Abstract: Provided is a system for manufacturing a secondary battery including: a positive electrode cell manufacturing line having a positive electrode single cell, on which a positive electrode tab is processed on one end of a positive electrode and a first separator is combined on one surface of the positive electrode, is continuously manufactured; a negative electrode cell manufacturing line having a negative electrode single cell, on which a negative electrode tab is processed on one end of a negative electrode and a second separator is combined on one surface of the negative electrode, is continuously manufactured; and a stacking part alternately receiving positive electrode single cells and negative electrode single cells respectively from the positive electrode cell manufacturing line and the negative electrode cell manufacturing line to stack the positive electrode single cells and the negative electrode single cells up to a predetermined layer, thereby forming a stack cell.

Abstract: An auto-adjusting separation mechanism, comprising: a bracket with at least one side arm, a sensor module arranged on the side arm, a rotary shaft arranged at the front end of the bracket; a separation roller set pivotally arranged on the rotary shaft, a sensor wheel arranged to couple with the sensor module, and a torque limiter arranged at the front end of the bracket; wherein, by monitoring the rotation of the sensor wheel with the sensor module, the separating force of the separation roller set is adjustable via a microcontrollers which is capable to adjust the transmission gear set.

Abstract: A sheet thickness detector incorporated in an image forming apparatus includes a sheet conveying member to rotate and convey a sheet in a sheet conveyance direction, a driven sheet conveying member to contact the sheet conveying member and form at least one first transfer nip therebetween in a lateral direction and to displace by an amount equivalent to a thickness of the sheet passing through the first transfer nip and rotated with the sheet conveying member in the sheet conveyance direction, a displacement member to contact the sheet conveying member and form a second transfer nip smaller than the first transfer nip in the lateral direction and to displace by an amount equivalent to the thickness of the sheet passing through the second transfer nip and supported at a support member, and a displacement amount detector to detect an amount of displacement of the displacement member.

Abstract: A method for feeding sheets to a printing technology machine improves reliability of feeding sheets and reduces an acceleration time from a base speed to a production speed. The sheets are conveyed onto a feed table in shingled formation by a first drive and are individually and successively conveyed from the feed table to a first processing station of the machine by a second drive. The sheets are conveyed onto the feed table before an acceleration of the second drive to production speed is completed and the first drive is accelerated to the production speed when the processing station has reached the production speed.

Abstract: A folding machine and a method of folding sheets of paper, board and the like with underlapping, include at least a first folding station with folding units and an imbricated feeder for feeding sheets to the first folding station, over an aligning table, in a first transporting direction. The imbricated feeder has a device for separating the sheets and a suction configuration which can be adjusted in and counter to the first transporting direction and is intended for the underlapping transfer of sheets from a sheet stack of the imbricated feeder to the aligning table.

Abstract: A book cover feeder to supply book covers to a production unit of a book production line. The feeder has a guiding side and a driving side for conveying the book covers in a production direction. The book cover feeder comprising includes a feeding device onto which book covers of a single format are deposited singly, in a scaled formation or in a stack formation. A magazine is arranged to receive the covers from the feeding device. The magazine has a stacking shaft. A separating device is operatively arranged relative to the magazine. The feeding device, the cover magazine and the separating device are embodied integrally or adjoining each other. The feeding device includes, on the guiding side and/or the driving side, a side guiding device that is divided into multiple sections arranged one behind the other in the production direction.

Abstract: A system for singulating mailpieces including a first conveyance including a pair of opposing belts for singulating a mailpiece from a stack of mailpieces. The system includes an actuation mechanism operative to apply a force pulse through one of the belts to momentary separate mailpieces of the stack and augment singulation of the mailpiece from the stack by the first conveyance.

Abstract: A mailpiece unstacker device comprises a feed magazine for moving the mailpieces in a stack and on edge in a certain direction towards an unstacker head. It is provided with materials sensors for delivering signals indicating that a current mailpiece has a cover made of a plastics material and/or includes a metal material. A control unit forces the feed magazine and the unstacker head to operate as a function of the signals generated by the sensors so that the mailpieces are presented facing the unstacker head in positions that are inclined backwards to various extents.

Abstract: A mailpiece inserter includes a feed conveyor adapted to feed a shingled stack of mailpiece envelopes along a feed path to an insert module and a chassis module adapted to produce content material for insertion into the mailpiece envelopes processed by the insert module. An envelope position detector is operative to sense a discontinuity in the shingled stack and issues a first position signal indicative thereof, and an input conveyor module is adapted to convey mailpiece envelopes into shingled engagement with an aft end of the shingled stack of mailpiece envelopes on the feed conveyor. The input conveyor module has an input end proximal to a single workstation of the chassis module which enables an operator to (i) feed mailpiece envelopes to the input module and (ii) supply content material to the chassis module.

Abstract: A conveying device for feeding printed products to a processing unit in which the printed products are conveyed along a conveying path by a first conveyor, from a stack in which the printed products are arranged vertically, to a second conveyor which has a higher circumferential speed than the first conveyor for forming an imbricated formation which is upwardly offset, wherein a holding-down device which acts on the printed products and is formed of at least one endless traction unit is arranged in a transition area formed by the conveying end of the first conveyor and the conveying beginning of the second conveyor.

Abstract: A method for feeding a shingled stack of sheet material to a downstream processing device includes the step of identifying a discontinuity in the shingled stack of sheet material wherein the discontinuity has a length dimension from an aft end of a downstream portion of the shingled sheet material to a forward end of an upstream portion of the shingled sheet material. In a next step, the motion of first and second serially arranged conveyors are controlled such that the length dimension of the discontinuity is substantially equal to a prescribed gap of known length dimension. The first conveyor supports the upstream portion of the shingled sheet material and the second conveyor supports the downstream portion of the shingled sheet material. The deck of the first is advanced over the deck of the second conveyor toward the aft end of the downstream portion by the length dimension of the prescribed gap.

Abstract: A method for feeding a shingled stack of sheet material to a downstream processing device includes the step of identifying a discontinuity in the shingled stack of sheet material wherein the discontinuity has a length dimension from an aft end of a downstream portion of the shingled sheet material to a forward end of an upstream portion of the shingled sheet material. In a next step, the motion of first and second serially arranged conveyors are controlled such that the length dimension of the discontinuity is substantially equal to a prescribed gap of known length dimension. The first conveyor supports the upstream portion of the shingled sheet material and the second conveyor supports the downstream portion of the shingled sheet material. The deck of the first is advanced over the deck of the second conveyor toward the aft end of the downstream portion by the length dimension of the prescribed gap.

Abstract: An apparatus of feeding mailpieces such as envelopes is disclosed. The apparatus includes a supply conveyer for supporting thereon an array of mailpieces which are arranged in a tilted-backward position and moving such mailpieces forward, and a suction feeder which is located downstream of the supply conveyer for picking up by suction a forefront mailpiece from the array of mailpieces on the supply conveyer. The suction feeder has a rotary drum, a shaft rotatably supported in the drum and disposed with the axis thereof oriented in parallel to and offset from the axis of the drum. An external gear is fixed on the shaft for rotation therewith and a stationary internal gear engages with the external gear, the gear ratio of the external gear to the internal gear being n:n+1, wherein n represents an integer.

Abstract: A device for the assembly of brochures from folded sheets includes a continuous conveyor which defines a direction of conveyance, feeders which deliver the folded sheets to the continuous conveyor, and controls for controlling the operation of the feeders and the continuous conveyor. In order to avoid waste and operational malfunctions, the controls provide the feeders located downstream from a first feeder with a law of motion which is dependent on the format of the folded sheets.

Abstract: A feeding machine for feeding envelopes into a station for further individual handling. A stack of envelopes is held in a downwardly inclined feed channel. The stack of envelopes is transformed into a layered stream by an upward inclined discharge channel including a conveyor unit that carries a stream of envelopes through a gap formed by an imbricator strip and a low friction circulation belt. The layered stream is conveyed to a removal point where a removal device removes individual envelopes for further processing. The conveyance of the layered stream is controlled in such a manner that the removal device can remove individual envelopes at regular time intervals.

Abstract: The conveying apparatus has a transport belt (10) which is intended to feed flexible, flat articles (12) arising in imbricated formation (S), resting freely, to a conveyor (14). The transport belt (10) is led around a deflection drum (16) and, together with the latter, forms a deflection and conveying gap (26) for the imbricated formation (S). On one side, an edge section (21) of said imbricated formation projects beyond the deflection drum (16). The circulation path (104) of the conveyor (14) runs alongside the drum. Said conveyor is equipped with grippers (20) which are intended to grip the deflected imbricated formation (S) in the edge section and to transport it further.

Abstract: Apparatus for stacking sheets comprises a duplex tray for holding a sheet in a temporary storage position. A dispense nip is formed at an outlet of the tray. Rollers feed a sheet from the temporary storage position by a predetermined distance through the dispense nip. Any sheets already located in the dispense nip are fed at the same time by substantially the same predetermined distance, whereby a shingled stack of sheets is obtained.

Abstract: The apparatus for processing flexible, sheet-like products (14) has a feed conveyor (12) which is intended for feeding the products (14) to an intermediate conveyor (18). The latter has pivotably controlled grippers (22) arranged one behind the other and moved along a continuous circulatory path (26) in the direction of circulation (U). The intermediate conveyor (18) is intended for altering the position of the fed products (14), while the sequence of the products remains unaltered, such that the previously mutually facing sides of adjacent products (14) are reversed, and then for transferring the products to a removal conveyor (38). For this purpose, each gripper (22) is controlled such that the product (14) retained by it is drawn around the following gripper (22) as seen in the direction of circulation (U), from one side of the gripper to the other side.

Abstract: A leading edge of a leading blank in a series of overlapping envelope blanks is fed at a preselected speed into contact with a rotatably mounted backing roller. The backing roller is mounted in a frame and is selectively adjustable between a first position and a second position. A rotatably mounted segment roller is positioned opposite the backing roller. A pull-out segment is a secured to a radial portion of the backing roller. A plurality of longitudinal slots are provided in the surface of the pull-out segment and are selectively connected to a source of negative pressure. The segment roller is driven at a preselected speed greater than the speed of the series of overlapping blank. In a first mode of operation, the backing roller is adjusted to a first position in the frame so that upon rotation, the pull-out segment frictionally engages the leading edge of the leading blank, separating it from the series of overlapping blanks.

Abstract: A sheet accumulator for advancing successive sheets between first and second color printing presses comprising an accumulator sheet conveyor for advancing sheets from one press to the other press, a sheet lifter at the conveyor to lift a first sheet and thereby enable the sheet conveyor to advance a second sheet beneath the first sheet, and a sheet sensor at the conveyor, operably associated with the sheet lifter to actuate and deactuate the sheet lifter based on the position of the sheet.

Abstract: A method for storing sheet-like products comprising the steps of providing a continuous stream of products, winding up a first and a further section of the products to form a first and a further roll, respectively, and unwinding the products from the first and the further roll, simultaneously. In this arrangement, the products are wound up on the two rolls with the same orientation and also unwound from the two rolls with the same orientation.

Abstract: Folded printed products are conveyed in a first imbricated formation up to a stop by a first conveying device. In the first imbricated formation each printed product rests on the following printed product with its leading bottom edge formed by its folded edge. At the stacking location formed by the stop, the printed products are stacked up in layers to form an intermediate stack. The uppermost printed product is moved by a lifting member into the conveying region of a removal conveyor and then to a further-processing station. The removal conveyor has a conveying wheel that is driven synchronously with the lifting member, and a pressing-on member that, as a strand of a belt conveyor, is assigned to a part of the circumferential surface of the conveying wheel. The conveying wheel and the pressing-on member together form a guidance gap for the printed products. The conveying wheel is provided with a plurality of cutouts that are distributed uniformly on the circumferential surface.

Abstract: An apparatus and method for feeding a stream of underlap-imbricated sheet-like printing substrates to printing machine, the apparatus comprising a conveying table for conveying the stream in a conveying direction toward the printing, a source of compressed air, and at least one blowing device coupled to the source of compressed air, the blowing device being disposed in a region of the conveying table adjacent to printing machine, and including at least one opening disposed to direct compressed air beneath the imbricated stream in a direction opposite to the conveying direction.

Abstract: A mail flow compensating device which is a straight horizontal conveyor belt and is supplied with a stream of overlapping flat mail items. The flow compensating device is made of a stop wall sloping in relation to the belt and presenting a bottom end portion facing the belt. When the height of the stream exceeds a maximum value, the mail items contact and accumulate against the stop wall to form a group of superimposed mail items. The flow compensating device also presents an optical sensor for detecting the limit contour of the group of mail items, generating a full-flow-compensating-device signal, and cutting off supply to the conveyor belt.

Abstract: Apparatus for the separate supply of film bags to a filling machine, with a belt conveyor receiving the film bags as an oblique, fanned out stack. A drive acts on the belt conveyor. A separating wheel is positioned adjacent to the delivery section of the belt conveyor and rests on the top film bag brought in by the belt conveyor. A lever vertically supports the separating wheel and a drive moves the separating wheel. A sensor determines the height of the separating wheel above the belt conveyor. Such sensor controls the drive for the belt conveyor (12). A linear unit supplies a bag to the filling machine.

Abstract: A belt conveyor leads past a processing station. Printing products lie on the conveyor belt in an imbricated formation, each printing product lying on the preceding one with edges to of the printing products running at an angle to the conveying direction of the belt conveyor. As a result of this incline, the printing products are exposed in a surface region and in the sections of the edges. Printing products are acted upon mechanically in the work station in these exposed regions. Individual printing products are thus taken up in a trouble-free manner and detached from the imbricated formation.

Abstract: A conveying mechanism for a press having sucker fingers which lift horizontally positioned items. The mechanism having two conveying sections for supporting imbricately arranged items, the first conveying section delivering to the second and the second section having components which rearrange the items into a vertical stack and lift it by wedging the items one under the other to a position where the fingers pick off the uppermost item of the stack.

Abstract: A device for stacking and destacking a stream of imbricated, substantially planar, flexible units to form or destack a layered stack. The device is a stacker, adapted to receive a stream of units from a source thereof, and a plurality of transfer sheets. The feeder delivers the stream of units to the stacker.The stacker has staging belts which receive portions of the stream and deposit the units serially on one of the transfer sheets, as it is withdrawn from the sheet stack. This forms an imbricated layer of the units and the transfer sheet. The stacker deposits the imbricated layer on a removable support and repeats the cycle to deposit successive imbricated layers on the preceding layers. Destacking is carried out by simply reversing the process.

Abstract: An improved stiff-paged board book uses spacing structures between adjacent leaves to form small gaps which provide convenient finger holds that facilitate turning of individual pages by young children. The gaps allow single pages to be turned easily irrespective of where they are grasped by a reader and reduce the tendency of pages to stick to one another. Spacing structures are formed by affixing a solid block to a leaf, by impressing a protrusion into the leaf, or by embedding magnets in the leaf with like polarizations facing adjacent pages.

Abstract: The present invention concerns a device for feeding a stack of flat articles on edge, especially mail items, to a de-stacker head provided with a support surface, the device comprising a main feed magazine in which the stack is disposed and a plate pushing the rear of the stack. A secondary feed magazine is introduced between the main magazine and the support surface of the de-stacker head, the secondary magazine having an upwardly inclined transfer surface, its edge adjacent to the support surface of the de-stacker head being higher than the latter.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for adjusting the suction pressure drawn through a conveyor belt which conveys a stream of underlapping sheets to an alignment station where sheets are aligned prior to being fed to a sheet-processing machine. A source of high pressure is coupled to a low pressure suction chamber adjacent the alignment station when the final sheet in the stream reaches the alignment end. The high pressure source rapidly equalizes the pressure with the chamber, thus enabling easy lateral alignment of the final sheet in the stream which has no following underlapping sheets to otherwise block the suction pressure.

Abstract: In order to accommodate either a loose lift of signatures or, alternatively, a signature log for the purpose of stream feeding a supply of signatures to a packer box on a binding line in an effective and efficient manner, a signature stream feeding apparatus is disclosed which includes an upstream conveyor, an intermediate conveyor, and a down stream conveyor. The upstream conveyor receives and supports signatures in a generally upright position on the fore edges or backbones thereof, and it is downwardly inclined relative to the horizontal in the direction of signature travel therealong. The intermediate conveyor then receives the signatures from the upstream conveyor and conveys them toward the packer box, and it is inclined upwardly and away from the upstream conveyor in the direction of travel of the signatures therealong.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for disclosed for shingling stacks composed of flexible planar objects, such as fabric workpieces. The stack is placed over an axis connecting two hinged support surfaces which are rotated relative to one another to bend the workpieces and form a shingle. For subsequent shingling, the rough shingled stack is driven on a conveyor under a series of spreading rollers having positive pressure to drive the rollers onto the stack.

Abstract: A machine for converting a group of marginally registered signatures into a shingled stream which is fed to the hopper of a binding machine includes a main frame and several conveyors located in succession along the frame. The first is a feed conveyor having driven side belts which are arranged to allow one's hand to move along the conveyor and install stacks of signatures with the signatures being in an edge standing condition on the feed conveyor. Next comes a spreading conveyor which separates the signatures as they move in the edge standing condition between side belts which impart a slight bow to the signatures. Constricting gates exist between the feed and spreading conveyors and they sense the force with which the signatures are introduced into the feed conveyor. Then comes a lifting conveyor which lifts the signatures from the spreading conveyor in a shingled condition.

Abstract: Apparatus for singulating documents seriatim. The apparatus includes: a frame; a device for feeding documents from an upstream position to a downstream position; a separating roller rotatably mounted in the frame; a lower, take-away roller rotatably mounted in the frame situated downstream of the separating roller; and a pivotable housing pivotably mounted in the frame. The housing includes an upper, take-away roller situated above and adjacent the lower, take-away roller, and a separating stone situated above and adjacent the separating roller.

Abstract: A shingling device for use in a mail document sorting apparatus includes a first conveyor belt for receiving a vertical stack of sorted documents. A guide element is oblique to the conveyor belt for shifting the moving vertical stack into a shifted oblique stack and defines a gap between the belt and the guide element to enable passage of documents from the lower portion of the stack. A rotatable roller is disposed adjacent and downstream from the guide element and has a lower surface partially obstructing the gap. The roller rotates opposite to movement of the first conveyor belt for shingling documents passing through the gap. A second conveyor belt cooperates with the first conveyor belt to confine shingled documents advancing on the first belt, and cooperates with the roller so that the second belt has a longitudinal velocity substantially equal to the tangential velocity of the roller.

Abstract: A multi-pass sorting machine includes a housing or supporting structure which has the configuration of an A-Frame. The A-Frame structure has a slanting front side supporting several individually functional devices and a slanting back side supporting other individually functional devices. The devices of the front side include an input feeder first transporting mechanisms, a singulating device, an accelerating mechanism, second transporting mechanisms, a bar code reader and associated electronic and computer equipment, a plurality of first sorting devices in the form of diverting vanes, an equal number of first pass stacker buffers, and a reversing member for transporting letters from the front side to the back side while at the same time retaining the same orientation of the letters to the planar surface as the letters go around the corner.

Abstract: Battery plates from the high speed output conveyor of a pasted plate making machine are deposited onto a lower speed first conveyor in an overlapped fashion to create a shingled stream of plates. As plates drop off of the discharge end of the first conveyor they are accumulated in vertical stacks on a second conveyor that is located below the first conveyor. Whenever a stack is completed the second conveyor is moved approximately one plate width to remove the stack and the process continues. In order to provide time to move the stack, the flow of plates on the first conveyor is disrupted when the stack is being moved. In the preferred embodiment the disruption is caused by squeezing the plates between the jaws of a clamping mechanism that the plates pass through.

Abstract: This process is outstanding in that paper in the form of a roll (B) double the width of the bag (S) to be obtained is used, the unrolled strip is separated into two equal widths (B1) (B2), the two half-widths of paper are independently fed to the point where the folded swabs are brought, the stacked swabs are fed between the two half-widths of paper and brought into superimposition, then the two superimposed half-widths of paper are cold sealed and the bags obtained are transversally cut, continuously and automatically.

Abstract: Apparatus for the seriatim separation and feeding of garment parts from a shingled stack of the parts to a predetermined destination. Comprising the apparatus is a movable hold down mechanism for engaging the trailing edge of the second part in the stack and a picker head for engaging the leading edge of the first part in the shingled stack and removing it from the stack. Mechanisms are provided for accurately determining the location of the trailing edge of the second part in the stack and moving the hold down mechanism into position to accurately engage the trailing edge of the second part in the stack. Following separation, the separated part is transferred to a second location at which the head is withdrawn from the transferred part.

Abstract: A squaring and aligning assembly for the transfer frame of a corrugated sheet stacking and feeding apparatus is mounted within a transverse guide member in the form of an elongated channel. Separate squaring shoes at each side of the machine are selectively moved along the channel. They can be connected in centered positions along opposite flights of a powered chain to center a block of sheets relative to the machine. One can be connected to a chain flight in an off-center position to align the block of sheets in an off-centered aligned condition. Either shoe can be clamped to the channel for edge alignment in response to movement of the remaining shoe.

Abstract: The present invention is directed to a mechanism for the handling of and the singulating of a stack or plurality of aligned and substantially flat materials such as for example, sheets of paper, cards, printed flyers, envelopes, checks, business cards, labels, other printed documents and the like. There is incorporated into the mechanism novel systems and assemblies which control the rate of the advance of the stack of materials, which advance is effected by an amplitude or magnitude of a unidirectional jogging motion. The magnitude is a function of the attitude of the stack or the angle formed with the horizontal of the leading sheet of the stack. There is also provided a pulsing mechanism for pulsing, synchronously with jogger belts of an input conveyor assembly for joggingly advancing the plurality of flat materials, the first singulator assembly which pulsing enhances the action of singulation of the plurality of flat material.

Abstract: A device for transferring objects, such as filled bags, from a conveyor to a collection device, such as a box, placed below the conveyor comprises two conveyor belts (1, 2) placed adjacent to each other. In the conveying position, the top parts of said conveyor belts together form one conveying face. Each of the conveyor belts (1, 2) is disposed on a tiltable frame (4). In order to make the drive of the conveyor belts (1, 2) extremely simple and to make it possible to adjust the conveyor belts at right angles to their direction of conveyance, the drive comprises a drive pulley (3) acting upon the top part of the belts (1, 2) in the conveying position thereof.

Abstract: In a conveyor system, a retarder device (1) with a braking gap (40) for the passage of sheet stacks (4) collated with an overlap and regulated by a controller (35) via an actuator (33), the width of the braking gap (40) being positively adjusted, with the slight undersize necessary to generate the braking load, to the current stack height of the section of the stack stream (6) passing the braking gap (40). In this way the braking pressure acting on the stack sheets (4) can be kept substantially constant independently of the stack height. The braking pressure may also be adapted to the sensitivity of the sheet stacks (4) by a braking pressure relief unit in the form of a load relief element (42).

Abstract: An improved document feed mechanism for feeding documents in a vertical direction through at least two stations including a device for shingling the documents in at least one station by having successive ones of the documents overlap one another to thereby compress the amount of vertical space required for the feeding operation as opposed to the space that would be required if the documents were fed top edge to bottom edge, respectively.

Abstract: Each interfaced loader and metering hopper combination of a newspaper assembling system includes improvements for producing ridges in the newspapers at various stages where separation of the newspapers from one another is required. The ridges stiffen the newspaper and reduce the area of contact and thereby the friction between them. At the receiving region of the loader, an arrangement of parallel side and central conveyors, wherein the central one is at a higher level than the side conveyors, produces ridges when the newspapers in a stack are fanned back into a stream. A pair of superimposed center conveyors and inclined laterally located arms produce ridges in the newspapers as they are discharged one at a time from a discharge region of the loader into a receiving zone in the hopper.

Abstract: The apparatus for changing the position of printed products arranged in an imbricated formation comprises two band conveyors arranged in tandem as viewed in the conveying direction, and a position-change device arranged in the end region of the conveying-active path of the first of the two band conveyors. The disc-shaped supporting elements of the position-change device and each having a cam are seated at shafts, the rotational axes of which extend substantially perpendicular to the plane of conveyance of the first of the two band conveyors. The shafts are driveable synchronously and in opposite directions. The trailing or upstream edges of the printed products come to bear upon the disc-shaped supporting elements and the cams upwardly project in the region of the imbricated formation.

Abstract: An in-line array of product dispensers overlie a conveyor belt. An ink jet printer overlies the conveyor belt downstream of the product dispensers. Information identifying the product dispensers which hold the desired products for a particular set and the desired number of sets of that type are entered to a controller operatively associated with the product dispensers and the printer. The controller times the dispensing of products from the selected product dispensers so as to form imbricated sets of products on the conveyor belt. As the products in the imbricated set pass under the printer, the controller activates it to print desired information on the exposed portion of each product.

Abstract: Apparatus for the seriatim separation and feeding of garment parts from a shingled stack of the parts to a predetermined destination. Comprising the apparatus is a picker head containing a depending array of needles adapted to positively engage the leading edge of the uppermost part on the stack. The picker head is supported for arcuate motion in the course of effecting separation of the engaged first part, and is arcuately displaced at a high rate of acceleration to aid in overcoming the resistance to separation between the first and second parts in the stack. Following separation, the separated part is transferred to a second location at which the head is withdrawn from the transferred part. Operable concomitantly with part separation by the picker head is a hold down clamp for applying a predetermined downward force on the remaining stacked parts while a vacuum force is being applied from underneath for retarding this displacement in the course of the engaged part being separated.

Abstract: A low profile rolling book comprising plural sheets, bound along one marginal edge. In the preferred embodiment, the book's front cover includes printed matter depicting the top view of a wheeled vehicle having wheel wells disposed adjacent the parallel opposing top and bottom edges of the book. Respective wheels are rotatably mounted at each of the wheel wells.