Sheet feeding or delivering – Feeding – Separators
Reexamination Certificate
2001-04-03
2002-10-22
Ellis, Christopher P. (Department: 3651)
Sheet feeding or delivering
Feeding
Separators
C271S022000, C271S038000, C271S122000, C271S119000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06467766
ABSTRACT:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a paper sheet feed mechanism which is incorporated in an OA apparatus, a finance automatic machine or the like and in which paper sheets piled up in a storage inside which paper sheets are piled up are delivered one by one from the storage, and particularly to a paper sheet feed mechanism in which the piled up paper sheets are delivered from the top thereof sequentially.
BACKGROUND ART
Various types of paper sheet feed mechanisms are conventionally known as the paper sheet feed mechanism as described above.
FIG. 9
is a view showing a first example of a conventional paper sheet feed mechanism.
Here, shown are a storage
200
inside which paper sheets
300
are piled up and a push-up board
402
suspended by springs
401
inside the storage
200
. The paper sheets
300
are piled up on this push-up board
402
, and the push-up board
402
is drawn upward by the force of the springs
401
so that the paper sheets
300
are pushed up by the push-up board
402
. A feed roller
403
and a pick roller
404
are provided in an upper part of the storage
200
, and the pushed up paper sheets
300
are pressed against the feed roller
403
and the pick roller
404
. The feed roller
403
and the pick roller
404
rotate counterclockwise as shown by arrows F
1
and F
2
of the drawing so that the paper sheets
300
pressed against the feed roller
403
and the pick roller
404
are conveyed to the right direction of the drawing. In this drawing, a separator
405
provided so as to oppose to the feed roller is shown, and the paper sheets
300
conveyed to the right direction of the drawing pass between the separator
405
and the feed roller
403
while being rubbed against the separator
405
. As a result of this, so-called overlap conveyance in which two or more paper sheets
300
are conveyed at one time is prevented by frictional force between the separator
405
and the paper sheets
300
. The paper sheet
300
passed between the feed roller
403
and the separator
405
is conveyed to the outside of the storage
200
by conveyance rollers
406
as shown by an arrow F
3
of the drawing, whereby delivery of the paper sheet
300
is completed.
In this first example, since the paper sheets
300
are pushed up by the force of the springs
401
to be pressed against the feed roller
403
and the pick roller
404
, when the amount of the paper sheets
300
piled up is changed, the force by which the paper sheets
300
are pressed against the feed roller
403
and the pick roller
404
changes.
FIG. 10
is a view showing a second example of a conventional paper sheet feed mechanism.
A storage
200
is shown in this
FIG. 10
, and in the storage
200
, a push-up board
503
driven by a motor
502
via a belt
501
is shown. In the upper part of the storage
200
, a feed roller
504
similar to that of the first example is provided, and further provided are a pick roller holding lever
505
which is rotatable about the rotation axis of the feed roller
504
, a pick roller
506
held by the pick roller holding lever
505
, and a spring
507
urging downward the pick roller
506
along with the pick roller holding lever
505
.
When the push-up board
503
is driven upward, the paper sheets
300
piled up on this push-up board
503
are pushed up by the push-up board
503
to be pressed against the feed roller
504
and the pick roller
506
. The pick roller
506
against which the paper sheets
300
are pressed moves upward in accordance with that press force, and the pick roller holding lever
505
accordingly rotates. A sensor
508
detecting the magnitude of the force by which the paper sheets are pressed by detecting the position of the pick roller holding lever
505
is provided in the upper part of the pick roller holding lever
505
. Based on a detection result by this sensor
508
, the motor
502
is controlled by a control section which is not shown so that the belt
501
is driven as shown by arrows F
4
and F
5
of the drawing, whereby the pick roller
506
is pushed up so that its position is regulated as shown by an arrow F
6
of the drawing. Thus, the force by which the paper sheets
300
are pressed against the pick roller
506
is stabilized.
Similar to the first example, the paper sheets
300
pressed against the feed roller
504
and the pick roller
506
are conveyed to the right side of the drawing, pass between the feed roller
504
and a separator
509
, and are fed to the outside of the storage
200
by conveyance rollers
510
to complete delivery of the paper sheets.
In a paper sheet feed mechanism incorporated specifically in a finance automatic machine, it is required that delivery of paper sheets is stable even when the amount of paper sheets piled up inside the storage is variously changed or when paper sheets whose use condition is various are accommodated in the storage.
However, as described above, in the first example, when the amount of the paper sheets piled up are changed, the force by which the paper sheets are pressed against the feed roller and the pick roller changes. Therefore, when the amount of the paper sheets largely changes, delivery stability deteriorates.
In the first example and the second example described above, the overlap conveyance in which two or more paper sheets are conveyed at one time is prevented in such a manner that the paper sheet is rubbed against the separator. Since paper sheets overlapping each other are not easy to be separated, regarding new paper sheets which have just been cut, and worn-out paper sheets overlapping each other are easy to be separated, it is necessary to employ a material whose coefficient of friction is high as a material for the separator in order to surely prevent the overlap conveyance of even the paper sheets which have just been cut. However, since such material is generally soft, abrasion of a separator in which such material is employed is intense, causing a short life time. When the frictional force is large, there is a possibility that a worn-out weak paper sheet is damaged.
Further, in the first example and the second example described above, there is a possibility that it is failed to plunge the paper sheets conveyed by the pick roller between the feed roller and the separator, and as a result the paper sheets stagnate before the separator.
DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION
Concerning the above described circumstances, it is an object of the present invention to provide a paper sheet feed mechanism in which delivery of paper sheets is stable.
A first paper sheet feed mechanism of the present invention to achieve the object is, in a paper sheet feed mechanism feeding paper sheets inside a storage inside which the paper sheets are piled up one by one from the storage, comprising:
a feed roller conveying an uppermost paper sheet piled among the paper sheets piled up inside the storage to a predetermined conveyance direction by being in contact with the uppermost paper sheet and rotating,
a pick roller being positioned behind the feed roller in the conveyance direction and conveying the uppermost paper sheet with which the feed roller is in contact to the conveyance direction at a conveyance speed faster than a conveyance speed by the feed roller by being in contact with the uppermost paper sheet and rotating, and
a conveyance mechanism conveying the paper sheet fed by the feed roller and the pick roller to the outside of the storage.
Here, the conveyance mechanism and the feed roller may be one that has both roles.
With the first paper sheet feed mechanism of the present invention, since the pick roller conveys the paper sheet at the conveyance speed faster than the conveyance speed of the feed roller, the paper sheet is bent and rises between the pick roller and the feed roller, and the uppermost paper sheet and the paper sheet next thereto are separated. Thus, overlap conveyance is prevented. Further, since the uppermost paper sheet is quickly conveyed toward the feed roller by the pick roller, even when the paper sheets are piled up, being in diso
Abe Hayami
Minamishin Hayato
Tanaka Yuji
Deuble Mark A.
Ellis Christopher P.
Fujitsu Limited
Staas & Halsey , LLP
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