Document jogger transport

An apparatus for feeding documents from a stack including a hopper for holding the stack and document feed means for serially feeding the documents from the stack, in combination therewith the improvement comprising an auger adapted to divide the stack into packs and to advance successive packs toward the document feed means, said auger having thread means having a pitch and diameter at an intermediate portion between the ends of said thread means of sufficient width to allow said successive packs of documents to be vibrationally aligned while said auger is being rotated, said pitch and said diameter of said thread means both tapering from said intermediate portion towards the ends of said thread means to successively facilitate (1) the division of said stack into packs at one end of said thread means, (2) the mutual alignment of the documents in each pack at said intermediate portion, and (3) the compression of said packs at the other end of said thread means while advancing said documents through the document feed apparatus.

A document feeding apparatus having a hopper comprising an inclined vibratile base portion for receiving edgewise a stack of documents and for advancing said stack towards a document feed means, said hopper including means for advancing said documents, said means having a thread means including:

• a. a first portion of a reduced pitch and diameter for serially dividing said stack of advancing documents into a plurality of separate document packs having a predetermined interdocumental pressure,
• b. a second portion of a larger pitch and diameter, said second portion for relieving said predetermined interdocumental pressure within said separate document packs and for substantially separating the documents comprising said packs, and
• c. a third portion of reduced pitch and diameter for re-establishing interdocumental pressure within said separate packs.

In a document feeding apparatus having an inclined vibratile hopper for receiving a stack of documents edgewise and for advancing said stack towards a document feed means for serial removal from said hopper, and further having biasing means disposed within said hopper for urging said stack of documents in the direction of and into frictional contact with the document feed means, the improvement comprising rotatable auger means disposed within said hopper, said auger means having thread means with a pitch and diameter at an intermediate portion between the ends of said thread means of sufficient width to allow said documents to be vibrationally aligned, said pitch and diameter tapering from said intermediate portion towards the ends of said thread means to progressively divide said stack into packs, and mutually align the documents in each pack, and compress said packs while advancing said documents towards the document feed means.