Rotary web processing apparatus

Claim 1

IN A MACHINE FOR PERFORATING AND PRINTING A WEB, THE COMBINATION OF A SUPPLY ROLL CONTAINING THE WEB, A PRINTING COUPLE APPLYING PRINTED IMPRESSIONS TO THE WEB PASSING THEREBETWEEN FROM SAID SUPPLY ROLL AND SIMULTANEOUSLY DEFINING REGISTER MARKS IN PREDETERMINED POSITIONAL RELATIONSHIP TO THE PRINTED IMPRESSIONS, AT LEAST ONE SET OF ROTATED MALE AND FEMALE DIE CYLINDERS HAVING COOPERATING RADIAL PINS AND DIE OPENINGS, RESPECTIVELY, TO FORM PERFORATIONS IN THE PRINTED WEB FED CONTINUOUSLY BETWEEN SAID DIE CYLINDERS FROM SAID PRINTING COUPLE, ONE OF SAID DIE CYLINDERS BEING OF VARIABLE DIAMETER, REGISTER CONTROL MEANS OPERATIVE TO DETECT DEVIATIONS OF THE POSITION OF SAID MARKS FROM A NORMAL RELATIONSHIP THEREOF TO THE POSITION OF SAID CYLINDERS THAT CORRESPONDS TO CORRECT REGISTRATION BETWEEN SAID PINS AND THE DESIRED LOCATION OF PERFORATIONS IN THE WEB AND IN RESPONSE TO SAID DEVIATIONS TO VARY THE LENGTH OF THE PORTION OF THE WEB EXTENDING BETWEEN SAID PRINTING COUPLE AND SAID DIE CYLINDERS IN THE SENSE TO RESTORE SAID NORMAL RELATIONSHIP, AND MEANS RESPONSIVE TO CHANGES IN THE TENSION IN THE WEB RESULTING FROM VARYING THE LENGTH OF SAID PORTION TO VARY THE EFFECTIVE DIAMETER OF SAID ONE DIE CYLINDER AND THEREBY THE LINEAR SPEED AT WHICH SAID CYLINDERS DRAW THE WEB FROM SAID PRINTING COUPLE SO AS TO TEND TO MAINTAIN A CONSTANT WEB TENSION.