Wave generator to shingle sheets
AssigneeInternational Business Machines Corporation
InventorsJohn L. Fallon, Ernest P. Kollar, Fred R. Mares
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
An improved apparatus for successively separating and feeding sheets from a stack of sheets is disclosed. A wave generator wheel, rotating in a plane generally parallel to the stack, and about a tiltable axis generally perpendicular to the stack, is tiltable in a first direction to contact the stack for shingling the stack, and in a second direction to contact the stack for restoring the stack to its unshingled state. Sheets in a stack are driven forward or rearward by simply tilting the rotating wheel. The wave generator wheel is used to first drive the stack's top sheet away from a feed nip, and to then drive the stack's top sheet into the feed nip.
Claims19
In a sheet feeder for feeding sheets, one at a time from a stack, to sheet feed means;
- improved sheet separator means comprising:
- a disk rotatable in a plane generally parallel to the stack about an axis generally perpendicular to the stack;
- a plurality of substantially frictionless sheet engaging means mounted about the periphery of said disk;
- means for pivoting said disk in a first direction for bringing a portion of said sheet engaging means into contact with the topmost sheet of the stack whereby the stack is shingled away from said feed means;
- and for pivoting said disk in a second direction for bringing another portion of said sheet engaging means into contact with the topmost sheet of the stack whereby the stack is restored to its unshingled state;
- and
- means operable to separate the topmost sheet from the underlying sheets during said restoration.
Improved means for separating and feeding sheets one at a time from a stack in a stack holder including a front leading edge sheet retainer;
- comprising:
- a wheel rotatable in one direction in a plane parallel to the stack;
- a plurality of substantially frictionless sheet engaging means mounted about the circumference of said wheel;
- means for tilting said wheel in a first direction for bringing said sheet engaging means on one side of the wheel into contact with the stack whereby the stack is shingled rearwardly;
- and for tilting said wheel in a second direction for bringing said sheet engaging means on another portion of said wheel into contact with the stack, whereby the stack is driven in the feed direction to restore the second and succeeding sheets in the stack to an unshingled state, but with the topmost sheet now above the leading edge retainer;
- and
- feed nip means positioned adjacent the leading edge retainer operable to feed the topmost sheet.
The method of selectively imparting linear motion to the top sheets of a stack of sheets in two generally opposite directions by tilting a continuously rotating disk having frictionless sheet engaging means spaced about its periphery so as to selectively bring different portions of said sheet engaging means into contact with the top sheets of the stack, and withdrawing an edge of the stack's top sheet out from under an edge restraint by one direction of tilting.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.