EP0005040B1 - Machine de triage continu - Google Patents

Machine de triage continu Download PDF

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Publication number
EP0005040B1
EP0005040B1 EP19790300624 EP79300624A EP0005040B1 EP 0005040 B1 EP0005040 B1 EP 0005040B1 EP 19790300624 EP19790300624 EP 19790300624 EP 79300624 A EP79300624 A EP 79300624A EP 0005040 B1 EP0005040 B1 EP 0005040B1
Authority
EP
European Patent Office
Prior art keywords
bin
paper
deflector
mechanism according
conveyor means
Prior art date
Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
Expired
Application number
EP19790300624
Other languages
German (de)
English (en)
Other versions
EP0005040A1 (fr
Inventor
Ronald W. Greene
Anthony C. Clarkson
David H. Holliday
Current Assignee (The listed assignees may be inaccurate. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation or warranty as to the accuracy of the list.)
Ordibel Inc
Original Assignee
Ordibel Inc
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Application filed by Ordibel Inc filed Critical Ordibel Inc
Publication of EP0005040A1 publication Critical patent/EP0005040A1/fr
Application granted granted Critical
Publication of EP0005040B1 publication Critical patent/EP0005040B1/fr
Expired legal-status Critical Current

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Classifications

    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B65—CONVEYING; PACKING; STORING; HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL
    • B65H—HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL, e.g. SHEETS, WEBS, CABLES
    • B65H39/00—Associating, collating, or gathering articles or webs
    • B65H39/10—Associating articles from a single source, to form, e.g. a writing-pad
    • B65H39/11—Associating articles from a single source, to form, e.g. a writing-pad in superposed carriers
    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B65—CONVEYING; PACKING; STORING; HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL
    • B65H—HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL, e.g. SHEETS, WEBS, CABLES
    • B65H2408/00—Specific machines
    • B65H2408/10—Specific machines for handling sheet(s)
    • B65H2408/11—Sorters or machines for sorting articles
    • B65H2408/111—Sorters or machines for sorting articles with stationary location in space of the bins and a diverter per bin

Definitions

  • This invention relates to sheet distributing or sorting devices and more particularly to an apparatus which can continuously sort large numbers of multi-paged documents as copies of a particular page proceed from a reproducing device such as a printer or copy making machine.
  • This application references copending European Patent Applications No. 79300625.5, for “Feeding Mechanism For A Continuous Sorting Machine", No. 79300626.3, for “Bin Receiver Mechanism for a Continuous Paper Sorting Machine”; and No. 79300623.0, for "Paper Sheet Deflecting System for Sorter Mechanism” all of which have been filed on even date with the instant application and published under the numbers EP-A-5041, EP-A-5042 and EP-A-5039 respectively.
  • sorters should be modular to the extent that if a module does not have the capacity, additional modular receiver bin sections may be provided without any substantial loss of time or extra handling of the copied material. While smaller collators or sorters are mainly intended for the office market as a necessary adjunct to office copying machinery, larger sorters are more intended for the high production commercial market and for large in-plant reproduction centers, commercial houses and printing departments. These higher volume paper handling installations may be turning out catalogs, maintenance manuals, instruction books, brochures, sales material and perhaps other items such as reports, bid specifications and other large quantity multipage publications. Those skilled in the art will appreciate the savings in labor, time and money if the output of a printing or copying center can be sorted and handled at a rate which is matched to the press and duplicating machinery production capability.
  • This invention comprises a continuous paper sorting machine in which the receiver with the bins is designed generally in accordance with the teachings of U.S. Patent No. 3,938,801 which describes side-by-side stacks of inclined columns of paper receiving bins or shelves.
  • the receiver is moved laterally with respect to a generally upright feeding device, in which the feeder is comprised of a base section and an upstanding tower portion.
  • An infeed conveyor is located generally midway between the top and bottom of the tower and receives sheets of paper from the press or duplicating machinery.
  • a proof tray is supported above the infeed conveyor and a deflector mechanism is provided on the infeed conveyor for directing the sheets either upwardly into the proof tray or to allow the sheets to pass on through to the feeder.
  • a deflector mechanism is provided on the infeed conveyor for directing the sheets either upwardly into the proof tray or to allow the sheets to pass on through to the feeder.
  • At the inner end of the infeed conveyor are an upwardly extending intermediate conveyor and a downwardly extending intermediate conveyor.
  • a deflector at the junction of the infeed and the upward and downward intermediate conveyors directs sheets of paper either into the upward intermediate conveyor or onto the downward intermediate conveyor depending upon feeder controls programming.
  • a generally vertically disposed reversible feeder conveyor extends between the outer ends of the two intermediate conveyors and receives paper from either direction.
  • the feeder has drive and clutching means for reversing the direction of movement of the feeder conveyor.
  • a series of paper deflectors are located on the feed conveyor and are designed to deflect paper copies from either direction.
  • the deflectors are individually actuated by drive solenoids.
  • a deflector guide section is provided on a hinged frame which swings away from the conveyor to allow access to paper jams and for maintenance.
  • the deflector guide frame is mounted for pivotal movement so that the guides are precisely located with respect to the entrances to the bins on the receiver.
  • the receiver is constructed in two column modules and moves on casters along a track assembly.
  • a chain drive mechanism has means for being releasably engaged by a fork on the receiver base.
  • the chain is precisely controlled to present a particular bin address to a deflector at a given instant in time.
  • Several modular receivers may be detachably engaged to each other so that as many as 600 bin addresses may be utilized.
  • the bins are generally horizontal at their entrance end but tilt or slant to one side in order to aid the alignment of paper sheets into neat stacks as the sheets are fed into the bin.
  • a continuous paper sorting machine including a feeder device which is continuously operable, the machine being intended for maximizing the production of a commercial printing, reproducing, duplicating or copying center.
  • the invention is particularly intended to reduce and to minimize the amount of time a reproduction, printing or copying device loses due to the lack of a continuous paper copy sorting capability which is matched to copy making capacity.
  • the continuous feeder mechanism of the continuous paper sorter mechanism in which this invention is embodied forms the subject of our copending European Patent Application No. 79300625.5.
  • the combination of that feeder mechanism with the canted columns of bins type of receiver in the continuous paper sorter mechanism in which this invention is embodied leads to there being no necessity to stop the sorting of paper copies from column to column.
  • the machine can continue to sort as it moves from column to column without interruption of copy production.
  • the receiver can be unloaded off line, so that a filled receiver may be rolled away and an empty receiver moved into position with a minimum of lost time.
  • the invention is particularly suited for use in printing shops or reproduction centers for such things as multipage brochures, catalogs, books and other items which must be produced in large numbers.
  • the machine is capable of receiving sheets and feeding them at the high speeds of present day advanced copying, printing and duplicating machinery.
  • Feeder 10 includes infeed conveyor section 18, a proof tray assembly 20 and a control panel 22.
  • the infeed conveyor feeds either to an upwardly angled intermediate conveyor 24 or a downwardly angled intermediate conveyor 26.
  • a tower section generally designated by the number 28 supports a vertically disposed reversible feeder conveyor, bin deflectors and guides to be described more in detail hereinafter.
  • the tower section 28 is supported on a base section 30 shown in generally outlined form in Figure 1.
  • the infeed conveyor 18 includes side frame members 36 in which is supported a conveyor plenum enclosure 38 having an outer end 40 and inner end 42.
  • the conveyor plenum 38 has a wall 46 in which are disposed rows of openings 48.
  • the openings 48 are formed in the wall 46 so as to present transverse as well as longitudinal rows over substantially the entire length of the plenum structure 38.
  • a shaft 50 is supported adjacent the inner end 42 of the plenum and has affixed thereto a plurality of belt rollers 52.
  • a shaft 54 has a series of belt rollers 56.
  • a series of belts 58 extend around the rollers 52 and 56 as seen in the drawings.
  • a short section of transfer conveyor belts 60 extend around rollers 62 which are also affixed to shaft 54 to accept the sheets of paper from the press or duplicating device for transfer to the infeed conveyor 18.
  • a fan means 34 is provided in the infeed conveyor for creating vacuum or negative pressure for holding the sheets of paper on the belts 58.
  • the proof tray structure generally designated by the number 20 includes proof conveyor belts 64 which extend around pulleys 66 and 68 mounted on shafts 70 and 72 respectively.
  • the proof conveyor feeds to a tray 74 having side walls 76.
  • a proof deflector 80 is mounted on a shaft 82 and is biased into a normal position such that when power is off the deflector would be in an intercept position with respect to sheets of papers coming onto the infeed conveyor.
  • the proof deflector 80 is actuated by a solenoid 84 as seen in Figure 2.
  • a direction deflector 86 is provided at the inner end of the infeed conveyor structure for directing sheets of paper off the infeed conveyor either to the upwardly angled intermediate conveyor 24 or the downwardly angled intermediate conveyor 26.
  • Directional deflector 86 is mounted on shaft 88 and is in turn selectively actuated by the solenoid 90 again shown in Figure 2.
  • the proof conveyor belts and pulleys 64, 66 and 68 are driven by a power belt 92 extending from a drive pulley 94 on shaft 54 to a pulley 96 mounted on shaft 70.
  • the infeed conveyor belts 58 in turn are driven by a belt 98 which extends around drive pulley 100 mounted on shaft 50, again as best seen in Figures 2 and 3.
  • FIG 4 directed to details of the base 30 and the feeder tower frame 28, shows base 30 to be a generally rectangular box-like structure housing motor 110 and other parts as will be more particularly described hereinafter.
  • Base 30 has a bottom wall 112, side walls 114,. a rear wall 116 and a top wall 118.
  • a conveyor frame receiving area is defined by a recessed wall 122 which is spaced a predetermined distance from the front wall 120, and as can be seen, angles upwardly and rearwardly generally parallel to the bottom intermediate conveyor section 26.
  • Supported within the recessed area of the frame are two spaced apart main upstanding or vertical frame members 124 and 126 seen in Figure 4 and also in Figure 8.
  • a horizontal top frame member 128 interconnects main upright frame members 124 and 126.
  • Mounting frame members 129 and 130 are secured to the main upright frame members 124 and 126, respectively, for additional frame rigidity as well as for supporting other parts.
  • Supported between the uprights 124 and 126 is an internal, triangular, inner wall structure generally designated by the number 132. It will be seen by reference to Figure 4 that the wall 132 extends from near the lower end of the uprights to a point near the upper end of the uprights. Extending generally vertically as a wall 134 which with wall 132 defines a triangular enclosed space 136 within a basic frame structure.
  • a shroud 138 occupied by the fan 140 provides air evacuation means for the lower intermediate conveyor 26 while a fan 144 surrounded by shroud 142 provides air evacuation means for the upper intermediate conveyor 24. Note that the shrouds and fans 138, 140, 142 and 144 are part of the wall structure 132 just described.
  • shroud 146 towards the lower part of cavity 136 and shroud 148 towards the upper part of cavity 136.
  • Shrouds 146 and 148 are occupied by fans 150 and 152, respectively.
  • the air evacuation means direct the air inwardly from the direction of the conveyors and exhaust it through screened openings 154 as shown in Figure 1.
  • Lower intermediate conveyor 26 includes an elongated generally rectangular plenum wall 160 which has both transverse and longitudinal series of holes 162. At the lower end of the plenum are a series of belt conveyor pulleys 164 mounted on shaft 166. At the upper end of lower intermediate conveyor 26 are a plurality of belt pulleys 168 mounted on shaft 170. Since the sheets of paper must transverse around the lower end of intermediate conveyor 26, the radius of turn is larger as can be seen by reference to the relative difference between the lower pulleys 164 as opposed to the upper pulleys 168. A series of guide and idler pulleys 172 increase the amount of wrap of the belts 174 around rollers 164 but are primarily for the purpose of keeping the belts out of the way of other parts.
  • a series of spaced apart guide plates 176 having a radius of curvature 178 extend along the bottom in non-interfering relationship with belts 174.
  • a plurality of individual guide or pressure rollers 180 are mounted on plates 176 and engage belts 174 as they begin to contact rollers 164.
  • a series of rollers 184 also mounted on plates 176 engage the belts 174 to assist in the positive movement of sheets of paper around the lower end of the intermediate conveyor as the belts leave contact with rollers 164. In this way, paper sheets move positively around the end of the intermediate conveyor to be engaged by the feed conveyor 28 to be described hereinafter.
  • upper intermediate conveyor 24 has larger diameter upper belt pulleys 190 mounted on shaft 192 with pressure or paper guide rollers 194 and 196.
  • Lower end pulleys 198 are mounted on shaft 200 with the upper end shaft 192 and the lower end shaft 200 being mounted at the ends of plenum wall 202 having transverse and longitudinal rows of openings 204.
  • Belts 206 extend around the upper and lower pulleys again with idler or wrap-around pulley assembly 208 serving the same function as pulleys 172 at the lower end of the lower intermediate conveyor.
  • guide plates 210 having a radius of curvature 212 allow a sheet of paper to traverse around the top end of the conveyor to the vertical feed conveyor. It is to be observed that the pressure or retainer rollers 196 and 194 could be mounted individually on the guide plates or on a common shaft or bar extending laterally across the top.
  • the feeder conveyor section 28 has side frame members 220 and 222 which attach to and extend between the vertical mounting pieces 129 and 130 as seen in Figure 8.
  • At the upper end of feeder conveyor 28 are belt pulleys 224 mounted on shaft 226 and at the lower end are pulleys 228 mounted on shaft 230.
  • a series of belts 232 extend around the upper and lower pulleys 224 and 228 and idler or guide roller assembly with pulleys 234 are mounted at spaced intervals between the upper and lower end pulley assemblies as seen in Figures 8 and 9.
  • a series of deflectors numbering 51 in total are spaced between the frame members 220 and 222, said deflectors being generally designated by the number 240.
  • the deflectors 240 are elongated members of light aluminum sheet having a front surface 242 and at approximately 90° or at a right angle thereto a backwardly extending top surface 244 and the two walls form an edge 243.
  • At each end of the deflector is an extension portion 246 with a mounting tab piece 248 located at the outermost lower part of the extension section 246.
  • the tabs 248 mount in the triangular openings 250 in the side mounting pieces 220 and 222.
  • the deflectors are formed with a series of cutout sections 252 which are formed in the face wall 242 and the top wall 244. Diagonal portions 254 extend from the lower part of the face wall 242 to the rear part of the upper wall 244 within the cutout sections 252 although diagonals 254 may be eliminated altogether.
  • the openings 252 are formed in the deflector to provide clearance for the belts 232 when the deflector is moved out to its paper intercept position.
  • a rear wall 256 extends from the lower part of the front face wall 242 generally rearwardly along substantially the entire length of the deflector to provide a strengthening continuous wall section for the deflector.
  • a rearwardly and downwardly angling top connector wall 258 also extends from the rear part of top wall 244 for the same strengthening features.
  • a depending actuator leg 260 which as can be seen is connected to one end of a compression spring 262.
  • the deflector is biased by the spring 262 into its retracted mode by pushing against the leg 260 to rotate the deflector rearwardly.
  • Each spring 262 connects to the core member of a solenoid 264 so that when the solenoid is actuated the spring 262 is compressed to pull tab 260 in to force the deflectors to rotate outwardly into the position shown best by the second deflector in Figures 4 and 11.
  • Figures 4, 8, 10 and 11 show details of the deflector guide assembly generally designated by the number 270 which includes side frame members 272 and 274 with one side 274 being provided with a hinge 276 for swinging the deflector guide assembly away from the face of the feed conveyor.
  • Extending horizontally between the side frame members 272 and 274 are the generally Y-shaped guide deflectors indicated by the number 278.
  • the guide deflectors have a horizontal outer section 280 terminating at an outer end 281 and an upwardly angled inner arm 282 and a downwardly angled inner arm 284. It will be noted by reference to Figures 4 and 11 that the outer end 281 of the horizontal section 280 of the deflector guides terminates approximately midway between the openings to bins in the receiver.
  • the edge 243 is approximately midway between the lower angled arm 284 and the upper angled arm 282 of adjacent deflector guides.
  • a sheet of paper coming from the top of the feeder conveyor will be deflected into a given bin address by one deflector and if approaching its bin address for the bottom of the feed conveyor will be deflected into the same address by the next lower deflector. Since there are 50 bins in the receiver and 50 guide deflectors 278 it is necessary that there be 51 deflectors in order to properly address sheets of paper into the available bins.
  • An opening 286 is formed in each guide 278 and extends all the way from the top to the bottom of the deflector guide assembly 270 to accommodate the light and photocell components 283 and 285 as seen at the bottom and top of the feeder conveyor tower in Figure 4.
  • Receiver 14 has fifty functioning bins 15 as seen in Figure 11.
  • the top bin 17 is a nonfunctioning bin because it will be observed that the topmost deflector guide 278 is located below the nonfunctioning bin 17 and above the topmost of the fifty functioning bins 15.
  • a sheet of paper coming down the conveyor is directed into bin B1 by the topmost deflector 240 being energized into its deflect or intercept position.
  • the sorter control system is programmed so that the proper deflector is actuated in order that a specific bin address receive a paper sheet.
  • the conveyor requires 51 deflectors with 50 deflector guides 278 to service 50 functioning bins 15.
  • the deflectors and particularly the actuated deflector it is understood that it services two bins 15 depending on the direction of travel of the paper sheets.
  • a clutching and drive assembly is shown diagrammatically in Figure 7 and includes the motor 110 and a drive pulley 111.
  • the drive pulley drives a belt 113 which in turn drives a pulley 115 on the shaft 166 at the bottom of lower intermediate conveyor assembly 26.
  • the belt 98 also seen in Figure 2
  • the belt 92 at the outer end of the infeed conveyor drives the proof conveyor belts.
  • the motor 110 drives all of the conveyor sections of the feeder.
  • two clutch assemblies 117 and 119 are driven by a belt 121 through a lower pulley 123 and an upper pulley 125.
  • a reversing drive belt 127 connects drive power to the lower shaft 230 of the reversible feed conveyor through pulley 231.
  • clutch 117 When clutch 117 is engaged, the feeder conveyor is moved to transport paper upwardly from the bottom.
  • the lower clutch 119 When the lower clutch 119 is engaged, the feeder conveyor will transport paper from the top down.
  • a horizontally disposed contact roller 290 near the top and a horizontal roller 292 near the bottom are supported on the feeder to engage the receiver 14 as it moves laterally by the feeder to prevent contact and to maintain a predetermined distance relationship between receiver and feeder.
  • the receiver 14 is comprised of a base section 300 having a bottom wall 302 (see Figure 15), and casters 304 and 306 with the casters 306 being located under the extension section 308 of the base 300.
  • Upwardly extending side frame members 310 and 312 are interconnected at their upper end by frame top section 314.
  • a center frame piece 316 divides the receiver into two angled columnar spaces 318 and 320.
  • the columnar spaces 318 and 320 include individual shelves or bins 322 which will be described more in detail hereinafter.
  • the generally upstanding receiver structure has an entrance side 324 and an unloading or exit side 326.
  • the frame is generally vertical in the plane of its entrance and exit sides and inclines at a predetermined angle in the direction of its movement.
  • Rod 328 Extending across the depth of the machine from the entrance to the unloading side, as best seen in Figures 15, 16 and 17, is an actuator rod 328 which is spaced just above bottom wall 302 and which rod 328 is supported by bearing 330 at one end and bearing 332 on the exit side of the machine.
  • Rod 328 can be seen to extend through the base wall 300 to the exit side and on the outside is provided with a handle 334, which extends generally upwardly for easy access by the operator.
  • a pair of depending engagement forks 336 Secured to rod 328 are a pair of depending engagement forks 336 which extend through an opening 338 in bottom wall 302. As can be seen, the forks 336 are spaced apart so that they will not interfere with the receiver chain drive on the support and drive track.
  • Handle 334 of the engagement rod 328 engages a notch 340 in a holding clip 342 secured to the center frame piece 316 on the unloading side. It will be noted that the handle 334 engages retainer notch 340 in the generally perpendicular position and in which position the forks 336 extend generally straight down.
  • a spring latch member 344 is supported at its anchor end 346 by wall 302.
  • the spring latch member has a generally horizontal section 348 which extends under rod 328 and towards that end of the base away from extension platform 308.
  • An opening 350 is provided in base wall 302 to receive a coupler section 352 and a ramp 354 formed in the other end of the spring latch 344.
  • spring latch 344 with the coupler section 352 is up as shown so that if a second modular receiver unit 14 is being used the two units will be latched together.
  • a flat is formed in rod 328 to register with the latch when the forks are engaged with the chain.
  • An opening is located in extension section 308 which will slide up ramp 354 and under the opposite end of the base and will register with the opening 350.
  • handle 334 is moved according to the direction which it is desired to roll the receiver.
  • handle 334 When handle 334 is moved the flat is rotated with the rod to cam the latch down and release the receiver modules from each other. It an empty receiver is being rolled onto the track section, the handle will be moved in one direction so as to present the forks 336 at an appropriate angle. If it is desired to roll the receiver off after it is filled, then the handle 334 is moved in the opposite direction to permit forks 336 to release from the chain mechanism.
  • the track section 16 includes a floor wall 360 with upstanding side channel 362 on the entrance side and upstanding channel 364 on the exit side. Supported on the floor wall 360 of the track section 16 are caster guide walls 366 for the pair of casters 304 and 306 nearer the entrance side 324 and track guide walls 368 near side rail 364 for receiving the other casters 304 and 306.
  • the guide rails 366 and 368 can be seen in Figure 14 to be spread slightly at the incoming end of the track to facilitate rolling an empty unit onto the track.
  • a drive motor 379 which through drive chain 372 turns a reduction gear which in turn drives a main chain pulley 374.
  • An idler chain pulley 376 is located at the other end of the track section so that a continuous drive chain 378 extends around the chain pulleys 374 and 376.
  • a transverse arm member 380 Secured to the chain as can be seen in Figures 15, 16 and 17, is a transverse arm member 380 which is mounted on the chain such that it extends out on either side to be engaged by forks 336.
  • the bar is moved to the upright position to firmly secure the receiver to the chain.
  • the controls will then by appropriate energizing signals to motor 370 position the receiver with respect to the feeder to present a particular bin address such as bin number B1 in proper position for beginning a sorting operation.
  • the bins have a generally upstanding entrance wall 390 which has an upper edge 392 which as can be seen is spaced a predetermined distance below the bin next above.
  • the deflector guides 278 are part of the feeder and are in approximately the position shown in Figure 20, when the sorter is in operation.
  • the entrance wall 390 is angled as at 394 and 396 to facilitate the entrance of sheets of paper which will be entering a bin either from above or from below depending upon whether the feeder is sending sheets over the top or around the bottom.
  • the bins 322 have main support wall or shelf portion 398 which also can best be seen in Figure 18 to have a center cut-away portion 400 which extends from the exit of unloading end 402 generally centrally thereof to an inner end 404 which as can be seen is a slightly more than half-way toward the entrance end of the bin.
  • the bins 322 are formed such that the shelf portion 398 is generally horizontal across the front.
  • a line 406 Extending diagonally from one side of the front to the opposite side at the unloading end is a line 406 which places the approximate other half of the shelf portion 398 at a slight downward angle to assist in moving paper into lined stacks in the bin.
  • a side wall 408 is formed along the high side of the bin and on the opposite side is wall 410 along that side of the bin having the angled down section.
  • At the top and bottom of the sorter frame structure are two support rods 412, only one of which is shown in Figure 18, which support releasable slide pieces 414.
  • a belt member 416 attaches to the pieces 414 and extends through the cutout portion 400 of the stack of bins to arrest the motion of the sheets of paper after they enter the bins.
  • the belt 416 is not a jogging device since the slanting of the bin shelves is the primary factor in the alignment of the sheets of paper into neat stacks.
  • Figure 21 indicates diagrammatically more detail about the arrangement of the bins.
  • the bins are arranged so that in a column the bin next below the bin next above is spaced laterally a specified amount as for instance .30 or .242 inches (0.762 or 0.615 cms) depending upon the width of the bins in the particular receiver being used.
  • the increment of distance by which the bins are laterally offset from each other is consistent down the entire length of the column from B1 to B50.
  • the top bin B51 in the second column is spaced the same amount of distance laterally from B50 as the rest of the bins are from each other.
  • the controls are set to index the motor or movement of the chain to present a particular bin address from B1 through B100 to a delivery position adjacent the feeder 14.
  • a first or page "1" master is inserted in the press or duplicator. Several copies are first directed to the proof tray and then the sorting job begins. Odd numbered papges coming out of the press are directed to lower intermediate conveyor 26 and up the feeder conveyor to the top bin. Sheets will be fed up the conveyor 232 and deflected to the desired bin address by a deflector and the lower surface of a Y-shaped deflector. The receiver moves a discrete distance from left to right and presents the next bin address until all 50 bins in a column have been filled.
  • the sorting job extends to the next column copies continue to be fed to the feeder conveyor via lower intermediate conveyor 26 and up the feeder conveyor to the topmost bin in the second column.
  • the topmost bin of the second column is offset from the lowermost bin of the first column by the same increment of distance as the bins are offset from each other in each column.
  • the feeder continues to feed around the lower intermediate conveyor until all fifty bins in the second column are filled.
  • the feeder belts 232 are reversed to bring the first sheet from the top to the bottom of the feeder conveyor and filling of the bins with copies of page 2 begins with the lowest bin in column 2 where the first page sorting job ended.
  • the feeding of bins is continuous not only from bin to bin but from column to column.
  • odd numbered pages from the duplicator are fed from the bottom up while the receiver indexes from left to right and even numbered pages are fed from the top down while the receiver moves from right to left.
  • two adjacent deflectors are needed for a single bin address. When coming down the conveyor sheets are deflected by the top one of two adjacent deflectors and directed against the top surface of a deflector guide and into the bin opening. When coming from the bottom the sheet is deflected by the lower one of two adjacent deflectors and off the lower surface of a deflector into the same bin address.

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  • Collation Of Sheets And Webs (AREA)

Claims (25)

1. Mécanisme de triage continu de papier, comprenant une section réceptrice (14) comportant un cadre de support muni d'une section de base (300) apte à déplacer ledit récepteur (14) le long d'une piste allongée (16) qui est apte à supporter sur elle ladite section réceptrice (14), et comprenant en outre des cadres de support verticaux (310, 312, 314 et 316) destinés à supporter un nombre prédéterminé et égal de bacs de réception de papier (15, 322) en colonnes et côte à côte de manière que lesdites colonnes soient inclinées selon un angle présélectionné en direction du mouvement du récepteur (14), et les cadres (310, 312, 314 et 316) comprenant un côté d'entrée (324) et un côté de déchargement (326) qui sont adaptés pour être généralement parallèles à un convoyer d'approvisionnement (18); des moyens d'entraînement (370 pour déplacer ledit récepteur (14) dans les deux directions sur un parcours prédéterminé le long de ladite piste (16); et un mécanisme d'alimentation continu et généralement vertical (10), comprenant un cadre de support principal comportant une section de base (30) et une section verticale en forme de tour (28), et lesdits moyens convoyeurs d'approvisionnement (18) destinés à recevoir les feuilles de papier à trier à partir d'un dispositif à faire des copies (12) et qui comprennent une extrémité de réception et une extrémité de déchargement, des moyens convoyeurs d'alimentation disposés généralement verticalement, comprenant plusieurs moyens déflecteurs de bacs (240) pour diriger sélectivement des feuilles de papier dans lesdits bacs (15, 322) à mesure que ces feuilles avancent le long desdits moyens convoyeurs d'alimentation, et des moyens (110) pour faire avancer lesdits moyens convoyeurs d'approvisionnement (18) et lesdits moyens convoyeurs d'alimentation, et des moyens (264) pour actionner sélectivement tous les moyens déflecteurs (240), caractérisé en ce que ladite section de base (300) de la section réceptrice (14) comprend des moyens à roulettes (304, 306) fixés à la partie inférieure (304) de la base (300) et en ce que ledit mécanisme d'alimentation continue (10) comprend un premier moyen convoyeur intermédiaire (24) destiné à recevoir les feuilles de papier desdits moyens convoyeurs d'approvisionnement (18) et à transporter les feuilles de papier ainsi reçues vers l'extrémité supérieure desdits moyens convoyeurs d'alimentation, et un autre moyen convoyeur intermédiaire (26) pour recevoir les feuilles de papier desdits moyens convoyeurs d'approvisionnement (18) et pour transporter les feuilles de papier ainsi reçues vers l'extrémité inférieure desdits moyens convoyeurs d'alimentation, lesdits moyens convoyeurs d'approvisionnement (18) comprenant des moyens déflecteurs directionnels (86) à leur extrémité de déchargement pour diriger sélectivement les feuilles de papier soit vers ledit premier moyen convoyeur intermédiaire (24) soit vers l'autre moyen convoyeur intermédiaire (26), lesdits moyens convoyeurs d'alimentation étant réversibles de manière à recevoir sélectivement les feuilles de papier dudit moyen convoyeur intermédiaire (24) à leur partie supérieure ou dudit autre moyen convoyeur intermédiaire (26) à leur partie inférieure, et lesdits moyens (110) pour faire avancer lesdits moyens convoyeurs d'approvisionnement (18) et d'alimentation étant également prévus pour faire avancer ledit premier et ledit autre moyens convoyeurs intermédiaires (24 et 26), des moyens (117 et 119) étant prévus pour inverser sélectivement lesdits moyens convoyeurs d'alimentation.
2. Mécanisme de triage continu selon la revendication 1, caractérisé en ce qu'une série de moyens de guidage déflecteurs de papier (278) sont prévus de façon générale entre lesdits moyens déflecteurs de bacs (240) et les entrées desdits bacs (15, 322) pour diriger de façon plus facile les feuilles de papier vers lesdits bacs (15, 322).
3. Mécanisme de triage continu selon la revendication 2, caractérisé en ce que ladite série de moyens de guidage déflecteurs de papier (278) est montée sur un cadre secondaire (274) fixé de façon pivotante sur ladite section en forme de tour (28) de manière que lesdits moyens de guidage de papier (278) puissent être éloignés par pivotement desdits moyens convoyeurs d'alimentation et desdits moyens déflecteurs de bacs (240).
4. Mécanisme de triage continu selon l'une quelconque des revendications 1 à 3, caractérisé en ce que ledit premier moyen convoyeur intermédiaire (24) est incliné vers le haut en direction de l'extrémité supérieure des moyens convoyeurs d'alimentation et en ce que l'autre moyen convoyeur intermédiaire (26) est incliné vers le bas en direction de l'extrémité inférieure desdits moyens convoyeurs d'alimentation.
5. Mécanisme de triage continu selon l'une quelconque des revendications 1 à 4, caractérisé en ce que lesdits moyens (110) pour faire avancer lesdits moyens convoyeurs d'alimentation et lesdits moyens (117 et 119) pour inverser sélectivement lesdits moyens convoyeurs d'alimentation, comprennent des moyens d'entraînement et d'embrayage montés dans la section de base (30) dudit cadre de support principal.
6. Mécanisme de triage continu selon l'une quelconque des revendications 1 à 5, caractérisé en ce qu'un plateau récepteur d'épreuves ou de papiers (20) est situé au-dessus desdits moyens convoyeurs d'approvisionnement (18) pour recevoir sélectivement les feuilles de papier provenant desdits moyens convoyeurs d'approvisionnement (18), et en ce que le mécanisme comprend en outre des moyens déflecteurs d'épreuves (80) à proximité de son extrémité de réception en vue de guider sélectivement les feuilles de papier en les éloignant desdits moyens convoyeurs d'approvisionnement (18) et en les envoyant vers ledit plateau à épreuves (20).
7. Mécanisme de triage continu selon la revendication 6, caractérisé en ce que moyens convoyeurs d'épreuve sont disposés de façon générale entre lesdits moyens déflecteurs d'épreuve (80) et ledit plateau d'épreuve (20) pour acheminer les feuilles de papier vers ledit plateau d'épreuve (20).
8. Mécanisme de triage continu selon l'une quelconque des revendications 1 à 7, caractérisé en ce que tous lesdits moyens convoyeurs (18, 24, 26) sont constitués par une série de bandes continues individuelles (58, 60, 64, 174, 206, 232) généralement espacées ré- guliérement les unes des autres, lesdites bandes individuelles (58, 60, 64, 174, 206, 232) étant montées sur des rouleaux d'entraînement et fous (52, 56, 66, 68, 164, 168, 172, 190, 198, 208, 224, 228) pour réduire au minimum la friction dans le système convoyeur.
9. Mécanisme de triage continu selon l'une quelconque des revendications 1 à 8, caractérisé en ce que des moyens d'évacuation d'air (34, 140, 144, 150, 152) sont prévus pour créer un vide dans tous les moyens convoyeurs (18, 24, 26) en vue de faciliter le transport des feuilles de papier sur tous lesdits convoyeurs (18, 24, 26).
10. Mécanisme de triage continu selon l'une quelconque des revendications 1 à 9, caractérisé en ce que ladite série de moyens déflecteurs de bacs (240) est munie de moyens à solénoïdes individuels (264) pour actionner sélectivement chacun desdits moyens déflecteurs de bacs (240) en fonction d'un système de commande.
11. Mécanisme de triage continu selon l'une quelconque des revendications 1 à 10, caractérisé en ce que ladite série de moyens déflecteurs de bacs (240) comprend des parois. avant et supérieure (242, 244), disposées en général à angle droit l'une par rapport à l'autre et situées à l'arrière desdits moyens convoyeurs d'alimentation dans une position en retrait, et lesdites parois avant et supérieure (242 et 244), lorsqu'elles sont pivotées en position de déflection du papier, sont approximativement des angles de 45° avec le plan desdits moyens convoyeurs d'alimentation, et en ce qu'il est prévu un moyen déflecteur de bacs (240) de plus que le nombre de bacs (15, 322) dans ledit récepteur (14).
12. Mécanisme de triage continu selon la revendication 2, la revendication 3 ou l'une quelconque des revendications 4 à 11 quand elles sont associées à la revendication 2, caractérisé en ce que lesdits moyens de guidage déflecteurs (278) sont disposés entre l'ouverture d'entrée vers chaque bac (15, 322) et lesdits moyens déflecteurs de bacs (240) et lesdits moyens convoyeurs d'alimentation de manière qu'une feuille de papier se déplaçant vers le bas sur les moyens convoyeurs d'alimentation soit infléchie par le premier des moyens déflecteurs de bacs (240) pour venir en contact avec un moyen de guidage déflecteur (278) pour guider ladite feuille dans un bac donné (15, 322) et de manière qu'une feuille de papier qui se déplace vers le haut sur les moyens convoyeurs d'alimentation soit infléchie vers le même bac donné (15, 322) par le moyen déflecteur de bacs (24) qui est situé à la suite au-dessous dudit premier moyen déflecteur de bacs (240) et par le même moyen de guidage déflecteur (278).
13. Mécanisme de triage continu selon la revendication 2, la revendication 3, la revendication 12 ou l'une quelconque des revendications 4 à 11 quand elles sont associées à la revendication 2, caractérisé en ce que lesdits bacs (15, 322) ont des ouvertures d'entrée, les moyens de guidage déflecteurs (278) destinés à chaque ouverture de bac comprenant une section horizontale (280) se terminant à une distance prédéterminée du plan des entrées des bacs récepteurs, et étant disposée de manière à être en général à michemin de la dimension verticale de ladite ouverture d'entrée de bac.
14. Mécanisme de triage continu selon la revendication 13, lorsqu'elle est associée à la revendication 12, caractérisée en ce que ledit moyen de guidage déflecteur (278), destiné à chaque bac (15, 322) comprend une branche orientée vers le haut (282) et une branche orientée vers le bas (284), divergeant de ladite section horizontale (280) de manière que la branche orientée vers le haut (282) soit à proximité étroite dudit premier moyen déflecteur de bacs (240) et que ladite branche orientée vers le bas (282) soit à proximité étroite dudit moyen déflecteur de bacs (240) le suivant au-dessous, quand les moyens déflecteurs de bacs (240) sont pivotés vers leur position de déflection.
15. Mécanisme de triage continu selon l'une quelconques des revendications 1 à 9 ou l'une quelconque des revendications 11 à 14 lorsqu'elles sont associées à l'une des revendications 1 à 9, caractérisé en ce que chacun des moyens déflecteurs de bacs (240) est sollicité par un ressort vers une position normalement rétractée, et est également relié à un dispositif de monoeuvre électrique (264) permettant de le faire pivoter vers sa position de déflection.
16. Mécanisme de triage continu selon l'une quelconque des revendications 1 à 15, caractérisé en ce que chacun desdits moyens déflecteurs de bacs (240) comprend des sections découpées dans les parois avant et supérieure de manière que lorsqu'un moyen déflecteur de bacs (240) est amené à sa position de déflection, il n'y ait pas d'interférence entre celui-ci et les moyens convoyeurs d'alimentation.
17. Mécanisme de triage continu selon l'une quelconque des revendications 1 à 16, caractérisé en ce que la piste (16) comprend en outre un moyen d'entraînement à chaîne (378) pour déplacer ledit récepteur (14) le long de canalisations de guidage (362, 364) prévues sur la piste (16), ledit moyen d'entraînement à chaîne (378) comprenant un organe de retenue pour venir en engagement amovible avec un organe d'engagement d'entraînement prévu sur la base (300) du récepteur pour disposer ledit récepteur (14) dans une position présélectionnée par rapport audit moyen d'entraînement à chaîne (378), et des moyens moteurs (370) pour entraîner ladite chaîne (378).
18. Mécanisme de triage continu selon la revendication 17, caractérisé en ce que ledit organe de retenue est constitué par un bras (380) disposé transversalement et fixé au brin supérieur dudit moyen d'entraînement à chaîne (378), et dans lequel ledit moyen d'engagement d'entraînement amovible est constitué par une fourche pivotante (336) destinée à venir en engagement amovible avec le bras (380) pour positionner de façon précise ledit récepteur (14) sur la piste (16).
19. Mécanisme de triage continu selon la revendication 18, caractérisé en ce que la fourche pivotante (338) est fixée à une barre de manoeuvre (328) comprenant une poignée (334) destinée à opérateur, qui bloque de façon amovible la barre (328) et la fourche (336) en engagement de fonctionnement avec le bras (380) en vue de positionner le récepteur (14), la barre de manoeuvre (328) et la poignée (334) destinée à un opérateur pouvant être déplacées de manière à dégager la fourche (336) du bras (380) et permettre au récepteur d'être roulé et amené sur la base de la piste (16), ou en être retiré.
20. Mécanisme de triage continu selon l'une quelconque des revendications 1 à 19, caractérisé en ce que chaque colonne contient cinquante bacs (322), chaque bac (15, 322) de chaque colonne ayant son extrémité d'entrée alignée horizontalement avec l'extrémité d'entrée d'un bac correspondant (15, 322) d'une colonne juxtaposée.
21. Mécanisme de triage continu selon l'une quelconque des revendications 1 à 20, caractérisé en ce que chaque bac (15, 322) comprend une paroi d'entrée (390) généralement verticale, s'étendant vers le haut jusqu'à une distance pré-sélectionnée du bac (15, 322) qui le suit au-dessus, pour définir son ouverture d'entrée.
22. Mécanisme de triage continu selon l'une quelconque des revendications 1 à 21, caractérisé en ce qu'au moins une partie de chacun des bacs (15, 322) bascule vers le bas pour faciliter l'alignement des copies de papier et former des empilements bien nets.
23. Mécanisme de triage continu selon l'une quelconque des revendications 1 à 22, caractérisé en ce que lesdits bacs (15, 322) sont munis de sections découpées (400) s'étendant de l'extrémité de déchargement (402) en direction de l'extrémité d'entrée, de manière qu'une cavité inobstruée soit définie à partir de la base et jusqu'au sommet dudit cadre récepteur (14), en traversant chaque colonne de bacs (15, 322), des moyens d'arrêt de papier s'étendant dans ladite cavité.
24. Mécanisme de triage continu selon l'une quelconque des revendications 1 à 23, caractérisé en ce que ladite base (300) du récepteur (14) s'étend de façon générale horizontalement dans la direction dans laquelle les colonnes de bacs sont inclinées pour former un prolongement (308) de la base, une partie desdits moyens à roulettes (306) étant située au-dessous de ce prolongement (308).
25. Mécanisme de triage continu selon l'une quelconque des revendications 1 à 24, caractérisé en ce que des moyens de verrouillage (344) sont prévus sur la section de base (300) de manière qu'au moins deux mécanismes récepteurs (14) puissent être fixés de façon amovible l'un à l'autre et augmenter le nombre de bacs (15, 322) disponibles pour des opérations de triage.
EP19790300624 1978-04-17 1979-04-12 Machine de triage continu Expired EP0005040B1 (fr)

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US3963235A (en) * 1972-10-13 1976-06-15 Norfin, Inc. Adjustable feed level for sorting device
US3938801A (en) * 1974-08-19 1976-02-17 Holliday David H Continuous operating collator

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JPS54152522A (en) 1979-11-30

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