Selective hammer interposing means in high speed printers

Claim 1

A PRINTING DEVICE COMPRISING, IN COMBINATION: MEANS FOR PRESENTING A SET OF TYPE TO EACH OF A PLURALITY OF CHARACTER POSITIONS ALONG A PRINTING LINE; AND A HAMMER MECHANISM FOR COACTING WITH THE PRESENTED TYPE TO EFFECT PRINTING; THE HAMMER MECHANISM COMPRISING A PLURALITY OF DRIVE HAMMERS ARRANGED ALONG THE PRINTING LINE, EACH HAVING A WIDTH ALONG THE PRINTING LINE, EACH SPANNING A PLURALITY OF CHARACTER POSITIONS, AN INTERPOSER HAMMER FOR EACH DRIVE HAMMER, EACH INTERPOSER HAMMER ARRANGED BETWEEN ITS ASSOCIATED DRIVE HAMMER AND THE PRESENTED TYPE, HAVING A WIDTH ESSENTIALLY SPANNING AT LEAST ONE CHARACTER POSITION, AND MOVABLE IN THE DIRECTION OF THE PRINTING LINE TO EACH OF THE CHARACTER POSITIONS CORRESPONDING TO THE ASSOCIATED DRIVE HAMMER, AND MEANS FOR SEQUENTIALLY MOVING THE INTERPOSER HAMMERS TO PERMIT PRINTING OF SUCCESSIVE CHARACTER POSITIONS.