JP2019172408A - Selection gathering system - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide a selection gathering system which can more flexibly perform gathering while suppressing an increase in a scale of a system.SOLUTION: A selection gathering system 1 includes an automatic feeder 4 which feeds a single kind of a delivery matter to a gathered matter, and a buffer feeder 6 which feeds a delivery matter to a gathered matter from a buffer slot 61 that holds a delivery matter in a first-in first-out system. In the selection gathering system 1, a finger for conveying the gathered matter is provided with a tag storing finger identification information associated with address information. The selection gathering system 1 is configured so that the automatic feeder 4 and the buffer feeder 6 feed to the gathered matter, a delivery matter to be delivered to an address indicated by the address information associated with the read finger identification information to the gathered matter by reading the finger identification information with the automatic feeder 4 and the buffer feeder 6.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

  The present invention relates to a collation system for collating shipments, and more particularly, to a selection collation system for collating shipments selected according to a destination.

  In the field of teaching materials in the distance learning industry, books for each subject are picked and packaged for each destination. In order to improve the efficiency of picking up and collating a plurality of books as described above, a transport conveyor for transporting teaching materials as books to a predetermined location and a shipping address sheet are provided in a predetermined manner. A number of collating machines are installed in parallel with the addressing conveyor to be transported to the location, picking up various teaching materials along the moving direction of the conveyor, and sending them to the conveyor. It has been proposed to use a random picking device in which a collating machine for picking a shipping address sheet is installed at a position corresponding to the upstream side (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 7-41231

  However, in the random picking device as described in Patent Document 1, even though it is easy to collate books with almost the same size, non-standard shipments with different sizes, thicknesses, shapes, etc. are mechanized. It is not always easy to automatically pick and collate with an automatic feeder. In addition, when collating items that are approximately the same size or those that can be automated, if at least some of them are shipped only to a small number of destinations, the number of collating machines required is excessive. Therefore, it is not appropriate to perform collation using a random picking device such as that disclosed in Patent Document 1.

  An object of the present invention is to solve the above-described problems and to perform collation more flexibly while suppressing an increase in the scale of the system in a collation system that collates a shipment selected according to a destination. It is to provide a technology that makes it possible.

  Among the present inventions, the invention according to claim 1 is a selection collation system for collating a shipment selected according to a destination, for conveying a collation including at least one shipment. A conveying path having a plurality of fingers; an address sheet feeding machine that is arranged in the uppermost stream of the conveying path and has address information printed with destination information printed on the conveying path; A destination information reader for reading the destination information printed on the address sheet, and an automatic loading machine for setting a single type of shipment to the collated item. A buffer slot machine for holding a shipment picked manually by a first-in first-out method, and a buffer loading machine for throwing the shipment held in the buffer slot into the collated product, and the plurality of fins Each of which is provided with a tag in which finger identification information capable of identifying individual fingers is stored, and the finger identification information is transmitted to the tag by one of the address sheet feeder and the destination information reader. By reading from the tag, the automatic input device and the buffer input device read the finger identification information from the tag by the automatic input device and the buffer input device. It is configured that a shipment to be sent to the destination represented by the destination information associated with the finger identification information is put into the collated item.

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect of the present invention, the buffer loading machine includes a plurality of buffer slots arranged in the vertical direction and the transport direction of the collated material in the transport path as the buffer slot. It has a buffer slot.

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the second aspect of the present invention, the buffer input device indicates a buffer slot into which a shipment is to be input among the plurality of buffer slots arranged in the transport direction. It has a buffer input instruction lamp and a buffer input confirmation sensor for detecting that a shipment is input to the buffer slot.

  The invention according to claim 4 is the invention according to any one of claims 1 to 3, further comprising a picking shelf on which a plurality of types of shipments to be inserted into the buffer slot are set, The picking shelf has a picking instruction lamp that indicates a shipment to be put into the buffer slot among the plurality of types of shipment, and a picking completion sensor that detects that the shipment has been picked. It is characterized by that.

  According to the selective collation system according to the first aspect, a shipment to be shipped is loaded into the collation by the automatic loading machine and the buffer loading machine. Since the buffer loading machine is provided with a buffer slot that enables more reliable manual loading of shipments, it is necessary to manually handle shipments that are not suitable for automatic loading machines or that have a small number of shipments. Therefore, collation can be performed more flexibly while suppressing the increase in the scale of the system by suppressing the number of installed automatic feeders.

  According to the selective collation system according to claim 2, since the buffer thrower is provided with a plurality of buffer slots, it is possible to manually input the shipment while suppressing a decrease in the conveyance speed of the collation on the conveyance path. Can be made more reliable. Also, by arranging a plurality of buffer slots in the transport direction, the number of buffer slots can be increased without deteriorating workability.

  According to the selective collation system according to claim 3, even when a buffer loading machine in which a plurality of buffer slots are arranged in the transport direction is used, an operator can send a shipment to a buffer slot into which a shipment is to be loaded. Can be charged.

  According to the selection collation system of the fourth aspect, it becomes easier to put a plurality of kinds of shipments into the buffer slot.

It is a schematic block diagram which shows schematic structure of a selection collation system. It is explanatory drawing which shows a mode that printed material is thrown into a conveyance path with an automatic feeder. It is explanatory drawing which shows the structure of a picking shelf and a buffer loading machine. It is explanatory drawing which shows the structure of a picking shelf and a buffer loading machine.

Hereinafter, a selection collation system 1 as an embodiment of the present invention will be described based on an explanatory diagram illustrated in the drawings.
FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram showing a schematic configuration of the selective collation system 1. This selection collation system 1 is used for sending products sent in mail order, etc., and bundled items such as printed materials and samples sent together with the shipped products (hereinafter referred to as “shipped products and bundled items together” It also has a collating function that superimposes objects. The shipped items are conveyed on the conveyance path 10 from the upstream on the left side of the page to the downstream on the right side of the page, and are collated by being sequentially put into the conveyance path 10. In the following description, at least one shipment that has been put into the transport path 10 for collation or collated in the transport path 10 is also referred to as a collate.

  Although a specific configuration will be described later, a plurality of fingers (not shown) that are arranged at predetermined intervals and move along the conveyance path 10 are provided in the conveyance path 10 that conveys the collated material. A tag that can be read in a non-contact manner such as an RFID is embedded in each of the fingers provided in the conveyance path 10. Finger identification information for identifying individual fingers (for example, a serial number assigned to the fingers) is stored in advance in the tag, and by reading the stored finger identification information, the individual fingers and the fingers It is possible to identify individual collated items to be conveyed.

  When the finger approaches the address paper input device 2 arranged at the most upstream part of the conveyance path 10, the address paper input device 2 reads the finger identification information stored in the tag of the finger and prints the address of the shipping product. The address sheet is loaded into the conveyance path 10. The address reader 3 reads the address printed on the address paper input by the address paper input device 2. The finger identification information read by the address paper feeder 2 and the address read by the address reader 3 are associated as a set of information and transmitted to a control device (not shown).

  In the example of FIG. 1, the address paper input device 2 and the address reader 3 are arranged at substantially the same position in the transport direction, and therefore the address associated with the finger identification information is assigned to the address paper input device 2. Although it is read, the finger identification information may be read by the address reader 3. In this case, the positional relationship between the address sheet feeder 2 and the address reader 3 can be set more flexibly.

  As shown in FIG. 1, a plurality of automatic feeders 4 are arranged on the downstream side of the address reader 3. A single type of printed material is set in each of the automatic input devices 4, and the automatic input device 4 inputs the printed materials set in each into the conveyance path 10 in accordance with an instruction from the control device.

  FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram illustrating a state in which a printed material is input to the conveyance path 10 by the automatic input device. In FIG. 2, different types of printed materials 91 a to 91 e are set as stacked items in each of five automatic loading machines (not shown). Each automatic loading machine takes out the lowermost printed materials 91a to 91e out of the set printed materials 91a to 91e, and puts the removed printed materials 91a to 91e into the conveying path 10 with the front and back reversed. It should be noted that the method for loading printed matter by the automatic loading machine can be variously changed. For example, the lowermost printed material may be taken out and the printed material may be input without inverting the front and back. Moreover, it is also possible to use a combination of automatic loading machines having different configurations as a plurality of automatic loading machines.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the transport path 10 includes fingers 11 arranged at predetermined intervals in the transport direction and a chain 12 for moving the fingers 11. The collated material 92 on the conveyance path 10 is disposed on the downstream side of the finger 11 and is conveyed in the downstream direction as the finger 11 moves in the downstream direction (conveyance direction). In the following description referring to FIG. 2 and FIG. 2, a number enclosed in square brackets at the end of the reference numeral is used to distinguish the individual fingers 11 and the collated object 92 among the plurality of fingers 11 and the collated object 92. It adds and demonstrates.

  When the finger 11 [1] approaches the most upstream automatic insertion machine, the automatic insertion machine reads the finger identification information stored in the tag of the finger 11 [1], and transmits the read finger identification information to the control device. The control device refers to the input list from the address associated with the finger identification information, and determines whether or not to input the printed material 91a set in the automatic input device. When it is determined that the printed material 91a set in the automatic loading machine is to be loaded, the control device transmits an instruction to load the printed material 91a into the automatic loading machine. Here, the input list is a list indicating a shipment to be input for each destination, and is created in advance based on customer information such as purchase history, age, and sex of the customer as the destination.

  When receiving the instruction to load the printed material 91a from the control device, the automatic loading machine loads the printed material 91a to the downstream side of the approaching finger 11 [1], that is, the collated material 92 [1]. As a result, the printed material 91a is collated with the collated material 92 [1] into which the printed material 91a is to be input. Similarly, in other automatic loading machines, the printed materials 91b to 91e are loaded as necessary and collated with the collated materials 92 [3], 92 [5], 92 [7], and 92 [9]. . Thereby, among the printed materials 91a to 91e, the printed material to be shipped for each destination is collated.

  Returning to FIG. The collated material that has been collated by the automatic loading machine 4 is loaded by the buffer loading machine 6. The buffer loading machine 6 is provided with a total of 12 buffer slots 61 arranged in four rows along the conveying direction of the collated material, and each row is arranged in three stages in the vertical direction. At the upper part of the buffer charging machine 6, a picking shelf 5 on which a plurality of types of shipments are arranged is provided. Shipments placed on the picking shelf 5 are manually removed from the picking shelf 5 and put into the buffer slot 61. The configurations and operations of the picking shelf 5 and the buffer loading machine 6 will be described later.

  In the manual input area 7 provided on the downstream side of the buffer input device 6, the shipping product is input to all of the collated items collated by the buffer input device 6. In other words, in the case of the present embodiment, the input material upstream from the manual input region is selective, while the manual input region 7 is full input. Then, the collated product into which the shipping merchandise has been thrown is pushed out from the transport path 10 to the enclosure table 9 by the dispenser 8, and is enclosed in an envelope in the enclosure table 9. The collated material enclosed in the envelope is sent to a shipping conveyance path (not shown) and shipped.

  FIG. 3 and FIG. 4 are explanatory diagrams showing configurations of the picking shelf 5 and the buffer loading machine 6. 3 shows a state where the picking shelf 5 and the buffer loading machine 6 are viewed from the conveyance path 10 side, and FIG. 4 shows the picking rack 5, the buffer loading machine 6 and the conveyance path 10 on the conveyance direction side (downstream side). It shows how it was seen from. As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, in the present embodiment, the picking shelf 5 and the buffer charging machine 6 are assembled in an integral picking rack RK. However, it is possible to configure the picking shelf and the buffer loading machine as separate units. In the following description, the direction of viewing the transport path 10 from the picking rack RK is also referred to as the front or the front, and the direction of viewing the picking rack RK from the transport path 10 is also referred to as the rear or the rear.

  The picking shelf 5 has three shelf plates 51 arranged in the vertical direction. On each of the shelf boards 51, five trays 59 are arranged in the conveying direction of the collated material and two in the front-rear direction. In addition, five sets of picking instruction lamps 52 and a picking completion sensor 53 are attached to the front end portion of each shelf board 51 corresponding to the arrangement of the trays 59 in the transport direction. The picking completion sensor 53 is a proximity sensor that detects that an operator's hand or an object to be picked is approaching, and can be configured using various sensors such as a capacitance type, an optical type, and an ultrasonic type.

  The buffer loading machine 6 includes a buffer loading instruction lamp 62, a buffer loading confirmation sensor 63, a shipment holding pipe 64, a pipe driving cylinder 65, and a stop plate 66. The stop plate 66 is a plate-like member provided with a through hole through which the shipment holding pipe 64 is passed, and is attached to the front end of the picking rack RK so as to rise substantially vertically.

  A buffer loading instruction lamp 62 is attached to the upper end of the stop plate 66. The buffer loading confirmation sensor 63 is attached to the lowermost shelf 51 so as to protrude in front of the stopper plate 66 in the vicinity of the upper end on the upstream side of the stopper plate 66. The buffer loading confirmation sensor 63 is a proximity sensor that detects that an operator's hand or a shipment is approaching the upper end of the stop plate 66, and, like the picking completion sensor 53, is a capacitance type, optical type, or ultrasonic wave. It can be configured using various types of sensors.

  The pipe drive cylinder 65 is a pneumatic cylinder that drives the delivery holding pipe 64 so as to extend or contract in the axial direction, and as can be seen from FIG. 4, the front side is higher than the rear side. , Attached to the picking rack RK. By attaching the pipe drive cylinder 65 at an angle in this way, it becomes possible to hold the shipment more stably when holding the shipment as described later. However, the pipe drive cylinder 65 does not necessarily have to be attached obliquely, and may be attached horizontally.

  As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the buffer insertion instruction lamp 62, the buffer insertion confirmation sensor 63, and the stop plate 66 are respectively arranged in the conveyance direction in correspondence with the arrangement of the buffer slots 61 (FIG. 1) in the conveyance direction. Are arranged. The shipment holding pipe 64 and the pipe drive cylinder 65 are arranged in three rows in the transport direction with respect to one stop plate 66. The rows of the shipment holding pipes 64 and the pipe drive cylinders 65 arranged in the transport direction are arranged in three stages in the vertical direction corresponding to the vertical arrangement of the buffer slots 61.

  In this way, by arranging three shipment holding pipes 64 in the conveying direction with respect to one stop plate 66, even a small shipment can be held on the shipment holding pipe 64. Is possible. Since the shipment held on the shipment holding pipe 64 is restricted from moving backward by the stop plate 66, one row (three) of the shipment holding pipe 64 is simultaneously contracted and moved backward. Then, it falls onto the transport path 10 or the lower shipment holding pipe 64. As can be seen from the above description, a row of three shipment holding pipes 64 provided for one stop plate 66 and arranged in the transport direction corresponds to the buffer slot 61 shown in FIG.

  As will be described later, each of the buffer slots is associated with finger identification information of a finger that conveys a collated product in which the held shipment is collated. And if the finger 11 approaches the buffer insertion machine 6, the buffer insertion machine 6 will read the finger identification information stored in the tag of the finger 11, and will transmit the read finger identification information to a control apparatus. The control device collates the finger identification information read from the finger 11 with the finger identification information associated with the buffer slot. If the finger identification information associated with the buffer slot matches the finger identification information of the approaching finger 11, the control device immediately before the finger 11 reaches the buffer slot holding the shipment, The shipment holding pipe 64 corresponding to the buffer slot is shortened, the shipment is put into the transport path 10, and the shipment is collated.

  After loading the shipment, the control device extends the contracted shipment holding pipe 64, and then sequentially contracts and extends the upper shipment holding pipe 64, thereby holding the shipment held in the buffer slot. Transport the goods to the bottom. When the uppermost buffer slot becomes empty in this way, the control device associates finger identification information corresponding to the collated object with the empty buffer slot.

  Specifically, the input list is referred to for the finger 11 upstream of the finger 11 whose finger identification information is already associated with the buffer slot. If it is set in the referenced loading list that the shipment set on the picking shelf 5 is to be loaded, the finger identification information of the finger 11 is associated with the empty buffer slot. On the other hand, when the shipment set in the picking shelf 5 is not set to be input in the referenced input list, the same applies to the fingers 11 further upstream until the finger identification information is associated with the buffer slot. The process is repeated.

  When the finger identification information is associated with the empty buffer slot in this way, the control device, based on the setting of the input list, sends the shipment to be input to the buffer slot and the buffer into which the shipment is input. The slot is shown to the worker. Specifically, the control device turns on a picking instruction lamp 52 indicating a tray 59 in which a shipment to be loaded is set, and indicates a buffer slot into which a shipment is to be loaded, that is, an empty buffer slot. The buffer loading instruction lamp 62 is turned on.

  The operator takes out the shipment from the tray 59 indicated by the lit picking instruction lamp 52 and puts the removed shipment into the buffer slot in which the buffer insertion instruction lamp 62 is lit. At this time, the picking completion sensor 53 disposed at the center of the picking instruction lamp 52 detects the approach of the operator's hand and transmits a detection signal to the control device. When receiving the detection signal from the picking completion sensor 53, the control device determines that the shipment has been taken out from the corresponding tray 59, and turns off the picking instruction lamp 52.

  Similarly, when all the shipments to be loaded are taken out from the tray 59, all the picking instruction lamps 52 are turned off. In this way, the buffer slot into which the shipment is inserted holds the shipment to be shipped to the destination associated with the finger identification number.

  In this state, when the buffer loading confirmation sensor 63 detects the approach of the operator's hand or the shipment, and transmits a detection signal to the control device, the control device determines that the loading of the shipment into the buffer slot is completed. Then, the buffer loading instruction lamp 62 is turned off. If there is an empty buffer slot, the same processing is performed for the buffer slot, and the buffer input device 6 holds 12 sets of shipments.

  As described above, the shipment held in the buffer slot is the one transported by the finger 11 when the finger identification information associated with the buffer slot matches the finger identification information of the approaching finger 11. It is thrown into the compound. Therefore, also in the buffer insertion machine, the shipment to be shipped is collated with respect to the destination represented by the address associated with the finger identification information.

  As can be seen from the above description, the buffer insertion machine 6 holds the number of shipments corresponding to the number of buffer slots in a first-in first-out (FIFO) system. In this way, since the number of shipments is the same as the number of buffer slots, it is possible to more reliably input the shipment manually while suppressing the decrease in the conveyance speed of the collated items on the conveyance path.

  Then, by using the buffer loading machine 6, it becomes possible to more surely load the shipment manually, so an automatic loading machine for a thick shipment, a small shipment or an atypical package product, etc. Shipments that are not suitable for input by can be collated more reliably. In addition, it is possible to reduce the number of automatic loading machines by manually loading a shipment with a small number of shipments.

  Therefore, according to the present embodiment, a shipment that is not suitable for loading by an automatic loading machine or a shipment that has a small number of shipments is collated using the buffer loading machine 6, and a printed material or the like is loaded by the automatic loading machine. For shipments that have a shape suitable for use and have a sufficiently large number of shipments, collate using an automatic loading machine to reduce the number of automatic loading machines installed and increase the scale of the system. It is possible to collate more flexibly while suppressing.

  As described above, removal of the shipment from the picking shelf 5 and insertion into the buffer slot are performed manually. For this reason, if the number of items to be dispatched per unit time increases, the amount of manual input work may become excessive. For this reason, it is preferable to take a countermeasure to reduce the amount of work when the state where the number of input items is large continues. Such countermeasures include, for example, stopping the conveyance of the collated object, reducing the conveyance speed of the collated object, or issuing an alarm for requesting support.

  The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and can be implemented in various modes without departing from the gist thereof. For example, the following modifications are possible.

  In the above embodiment, the finger identification information read by the address sheet feeder 2 is associated with the address read by the address reader 3, but in general, the finger identification information and the destination of the shipment It is only necessary to be able to be associated with information (for example, a customer number) representing. Even in this case, the automatic input device 4 and the buffer input device 6 can collate the items to be shipped for each destination.

  In the above-described embodiment, control is performed so that more dispatched items are held in the buffer charging machine 6, but it is also possible to perform control in different modes. For example, when the number of shipments held in the buffer loading machine 6 (that is, the number of buffer slots 61 in which the shipment set is held) becomes a predetermined value or less, the loading operation of the shipment is started. It is also possible to issue an alarm.

  In the above-described embodiment, the shelf plate 51 of the picking shelf 5 has three stages, and the number of arrangements of the trays 59 in the transport direction is five. Further, in the buffer loading machine 6, the buffer slots 61 are arranged in four rows in the transport direction and in three stages in the vertical direction. However, the number of shelves, the number of trays arranged in the conveying direction, the number of rows of buffer slots, and the number of steps of buffer slots can be changed as appropriate. However, these numbers are preferably set in consideration of the maximum size of the shipment and the reach of the worker in order to suppress the decrease in workability. It is set to a close number (for example, a range of ± 2).

  Moreover, in the said embodiment, although the picking thing is picked from the picking shelf 5 which set the multiple types of sending thing, the picking shelf 5 can also be abbreviate | omitted. In this case, in the buffer loading machine 6, a single type or a plurality of types of shipments that are fixedly combined are loaded. However, it is preferable to use the picking shelf 5 as shown in the above embodiment in order to make it easier to load a plurality of types of shipments into the buffer slot 61.

  In the above embodiment, the buffer slot 61 of the buffer charging machine 6 is configured using the stop plate 66 and the shipment holding pipe 64 arranged in the transport direction and the up-down direction. If it can be held, the configuration of the buffer charging machine 6 can be variously changed. For example, it is possible to combine a conveyor capable of transporting a shipment in the transport direction or the front-rear direction, and hold the shipment by a FIFO method. However, using a stop plate 66 that restricts the rearward movement of the shipment and a row of shipment holding pipes 64 arranged in the transport direction and movable in the front-rear direction with respect to the stop plate 66, the buffer is inserted. The configuration of the machine 6 can be simplified.

  1 ・ ・ Selection collation system 2 ・ ・ Address paper feeding machine 3 ・ ・ Address reader 4 ・ ・ Automatic loading machine 5 ・ ・ Picking shelf 6 ・ ・ Buffer feeding machine 7 ・ ・ Hand feeding area, 8 .. Dispenser, 9 .. Enclosure table, 10... Transport path, 11 .. Finger, 12 .. Chain, 51 .. Shelf, 52 .. Picking indication lamp, 53 .. Picking completion sensor, 59. · Tray, 61 · · Buffer slot, 62 · · Buffer loading indicator lamp, 63 · · Buffer loading confirmation sensor, 64 · · Shipment holding pipe, 65 · · Pipe drive cylinder, 66 · · Stop plate, 91a to 91e ·・ Printed matter, 92 ・ ・ Collecting materials, RK ・ ・ Picking rack

Claims (4)

A selection collation system that collates shipments selected according to a destination,
A transport path having a plurality of fingers for transporting a collated article including at least one shipment;
An address paper feeding machine that is placed in the uppermost stream of the transport path and that feeds address paper printed with destination information representing the destination into the transport path;
A destination information reader that reads the destination information printed on the address sheet placed in the conveyance path;
An automatic loading machine that sets a single type of shipment, and throws the set single type of shipment into the collation;
A buffer slot for holding a shipment picked manually by a first-in first-out method, and a buffer loading machine for loading the shipment held in the buffer slot into the collage;
With
Each of the plurality of fingers is provided with a tag storing finger identification information capable of identifying individual fingers,
By associating the finger identification information with the destination information by reading the finger identification information from the tag by either the address sheet feeder or the destination information reader,
By reading the finger identification information from the tag by the automatic loading machine and the buffer loading machine, the automatic loading machine and the buffer loading machine are represented by the destination information associated with the read finger identification information. A package to be shipped to the destination is placed in the collated product,
Selection collation system.   The selection collating system according to claim 1, wherein the buffer charging machine has a plurality of buffer slots arranged in the vertical direction and the conveying direction of the collated material in the conveying path as the buffer slots. The buffer charging machine is
Among the plurality of buffer slots arranged in the transport direction, a buffer loading instruction lamp that indicates a buffer slot into which a shipment is to be loaded;
A buffer loading confirmation sensor for detecting that a shipment has been loaded into the buffer slot;
have,
The selection collation system according to claim 2. The selection collation system according to any one of claims 1 to 3, further comprising:
A picking shelf on which a plurality of types of shipments to be put into the buffer slot is set;
The picking shelf
A picking instruction lamp for indicating a shipment to be inserted into the buffer slot among the plurality of types of shipment;
A picking completion sensor for detecting that the shipment has been picked;
have,
Selection collation system.

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