JPS5825629B2 - Article sorting and accumulation device - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to an article sorting and accumulating apparatus for sorting and accumulating articles such as forms, securities, mail, etc. by type.

In general, this type of sorting and accumulating device, for example, a form sorting and accumulating device, feeds invoices one by one, transports the supplied invoices to a predetermined position and stops them, determines where to accumulate the invoices, and Thereafter, the forms for which the judgment has been completed are sent out, and while being conveyed, they are sorted and stacked in the stacking section according to the above-mentioned judgment results.

In such a sorting and stacking device, as a method for sending a form to the next stacking section after determining the stacking destination, there is a conventional method of sending the form to the stacking section as soon as the determination is completed.

In this case, although there is an advantage that the processing speed of the form is fast, there is a disadvantage that the switching of the division gates must be operated at a very high speed depending on the selection of the accumulation section, and the life of the division gates is therefore shortened.

Furthermore, since the forms are sent out at the same time as the determination is completed, forms that have been selected for different stacking sections coexist on the conveyance path of the stacking section.

Therefore, if the conveyance system is stopped abnormally due to a jam occurring in the conveyance system or a malfunction of the sorting gate, it is possible to clearly identify the destination of the documents remaining on the conveyance path of the stacking section. I couldn't.

Therefore, in order to eliminate such drawbacks, a method has been devised in which the next form is sent out after confirming that the form sent to the stacking section has been accumulated in a predetermined stacking section.

With this method, even if an abnormal stop occurs as described above, it is possible to clearly process the forms remaining on the conveyance path of the stacking section, but it has the disadvantage that the processing speed is extremely slow, so it is not practical. Not on target.

The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and its purpose is to be able to carry out processing with almost no reduction in processing speed, and to ensure that even if the conveyance system stops abnormally, articles remaining on the conveyance path of the accumulation section An object of the present invention is to provide an article sorting and accumulation device that can easily process articles.

An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

In FIG. 1, reference numeral 1 denotes a form supply unit, which is used to sequentially supply forms one by one to a judgment processing unit 7, which will be described later. Backup plate 4 to push out to the side, form 2 to 1
It is comprised of a take-out belt 5 and a suction chamber 6, which sequentially suction and take out the sheets and send them to the determination processing section 7.

A determination processing section 7 is provided in front of the supply section 1 .

This determination processing unit 7 transports the supplied form to a predetermined position and temporarily stops it, determines where to accumulate the form, and then stores the determined form in a form accumulation unit 12, which will be described later.
A conveyor belt 8 conveys the form to a predetermined location, and when the form is conveyed to a predetermined position, it is optically detected and a clutch 11, which will be described later, is activated to allow the belt 8 to convey the document. It is comprised of a detector 9 that causes a temporary stop, and a reading processing box 10 that optically reads predetermined data from a form stopped at a predetermined position to determine where the form is to be collected.

The belt 8 is transmitted to a drive source (not shown) via an electromagnetic clutch 11, and is controlled by the clutch 11.

Further, the take-out belt 5 operates in synchronization with the belt 8.

In front of the determination processing section 7, there is a form accumulation section 12.
is provided.

This form accumulating section 12 is for conveying the forms sent out from the processing section 7 and sorting and accumulating them according to the determination result in the processing section 7, and includes a conveyor belt 13 for conveying the documents; first, second, and third stackers 140 for accumulating forms provided below, respectively;
142, 143, and conveyor belts 151, 15□ provided in contact with the belt 13 for each of these stackers 141 to 143, respectively.

153, a suction rotary body 16□ which is driven by each of these belts 151 to 153, and which suctions the tip of the conveyed form and guides it to each of the stackers 14□ to 143.

162.163, a first gate 17 provided between the belts 15 □ and 15 □ to separate the conveyed forms;
The second gate 172 is provided between the belts 152 and 153 and separates the documents being conveyed.

A detector 18 for optically detecting the form sent out from the processing section 7 is provided at the starting end of the belt 13, and a first gate 171 is provided in front of the first gate 171 of the belt 13. Gate 17. A detector 19 is provided to optically detect the form that has passed through the belt 13, and a detector 19 that optically detects the form that has passed through the second gate 17□ is provided in front of the second gate 17□ of the belt 13. 20 are provided.

Further, the first, second, and third stackers 14, - 143
Detectors 21, 22, and 23 for optically detecting the forms guided by the suction rotary bodies 16□ to 163 are installed above each of the
are provided for each.

Next, the control section shown in FIG. 2 will be explained.

Reference numerals 25a to 25h are memory circuits, respectively, which memorize the presence of unaccumulated forms on the conveyance path of the accumulating section 12, the details of which will be described below.

First, the state of the form is determined by the relative positional relationship between each of the detectors 18 to 23 and the form as shown in FIG.

That is, the state in which the leading edge of the form sent to the stacking unit 12 passes through the detector 18 and reaches the detector 21 is represented by ■, the state while the form passes through the detector 21 is represented by ■, and the leading edge of the form is represented by 0 is the state in which the form passes through the detector 18 and goes to the detector 19, 0 is the state in which the form passes through the detector 19 and goes to the detector 22, and 0 is the state in which the form passes through the detector 22. The state is [F] when the leading edge of the form passes through the detector 19 and goes to the detector 20, and the state when the leading edge of the form passes through the detector 20 and goes to the detector 23 is 01 form is the detector. The state while passing through 23 is set to 0.

The memory circuits 25a to 25 correspond to the states 1 to 0.
h, and the memory circuit 25a is in the state ■
, the memory circuit 25b is in state ■, the memory circuit 25c is in state 0, the memory circuit 25d is in state 0, the memory circuit 25e is in state [F], the memory circuit 25f is in state [F], and the memory circuit 25g is in state [F]. The storage circuit 25h is configured to store the state (1) and the state (O), respectively, and outputs a signal "°1" while the state is being stored.

Therefore, even one of the memory circuits 25a to 25h has N 1 ? ? When the double signal is output, the integration section 12
This means that there are forms that have not yet been accumulated on the transport path.

The outputs of the storage circuits 25a and 25b are respectively supplied to an OR circuit 26□, and the storage circuit 25c.

The respective outputs of 25d and 25e are supplied to an OR circuit 26□, respectively, to the storage circuits 25c and 25f.

The outputs of 25g and 25h are respectively supplied to an OR circuit 263.

As a result, if the output signal of the OR circuit 261 is 1'', there is a form headed for the first stacker 14, and if the output signal of the OR circuit 262 is 1'', the second stacker There is a form facing stacker 14□,
If the output of the OR circuit 263 is a "1" signal, it means that there is a form headed for the third stacker 143.

Thus, each output of the OR circuits 261 to 263 is supplied to the control circuit 27, respectively.

The control circuit 27 is also supplied with the contents of registers 28 and 29, respectively.

The register 28 stores the determination result of the current form in the determination processing section 7, and the register 28
9 stores the determination result of the previous document in the determination processing section 7.

That is, when the processing section 7 outputs a determination result, it is first set in the register 28, and when the processing section 7 performs the determination on the next form, the contents of the register 28 are transferred to the register 29.

The control circuit 27 uses the outputs of the OR circuits 26 to 263 and the judgment results of the judgment processing section 7 to control the sending of forms from the processing section 7 to the accumulation section 12 according to the flowchart shown in FIG. and the first
, the second gates 17□, 17□, and the details thereof will be explained in the following operation description.

Next, the operation in the above configuration will be explained.

First, a large number of forms 2 to be sorted and accumulated are sent to the supply unit 1.
, the supply unit 1, the determination processing unit 7 and the accumulation unit 12
operate each.

When the supply section 1 operates, the set forms 2 are sequentially taken out one by one and supplied to the processing section 7.

The form supplied to the processing section 7 is conveyed to a predetermined position by a belt 8 and temporarily stopped there.

At this time, the belt 5 of the supply section 1 is replaced by the belt 8 of the processing section 7.
Since it is synchronized with , the ejecting operation is temporarily stopped.

When the form stops at a predetermined position, the reading processing box 1
0, predetermined data is read from the form, it is determined which stacker the integrated light of the form belongs to, and the result of the determination is set in the register 28.

That is, the selection of which stacker in the accumulating unit 12 is to be performed is set in the register 28.

When this happens, the control circuit 27 operates according to the flowchart shown in FIG.

That is, first, in flow F1, the contents of the register 29 are checked to determine whether or not the stacker of the previous form has been selected.

In this determination, if there is no stacker selection for the previous form, in this case, it is the first form.

Therefore, in this case, the process proceeds to flow F2, where gate switching is performed according to the determination result of the processing section 7, and then the process proceeds to flow F3, where the form is sent out.

That is, if the first stacker 141 is selected for the form that is temporarily stopped in the processing unit 7, the first gate 171 is opened and then the clutch 11 is activated to stack the form that has been temporarily stopped and has undergone the determination process. Send it to Department 12.

If the second stacker 142 is selected for the form in the processing section 7, the second gate 172 is opened and the clutch 11 is activated to send the form to the stacking section 12.

Furthermore, if the form of the processing unit 7 selects the third stacker 143, the first and second gates 17.

17□ operates the clutch 11 without opening and sends out the above-mentioned form.

On the other hand, in the above flow F1, if it is determined that there is a stacker selection for the previous form, the process proceeds to flow F4, where the contents of the registers 28 and 29 are compared, and the processing unit 7 temporarily stops the process. It is determined whether the stacker selection of the current form is the same as the stacker selection of the previous form sent to the stacking section 12.

If both stacker selections are the same in this judgment, immediately flow F3
, and sends the form from the processing unit 7 to the stacking unit 12 in the same manner as above. If the selections of both stackers are different, the process first proceeds to flow F, where the previous form is sent to the first stacker 14.
It is determined whether or not 1 was selected.

In this determination, the first stacker 14. is selected, and when the form of the processing unit 7 selects the third stacker 143, the process advances to flow F6, where the OR circuit 261 is selected.
Check that the output is not a "1" signal (that is, that all the forms in the accumulating section 12 have been accumulated).

After this confirmation, the process proceeds to flow F2 to close the first gate 171, and then proceeds to flow F3 to send out the form from the processing section 7 to the accumulation section 12.

In addition, in this case, the form in the processing section 7 is transferred to the second stacker 14.
When you select □, proceed to flow F in the same way as above to confirm that the output power of the OR circuit 261 is not the 1'' signal, then proceed to flow F2 to select the first gate 171.
Close the second gate 17□, and then flow F
Proceeding to step 3, the form from the processing section 7 is sent to the accumulating section 12.

In addition, in the determination in the above flow F, if the previous form has not selected the first stacker 141, the process advances to flow F7, and the previous form is selected in the second stacker 1.
4 Determine whether or not □ was selected.

If the second stacker 142 is selected in this determination, and the processing unit 7's form selects the third stacker 143, the process advances to flow F8, where the output of the OR circuit 26□ becomes a "1" signal. After confirming that it is not, the process proceeds to flow F2 to close the second gate 172, and then proceeds to flow F3 to send out the form from the processing section 7 to the accumulation section 12.

Further, in this case, the form of the processing unit 7 is transferred to the first stacker 14.
If you select 1, proceed to flow F8 in the same way as above to confirm that the output of the OR circuit 262 is not a "1" signal, then proceed to flow F2 to select the second gate 172.
is closed and the first gate 171 is opened, and then the flow F
Proceeding to step 3, the form from the processing section 7 is sent to the accumulating section 12.

In addition, in the judgment in the above flow F7, if the previous form did not select the second stacker 14□, the third stacker 143 is the only remaining stacker, so this third stacker 143 is selected. That means you were doing it.

Therefore, in this case, when the form of the processing unit 7 selects the second stacker 14□, the process advances to flow F9, where it is confirmed that the output of the OR circuit 263 is not a "1" signal, and then Proceed to flow F2 and enter the second gate 172
, and then proceeds to flow F3 to send out the form from the processing section 7 to the accumulation section 12.

Further, in this case, the form of the processing unit 7 is transferred to the first stacker 14.
When □ is selected, proceed to flow F9 in the same manner as above to confirm that the output of the OR circuit 263 is not a 1" signal, then proceed to flow F2 to open the first gate 171, and then Proceeding to flow F3, the form from the processing section 7 is sent to the accumulation section 12.

Here, the operating states of the first and second gates 17□ and 17□ with respect to the stacker selection of the form temporarily stopped in the processing unit 7 and the previous form in the above operation description are as follows. It will look like the table in the figure.

As described above, when a form that has been stopped and subjected to determination processing by the processing unit 7 is sent to the stacking unit 12, it is determined whether there is a form that is being transported and has not yet been stacked in the stacking unit 12,
If there is no form being transported, the form in the processing unit 7 is immediately sent out, and if there is a form being transported, the collection destination of that form is compared with the collection destination of the processing unit 7, and if the two are the same. If there is, the form in the processing unit 7 is immediately sent out, and if the two are different, the form is sent out after confirming that all the forms in the stacking unit 12, that is, the forms being transported, have been accumulated, and the destination where the forms in the processing unit 7 are collected is sent out. If the stacking destination of unstacked forms (forms being transported) in the stacking section 12 is the same, the gate is not opened or closed for the first time.

Therefore, in general, a single stacker is selected in most cases, so the sorting process can be performed with almost no reduction in sorting processing speed, and all the forms sent to the accumulating section 12 are directed to one stacker. Even if conveyance is stopped due to an abnormality, it is possible to easily process the remaining forms that have not been accumulated in the accumulation section 12.

In addition, in the above embodiment, the case where the forms are sorted and accumulated has been explained, but the present invention is not limited to this.
Of course, the same method can be applied to the case where articles such as securities or mail are sorted and accumulated.

In addition, the present invention is not limited to the above embodiments,
Of course, various modifications can be made without departing from the gist of the present invention.

As described in detail above, according to the present invention, when a stopped article that has been judged is sent to the stacking section, if an article that was sent out before the stopped article is still being transported without being stacked, Compare the stacking destination of the articles being transported and the stacking destination of the stopped articles, and if they are the same, the stopped articles are sent out immediately, and if they are different, the stacking destination of the articles being transported is finished. Since the stopped articles are sent out after confirming that the above-mentioned items are stopped, the sorting process can be performed efficiently with almost no reduction in processing speed. Moreover, even if the conveyance system stops abnormally, the conveyance path of the accumulation section It is possible to provide an article sorting and accumulation device that can easily process leftover articles.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

The drawings are for explaining one embodiment of the present invention. Fig. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of a form sorting and accumulating device, Fig. 2 is a block diagram of a control section, and Fig. 3 is a block diagram of a detector in the accumulating section. FIG. 4 is a flowchart for explaining the operation of the control circuit, and FIG. 5 is a table showing the operation status of the gate. DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1... Supply part, 7... Judgment processing sound doctor 12... Accumulating part, 14□~142... Stacker, 170, 172
...Gate, 18-23...Detector, 25a-25
h...Memory circuit, 261-263...OR circuit,
27...Control circuit, 28.29...Register.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A supply unit that supplies articles, and a determination processing unit that transports the articles supplied from this supply unit to a predetermined position and temporarily stops them, determines where the articles are to be collected, and then sends out the determined articles. a stacking section that transports the articles sent out from the judgment processing section and stacks them in stackers according to the judgment result of the judgment processing section; A determining means for determining whether the previously sent out article is still being conveyed without being accumulated, and control for immediately sending out the stopped article if there is no article being conveyed as a result of determination by the determining means. means, a comparison means for comparing a collection destination of the transported article and a collection destination of the stopped article when there is an article being transported as a result of the determination by the determination means, and a comparison result by the comparison means. If the two are the same, the stopped article is immediately sent out, and if the two are different, the stopped article is sent out after confirming that the articles being transported have been accumulated. Features: Article sorting and accumulation device.