US3709482A
Expired / Lapsed
US
⏱️ 0.0 years remaining
High speed document feeder
Assignee: NCR Voyix Corp
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Filing: 1971-01-06
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Granted: 1973-01-09
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Expires: 1991-01-06
Abstract
Abstract A document feed mechanism of the friction type for delivering single sheets in spaced relationship by means of synchronous operation wherein the sheets are spaced at a constant nose-tonose distance regardless of the length of the document. The mechanism includes a feed belt and a retard or restraining belt, the feed belt being mounted on a feed wheel carrier which is adapted to be radially movable in relation to the axis of the feed wheel so that the periphery of the feed belt continuously coincides with the periphery of the feed wheel. The feed belt is also continuously indexed by means of an eccentric and one-way clutch arrangement for the purpose of distributing feed belt wear over a larger surface. The feed mechanism includes means for stopping the flow of documents without stopping rotation of the feed wheel, wherein an interposer, mounted concentric with the feed wheel and rotatable independent thereof, is placed in the path between the feed belt and the retard belt to prevent the feed belt from contacting the documents.
Inventors
- 👤 C Nelson
- 👤 J Cattorini
- 👤 J Terbay
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-10-31 21:54
CPC Classifications
B; B65; B65H; B65H3/00; B65H3/46; B65H3/52; B65H3/5246; G; G06; G06K; G06K13/00; G06K13/02; G06K13/08; G06K13/10; G06K13/103; B65H2701/00; B65H2701/10; B65H2701/19; B65H2701/1912
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 19
Claim 1
Independent Claim
105 words
Mechanism for feeding and separating documents in singular synchronous fashion from a stack thereof, comprising means initiating the flow of individual documents from the stack, feed means including a continuously rotating drum and carrying a frictional belt member positioned adjacent the initiating means to receive and to move each document along a feed path, means retarding the movement of each document along the path, said feed and retard means cooperating to form a throat opening therebetween, and belt member carrier means including a plate mounted on the drum and slidable radially across the drum toward the retard means to automatically maintain a predetermined throat opening.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
105 words
Mechanism for feeding and separating documents in singular synchronous fashion from a stack thereof, comprising means initiating the flow of individual documents from the stack, feed means including a continuously rotating drum and carrying a frictional belt member positioned adjacent the initiating means to receive and to move each document along a feed path, means retarding the movement of each document along the path, said feed and retard means cooperating to form a throat opening therebetween, and belt member carrier means including a plate mounted on the drum and slidable radially across the drum toward the retard means to automatically maintain a predetermined throat opening.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
43 words
The mechanism of claim 1 wherein the feed means comprises a feed wheel and a feed belt, said plate being carried on the wheel and movable toward the retard means to maintain the throat opening and to compensate for wearing of the belt.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
27 words
The mechanism of claim 1 wherein the feed means comprises an endless belt and includes indexing means to compensate for peripheral wearing of the frictional belt member.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
31 words
The mechanism of claim 3 wherein the indexing means comprises a one-way roller clutch connected and operable to advance the belt member a predetermined amount for each revolution of the wheel.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
88 words
Document feed mechanism comprising a continuously rotating drum, a carrier plate in the drum, a feed belt mounted on the carrier plate, said carrier plate being biased and slidably supported to be linearly movable across the drum, and a retard belt positioned in relation to the feed belt to define an engageable surface area therebetween, the feed and retard belts having frictional surfaces thereon and rotatable to move individual documents in successive fashion upon each revolution of the drum whereby a predetermined distance is maintained between successive documents.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
88 words
Document feed mechanism comprising a continuously rotating drum, a carrier plate in the drum, a feed belt mounted on the carrier plate, said carrier plate being biased and slidably supported to be linearly movable across the drum, and a retard belt positioned in relation to the feed belt to define an engageable surface area therebetween, the feed and retard belts having frictional surfaces thereon and rotatable to move individual documents in successive fashion upon each revolution of the drum whereby a predetermined distance is maintained between successive documents.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
29 words
The mechanism of claim 5 including clutch means for indexing the feed belt in the same direction as the rotation thereof to distribute belt wear over a larger surface.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
22 words
The mechanism of claim 5 including interposing means carried on the drum and rotatable independent thereof for stopping the flow of documents.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
147 words
A feeding and separating mechanism for selecting documents singularly from a stack and for moving the documents along a defined path, said mechanism comprising piCker means adjacent the stack for engaging one side of the foremost document and for initiating its travel a long the path, feed means including a rotating wheel and a friction belt thereon positioned subsequent to the picker means along said path for frictionally propelling each document in synchronous manner, retard means cooperating with the feed means for permitting movement of only one document at a time, said feed and retard means being positioned to form a common engageable surface therebetween, and compensating means including plate means connected with said feed means and slidably supported to be linearly movable across the rotating wheel for maintaining the common surface by reason of radial movement of the feed means in relation to the retard means.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
147 words
A feeding and separating mechanism for selecting documents singularly from a stack and for moving the documents along a defined path, said mechanism comprising piCker means adjacent the stack for engaging one side of the foremost document and for initiating its travel a long the path, feed means including a rotating wheel and a friction belt thereon positioned subsequent to the picker means along said path for frictionally propelling each document in synchronous manner, retard means cooperating with the feed means for permitting movement of only one document at a time, said feed and retard means being positioned to form a common engageable surface therebetween, and compensating means including plate means connected with said feed means and slidably supported to be linearly movable across the rotating wheel for maintaining the common surface by reason of radial movement of the feed means in relation to the retard means.
Claim 12
Dependent Claim
61 words
The mechanism of claim 8 wherein the compensating means comprises a feed wheel and a carrier plate having a plurality of rollers driving an endless belt engageable with each document to propel it along said path, the carrier plate being radially movable on the feed wheel to at least maintain coincidence of the belt periphery with that of the feed wheel.
Claim 13
Dependent Claim
27 words
The mechanism of claim 8 including interposing means carried on the feed means and rotatable thereon for stopping and starting the flow of documents along said path.
Claim 14
Dependent Claim
29 words
The mechanism of claim 8 including clutch indexing means for advancing the position of the feed means during its propelling motion to present changing frictional surfaces for each document.
Claim 15
Dependent Claim
30 words
The mechanism of claim 11 wherein the indexing means comprises an eccentric arm and a one-way roller clutch cooperating with the arm for advancing the position of the feed means.
Claim 16
Dependent Claim
168 words
In separating and feeding apparatus for frictionally feeding documents from a stack in one-by-one synchronous manner, the combination of a continuously rotating drum driven in a direction to propel the documents along a desired feed path, a feed belt carrier housed in the drum, a feed belt mounted on the carrier, a belt periphery coinciding at least with the periphery of the drum and adapted to engage one side of each document, a retard belt positioned adjacent the feed belt and cooperable therewith, the feed and retard belts forming a predetermined throat opening therebetween, the retard belt being driven in a direction to restrain movement of the document along the feed path, and means including a spring-biased plate connected with the feed belt carrier and with the rotating drum for radially moving the carrier in relation to the drum across the face thereof whereby the belt periphery is at least coincident with the periphery of the drum to maintain the throat opening between the feed and retard belts.
Claim 17
Dependent Claim
168 words
In separating and feeding apparatus for frictionally feeding documents from a stack in one-by-one synchronous manner, the combination of a continuously rotating drum driven in a direction to propel the documents along a desired feed path, a feed belt carrier housed in the drum, a feed belt mounted on the carrier, a belt periphery coinciding at least with the periphery of the drum and adapted to engage one side of each document, a retard belt positioned adjacent the feed belt and cooperable therewith, the feed and retard belts forming a predetermined throat opening therebetween, the retard belt being driven in a direction to restrain movement of the document along the feed path, and means including a spring-biased plate connected with the feed belt carrier and with the rotating drum for radially moving the carrier in relation to the drum across the face thereof whereby the belt periphery is at least coincident with the periphery of the drum to maintain the throat opening between the feed and retard belts.
Claim 18
Dependent Claim
40 words
The combination of claim 13 including clutch means connected with the rotating drum drive for indexing the feed belt a predetermined amount for each revolution of the belt so as to present a changing contact surface for each successive document.
Claim 19
Dependent Claim
32 words
The combination of claim 13 including interposing means supported from the drum and independently rotatable thereof for stopping the flow of documents by rotation of the interposing means into the throat opening.
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USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows
| Annuity Stage | Window Opens | Payment Deadline | Surcharge Period Until | Estimated Fee | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.5 Years (Year 4) | 1976-01-09 | 1976-07-10 | 1977-01-09 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 1980-01-09 | 1980-07-10 | 1981-01-09 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 1984-01-09 | 1984-07-10 | 1985-01-09 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |