US2270654A - Method and apparatus for drying printing inks - Google Patents

Description

Jan. 20, 1942.

c. s. JOHNSON El Al. 2,270,654

METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR DRYING PRINTING INKS Filed Dec. 19, 1939 F' I6. I

INVENTORS CARL s. JOHNSON jmcK WALLINE all fwd ATTORNEY Patented Jan. 2, i942 STAT E METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR DRYING ramme S Carl Stanley Johnson, Park Ridge, and Erick E.

Walline,

Chicago, 111., assignors to Enterchemical Corporation, New York, N. Y., a corporation of Ohio Application December 19,' 1939, Serial No. 309,938

7 Claims.

This invention relates to a method and apparatus for drying printing ink and aims to provide an improved method and apparatus particularly adapted for drying printing ink or other marking or coating material that has been applied to a sheet or web of transparent material.

There are printing inks and marking materials now available that may be quickly dried by the application of heat to the sheet or web upon which such inks have been applied. Experience with these inks has shown that radiant heat is very efiective as a drying medium when the inks are applied to opaque material. However, attempts to dry such inks that have been applied to transparent materials, such as Cellophane, glassine and the like, have not been successful because the heat required for proper drying of the ink and applied in the usual manner is sufficient to cause deterioration of the transparent material.

We have discovered that quick drying inks applied to transparent materials may be effectively dried with radiant heat without damaging the transparent material by localizing the heat in the region of the printed material, and we have devised a novel method and apparatus for accomplishing this desirable result.

In accordance with our invention, a sheet or web of transparent material, such as Cellophane, glassine and the like, is imprinted with an ink or marking material that may be dried by theapplication of radiant heat thereto, and said sheet or web isthen passed beneath a source of radiant heat which is directed upon the imprinted surface and, at the same time, the'major portion of the heat is localized in the region of said sheet or web. We have found that the localization of the heat in the region of the web may be accomplished by arranging a dark colored, preferably black, background means beneath the transpar-,

ent sheet or web during the period that it is passing beneath the source of radiant heat. In the apparatus we have provided for practicing our our invention will become apparent upon consideration of the following detailed description and the accompanying drawing, in which:

Fig. 1 is a diagrammatic side elevational view showing one form of apparatus with which our improved method of drying printing ink applied to transparent material may be practiced;

Fig. 2 is a transverse vertical sectional view, taken substantially along the line 2--2 of Fig. 1; and 1 Fig. 3 is a diagrammatic side elevational view of a modified form of apparatus for practicing our improved method.

Referring now to the drawing, and particularly Fig. 1, a web in of any transparent material, such as Cellophane, glassine or the like, is fed in any convenient manner from a suitable supply roll. I2 to a printing unit It. The printing unit it may be of any suitable type or construction, that shown in the present instance being a typographic or letter press unit including a plate or printing cylinder IS, an impression cylinder I8 method, this dark background means may take the form of a dark colored blanket, tympan, back-up sheet or web which is arranged to move with the transparent material being dried; or it may take the form of a supporting roller or drum for the web, which roller or drumv is provided The above and other features and objects of {55. the form or an endless belt of any suitable maand any. conventional ink applying and distributing system 20. The printing cylinder I6 and impression cylinder l8 are driven in any suitable manner and are adapted to produce printed impressions 22 (Fig. 2) upon the upper surface of the web Ill.

The ink used in the printing unit it and applied upon the upper surface of the web 10 in this manner is preferably of such acharacter that the printed impressions may be set or dried by the application of radiant heat thereto. Consequently, following the printing operation, the web ill of transparent material, having the printed impressions upon its upper surface, is led beneath a source, or a plurality of sources, 24 of radiant heat which are adapted to direct such heat upon the freshly printed impressions.

Due to the fact that the web l0 consists of a transparent material, I the printed impressions ordinarily would not be dried or set by this application of heat alone, or, if the heat were sufficient for drying, it would cause damage to the transparent material. However, we have found that if a dark background is provided beneath the web of transparent material during the application of radiant heat thereto, the heat is localized in the region of the printed web and effective drying takes place. Our apparatus therefore includes aback-up web or tympan 25 which is arranged to bepositioned beneath the web of transparent material during the drying operation. In the present instance, the web 26 takes ized in the region of the printed web of transparent material with the result that the printed impressions are effectively dried in a short period of time and at normal press speeds. With this manner of operation, the printing and drying may take place at web speeds up to five hundred feet per minute. After drying, the

web l0 may be given any suitable subsequent treatment, such as cutting into .sheets to be folded or bound, or said web may be rewound on a conventional rewind roll 30.

In Fi 3, we have shown a modified arrangement of the apparatus, in which a web 32 is fed at the desired speed in any suitable manner from a convenient supply roll 36 to a printing unit 36 for the application of printed impressions to the upper surface thereof. The web '82, with the freshly printed impressions consisting of an ink that may be dried by the application of radiant heat thereto,-is led. to a drying apparatus "36 which is adapted to direct radiant heat upon the upper surface of said web. While passing beneath-the drying unit 36, the web 32 is guided over a suitable web supporting roller or drum 60 which is preferably driven in unison with the rotating elements of the printing unit 36. The web preferably has approximately 180 surface contact with the large drum and the drying unit extends substantially throughout this distance. In order that'the printed impression applied upon the transparent material may be effectively dried in accordance with" our invention, the roller 66 is provided with a black or other suitable dark colored outside surface which, as in the form of the invention shown in Fig. l, is adapted to localize the heat in the region of the web; Following dryina, the web may be cut and delivered in sheets or it may be rewound on a suitable rewind roll 42.

Although we have illustrated and described preferred forms of our invention as applied to a web'fed press, it will .be understood that the features of our invention-are equally applicable .to sheet fed presses where the heat necessary for proper drying may be localized in the region of the printed sheet of transparent material by the use of a darkcolored slip-sheet or other suitable background means.- Moreover, various changes may be made in the construction and method, and certain features or steps thereof may be employed without others without departing from our invention or sacrificing any of its advantages.

What we claim is:

l. A method of printing, which comprises applying to the surface of a sheet. or web of trans? parent material an ink that may be dried by the application of radiant heat thereto, arranging a heat absorbingmeans substantially in the plane of the sheet or web, and directing radiant substantially in the plane of said sheet or web.

2. A method of printing, which comprises applying to the surface of a sheet or web of transparent material an ink that may be dried by the application of radiant heat thereto, arranging a dark colored background means beneath such sheet or web, and passing the sheetor web together with said background means beneath a source of radiant heat, whereby heat will be localized in the region of said web so that the printed impressions may be effectively dried without damage to the transparent material.

3. Apparatus for printing, comprising means for applying to the surface of a sheet or web of transparent material an ink that may be dried by the application of radiant heat thereto; a source of radiant heat arranged adjacent the path of the sheet or web so that heat may be directed upon the thus printed surface of said web, and heat absorbing means disposed substantially in the plane of the sheet or web for causing the major portion of said heat to be absorbed substantially in the plane of the sheet or web.

4. Apparatus for printing, comprising means for applying to the surface of a sheet or web of transparent material an ink that may be dried by the application .of radiant heat thereto; a source of radiantpheat arranged adjacent the path of the sheet or web so that heat may be directed upon the thus printed surface of said web; and means for localizing the major portion of the heat in the region of the sheet or web, said localizing means comprising a dark colored background means which is adapted to be positioned beneath the web of transparent material during its passage beneath the radiant heating means.

5. Apparatus for printing, comprising means for applying to the surface of a sheet or web of transparent material an ink that may be dried by the application of radiant heat thereto; supporting means having a black outside surface over which the web may be passed; and.

radiant heating means disposed above said supplying to the surface of a sheet or web of transparent material an ink that maybe dried by the application of radiant heat thereto, ar-

heat upon the printed surface therebyi'causing ranging a heat absorbing means beneath the sheet or web but substantially in the plane thereof and directing radiant heat upon the printed' surface thereby causing the major portion of said heat to be absorbed in a plane adjacent to plane of the sheet or web and from which said sheet or web may be heated by conduction.

7. Apparatus for printing, comprising means for applying to the surface'of a sheet or web of transparent material an ink that may be dried by the application of radiant heat thereto; a source of radiant heat arranged adjacent the path of the sheet orweb so that heat may be directed upon the thus printed surface of said sheet or web; and an endless belt arranged below said source of heat and said sheet or web in position to contact the sheet or web during its passage beneath the source of heat and having a surface which is adapted to absorb radiant heat.

' C. STANLEY JOHNSON.

ERICK E. WAILIINE.

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