Sheet feeder with feed belts that move toward an away from each other
First Claim
1. A sheet feeder comprisinga stack hopper for holding a stack of sheets,a plurality of rotatable shafts, at least one of which is driven, at least one of which is positioned under said stack sheets, and at least one other of said shafts, parallel to said one of said shafts, is spaced forward of a leading edge of said stack, anda plurality of feed belts extending around and between said one shaft and said other of said shafts, said feed belts being spaced laterally from one another along said shafts, at least one of said feed belts being movable laterally along said constant diameter shafts toward and away from another of said feed belts while said feed belts are being driven.
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Abstract
A sheet feeder having a stack hopper for holding a stack of sheets, and feed belts for advancing the bottom-most sheet from the stack, is constructed to move at least one of the feed belts laterally toward and away from another of the feed belts while the belts are being driven. Preferably, side guides extend substantially to the end of the feeder, and extend both above and below the upper surface of belts to which they are adjacent. The belts extend between and around shafts of uniform diameter through the reach of lateral movement of the belts. The shafts are journaled in bearings mounted in such a way that they can be lifted out to change belts quickly and easily.
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Citations
16 Claims
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1. A sheet feeder comprising
a stack hopper for holding a stack of sheets, a plurality of rotatable shafts, at least one of which is driven, at least one of which is positioned under said stack sheets, and at least one other of said shafts, parallel to said one of said shafts, is spaced forward of a leading edge of said stack, and a plurality of feed belts extending around and between said one shaft and said other of said shafts, said feed belts being spaced laterally from one another along said shafts, at least one of said feed belts being movable laterally along said constant diameter shafts toward and away from another of said feed belts while said feed belts are being driven.
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10. A sheet feeder comprising
a stack hopper for holding a stack of sheets, a first rotatable shaft positioned under said stack of sheets, a motor operatively connected to drive said first shaft, and a second, idler shaft, parallel to said first shaft, spaced forward of a leading edge of said stack, and a plurality of feed belts extending around and between said first shaft and said second shaft, at least one of said feed belts being movable laterally along said constant diameter shafts toward and away from another of said feed belts while said feed belts are being driven.
Specification