MXPA00007780A - Sheet aligning apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

Each sheet (28) of stack of media (29) is aligned with a fixed alignment surface (48) prior to being fed towards a process station of a printer by a single pick roll (47). During the first portion of its cycle of operation, the sheet advancing force of the pick roll, which is offset from the axis or centerline of the sheet, exerts a torque on at least the uppermost sheet of the stack to have one of its sides engage the alignment surface (48) if it is skewed. When the one side of the sheet is not engaging the alignment surface when the pick roll is initially energized, the uppermost sheet's leading edge engages a resilient projection (43) of an insert of a rib (32), which is offset from the axis of the sheet but farther from the alignment surface than the pick roll. The skewed sheet pivots about the projection (43), which is formed of a high coefficient of friction material, extending beyond the surface of the rib (32). During the remainder of its energization, the pick roll (47) advances the sheet towards the process station of the printer.

Description

APPARATUS FOR ALIGNING SHEETS FIELD OF THE INVENTION This invention relates to an apparatus for aligning at least the uppermost sheet of a stack of media sheets when the uppermost sheet advances towards a process station and, more particularly, an apparatus of alignment in which a passage of at least the uppermost sheet is aligned when the leading edge of the uppermost sheet is coupled to an element of a slanted blade separator in relation to the sheet support to separate the uppermost sheet the battery.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION In a printer, it is desired that each sheet of the media be aligned as accurately as possible when it enters a printing mechanism (process station) of the printer. The inkjet printers, this alignment has been done mainly using two pick-up rollers that feed each sheet of media from a stack of sheets to the line of contact of a feed roll and then flipping the sheet fed up to align it with the mechanism - the blade that feeds the blade through the contact line of the feed roller to the printing mechanism.

Another alignment arrangement in an ink jet printer has fed each sheet of media from the two pick up rollers to the rotary counter rollers, which are reversed after the sheet is ready to be fed to the printing mechanism. The rotating counter rollers allow the sheet to straighten its leading edge to some degree before the directions of the rotating counter rollers are reversed. Each of those arrays has used the two pickup rollers to keep each media sheet as straight as possible in the condition in which it was loaded. Those arrangements have used two edge guides to couple the two sides of each sheet of media with at least one of the two edge guides being adjustable. This has required the user to load a stack of the sheets against one of the edge guides, usually permanently fixed and having the other adjustable edge guide reloaded against the opposite side of the stack of sheets. If the adjustable border path is not firmly attached to the side of the stack of sheets by the user and the side of the stack sheets are not in full contact with the fixed edge guide, then the sheet will slide when advancing by means of the two pick-up rollers of the stack. As a result, the sheet can enter the printing mechanism in a displaced condition, regardless of the suggested slip correction arrangements previously, because the adjustable guide is not firmly held against the side of each sheet, for example.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The apparatus for aligning sheets of the present invention requires only a single pickup roller and eliminates the need for a user to be precise in loading the media sheets as a stack on a support for feeding by the only pickup roller. The apparatus for aligning leaves accomplishes this by placing the single pickup roller and a single device of deformation of the edge, which is used for the separation of the uppermost sheet of the stack of sheet during its advance from the stack of sheet, so preferable to one side of the axis or center line of the media sheets. The single edge deformation device is positioned beyond an alignment edge as the single pick-up roller and preferably on the same side of the axis or center line of the sheet as the single pick-up roller.

This arrangement allows the force advancing the blade of the single pickup roller to produce a twist on the advancing sheet so that its side moves toward engagement with the fixed alignment surface or edge. This torsion is applied during the initial portion of each rotation cycle of the pick-up roller. In this wayEach sheet has one side aligned with the surface or alignment edge during the pickup of the uppermost sheet of the stack by the pick-up roller and its advance of the uppermost sheet from the stack. When the pick-up roller on one side of the blade axis is advancing, the blade is more restricted on this side than on its non-driven side. As a result, the non-drive side has a shorter path than the contact line of the feed rollers and up to the contact line first even when the sheet is being fed relatively right. The blade is not fed to the feed roller mechanism until the driven side arrives at the position of the feed roller aligning in a position substantially parallel to the leading edge of the media sheet with the feed roller contacting lollipop, example. This is because the rotary feed rollers are not reversed until the advance of the sheet by the pick-up roller has stopped, so that the rotary feed rollers operate as a stop. Similarly, since the feed rollers rotate only when the sheet is to be fed by the feed rollers, the contact line functions as a stop. An object of this invention is to provide an apparatus for aligning sheets to remove the misalignment of each sheet of fed media. Another object of this invention is to provide an apparatus for aligning sheets in which greater misalignment may occur when the stack of media sheets is loaded by a user onto a support without causing the sheet to move when it enters the feed mechanism of a media. printer. A further object of this invention is to control the alignment of a sheet between the pick-up mechanism and the feed mechanism of a printer. The objects of this invention will be readily perceived from the following description, claims, and drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The accompanying drawings illustrate a preferred embodiment of the invention, in which: FIGURE 1 is a front perspective view of an apparatus for aligning sheets of the present invention to support a stack of media sheets thereon. FIGURE 2 is a rear perspective view of the apparatus for aligning sheets of FIGURE 1. FIGURE 3 is a cross-sectional view of a flange having a surface with a high coefficient of friction used as a part of a sheet separator of FIG. apparatus for aligning leaves of FIGURE 1. FIGURE 4 is a top plan view, fragmented, amplified of a portion of the apparatus for aligning leaves of FIGURE 1 with a sheet having its front edge misaligned. FIGURE 5 is a schematic side elevational view of the feed path of a more upper sheet which is advanced from a stack of sheets supported by the apparatus for aligning sheets of FIGURE 1 by means of a pick-up roller towards them. rollers feeding a printer and the sheets shown thicker for clarity purposes. FIGURE 6 is an elevation view of a drive system for the pick-up roller and feed rollers of the sheet alignment apparatus of FIGURE 1, in which the pick-up roller is being driven. FIGURE 7 is an elevation view of a drive system for the pick-up roller and the feed rollers of the sheet alignment apparatus of FIGURE 1, in which the pick-up roller is not driven and the feed rollers are being driven to feed the sheet.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED MODE Referring to the drawings and particularly to FIGURE 1, there is shown an automatic sheet feeder frame 10 of a printer 11. The frame 10, which is preferably formed of plastic, includes a wall substantially horizontal bottom 12 and an inclined wall 14 extending upwardly from the rear of the lower wall 12. The inclined wall 14 is inclined at an obtuse angle, preferably approximately 115 ° to the bottom wall 12 as shown in FIG. shown in FIGURE 5. The frame 10 (see FIGURE 1) is fixed to a carrier frame of a fixed support (not shown) of the printer 11. The frame 10 has substantially parallel side walls 15 and 16 that extend upwards. from the sides of the lower wall 12. The side walls 15 and 16 are integrated to the sides of the lower wall 12 and the sides of the inclined wall 14. A tray 18, which is preferably formed of plastic, is supported releasably on the inclined wall 14. As shown in FIGURE 2, the inclined wall 14 has a pair of guide rails 19 and 20 mounted on its rear surface 21 to form a groove among them. A tab 23 of the tray 18 extends toward the slot 22 to releasably attach the tray 18 to the frame 10 to be supported by the frame 10. As shown in FIGURE 1, a lower edge 24 of the tray 18 is in contact with the upper edge 25 of the inclined wall 14, so that a front surface 26 of the tray 18 and a front surface 27 of the inclined wall 14 form a continuous support surface. The front surface 27 of the inclined wall 14 and the front surface 26 of the tray 18 cooperate to support a plurality of sheets 28 (see FIGURE 5) of a medium such as bond paper, for example, in a stack 29. The sheets 28 may be any other suitable means such as labels or wraps or cardboard, for example. The interior wall substantially horizontal 12 (see Figure 1) of the frame 10 has a flange plate 30, which is preferably formed of plastic, mounted on its upper surface 31. The flange support plate 30 is inclined away from the continuous support surface for leaves 28 (see Figure 5). The flange support plate 30 (see Figure 1) has a flange 32 extending therethrough and three substantially parallel flanges 33., which are also substantially parallel to the flange 32, also extending from it. In this way, the flange support plate 30 is a base surface from which the flanges 32 and 33 extend. The flange 32 is positioned between two of the three flanges 33. The flange 32 includes a body 34 (see FIG. 3) of metal, such as in stainless steel, for example, having a coating 35 (shown amplified in Figure 3 for clarity purposes) of a material with a low coefficient of friction such as the fluoropolymer TEFLON, for example, forming its outer surface. The body 34 includes a main top wall 36 having a pair of substantially parallel side walls 37 extending substantially perpendicular thereto. The body 34 is substantially U-shaped. Each of the side walls 37 of the body 34 has a portion 38 extending therefrom for an interference fit within a cavity or orifice (not shown) in a block 39, which is mounted within a cavity 40 in the flange support plate 30. Each of the side walls 37 has a free end that rests on a surface 40 'of the cavity 40. The main wall 36 of the body 34 has a longitudinal slot 41 in it. The slot 41 terminates before the longitudinal ends of the main wall 36 of the body 34. An insert 42 is located within the body 34. The insert 42 is formed of suitable material having a high coefficient of friction with the paper such as the polyurethane, for example. A suitable example of a polyurethane is that sold by Dow Chemical as Pellethane 2103 70 Shore A. The insert 42 has a projection 43 extending for its length. The insert 42 has its substantially parallel side walls 44 resting on a surface 44 'of the flange support plate 30. In this way, the insert 42 (see Figure 3) is retained by being tapered between the body 34 of the flanges. 32 and the surface 44 'of the flange support plate 30. The projection 43 extends beyond the coating 35 in the body 34 a predetermined distance. For example, when the projection 43 has a width of 1.5 mm, the projection 43 extends 0.25 mm beyond the covering 35 on the body 34. The same portions that would exist a greater or lesser distance than the projection 43 of the insert 42 would be extended beyond the coating 35 on the body 34. The distance between the external surfaces of the side walls 44 'of the insert 42 is 12.4 mm. In addition to the configuration of the insert 42 which controls the distance extending in the projection 43 beyond the coating of the body 34, a preload is created by the configuration and material of the insert 42. In this way, the elasticity of the polymer insert 42 and the preload are combined to determine when the projection 43 must move inward so as not to project beyond the coating 35 of the body 34 when the sheet 28 is a rigid medium. The projection 43 is next to or adjacent the coating 35 because there is only a very light space between them. When the sheet 28 is stiff and has a thickness of 0.1 mm and the projection 43 has a width of 1.5 mm and the slot 41 in the body 34 has a width of 2.5 mm, the total preload on the insert 42 would be such that the sheet 28 push the mating surface of the projection sheet 43 level with the coating 35. The coefficient of friction of the insert 42 with respect to the edge of a sheet of paper is preferably greater than 0.7 and must be greater than 0.3. The coating 35 preferably provides a coefficient of friction with respect to a sheet of paper of less than 0.15 and must be less than 0.2. When the blade 28 is rigid, the projection 43 of the insert 42 moves towards the body 34 due to the advancement of the blade 28 in the direction of an arrow 45. In this way, the total area of the projection 43 that engages the leading edge 46 of the sheet 28 is very small compared to the total area of the coating 35 which engages the edge of the sheet 28. Thus, there is effectively no change in strength in the advancement of the blade 28 when this is a rigid means than when there is only the coating 35. However, when the blade 28 has a low rigidity so that it is flexible, the projection 43 remains in its extended position of Figure 3 when the blade 28 advances in the direction of the arrow 45. Thus, as shown in Figure 3, the high coefficient of friction of the projection 43 has a greater engagement area with the edge of the sheet 28 compared to the coating 35. As a result, the resistance to movement of the sheet 28 by a pick-up roller 47 (see Figure 1) is increased. Accordingly, the sheet 28 is crimped or wrinkled upward and inward towards the flange 32. Each flange 33 has only the body 34 (see Figure 3) with the cover 35. The body 34 of each of the flanges 33 (see Figure 1) does not have a longitudinal slot 41 (see Figure 3). When the sheets 28 are placed on the front surface 26 (see Figure 1) of the tray 18 and the front surface 27 of the inclined wall 14 of the frame 10, the leading edge 46 (see Figure 5) of each of the sheets 28, forming the stack 29, engages the projection 43 (see Figure 3). ) of the insert 42. Because the projection 43 extends beyond the cover 35, none of the flanges 33 (see Figure 1) will be coupled by the leading edge 46 (see Figure 3) of each of the sheets 28. forming the stack 29 (see Figure 5) but only the projection 43 (see Figure 3) will be coupled to the leading edge 46 of each of the sheets 28 that form the stack 29 (see Figure 5) when there is no misalignment The right side wall 15 (see Figure 1) has an alignment surface or edge 48 formed therein by a plurality of projections 49, which are integral with the right side wall 15 but extend therefrom. In this way, the projections 49 constitute the alignment surface or edge 48 against which one side of each sheet 28 is held against an abradable edge 50 (see Figure 1). It should be understood that an inner surface of the right wall 50 'of the tray 18 is aligned with the alignment surface or edge 48 when the tray 18 is aligned with the alignment surface or edge 48 when the tray 18 is mounted is mounted on the position of Figure 1.

The adjustable edge 50 is slidably mounted on a rotating shaft 51, which is rotatably supported by the side walls 15 and 16, although they have a cylindrical portion 52 supported on the rotating shaft 51. The adjustable edge 50 has a tooth extending downwardly (not shown) to engage one of the plurality of teeth 53 formed on the front surface 27 of the inclined wall 14 of the frame 10. Each of the teeth 53 is formed so that the tooth on the edge adjustable 50 may pass over each of the teeth 53 when the adjustable edge 50 moves towards the right side wall 15. Each of the teeth 53 prevents movement of the adjustable edge 50 away from the right side wall 15 unless a button release 54 on the adjustable edge 50 is pressed towards the right side wall 15 to remove the tooth from it to engage with any of the teeth 53 on the front surface 27 of the wall in Clincher 14 of the frame 10. In this way, the adjustable edge 50 is releasably secured to hold one side of each of the sheets 28 (see Figure 5) against the alignment surface or edge 48 (see Figure 1) .

Each of the sheets 28 (see Figure 5) is advanced from the stack 29 by means of the single pickup roller 47 of a self-compensating mechanism, the versions of which are shown and described in particular in U.S. Pat. No. 5,527,026 to Padgett et al. The pick-up roller 47 is rotatably supported by an arm 55, which is mounted rotatably on the rotating shaft 51. A collar 56 is rotatably mounted on the rotating shaft 51 between the side wall 15 and the arm pick-up roller 55 through a cylindrical separator 57 integrated thereto. The collar 56 has a diameter to limit the height of the leaves 28 (see Fig. 5) of the stack 29, so that the arm of the pick-up roller 55 is prevented from being coupled by the leaves 28. The rotating shaft 51 ( see Figure 1) has a plane formed thereon to have its flange function as a stop to stop sliding movement of the pick-up roller arm 55 towards the left side wall 16 of the frame 10. The collar 56 limits the movement by sliding the arm of the pickup roller 55 towards the right side wall 15 of the frame 10.

A spring 58 has one end supported in a slot 58 'in the right side wall 15 of the frame 10 and its other end continuously pushes the pick-up roller 47 towards the coupling with the uppermost sheet 28 of the stack 29 (see Figure 5). The spring 58 (see Fig. 1) applies a preload force against the uppermost sheet 28 (see Fig. 5) of the stack 29. This preload force ensures that the pick-up roller 27 (see Fig. 4) always engages the uppermost sheet 28 of the stack 29 (see Figure 5) regardless of the position of the inclined wall 14 (see Figure 1). The preload force of the spring 58 also ensures that the pickup roller 47 will feed the uppermost sheet 28 (see Figure 5) when formed of a low coefficient material such as a smooth sheet of rigid media, for example. The rotary shaft 51 (see Fig. 1) is driven from a gear 59 (see Fig. 6) on an axis 60 of a reversible motor 60 'meshed with a gear 61 of a compound gear 62 having a gear 63 which engages to gear 64 of a compound gear 65. A gear 66 of compound gear 65 engages a gear clutch 67. Clutch gear 67 is supported on a plate 67a rotatably mounted on a pole 67B that supports the compound gear 65 and provides the axis of rotation of the composite shaft 65. The clutch gear 67 is rotatably mounted on a bolt 67c extending from the plate 67a. A spring washer (not shown) is mounted on the bolt 67 and has the clutch gear 67 mounted therein to create a gauge. When the pick-up roller 47 (see Fig. 1) is to be driven during a cycle of operation of the printer 11, the clutch gear 67 (see Fig. 6) rotates counterclockwise to its position of Figure 6 from its position in Figure 7 (the position of the clutch gear 67 in Figure 7 is its location at the end of an operation cycle). This occurs when the clutch gear 67 is rotated by means of the gear 66 of the compound gear 65. When the clutch gear 67 reaches its position of Figure 6, it provides engagement of the gear 66 of the compound gear 65 to a gear 68 of a compound-pulley gear 69. A pulley 60 of the compound-pulley gear 69 is coupled to a drive belt 71, which is coupled to a pulley (not shown) on one end of the rotating shaft 51 (see Figure 1) outside of the left side wall 16. the drive belt 71 (see Figure 6) has teeth on its inner surface to engage the teeth on the pulley 70 and the pulley (not shown) on the end of the rotating shaft 51 (see Figure 1) . The rotary shaft 51 has a gear (not shown) thereon for coupling a gear drive train 72 (see FIG. 4) to rotate a gear 73 to rotate the pick-up roller 47.

Due to the distance that the clutch gear 67 (see Figure 6) must move between the positions of Figure 7 and Figure 6, there is a slight delay of motor energization 60 'until the pick-up roller 47 rotates. The sheet 28 (see Figure 4) may become misaligned when loaded as shown in Figure 4. As a result, the side 75 of the sheet 28 will not align with the alignment surface or edge 48. When the pickup roller 47 is energized during a cycle of operation, exerts a force on the uppermost sheet 28 in the direction of an arrow 76. The projection 43 of the flange 32 extends beyond the flange 33 so that the projection 43 engages before the flange 33 on its right being coupled when the blade 28 desalinates. Therefore, the force exerted by pick-up roller 47 in the direction of arrow 76 produces a clockwise twist according to that indicated by arrow 77. This twist causes sheet 28 to move around the projection 43 to rotate, to cause the side 75 of the sheet 28 to move in engagement with the alignment surface or edge 48. This occurs when the leading edge 46 of the sheet 28 comes into contact with a surface 78 of the body 34 of each of the flanges 33. When the side 75 of the uppermost sheet 28 is aligned with the surface or alignment edge 48 during the initial energization of the pickup roller 47 during its operation cycle, the front edge 46 of the sheet 28 engages the cover 35 (see Figure 3) on the body 34 of the flange 32, so that corrugation or buckling occurs at the flange 32. Once buckling occurs, a sag is formed at the flange 32 at the shape described in the co-pending patent application of Stephen A. Oleska et al, Serial No. 08 / 879,351, filed June 20, 1997, which is incorporated herein by reference. When buckling of the fed sheet 28 occurs, a large portion of the load is taken on the coating 35 (see Figure 3) with a horizontal force component. This net horizontal force component moves the fed sheet 28 along the flange 32 and the flange 33. As shown and described in the application Oleska et al mentioned above, the increased strength strength applied to the fed sheet 28 of the stack 29 (see Figure 5) is also applied to other of the sheets 28 in the stack 29, particularly the sheet 28 close to the top sheet 28. This increase on the surface 28 near the fed sheet 28 keeps the sheet 28 near the fed sheet 28 while the fed sheet 28 is warped, so that the fed sheet 28 advances. This prevents a double feeding. This increase in strength is proportional to the coefficient of friction of the high friction surface of the projection 43. Thus, it is desirable to have a surface with a very high coefficient of friction of the projection 43 to maximize the strength of resistance and reduce at least the double feeds. As shown in Figure 5, the printer 11 has counter-rotating feeding rollers 79 and 80 towards which the leading edge 46 of the fed sheet 28 is advanced by means of the pick-up roller 47. Because the pick-up roller 47 it is not aligned with the axis or centerline of the sheet 28 but with one side thereof as shown in Figure 4, the leading edge 46 of the sheet 28 on the non-driven side of the sheet 28 above the rollers of feed 79 (see Figure 5) and 80 before the leading edge 46 of the blade 28 on the driven side of the blade 28. This is because the blade 28 is constrained on its side driven by the pickup roller 47 and not restricted on its non-powered side. This results in a shorter path for the blade 28 on the non-driven side even when the blade 28 is being fed relatively right by the pickup roller 47. However, because the counter-rotating feed rolls 79 and 80, the leading edge 46 of the sheet 28 will not be fed to the contact line produced by the counter-rotating feed rolls 79 and 80 until the directions of rotation of the feed rolls 79 and 80 are reversed. When the pick-up roller 47 is energized to feed the sheet 28 at the start of an operation cycle, the counter-rotating roller 79 is rotated in the counter-clockwise direction (as seen in Figure 5) by means of the gear 63 (see Figure 6) of the compound gear 62 meshed with a gear 81 of a compound gear 82. A gear 83 of the compound gear 82 engages a gear 84 of a compound gear 85. A compound gear 85 has a gear 86 that it drives a driving band 87, which drives the counter-rotating roller 79 (see Figure 5). The motor 60 '(see Figure 6), the compound gears 62 and 65, the compound-pulley gear 69, and the compound gears 82-85 are supported by a substantially vertical support plate 88. The support plate 88 is supported on the left side wall 16 (see Figure 1) of the frame 10 exterior to and spaced therefrom. A sensor 89 (see Figure 5) detects when the leading edge 46 of the sheet 28 arrives at a predetermined location with respect to the contact line between the feed rollers 79 and 80. The pick-up roller 47 is stopped at a distance predetermined after the sensor 89 detects the presence of the leading edge 46 of the sheet 28 through the motor 60 '(see Figure 6) being stopped before it is reversed.

Of course, the leading edge 46 (see Figure 5) of the blade 28 on the non-driven side does not advance through the contact line until the rotation directions of the feed rollers 79 and 80 are reversed. Therefore, the leading edge 46 again becomes parallel with the time between when the sensor 89 detects the presence of the leading edge 46 and the drive of the pick-up roller 47 is stopped. Accordingly, the leading edge 46 of the sheet 28 does not misalign as it advances through the contact line of the feed rollers 79 and 80. After the pick-up roller 47 is stopped stopping the motor 60 '(see FIGURE 7) rotates in the opposite direction to FIGURE 6, the clutch gear 67 moves away from the coupling with the clutch 68 of the compound-pulley gear 69 because the gear 66 of the compound gear 65 rotates in the opposite direction to make rotate the arm rotatably 67A clockwise until it engages a stop or stop bolt (not shown) to stop the clutch engagement 67 in the position of FIGURE 7. The pickup roller 47 (see FIGURE 1) has its surface closest to the flange support plate 30 spaced 36.7 mm from the upper surface 31 of the substantially horizontal bottom wall 12 of the frame 10, measured by the distance between a tangent line to the pick-up roller 47 and parallel to the upper surface 31 of the substantially horizontal bottom wall 12 of the frame 10. The length of the insert 42 is 25 mm. The pick-up roller 47 (see FIGURE 1) has a diameter of 20 mm and a width of 15 mm. The axis of rotation of the pick-up roller 47 is 46 mm from the axis of rotation of the take-up roll arm 55, which is the same as the axis of the rotary shaft 51. The take-up roll 47 has its surface closest to the right side wall 15 at a distance of 31 mm from it. The front surface 27 of the inclined wall 14 is 23.1 mm from the axis of rotation of the arm of the pick-up roller 55. The centers of the three rims 34 are located on the right side wall 15 at distances of 18.1, 133.1 and 186.6 mm. The center of the flange 32 is located on the right side wall 15 at a distance of 60.1 mm. Although the pick-up roller 47 has been described as part of a self-compensating mechanism, it should be understood that this is not necessary. Although the printer 11 has been described as an ink jet printer, it should be understood that the sheet alignment apparatus of the present invention can be used with other printers such as a laser printer, for example. Additionally, it is not necessary that the feed of the sheets 28 (see FIGURE 5) be horizontal since it could be vertical. Similarly, the apparatus for aligning sheets of the present invention can be used with a lower feed system. Although the pick-up roller 47 has been used to create the twist and advance of the blade 28, it should be understood that a second pick-up roller could be aligned symmetrically with respect to the center line or axis of the blade 28 to advance the blade afterwards. that the pick-up roller 47 has been initially activated to activate only the torsion. The second pickup roller would be energized only after pickup roller 47 is de-energized. Of course, this will increase the cost substantially. An advance of this invention is that it has a lower cost. Another advantage of this invention is that it allows the intermediate sheets to be loaded by a user with a greater amount of misalignment, having one at a time aligned sheet when it is supplied to a feeding mechanism. For purposes of exemplification, a particular embodiment of the invention has been shown and described in accordance with the best current understanding thereof. However, it will be evident that changes and modifications can be made in the arrangement and construction of parts thereof without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. It is noted that in relation to this date, the best method known by the applicant to carry out the aforementioned invention, is the conventional one for the manufacture of the objects to which it relates.

Claims (17)

1. CLAIMS Having described the invention as above, the content of the following claims is claimed as property. An apparatus for aligning sheets to align a more upper sheet of a stack of media sheets when the uppermost sheet is advanced from the stack, so that its leading edge is substantially parallel to a predetermined position, characterized in that it includes: support means for supporting a stack of sheets; sheet engaging means for coupling one side of at least the uppermost sheet of the stack of sheets to align one side of the uppermost sheet of the stack substantially perpendicular to the predetermined position; an inclined member positioned in the path of movement of the uppermost sheet when advancing from the stack of sheets, the inclined member is inclined away from the support means at an obtuse angle to the supporting means; the inclined element has means for attaching sheets to gather the leading edge of at least the uppermost sheet of the stack of sheets during its advance from the stack of sheets; means for attaching sheets of the inclined element have a first surface for initially engaging the leading edge of the advancing sheet; means for applying force to apply a force to the uppermost sheet of the stack of sheets in a direction substantially parallel to the coupling means, the means for applying force apply the force closer to the lateral sheets engaging means than the first surface of the leaf engaging means of the inclined element; and the force applying means apply the force to the uppermost sheet of the stack of sheets to produce a twist on the uppermost sheet through the leading edge of the uppermost sheet which engages the first surface of the means for coupling sheets of the sheet. inclined element for causing one side of at least one more upper sheet of the sheet stack to be aligned with the side sheet coupling means. The apparatus according to claim 1, characterized in that: the means applying force are pick-up rollers for advancing the uppermost sheet from the stack of sheets to the predetermined position in a direction substantially parallel to the coupling means of leaves; and the pick-up roller applies the torsion to the uppermost sheet of the stack of sheets in the initial position of its activation during a cycle of operation. The apparatus according to claim 2, characterized in that the pick-up roller applies the single force to advance the uppermost sheet from the stack of sheets toward the more predetermined position in a direction substantially parallel to the sheet-engaging means . The apparatus according to claim 3, characterized in that: the inclined element includes a base surface; the means for coupling sheets of the inclined element include a plurality of substantially parallel flanges extending from the base surface; only one of the substantially parallel flanges has the first surface of a relatively high coefficient of friction and a second surface of a relatively low coefficient of friction along which each sheet is advanced, each of the first and second surface being substantially parallel to the base surface and to each other, the second surface is close to the first surface, and the first surface extends beyond the second surface for initial engagement by the leading edge of the advancing sheet; and at least two of the substantially parallel flanges have only the second surface, the substantially parallel flange has first and second surfaces positioned between two of the substantially parallel flanges having only the second surface. 5. The apparatus according to claim 4, characterized in that the first surface moves in relation to the second surface of the flange substantially parallel when the first surface is coupled by the advancing sheet. The apparatus according to claim 3, characterized in that: The first surface of the means for coupling sheets of the inclined element has a relatively high coefficient of friction and is only in one place thereof to be coupled by each of the leaves during its advance from the stack of sheets; and the leaf engaging means of the inclined element includes a second surface of a relatively low coefficient of friction at a plurality of locations thereon, one of the second surfaces being adjacent to the first surface when the first surface is engaged by the first surface. advancing sheet and having an engaging area with the advancing sheet greater than the engaging area of the sheet advancing with the first surface, the first surface engaging the leading edge of the uppermost sheet before at least the second surface; the first surface engages the leading edge of the advancing sheet in a deviated position relative to the axis of the advancing sheet; and the first surface is positioned closer to the leading edge of the advancing sheet than the second surfaces. The apparatus according to claim 2, characterized in that: the inclined element includes a base surface; the leaf engaging means of the inclined element includes a plurality of substantially parallel flanges extending from the base surface; only one of the substantially parallel flanges has a first surface of a relatively high coefficient of friction and a second surface of a relatively low coefficient of friction along which each sheet advances, each of the first and second surfaces being substantially parallel to each other. aa the base and "yes", the second surface is close to the first surface, and the first surface extends beyond the second surface for initial engagement by the leading edge of the advancing sheet, and at least Two more of the substantially parallel flanges have only the second surface, the substantially parallel flange has first and second surfaces positioned between two of the substantially parallel flanges having only the second surface 8. The apparatus according to claim 7, characterized in that the first surface moves in relation to the second surface of the edge substantially parallel when the first surface is engaged by the advancing sheet. 9. The apparatus according to claim 7, characterized in that: The first surface of the means for coupling sheets of the inclined element has a relatively high coefficient of friction and is only in one place thereof to be coupled by each of the leaves during its advance from the stack of leaves; and the leaf engaging means of the inclined element includes a second surface of a relatively low coefficient of friction at a plurality of locations thereon, one of the second surfaces being adjacent to the first surface when the first surface is coupled by the sheet which advances and has a mating area with the advancing sheet greater than the engaging area of the sheet advancing with the first surface, the first surface engaging the leading edge of the uppermost sheet before at least the second surface; the first surface engages the leading edge of the advancing sheet in a deviated position relative to the axis of the advancing sheet; and the first surface is positioned closer to the leading edge of the advancing sheet than the second surfaces. The apparatus according to claim 1, characterized in that: the means applying force apply only force to advance the uppermost sheet of the stack of sheets to the predetermined position in a direction substantially parallel to the sheet engaging means; and the means applying force apply the twisting of the uppermost sheet of the stack of sheets in the initial portion of its activation during one cycle of operation. The apparatus according to claim 10, characterized in that: the inclined element includes a base surface; the means for attaching sheets of the inclined element include a plurality of substantially parallel flanges extending from the base surface; only one of the substantially parallel flanges has the first surface of a relatively high coefficient of friction and a second surface of a relatively low coefficient of friction along which each sheet is advanced, each of the first and second surface being substantially parallel to the base surface and to each other, the second surface is close to the first surface, and the first surface extends beyond the second surface for initial engagement by the leading edge of the advancing sheet; and at least two of the substantially parallel flanges have only the second surface, the substantially parallel flange has first and second surfaces positioned between two of the substantially parallel flanges having only the second surface. The apparatus according to claim 11, characterized in that the first surface is moved relative to the second surface of the ridge substantially parallel when the first surface is engaged by the advancing sheet. The apparatus according to claim 10, characterized in that: the first surface of the means for coupling sheets of the inclined element has a relatively high coefficient of friction and is only in one place thereof to be coupled by each of the leaves during its advance from the stack of leaves; and the leaf engaging means of the inclined element includes a second surface of a relatively low coefficient of friction at a plurality of locations thereon, one of the second surfaces being adjacent to the first surface when the first surface is coupled by the sheet which advances and has a mating area with the advancing sheet greater than the engaging area of the sheet advancing with the first surface, the first surface engaging the leading edge of the uppermost sheet before the at least the second surface; the first surface engages the leading edge of the advancing sheet in a deviated position relative to the axis of the advancing sheet; the first surface is positioned closer to the leading edge of the advancing sheet than the second surfaces. The apparatus according to claim 1, characterized in that: the inclined element includes a base surface; the leaf engaging means of the inclined element includes a plurality of substantially parallel flanges extending from the base surface; only one of the substantially parallel flanges has a first surface of a relatively high coefficient of friction and a second surface of a relatively low coefficient of friction along which each sheet advances, each of the first and second surfaces being substantially parallel to the base and to each other, the second surface is near the first surface, and the first surface extends beyond the second surface for initial engagement by the leading edge of the advancing sheet; and at least two additional of the substantially parallel flanges have only the second surface, the substantially parallel flange has first and second surfaces positioned between two of the substantially parallel flanges having only the second surface. 15. The apparatus according to claim 14, characterized in that the first surface moves relative to the second surface of the flange substantially parallel when the first surface is engaged by the advancing sheet. 16. The apparatus according to claim 1, characterized in that: The first surface of the means for coupling sheets of the inclined element has a relatively high coefficient of friction and is only in one place thereof to be coupled by each of the leaves during its advance from the stack of leaves; and the leaf engaging means of the inclined element includes a second surface of a relatively low coefficient of friction at a plurality of locations thereon, one of the second surfaces being adjacent to the first surface when the first surface is coupled by the sheet which advances and has a mating area with the advancing sheet greater than the engaging area of the sheet advancing with the first surface, the first surface engaging the leading edge of the uppermost sheet before at least the second surface; the first surface engages the leading edge of the advancing sheet in a deviated position relative to the axis of the advancing sheet; the first surface is positioned closer to the leading edge of the advancing sheet than the second surfaces. The apparatus according to claim 1, characterized in that the means applying force apply the force in a deviated position relative to the axis of the uppermost blade.