Means for positioning a label relatively to a picker

Claim 1

IN A LABELING MACHINE OF HTE KIND IN WHICH A TWOBLADED, GUM-COATED PICKER RECEIVES LABELS FROM A MAGAZINE WHILE ITS BLADES ARE CLOSED AND CARRIES THE LABEL TO A TRANSFER STATION AT WHICH THE LABEL IS TAKEN FROM THE PICKER BY A TRANSFER PAD WHICH APPLIES THE LABEL TO THE ARTICLE TO BE LABELED, THE TRANSFER PAD BEING OF A WIDTH SUBSTANTIALLY LESS THANT THAT OF THE LABEL, MEANS FOR SEPARATING THE BLADES AFTER THE PICKER HAS TAKEN A LABEL FROM THE MAGAZINE BY BEFORE IT ARRIVES AT THE TRANSFER STATION, IN COMBINATION, A SUCTION DEVICE HAVING SUCTION PORTS SPACED APART A FIXED DISTANCE WHICH APPROXIMATES THE WIDTH OF THE SPACE BETWEEN THE PICKER BLADES WHEN THEY ARE FULLY SEPARATED, AND MEANS FOR MOVING SAID SUCTION DEVICE INTO CONTACT WITH THE EXPOSED FACE OF THE LABEL WHILE THE PICKER BLADES ARE STILL CLOSED AND FOR CREATING SUCTION AT SAID PORTS BEFORE THE PICKER BLADES OPEN THEREBY TO PREVENT LATERAL MOTION OF THE LABEL IN ONE DIRECTION OR THE OTHER FROM ITS INITIAL POSITION AS THE BLADES SEPARATE.