Abstract: A soap dispenser for feeding, cutting and dispensing a piece of dry ribbon soap from a supply spool, the soap dispenser including a base portion provided with a holding member for holding the supply spool with the ribbon soap rolled up thereon, and a cutting member coacting with a spring for cutting the ribbon soap. A cover portion is removably mounted on the base portion to enclose the supply spool therein, the cover portion being provided with a feeding member for feeding a length of the ribbon soap past the cutting member prior to cutting the ribbon soap. The feeding member includes a movable part provided with a cam for retracting the cutting member against the spring to tension the spring, the cam also releasing the cutting member when the spring is under tension so that the spring forces the cutting member into engagement with the ribbon soap for cutting off the length of ribbon soap.

Abstract: A gel slicer consisting of a support with a gel guide trough and a feed screw journalled parallel to the trough. A feed plunger assembly is threadedly engaged on the feed screw and has a plunger portion slidably engaged in the trough. The feed screw is intermittently driven by a power shaft via selectable identical-diameter gear discs with different-length tooth configuration for varying the increment of feed of the gel per revolution of the power shaft. The gear discs have smooth peripheral portions providing dwell periods of the feed screw. A pivoted transverse cutting blade is spring-biased toward cutting position over the trough and is held elevated by a follower lug engaging a cam on the power shaft, the cam having a blade-release notch. The cam is synchronized to release the cutting blade during the dwell period of the feed screw. Thus, the thickness of the slice depends on the amount of teeth on that gear disc which is selected to drive the feed screw.

Abstract: A roll fed copier is provided with mechanism responsive to depression of a copy button to start or turn on power to the machine and thereby initiate the feed of copy paper from a supply roll and to cock a sprng-powered knife which is tripped by linkage operated by an adjustable copy length control on the movable original carrying platen. Additional mechanism is also provided to break the power lines to the machines if the copy button is not actuated for a predetermined interval.