Electronic control system for adjustment of ink fountain in a printing press

Claim 1

In an electrical ink control system for a printing press having a printing cylinder, a plurality of plate positions along the printing cylinder, a plurality of repeated columnar positions along each plate position, and control means for each columnar position along the printing cylinder to regulate the flow of ink from an ink supply to the respective columnar position, the improvement comprising: means including a first manually-operated momentary enabling switch for each plate position along the printing cylinder for selecting the plate position at which ink regulation is to be effected; means including a first manually-operated momentary activating switch for each repeated columnar position along a plate position for selecting the column position at which ink regulation is to be effected; first matrix circuit means for selectively connecting each different combination comprised of one of said first momentary enabling switch means and one of said first momentary activating switch means in controlling relation to a different one of said ink flow regulating control means; means including a first pulse activated bi-stable latch for connecting each of said first manually-operated momentary enabling switch means to said first matrix circuit means in enabling relation to all of said first manually-operated momentary activating switch means; means for producing a pulse signal by manual operation of any selected one of said first enabling switch means to selectively set a respective one of said first bi-stable latch means in enabling relationship to all of said first activating switch means; and means generating a shorter duration pulse signal by the operation of any other of said first enabling switch means to reset said selected first bi-stable latch means in a disabled relationship to all of said first activating switch means.