1,165,242. Selective printing. CHAMBON Ltd. 17 March, 1967 [25 March, 1966], No. 12687/67. Heading B6F. Type-wheel machines; multiple type surface selection; electrographic printing arrangements; machines with two sets of types.-A rotary printing press for continuous printing of batches of five series of cheques on a continuously moving web 1, Fig. 1, comprises a number of printing units 4 . . . 7 for printing of fixed matter on all the cheques and a number of selective printing units U 1 . . . U4 for printing of four consecutive lines of variable information, one line including magnetic ink recorded data. Each selective printing unit U 1 . . . U 4 includes two selective printers 11, 21 .. . 14, 24 actuated alternately so that when one selective printer such as 11 is printing simultaneously batches of five series of cheques the associated printer 21 is being set for subsequent printing of a second series of cheques to make the printing process a continuous one. Each printer 11, 21 . . . 14, 24 includes a type cylinder 31, 41... , Fig. 3, continuously driven for printing and having five rows of axially aligned wheels 32... 36, 42... 46... , for alternate printing of the first line on consecutive batches of five series of cheques. The selective printers such as 11, 21 print like matter on the cheques in a respective series and selective printers 11, 12, 13, 14 print unlike matter on the same cheques in the respective series. Perforated record input control arrangements.-The printing of the first line of variable matter on the batches of cheques is controlled by perforated record cards 56, Fig. 3, which are scanned by a first reading head 61 at position p 1 and advanced intermittently through positions P 2 . . . P 10 to a position p 11 at which the record cards are scanned again by a second reading head 62, the reading head 61 transmitting the information A . . . E, corresponding to the variable text in the first line in the batch of five series of cheques, to a memory 63 which through a control circuit 65 operates a typeselecting head 38 to cause type character selecting pinions 39 to mesh with pinions 32a . . . 36a integral with the type-wheels 32 ... 36 and set the type wheels to print the information A ... E. Whilst the type cylinder 31 is printing the sequence of information A ... E, the first reading head continues to scan cards 56 bearing information F . . . J which is used by the memory 63 to set the type wheels 42... 46 on the printing cylinder 41 through the intermediary of the type-selecting head 48, which starts its printing cycle on completion of the printing cycle by the printing cylinder 31. The type wheels 32 ... 36 on the printing cylinder 31 are then re-set using information K . . . O. The printing cylinders 31, 41 thus print consecutive batches of five series of cheques in an alternating manner. Type-selection arrangements; power assisted type actions.-Type selection on type-wheels 32, Fig. 7, is effected by the type selecting head 38 having a row of type selecting pinions 39 which are moved into and out of engagement with the type wheels 32 . . . 36, Fig. 3, indexed intermittently into alignment with the pinions 39, by pivotal mounting of the head 38 on arms 142 fast with a shaft 143 which is rocked by arms 146 whose followers 148 are in contact with a cam 151 mounted on a shaft 152 loose which is driven by a pinion 153 during the type selecting cycle to periodically lift and lower the head 38 out of and into engagement with the type-wheels on the printing cylinders, the cam 151 having five lobes, one for each row of type-wheels. The shaft 152 is driven continuously by a gear train 177, Fig. 8,176,175,174, 167 and gears 160,165 the latter of which is coupled to its shaft by an electromagnetic clutch 166. Gear 167 also drives a five armed Geneva gear 169 to impart one-fifth of a revolution to the printing cylinder 31 through gears 171, 172, 173, 112 the latter of which is coupled to the drive shaft 107 of the printing cylinder 31 by a clutch sleeve 108 actuated by electromagnetically controlled cam operated control linkage 115, 119, 121, 122. Displacement of the clutch sleeve 108 into engagement with the gear 112 disengages the printing cylinder 31 from its continuous drive imparted to it by a gear 104 meshing with a gear 103 on the main drive shaft 103. Checking correctness of setting; locking devices.-When the printing cylinder 31, Fig. 7, has printed the required number of cheques in the series of five batches, the type-wheel 32 is arrested in a position opposite pinion 39, which has been reset to indicate the previous setting corresponding to the information 2, Fig. 3, the information having been scanned by the second reading head 62 at the position P 11 , to which the perforated record card 56 has been advanced progressively, and applied to the control circuit 65 through memory 64 associated with the reading head 62. Alignment of the pinion 39 and type wheel 32 is verified by one of pivotal levers 156, 157 whose noses 156a, 157a are adapted to enter a notch 162 in the type wheel 32 when the latter is aligned with the pinion 39, otherwise the noses are deflected by the type wheel periphery to pivot the levers whose noses 156b, 157b actuate a switch 161 to stop the printing press. Impression arrangements; driving arrangementa.-The type cylinder 31, Fig. 5, is mounted on a shaft 81 which is journalled in bearings 82 slidable vertically in a block 83 and biased upwardly by springs 80. The type cylinder 31 is driven continuously during printing by a main shaft 99 having a pinion 103 which meshes with a gear 104 clutched to a cylinder driving shaft 107, Fig. 7, by a sleeve 108, the shaft 107 driving the printing cylinder 31 through gears 106, 105. During its rotation the printing cylinder 31 is oscillated vertically downwardly so that successive type wheels 32 . . . 36 are brought into contact with the printing web 1 overlying an impression cylinder 37. Printing cylinder 31 is oscillated in the block 83 by arms 84 which are pivotally mounted on a shaft 86 and whose respective first ends engage the bearings 82, the other ends being connected fast with arms 90 the respective ends of which are pivotally mounted on the shaft 86 and provided with cam followers 88 in contact with cams 89 fast with a shaft 91 having a pinion 92 (Fig. 6) which is driven intermittently by a gear 93 fast with a four armed Geneva gear. The latter is advanced through 90 degrees every time an electromagnet 102, Fig. 5, is energized to displace a yoke 101 which causes the roller 95 (Fig. 6) on a radial arm 96 mounted slidably on a driven shaft 97 to engage the Geneva gear. Web feeding, guiding, tensioning and cutting devices.-The paper web 1, Fig. 1, on which the cheques are printed is drawn off a supply roll through an output device 2, past a weakening line perforator 3, fixed matter printing units 4 . . . 7, selective matter printing units U 1 ... U 4 and a tensioning unit 8, whereupon the web is cut transversely into individual cheques by a transverse cutter 9.