摘要:
A sheet-separating apparatus is provided for use in conjunction with vacuum fingers for feeding sheets seriatim from a stack. The sheet separator comprises a plurality of stationary hollow tubes adjacent one end of a sheet support, each tube having an orifice in the form of a vertical slot facing the support. Air is supplied to each tube and is directed in a stream through the slot by an oscillating riffling finger associated with each tube and having a tab extending into the slot to vary the effective area thereof. When the riffling finger is in a lowered position against the top of the stack, air is forced through a small area of the slot at a high velocity to separate the edges of the upper sheets as a vacuum finger engages the uppermost sheet. As the riffling fingers move upwardly from the stack the effective area of each slot becomes larger, causing a gradual decrease in the velocity of the air and a gradual increase in volume. After the vacuum fingers have separated the uppermost sheet from the stack the riffling finger moves downwardly to grip the remaining sheets on the stack.