 when in the mutually removed state.
This magazine 17 comprises a case 32 that is only open on the one side, in which the carrier bars 18 are aligned in rows, in a matrix formation, to receive the sleeves 12, 15. The spacing distance between the two carrier bars 18 on a (horizontal) line corresponds to the spacing distance between the axes of the inking rollers 16 and printing rollers 13 of an inking unit 25, 26.
When changing the sleeves, the entire magazine 17 is positioned by the aid of a crane 19 and of the rails 21 in such a manner that the axes of the above-mentioned rollers 13, 16 of an inking unit 25, 26 are aligned on one plane with the associated empty carrier bars 18. The sleeves are slipped over onto the carrier bars. After this, the vertical position of the entire magazine 17 is changed with the crane so that the two carrier bars with the new sleeves 12, 15 to be installed into the inking unit are aligned with the axes of the two aforementioned rollers. After this, the rollers are fitted with these sleeves.
This magazine contains means by which the position of the take-up devices in the magazine 17 can be changed—said take-up devices here also being carrier bars 18. These means essentially comprise a rotating disc 20, onto which carrier bars are affixed, as is represented in
The invention being thus described, it will be apparent that the same may be varied in many ways. Such variations are not to be regarded as a departure from the spirit and scope of the invention, and all such modifications as would be recognized by one skilled in the art are intended to be included within the scope of the following claims.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 102 23 414 | May 2002 | DE | national |
| Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind | 371c Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| PCT/EP03/04950 | 5/9/2003 | WO | 00 | 9/20/2004 |
| Publishing Document | Publishing Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| WO03/099565 | 12/4/2003 | WO | A |
| Number | Name | Date | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3877370 | Hantscho | Apr 1975 | A |
| 4823693 | Köbler | Apr 1989 | A |
| 5188027 | Fantoni | Feb 1993 | A |
| 5715749 | Miller | Feb 1998 | A |
| 6463648 | Gottling et al. | Oct 2002 | B2 |
| 20020129720 | Jendroska et al. | Sep 2002 | A1 |
| 20050257705 | Petersen et al. | Nov 2005 | A1 |
| 20050263023 | Gottling et al. | Dec 2005 | A1 |
| 20070181017 | Blanchard et al. | Aug 2007 | A1 |
| Number | Date | Country |
|---|---|---|
| 37 02 889 | Aug 1988 | DE |
| 195 00 729 | Jul 1996 | DE |
| 101 12 522 | Sep 2002 | DE |
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 20050139109 A1 | Jun 2005 | US |
