Article feeder and method of feeding

Abstract

An article feeder includes a feeder bin for holding and advancing a stack of articles. A stripper belt mechanism engages the first article contained in the stack and singularly draws the article from the stack. The stripper belt mechanism includes a source of vacuum for drawing vacuum onto the first article. A biasing mechanism biases the stripper belt mechanism against the stack of articles and applies back pressure thereto. The biasing mechanism is adjustable for varying the back pressure against the stack of articles to accommodate articles of varying thickness. A method for operating an article feeder is also disclosed.

That which is claimed is:  
     
         1 . An article feeder comprising: 
 a feeder bin for holding and advancing a stack of articles;    a stripper belt mechanism that engages the first article contained in the stack for singularly drawing the article from the stack, said stripper belt mechanism including a source of vacuum for drawing vacuum onto the first article, and a biasing mechanism for biasing the stripper belt mechanism against the stack of articles and applying back pressure thereto, wherein said biasing mechanism is adjustable for varying the back pressure against the stack of articles to accommodate articles of varying thickness.    
     
     
         2 . An article feeder according to  claim 1 , wherein said stripper belt mechanism further comprises at least one stripper belt, and pair of stripper rolls that support said at least one stripper belt.  
     
     
         3 . An article feeder according to  claim 2 , and further comprising a stripper roll support shaft supporting each stripper roll, and a drive motor engaging one of said stripper roll support shafts for drivingly rotating said stripper roll support shaft and driving by belt action the other stripper roll.  
     
     
         4 . An article feeder according to  claim 1 , wherein said biasing mechanism further comprises a spring.  
     
     
         5 . An article feeder according to  claim 4 , and further comprising a support member that engages said spring and supports said stripper belt mechanism, wherein said spring is adjustable in tension to change the biasing against the support member and exerted by said stripper belt mechanism against the first article contained within the stack.  
     
     
         6 . An article feeder according to  claim 1 , wherein said feeder bin comprises a support table.  
     
     
         7 . An article feeder according to  claim 1 , wherein said articles comprise wallet sized cards.  
     
     
         8 . An article feeder according to  claim 1 , wherein said articles comprise mail pieces that are further processed.  
     
     
         9 . An article feeder comprising: 
 a feeder bin for holding a stack of articles, said feeder bin including a feed conveyor that advances said stack of articles along a path of travel;    a stripper belt mechanism that engages the first article in the stack along the path of travel for singularly drawing the article from the stack, wherein said stripper belt mechanism further comprises a biasing mechanism for biasing the stripper belt against the stack of articles and applying back pressure thereto, a switch connected to said biasing mechanism and said feed conveyor for actuating the feed conveyor when a predetermined amount of back pressure is exerted, wherein said biasing mechanism is adjustable for varying the back pressure against the stack of articles to accommodate articles of varying thickness.    
     
     
         10 . An article feeder according to  claim 9 , wherein said stripper belt mechanism further comprises at least one stripper belt, pair of stripper rolls that support said at least one stripper belt.  
     
     
         11 . An article feeder according to  claim 10 , and further comprising a stripper roll support shaft supporting each stripper roll, and a drive motor engaging one of said stripper roll support shafts for drivingly rotating said stripper roll support shaft and driving by belt action the other stripper roll.  
     
     
         12 . An article feeder according to  claim 9 , wherein said biasing mechanism further comprises a spring.  
     
     
         13 . An article feeder according to  claim 12 , and further comprising a support member that engages said spring and supports said stripper belt mechanism, wherein said spring is adjustable in tension to change the biasing against the support member and exerted by said stripper belt mechanism against the first article contained within the stack.  
     
     
         14 . An article feeder according to  claim 9 , wherein said feeder bin comprises a support table that supports said conveyor feed.  
     
     
         15 . An article feeder according to  claim 9 , wherein said articles comprise wallet sized cards.  
     
     
         16 . An article feeder according to  claim 9 , wherein said articles comprise mail pieces that are further processed.  
     
     
         17 . An article feeder comprising: 
 a feeder bin for holding a stack of articles, said feeder bin including a feed conveyor that advances said stack of articles along a path of travel;    a stripper belt mechanism that engages the first article in the stack along the path of travel for singularly drawing the article from the stack, wherein said stripper belt mechanism further comprises a biasing mechanism for biasing the stripper belt against the stack of articles and applying back pressure thereto, a switch connected to said biasing mechanism and said feed conveyor for actuating the feed conveyor when a predetermined amount of back pressure is exerted, wherein said biasing mechanism is adjustable for varying the back pressure against the stack of articles to accommodate articles of varying thickness;    a feed discharge belt assembly for receiving the drawn article from the stripper belt mechanism.    
     
     
         18 . An article feeder according to  claim 17 , wherein said stripper belt mechanism further comprises at least one stripper belt, pair of stripper rolls that support said at least one stripper belt.  
     
     
         19 . An article feeder according to  claim 18 , and further comprising a stripper roll support shaft supporting each stripper roll, and a drive motor engaging one of said stripper roll support shafts for drivingly rotating said stripper roll support shaft and driving by belt action the other stripper roll.  
     
     
         20 . An article feeder according to  claim 17 , wherein said biasing mechanism further comprises a spring.  
     
     
         21 . An article feeder according to  claim 17 , and further comprising a support member that engages said spring and supports said stripper belt mechanism, wherein said spring is adjustable in tension to change the biasing against the support member and exerted by said stripper belt mechanism against the first article contained within the stack.  
     
     
         22 . An article feeder according to  claim 17 , wherein said feeder bin comprises a support table that supports said conveyor feed.  
     
     
         23 . An article feeder according to  claim 17 , wherein said articles comprise wallet sized cards.  
     
     
         24 . An article feeder according to  claim 17 , wherein said articles comprise mail pieces that are further processed.  
     
     
         25 . A method of feeding an article comprising the steps of: 
 advancing a stack of articles against a stripper belt mechanism that engages the first article contained within the stack of articles; and    drawing vacuum on the first article to draw the first article against the stripper belt mechanism, wherein said stripper belt mechanism is adjustably biased against said stack of articles for accommodating articles of varying thickness.    
     
     
         26 . A method according to  claim 25 , and further comprising the step of supporting at least one stripper belt with a pair of stripper rolls.  
     
     
         27 . A method according to  claim 25 , and further comprising the step of biasing the stripper belt mechanism with a spring, and adjusting the spring in tension for adjusting back pressure.  
     
     
         28 . A method according to  claim 25 , wherein said articles comprise wallet sized cards.  
     
     
         29 . A method of feeding an article comprising the steps of: 
 advancing a stack of articles along a feed conveyor against a stripper belt mechanism that engages the first article contained within the stack of articles;    biasing the stripper belt mechanism against the stack of articles and actuating the feed conveyor when a predetermined biasing force is placed against said articles; and    drawing vacuum on the first article to draw the first article against the stripper belt mechanism, wherein said stripper belt mechanism is adjustably biased against said stack of articles for accommodating articles of varying thickness.    
     
     
         30 . A method according to  claim 29 , and further comprising the step of supporting at least one stripper belt with a pair of stripper rolls.  
     
     
         31 . A method according to  claim 29 , and further comprising the step of biasing the stripper belt mechanism with a spring, and adjusting the spring in tension for adjusting back pressure.  
     
     
         32 . A method according to  claim 29 , wherein said articles comprise wallet sized cards.