Separator for separating envelopes from a stack

Abstract

A separator for separating envelopes from a stack has a feeding roller for exerting a force onto the envelope, urging it in a direction tangential to its circumference and parallel to a separating plane, and a deflecting surface for deflecting a leading edge of the envelope as it is urged in the tangential direction. The feeding roller and the deflecting surface bound a feeding path having a width, and starting at the separating position. Both feeding roller and deflecting surface include portions each extending from or from beyond opposite lateral sides of the feeding path inwardly across a lateral outer portion of the feeding path.

Description

FIELD AND BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION[0001]The invention relates to a separator for separating envelopes from a stack. Some examples of separators for separating sheets from a stack by bending sheets are described in European patent application 0 615 937, U.S. Pat. No. 6,883,798 and Japanese patent application 632 888 41. In such separators, a feeding roller is positioned relative to a sheet holder for contacting an outer sheet of a stack and for exerting a friction force onto the sheet for urging the sheet in a direction tangential to the circumference of the roller. A deflecting surface is located spaced from the contact area in the tangential direction and extends at an angle to the sheet to be separated for deflecting a leading edge of the sheet in the separating position as it is urged past the deflecting surface.[0002]In such separators, the separation is enhanced by the stiffness of the sheets that refrains sheets from passing through the curved passage bound by the deflectin...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

[0003]It is an object of the present invention to provide a simple separator, which is specifically suitable for separating envelopes from a stack.

[0005]The feeding roller and deflection surface sections extending from both lateral edges of the feeding path inwardly contact the envelope to be separated in areas along opposite lateral side edges of the envelope. The edge areas of the envelope, where the front and rear walls of the envelope are connected to each other, are the stiffest areas of the envelope and therefore have the greatest resistance against bending. Accordingly, by bending the envelope around the feeding roller in these areas, the greatest resistance against passing the deflection surface is caused, which is favorable for avoiding double feeds in which an outer envelope to be separated entrains a next envelope. Also, engaging the envelopes in an area where the bending stiffness is greatest makes the separation relatively insensitive to variations in bending stiffness between envelopes and proper adjustment of the deflecting surface. Because the friction coefficient of the deflecting surface relative to the envelopes is uniform across its width, the friction force exerted on the envelope is affected only to a small extent by the width of the envelope.

Problems solved by technology

Also, engaging the envelopes in an area where the bending stiffness is greatest makes the separation relatively insensitive to variations in bending stiffness between envelopes and proper adjustment of the deflecting surface.

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