Plate locking structure for press cylinders

Structure for releasably securing an edge of a printing plate to a press cylinder provided with a saddle having opposite edges parallel to the longitudinal axis of the cylinder said structure being wholly contained between said edges and including, in combination:

• an elongate base member constructed for securement to said press cylinder, said base member having normally inclined, manually depressable, resilient finger means operative, when disposed in the normally inclined position thereof, to engage an external abutment, an elongate transversely translatable locking bar longitudinally aligned with and slideably secured over said elongate base member and having means for releasably securing an external printing plate, said locking bar being provided with an externally accessible, finger-means access aperture and with an abutment proximate said aperture and aligned for engagement with and selectively engaging said finger means, and spring means for transversely urging said locking bar in a direction away from finger-means engagement with said abutment, said resilient finger means being wholly self-contained within said structure wherein depression of said finger means and disengagement of said finger means from said abutment causes said spring means to move said locking bar relative to said base member to secure a plate on the cylinder.

In combination, a press cylinder provided with a saddle;

• a elongate base member transversely secured on said cylinder proximate said saddle;
• a elongate locking bar longitudinally aligned with and slideably secured for translational movement transverse to its direction of elongation over said base member and having printing plate engagement means, said base member and locking bar having cooperable, first mutually releasably engageable detent means for releasably securing said locking bar at a position over said base member to effect printing-plate-unlock by said locking-bar printing-plate engagement means, said detent means comprising resilient, upwardly angulated finger structure integral with said base member and cooperative abutment structure located proximate to a finger-structure external-access aperture in said locking bar and releasably cooperative with said finger structure, and spring means for urging said locking bar in a printing-plate-lock position, relative to said printing plate engagement means, when said detent means is manually released.