Product feeder with accelerator and decelerator devices

摘要

An apparatus feeds paper inserts or other flat products from one area to another. The apparatus is particularly useful for newspaper insert machines. A rotating gripper drum (20) or pusher disk feeds paper products from the bottom of a stationary stack (10) down into open moving pockets (100). Roller assemblies (50,60) are employed to first speed up the product and then slow the product down as the product exits the feeder. In operation, the product is first quickly accelerated to a speed faster than the circumferential speed of the drum or pusher disk, to maximize feeding speed, and then is quickly decelerated to a slower speed, to prevent the product from bouncing or crumpling in the bottom of the pocket.