Patent ID: 7152859

Claim:
An apparatus for separating a sheet of recording media from a stack of sheets, the apparatus comprising: a support for supporting a stack of sheets of recording media; and a plurality of inclined separator strips; wherein the inclined separator strips are substantially parallel one another; wherein the surface of each inclined separator strip is oriented at an obtuse angle relative to the sheets of the stack of sheets; wherein at least one of the inclined separator strips is a retard separator strip; wherein the retard separator strip comprises a first separator surface and a second separator surface; wherein the first separator surface is closer to the stack of sheets than is the second separator surface; wherein the second separator surface has a higher coefficient of friction than the first separator surface; and wherein the plane of the at least a portion of the first separator surface of the at least one retard separator strip is above the plane of the second separator surface of the same retard separator strip.