Platens

In the platen press, a flat surface bearing the paper is pressed against the flat, inked printing plate; the two surfaces come together and part with a jaw-like motion. Most small hand presses are platen presses. Both cylinder and platen types of flatbed presses operate at speeds of 1,000 to 4,000 impressions per hour.They have a variety of uses for example, in office copiers and scanners, the platen is a flat glass surface on which operators place papers or books for scanning. The platen is also called the flatbed. Platens are also used in printers and are very useful.