US3041069A

US3041069A - Record feeding devices

Info

Publication number: US3041069A
Application number: US548693A
Authority: US
Inventors: John H Bakelaar; Vincent L Hudson
Original assignee: International Business Machines Corp
Current assignee: International Business Machines Corp
Priority date: 1955-11-23
Filing date: 1955-11-23
Publication date: 1962-06-26
Anticipated expiration: 1979-06-26
Also published as: DE1119030B; GB841428A

Description

' June 26, 1962 J. H. BAKELAAR' ET AL 3,

RECORD FEEDING DEVICES Filed NOV. 25. 1955 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTORS JOHN H. BAKELAAR VINCENT 1.. HUDSON ATTORNEY June 26, 1962 J. BAKELAAR T 3,041,069

RECORD FEEDING DEVICES 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Nov. 25. 1955 INVENTORS JOHN H. BAKELAAR VINCENT L, HUDSON ATTORNEY June 26, 1962 J. H. BAKELAAR ET AL 3,041,069

RECORD FEEDING DEVICES Filed NOV. 25. 1955 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 INVENTORS JO HN H. BAKELAAR BY VINCENT L. HUDSON ATTORNEY United States Patent ()fiice 3,041,069 Patented June 26, 1962 3,041,069 RECORD FEEDING DEVICES John H. Bakelaar, Binghamton, and Vincent L. Hudson,

Endicott, N.Y., assignors to International Business Machines Corporation, New York, N .Y., a corporation of New York Filed Nov. 23, 1955, Ser. No. 548,693 8 Claims. (Cl. 271-44) This invention relates generally to record feeding de vices and more particularly to means for constructing an improved magazine for holding a stack of small merchandise tags or tickets and picker devices for separating a single tag from the stack to feed it out of the magazine.

Since the tag to be handled is of the form which is ordinarily attached by a string to an article in a retail store, it is subjected to some creasing and deformity and presents requirements for special care in feeding. The edges and surfaces of the tag are not maintained clean, straight and flat as is the case with carefully handled office records such as tabulating cards. The problem is to make the feeding devices operable to issue the tags one by one despite deformities of the margins and surfaces. Feed control holes within the margins of the ticket are used to advance and locate the ticket regardless of the condition of its edges. One feed control perforation is used as an axis for swinging a single tag around a magazine wall corner to separate it from others held from turning the corner. Other perforations are used for a pin feed.

An object of the invention is the provision of a magazine with a wall so shaped and situated relative to a tag edge and a tag pivoting pin as to aid in separating a single tag from a stack. Two wall surfaces are at an obtuse angle ofr the corner around which the tag is swung; a rear surface abuts against one side of the tag stack, and a forward surface is adjacent the side edge of the separated tag.

Another object of the invention is the provision of a tag swinging picker mechanism and magazine throat structure for separating single tags for successive feeding at a rapid rate.

Heretofore, in handling small tags there was difiiculty in separating one from the other to feed them successively. They tended to cling together so that the one issued acted upon the next one to draw it out of the normal magazine position and thereby disturbed the relationship with the regularly operated feed mechanism. Now all this difficulty is obviated by the disclosed arrangement with a confining magazine wall structure which is so related to a ticket pivot that the lowermost ticket, once it is rocked, is free, while all others above it are still confined behind the corner of the wall. A further separation is effected by the picker and throat dimensions gauged for one tag thickness. So it is several combined advantages of several elements; wall, pivot, picker, throat and pin feed, which insure the separation of tags in a magazine so that only one is issued for each operation. 1

Another object of the invention is to provide an improved pressure means for holding the tags in the magazine under constant pressure. A tubular side guide is provided as a guiding means for the pressure mechanism. In the tube is a sliding rod on which is attached an arm extending through a slot in the tube. On the outer end of the arm is a flexible joint on which is suspended the pressure plate for pressing adjustably on the topof the stack of tags.

Another object of the invention is the provision of a compact ticket separating means in the magazine. The separating means includes a common central structure through which there projects the pivot pin around which the tickets are separately swung to separate the lowermost or exposed ticket from the remainder of the stack. The pivot pin is mounted for vertical movement to be retracted when the separated ticket is to be issued. The common center also acts as a fulcrum for a swinging picker mechanism which engages the lowermost ticket to rock it at an angle to be offset from the remainder of the stack and put in a position where a pair of holes therein may be engaged by transport pins for carrying it out of the magazine and into a sensing station.

Another object of the invention is the provision of an improved removable magazine cartridge, sleeve or insert for the tags. This magazine insert is formed with a heavy base and high thin walls. The base is formed with a central opening which is notched over to one side wall and leads into a slot up along said wall so that a continuous opening is formed down the side and around the base of the magazine. This continuous opening makes it possible to insert fingers under and over any number of tags and rearrange or remove them from the magazine. When the magazine insert is at a loading station such as at a sales counter in a retail store, it stands on the base and a rod therein stands with a free end near the top and to one side of the inner magazine well. The tags are threaded on the rod and fall to the base of the magazine insert. When it is desired to convert the tags to punched cards, the magazine insert is inverted over the picker mechanism of the punching machine and the tags fall away from the raised base and slide along the inverted rod and onto an aligned raised pivot pin in the stationary base of the feed mechanism. Then the pressure pad which had been swung to one side is brought back and dropped through the base opening of the magazine insert and onto the top of the stack of tags to press them down to the picker.

Other objects of the invention will be pointed out in the following description and claims and illustrated in the accompanying drawings, which disclose, by way of example, the principle of the invention and the best mode, which has been contemplated, of applying that principle.

In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is an extended perspective view of the interior driving means of the tag advancing and stacking devices.

FIG. 2 is a plan view of the tag magazine.

FIG. 3 is a sectional elevation view of the magazine taken along line 3-3 in FIG. 2 and shows the tag picker and throat elements.

FIG. 4 is a sectional plan view or the magazine taken along line 4-4 in FIG. 3 and shows the initial arcuate shift of the tag before it is advanced out of the magazine.

FIG. 5 is a sectional elevation view of the magazine taken along line 5-5 in FIG. 2 and shows the tag pivot pin, the throat and the pressure plate.

FIG. 6 is an elevation view of the magazine and pressure plate with its tubular guide.

The present tag handling devices involve improvements over the structures of a related nature shown in the K-lotz Patent Number 2,789,819, issued April 23, 1957, and to which reference may be made for the general scheme of operation.

The tag holding magazine (FIG. 5) is shown to comprise a base casting 21 upon which there is secured an outer vertical casing 22 into which is fitted a rectangular sleeve or insert 23 carrying the tag records, articles or tickets T. In FIGS. 2 and 3 it is seen that the outer casing 22 is flared at 24 to provide room for the operators fingers to grasp the top portion 25 of sleeve 23 when the latter is inserted or removed. When sleeve 23 (FIG. 5) is removed and reversed in position so that top portion 25 becomes a base, it is used in a store or retail sales counter as a tag receiver. In the store the tags are threaded on a long pin or rod 49 which passes through a circular hole near one corner of the tag T. Base portion 25 is formed with an opening 26 into which the fingers may be inserted to grasp a stack of tags to remove them or insert them in the insert cartridge or holder 23.

In FIG. 2 it is evident that the sides of both

casings

22 and 23 are cut out with vertical slots 27 to allow insertion of an arm 28 which carries a pressure plate 29. Because of this notched and slotted form, it is apparent in the plan view that both

tag casings

22 and 23 are generally of a C shaped horizontal cross section.

In FIG. the tags T are shown as stacked on the right side of the inner sleeve 23. They are held there in vertical alignment on pin 49 which is poised directly over a shorter pin 50 which is mounted in the base for receiving the lower-most tags. The heavier outer casting 22 is held onto the base 21 by the two screws 32 and 33 (FIG. 4), but the inner sleeve 23 is removable (FIG. 3) and merely rests on the upper surface of casting 22, a throat block 35 and the shoulder 34 of a base plate 36 which is fastened over the base casting 21.

In FIGS. 4 and 5 it is evident that within the magazine and at the lower end thereof the tags T rest upon the bosses on a pair of

plates

38 and 39 which are fixed above the base casting 21 by a series of studs 42 and 43 so that they are aligned in a common horizontal plane. They are situated side by side and in FIG. 4 it is noted that they are separated by an arcuate channel or slot 44 which is the path taken by a picker structure to shift or swing the lowermost tag with an arcuate motion.

Returning again to consideration of the construction of the base casting 21 and the plates secured thereon, it is noted in FIG. 5 that the base is formed near the right side with a rather large recess into which is fitted the pin 50 and the parts for swinging the picker structure. In FIG. 4 it is seen that the other base plate 34 is formed with an opening 45 which is partly aligned with the channel '44 and it is within this opening that the upper part of the picker structure extends to encounter the edge of the lowermost tag.

In addition to the arcuate edge comprising one wall of channel 44 (FIG. 4) on plate 38, the plate is also notched out at 46 to permit entry of the top end 47 of a lever 48 which senses the presence or absence of tags in the magazine. Lever 48 is pivoted on a mircro switch casing 40 and cooperates with an operator therein to close contacts 41 as long as tags are present.

At this point it may be noted with reference to FIG. 4 that the tag is shown in two positions T and T". The first-mentioned position T is the one assumed by all the tags as they are assembled in the magazine by the inversion of the insert or holder 23 which when outside the magazine acts merely as an assembling means or receptacle for tags at some cashiers or other station in a retail establishment. When such a holder is brought to the tag-to-card converter of which the present device is a portion, then the receptacle 23 is turned upside down and the tags slide down rod 49 and fall into the position shown as T in the plan view (FIG. 4). The first step to follow thereafter is the proposition of separating the tags so that they may be advanced successively one by one out of the magazine and over to an analyzing station where they are sensed and the perforations therein analyzed to control the perforation of a standard tabulating card. The difiiculty of separating the tags arises from the fact that they are often creased and misshaped when handled in the retail establishment. However, when assembled in the magazine and pressure placed upon a stack of such tags, they are in effect ironed out or pressed flat and arranged so that it is possible for a picker to separate the lowermost tag from the others. In the present instance, this act of separation is performed by swinging the lowermost tag through a constricted throat opening 4 and from the position T to the position T (FIG. 4) around the pin 50 which extends upwardly through a few of the lowermost tags.

After the lowermost tag T has been brought to the separated position, the pin 50 is lowered so that the advanced tag is free to be carried further to the right by other pin feeding means associated with the analyzing station and to be described hereinafter. Since only one tag can go through the throat, there is only one tag swung around the corner 76 and free to be carried to the right in FIG. 4.

At this point it is pertinent to point out how the lowermost tag T is rocked by the picker and separated by the throat constriction so that only one tag at a time is shifted from position T to T. In FIGS. 4 and 5 it is seen that arm 51 which carries the picker knife is formed with hubs 102 and 163 surrounding pin 50 and within a bushing which is the same structure which supports the pivot pin 50. Bushing 100 is fitted into an opening in the base casting 21. In the sectional view (FIG. 3) it is seen that the inner end 52 of the picker structure is formed with an upper shelf upon which rests the lowermost tag T. One side of the upper extending picker structure is an inclined surface upon which is adjustably secured the picker knife 53 which extends a short distance above the top surface, enough to abut against the edge of the lowermost tag without engaging more than one tag. At the other side of the magazine in FIG. 3, it is noted that the throat opening for the passage of the lowest tag is formed by the spacing between the plate 38 and the upper throat member 35 which is secured to the inside wall of the outer casing 22. Not only does the throat member 35 have a lower edge which provides the adjustable part of the throat opening, but it also has an upper shoulder and an inclined face to guide the lower end of the insert or cartridge 23 and guide the tags T as they are lowered into the effective bottom end of the magazine.

In FIG. 3 it is noted that the height of the stack of tags T includes quite a range of distance between the full and empty condition of the magazine. Throughout the feeding operation it is required that a rather uniform amount of pressure be exerted downward on the stack of tags to insure that they remain flat and approach the bottom position in good condition. In order to exert such pressure there is assembled alongside the magazine a guiding means for the extending arm 28 (FIG. 2) which carries the pressure plate or pad member 29 as already explained. Attached to the front edge of casing 22 is a vertical member 55 formed with a vertical cylindrical portion 56. Within this cylindrical portion 56 there slides vertically a solid guide rod 57 to the top of which is secured one end of ann 28. The cylindrical portion 56 is slotted at 58 throughout most of its length. It is through this long slot 58 at the left side of cylindrical portion 56 that the arm 28 travels downward in pressing against the descending stack of tags. In order to lift the arm and its connected weight 29, there is provided on the arm a knob 59 (FIG. 6) which may be grasped when it is desired to lift the pressure mechanism out of the magazine so that the inner removable insert 23 may be taken out and another holder inserted with another supply of tags.

The pressure pad 29 is not secured directly to the arm 28 but is suspended thereon by a flexible form of coupling with pivots arranged in both directions so that the pad is not only free to press in all directions against the tags but it is also flexible enough to be swung in any of several directions out of the way when the pressure mechanism is lifted out of the magazine so that the arm 28 may be rested in a notch 60 in the top of the adjoining casing portion 56 while the inner cartridge is removed and another one inserted. The tfiexible connection is provided by means of a pair of erect cars 61 and 62 (FIG. 5) on pad 29 and through which there projects a rod 63- which is held in the lower portion of a block 64 which is suspended on another pin 65, the outer ends of which are encircled by another pair of ears 66 extending downwardly from the arm 28. With the two

pins

63 and 65 at right angles, it will be evident that a form of universal joint is provided whereby the pad 29' may assume a large number of positions in various planes to exert flattening pressure against the tags.

The tags or tickets T are a rectangular form of a control element or record and are arranged with an interior area of a plurality of columns of small code indicia or perforations in a five-position redundancy code of 1, 2, 4, 7 and This data indioia area is identified as area 71 in FIG. 4. The information represented by the perforations may include such items as price, size, style, number, code number, manufacturer and division number. The tag is generally rectangular in form and along the two long edges there are small extensions or points of roughness because the tags are part of a larger assembly of two or more duplicated records and the long edges are tear lines along which the larger record is separated into the small tags. In order to provide a smooth and constant working surface at the edges of the tags, it is indented as shown at 72 and 73 which are smooth recessed edges, the latter of which is engaged by the picker knife as shown in FIG. 4.

The tag is formed with two feed control perforations 74 and 75 which span across a portion of the interior data area 71.. Perforation 75 is located near one of the leading edges and at a corner between the data area and the short side of the tag. The other control perforation 74 is located at about the middle of the tag and to the rear between the data area 71 and the indented edge 73. The perforation 74 is circular for the reception of one of two feed pins which act in concert to advance the tag further out of the magazine after it is moved in an arc by the picker. The other of these two feed control pins is received in the elongated or rectangular feed control perforation 75 which is made of an extra length to provide room for shrinkage or expansion of the tag and also for greater tolerance in the dimensions of the magazine.

A slightly larger single circular feed control perforation or fulcrum formation is formed in the tag at the rear corner and coincident with the position of the control pin 50 which projects upwardly through it to act as a center around which the tag is swung in a clockwise direction by the operation of the picker knife 53 which engages only the lowermost tag and forces it under the throat block 35 to separate it from the remaining tags at the top. As the tag is swung in the are shown by the two positions T and T" (FIG. 4), the lower rear corner of the tag is swung around a corner 76. This magazine wall corner 76 is formed at an obtuse angle by the two walls of the outer frame 22 which is shown in FIG. to extend down beyond the lower end of the inserted cartridge walls 23 and to be adjacent the upwardly extending pin 50 where the latter is projected into the lowermost tag. These walls around the corner 76 (FIG. 4) form an additional means for preventing disturbance of the tags remaining in the magazine by the single one which is about to be removed from the magazine for sensing. The sides of the tags before and after the arcuate movementv are aligned with the walls of this corner 76 and the only one free to slide along the horizontal wall, as shown in FIG. 4, is the single tag T" which has been singled out by the picker mechanism.

Referring to FIG. 1, there is shown a perspective view of the driving and operating mechanisms for the various parts of the tag feeding devices. This view is a perspective view with some of the parts shifted in position for better visibility, and it is taken with most of the magazine, the tags and many frame members removed so that what is shown is the operating controls which lie underneath and forward of the magazine base. These operating parts are supported by frame members such as the main side frames 77 and 78 and a series of crossbars such as the bar 79. Extending through the left side "frame 77 is the main driving shaft 80 upon which is fastened a pulley 81 outside the side frame. Driven by pulley 81 is a belt 82, the lower end of which is drawn around a toothed pulley 83 fastened to the cam shaft 84 which is driven in a clockwise direction. It will be understood that the driving mechanism is called into operation selectively and then operates repetitively in synchronism with other portions of the card perforator as explained more fully in the comprehensive tag-to-card reproducer described in the copending patent application referred to hereinbefore.

At the right end of shaft 84 (FIG. 1), there is seen to be a cam 87 which cooperates with a roller 88 on a lever 89 which is fixed on a shaft 90 having at the opposite end an arm 91 to which is connected a spring 92 for urging the assembly counterclockwise to hold the roller 38 against the cam 87. Pivotally mounted at 93 on the side of lever 89 is an arm 94 which has connected thereto a spring 95 tending to draw the arm 94 towards the right and against the bottom shoulder of a pin 96 extending forwardly from lever 89. This arm 94 is also provided with a pin 97 similar to pin 96, and between the two pins there is embraced a roller 98 which extends downwardly from a block 99 secured to a hub 103 which extends upwardly to the picker arm 51 where it is connected to form a driving connection. Since the arm 94 and lever 89 are held together by spring 95, there is a flexible form of closure provided between pins 96 and 97 between which the operated roller 98 is moved back and forth. When it is so moved by the rotation of cam 87, the connected block 99 and hub 103 are oscillated and serve to move the

picker structure

52 and 53 forward and back, and it is in this way that the picker knife 53 moves in an arc and cooperates with the indented edge of the lowermost tag and separates it from the tags above it. Arm 101 acts as a stop to limit the forward motion of the picker.

After the tag has been swung into the position T" (FIG. 4), it is required that it be further advanced out of the magazine and over to a sensing station S as shown in FIG. 1. For this purpose there is provided a pair of

pins

104 and 105 retractably mounted in a reciprocating block 106. The arrangement of the two pins is such that pin 104 cooperates with perforation 74 (FIG. 4) in the center of the tag and the other pin 105 cooperates with the elongated hole 75 in the advanced corner of the tag. When these

pins

104 and 105 are shifted back and forth, they approach the magazine in a lowered position and then are unlatched to spring upward into the tag openings and remain in the raised position while they are being shifted towards the sensing station S and there remain raised until after sensing is performed and then they are lowered before tag ejection takes place. In order to guide the pin holding block 106, it is provided with a guide roller 108 which rides back and forth in a channel formation cut into the inner face of the side frame 78. The other side of block 106 is formed with a circular opening which rides on the forwardly projecting shaft 107 mounted in the cross member 79.

Movement of block 106 is performed under control of a cam 112 mounted on the common operating shaft 84. This cam cooperates with a roller 111 mounted on the side of an arm fixed to a hexagonal bearing member 113 which is journaled in the left side frame 77. The upper end of arm 110 is formed with a notched opening and a pair of pointed extensions which embrace the sides of a roller 109 mounted on the side of the block 106. During operation of the mechanism the arm 110 is rocked back and forth, and through the connection to the roller 109, it carries along with it the block 106 and the

pins

104 and 105 thereon which in turn carry successively advanced tags from the magazine to the sensing station S.

It is already noted that as the

pins

104 and 105 come forward towards the magazine they are in a lowered position, it is necessary to permit them to rise into the tag openings and a separate mechanism is provided for that purpose. Mounted on operating shaft 84 is a cam 116 which cooperates with a roller 117 on a bell crank 118 which is pivoted at 119 on a fixed part of the frame. At the proper time in the operation of the cam, the bell crank 118 is permitted to rock suddenly in a counterclockwise direction and this movement is utilized to strike the latching mechanism on block 106 which is arranged to normally hold the

pins

104 and 105 in a lowered position. The pins remain unlatched and in a raised position until after they have been shifted back under the sensing station S. There the pins are depressed by other mechanisms before the block 106 is again shifted for a tag advancing motion.

After the tag has been swung around the pin 50 and engaged by the raised carrying

pins

104 and 105, it is necessary to lower the pin 50 before the advancing pins start to take the tag all the way out of the magazine,

In FIG. 1 it is seen that the pin 50 is rather long and extends downward through the picker arm hubs and bushing 100 and the picker operating block 09. The pin 50 is extended still further downward by being removably attached to the top end of a block 122 which has fixed to its lower end a bar 123. Articulated on the lower end of bar 123 is the end of a horizontal arm of a bell crank 124 pivoted at 125 on a fixed part of the frame. Attached to the upper end of crank 124 is a roller 126 cooperating with a cam 127 on the operating shaft 84. When the last-mentioned cam rotates, it has depressions which at the proper time permit the bell crank 124 to rock in a counterclockwise direction and lift the pin 50 to act as the pivot for the lowermost tags. The cam also has raised portions for rocking the bell crank in a clockwise direction and thus pulling down on the pin 50 to depress or retract it out of the plane of the lowermost tag in the magazine which at the time is shifted to the rocked position with the

pins

104 and 105 already engaging it and ready to shift it out of the magazine.

When the block 106 (FIG. 1) has been shifted to the extreme position removed from the magazine as performed by earn 112 and arm 110 in the dotted position, the tag is then situated with the data indicia area 71 thereon directly under the sensing mechanism S. Then the code perforations therein are sensed by a mechanism of the kind set forth in the copending application mentioned hereinbefore.

After sensing has been performed, the tag is grasped by a pair of ejection fingers 130, and the

pins

104 and 105 are withdrawn from the tag. Then the tag is swung outward to a stacking station where it is assembled with others of the successively advanced tagsby means of a mechanism about to be described. Extending through ears formed on the fingers 130 is a rod 131 which passes through the upper end of a lever 132 extending downward and around under portions of the mechanism and pivoted at 133 on a fixed part of the frame. Attached to lever 132 is a crank 134 also pivoted on center 133 and formed with a downwardly projecting arm on the end of which is articulated one end of a link 135, the other end of which is loosely mounted on the lower end of a lever 136 which is pivoted on the underside of a bracket 137 fastened between frame members 77 and 79. Extending from the upper side of lever 136 is a roller 138 which is maintained in constant cooperation with a face cam 139 fastened to the operating shaft 84. At the proper time in the cycle ofoperation, the cam operates to swing lever 136 in a clockwise direction thereby pulling on link 135 and rocking crank 134 in a clockwise direction. This serves to swing the long arm 132 in a clockwise direction and the fingers 130 thereon carry the grasped tag in a wide are out of the sensing station and over to the stacking station.

While there have been shown and described and pointed out the fundamental novel features of the invention as applied to a preferred embodiment, it will be understood that various omissions and substitutions and changes in the form and details of the device illustrated and in its operation may be made by those skilled in the art, without departing from the spirit of the invention. It is the intention, therefore, to be limited only as indicated by the scope of the following claims.

What is claimed is:

1. In a tag feeding device, a magazine for holding a stack of tags, a base structure for said magazine having a platform upon which said tags rest, said platform being formed with an arcuate opening, a picker mechanism pivotally mounted in said base structure and formed with a picker knife which is swung in said platform opening underneath said stack of tags, the path of motion of said picker mechanism about said pivotal mounting being in the plane of the lowermost tag, whereby said tags are advanced one by one out of said magazine.

2. The combination set forth in claim 1 including a vertical pin extending upwardly from said base structure and upon which said tags are held by means of feed control perforations therein, said pin providing the fulcrum means for the pivotal mounting of said swinging picker mechanism.

3. In a device for feeding tags which have data indicia and a circular feed control perforation near one corner, a magazine structure for holding a stack of said tags, a base member for supporting said tags, a circular pin extending upwardly from said base member and engaging in the feed control perforations of one or more of the lower tags in said stack, a picker device having a picker knife for positively engaging an edge of the lowermost tag and swinging it around said pin and out of alignment with the remainder of the stack, means for producng relative movement between the stack and said pin to disengage the pin from all the tags, and means for further advancing the lowermost tag out of the magazine.

4. The combination set forth in claim 3 with said disengaging means including a device for retracting said pin to pull it down in said base and away from the lowermost tag to free it for further movement.

5. In a device for feeding tags which are formed with an indented edge and a circular feed control perforation near one corner, a magazine for holding a stack of such tags, a pivot pin extending inside said magazine, a magazine wall formed with a pair of surfaces at an obtuse angle near the corner of said tags containing said feed control perforations, one of the surfaces of said wall normally abutting against an edge of the stack of tags and the other surface of the wall forming a guiding edge for the lowermost tag when it is swung around the pin in readiness for ejection out of the magazine, a wall structure defining a throat opening, a picker mechanism which includes a picker knife for engaging the indented edge of the lowermost tag in the stack, means for operating said picker mechanism to swing the lowermost tag about said pivot pin through said throat opening out of alignment with the remainder of the stack and around the corner of said magazine wall surfaces, means for retracting said pin and means for further advancing the lowermost tag out of the magazine.

6. In a record feeding device for handling records having central data indicia and a feed control perforation in one corner, a magazine structure into which said records are stacked, a retractable pin which is inserted into said feed control perforations, a picker device for engaging the lowermost record to swing it about said pin and out of the magazine, a corner Wall formed at an obtuse angle in said structure and near said pin and around which the record is swung and guided out of the magazine, means for retracting the pin, and means for carrying the lowermost record away from the magazine.

7. In a device for feeding control records, said records having areas of data representing indicia, a feed control perforation near the rear edge of the record and a plurality of other feed control perforations distributed along different edges of said area, a magazine for holding said records to expose one record, means for pivoting said records on said feed control perforation, a cyclically operable picker mechanism for engaging the exposed record, means for operating said picker mechanism to swing successively exposed records about said pivoting means, means including a throat structure for withholding all except the exposed record from moving in an are, a magazine wall structure formed as a corner defined by the side edge of the record near the first feed control perforation, said wall being formed with two adjoining vertical sides, one side of said Wall being parallel with and defined by the said side record edge before being swung in said are and the other side of said wall being parallel with and defined by the said side record edge in the position after being swung in said arc, and means cooperating with said other feed control perforations for shifting said exposed record out of the magazine.

8. In a device for feeding cards having a feed control perforation; a magazine structure into which said cards are stacked, a retractable pin adapted for engaging the feed control perforation of a card to be fed to provide a pivot therefor, a swinging picker device for engaging the 20 tag to be fed and swinging it out of the magazine, a platform with raised bosses for supporting the card to be fed, said platform being formed with an arcuate slot in which said picker device swings, a throat member fastened in the feeding device to define a throat opening above the platform for the card to be fed, said magazine structure including a corner Wall formed at an obtuse angle in said structure near said pin and around which the card to be fed is swung out of the magazine, means for engaging the advanced card being fed, means for retracting the pin to allow the card to be advanced, and means for advancing the card away from the magazine.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Klotz Apr. 23, 1957