Abstract: A color printer is provided in which a paper sheet is wrapped about a rotatable platen and three colors are printed on the sheet, to obtain an image, by a thermal head and a color ribbon during three rotations of the platen. In a paper feeding device for the printer, a sheet of paper is fed by a feeding roller, from the bottom of a stack of paper sheets in a paper tray through, a feeding guide to the platen. The tray has an opening in its bottom plate so as to expose the lowermost paper sheet stored therein. The feeding roller is provided under the tray and lifts up toward the opening of the tray so as to come in engagement with the lowermost paper sheet, the feeding roller rotating to feed it to the platen. The width of the platen is less than that of the sheet and the circumference thereof is less than the length of the sheet. Therefore, when the sheet is wrapped about the platen, it extends laterally outward from the ends thereof, and its ends overlap.

Abstract: An automatic sheet feeder assembled to a printer which is provided with a sheet feed means for feeding a continuous-form sheet. The sheet feeder includes a hopper for storing therein a stack of cut sheets and a pivotable stacker for storing therein a stack of printed cut sheets. The stacker has operative position for receiving the cut sheets therein and has a spaced position for allowing the continuous form sheet to be printed. Detecting means is provided for detecting pivotal position of the stacker, and control means is provided for feeding the continuous form sheet when the stacker is out of the operative position responsive to the position of the stacker. A sheet feed mechanism is provided for feeding the cut sheets on the hopper to the printer. The sheet feed mechanism becomes inoperative when the continuous-form sheet is to be printed.

Abstract: In a combination document feed system and intelligent document separation system, including a document removal assembly associated with the document feed system for removing documents one at a time from a stack of documents disposed in the document feed system and feeding each document into the document transport system: comprising a document removal assembly for providing a contact surface between the document removal assembly and a lead document in the stack of documents, the contact surface adapted to alternately contact the lead document and advance the lead document from the document feed system to the document separation system. A document advancing apparatus is adapted to advance a single document properly removed from the stack of documents, to halt the movement of one of two documents improperly removed from the stack of documents, and to reverse the direction of movement of additional documents improperly removed from the stack of documents.

Abstract: The apparatus is for automatically transporting sheets of original to a reading position on a plane member of an image forming apparatus. The apparatus includes an assembly for setting in position or accommodating sheets of original, an assembly for feeding the sheets, a transporting rolling device and a guiding device. The sheet setting assembly is located beside the plane member. The sheet feeding assembly is for feeding a sheet from the sheet setting assembly. The transporting rolling device presses on the plane member of the image forming apparatus to transport a sheet from the sheet feeding assembly by means of nipping the sheet against the plane member. The guiding device is located at a place adjacent to the transporting rolling device and ahead or upstream of it, with respect to the sheet transporting stream, for guiding the leading edge of the sheet to the nipping position between the transporting rolling device and the plane member.

Abstract: A sheet feeding apparatus is provided having a first rotary member for feeding a sheet material and a second rotary member arranged at a downstream side of the first rotary member in the sheet feeding direction, for further feeding the sheet material. A drive source rotates the first and second rotary members. A transmitter is adapted to be engaged to rotate the first rotary member in the sheet feeding direction and to be disengaged to stop the second rotary member, when the drive source is rotated in one direction. The transmitter is adapted to be disengaged to stop the first rotary member and to be engaged to rotate the second rotary member in the sheet feeding direction, when the drive source is rotated in the other direction. The rotation of the first rotary member is prohibited in the sheet feeding direction at the start of rotation of the drive source in the other direction.

Abstract: A stand alone dispenser including an integral electrical power supply is provided for reliably dispensing individual sheets, such as coupons, from a stack. The dispenser comprises a clutch for preventing excessive pressure between the stack and a coupon remover to minimize current drain on the power supply. A stack advancer enables advancement of the stack, as necessary, whenever a coupon is dispensed through engagement by the clutch to the coupon remover. A control circuit includes delay and shutdown functions to limit excessive coupon removal, and a dispenser level indicator to discourage tampering or theft. The dispenser is mountable to store shelving or other point of purchase displays.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for document feeding for improved operator document manual insertion in which a document may be manually initially inserted into a document input area and released. The document is sensed in the document input area by a document sensor, and then automatically clamped in a document feeding nip which is automatically actuated in response to the document sensing, and then the document is automatically fed. Here, a first time delay period is provided between the sensing of the manually inserted document and the automatic clamping of the document. A second time delay is provided between the automatic clamping and the automatic feeding of the document. Preferably the automatic clamping of the document in the feeding nip is with a limited initial nip force sufficiently low to allow manual document retraction without document damage during the second time delay period.

Abstract: A low cost, paper feeder for large copy sheets includes a media chamber mounted to support copy sheets in a substantially vertical plane. A two-position, T-shaped feeder mechanism including a pair of one-way clutch controlled feed rolls is slidably mounted on a rail for contacting the media. A foot pedal is connected to the feeder mechanism such that when movement of the foot pedal is initiated, the feeder mechanism is moved in a first direction to a position contacting the copy sheets and with continued movement of the foot pedal, a top sheet of the copy sheets is moved by the feeder mechanism out of the tray in a second direction a predetermined amount to a copier wait station, and with return of the foot pedal to its initial position, the feed mechanism is caused to retract from the surface copy sheets in a third direction to its initial position.

Abstract: The present invention relates to an automatic cut sheet feeding apparatus for feeding a stack of sheet one by one into a printer, and particularly to an automatic sheet feeding apparatus used for a printer for making an impact print onto a sheet positioned on a platen by a wire dot, shuttle, or other methods. In this invention, the positive rotation of the sheet feed motor is transmitted to a sheet feed roller through a rotation transmission mechanism to rotate the sheet feed roller, thereby sending one of sheet on a pressure plate to a printer unit at a time.

Abstract: A paper feeding device for a paper cassette of an image processing apparatus. The paper cassette is mounted at a specific position or the image processing apparatus in a manner permitting the cassette to be pulled out. A preliminary feed roller feeds the paper on the paper cassette toward a feed roller which is normally energized in a paper pressing direction. When the paper cassette is mounted in the image processing apparatus, the document setting board disposed in the paper cassette is upwardly turned by a pressing mechanism. When the paper cassette is pulled out, the feed roller from the paper cassette is turned in reverse direction. A feed channel to guide the paper from the paper cassette is formed in a curved manner, and a normally turned delivery roller is provided inside the curved channel.

Abstract: In a sheet feeding apparatus, a member, supporting at one end thereof a rotatable pressure roller, is mounted turnably at the other end thereof on an input shaft driven by a motor. This member is coupled to the input shaft via a friction generating mechanism which generates a friction force. This friction force allows the rotatable pressure roller to be pressed with an optimum pressure onto a sheet to be fed.

Abstract: A method for making a lead edge feeder for feeding corrugated paperboard is described which eliminates the need for a complex indexing transmission. The method includes connecting a rocker shaft to a rocker gear so that the rocker gear rotates in a feed direction and then in a direction opposite the feed direction. Feed wheels in turn rotate in a feed direction and then in a direction opposite the feed direction. The stack of paperboard to be fed intermittently moves relative to the feed wheels so that initial contact between the lowermost sheet to be fed initially contacts the feed wheels when the feed wheels are moving in a direction opposite the feed direction.

Abstract: A paper feeder system inclusive of a paper feed table for placing paper thereon, a transport roller, a first shaft for supporting the transport roller thereon, feed rollers, a first arm pivotably supported by the first shaft and extending toward the feed table, a delivery roller mounted on the first arm for delivering the paper from the feed table to the transport roller. A second arm pivotably supported between the delivery roller and the transport roller, and a shutter is attached to the second arm for preventing delivery of the paper to the transport roller. A first cam and a first cam shift therefor are provided for pivotally moving the first arm to thereby shift the delivery roller to an operative position, and a second cam and a second cam shaft therefor for pivotally moving the second arm to thereby shift the shutter to an operative position when the first arm is not pivotally moved, the first cam shaft and the second cam shaft being combined together in the form of a single rotary shaft.

Abstract: Apparatus for removing a flat article form a stream of articles moving along a straight path. The apparatus includes: a substantially curved, horizontal ramp movable vertically between a lower, home position and an upper position for engaging a removing the flat article form the stream and a swingable arm situated above the ramp. The arm has at its remote end a constantly turning roller and an arc, such that the constantly turning roller is always situated above the horizontal ramp. The path further included is a device for moving the ramp form the lower position to the upper position to engage the constantly turning roller to thereby drive the roller toward the flat article whereby the flat article is gripped by the constantly turning roller and removed form the stream of flat articles.

Abstract: A set transport including a direction changing device is disclosed which includes a sun roll 76, arcuate guide means 80, 81 around the sun roll 76 and a plurality of spaced planet rolls 77, 78, 79 which coact with the sun roll 76. The planet rolls are driven faster than the sun roll. Preferably the sun roll 76 has a rigid surface and the planet rolls have compliant surfaces and form an interference relationship with the sun roll.

Abstract: A sheet conveying apparatus for conveying a sheet comprises a separation rotary member for separating a single sheet from a plurality of sheets and feeding the sheet, a supply rotary member for supplying the sheet toward the separation rotary member, driving means for generating a driving force to rotate the separation rotary member, intermission means for intermitting the transmission of the driving force from the driving means, operating means for shifting the supply rotary member between a supplying operation position and retracted position retracted from the supplying operation position, and driving force transmitting means for performing the transmission or interruption of the intermission means, in synchronism with the shift of the supply rotary member to the retracted position or to the supplying operation position by means of the operating means.

Abstract: A sheet feeder for feeding sheets from a support platform comprising a sheet support platform, a rotatable sheet feed roll reciprocally movable between a sheet feeding position wherein it is in feeding engagement with the top sheet when at least one sheet is on said support platform and a retracted standby position wherein it is retracted from feeding engagement with said the top sheet and a movable sheet restrictor member positioned by gravity to maintain the top sheet spaced from the rotatable feed roll when the feed roll is in the retracted standby position. In a preferred embodiment the sheet feeder prints for a second pass through a printing machine.

Abstract: A feeder for paperboard blanks includes a transport, vertical relationship changing structure to alternately provide active and passive positions for the transport, a suction device, and a transmission with input and output shafts operatively connected so that the output shaft undergoes controlled acceleration during an initial portion of each revolution of the input shaft, whereby the transport engages and grips a blank by static friction and moves accelerates that blank to nip rolls without slippage occurring and so that each blank enters the nip rolls in register whereupon the blank is disengaged from the transport.

Abstract: A rotary feeder feeds sheets or board-like articles to nip rolls in a box-making machine. The boards are successively and individually fed from the bottom of a stack whose forward edge engages a gate below which the boards are fed by driven feed members such as wheels, rolls or endless belts which engage the underside of the lowermost board. To raise and lower the boards relative to the surface of the feed members, a vertically reciprocable grate is provided between the drive members. The grate and drive members are mounted in a vacuum box in which a vacuum is established to hold the boards in proper position on the feed members when the grate is lowered. The vacuum is also utilized to hold the boards with sufficient force to produce necessary friction between the boards and the feed members for feeding.

Abstract: A feeder for document processing equipment having a singulator for feeding a single document upon demand. The feeder includes a movable gate which when in a closed position acts as a fixed guide for properly aligning a stack of documents in a magazine and which when in a released position moves out of contact with the documents to relieve the frictional force between documents. The gate is moved to its released position simultaneously with the start of the pick-off means of the singulator whereby the frictional force between the first and second document is substantially reduced at the instance the first document is picked off the stack.

Abstract: Sheet feeding apparatus, particularly for feeding corrugated paperboard sheets to container blank processing machinery, has an indexing transmission for cyclically accelerating and decelerating belts or the like for frictionally engaging and feeding sheets from an end of a stack of sheets. A cam arrangement cyclically shifts the feed belts or the like relative to a stack support surface between an operative position for feeding and an inoperative position. The accelerating and decelerating cycle of the belts occurs twice per machine cycle. The cam arrangement preferably comprises a single lobe cam and a double lobe cam, either of which can be selectively chosen for shifting the belts. When feeding one sheet per machine cycle of the downstream machinery, the single lobe cam is employed to shift the belts into the operative mode only once per machine cycle.

Abstract: A paper feeder for an image forming apparatus, which includes an intermediate tray for temporarily accommodating a paper having an image already formed on at least one side thereof, a paper feeding roller for feeding out the paper stored in the intermediate tray, a first support for supporting the paper feeding roller in such a manner as to be moved between a paper feeding position at which the paper feeding roller is allowed to contact the paper and a retracting position at which the paper feeding roller is separated from the paper. An oblique travel preventing roller is also provided, disposed parallel to the axis of the paper feeding roller and adapted to prevent the paper from being advanced obliquely.

Abstract: A feeder for paperboard blanks includes a transport, vertical relationship changing structure to alternately provide action and passive positions for the transport, a suction device, and a transmission with input and output shafts operatively connected so that the output shaft undergoes controlled acceleration during an initial portion of each revolution of the input shaft and is stationary during a last portion of each revolution of the input shaft, whereby the transport engages and grips a blank by static friction and moves and accelerates that blank to nip rolls without slippage occurring and so that each blank enters the nip rolls in register whereupon the blank is disengaged from the transport.

Abstract: A position controlling member for controlling the leading ends of paper sheets housed in a paper receiving member is provided at a free end thereof with an auxiliary double feed preventing member having large friction factor or force and engaging with a lower side of a paper sheet during return movement thereof to a position controlling position thereof, thereby preventing double feeding of paper sheets without interfering with the paper feeding operation.

Abstract: In the paper feed mechanism disclosed herein, a pick roller is journaled in a swing member which is pivoted on a horizontal drive shaft extending across the paper path. The periphery of the pick roller frictionally engages the drive shaft and the swing mechanism depends from the drive shaft through a friction fit. When the drive shaft is rotated in the appropriate direction, the pick roller is swung, due to the frictional fit, against the front sheet of a paper pack and continued rotation of the shaft drives the pick roller into wedging engagement with the sheet, causing the sheet to advance and separate from the pack.

Abstract: Sheet feeding systems provide a sheet receiving nip at a peripheral region of a rotary sheet transport and arrange sheets in a stack having a stack and formed by a bottom sheet and spaced from the nip by a distance shorter than the minimum length of any of the sheets. The stack is temporarily lifted from a stack rest, and the bottom sheet is removed therefrom. Sheet jams are prevented by advancing any bottom sheet to the rotary sheet transport in a plane intersecting that rotary sheet transport at a distance from the nip. Each bottom sheet is further advanced from that intersecting plane to the nip, and such advanced bottom sheet is engaged with the nip for transport away from the stack with the rotary sheet transport. The stack end is returned to the stack rest after said removal of a bottom sheet, and the temporary stack end lifting, sheet advancing, sheet engaging and stack end returning steps are repeated individually for further bottom sheets advanced from the stack end.

Abstract: The battery plate stacker includes a plurality of heads having pickup members located on the ends thereof for temporarily attaching either separators or plates to the heads as is appropriate. The heads are pivotal between stacks of plates or separators and a conveyor that is disposed between the stacks of plates and stacks of separators. The stacker includes control apparatus that prevents retraction of the heads unless a plate or separator is attached thereto and prevents swinging of the heads between the stacks and the conveyor until all of the heads are retracted.

Abstract: A sheet feeding apparatus for sequentially feeding sheet material from a sheet supporting member which supports a stack of sheet material. The feeding apparatus employs a mechanism to cause a feeding roller to engage or disengage the stack. A driving source is provided for transmitting a driving force to the feeding roller and the mechanism for causing the feeding roller to engage or disengage the stack. First and second transmitting mechanisms are provided for transmitting the driving force to the feeding roller and the mechanism for causing engagement or disengagement of the feeding roller and stack respectively. A stop device movable between a position to allow transmission of the driving force to the first and second transmitting mechanisms and a position where the transmitting mechanisms are prevented from transmitting the driving force.

Abstract: A conveyor for removing stock items from the bottom of a stack comprising an intermittently operable roller member having conveying and lifting portions movable in an orbit, the conveying portions being operative during their operative periods to drag against the lowermost item of the stack seated thereon and enter one end of the item into a metering device which is operative during the same intervals to enter the leading end of each article into a pair of pullout rollers, the roller member cycling to dispose the lifting portions in lifting positions to the stack and providing smooth surfaced areas releasing the partially withdrawn items from under the stack during this interval.

Abstract: To provide for a single-sheet feeding to an office-type writing apparatus, such as a typewriter, word processor, printer or the like, in form of a separable attachment unit, a unitary assembly is provided including two parallel rockers (2, 12) having lateral sheet guide walls (12) which are located on a common shaft (9) connecting side walls of the attachment apparatus.

Abstract: There is disclosed a simplified sheet feeding system for a recording apparatus such as copier. A sheet is pinched between ribs projecting on a sheet guiding face and driven feed rollers which are movable in position and partly overlap with the projecting ribs when the sheet is absent.

Abstract: A paper supplying device including first feed rollers eccentrically mounted on a horizontal rotational shaft, having convex feed surfaces whereby the feed rollers are capable of coming in contact with a first surface of a paper to fed, pressure rollers disposed as to face the feed surfaces of the feed rollers, for urging the paper toward the feed rollers while contacting the other surface of the paper, a separating plate arranged at the downstream side of the first feed rollers with respect to a feeding direction of the paper, for interrupting the movement of remaining sheets of paper other than the paper in contact with the convex feed surfaces of the first feed rollers, second feed rollers arranged at the downstream side of the first feed rollers with respect to the feeding direction of the paper, for feeding the paper in contact with the feed surfaces, according to an angular displacement of the first feed rollers and a transport arranged at a downstream side of the second feed rollers with respect to the

Abstract: A feeder for paperboard blanks includes a transport, vertical relationship changing structure to alternately provide active and passive positions for the transport a suction device, and a transmission with input and output shafts operatively connected so that the output shaft undergoes controlled acceleration during an initial portion of each revolution of the input shaft and is stationary during a last portion of each revolution of the input shaft, whereby the transport engages and grips a blank by static friction and moves and accelerates that blank to nip rolls without slippage occurring and so that each blank enters the nip rolls in register whereupon the blank is disengaged from the transport.

Abstract: A stack of sheets arranged in an input stacker pass through a nip formed by cooperating feed rollers and stripper assemblies, which serve to separate sheets and feed them one at a time toward an acceleration assembly comprised of acceleration roller and cooperating idler means to form a gap between adjacent sheets for counting the sheets. The accelerated sheets are then fed into an output stacker. Belts couple drive from the accelerating drive rollers to accelerating driven rollers rotatable about an axis coaxial with the feed rollers and also cooperate with stationary guides to cause the sheets to experience some acceleration prior to reaching the acceleration nips. Resilient members cooperate with the feed roller to halt a sheet, in the event of an abrupt halt during normal operation to prevent the sheet from advancing to the acceleration nip.

Abstract: A feeder for paperboard blanks includes feed wheels, a vacuum box, a camming assembly to change the vertical relationship between the feed wheels and the top of the vacuum box, and an indexing transmission.

Abstract: Apparatus for automatically feeding individual sheets from a stack of individual sheets into a copy device provides for a guide plate and tray for holding a stack of individual sheets which are aligned and registered thereon by a movable stopper which engages the guide tray to enable such alignment. The stopper is hingably supported to allow for rotation thereof when moved out of engagement with the guide tray in order to prevent interference with the feeding of the individual sheets and damage thereto. Primary rollers are provided for feeding of individual sheets from the top of a stack of sheets and are supported above the stack of sheets for engagement and disengagement therewith to effect such feeding in coordination with movement of the stopper.

Abstract: A sheet feeding device for feeding single sheets of paper from the bottom of a stack of paper sheets. The device includes a feed tray angled at approximately 60.degree. with the horizontal and a substantially rigid paper drive member cooperating with a plurality of differentially yieldable retard members. By successively increasing the normal pressure on the members or by changing their coefficients of friction, increments of increasing or decreasing retarding force are provided. Uniform frictional forces between individual sheets are provided by a bail weight.

Abstract: Improvements result from using a feed roller always rotating at a constant surface speed to feed mail items successively with gaps between them from a stack to a franking machine without undue variations in the gap lengths when there are variations in the mail item lengths in respective stacks. A cam rocks a cradle about an input roller axis to bring a feed roller against the stack at a frequency to feed the items forward one by one. Gearing between rollers drives a two speed transmission to a cam via one way clutches. For envelopes shorter than a predetermined limit, the higher speed drive operates. When a rear mail guide member engages envelopes longer than the limit, a lever allows a pawl to disengage a wrap spring clutch disabling the higher speed drive and rendering the lower speed drive effective.

Abstract: Apparatus for counting the number of paper sheets has a pair of feed-out, or delivery, auxiliary rolls rotatably mounted at the bottom of a hopper for advancing paper sheets stacked in the hopper towards a payout rolls mounted adjacent the hopper outlet. Each auxiliary delivery roll has a frictional surface forming a portion of the roll periphery and a relatively slippery surface forming the remainder of the roll periphery. The frictional surface has a recessed peripheral zone, all points of which are spaced from the center of the roll by a distance less than that by which the periphery of a slippery surface, forming the remaining portion of the roll periphery, is spaced from the center of the roll. The paper sheets stacked in the hopper are moved vertically by the auxiliary rolls and advanced towards the payout roll with a larger force of friction by being contacted over a wider area by the frictional surface.

Abstract: The sheet feed device (1) comprises several cassettes (13) on which the sheets (11) are stacked, a removal mechanism, associated with each of the supports, intended to remove a sheet from the cassette (13) and introduce it into the printer (2), and a selection mechanism intended to activate one of the removal mechanisms. This selection mechanism consists of a guide part (72) comprising several tracks (73 to 75) and a selection lever (56) made to engage with the top of guide part (72). When the platen (3) of the printer (2) turns in the direction opposite the direction of introduction of the paper, the selection lever (56) is driven in the same direction. After a rotation of a predetermined angle, greater than two turns of the platen, the direction of rotation is reversed. The lever (56) follows one of the tracks (73 to 75) to activate one of the removal control parts (76 to 78) and to start the removal and introduction process.

Abstract: A retard feeder and separator apparatus includes a sensor located at a retard nip downstream from a portion of a feed belt that applies a normal force to a stack of sheets and forwards sheets individually from the stack. The sensor detects the lead edge of a sheet fed from the stack and simultaneously causes relief of the normal force against the stack in order to reduce multifeeds and sheet damage. Alternatively, if the sensor does not sense a sheet within a predetermined time the normal force against the stack will be increased to reduce misfeeding.

Abstract: A sheet feeding apparatus including feeding rollers arranged above a sheet table on which sheets are stacked, and contactable with the top of the sheets, and a pressing member arranged below the sheet table to project above through the sheet table and intermittently press the sheets on the sheet table to contact the top of the stacked sheets with the feeding rollers. The top sheet of the stack can be reliably fed by the pressing member and the feeding rollers to conveying rollers and then conveyed by the conveying rollers. The sheets stacked on the sheet table can be reliably fed one by one from the top of the stacked sheets.

Abstract: A sheet feeder is adapted to feed sheets, received in a stack within a sheet cassette, one by one by a feed roller which rocks in response to a feed signal. The sheet feeder includes a detecting member for detecting the number of sheets left within the cassette, and means responsive to a signal from the detecting member for controlling the timing when the feed signal is produced. In this manner, an amount of flexure produced in the sheet being fed before it reaches resistor rollers is maintained constant.

Abstract: A sheet feeding device for an electrophotographic copying machine and the like has a flapping up member which protrudes through the bottom of a sheet feeding cassette to bring the sheets thereon into contact with a sheet feeding roller. The flapping up member is moved by a driven lever which is in turn moved by a low-tension biasing member in the direction of flapping the bottom plate up upon receipt of a sheet feeding commencement signal. A restrain member energized by a high-tension biasing member is provided to restrain the flapping up member to the retreated position upon termination of the sheet feeding commencing signal whereby the sheet feeding cassette is not affected by any resistance at the time of insertion or removal of the cassette and the bottom plate of the cassette is automatically flapped up only while sheet feeding is being operated.

Abstract: A retard feeder and separator apparatus adapted to sense the threat of a misfeed or multifeed and adjust the stack normal force of a feed belt against a stack of sheets accordingly. The apparatus includes a movable frame on which is mounted a sheet separating feed belt, a retard roll that forms a retard nip with the separating feed belt, and a stack force relief sensor. The sensor detects the lead edge of a sheet fed from a stack as it reaches the retard nip and causes a solenoid connected to the frame to trigger and move the frame slightly. The frame movement relieves the stack normal force of the feed belt against the stack from a high value to a low value while the sheet continues to be fed from the stack by the force in the retard nip and the lessened stack normal force. Alternatively, if the sensor does not sense a sheet within a predetermined period of time, the stack normal force will be increased to the original high value.

Abstract: A dispenser for dispensing photographic sheets from a stack, comprising a dispensing mechanism with first and second sheet buckling members operative to make the upper sheet buckle and lift and then to release the leading edge of the buckled sheet to allow it to move under recovery forces of the sheet into a forward position beyond the end of the stack of sheets.

Abstract: A sheet feeding system wherein, when a start signal for starting sheet feeding is given, a sheet tray is brought into contact with a first feed roller and at the same time the first feed roller is driven to rotate. When a first detection mechanism has detected the leading end of a sheet having reached between a second feed roller and a parting roller, the sheet tray is separated from the first feed roller and when the sheet is detected by the second detection mechanism, the second feed roller is stopped after a delay time that the leading end of the sheet contacts a stopper closing a sheet threading path for the sheet to be slightly looped, and the sheet threading path is opened upon the lapse of a predetermined time and the parting roller is then disengaged from the second feed roller.

Abstract: A sheet feeder comprises a support adapted to hold a stack of sheets, and a straight guide rail extending from the stack parallel to a transport direction and defining a transport path extending in this direction. A generally cylindrical sheet-lifting roller is provided above the support and is vertically engageable with the topmost sheet of the stack, this lifting roller being centered on and rotatable about an axis inclined to the transport direction and rail. This lifting roller can be rotated about the respective axis while in contact with the topmost sheet of the stack for displacing the topmost sheet in the transport direction and toward the rail. Feed rollers downstream of the lift roller are rotated to advance a sheet engaged thereby along the transport path in the transport direction.

Abstract: A sheet feed mechanism is disclosed which will permit manual feed as well as automatic seriatim feeding. The mechanism includes a main feed roller movable into and out of contact with the top sheet of a stack, another feed roll above and in contact with the main roller and a pinch roller above and in contact with the other roller to form a nip through which a sheet may be manually guided for feeding.

Abstract: To insure accuracy in feeding a sheet of paper from an overlapped, shingled paper supply on a make-ready table, a suction pick-up picks up the sheet and moves it upwardly for a limited distance of about 1 mm before initiating the forward movement of the sheet to transfer it to a gripper mechanism of a printing cylinder or transport drum while, simultaneously, moving it transverse to the plane of the sheet to bring it into proper alignment with the drum or cylinder gripper mechanism.