Method for separating printed products that are printed together onto a sheet

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11351771-B2
Application number	US-202017419734-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jun 17, 2020
Priority date	Aug 8, 2019
Publication date	Jun 7, 2022
Grant date	Jun 7, 2022

Abstract

A method for separating printed products, that are printed together onto a sheet of printed products, is disclosed. The printed products are printed onto a sheet in a printing press and are separated in a cutting system by a cutting device. Each of these printed products has an identification feature that identifies its respective position on the sheet. The sheet becomes deformed as it passes through the printing press. The separated printed products, which are likewise deformed, as a result of the deformation of the sheet, are inspected, in a quality control device which is located downstream of the cutting system, for compliance with the tolerance, at least with regard to the respective length or width of the printed products. For each printed product that has been identified, in terms of its position, the quality control device detects information relating to an exceeding of the tolerance, at least for the length or width of the printed product, and transmits that information, assigning that information to the position identified on the sheet, to a control unit of the cutting system. Based on the information transmitted by the quality control device, for printed products that are arranged in the same position on the sheet, and which will subsequently be separated in the cutting system, the control unit of the cutting system adjusts the relevant sheet and the cutting device in their respective positions, relative to one another, in such a way that each of the printed products to be separated complies with the respective tolerance. Compliance with the tolerance is achieved in that the position of the sheet and of the cutting device to be adjusted relative to one another is calculated in the control unit using a mathematical optimization method. The sheet is placed on a cutting table in the cutting system. The control unit of the cutting system adjusts the position of the sheet relative to the cutting device, according to the calculated position.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A method for separating printed products ( 03 ) that are printed together onto a sheet ( 01 ), wherein printed products ( 03 ) that are printed together onto the sheet ( 01 ) in a printing press ( 06 ) are separated by means of a cutting device ( 11 ) in a cutting system ( 07 ) located downstream of the printing press ( 06 ), wherein each of these printed products ( 03 ) has an identification feature ( 09 ) that identifies its respective position on the sheet ( 01 ), wherein the unprinted sheet ( 01 ) is rectangular in shape and becomes deformed as it passes through the printing press ( 06 ), characterized in that the separated printed products ( 03 ), which are likewise deformed as a result of the deformation of the sheet ( 01 ), are inspected in a quality control device ( 08 ) located downstream of the cutting system ( 07 ) for compliance with a permissible preset tolerance, at least with regard to the respective length ( 103 ) and/or width (b 03 ) of said printed products, wherein for each printed product ( 03 ) that has been identified in terms of its position based on its identification feature ( 09 ), the quality control device ( 08 ) detects information relating to an exceeding of the permissible tolerance at least for the length ( 103 ) and/or width (b 03 ) of the printed product ( 03 ) in question, wherein the quality control device ( 08 ) transmits this information detected by it, assigning said information to the position identified on the sheet ( 01 ), to a control unit ( 21 ) of the cutting system ( 07 ), wherein, based on the information transmitted by the quality control device ( 08 ), for similar printed products ( 03 ) that are arranged in the same position on the sheet ( 01 ) and will be separated subsequently in the cutting system ( 07 ), the control unit ( 21 ) of the cutting system ( 07 ) adjusts the relevant sheet ( 01 ) and the cutting device ( 11 ) in their respective positions relative to one another in such a way that each of the printed products ( 03 ) to be separated complies optimally with the respective preset tolerance, wherein the optimal compliance with the relevant tolerance is achieved in that the position of the sheet ( 01 ) and the cutting device ( 11 ) to be adjusted relative to one another is calculated in the control unit ( 21 ) using a mathematical optimization method, wherein the sheet ( 01 ) containing the printed products ( 03 ) to be separated is placed on a cutting table ( 13 ) in the cutting system ( 07 ), and wherein the control unit ( 21 ) of the cutting system ( 07 ) adjusts the position of the sheet ( 01 ) to be cut, which is lying on the cutting table ( 13 ), in relation to the cutting device ( 11 ) of the cutting system ( 07 ) in accordance with the position calculated by means of the mathematical optimization method.

2. The method according to claim 1 , characterized in that the sheet ( 01 ) containing the printed products ( 03 ) to be separated is placed in the cutting system ( 07 ) onto a cutting table ( 13 ) that is adjustable at least in terms of its angle of rotation ((p), the adjustment of the angle of rotation ((p) of the cutting table ( 13 ) being calculated using the mathematical optimization method.

3. The method according to claim 1 , characterized in that the control unit ( 21 ) of the cutting system ( 07 ) adjusts the position of the sheet ( 01 ) to be cut, which is lying on the cutting table ( 13 ), in relation to the cutting device ( 11 ) of the cutting system ( 07 ) by calculating the adjustment of a forward feed of the sheet ( 01 ) using the mathematical optimization method.

4. The method according to claim 1 , characterized in that each individual printed product ( 03 ) has at least one characteristic feature ( 04 ) at a specific position in the print image ( 02 ) in question, wherein the deformation of the sheet ( 01 ) and of the print image ( 02 ) applied to it also changes the position of the characteristic feature ( 04 ) in question, wherein, for each printed product ( 03 ) that has been identified on the basis of its identification feature ( 09 ), the quality control device ( 08 ) also detects information relating to an exceeding of the permissible preset tolerance by the change in the position of the at least one characteristic feature ( 04 ) in question, and wherein the quality control device ( 08 ) also transmits this information to the control unit ( 21 ) of the cutting system ( 07 ) for adjustment of the respective positions of sheet ( 01 ) and cutting device ( 11 ) in relation to one another.

5. The method according to claim 1 , characterized in that the printing press ( 06 ) prints the sheet ( 01 ) in a steel engraving process or in an intaglio printing process, and/or in that the printed products ( 03 ) are each in the form of a banknote.

6. The method according to claim 1 , characterized in that each of the printed products ( 03 ) is furnished with a serial number that is sequential within the production process as its respective identification feature ( 09 ).

7. The method according to claim 1 , characterized in that a camera-based inspection system is used as the quality control device ( 08 ).

8. The method according to claim 1 , characterized in that an equalization calculation or a computational approximation method is used as the mathematical optimization method.

9. The method according to claim 1 , characterized in that the mathematical optimization method includes computing a mean value from multiple recorded or determined individual values and/or calculating a standard deviation and/or factoring in a specific quartile (0%, 25%, 50% (=median), 75%, 100%).

10. The method according to claim 1 , characterized in that the sheet ( 01 ) is deformed trapezoidally as it passes through the printing press ( 06 ).

11. The method according to claim 1 , characterized in that, for similar printed products ( 03 ) that are arranged in the same position on the sheet ( 01 ) and will be subsequently separated in the cutting system ( 07 ), the setting of the respective positions of sheet ( 01 ) and cutting device ( 11 ) in relation to one another is adjusted only on the basis of repeatedly detected information regarding an exceeding of the permissible preset tolerance, at least for the length ( 103 ) and/or width (b 03 ) of the printed product ( 03 ) in question, and/or on the basis of repeatedly detected information regarding an exceeding of the permissible preset tolerance for the change in the position of the at least one characteristic feature ( 04 ) in question.

12. The method according to claim 1 , characterized in that a pile of multiple sequential sheets ( 01 ) is evaluated by the control unit ( 21 ) of the cutting system ( 07 ) before the control unit ( 21 ) of the cutting system ( 07 ) adjusts the setting of the respective positions of sheet ( 01 ) and cutting device ( 11 ) relative to one another for similar printed products ( 03 ) that are arranged at the same position on the sheet ( 01 ) and will be separated subsequently in the cutting system ( 07 ).

13. The method according to claim 1 , characterized in that the choice of mathematical optimization method to be applied establishes whether, in a given production process, a maximum number of printed products ( 03 ) of adequate quality will be produced or a comparatively smaller number of high-quality printed products ( 03 ) will be produced.

14. The method according to claim 1 , characterized in that the permissible preset tolerance at least for the length ( 103 ) and/or width (b 03 ) of the printed product ( 03 ) in question and/or the permissible preset tolerance for the change in the position of the at

Assignees

• Koenig & Bauer Ag

Inventors

• Bumm Florian
• Dragoz Dragan
• Pawelak Thomas
• Sauer Jens
• Schaede Johannes
• Schubert Julian

Classifications

• B26D5/007

  Control means comprising cameras, vision or image processing systems · CPC title

• B41F13/60

  crosswise · CPC title

• B41F33/00

  Indicating, counting, warning, control or safety devices (arrangements of counting devices in platen presses B41F1/00 {, B41F1/58; arrangements of counting devices} in cylinder presses B41F3/84; ink supply or metering devices B41F31/02) · CPC title

• B26D5/32 Primary

  with the record carrier formed by the work itself · CPC title

• B41F13/58 Primary

  lengthwise · CPC title