Sheet feed mechanism

Claim 1

IN A XEROGRAPHIC APPARATUS, A XEROGRAPHIC DRUM JOURNALED FOR ROTATION, A CHAIN CONVEYOR HAVING AT LEAST ONE PAPER GRIPPER MOUNTED TRANSVERSELY THEREON, SAID CHAIN CONVEYOR BEING POSITIONED ADJACENT SAID XEROGRAPHIC DRUM TO TRANSPORT SAID PAPER GRIPPER IN AN ENDLESS PATH BETWEEN A SHEET RECEIVING STATION AND A SHEET DELIVERY STATION AND IN A PATH TANGENTIAL TO THE PERIPHERAL SURFACE OF SAID XEROGRAPHIC DRUM, A PAPER FEED TRAY POSITIONED ADJACENT SAID CONVEYOR TO SUPPORT A STACK OF PAPER, A PAPER GUIDE, SAID PAPER GUIDE HAVING AN INGRESS OPENING POSITIONED ADJACENT SAID PAPER FEED TRAY AND AN EGRESS OPENING POSITIONED ADJACENT SAID CHAIN CONVEYOR, SAID INGRESS OPENING BEING OF SUFFICIENT WIDTH TO RECEIVE INDIVIDUAL SHEETS FROM A STACK OF PAPER ON SAID PAPER FEED TRAY, A GATE PIVOTABLY SECURED TO SAID PAPER GUIDE, SPRING MEANS CONNECTED TO SAID GATE AND TO SAID PAPER GUIDE TO NORMALLY BIAS SAID GATE INTO POSITION TO COVER SAID EGRESS OPENING, SAID GATE BEING ADAPTED TO BE OPENED BY SAID PAPER GRIPPER AS IT MOVES THEREOVER, CAM MEANS POSITIONED AT SAID SHEET RECEIVING STATION AND AT SAID SHEET DELIVERY STATION ADJACENT SAID CHAIN CONVEYOR TO ACTUATE SAID PAPER GRIPPER, SAID CAM MEANS AT SAID SHEET RECEIVING STATION BEING POSITIONED ADJACENT SAID GATE, AT LEAST ONE SEPARATOR ROLL POSITIONED ABOVE SAID PAPER FEED TRAY, AND DRIVE MEANS CONNECTED TO SAID XEROGRAPHIC DRUM AND TO SAID CHAIN CONVEYOR TO ROTATE SAID XEROGRAPHIC DRUM AND TO MOVE SAID CHAIN CONVEYOR AT PREDETERMINED SPEEDS RELATIVE TO EACH OTHER, SAID DRIVE MEANS INCLUDING MEANS CONNECTED TO SAID SEPARATOR ROLL FOR SEQUENTIALLY OPERATING SAID SEPARATOR ROLL TO SEPARATE AND ADVANCE THE UPPERMOST SHEET OF PAPER FROM SAID PAPER FEED TRAY INTO SAID PAPER GUIDE IN ADVANCE OF SAID PAPER GRIPPER WHEREBY THE LEADING EDGE OF THE SHEET WILL CONTACT SAID GATE AND THE SHEET WILL BUCKLE WITHIN THE PAPER GUIDE WHEREBY THE LEADING EDGE OF THE SHEET WILL BE ALIGNED AGAINST SAID GATE AND WHEREBY AS SAID GATE IS TRIPPED BY SAID PAPER GRIPPER AS IT IS ACTUATED BY SAID CAM MEANS AT SAID SHEET RECEIVING STATION THE SHEET WILL RAPIDLY ADVANCE INTO ENGAGEMENT WITH SAID SHEET GRIPPER.