CA1230896A

CA1230896A - Sheet sorting machine with travelling bin sorter

Info

Publication number: CA1230896A
Application number: CA000451757A
Authority: CA
Inventors: John C. Hamma
Original assignee: Gradco Systems Inc
Current assignee: Gradco Systems Inc
Priority date: 1983-04-11
Filing date: 1984-04-11
Publication date: 1987-12-29
Also published as: IT8448016A0; DE3413238C2; GB2139195B; JPH0541548B2; DE3413238A1; JPS59215895A; CH656372A5; GB2139195A; GB8409321D0

Abstract

ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE

A sheet sorting machine has bin trays adapted to re-ceive sheets of paper or paper-like material from a source, such as an office copier, the trays being mounted one on the other and on a lower base for pivotal movement. A travelling sheet feed and bin opening assembly is supported for vertical movement past sheet inlet trays and a sheet guide directs successive sheets to the trays. The sheet feed and bin opening assembly are caused to move vertically in opposite directions by Geneva wheels which are rotated and caused to progressively engage tray ends and move to successive trays while holding adjacent tray ends spaced apart by engagement with the periphery of the Geneva wheel.

Description

~23(3896 BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
-Very small or compact sorting or collating machines have been developed for use with office copying machines, wherein a set of bin trays are shifted seriatim from positions above or below tray shifting members, and the tray ends remote from a sheet inlet are pivotal supported to allow the sheet inlet ends of the trays to be held widely spaced at the sheet entry location.
Examples of such sorting machines are disclosed in the prior patents of Lawrence 4,343,363 and Du Boys and Mamma 4,328,963 and 4,332,377.

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1 Other prior art discloses the concept that a

2 traveling bin opener can be used to open the bin, trays at

3 a sheet entry location without moving the sets of trays

4 past the sheet entry location, but instead moving the sheet entry location past the bins by the traveling bin 6 opener. An example of such a prior sorter is that 7 disclosed in the pending application of Du Boise Serial 8 No. 3~1,795, filed June 23, 1982.
9 Other examples of traveling bin openers are disclosed in the following patents, wherein the sheets are 11 deflected into the opened bins from a conveyor:
12 3,774,902 November 27, 1973 Schulz 13 3,879,032 April 22, 1975 Cheerios 14 4,133,522 January 9, 1979 Siegel These prior art devices employ shaft drives and 16 cams which are complex mechanisms requiring numerous 17 parts, but they are efficient in terms of reducing the 18 size of an apparatus for sorting a given number of sheets 19 per bin.
Another structure utilizes shifting bin openers 21 of the spiral cam type shown in Lawrence Patent No.
22 4,343,463, in combination with the pivotal mounting of the 23 outer ends of the trays one on the other on tray ends 24 which act to open the outer ends of the trays in response to the pivotal movement of the trays caused by the action 26 of the bin opening cams at the inlet ends of the bins, as 27 disclosed in Patent 4,332,377.

29 SUMMARY of THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a sorting 31 machine constituting an improvement over the sorter shown ~L.;23(~896 in Du Lois Patent referred to above in terms of simplicity of structure, savings ox space, weight, ease of assembly and economy.
In the case of the present invention a frame structure is provided which is capable of molding from structural plastic foam materials for weight reduction.
An object of the invention is to conserve space.
Thus, the bin opener of the present invention is simple in construction. A shaft extends transversely of the frame structure and supports at opposite ends, so called Geneva wheels which are rotatable with the shaft and vertically shiftable in vertical guide tracks provided in the frame structure. Trays or bin plates have trunnions which project laterally and are engage able in notches in the Geneva wheels as they rotate, whereby the Geneva wheels are caused to travel in the guide tracks while the periphery of the Geneva wheels causes spacing between adjacent trays above and below the Geneva wheels.
The frame structure also has a sheet guide pivotal mounted therein and movable with the bin opener assembly to provide a defined sheet path leading from the sheet inlet location of the sorter to the vertically spaced bin locations as the bins are successively opened and closed.
To assure that sheets are transported from the sheet guide into the opened bins, a sheet transport shaft is disposed about the Geneva wheel shaft and carries driven sheet feed rolls opposed by pinch rolls forming a nip operable to carry the sheets into the bins. Such a Geneva wheel shaft and sheet feeding counter shaft are disclosed in Patent 4,337,936 wherein the shafts rotate on fixed axes rather on a shiftable axis as in the present invention.
The combination of the Geneva wheel tray bin opener moving to space the trays and moving from tray-to-tray, together with the combined Geneva wheel drive and paper drive, provides a very simple and compact structure utilizing a very small numb lZ3(~89~

1 bier of parts for a sorter in which the yin trays are Swiss 2 ¦ apart during sheet entry and rest on one another above and be-3 ion the opened bin.
4¦¦ Tiffs invention possesses many other advantages and has Al other purposes which may be made more clearly apparent from a 611 consideration of the forms in which it may be embodied. The pro-7 furred form is shown in the drawings accompanying and forming 8 part of the present application. It will now be described in 9 detail, for the purpose of illustrating the general principals of the invention; but it is to be understood that such detailed 11 description is not to be taken in a limiting sense.

Fig. l is a top plan showing a sorter applied to an 16 office copier;
17 Fig. 2 is a side elevation thereof;
18 Fig. 3 is an enlarged fragmentary section on the line 19 3-3 of Fig. l, with the bin opener in a mid-sorting position;
Fig. 4 is a view corresponding with Fig. 3, but showing¦
21 the bin opener in a lower sorting position;
22 Fig. 5 is a horizontal section on the line 5-5 of Fig.
23 3; and 24 Fig. 6 is a horizontal section on the line 6-6 of Fig.
3.

2 DESCRIPTION OF TOUGH, Preferred EMBODIMENT

2 As seen in the drawings, a sorting machine S is disk 3 pose in a position relative to a typical office machine C to 31 receive sheets of taper or similar material from the copier, I I¦ as indicted the broken line in I 2.

~230896 1 Sheets of copy are fed from the copier by the usual 2 transport means T, such as pressure rolls 10 to the sorter, to 3 be deposited in one or another of the trays or bins 11 success 4 ! lively during sorting operations or into the upper tray during

5 I non-sorting operation of the copier.

6 The trays 11 are mounted in a frame structure 12 having

7 sidewalls 13 providing vertical guide slots 14 to receive later-

8 ally projecting trunnions 15 at opposite sits of the inner ends

9 of the trays. At their outer ends, the trays are supported upon

10 on outwardly projecting whales tail 16 formed as part of the frame

11 structure and on one another on cam tray ends 17 which are more

12 particularly disclosed in patent 4,332,377 so as to cam the out-

13 or ends of the trays apart during sorting operations.

14 The inner ends of the trays 11, are vertically shift-able in the slots 14 and rest one upon the other at their inner 16 ends, by a pair of bin openers 18. These bin openers 18 in the 17 form shown are notched discs or "Geneva" wheels having a radial 18 notch 19 adapted to receive one of the tray ends or trunnions 19 when the Geneva wheel is rotated, to cause the Geneva wheels to travel up or down the trays, in a manner later to be described.
21 When the Geneva wheels are stationary the trunnions 22 of adjacent bins are spaced apart to provide a wide space be-23 tweet trays to facilitate sheet entry.
24 The Geneva wheels are fixed on a driven shaft 20, at 2 opposite ends thereof, the shaft having enlarged end bushings 21 2 adapted to move vertically in opposed guide slots 22 formed in 27 the housing. Shaft 20 is driven in a selected direction by means of a reversible electric motor I mounted on the base of 29 the frame structure and having a drive pulley to drive a flex-bye belt or chain 23 which engages a sprocket 24 on shaft 20.
31 The drive belt or chain has sufficient slack to allow vertical excursions of the shaft 20.
I

. :

~23~896 1 Referring -to Fits. 3 and 4, it will be seen that rota-2 lion of the shaft 20 will cause the cam wheels 18 to rotate in 3 a selected direction, under control of one revolution control 4 means in motor control circuitry of the type generally shown in Fig. 9 of patent 4,343,463, incorporated earn by reference.
6 Each revolution of the Geneva wheels causes the notches lo to 7 receive trunnions 15 of the tray above or below, depending upon 8 the sense of rotation, so that continued rotation causes the 9 wheels to walk up or down, opening the next bin and allowing the previously open bin to close.
11 With such a construction, the total space for the trays, 12 in a vertical direction is reduced approximately 50% as compared 13 with the space required by bins in the structure of patent 14 4,328,963 since the bins are not transferred between locations above and below the Geneva wheels. Thus, an extremely compact 16 sorter structure is provided, compatible mechanically and ayes- I
17 thetically with modern-day small copiers.
18 Furthermore, the structure is extremely simple, and a 19 single drive effects actuation of both cams 18. The structure is further simplified by having a support or housing structure 21 12 which can be of molded plastic having the vertical grooves 22 14 and 22 molded therein, so that the worming parts can be in-23 sorted from above.
24 A cover 12 is applied to the top of the frame struck lure and is adapted to contain all logic, power or control 2 circuitry. join the cover is removed all moving parts can be 27 ¦ assembled from above. The Geneva wheel shaft and the wins are 28 1 simply dropped into the open -top of the slots.
29 In order to direct sheets into the bins, inked means I are provided. on indeed guide is formed by a pair of trays-I tersely extended plates 30 and 31 pivotal mounted between 32 the end walls 13 of the frame and having an open inlet I ada~tec , 1:~3089~

to receive the sheets from the transport T of the copier, the plates converging towards the bin trays. The inner end of plate 20 has laterally spaced bearings 33 which support a grip roll shaft 34 for rotation, the peripheries of the grip rolls 36-on shaft 34 extending downwardly through notches in plate 30 into confronting relation to driven rolls 35 on a driven shaft 36 which is a hollow shaft disposed about the Geneva wheel shaft 20. A motor My on the base of the frame has a flexible drive belt 38 engaging the drive pulley 39 on the hollow shaft.
From the foregoing, it will now be understood that the invention provides a simple, very compact sorting machine ideally suited for use with the small copiers which are common-place today.
When interfaced with the logic of the copier and when the indeed is driven by a power take-off from the copier transport T, the sorter is further simplified and requires only sufficient electrical components to power the drive motor Ml for the Geneva wheels.

_ 7 -

Claims

THE EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION IN WHICH AN EXCLUSIVE PROPERTY
OR PRIVILEGE IS CLAIMED ARE DEFINED AS FOLLOWS:

1. A sheet sorting machine comprising: a frame structure, a plurality of trays in said frame structure arranged in a stack and having laterally spaced trunnions projecting from opposite sides of said trays at an inner end thereof, said trays being pivotally mounted at their other ends, travelling tray opening means engaged with said trunnions and operable to engage and space the inner ends of adjacent trays and to move from tray to tray upon operation thereof, said travelling tray opening means including a pair of Geneva wheel cams at opposite sides of said frame structure, a floating shaft extending transversely of said frame structure and interconnected with said Geneva wheels to rotate the same, and means for driving said shaft while allowing said shaft to travel with said Geneva wheels.

2. A sheet sorting machine as defined in claim 1, including a sheet infeed leading to said trays and movable with said floating shaft.

3. A sheet sorting machine as defined in claim 2, said sheet infeed including a pair of guide plates forming a divergent path, said plates being pivotally mounted on said frame structure and connected to said floating shaft.

4. A sheet sorting machine as claimed in claim 1, 2 or 3, wherein said trays are being mounted one on the other at their other ends.

5. A sheet sorting machine as defined in claim 2, said sheet indeed including a hollow feed roll shaft disposed about said floating shaft and a grip roll shaft.

6. A sheet sorting machine as defined in claim 1, said frame structure including side walls having two opposed pairs of vertical slots, said floating shaft having bearings slidably disposed in one pair of opposed slots, said trunnions being slidable in the other pair of opposed slots, said slots being open at their top, and further including a removable cover closing said slots.

7. A sheet sorting machine as defined in claim 1, said pivotal mounted ends of said trays being stacked on said frame structure and having nested cams at opposite sides thereof operable to spread the trays upon pivotal relative movement thereof.

8. A sheet sorting machine as claimed in claim 5, 6 or 7, wherein said trays are being mounted one on the other at their other ends.