Patent ID: 6024321
Filing Date: 2000-02-15
Classification: B65H

Abstract:
A mechanism for automatically loading a paper roll by rotating a front roller and a rear roller, which are positioned below a paper roll setting position and spaced from each other in a direction of paper feed, while causing a circumference of said paper roll to contact said front roller and said rear roller, said mechanism comprising:a separator positioned between the front roller and the rear roller for separating a leading edge of paper of the paper roll from a surface of said paper roll;slack sensing means for sensing a preselected amount of slack produced on the surface of the paper roll; andcontrol means for controlling rotation of the front roller and the rear roller in accordance with an output signal of said slack sensing means;wherein said control means rotates at least one of the front roller and the rear roller to thereby produce the preselected amount of slack between said front roller and said rear roller, then rotates said front roller and said rear roller in a direction opposite to the direction of paper feed, then further rotates, when said slack sensing means senses a decrease of the predetermined amount of slack, said front roller and said rear roller by a preselected amount, then stops rotating said front roller and said rear roller, and then rotates said front roller and said rear roller in the direction of paper feed, thereby feeding the leading edge of the paper to said separator.