Abstract: A printing unit for printing a web of paper is provided. The printing unit includes a frame and an upper printing group and a lower printing group. The printing unit has at least one throw-on configuration and a blanket-changing throw-off configuration. The blanket cylinders are capable of each receiving at least one tubular blanket. The frame has, in at least one lateral wall, at least one opening to allow the passage of the tubular blankets. In the blanket-changing throw-off configuration, the blanket cylinder of the upper printing group has been moved upwards relative to the position which it occupies in the throw-on configuration and the blanket cylinder of the lower printing group has been moved downwards relative to the position which it occupies in the throw-on configuration, so that an adequate space is provided between the blanket cylinders to allow a web of paper printed by another printing unit to pass between them.

Abstract: A method of printing with a rotary printing press having a plurality of printing cylinders that are adapted to be adjusted on and off from a running web, with a length of a printed image being larger than a peripheral length of the largest one of the printing cylinders, the method including the steps of subdividing the printed image into elements, printing these elements with different printing cylinders, and periodically shifting at least one of the printing cylinders off from the web, each time for at least a duration of one turn of the printing cylinder.

Abstract: At printing time, a blanket cylinder gear is meshed with a plate cylinder gear, whereby a first plate cylinder is rotatable by a drive motor. At image-recording time, the blanket cylinder gear is separated from the plate cylinder gear. In this state, a different motor drives the plate cylinder gear to rotate the first plate cylinder at low speed.

Abstract: A plurality of current patterns with regard to driving current which flows in a driving motor for a ribbon winding shaft are set in advance. The driving motor is driven based on the current pattern selected from a plurality of current patterns on an operation panel. The plurality of current patterns are set in advance so that the tension applied to the ink ribbon, which is between a printing head and a ribbon winding shaft, is an approximate predetermined value from the start to the end of ribbon winding according to the kind of the ink ribbon installed on a ribbon supply shaft.