US3438707A - Sheet feed device for photocopy machine - Google Patents

Description

April 15, 1969 w. J. HANSON,

' SHEET FEED DEVICE FOR PHOTOCOPY MACHINE Filed May 16, 1966 Q AAQ k l I l G \QQ m\ NNx, mNx.

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II 11 [III 1 INVENTOR. WALTER I HAmsou arms/v25 April 15, 1969 w, J. NSON 3,438,707";

I SHEET FEED DEVlCE FOR FHOTCCOPY MACHINE Filed May 16, 1966 Sheet 3* mw s iv vm INVENTOR.

WA LTER J. HANSON ATTORNEY United States Patent 3,438,707 SHEET FEED DEVICE FOR PHOTOCOPY MACHINE Walter J. Hanson, Old Greenwich, Conn., assignor to Pitney-Bowes, Inc., Stamford, Conn., a corporation of Delaware I Filed May 16, 1966, Ser. No. 550,477 Int. Cl. G03b 15/10 US. Cl. 35514 18 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A sheet handling arrangement for photocopy machines wherein the original sheet feeding means is adapted to actuate a separate copy sheet feeding means. The original sheet feeding means includes a pair of closely-spaced drive rollers, a first one of which is power driven while the second one of which is adapted to be frictionally driven by the first roller when an original is present therebetween. The second roller is coupled so as to actuate said copy sheet feeding means so as to thereby provide a simple demand copy sheet feed in response to the feed of an original into the photocopy machine.

This invention relates to a novel control and actuating means for a sheet feeder. More particularly the invention relates to an improved sheet feeding device for a photocopy machine wherein the presence and movement of an original controls at least a portion of the movement of a copy sheet through the machine.

In most photocopy machines that use paper transport devices a considerable quantity of mechanical and/or electrical apparatus has been heretofore required to feed the original along one path through the machine and to synchronously feed a copy sheet along another feed path through the machine. Such transport devices account for a considerable portion of the production and maintenance costs of this type of machine. The instant invention contemplates the provision of a very simple arrangement for synchronously feeding an original and a copy sheet through a photocopy machine in an inexpensive and reliab e manner.

One object of the invention is to provide a novel paper handling device wherein two separate sheet feeding means are used to feed two different sheets along two separate feed paths respectively, the presence and movement of one of said sheets along its associated feed path serving to transmit the motive force required for moving the other sheet along at least a portion of its associated feed path.

Another object of the invention is to provide an improved paper handling means for a photocopy machine whereby an original when in the original sheet feed path of the machine comprises one element in the drive linkage for moving a copy sheet along a separate copy sheet feed path.

Another object of the invention is to provide a novel paper handling device for photocopy machines whereby the operative forces for transporting an original an incremental distance along a first feed path are transmitted through said original and are then mechanically transmitted so as to supply the drive forces required for advancing an elongated second sheet a corresponding incremental distance along a second separate feed path.

A further object of the invention is to provide an exceptionally simple, low-cost copy sheet feeding device for photocopy machines whereby the passage of an original through the machine serves to control and transmit the drive forces required to initiate movement of a copy sheet along a copy sheet feed path.

3,438,707 Patented Apr. 15, 1969 Other objects of the invention will become apparent as the disclosure progresses.

In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a side elevational view taken along section line 11 of FIG. 2.

F IG. 2 is a rear elevational view (as seen from the left side of FIG. 1) of the instant apparatus, some structure, such as the copy sheet hopper and a portion of the original guide means, being omitted for the sake of clarity.

FIG. 3 is a fragmentary view illustrating the geared interconnection between a pair of cooperating sheet feed rolls of the machine.

In that the general structural arrangement and the concept of operation for electrostatic type photocopy machines having liquid toner developing means are well known in the reprography art a discussion of the instant electrostatic type photocopy machine will be made only to the extent that it relates to the instant sheet handling system.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 the general structural environment in which the instant paper handling system is incorporated comprises a frame that includes a base 10 on which is fixedly secured a pair of upstanding side plates 11 and 12 that support the machine side covers C and C Small portions of the machine side cover C and the side plate 11 are shown in FIG. 1. An illuminating station 13 is provided in the machine for exposing an original to radiation from a suitable light source not shown. Suitable guide means such as 15 and 15a, are supported on and between said side plates for establishing a first sheet feed path 16 along which an original may be fed on the way to and through said illuminating station 13. Also provided in the machine is a charging station 17, an imaging station 18 and a developing station 20 for respectively charging a copy sheet, receiving a radiation image on the charged copy sheet from said illuminating station and developing the exposed copy sheet. Suitable guide means, such as 21, are mounted on and between said side plates for establishing a separate second sheet feed path 22 along which a copy sheet is fed in successively passing said charging, imaging and developing stations. It will be particularly noted that there is no way for an original that is being fed along said first feed path 16 to move into said second feed path 22 and similarly that there is no way for 'a copy sheet that is being fed along said second feed path to move into said first feed path; said first and second feed paths thus being completely separate from one another.

Transport means are provided for feeding an original along the said first feed path 16 and the effective output of a portion of this transport means is utilized to drive a portion of the copy sheet separating and transport means for initiating movement of a copy sheet along said second feed path 22 as will now be described in detail. The transport means for the original comprises a first pair of cooperating rolls 30 and 31 which are respectively secured on cross shafts 32 and 33. Shaft 32 is rotatably mounted on the side plates 11 and 12 by means of suitable bushings 34, while the cross shaft 33 is rotatably mounted by suitable bushings 34a that are carried on the intermediate portions of a pair of roll adjustment arms 35 and 36, these arms permitting said upper roll 31 to be slightly vertically adjusted relative to the roll 32. The right end, as seen in FIG. 1, of each arm is fixedly connected to the adjacent end of a cross shaft 37 that is rotatably mounted on and between said side plates 11 and 12, while the opposite or free end of each arm is biased by means of a suitable spring 40, FIG. 1, into engagement with a cooperating abutment screw 41 that is mounted on the associated side plate 11 or 12. As will be apparent the adjusted vertical portion of the roll 31 and thus the effective gap between rolls 30 and 31 is determined by the set position of the abutment screws 41. The side plates 11 and 12 are appropriately slotted to accommodate any such vertical adjusting movement of the cross shaft 33 and bushings 34a. The outer peripheral surfaces of the rolls 30, 31 are formed with shallow cooperating annular grooves, as illustrated in FIG. 2, so that mutually cooperating peripheral portions, such as 43 and,44, of said rolls are effectively spaced from each other by a predetermined amount, the effective width of the gap 45 between said roll peripheries being such that when an original is introduced between the rolls 30, 31 the original acts to frictionally couple the rolls for rotative drive purposes as will be discussed below.

Another feed roll 46 cooperating with said feed roll 30 is provided, roll 46 being secured to a cross shaft 47 that is in turn rotatably mounted on the side plates 11 and 12 by means of suitable bushings 50, the latter being disposed in suitable slots formed in said side plates so as to be movable towards and away from the lower surface of the adjacent larger feed roll 30. Any suitable means, such as springs 51 having ends secured to said side plates, operatively bias said bushings upwardly so that the periphery of the feed roll 46 is pressed lightly into engagement with the adjacent operative periphery of said feed roll 30. The shaft 32 for roll 30 has secured to an outer end thereof a gear 54, FIG. 2, which meshes with a gear 55 secured to the adjacent end of shaft 47 whereby feed rolls 30 and 46 may be rotatably driven in unison. Another pair of cooperating feed rolls 56 and 57 are operatively disposed along the original feed path 16, these feed rolls being respectively fixed to cross shafts 60 and 61 that are in turn rotatably mounted on said side plates 11 and 12 by suitable bushings in a manner similar to that just described for shafts 32 and 47. The bushings for cross shaft 61 are mounted and spring biased in the same manner as that described for said bushings 50 so that the periphery of feed roll 57 is lightly pressed into engagement with the periphery of said feed roll 56. The shafts 60 and 61 are interconnected by meshing gears 62 and 63 as illustrated in FIG. 3 so that rolls 56 and 57 may be rotatably driven in unison. As will be apparent when an original is fed along the initial portion of said feed path 16 and into the gap between feed rolls .30 and 31, as indicated by arrow 64, FIG. 1, the leading edge of the original will then be deflected generally around said roll 30 by guide means 15a and will move first between said rolls 30 and 46 and then between said feed rolls 56, 57 and towards a suitable opening 65 in the front of the machine, the movement along the terminal portion of the feed path 16 being indicated by arrow 66, FIG. 1.

The transport means for feeding copy sheets along said copy sheet feed path 22 and through said charging, imaging and developing stations 17, 18 and 20 respectively, includes three cooperating pairs of feed rolls and 71, 72 and 73, and 74 and 75, each of these roll pairs being constructed and arranged in a manner similar to that for feed rolls 56, 57. These three pairs of feed rolls and also the above described pair of feed rolls 56 and 57 and the cooperating feed rolls 30 and 46 are adapted to be driven by a common endless chain 76, FIGS. 1 and 2. Chain 76 is operatively entrained over a sprocket 77, FIGS. 1 and 3, secured to said shaft 60, a sprocket 80, FIG. 2, secured to shaft 32, a sprocket 81, FIG. 1, secured to the shaft for feed roll 70, and similar sprockets correspondingly secured to the shafts respectively associated with feed rolls 72 and 74, an idler sprocket 82 that is adjustably mounted on the side plate 12 by any suitable means, a motor drive sprocket 83 and another suitable idler sprocket 82a and finally back over said sprocket 77. The drive sprocket 83 is secured to the shaft 84 of a suitable electric motor 85 that is operatively mounted on the machine frame. It will be understood of course that all of the above mentioned sprockets are disposed in substantially coplanar relation so as to properly mesh 4 with the chain 76 and that the function of the adjustably mounted sprocket 82 is to permit the endless chain to be maintained in an operatively taut condition.

The above mentioned copy sheet feed path 22 extends through the machine from a copy sheet storage hopper 90, FIG. 1, at the back of the machine to an output tray 91 at the front of the machine. The hopper comprises front and rear plates 92 and 93, a bottom plate 94 and side plates such as 95 which are mounted on the machine frame so as to form a box-like unit having an opening 96 extending along the entire lower front side thereof. As will be apparent a stack 97 of copy sheets is placed in hopper 90 so that the leading copy sheet may be withdrawn through said opening 96 and fed along said feed path 22. Each successive copy sheet once advanced into the continuously driven feed rolls 70, 71 is adapted to be fed through the charging unit 17, the imaging station 18, feed rolls 72, 73 past the guide means 21a in the toner tank 100, through feed rolls 74, 75, past guide means 21b, and finally into the downwardly inclined output tray 91; the spacing between the successive sets of feed rolls for the original and/or the copy sheet being less than the sheet being transported. Tray 91 is mounted by any suitable means on the machine frame and is disposed in the lower portion of an appropriate opening 103 in the front wall 104 of the machine.

A copy sheet separating and feeding means is provided for successively withdrawing the lead copy sheet from the said stack 97 in the hopper 90 and advancing the same into the nip of the continuously driven feed rolls 70, 71. This sheet separating and feeding means comprises a main separating roll 111 that is carried by a cross shaft 112 which in turn is rotatably mounted on the machine side plates 11 and 12 by means of suitable bushings 113. Fixed to the outer end of shaft 112 is a sprocket 115. A friction coupling or connection is provided between the separator roll 111 and the shaft 112, this friction coupling being of the type illustrated in FIG. 4 of US. Patent 2,813,714 and if desired reference may be made to said patent for the structural details of the coupling. Briefly this connection is capable of transmitting sufficient torque from shaft 112 to the separator roll 111 so that the latter is capable of separating and advancing the lead copy sheet from the stack 97 when shaft 112 is rotated, however the coupling will permit an overtravel rotation of roll 111 relative to the shaft 112 when the shaft 112 is not being driven and the lead end of the separated lead sheet in being pulled past roll 111 by the downstream feed rolls 70, 71 so as to thereby frictionally rotate said separator roll 111.

As may be seen from FIG. 1 the left peripheral side portion of the separator roll 111 extends into said hopper opening 96 so as to frictionally engage the lead copy sheet in the hopper 90. In the same general area the separator roll 111 also cooperatively engages the periphery of an idler roll 116, FIG. 1, fixed on a cross shaft 117 that is rotatably mounted on said side plates 11, 12 by any suitable bushing means. The means for intermittently rotatably driving the separator roll 111 comprises a second endless chain 120, which is entrained over not only said separator roll sprocket but also over a sprocket 121 fixed to the end of the said roll shaft 33, and over a sprocket 122 rotatably mounted on the end of a chain return stud shaft 123, FIG. 2, that is fixedly mounted by any suitable means on the side plate 12. The sprockets 115, 121 and 122 are disposed in substantially coplanar relation so as to permit the efiicient drive interconnection therebetween by the chain A description of the operation of the instant paper handling apparatus will now be made. The electrical circuit for motor 85 is closed and the endless chain 76 is thus actuated to continuously rotatably drive the coopera-ting feed rolls 30 and 46, 56 and 57, 70 and 71, 72 and 73, 74 and 75. An original to be copied is then manually fed along the upper portion of the feed path 16 and into the gap between the driven feed roll 30 and the spaced feed roll 31. The original is thus advanced between rolls 30, 31 and the normally idle roll 31 is rotatably driven by the drive forces that are frictionally transmitted from the periphery of the driven roll 30 to lower surface of original and then frictionally transmitted from the upper side of the original to the periphery of said roll 31. Roll 31 is thus rotatively driven as long as any part of the original is moving between said rolls 30, 31. The leading edge of the original in encountering the arcuate portion a of the guide means is redirected into the nip of the feed rolls 30, 46 so as to be thereby progressively advanced towards and through the illuminating station 13. Before the trailing end of said original leaves the rolls 30, 46 the leading edge thereof will be engaged by the continuously driven feed rolls 56, 57 so that the entire length of the original is fed past station 13 and along the terminal portion of the feed path 16, as indicated by arrow 66; the original finally emerging from said opening 65, FIG. 1, at the front of the machine. As will be apparent when the feed roll 31 is frictionally driven by engagement with the original the separator roll 111 will be thereby driven through the chain 120, the latter effectively operatively interconnecting said rolls 31 and 111. Rotation of separator roll 111, which is in frictional engagement with the lower end of the leading copy sheet in the stack 97, will thus cause said leading sheet to be separated from the stack and advanced along the initial portion of the feed path 22 and into the nip of the continuously driven feed rolls 70, 71. Feed rolls 70 and 71 then cause the copy sheet to be progressively advanced towards and through the imaging station 18. Before the trailing edge of the copy sheet leaves rolls 70, 71 the leading end thereof will be engaged by the next pair of driven feed rolls 72, 73 so as to advance the exposed copy sheet along the guide means 21 and 21a and into the final set of driven feed rolls 74, 75. From rolls 74, 75 the developed copy sheet moves past the guide means 21b and out onto the tray 91.

The various gears and sprockets for driving the above described feed rolls are dimensioned so as to impart the same linear speed to all the roll surfaces that contact the original and copy sheet, hence each increment of movement of an original along the feed path 16 will be accompanied by a substantially equal increment of movement of a copy sheet along the feed path 22. Further in order to properly correlate the phase of movement between the original and an associated copy sheet the original feed path distance between the nip of rolls 30, 31 to the center of the original illuminating station 13 is made substantially equal to the copy feed path distance between the leading edge of the lead copy sheet in the stack 97 and the center of the imaging station 18. Because of the above noted correlation of incremental movement and the distances along said paths 16 and 22, the leading edge of the copy sheet will enter the imaging station 18 at substantially the same time that the leading edge of the original enters the illuminating station 13 and the original and copy sheet will thereafter move in synchronism through their respective feed paths. Of course for any given machine operation the effective gap distance 45 between the feed rolls 30, 31 is adjusted so as to operatively accommodate the particular thickness and/ or rigidity of the original to be copied.

A modification may be made in the drive linkage between the roll 31 and the separator roll 111. Here instead of having a one to one ratio of linear speed for these two rolls the relative sizes of sprockets 121 and 115 may be altered so that the linear speed ratio between said two rolls is different than one to one. In this case a corresponding change is made in the operative distance between the leading edge of the lead sheet in stack 97 and the contact point between the cooperating feed rolls 70, 71. If, for example, a two to one ratio is used here, that is if the operative peripheral speed of roll 31 is twice that for the separator roll, then said operative distance along path 22 is reduced by a factor of one-half. In this way the copy sheet in being fed to the feed rolls 70, 71 moves at half the speed over half the distance and thus enters said rolls 70, 71 in the same time that said original in moving twice the distance at twice the speed enters between rolls 30 and 46. Further, in this modification the position of the separator roll 111 may be raised relative to the stack 97 so that the point of contact between the separator roll 111 and the lead copy sheet in Said stack is located a distance above the leading edge of said lead copy sheet, this distance being such that the trailing edge of an original that is equal to or even slightly greater than the length of the copy sheet leaves the feed rolls 30, 31 before the trailing edge of the copy sheet leaves contact with the separator roll. This factor will prevent the possibility of an early or premature feeding of the next copy sheet in response to the movement of a trailing end portion of the original between said feed rolls 30, 31.

In prior devices, such as those respectively illustrated in US. Patents 2,813,717, 3,218,060, and 2,695,782, sheets are successively fed along a single sheet feed path whereas in the instant paper handling system there is a coordination and drive interconnection between the two transport means for moving separate sheets along two separate and distinct sheet feed paths.

. As will be apparent the rotative coupling between the separator roll 111 and the shaft 112 may comprise a oneway clutch arrangement such as a wrap spring device or a ratchet type means whereby roll 111 may be driven by shaft 112 but may also override said shaft when rotatably driven by a copy sheet that is being pulled by rolls 70, 71.

Since many changes could be made in the embodiments of the invention as particularly described and shown herein without departing from the scope of the invention, it is intended that these embodiments be considered as exemplary and that the invention not be limited except as warranted by the following claims.

What is claimed is:

1. In a paper handling arrangement for a photocopy machine having an original illuminating station and a copy sheet imaging station:

a frame;

a pair of feed rolls rotatably mounted on said frame for advancing an original towards said illuminating station, said rolls having a predetermined operative spacing between the cooperating surfaces thereof, said spacing being such that when an original is introduced into the operative gap between said rolls a rotation of one of said rolls will produce a rotation of the other one of said rolls;

a first drive means for rotatably driving said one of said rolls;

a copy sheet advancing means for initiating an advancing movement of a copy sheet towards said imaging station; and

a drive linkage operatively connected between said other one of saidfeed rolls and said copy sheet advancing means whereby an initiation of a copy sheet advancing movement is produced by the passage of an original through said gap between said pair of rolls.

2. Apparatus as defined by claim 1 wherein said copy sheet advancing means includes a separator roll that is rotatably driven by said one of said feed rolls through said drive linkage.

3. Apparatus as defined by claim 1 wherein the effective speed ratio of said drive linkage is such that the effective peripheral speed of said copy sheet advancing means is different than that for said other one of said feed rolls.

4. Apparatus as defined by claim 2: additionally comprising a first additional roll means for transporting said orig- 7 inal along a first feed path to said illuminating sta tion; and

a second additional roll means for transporting said copy sheet along a second separate and distinct feed path to said imaging station.

5. Apparatus as defined by claim 1 wherein said drive linkage has a gearing ratio such that said cop sheet moves at substantially the same speed as said original.

6. Apparatus as defined by claim 3 wherein said drive linkage is adapted to cause said copy sheet to be advanced at a lower linear speed than the linear speed of said original' 7. A paper handling system for a photocopy machine:

comprising means effectively defining a copy sheet feed path leading to an imaging station;

copy sheet transport means for advancing a copy sheet along at least a portion of said feed path;

means for effectively defining a separate feed path for an original leading to an illuminating station;

original transport means including a pair of cooperating drive elements for transporting an original along at least a portion of said separate feed path, said pair of cooperating drive elements being effectively spaced a predetermined distance apart at their peripheries, one of said drive elements being adapted to be power driven while the other one of said drive elements is frictionally driven by said original when the latter is between said drive elements;

drive means for operating one of said said elements of said original transport means; and

an interconnecting drive linkage operatively coupled between said other one of the said drive elements of said original transport means and the said copy sheet transport means whereby said copy sheet transport means can be driven by forces applied to an original by said one element of said original transport means.

8. Apparatus as defined by claim 7 wherein said copy sheet transport means is disposed so as to normally engage said copy sheet at a distance from the leading edge of the latter such that said original effectively leaves said original transport means before said copy sheet ends its contact with said copy sheet transport means.

9. A photocopy paper handling apparatus for feeding two separate sheet lengths respectively along two separate non-coextensive feed paths: comprising a frame;

a first sheet length feeding device for feeding a first sheet length along a first one of said feed paths, said first sheet length feeding device including a pair of feed rolls, said pair of feed rolls being effectively spaced a predetermined distance apart at their peripheries, one of said feed rolls being adapted to be power driven while the other of said feed rolls is frictionally driven by said first sheet length when the latter is between said feed rolls;

means for driving said one of said feed rolls so that said first sheet length may be fed along said first one of said feed paths;

a second sheet length feeding device mounted on said frame, said second sheet length feeding device including an advancing roll adapted to move a second sheet length along at least a portion of the second one of said two feed paths; and

linkage means driven by said second one of said feed rolls for rotating said advancing roll whereby said second sheet length is moved along said second feed path only when said first sheet length is moved along said first feed path by said first sheet length feeding device.

10. Apparatus as defined by claim 9 wherein said linkage means includes an endless drive member, and wherein the operative periphery of said first and second feed rolls are formed with a plurality of annular grooves.

11. In a photocopy paper handling device:

a first transport means for transporting a first sheet along a first predetermined feed path;

a second transport means for advancing additional sheet material along a separate second predetermined feed path;

a first drive means for operating said first transport means;

a second drive means for operating said second transport means, said second drive means being connected to and driven by the operation of said first drive means in response to an actual frictional feeding movement of said first sheet by said first transport means, said first sheet when moving an incremental distance along said first feed path serving to thereby operate said second transport means so as to advance said additional sheet material a corresponding incremental distance along said second feed path;

said first transport means including a pair of cooperating feed rolls that are effectively spaced a predetermined distance apart at their peripheries, one of said feed rolls being power driven while the other of said feed rolls is frictionally driven by said first sheet when the latter is between said feed rolls;

said second transport means including a roll which is operatively coupled with and driven by said other feed roll.

12. Apparatus as defined by claim 11 wherein said second drive means is arranged so as to cause said additional sheet material to be advanced at a different linear speed than the linear speed at which said first sheet is transported along said first feed path.

13. Apparatus as defined by claim 12 wherein said linear speed of said additional sheet material is less than the linear speed of said first sheet.

14. In a photocopy machine having an original illuminating station and a copy sheet imaging station:

a frame; v

first guide means on said frame defining a first feed path along which an original may move in advancing towards said illuminating station;

a first transport means for transporting an original along said first feed path, said first transport means including a first pair of closely spaced feed rolls rotatably mounted on said frame, the spacing between the operative surfaces of said rolls being such that when an original is passed between said rolls a rotational driving of one of said rolls will frictionally produce a rotation of the other one of said rolls;

second guide means on said frame defining a second feed path along which a copy sheet may move in advancing towards said imaging station;

a separator roll rotatably mounted on frame and adapted to initiate movement of a copy sheet along said second feed path;

a second pair of cooperating feed rolls rotatably mounted on said frame, said rolls being disposed along said second feed path so as to be capable of receiving said copy sheet and transporting the latter along the associated portion of said second feed path;

drive means for continuously rotatably driving said one roll and said second pair of feed rolls; and

torque transmitting means operatively interconnecting said separator roll and the other one of said first pair of cooperating feed rolls.

15. Apparatus as defined by claim 14: additionally comprising additional continuously driven feed rolls operatively mounted on said frame and disposed at a point along said first feed path so as to receive said original as the latter is being fed along said first feed path by said first pair of feed rolls.

16. In a photocopy machine:

a frame;

guide means mounted on said frame for establishing a first predetermined feed path for an original;

a first pair of feed rolls rotatably mounted on said frame and operatively disposed along said feed path, the peripheries of said feed rolls being effectively spaced at predetermined distance apart in accordance with the nature of the original that is to be fed along said feed path, one of said rolls being rotatably driven so that when an original is passing between said rolls the other of said rolls will be rotatably driven by the forces fractionally transmitted through said original;

a second pair of feed rolls rotatably mounted on said frame and operatively disposed along said first feed path so as to receive said original from said first pair of feed rolls;

a hopper mounted on said frame and adapted to hold a stack of copy sheets;

guide means mounted on said frame for establishing a second predetermined feed path along which said copy sheets may serially move, said second feed path being separate and distinct from said firs-t feed path;

means including a rotatable separator roll mounted on said frame and being adapted to separate the leading copy sheet from said stack of copy sheets in said hopper and to initiate a feeding movement of said leading copy sheet along said second feed path;

a third pair of feed rolls rotata'bly mounted on said frame and being operatively disposed along said second feed path at a point downstream from said separator roll;

a unitary drive means for rotatably actuating said second pair of feed rolls, said third pair of feed rolls and said one roll of said first pair of feed rolls; and

transmission means driven by the said other roll of said first pair of feed rolls for rotatably actuating said separator roll in response to the passage of an original between said first pair of feed rolls.

17. Apparatus as defined by claim 16 wherein said unitary drive means comprises a first chain and sprocket means, wherein said separator roll is mounted for rotative overtravel, and wherein said transmission means comprises a second sprocket and chain means.

18. Apparatus as defined by claim 17 wherein the cooperating peripheries of said first pair of feed rolls are formed with annular grooves, and wherein said second and third pairs of feed rolls are continuously rotatably driven.

No references cited.

JOHN M. HORAN, Primary Examiner.

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