Keller v. American Sales Book Co.
| Decision Date | 20 January 1939 |
| Docket Number | 2180.,No. 2118A,2118A |
| Citation | 26 F. Supp. 835 |
| Parties | KELLER v. AMERICAN SALES BOOK CO., Inc. (two cases). |
| Court | U.S. District Court — Western District of New York |
Harry C. Kayser, of New York City (Earl D. Rader, of New York City, of counsel), for plaintiff.
Stephen H. Philbin and William J. Barnes, both of New York City, for defendant.
The two actions above-entitled have been consolidated and are being tried as one. The issues in each are the same, except as to the period of alleged liability. For the purposes of this opinion reference will be made to the defendants as one.
Plaintiff sues for the alleged infringement of Keller Patent No. 1,489,833. Claims 5 to 8 and 14 to 25, inclusive, are in suit. Claims 6, 17 and 25 are typical, and those only need be discussed.
The patent is titled "Method of Operating upon Printed Webs" and relates to the "production from a continuous printed web or webs of books, pamphlets, magazines, periodicals, newspapers, folders and the like." The application was filed December 30, 1919, and the patent issued April 8, 1924.
The practice in the manufacture of books, magazines and pamphlets now is, and heretofore has been, to print the web (sheet on which the printing appears), cut it into sheets of uniform dimensions thereby making signatures (printed sheets containing a number of pages, as X-X-XX-XX), fold the individual signatures, assemble the signatures in their sequence, and bind. Keller proposed to simplify and make this work more efficient by eliminating the cutting of the web into sheets in the press room and the separate handling of the sheets during the several succeeding operations. In his proposal the paper is drawn from the supply roll through cylinders, which print both sides of the web, then between other cylinders which crease it transversely (successive creases or folds being in opposite directions, partaking of an accordion or zigzag fold). The creased web is then dropped down into a truck or bin fold on fold.
His method is designed to operate to interfold a plurality of webs. This is done by aligning two or more bins or trucks, each containing a single web, bringing the ends of the separate webs together, withdrawing the webs from the separate positions aligning them with creases in register and either refolding them to produce a single pack for storage purposes or feeding them to apparatus for cutting, stitching and folding. The printed matter in such composite pack is so arranged that, when the signatures are folded and cut, the paging will run in consecutive order. The method by which Keller proposes to gather webs from separate stacks and assemble them so that the creases of one web interfit with the creases of the other webs is the basis for the patent. So far as claim is made here everything else in the process is old in the art. Webs were printed singly and in plurality, transversely creased at determined intervals, and stacked by means of such creasing. It is old in the art to print a web and zigzag fold it transversely, and superimposing and then folding simultaneously several printed webs is also old in the art and conceded so to be. The claims in suit are not concerned with the apparatus for performing the operations which take place after the web group has been completed and leaves the last group of fingers of the web assembling device.
Claim 6 reads: "The method which consists in separately printing a plurality of webs, transversely creasing each web at predetermined intervals, placing said creased webs in separate stacks, and withdrawing the webs from said stacks with the creases of one web interfitting with the creases of an adjacent web."
Claims 17 and 25 are substantially the same as Claim 6, except as to the statement of the relation of the transverse creases and that Claim 25 refers to the assembly of the webs rather than the withdrawal thereof.
The only thing new or claimed to be new in these typical claims is the method of withdrawing the webs from the bins or trucks so as to effect a proper register when a plurality of webs are employed, and control the feed of a single web or web group for the subsequent operations.
This method is illustrated by the following diagram from the patent:
J shows the trucks; W, the webs; H, the transverse creases; K, the knife which cuts webs of more than one signature wide; L, the knife which transversely severs the webs at the required length; 14, shows the longitudinal stitching; M and N, the folding rollers. The webs are assembled by means of fingers, which mechanically lift each web at alternate transverse creases, the separate webs being mechanically brought together, one superimposed upon the other as the fingers pass them along, each set of fingers adding an additional web to the composite web and passing the web to the next set of fingers as it advances toward the storage bin for interfolding or to the cutting, stitching and folding machinery.
Defendant does not manufacture books, magazines, pamphlets, periodicals, newspapers or folders. It does manufacture what is known as manifold stationery, described as "stationery with which carbon is associated to make multiple copies of business entries in salesbooks, autographic registers, billing machines, typewriters, * * *." It has been engaged in that business for many years and has a volume of business running annually into many thousands of dollars. It manufactures forms for production orders, bills of lading and the like, utilized generally by railroads, large manufacturers and by other business interests. Defendant prints its forms on long strips of paper, with perforations between each form. It is then dropped into a container, folding automatically to form a zigzag pack. Several of these packs are formed, arranged in the desired sequence, the ends of the packs joined, the webs drawn manually from the packs, and assembled together in a composite zigzag pack. It should be noted that defendant's perforations do not control the feeding or the withdrawal movement of the webs as called for by Claims 14 and 15, and therefore these claims are clearly not infringed.
Defendant prepares the composite pack in three ways: (1) Without further action, after assembly it is shipped to the purchaser loosely folded in a suitable container. The purchaser folds the pack at a desired length, interposes carbon, if desired, and runs it through a machine or typewriter; (2) In a type of pack to be shipped with carbon interleaved, in order to prevent slipping of the carbon, the pack is stapled loosely between each successive fold by being run through a rotating stapling machine; (3) In a type designed for use in a machine which will bring the original and copy forms into exact registration for use, holes are punched on the margins of each strip at the time of manufacture. These strips when ready for use are fed through a specially adjusted machine having pins which fit into the holes and draw the several forms into alignment or exact registration. If the supply is used on a machine not equipped to effect registration automatically, the material is brought into alignment manually by the user.
By plaintiff's method the web is transversely "creased or folded, successive creases or folds being in opposite directions" to permit the webs to be fitted together in alignment in an assembly of webs. Defendant does not crease the web but makes transverse perforations between successive forms. In its method of manufacture it is not necessary to secure exact register of the printing on the original with the printing on the copies. In plaintiff's method the webs are assembled by machinery; in defendant's method by manual operation. Under certain circumstances creases could not be employed by defendant in its process. Where the packs are folded for use with more than two forms face up the creases would be objectionable as a refold of the crease in the opposite direction would be required. In the stapling machine operation utilized by the defendant for certain forms, it would not be possible to unfold and fold oppositely by a simple change in the movement of the strips as may be done when the loose hinge made by perforation is employed. Where the forms are to be used upon a flat surface, the creases would tend to prevent making of proper copies by reason of the separation of the forms by the crease. By the use of the transverse creasing at fixed intervals, the Keller method is specially adapted for use in making books, pamphlets and the like. Transverse perforations between the forms specially adapt defendant's web to use for manifold stationery and forms.
Defendant contends that the claims in suit are invalid for lack of invention, invalid by reason of the prior art or are so limited by the prior art that they can not validly cover defendant's methods. Defendant cites as prior art Lawson Patent No. 406,845, issued July 9, 1889, McDowell Patent No. 585,394, issued June 29, 1897, Denison Patents Nos. 631,107 and 631,108, each issued August 15, 1890, and Hainer Patent No. 1,143,386, issued June 15, 1915, and Hagemann Patent No. 1,456,773, issued May 29, 1923, application filed July 17, 1917.
Defendant company is the owner of the Lawson patent, having acquired it from the Carter-Crume Company. It is a device patent. The patent describes a method of making a manifold sales book or pad in which copies are made by the use of carbon paper. Concededly the patent covers a zigzag pack formed by folding a single continuous strip having the original form printed in alternating spaces on the out-side and the copy printed in the alternating spaces on the reverse side, these being so arranged for use that writing on the original would be duplicated on the copy. The strips are perforated between the forms transversely. It is the contention of the defendant that this patent also describes a composite zigzag pack of two strips, one carrying the original sales slips and the other the...
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