Abstract: A method for moving a first combination of media from a media stack including one or more combinations of media. The first combination of media is an uppermost combination of media in the media stack. The method includes gripping the first combination of media and bending along a first axis by moving a first portion away from the media stack. The first combination of media is bent along a second axis by moving a flexing member while in contact with a second portion of the first combination of media, wherein the second axis is not parallel to the first axis. The first combination of media is repeatedly bent along the second axis while pausing movement of the first combination of media between the first bending along the second axis and the second bending along the second axis.

Abstract: An auto sheet feeder used for a device comprises an upper frame, a pick roller and a sheet separating mechanism secured on the upper frame. The sheet separating mechanism includes a bracket and a pair of arms disposed on the bracket and spring-biased toward the pick roller. A separator pad is disposed on the bracket and spring-biased toward the pick roller. A press plate is positioned on the bracket and presses against the separator pad. A torsion spring mounted above the press plate has at least two coil portions. Two adjacent ends of the coil portions extend toward the same side and then joint each other to form a contact portion which always props the upper frame. Two ends of the torsion spring have a retaining arm respectively. The two retaining arms are opposite each other and pivotally engage to two sides of the press plate respectively.

Abstract: In a device for isolating and feeding the lowest sheet (1) in each case from a stack (2), with pushing-out elements (9) which grip the rear edge (3a, 3b) of the sheet (1) and transport it through, under a front-edge stop (5), into a pair of drawing-off rollers (6), can be moved forwards and backwards, are mounted on a cross-member (7) and have faces (9a), which are optionally front-mounted, for supporting the rear region of the stack (2) and also have bearing elements (11, 12) supporting the stack (2), and lateral abutment strips (13), the front edge (4) of the said stack being constant with respect to the sheet length (H), provision is made, in order to achieve high isolating outputs and faultless feeding of the sheets (1) with a device of simple design, for the cross-member (7) which receives the pushing-out elements (9) to be guided so as to be capable of travel in a linear guide (14), and for there to be directly associated with the said cross-member (7), for the driving movement of the latter, a linear m

Abstract: A card-dispensing device has a mechanism for forcibly modifying the attitude of the slide during the forward run of the slide from a horizontal attitude in which the slide is pushing a card forward to an attitude which is inclined through a fixed angle, and then forcibly returned to its initial horizontal attitude during the backward run.

Abstract: A sheet feed device for image forming equipment and capable of feeding sheets one by one from a stack by separating them. The device has a flat plate including a dielectric portion which is capable of making surface-to-surface content with the top of the stack, a means for moving the plate in a reciprocating motion, a means for moving the plate into and out of contact with the stack, and a means for applying a voltage to the plate to cause it to exert an electrostatic adhering force.

Abstract: Box blank-forming apparatus (60) is provided which includes a feeder assembly (62) and a scoring/slotting assembly (64) each provided with adjustment structure (62a, 64a) to facilitate makeready adjustment of the apparatus (60) between production runs. The feeder assembly (62) preferably includes a reciprocal pusher element (170) operable to successively engage sheets (30) to be formed into box blanks (36). The element (170) is supported by a pair of elongated, threaded, axially rotatable, fore and aft translatable positioning screws (146, 148), so that upon rotation of the screws (146, 148), a reference position of the pusher element (170) may be varied. Adjustment of the assembly (64) is accomplished by means of compensators (292, 294) which are respectively coupled to associated slotter wheel and scoring wheel shafts (288, 286).

Abstract: In a driving device for a plate-shaped body feeding kicker, a durability of a slide section is improved and mixing of paper powder onto a slide surface can be prevented by supporting a rear end of a screw shaft for moving the kicker by use of a block encompassed by a guide cylinder. In more particular, a front end of a screw shaft for reciprocating a kicker is supported by a slider similarly to the driving device in the prior art, but the rear end of the screw shaft is supported by slidably encompassing a slide piece mounted to the screw shaft by means of a guide cylinder. Especially, the slide piece is held within the guide cylinder as immersed in oil.

Abstract: Box blank-forming apparatus (60) is provided which includes a feeder assembly (62) and a scoring/slotting assembly (64) each provided with adjustment structure (62a, 64a) to facilitate makeready adjustment of the apparatus (60) between production runs. The feeder assembly (62) includes a reciprocal pusher element (170) operable to successively engage sheets (30) to be formed into box blanks (36). The element (170) is supported by a pair of elongated, threaded, axially rotatable, fore and aft translatable positioning screws (146, 148), so that upon rotation of the screws (146, 148), a reference position of the pusher element (170) may be varied. This variance is monitored by a servo-sensor (270) for automated control.

Abstract: A gravity fed, "load-while-run" envelope feeder places a high capacity envelope storage bin's long dimension against a printer which creates a small footprint. The feeder transfers the envelopes from the storage bin to a horizontal transporation area with the rotation of a motor driven blade to within access of the printer's feed rollers. The blade catches an envelope's flap to feed it and rotates it by 90.degree. into the transportation area.

Abstract: A blank feeder for feeding blanks. It has a feed table on which a plurality of blanks are stacked, a suction unit provided under the table to suck the lowermost one of the stack downward, a motor-driven first feed rolls mounted in the suction unit and adapted to feed the lowermost blank in contact therewith, and second feed rolls located downstream of the first feed rolls and adapted to be driven at a constant speed. The first feed rolls are accelerated from zero speed to the speed of the second feed rolls before the front end of the blank reaches the second rolls, then driven synchronized with the second feed rolls, and decelerated to zero speed again by the time the next cycle begins. A kicker for pushing out the blank may be provided. The kicker is moved forward so as to be synchronized with the second feed rolls before the front end of the blank reaches the second feed rolls. Once synchronized, this state is maintained until the rear end of the blank gets off from the kicker.

Abstract: An input hopper (20) for inputting card members to card processing modules (14) includes a tray (22) for storing the cards which are maintained in a stack by a pusher mechanism (30) having a plate (23) biasing the card stack toward a first end of the tray (22). A notched cam (42) at the first end of the tray (22) rotates and engages the edge of a lead card to separate it from the stack. Rollers (50,52,54) engage the separated card and deliver the card from the input hopper (20). The cam (42) and main roller (50) are driven by a motor (60) and drive linkage (61) including a coiled spring (70) to provide an override to the drive linkage (61) in the event of jamming.

Abstract: An apparatus of feeding cardboards to the carton making section, the apparatus including a kicker adapted to kick each cardboard on its rear end so as to enable same to be fed to the carton making section, the kicker being adjustable in its position in accordance with the widths of the cardboards in an easy, trouble-free way.

Abstract: A dispensing arrangement for dispensing planar lottery tickets and like articles comprises a chute which in cross-section corresponds to the surface configuration of a lottery ticket, and at one end of which there is arranged a dispensing mechanism intended for separating a lottery ticket lying nearest the mechanism through a slot-like opening. According to the invention, the dispensing mechanism includes a friction member (12) which can move in the dispening direction and which in a first position is located beneath or in the plane in which a lottery ticket located nearest the mechanism (12) is intended to lie, and which in the second position is located above this plane. In the second position of the friction member, the friction member (12) lifts the end of a lottery ticket opposite the slot-like opening, wherewith the lottery ticket is supported at three locations, namely against the friction member (12) and against two mutually spaced and mutually parallel support bars (9) or like members.

Abstract: There is disclosed printing apparatus composed essentially of molded plastics material which has relatively few parts, is easy to manufacture and maintain, and is lightweight and portable. The apparatus is illustrated as being of the table top type which can print both standard type tags and labels, string tags and pin tickets. The apparatus has a print head operable in conjunction with an impression control device, a feed finger assembly with a registration adjustment, a simple drive arrangement operated by a cam with a single cam path, and a reel positionable at different attitudes, and the construction of the apparatus is readily adaptable to both manually operated and motorized versions.

Abstract: An automatic feeding apparatus is disclosed which includes an arm having at one end a hand for holding a workpiece and which is pivotally mounted at the other end in a vertically movable manner, a swinging member that is swung by a swinging mechanism driven by a single motor and which is swung to move the other end of the arm vertically, and a guide member that is shifted along a guide groove in conjunction with the swinging motion of the swinging member to control the movement of the one end of the arm holding the workpiece. The guide groove consists of a curved area that controls a horizontal movement of the one end of the arm and straight areas that control the vertical movements of the one end of the arm at each extremity of the horizontal movement. The swinging action of the swinging member causes the hand to move horizontally between the feed position and working position of the workpiece and to move vertically by a predetermined distance at each position.

Abstract: Apparatus for supplying preselected numbers of superimposed prefabricated cardboard blanks of the type having alternating larger and smaller marginal flaps from an auxiliary magazine into the main magazine of a packing machine has a frame which carries the auxiliary magazine above the main magazine and is provided with several lugs which support the larger flaps of the lowermost blank in the auxiliary magazine. A photoelectronic detector monitors the height of the supply of blanks in the main magazine and transmits a signal when the height of the supply drops below a preselected value. This initiates pivotal movement of a pusher which is adjacent to one side of the pile of blanks in the auxiliary magazine whereby the pusher shifts a number of lowermost blanks relative to the lugs so that the lugs register with and can be bypassed by the shorter flaps of the thus released blanks which descend into the main magazine by gravity.

Abstract: A sheet feeding device (10) that feeds sheets individually from a stack (31) includes a sheet feeding member (20) that strikes the stack (31) at such an acute angle .theta. and normal force that the top sheet in the stack is forwarded for subsequent transport while simultaneously retarding movement of the sheet immediately adjacent to the top sheet.

Abstract: Apparatus for separating and removing a sheet from a stack of such sheets is provided with a reciprocating pushing member engaging the trailing edge of the lowermost sheet in the stack to push the same into contact with transport means capable of engaging the leading edge of the sheet for further transportation thereof. The pushing member has a pushing surface extending perpendicular to the surface supporting the stack and with a lower edge which, in the operative position of the pushing member, is substantially at the level of the stack supporting surface. The apparatus is particularly suitable for feeding film sheets from a cassette at a relatively high rate.

Abstract: A card dispensing mechanism for withdrawing individual cards from a stack thereof and feeding it to a use station including a stack support structure and a pressure plate urging the stack with the foremost card at a dispensing point. A carriage has a roller at a first end riding along a track longitudinally parallel to the foremost card front face and is engaged by a rocked lever at its opposite end and a pawl element is mounted proximate the carriage first end and projects toward engagement with the foremost card trailing edge to rotate and rock with the carriage. With the rocking of the lever on its advanced stroke the pawl element initially engages the card trailing edge to impart an advancing outwardly inclined force thereto and during the major advance of the card applies a longitudinal force thereto parallel to the card face and approaching the end of the stroke, the force is again outwardly inclined.

Abstract: Apparatus for feeding data processing record cards seriatim from the bottom of a stack to a data sensing station or the like including a pair of oscillating picker members for displacing a record card from the bottom of the stack, and a pair of sector rollers for intermittently gripping the displaced card and moving it at right angles to the direction of displacement to the nip of a set of feed rollers. Both the picker members and sector rollers are driven from a common source, the picker members being harmonically driven through a unique coupling device including a pair of flexural elements mounted at right angles to each other to give a universal action.

Abstract: An adjustable connection between a reciprocating rod and a rocker arm which is connected through a rotatable shaft to a linkage which shifts at least one feeding unit in a reciprocating feed stroke in response to movement of the rocker arm characterized by the rocker arm having a slot receiving a block which is pivotably attached to the end of the rod and which block is adjustably positioned in the slot to vary the effective length of the rocker arm and thus varies the length of the feeding stroke for the feeding unit. Preferably, the slot in the rocker arm lies on a line extending perpendicular to a longitudinal axis of the rod when the rocker arm is in one position so that one end of the feeding stroke of the feeding unit remains in a constant and fixed position relative to the device regardless of changes in the length of the stroke.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for feeding letters from a relatively loose stack of letters, in which each successive end letter in the stack is subjected to repeated impulses applied by a rapidly reciprocating friction surface which moves in a direction having components of movement both transverse to and parallel to the plane of the end letter. The movement is sufficiently rapid that the inertia of the leading letter to movement transverse to its plane substantially increases the pressure between the friction surface and the leading letter as compared with the pressure between that letter and the next in the stack. The friction surface is preferably a relatively uncompressible pad which is moved with an elliptical motion to repeatedly strike the end letter at a speed between 1,000 and 10,000 cycles per minute.