Sheet feeder
AssigneeMinnesota Mining and Manufacturing Company
InventorJohn W. Ulseth
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A sheet feeder for feeding a single sheet from a stack of sheets by using a rotating cylindrical feed roller having a truncatel portion spaced away from the stack and a full diameter portion able to contact the stack whenever it is lifted by a lifting arm, which is pivoting in a timed relationship to the feed roller. This device simplifies sheet timing and eliminates the need for a constant biasing of the stack against a feeding member.
Claims3
A sheet feeding apparatus of the type utilizing a storage cassette for containing sheets, said cassette including sheet separating means for separating the uppermost sheet and a bottom side having an aperture through which the sheets are accessible, said apparatus comprising
- frame means,
- a generally cylindrical feed roller, mounted for rotation within said frame means, having a flat portion extending longitudinally thereon and being disposed such that upon rotation said flat portion is spaced above said sheet separating means, and the cylindrical portion of said feed roller extends beneath said sheet separating means,
- lifting means disposed for lifting the sheets in said cassette until said sheets contact said sheet separating means,
- drive means for continuously rotating said feed roller and for periodically lifting said lifting means toward said sheet separating means only during a period of the rotation of said feed roller in which said flat portion is spaced above said sheet separating means, and for maintaining the sheets in this lifted state during a period of the rotation of said feed roller in which said cylindrical portion extends beneath said sheet separating means so as to afford frictional contact between said feed roller and the sheets being lifted, thereby feeding the uppermost sheet.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.