Single-piece separation device for high-friction rough flexible flaky materials

Abstract

The invention discloses a single-piece separation device and method for high-friction rough flexible flaky materials. The device comprises a pickup roller set, a separation sliding table and a supporting frame. The paper pickup wheel set is composed of at least two non-perfect-circle special-shaped paper pickup wheels which are coaxially arranged at intervals in a phase staggered mode, and the end faces of the paper pickup wheels sequentially and alternately beat paper when the paper pickup wheels rotate. The separating sliding table is arranged below the pickup roller set, the table top of the separating sliding table is tangent to the movement track of the end face, a sliding groove is formed corresponding to each pickup roller, the area between the sliding grooves is a paper separating face, and the friction coefficient of the paper separating face is higher than that of the bottoms of the sliding grooves. The gap between the end face motion trail of the pickup roller and the paper separating face can be adjusted through the supporting frame. In the working process, staggered end faces beat and rub the uppermost layer of material in a pulse mode, so that the uppermost layer of material is locally pressed into the sliding grooves to be bent, interlayer friction is reduced, and conveying is started; and the lower-layer material is blocked by the high-friction paper separation surface, so that reliable single-piece separation is realized. The method is suitable for high-friction rough flaky materials such as abrasive paper, art paper, non-woven fabric and felt.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to the fields of automated office equipment, printing machinery, packaging machinery, and flexible material processing technology. Specifically, it relates to an apparatus and method for reliably separating and conveying stacks of sheet materials (such as specific paper, fabric, etc.) with high-friction, rough surfaces into individual sheets. Background Technology

[0002] In automated equipment, such as printers, copiers, box gluing machines, and textile fabric cutting machines, it is often necessary to separate stacked sheet materials (such as paper, cardboard, non-woven fabric, etc.) one sheet at a time and transport them to subsequent workstations for processing. Achieving reliable sheet separation is a key aspect of ensuring the normal operation of the equipment and the quality of processing.

[0003] Traditional sheet-separating mechanisms (often called paper feed mechanisms or paper separators) generally employ the principle of "friction difference." A typical structure includes one or more circular drive feed rollers and a pressure-fitting resistance pad (or friction plate). During operation, the feed rollers rotate, propelling the paper forward through friction with the top sheet, while the resistance pad, through high friction and pressure, prevents the movement of the second and subsequent sheets, thus achieving separation.

[0004] However, traditional paper-making mechanisms face severe challenges for special materials with rough surfaces and extremely high coefficients of friction, such as sandpaper, certain art papers, high-grammage rough cardstock, non-woven fabrics, and felt. (1) Separation failure: The static friction coefficient between these materials is extremely high, often exceeding the friction coefficient between the paper feed roller and the material surface. Even if the pressure of the paper feed roller is increased, it is impossible to generate a driving force sufficient to overcome the static friction between the layers, causing the paper feed roller to "spin" and fail to feed paper; (2) Material damage: If the pressure is forcibly increased or a paper feed roller with higher friction is used, once started, the huge friction force may exceed the strength of the material itself, causing the material surface to be rubbed, frayed, curled or permanently deformed. (3) Multiple sheets sent out: Due to the rough and irregular surface of the material, traditional resistance pads may not be able to uniformly and effectively resist the lower layer of material, which may easily lead to multiple sheets being sent out at the same time.

[0005] Several improvements have been made in the prior art. For example, CN209222290U discloses an automatic paper feeding mechanism with an inclined support plate and an adjustable resistance element, which improves separation performance by optimizing the angle and resistance. However, for the aforementioned extremely high-friction rough materials, the fundamental principle remains unchanged, still relying on continuous rolling friction, resulting in limited improvement. Other solutions use methods such as air blowing, air suction, or vibration to assist separation, but these increase system complexity and cost, and their effectiveness is unstable for porous or thin materials.

[0006] Therefore, there is an urgent need to invent a completely new separation principle and device that can fundamentally solve the problem of reliable and non-destructive separation of single sheets of high-friction, rough sheet materials. Summary of the Invention

[0007] The purpose of this invention is to overcome the shortcomings of traditional friction-type paper separating mechanisms in the prior art, which cannot effectively and non-destructively separate high-friction, rough sheet materials. It provides a novel, reliable, and highly adaptable sheet-separation device and method. This device effectively breaks the large static friction lock between material layers through an innovative combination of alternating pulse striking and non-compression friction, achieving efficient and flexible sheet separation.

[0008] To achieve the above objectives, the technical solution adopted by this invention is: to provide a sheet-separation device for high-friction, rough, flexible sheet materials. This device, through an innovative paper-feeding roller assembly design and a corresponding separation slide structure, fundamentally changes the traditional continuous, squeezing friction between the paper-feeding roller and the paper. Instead, it employs alternating, pulsed tapping and rubbing motions, causing localized bending of the paper. This effectively overcomes the excessive static friction between high-friction, rough sheets, achieving reliable sheet separation. The specific technical solution is as follows: A sheet separation device for high-friction, rough, flexible sheet material mainly includes a paper feeding roller assembly, a separation slide, and a support frame.

[0009] The paper feed roller assembly is the core innovation of the drive unit. It consists of at least two (and more, depending on the paper width) non-circular irregularly shaped paper feed rollers, coaxially and spaced apart, fixed on a shaft, with all rollers rotating synchronously. Each roller has at least one convex end face for contacting the material. Crucially, the end faces of two axially adjacent rollers are staggered in the circumferential direction (i.e., the phase difference is not zero or an integer multiple of 180 degrees). This arrangement ensures that when the assembly rotates, the end faces of the rollers do not strike the uppermost surface of the lower stack of paper simultaneously, but sequentially and alternately. This alternating striking motion generates a brief but intense localized forward frictional pulse at each contact point.

[0010] The separating slide is positioned below the paper feed roller assembly, with its surface approximately tangent to the trajectory circle of the lowest point of the paper feed roller end face (it can be installed horizontally or at an angle). On the separating slide, directly below the trajectory of each paper feed roller, a groove slightly wider than the roller is formed along the paper output direction. A certain clearance is maintained between the bottom of the groove and the end face of the descending paper feed roller, ensuring they never come into contact. The area of ​​the slide between the grooves constitutes the separating surface. The separating surface is specially treated or made of a high-friction material, giving it a high coefficient of friction; while the groove area (bottom or side) has a relatively low coefficient of friction, or its suspended structure provides virtually no resistance to paper movement.

[0011] The support frame is used to mechanically support and fix the paper feed roller assembly and the separation slide, ensuring their precise relative positions. Preferably, the support frame integrates a height or gap adjustment mechanism, which can finely adjust the distance between the axis of the paper feed roller assembly and the surface of the separation slide, thereby accommodating sheet materials of different thicknesses, hardnesses, and elasticities.

[0012] The working process of this invention can be divided into three stages: "starting the lever", "wave conveying", and "blocking separation". S1 Initiation: When a stack of high-friction material is placed at the feed end, the top layer of paper contacts or is slightly pressed against the feed roller assembly. The feed roller assembly rotates, and the end face of the first feed roller that reaches the top layer violently strikes a localized area of ​​the paper. This pulse force is sufficient to overcome the enormous interlayer static friction in a localized instant, causing the top layer of paper to begin to move forward in an extremely small amount. At the same time, this end face presses a localized area of ​​the paper into the groove below it, causing the paper to bend slightly, resulting in a slight lifting of the paper area below the adjacent feed rollers, causing a momentary "detachment" (reduced contact pressure) between the paper and the lower layer of paper.

[0013] S2 Wave Conveyor: Next, the staggered end faces of adjacent feed rollers begin to abrade the areas of paper that have become "detached" due to the lifting. Because the interlayer friction at this point has been significantly reduced due to the brief local separation, the second end face can easily propel the paper forward significantly. Thus, multiple alternating end faces, like waves, continuously advance the top layer of paper forward through a cycle of "press-lift-rub". As the paper advances, the abradeed portion always moves above the low-resistance feed groove.

[0014] S3 Barrier Separation: If the lower layer of paper is carried along by inertia or friction, its leading edge will contact the separating surface between the slides before the uppermost layer. Due to the high friction of the separating surface, and the downward pressure transmitted from the upper layer, the high-friction separating surface creates significant resistance to the lower layer, causing it to stop quickly. The uppermost layer, however, is unaffected by this high resistance because its point of force is always below the slide, thus successfully separating from the lower layer and being finally fed out.

[0015] Compared with the prior art, the present invention has the following significant advantages: (1) Breakthrough separation capability: The pioneering “alternating pulse tapping” mechanism can generate an instantaneous starting force that is far greater than that of continuous friction, fundamentally solving the industry problem that high friction rough materials cannot start due to excessive static friction between layers. (2) High separation reliability: The combination design of "slide groove-high friction paper separating surface" cleverly utilizes the difference in movement trajectory and force state between single and multiple sheets of paper to achieve active, physical barrier separation, which greatly reduces the misfeeding rate of double or multiple sheets; (3) Minimal material damage: The pulse action time is extremely short, and the force is mainly used to overcome the static friction at the start. Once the paper moves, the subsequent conveying is smooth, avoiding material surface damage (such as fuzzing, scratches, and deformation) caused by long-term, large-area strong friction in traditional mechanisms. (4) Wide adjustability and adaptability: By adjusting parameters such as the gap between the paper feed roller and the paper separating surface, the speed of the paper feed roller, and the irregular profile, the separation effect of sheet materials with different thicknesses, hardness, friction coefficients and stiffness can be flexibly optimized, and the versatility is strong; (5) The structure is relatively simple and reliable: it does not require complex negative pressure or positive pressure air circuits or high frequency vibration devices. It mainly relies on pure mechanical structure, which has high stability, convenient maintenance and controllable cost; (6) Expanded application scope: Its principle is not only applicable to various high-friction rough papers, but also to other flexible sheets with similar properties, such as specific textiles, industrial felts, polymer foams, etc., which expands the application potential of this technology in multiple industrial fields. Attached Figure Description

[0016] Figure 1 This is a three-dimensional structural schematic diagram of one embodiment of the invention.

[0017] Figure 2 for Figure 1 The axial view of the paper feed roller assembly in the embodiment shows the staggered phase arrangement of the end faces of the three paper feed rollers.

[0018] Figure 3 for Figure 1 The front view of the separating slide in the embodiment shows the distribution of the slide groove and the paper separating surface.

[0019] Figure 4 This is a schematic diagram illustrating the working principle of the invention, showing the state where the end face of the paper feed roller strikes the paper, and the paper partially enters the groove and lifts up.

[0020] In the diagram: 1. Paper feed roller assembly; 11. Paper feed roller; 12. Shaft; 13. End face; 14. Transmission gear; 2. Separation slide; 21. Paper feed end; 22. Paper output end; 23. Slide groove; 24. Paper separation surface; 3. Support frame; 4. Top layer of paper. Detailed Implementation

[0021] The present invention will be further described below with reference to the accompanying drawings and specific embodiments. It should be understood that the following description is intended to illustrate the invention and not to limit its scope of protection.

[0022] Example 1: As Figures 1 to 4 As shown, this embodiment provides a sheet separation device for separating high-friction art paper.

[0023] The paper feed roller assembly 1 includes a steel shaft 12, on which two identical irregularly shaped paper feed rollers 11 are fixedly connected by a key. The paper feed rollers 11 are made of polyurethane rubber and are triangular in shape with rounded corners (which can be considered as having three convex end faces 13). The paper feed rollers are 6 mm thick, and the two paper feed rollers 11 are arranged axially at intervals. Figure 2 As shown, during installation, the phases of the two paper feed rollers 11 are intentionally staggered: assuming that one end face of the first paper feed roller is in a vertically downward position (12 o'clock position), the corresponding end face of the second paper feed roller is installed 60 degrees behind in the direction of rotation. A transmission gear 14 is mounted on the shaft 12, connected to an external stepper motor for drive, ensuring that the two paper feed rollers 11 rotate synchronously in the same direction.

[0024] The separating slide 2 is injection molded and fixed to the support frame 3. The paper inlet end 21 and the paper outlet end 22 of the separating slide 2 are at a 90-degree angle. The slide groove 23 extends in an arc shape (e.g., Figure 1 , Figure 2 As shown), it facilitates the gliding of soft paper. Its platform position is precisely adjusted to be approximately tangent to the circumference of the lowest point of the end face 13 of the paper feed roller 11, with a relative height difference H=1mm (as shown). Figure 4 As shown). Figure 3 As shown, on the table surface, directly below the center line of the two paper feed rollers 11, there are two parallel rectangular cross-section grooves 23. The grooves 23 are 8mm wide, 5mm deep, and extend from the paper feed end 21 to the paper output end 22. The area of ​​the table surface between the grooves 23 is the paper separating surface 24. A layer of silicone sheet approximately 1mm thick is adhered to the paper separating surface 24 as a high-friction material layer. The bottom surface of the grooves 23 remains a smooth plastic surface with a low coefficient of friction.

[0025] The support frame 3 is injection molded and has a perforated support for mounting the shaft 12. By finely adjusting the distance between the support frame 3 and the separating slide 2, the relative height difference H between the end face 13 and the paper separating surface 24 can be changed (usually adjusted between -3 and 3 mm, depending on the paper thickness and stiffness). A negative value of H indicates that the end face 13 enters the slide groove 23, but remains suspended at the bottom of the slide groove. Furthermore, since the slide groove 23 is wider than the paper feed roller 11, the end face 13 never touches the separating slide 2.

[0026] Work process integration Figure 4 illustrate: A stack of rough-surfaced paper (with a high coefficient of friction) is neatly arranged at the paper feed end 21. The stepper motor is started, and the paper feed roller assembly 1 rotates counterclockwise at a constant speed (e.g., 60 RPM). Figure 1 (Perspective).

[0027] At time t1: The end face 13a of the paper feed roller A rotates to its lowest point and violently strikes a portion of the top layer of paper 4. The strong pulse friction force causes the portion of paper 4 to gain a forward velocity V1. At the same time, paper 4 is pressed into the groove 23a, causing it to bend and resulting in a slight lifting of the paper area below the paper feed roller B.

[0028] At time t2 (slightly later than t1): the lagging rear end face 13b of the paper feed roller B begins to contact and agitate the area where the pressure of contact with the lower layer of paper is reduced due to the lifting. Because the interlayer friction is temporarily reduced here, end face 13b easily pushes the paper 4 forward significantly (speed V2 > V1). Driven by end face 13b, the corresponding portion of the paper 4 advances along the groove 23b with minimal resistance.

[0029] At time t3: The end face 13a of the paper feed roller A then acts, continuing to push the paper 4. This cycle repeats, creating a wave-like pushing motion. If the lower layer of paper is moved, its leading edge quickly contacts the silicone sheet layer on the separating surface 24, and the high friction causes it to stop, while the paper 4 continues to move forward on the chute, thus achieving separation and output from the paper output end 22.

[0030] Example 2: The main difference between this example and Example 1 is the application object and some structural parameters. It is used to separate industrial non-woven fabric slices.

[0031] The paper feed rollers 11 are made of softer silicone material and are elliptical in shape (with two main end faces). A total of four paper feed rollers are used, with their phases staggered by 90 degrees.

[0032] The separating slide 2 is installed at a 30-degree angle to accommodate the soft characteristics of non-woven fabrics, allowing them to adhere to the surface under gravity without bending. The slide groove 23 has an arc-shaped cross-section, which further facilitates the sliding of soft fabrics.

[0033] The high-friction material of the separating surface 24 is a polyurethane sheet with micro-adhesion.

[0034] Adjust the relative height difference H to be slightly smaller (about 0.8 mm) to suit the thickness and softness of the nonwoven fabric.

[0035] The separation principle is the same: alternating beating overcomes the entanglement and friction between nonwoven fibers, chutes reduce conveying resistance, and high-friction paper surfaces impede the lower layer of fabric.

[0036] Other variations: The irregular shape of the paper feed roller is not limited to triangle or ellipse; it can be polygonal, cam-shaped, etc., as long as it can produce a periodic convex contact surface.

[0037] The groove 23 does not have to be a strict straight line; it can be slightly curved or at a small angle to the paper output direction to help align the paper or provide lateral friction adjustment.

[0038] The high-friction treatment of the paper separating surface 24 can be limited to adhesive materials, or it can be surface knurling, spraying a wear-resistant high-friction coating, etc.

[0039] It is possible to add a photoelectric sensor to detect the presence of paper and whether there are two sheets, and to control it in conjunction with the drive motor.

[0040] The single-sheet separation device and method provided by this invention effectively solves the key technical bottleneck in the automated separation of high-friction rough sheet materials. It can be widely used in automated equipment for printing, packaging, textiles, composite material processing, and other industries that require the processing of special paper, cloth, non-woven fabric, felt, foam, and other materials, thereby improving the reliability and processing range of the equipment and having significant industrial application value.

[0041] The above description is merely a preferred embodiment of the present invention and is not intended to limit the invention. For those skilled in the art, the present invention can have various modifications, variations, and combinations. Any modifications, equivalent substitutions, improvements, etc., made within the spirit and principles of the present invention should be included within the scope of protection of the present invention.

Claims

1. A sheet separation device for high-friction rough flexible sheet material, used for separating sheet material with a high-friction rough surface, characterized in that, include: The paper feed roller assembly (1) consists of at least two paper feed rollers (11) arranged coaxially and spaced apart along an axis (12), with all paper feed rollers (11) rotating synchronously. Each paper feed roller (11) is a non-circular irregular structure with at least one convex end face (13) for contacting sheet material. The two paper feed rollers (11) arranged axially adjacent to each other along the axis (12) have their end faces (13) staggered in the circumferential direction, so that when the paper feed roller assembly (1) rotates, the end faces (13) of adjacent paper feed rollers (11) contact and act on the uppermost layer of the sheet material pile to be separated in sequence and alternately. A separating slide (2) is located below the paper feed roller assembly (1), and its surface is tangent or approximately tangent to the movement trajectory of the lowest point of the end face (13) of the paper feed roller (11). On the surface of the separating slide (2), a groove (23) is provided along the paper output direction below the movement trajectory of each paper feed roller (11). The width of the groove (23) is slightly wider than the width of the paper feed roller (11), so that there is a gap between the bottom of the groove (23) and the end face (13) of the paper feed roller (11), and the paper feed roller (11) does not touch the wall of the groove (23). The surface area between adjacent grooves (23) constitutes a paper separating surface (24). The surface friction coefficient of the paper separating surface (24) is higher than the surface friction coefficient of the bottom of the groove (23). The support frame (3) is used to fix the shaft (12) supporting the paper feed roller assembly (1) and the separation slide (2) and maintain the relative positional relationship between them.

2. The single-sheet separation device for high-friction rough flexible sheet material according to claim 1, characterized in that, The end face (13) and / or the paper separating surface (24) are provided with a high-friction material layer, or the paper feeding roller (11) and / or the paper separating surface (24) are made entirely of a high-friction material; the high-friction material includes one or more combinations of rubber, silicone, polyurethane, felt, flocking material, viscous polymer or microporous foam material.

3. The single-sheet separation device for high-friction rough flexible sheet material according to claim 1, characterized in that, The paper feed end (21) and paper output end (22) of the separation slide (2) are located in planes that are parallel to each other, or the two are at an angle greater than 0 degrees and less than or equal to 180 degrees.

4. The single-sheet separation device for high-friction rough flexible sheet material according to claim 1, characterized in that, The support frame (3) is provided with a distance adjustment mechanism for adjusting the vertical distance between the shaft (12) of the paper feed roller group (1) and the table surface of the separation slide (2), thereby changing the gap between the end face (13) and the paper separating surface (24).

5. The single-sheet separation device for high-friction rough flexible sheet material according to claim 1, characterized in that, A transmission component is fixedly connected to the shaft (12). The transmission component includes gears, couplings, pulleys or sprockets, which are used to connect to an external drive source and drive the paper feed roller assembly (1) to rotate.

6. The single-sheet separation device for high-friction rough flexible sheet material according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that, The irregular structure of the paper feed roller (11) is polygonal, elliptical, cam-shaped, or an asymmetrical shape with at least one smooth convex curve.

7. The single-sheet separation device for high-friction rough flexible sheet material according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that, The cross-sectional shape of the chute (23) is rectangular, trapezoidal, arc-shaped or V-shaped; the angle between the length extension direction of the chute (23) and the paper conveying direction is 0 degrees to 45 degrees.

8. The single-sheet separation device for high-friction rough flexible sheet material according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that, The device also includes a paper stack positioning mechanism or sensor to ensure that the top layer of the paper stack to be separated is in a preset contact or proximity state with the paper feed roller assembly (1).

9. A method for separating single sheets of high-friction, rough, flexible sheet material, using the single-sheet separation device for high-friction, rough, flexible sheet material as described in claim 1, characterized in that... Includes the following steps: Place a stack of sheet material to be separated at the paper feed end (21) of the separation slide (2), so that the uppermost layer is in contact with or near the end face (13) of the paper feed roller assembly (1); Drive the paper-feeding roller assembly (1) to rotate, and the staggered end faces (13) sequentially and alternately pat and rub the local area of ​​the uppermost sheet material to generate a pulse-like forward driving force, overcome the static friction between the uppermost and lower layers of material, and start the uppermost material; During the startup process, the local material area pressed by the end face (13) enters the corresponding groove (23), causing the material to undergo slight bending deformation, reducing the contact area and normal pressure with the lower material, and further reducing interlayer friction; The top layer of material is conveyed forward under the alternating tapping drive, and its main body moves above the chute (23) with little resistance; if the bottom layer of material is moved forward along with it, its front end will contact and be blocked by the high-friction separating surface (24), thus separating from the top layer of material. The separated single sheet of material is output from the paper output end (22).

10. The single-sheet separation device for high-friction rough flexible sheet material according to claim 1 or the separation method according to claim 9, characterized in that, The sheet material includes high-friction rough paper, sandpaper, artistic textured paper, non-woven fabric, cotton cloth, linen, felt, or polymer foam sheet.

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