RECORD OF INVENTION

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: NGA Records (Formerly NIMA)
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP78B05171A000100030004-2
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 23
• Document Creation Date: December 28, 2016
• Document Release Date: March 13, 2003
• Sequence Number: 4
• Publication Date: December 14, 1964
• Content Type: FORM

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,r At achment A
RECORD OF INVENTION
. LEGAL RESIDCNCE
518 _ E Street, S.N. Wash. ,DC
14 December 1964
S. POSITION TITLE AND ORAOE OR RANK
Technologist (Photo);GSS09; Deputy Br.Ch.GS-.14
P&DS DeyeloDment
P. TITLE of INVENTION
Automatically-Masked Vacuum Platen.
10. GRIEF DESCRIPTION OF INVENTION,
DEVELOPMENT AND DISCLOSURE DATA
27 October 1964
E. COMPLETION OF MODEL OR FULL?SIZED DEVICE
2 5XJ. HAS INVENTION DEEN REDUCED TO PRACTICE?
PLACE
DB/.P&DS/NPIC_.
11
4 November 1964
3 November 1964
13. NAMES OF PERSONS HAYING KNOWLEDGE OF FACTS STATED UNDER 11.1.
I?I. STATE TO WHAT EXTENT THE CONCEPTION OF THE INVENTION 15 BASCO ON INFORMATION OBTAINED FROM YOUR GFFIG11.1. vV .lE$.
AND. TO SWAT INTENT OOYERNMENT TIME. MATINIALS. 1'ACILITIESI Ig111PMENTI ETC. VINE YTILIEII IN MAKIN? INTENTION.
141,
25X1 Royalty free assignment to U.S. Government
Declass Review by
N?IMA/DOD
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10. 1720cri tion of Invention
This invention consista of a system of manifolds and valves
cottpicd to. u porous platen in such a way that a vacuum apti.Lied to
a =nifold on one side of the valves will be cutca ,tical.J.,y masked
or cut-off by those: valves, except in those nx'Cooi.to side c.*. the
In that cups, thv covered vulvoa automaticnl],y open and
uilow the vacuum to be ~kppliizd to the oubatr,neo pluced on r.;hc platen.
By thin me-;.ns a vacuum platen of rcel;:et.ivoly large area ctn be auto
mati.c..lly m;..ked so that it will cf:'eotivoly exert the Cyal cn' o full.
capacity on fl-At materials placed onthca platen even though tx rela-
tivc:l.y =all portion of the platen it covered by the m. teria .
This teutoresatie Masking is acscomplialled in the following
rz.=rmc~'s
(1) The platen. io hrnlcy+soulbed with individual
identical co11s.
(2) In the cepcomp:a.liyi.n'- .th'.trrri.ng thane calls aria
Joincd at the hottora to a m,1ni fold w A, to which a
Va.'a,Cu1r.1 PLUil,) iri attached.
() ,)Ch call C7i en automatic oontrol
or governor valve (its tl 4rwa _na,; illustrated by a 'A','1-it
rprir.,; or read v~-,lve ) pi.erocd by ra smet1l t-Mr..p1='w pox't,
nd l.eeding into. in4iv:l.c3t:_11 1"4U11 marttvlda, C.
(l~) Those m,tnx:'oLi a the covered by a flat por'ou!3
1.ui on, D. (Cld::ely ;i cod, aknall holes would Lai;l otor j,) The poros:1 ;y o the platen in E uch th,it
it, ni'.7poS't :t''elrAtivaly flizny in iteria1. without
da-for ,,stun. Yot, when uneoverod, it wiU a .aw udeq;cAe
flow of air causing the control valve to close, and thus
rx:ducing the flow to that allowed by the by-pua port.
. (5) in the inatnnce Milt ra resl+atively nonoporou;t
atlbatcnoo, 1~, is plo&ed on the platen, the flow of ai:ca
if; xoztricted And then l0ea3 ~,e of the bywpaau port allcwa
the Area sure in the upper end lower: manito3da to egt.'1a Lizo.
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This will, in turn, cause the control valve to open,
thereby allowing a. greatly increased flow to pull and
hold the substance down on the platen.
This automatically masked vacuum platen should have extensive
application in a number of situations whenever it is necessary to hold
flat-sided objects in place with forces not exceeding that of atmospheric
pressure. Also, the objects may vary in size and shape with respect to
the platen on which they are held in place. Some examples of these
applications are.
(1) Photographic cameras, enlargers, copy boards,
printers, etc.
(2) Coordinatographs, automatic point and line plotters,
stereo plotters, drafting boards.
(3) Model shops for holding work on shaping tables,
drill presses, etc.
(4) Optical shops for handling glass prisms and plates,
etc.
14.
are responsible for initiating and
monitors en? contracts with private industry. Whereas they
are expected to contribute to such development, evolution of a complete,
specific invention such as this is not among their assigned responsi-
bilities.
This invention was conceived in response to a problem which
occurred during I assignment for monitoring the development
of a vacuum ease for the VG-l Enlarger.
In the course of this assignment,I discerned that
the contractor was not progressing toward a. solution to the
probl of
different sizes and weights of photo materials flat on them easel.
As a result of-this discernment, he discussed the problem with his
supervisor, During this discussion the idea for the
Automatical -Masked Vacuum Platen was conceived. Subsequent component
research and discussion was utilized to formulate the specific invention
described herein.
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:i. CLASS OF CONTRACTOR
Manufacturer
13. REQUIREMENT/AUTHORITY
FY 1965
2. SHORT PROJECT DESCRIPTION
DATE
1 March 1965
Development of a vacuum easel for the VG-1
Enlarger.
12. RESPONSIBLE DIRECTORATE/OFFICE/PROJECT OFFICER TELEPHONE EXTENSION
DDI/NPrc/P&D
'" L" ""c uuc u.L printing paper, with its
inherent ed e-cup^1 &--
o
e
~
25X1 46- o necessity
weights, masks, etc.,
to
secure the paper. The
requirement for the project was (Con (Con td
14. TYPE OF WORK TO BE DONE
Engineering Development
MAJOR CATEGORY
Reproduction and Processing
Equipment (Equipment Modifi-
cation)
From contacts throughout industry and the intelligence community, it has been
determined that no other development of this type is presently underway.
17. SUPPORTING OR RELATED CONTRACTS (Agency & Other)/COORDINATION
ET
The contract will result in one c
prototype easel to be installed on existing equip-
ment. The improved easel will enable the operator to place photographic printing
paper on any area of the vacuum easel and the paper will be automatically held
iflat.
SUB-CATEGORIES
Analysis
6. END ITEM OR SERVICES FROM THIS CONTRACT IMPROVEMENT OVER CURRENT SYSTEM EQUIPMENT
a e principles have not been developed to (Contd)
con proc is
very time-consuming and ineffectual, particularlywheneov
er-sizedtpapereisxutilized.
The development of the vacuum easel for the VG-1 will eliminate this problem.
NPIC proposes to investigate, design and fabricate a vacuum easel, employing
the principles described in an attached document
Invention" by Messrs. "Brief Description of
evident from the desc of the DB/PDS. It is
A
ED
tionaj Page if required) The present VG-l easelE .requires Gthe I useF of Jweight/s yto flatten
and hold printing paper during the exposure cycle Th
I0. DESCRIPTION OF INTELLIGENCE REQUIREMENT AND DET
IL
FORM
11.64 2338
R & D CATALOG FORM
. A. - Confidential
T. - Unclassified
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-R & D'CATALOG FORM (continued)
13. levied by NPIC/PDS.
18. full potential. Although a crude and workable easel could easily
be built from the invention description as it now stands, it is more im-
portant to detail the application by oatablishing the best method of
implementation. The best method will only result from a thorough analysis
of the pneumatic principles involved and should result in a unique and
vastly superior vacuum easel.
Specific objectives to be. accomplished under this development are
as follows: the vacuum easel shall
A. hold flat all conventional weights of printing paper.
B. permit easy positioning of the printing paper on the format.
C. provide rapid vacuum "take down".
D. permit rapid vacuum release.
E. permit rapid hold-down without creating "dimples" or other
blemishes on the paper.
F. place material in the same focal plane as the present easel's.
G. hold down all sizes of printing paper without regard to
position on the easel format and without the use of masks etc.
A Development Objective was written for this project and proposals
were solicited from three local companies. Only local companies were
invited because it was necessary to brief each company on the new
techniques after having them sign patent disclosure pa-pers.
three companies --
submitted proposals. proposal was considered to be technically
far superior to however, the a considerable
difference in price. for the
proposal.
and monetary considerations, it
the ;proposal for the
After considerable weighing of technical
was decided that we are obliged to select
following reasons:
1. This easel incorporates a new and unique vacuum hold-down
technique which promises a break-through in vacuum platen technology;
however, it has never been implemented before and the techniques of
fabrication and the exact pneumatic principles. involved are not known. in
detail. A comprehensive theoretical investigation of these problem
areas by competent engineers will be required prior to an attempt to
implement this system: has the necessary engineering staff,
and does not.
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R &'D CATALOG FORM (continued)
18.
2? proposal indicates a fundamental understanding of
the problem areas involved while the proposal indicates they 25X1
have not examined the situation in depth. does not appear to 25X1
really comprehend the magnitude of the design problem, for their proposal
calls for only 14 hours of engineering time and 40 hours of design time
compared to Librascope's proposal which designates 180 hours of engineering
plus 160 hours of design time.
3? proposal elucidates some superior design and
fabrication features: e.g., they plan to use a special casting to provide
internal support to the vacuum surface thereby increasing rigidity and
asn optical flatness of the printing surface. To the contrary,
Iisuri proposes to use sheet metal construction: optical considerations
should obviate this approach.
4. In 1963 the ttempted to produce a vacuum
easel for this same enlarger anc was totally unsuccessful, resulting in
a loss to the agency of over They were invited to propose
again only because it was feared that few local companies would be
interested in a contract for such a small modification and that we might
have to consider them as a last resort.
5. It is our opinion that has vastly underbid the contract
and is incapable of producing the ev ce we want.
Because has far superior engineering capabilities, a highly
competent technical staff, and offers the best technical approach in
their proposal, they were selected as the potential contractor.
Although the proper security measures are not in effect at the
contractor's plant, the necessary company officers have Agency secret
clearances.
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BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF INVENTION
25X1
This invention consists of a system of manifolds and valves coupled
to a porous platen in such a way that a vacuum applied to a manifold on
one side of the valves will be automatically masked or cut-off by these
valves except; in those areas where a relatively non-porous material has
been placed on the opposite side of the platen. In'that case, the 4
covered valves automatically open and allow the vacuum to be applied to
the substance placed on the platen. By th~s means a vacuum platen of
relatively large area can be automatically masked so that it will
effectively exert the system's full capacity on flat materials placed on
the platen even though a relatively small portion of the platen is
covered by the material.
This automatic masking is accomplished in the following manner:
(1) The platen is honey-combed with individual identical
cells.
(2) In the accompanying drawing these cells are joined at
the bottom to a manifold (A), to which a vacuum pump
is attached.
(3) Each cell consists of an automatic control or governor
value (in the drawing illustrated by a flat spring or
,reed valve, (B) pierced by a small by-pass port,
b, and leading into individual small manifolds, (C).
(4) Those manifolds are covered by a flat porous platen, (D).
(Closely spaced, small holes would also be satisfactory.)
The porosity of the platen is such that it will support
relatively flimsy material without deformation. Yet,
when uncovered, it will allow adequate flow of air
causing the control valve to close, and thus reducing
the flow to that allowed by the by-pass port.
(5) In the instance that a relatively non-porous substance, (E),
is placed on the platen, the flow of air is restricted
and the leakage of the by-pass port allows the pressure
in the upper and lower manifolds to equalize.
This will, in turn, cause the control valve to open,
thereby allowing a greatly increased flow to pull and
hold the substance down on the platen.
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This automatically masked vacuum platen should have extensive
application in a number of situations whenever it is necessary to hold
flat-sided objects in place with forces not exceeding that of atmospheric.
pressure. Also, the objects may vary in size and shape with respect to
the platen on which they are held in place. Some examples of these
applications are:
(1) Photographic cameras, enlargers, copy boards,
printers, etc.
(2) Coordinatographs, automatic point and line
plotters, stereo plotters, drafting boards.
(3) Model shops for holding work on shaping tables,
drill presses, etc.
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(4) Optical shops for handling glass prisms and
plates, etc.
This invention was conceived in the course of official duties. An
assignment had been given to to define objectives for the
development of a vacuum ease needed or photo-enlargers. was
to initiate and monitor this development through a contract with industry.
In the course of this development contract discussed
with the problem of holding down miscellaneous sizes of
double-weight print paper. In the course of this discussion the idea
for the Automatically-Masked Vacuum Platen was conceived. Subsequent
component research and discussion refined the idea into the invention
described herein.
I lare responsible for initiating and
monitoring development contracts with private industry. Whereas they
are expected to contribute to such development, evaluation of a complete,
specific invention such as this is not among their assigned responsi-
bilities.
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Attachment C
12 January 1965
SUBJECT . Determination of Government Interest re Automatically -
Masked Vacuum Platen
1. Title 37, Chapter III, Section 300.6 covering regulations
concerning inventions made by government employees states that the
following rules shall be applied in determining the respective rights
of the Government and of the inventor in and to any invention:
(1) The Government sha].:L n^~ :in the entire domestic
right, title and 5. ntero_ s,t in and to any invention
made by a Goverr2iioni, a, -loyee (i) during working
hours, or (ii) with contribution by the Government
of facilities, ecjuipm ..~, materials, funds or
information, or of ti7:ie or services of other
Government employees on official duty, or (iii)
which bears a direct rnl.atilon to. or is made in
consequence of the o ff iciaaal duties of the inventor..
(3) In applying the provisions of sub-paragraphs (1)
to the facts and circumstances relating to the
making of a particular invention, it shall be
presumed that an invention made by an employee
who is employed or assigned (i) to invent or
improve or perfect any art, machine, design,
manufacture, or composition of matter, (ii) to
conduct or perform research, development work, or
both (iii) to supervise, direct, coordinate, or
review Government financed or conducted research,
development work, or both or (iv) to act in liaison
capacity among governmental or non-governmental
agencies or individuals engaged in such research
or developmental work, falls within provisions of
sub-paragraph one (1) . e
2. Applying the above regulations to the statement submitted under
section 1L+ of the Record of Invention, a ruling must be made that the
Government has the entire domestic right, title and interest to this
invention. The ruling is based on the fact that the invention was
conceived in the course of official duties and that the assignments of
inventors fall under sub-paragraph (3) (ii) and (iii).
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Memorandum for. ated 12 January 1965
SUBJ1rCT: Determination of Government Interest re Automatically - Masked
Vacuum Platen
3. In order that the Government and the inventors be fully protected,
this invention should either be submitted for patenting or made public
by disclosure in a technical Journal.
I+. There is no established Agency procedure to implement the
above recommendation. It is suggested however, that a memorandum be
prepared requesting that the Agency apply for a patent on this
invention. The memorandum should state that the invention is being
used by this, Agency or other government agencies or that a definite
need exists for such a device, or that there is sufficient commercial
interest in the device to warrant the Government patenting it. The
memorandum should be sent to the Chairman of the CIA Patents Board
and be signed by the Director of NPIC or one of his designated
deputies.
5- If you have any further questions relative to this matter,
I shall be glad to answer them.
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Chairman
CIA Patents Board
Distribution:
Original & 2 - Addressee
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