Patent ID: 6758468
Filing Date: 2004-07-06
Classification: B65H

Abstract:
A retard mechanism in a feeder for releasing generally flat items from a stack, the feeder having a bi-directional driving mechanism beneath the stack and capable of driving flat items from a bottom of the stack in a driving direction for releasing one flat item at a time through an exit point, with the leading edge of said one item exiting the exit point in an exiting direction on a singulation plane, wherein the retard mechanism is positioned relative to the exit point to prevent other flat items in the stack adjacent to said one flat item from being drawn out of the exit point while said one flat item is exiting the exit point, said retard mechanism comprising:a cylindrical member having a frictional surface with a surface section positioned at the exit point, the cylindrical member rotabably mounted on a rotation axis for rotation such that the cylindrical member is capable of rotating in a first rotating direction for causing said surface section to move away from the exit point in a direction opposite to the exiting direction so as to allow a different surface section of the frictional surface to move into the exit point, and a motion restricting mechanism, operatively connected to the cylindrical member, for preventing the cylindrical member from rotating in a direction opposite to the first rotating direction, wherein the driving mechanism, in addition to moving in the driving direction, is adapted to move in a retracting direction opposite to the driving direction in an intermittent manner so as to move at least one of the other flat items in a direction opposite to the exiting direction, thereby causing the cylindrical member to intermittently rotate in the first rotating direction.