US4479433A
Expired / Lapsed
US
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Ink level control
Assignee: Baldwin Gegenheimer Corp
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Filing: 1980-04-21
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Granted: 1984-10-30
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Expires: 2000-04-21
Abstract
Abstract An ink level control for a printing press is disclosed having an ultrasonic ink level sensor to receive an echo signal representative of the level of the ink in the ink fountain. A control is provided whereby the ink level is maintained at a desired operating level and conditions of excessively low and high ink levels are also detected by the sensor. An echo loss detection network is provided to warn the operator and inhibit ink feeds. The control is designed to prevent overflow of the ink fountain.
Inventors
- 👤 John MacPhee
- 👤 Peter Van Raalte
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-10-31 08:06
CPC Classifications
B; B41; B41F; B41F33/00; B41F31/00; B41F31/02; B41F31/022
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 20
Claim 1
Independent Claim
256 words
An apparatus for automatically controlling the level of ink in an ink fountain used in a printing press by regulating the feed of ink from a supply through a valve to the fountain comprising ultrasonic ink level sensing means remotely spaced from the ink fountain for directing ultrasonic pulses at the ink fountain to generate an echo signal representative of ultrasonic returns from the surface of the ink; means responsive to the echo signal for generating a measured ink level signal indicative of the operating level of ink in the ink fountain; means for producing an operating ink level reference signal representative of a desired ink level in the fountain; means for comparing the measured ink level signal with the operating ink level reference signal to generate an ink feed signal when the ink level in the fountain drops below the operating level; means repsonsive to the ink feed signal for generating ink feed pulses spaced by the intervals of a predetermined duration selected commensurate with the time period needed to enable ink supplied during a preceding pulse to register a change in the measured ink level signal and enabling the flow of ink through said valve to the ink fountain during said ink feed pulses; means for detecting when an echo signal fails to be generated in response to an ultrasonic pulse directed at the ink fountain and producing an echo loss signal indicative thereof and applying said echo loss signal to effectively inhibit the flow of ink through said valve to the ink fountain.
Claim 2
Independent Claim
256 words
An apparatus for automatically controlling the level of ink in an ink fountain used in a printing press by regulating the feed of ink from a supply through a valve to the fountain comprising ultrasonic ink level sensing means remotely spaced from the ink fountain for directing ultrasonic pulses at the ink fountain to generate an echo signal representative of ultrasonic returns from the surface of the ink; means responsive to the echo signal for generating a measured ink level signal indicative of the operating level of ink in the ink fountain; means for producing an operating ink level reference signal representative of a desired ink level in the fountain; means for comparing the measured ink level signal with the operating ink level reference signal to generate an ink feed signal when the ink level in the fountain drops below the operating level; means repsonsive to the ink feed signal for generating ink feed pulses spaced by the intervals of a predetermined duration selected commensurate with the time period needed to enable ink supplied during a preceding pulse to register a change in the measured ink level signal and enabling the flow of ink through said valve to the ink fountain during said ink feed pulses; means for detecting when an echo signal fails to be generated in response to an ultrasonic pulse directed at the ink fountain and producing an echo loss signal indicative thereof and applying said echo loss signal to effectively inhibit the flow of ink through said valve to the ink fountain.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
47 words
The ink level control apparatus as claimed in claim 1 wherein said means for detecting the echo loss alarm further includes means for delaying said echo loss signal until said echo loss signal has persisted for a predetermined time selected commensurate with normal ink fountain operating conditions.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
94 words
The ink level control apparatus as claimed in claim 1 and further including means for generating a low ink level reference signal representative of a lowest acceptable ink level in the ink fountain; and means for comparing the low ink level reference signal with the measured ink level signal to generate a low ink level alarm signal when the signal level in the ink fountain drops below the lowest acceptable ink level and applying said low ink level alarm signal to effectively inhibit the flow of ink through said valve to the ink fountain.
Claim 5
Independent Claim
287 words
An apparatus for automatically controlling the level of ink in an ink fountain used in a printing press by regulating the feed of ink from a supply through a valve to the fountain comprising ultrasonic ink level sensing means remotely spaced from the ink fountain for directing ultrasonic pulses at the ink fountain to generate an echo signal representative of ultrasonic returns from the surface of the ink; means responsive to the echo signal for generating a measured ink level signal indicative of the operating level of ink in the ink fountain; means for producing an operating ink level reference signal representative of a desired ink level in the fountain; means for comparing the measured ink level signal with the operating ink level reference signal to generate an ink feed signal when the ink level in the fountain drops below the operating level; means responsive to the ink feed signal for generating ink feed pulses spaced by intervals of a predetermined duration selected commensurate with the time period needed to enable ink supplied during a preceding pulse to register a change in the measured ink level signal and enabling the flow of ink through said valve to the ink fountain during said ink feed pulses; means for detecting when an echo signal fails to be generated in response to an ultrasonic pulse directed at the ink fountain and producing an echo loss signal indicative thereof and apply said echo loss signal to effectively inhibit the flow of ink through said valve to the ink fountain; and means responsive to the echo loss signal for establishing a simulated measured ink level signal indicative of an acceptable ink level in the fountain while said echo loss signal is active.
Claim 6
Independent Claim
287 words
An apparatus for automatically controlling the level of ink in an ink fountain used in a printing press by regulating the feed of ink from a supply through a valve to the fountain comprising ultrasonic ink level sensing means remotely spaced from the ink fountain for directing ultrasonic pulses at the ink fountain to generate an echo signal representative of ultrasonic returns from the surface of the ink; means responsive to the echo signal for generating a measured ink level signal indicative of the operating level of ink in the ink fountain; means for producing an operating ink level reference signal representative of a desired ink level in the fountain; means for comparing the measured ink level signal with the operating ink level reference signal to generate an ink feed signal when the ink level in the fountain drops below the operating level; means responsive to the ink feed signal for generating ink feed pulses spaced by intervals of a predetermined duration selected commensurate with the time period needed to enable ink supplied during a preceding pulse to register a change in the measured ink level signal and enabling the flow of ink through said valve to the ink fountain during said ink feed pulses; means for detecting when an echo signal fails to be generated in response to an ultrasonic pulse directed at the ink fountain and producing an echo loss signal indicative thereof and apply said echo loss signal to effectively inhibit the flow of ink through said valve to the ink fountain; and means responsive to the echo loss signal for establishing a simulated measured ink level signal indicative of an acceptable ink level in the fountain while said echo loss signal is active.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
73 words
The ink level control apparatus as claimed in claim 4 wherein said means for generating the measured ink level signal further includes means producing a voltage whose magnitude is representative of the ink level in the fountain; and wherein said means for establishing said simulated measured ink level signal further includes means for clamping said voltage to a magnitude representative of an acceptable ink level in the fountain when said echo loss occurs.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
81 words
The ink level control apparatus as claimed in claim 4 wherein said means for generating the measured ink level signal further includes digital storage means for storing a digital signal representative of the ink level in the fountain as the measured ink level signal; and wherein said means for establishing a simulated ink level signal further includes means for retaining a previously generated stored digital signal as representative of the ink level in the fountain while an echo loss signal occurs.
Claim 9
Independent Claim
302 words
An apparatus for automatically controlling the level of ink in an ink fountain used in a printing press by regulating the feed of ink from a supply through a valve to the fountain comprising ultrasonic ink level sensing means remotely spaced from the ink fountain for directing ultrasonic pulses at the ink fountain to generate an echo signal representative of ultrasonic returns from the surface of the ink; means responsive to the echo signal for generating a measured ink level signal indicative of the operating level of ink in the ink fountain, means for producing an operating ink level reference signal representative of a desired ink level in the fountain; first comparing means for comparing the measured ink level signal with the operating ink level reference signal to generate an ink feed signal when the ink level in the fountain drops below the operating level; means responsive to the ink feed signal for generating ink feed pulses spaced by intervals of a predetermined duration selected commensurate with the time period needed to enable ink supplied during a preceding pulse to register a change in the measured ink level signal and enabling the flow of ink through said valve to the ink fountain during said ink feed pulses; means for producing a low ink level reference signal representative of a minimum acceptable ink level in the fountain; second comparing means for comparing the measured ink level signal with the low ink level reference signal to generate a low ink level alarm signal when the ink level in the fountain drops below the minimum acceptable ink level; and means responsive to the low ink level alarm signal for effectively inhibiting the effect of the ink feed signal to disable further supply of ink and register an alarm condition representative of said low ink level.
Claim 10
Independent Claim
302 words
An apparatus for automatically controlling the level of ink in an ink fountain used in a printing press by regulating the feed of ink from a supply through a valve to the fountain comprising ultrasonic ink level sensing means remotely spaced from the ink fountain for directing ultrasonic pulses at the ink fountain to generate an echo signal representative of ultrasonic returns from the surface of the ink; means responsive to the echo signal for generating a measured ink level signal indicative of the operating level of ink in the ink fountain, means for producing an operating ink level reference signal representative of a desired ink level in the fountain; first comparing means for comparing the measured ink level signal with the operating ink level reference signal to generate an ink feed signal when the ink level in the fountain drops below the operating level; means responsive to the ink feed signal for generating ink feed pulses spaced by intervals of a predetermined duration selected commensurate with the time period needed to enable ink supplied during a preceding pulse to register a change in the measured ink level signal and enabling the flow of ink through said valve to the ink fountain during said ink feed pulses; means for producing a low ink level reference signal representative of a minimum acceptable ink level in the fountain; second comparing means for comparing the measured ink level signal with the low ink level reference signal to generate a low ink level alarm signal when the ink level in the fountain drops below the minimum acceptable ink level; and means responsive to the low ink level alarm signal for effectively inhibiting the effect of the ink feed signal to disable further supply of ink and register an alarm condition representative of said low ink level.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
48 words
The ink level control apparatus as claimed in claim 7 wherein said means for effectively inhibiting the effect of the ink feed signal is coupled to said first comparing means for disablement thereof upon occurrence of an ink level below said minimum acceptable level in the ink fountain.
Claim 12
Dependent Claim
74 words
The ink level control apparatus as claimed in claim 7 and further including means for producing a high ink level reference signal representative of a maximum acceptable ink level in the fountain; third comparing means for comparing the measured ink level signal with the high ink level reference signal to generate a high ink level alarm signal when the ink level in the fountain exceeds the maximum acceptable level for a predetermined time period.
Claim 13
Dependent Claim
59 words
The ink level control apparatus as claimed in claim 9 wherein said means for generating the high ink level alarm signal further includes timer means effectively coupled to the output of the third comparing means for generating said high ink level alarm signal after said high ink level in the fountain has persisted for a predetermined minimum time period.
Claim 14
Independent Claim
238 words
An apparatus for automatically controlling the level of ink in an ink fountain used in a printing press by regulating the feed of ink from a supply comprising ultrasonic ink level sensing means remotely spaced from the ink fountain for directing ultrasonic pulses at the ink fountain and generate echo signals representative of ultrasonic reflections from the surface of the ink; means responsive to the echo signals for generating a measured ink level signal indicative of the level of ink in the fountain; means for producing an operating ink level reference signal representative of a desired ink level in the fountain; means for comparing the measured ink level signal with the operating ink level reference signal to generate an ink feed signal when the ink level in the fountain drops below the desired ink level; means for generating high and low ink level reference signals respectively representative of range limits of acceptable ink levels in the fountain; means for comparing the high and low ink level reference signals to the measured ink level signal and generate respectively high and low ink level alarm signals when the ink level in the fountain is no longer within the acceptable range limits; and means responsive to the ink feed signal for generating ink feed pulses separated by ink leveling intervals, said intervals being selected of sufficient duration to enable ink supplied during a previous pulse to establish a new ink level.
Claim 15
Independent Claim
238 words
An apparatus for automatically controlling the level of ink in an ink fountain used in a printing press by regulating the feed of ink from a supply comprising ultrasonic ink level sensing means remotely spaced from the ink fountain for directing ultrasonic pulses at the ink fountain and generate echo signals representative of ultrasonic reflections from the surface of the ink; means responsive to the echo signals for generating a measured ink level signal indicative of the level of ink in the fountain; means for producing an operating ink level reference signal representative of a desired ink level in the fountain; means for comparing the measured ink level signal with the operating ink level reference signal to generate an ink feed signal when the ink level in the fountain drops below the desired ink level; means for generating high and low ink level reference signals respectively representative of range limits of acceptable ink levels in the fountain; means for comparing the high and low ink level reference signals to the measured ink level signal and generate respectively high and low ink level alarm signals when the ink level in the fountain is no longer within the acceptable range limits; and means responsive to the ink feed signal for generating ink feed pulses separated by ink leveling intervals, said intervals being selected of sufficient duration to enable ink supplied during a previous pulse to establish a new ink level.
Claim 16
Dependent Claim
54 words
The ink level control apparatus as claimed in claim 11 and further including means for detecting a loss of echo signals and generate an echo loss signal indicative thereof; and means actuated by the echo loss signal for producing a simulated ink level signal representative of an ink level within the acceptable range limits.
Claim 17
Dependent Claim
29 words
The ink level control apparatus as claimed in claim 12 and further including means for generating an alarm signal when said echo loss is active for a predetermined time.
Claim 18
Independent Claim
160 words
An apparatus for automatically controlling the level of ink in an ink fountain used in a printing press by regulating the feed of ink from a supply through a valve to the fountain comprising ultrasonic ink level sensing means remotely spaced from the ink fountain for directing ultrasonic pulses at the ink fountain to generate an echo signal representative of ultrasonic returns from the surface of the ink means responsive to the echo signal for generating a measured ink level signal averaged over a desired number of echo signals to smooth out effects from variations in the measured ink level signal as a result of surface movements thereof; means for producing an operating ink level reference signal representative of a desired ink level in the fountain; means for comparing the averaged measured ink level signal with the operating ink level reference signal to generate an ink feed signal when the ink level in the fountain drops below the operating level.
Claim 19
Independent Claim
160 words
An apparatus for automatically controlling the level of ink in an ink fountain used in a printing press by regulating the feed of ink from a supply through a valve to the fountain comprising ultrasonic ink level sensing means remotely spaced from the ink fountain for directing ultrasonic pulses at the ink fountain to generate an echo signal representative of ultrasonic returns from the surface of the ink means responsive to the echo signal for generating a measured ink level signal averaged over a desired number of echo signals to smooth out effects from variations in the measured ink level signal as a result of surface movements thereof; means for producing an operating ink level reference signal representative of a desired ink level in the fountain; means for comparing the averaged measured ink level signal with the operating ink level reference signal to generate an ink feed signal when the ink level in the fountain drops below the operating level.
Claim 20
Dependent Claim
80 words
The ink level control apparatus as claimed in claim 14 and further including means for detecting when an echo signal fails to be generated by the ultrasonic ink level sensing means in response to an ultrasonic pulse directed at the ink fountain and producing an echo loss signal indicative thereof; and means for simulating a measured ink level signal in response to the echo loss signal and of a magnitude selected to prevent overflow of ink from the ink fountain.
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USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows
| Annuity Stage | Window Opens | Payment Deadline | Surcharge Period Until | Estimated Fee | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.5 Years (Year 4) | 1987-10-30 | 1988-04-30 | 1988-10-30 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 1991-10-30 | 1992-04-30 | 1992-10-30 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 1995-10-30 | 1996-04-30 | 1996-10-30 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |