GB997114A - Sheet feeding apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

997,114. Feeding and delivering sheets. INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINES CORPORATION. Nov. 27, 1963 [Nov. 29, 1962], No. 46843/63. Headings B6B and B6H. Sheet-feeding apparatus com prises a hopper for locating a stack of sheets having an aperture in one wall, separator means adapted to offset the endmost sheet of a stack in a first direction into said aperture, and transport means adapted to engage the offset portion of the endmost sheet and to move said sheet in a second direction transverse to said first direction, said aperture having a front and rear portion taken in said second direction, the rear portion being of such thickness as to receive only one sheet at a time whereas the front portion is of such thickness as to receive at least two sheets simultaneously, and said separator means being operable to move the sheet adjacent said endmost sheet into the front and rear portions when said transport means moves the trailing edge of said endmost sheet into said front portion. Pile tables and supports.-A hopper 11 comprises a front wall 13, side walls 12, and a base 14. The latter extends beyond the front wall and has an upstanding portion 14a. The front and one side wall stop short of the base and carry adjustable gates 15 and 36 adapted to be spaced from the base by the thickness of one sheet. The base has a step 16 therein, mid-way between the side walls. Separators: dropping - rollers.-The bottom sheet is fed beneath the front wall up to the portion 14a by constantly rotating friction wheels 18. Engagement of a sheet with the portion 14a actuates a switch to operate an electromagnet and lift fingers 41. Said fingers pass through the base and lift the stack clear of the separators. Freely rotatable rollers 29 and 30 are lowered to press the partially separated sheet into contact with constantly rotating rollers 25 and 26 or, a constantly driven endless belt. Thus, the partially separated sheet is moved sideways beneath said one side wall 12. As the sheet clears the step 16 and falls into the lower portion of the base, the fingers 41 are lowered and the next sheet is forwarded up to the portion 14a by the wheels 18 to overlap the trailing edge of the first mentioned sheet. The base is apertured and has a suction chamber 21 therebelow to urge the bottom sheet against the wheels 18. Sheet carriers and forwarders.-Finally, the sheet is removed from the stack by co-operating rollers 37 and fed past a reading head 38. Delivering sheets.-The sheets are directed to one of two stacks by a switch 64. The switch is set by an electromagnet 65 controlled by the reading head 38. The sheets are fed between stationary guides 79 by co-operating rollers 72, 73. A continuously driven endless belt 87 passing around pulleys 88 and 89, feeds the sheet up to a leaf spring S4 covered by a block 86 of soft material. The pulley 89 is mounted on one arm of a two-armed lever 91 pivoted at 90. The other arm 91a is spring-urged toward a fixed stop 93. As the stack grows, the twoarmed lever is pivoted clockwise until the arm 91a eventually closes a switch 100. This sets endless belts 95 in motion, which move a support plate 83 to the right (as illustrated) to relieve the pressure of the stack on the two armed lever and thus open the switch 100. The support plate has slotted extensions frictionally gripping the endless belts 95. When the stack is removed from the support plate, the latter is returned to the left (as illustrated) by springs 99.