Abstract: An apparatus and method for singulating sheets from a stack of sheets and transporting individual ones of them to a conveyor. A picker arm is mounted at its upper end to a rotatable shaft, for reciprocating movement between first and second positions. A lower end of the arm includes a foot and a movable gripper jaw. When the arm is rotated into the first position, it grasps a segregated sheet. As the arm reverses direction and rotates toward the second position, it draws the sheet away from the stack. A sensor, provided within the foot, produces an electrical signal corresponding to the thickness of the sheet. The digital output signal is compared to a reference, or calibration value stored in a computer. If the output signal falls unacceptably outside the reference value, a signal is stored to effect later outsorting. Just before the arm reaches the second position, the jaw is opened, dropping the sheet upon the conveyor.