| 摘要 |
1,066,278. Feeding sheets &c. ECON-O-POST CORPORATION. Dec. 22, 1964 [Jan. 2 1964], No. 52071/64. Heading B6B. [Also in Divisions B8 and G1] A separating mechanism 18 associated with a mail sorting apparatus (see Division B8) separates envelopes fed thereto in randomly occurring thicknesses. The mechanism comprises a feeder wheel 20 carrying a friction surface 22 extending around a limited arcuate extent of the wheel 20 thereby effecting an intermittent feed of the envelopes. As an envelope or an overlapping plurality thereof pass into the mechanism, a switch 68 is operated to arrest the envelope feeding conveyer, and a non- rotatable friction wheel 50 is lowered through linkage arrangement 42, 32, 64, 30, under the control of a cam 26 on the feeder wheel 20. The friction wheel 50 presses down on the uppermost envelope while the friction surface 22 engages the lowermost envelope and moves it forwardly into the sorting apparatus. This operation is repeated until the mechanism is free of envelopes, whereupon the switch 68 is operated to initiate further feeding of envelopes. The friction wheel 50 mounted on an arm 46, pivoted at 48 to the member 42 of the linkage arrangement, is movable up and down relative to the member 42 through link 56, 58. When the linkage member 42 is raised above a set minimum distance from the conveying surface 63, e.g. by thick envelopes, the friction wheel 50 is lifted above a relatively smooth pressure pad 44 on the member 42, which pad then engages the envelope as it passes through the mechanism.
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