JPS627481A - Discriminator for article - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Summary] This bulletin contains application data before electronic filing, so abstract data is not recorded.

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] [Technical Field of the Invention] The present invention provides a method for sorting and stamping mail, for example, in a mail sorting and stamping device.
The present invention relates to an article discriminating device for discriminating the length, etc. of mail to be transported.

[Technical Background of the Invention and Problems Therewith] Hitherto, a sorting and stamping device has been developed and put into practical use, for example, for stamping mail items and sorting and sorting them into several lengths. This sorting and stamping device detects the transit time during which mail is conveyed on a conveyance path and passes through a detector, and checks whether this transit time is longer or shorter than a reference value.

Based on this result, it is possible to determine whether the length of the mail is longer or shorter than the standard, and to prevent jams by eliminating mail that is longer than the standard or mail that has been taken in two pieces. There is.

Here, the above-mentioned reference value can be changed by a switch since a slight deviation occurs in the conveying speed in the device. However, as the number of reference values to be set increases, the number of switches is also limited, so recently microcomputers have been used for control. In this case, these reference values are stored in RAM in advance.
The information is written in the memory and backed up by a battery or the like to prevent it from being erased or changed. That is, at the time of final adjustment of the sorting and stamping device to which the discrimination device is applied, a reference card with the length that will serve as the reference for the mail that will be transported (sorted and stamped) is passed, and the length of the reference card is stored in the RAM as the reference value. It is designed to be remembered.

However, the above-mentioned apparatus has a drawback that if the reference value in the RAM is erased or changed due to a defective battery or the like, the discrimination process may be incorrect or the sorting process may be stopped midway.

[Object of the Invention] This invention was made in view of the above points, and its purpose is to eliminate or change the reference values used as discrimination criteria such as the length, thickness, or weight of articles. The object of the present invention is to provide an article discriminating device that can continue to discriminate the length, thickness, weight, etc. of an article even if the article is damaged.

[Summary of the Invention 1] In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, the present invention provides a method in which the reference value stored in the first storage means is set to Second
The determination means determines whether or not the reference value is within a predetermined range, that is, the reference value is erased or changed. The standard value within the predetermined range is written and set in the first storage means.

[Embodiment of the Invention] An embodiment of the invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

1 and 2 schematically show an article discriminating device of the present invention, which is applied to a sorting and stamping device. That is, 2 is a detector, and this detector 2 optically detects the passage of the mail P conveyed in the direction of the arrow a on the conveyance path 3, and the conveyance along which the mail P is conveyed. It is composed of a light emitting element 4 and a light receiving element 5 which are arranged opposite to each other via a path 3. The output of this detector 2 is supplied to a signal processing circuit 10.

This signal processing circuit 1o is composed of a leading edge detection circuit that detects the leading edge of the signal supplied from the light receiving element 5 and a trailing edge detection circuit that detects the trailing edge of the signal, and corresponds to the transit time of the mail P based on the signals from these circuits. It outputs a signal. The signal from this signal processing circuit 10 is supplied to a CPU (central processor unit) 11.

This CPU II compares the time corresponding to the passage signal of the mail P from the signal processing circuit 10 with a reference value stored in the RAM (random access memory) 12, and determines whether the mail P has passed. This is to determine whether the length is longer than the standard. Furthermore, by controlling the gate 16 driven by the driver 15 according to the above-mentioned determination result, the CPtJll conveys mail items longer than the standard to a reject section (not shown), and transports mail items shorter than the standard to the subsequent stage. It is conveyed to a sorting and stamping section (not shown). Further, the CPU 11 stores the reference value in the ROM (read-only memory) 13 when starting the sorting process by inputting a start key (not shown), or at every predetermined time during execution of the process. This is to determine whether or not it is within a predetermined range. The above CPt, 111 is
If the determination result is within a predetermined range, the above-described determination process is executed; if the determination result is outside the predetermined range, it is determined that the reference value has been erased or changed, and the standard value is read from the ROM 13;
After writing this standard value into the RAM 12 as a reference value, the above-mentioned determination process is performed.

A sorting and stamping device is installed in the RAMI 2, and when the final adjustment is made, mail items P to be sorted and stamped...
By conveying a standard card of the standard length,
The reference value is stored. Thereby, the passing time of the reference card can be set as a reference value for each device having a different transport speed. Also, this RAM12
is backed up by, for example, a battery 14 so that the reference value is not erased or changed.

For example, the RAM 12 stores as a reference value the passing time r66.7m5J when a reference card (200 mm>) is transported at a speed of 3 m/s.

The ROM 13 is composed of a non-volatile memory, etc.
M13 indicates the width (predetermined range) of the passing time of the reference card according to the variation in the conveyance speed in each sorting and stamping device, that is, the deviation in the conveyance speed that occurs in the sorting and stamping device.
is stored in advance. The above predetermined range corresponds to the time required for the reference card to pass at the lowest transport speed to the time required for the reference card to pass at the highest transport speed. Passing time when transported at a speed of 111.4 m5J to 3.2 m
Passage time r62.2m5 when transported at a speed of /s
J is memorized.

Next, the operation of the above configuration will be explained with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG. First, when installing the mail sorting and stamping device, a reference card (200 mm) is conveyed through the conveyance path 3. As a result, a passing signal is supplied from the detector 2 to the CPU 11 via the signal processing circuit 10. Then, C
The PU 11 calculates the passing time for the reference card, and if the calculation result is within a predetermined range stored in the ROM 13, it is stored in the RAM 12 as a reference value.

For example, when the conveyance speed of the conveyance path 3 is 3 m/s, r66.7m5J is stored as the reference value.

In such a state, when starting the sorting process by inputting a start key (not shown), the CPU 11 first
The reference value is read from AM12, and this reference value is stored in ROM13.
It is determined whether or not it is within a predetermined range stored in the memory (Sl). That is, the above CPtJ11 is RAM12
The reference value of is stored in the ROM 13 within a predetermined range (7
1.4ms to 62.2m5).

As a result, if the reference value is within the predetermined range, the CPU 11 starts the determination process. Then, the mail P is conveyed on the conveyance path 3, and its passage signal is supplied from the detector 2 to the CPU 11 via the signal processing circuit 10. Then, C
The PU 11 calculates the transit time according to this transit signal. Next, the CPU 11 compares this passing time with the reference value read from the RAM 2 (82). If the result of this comparison is that the passing time is greater than the reference value, the CPL
Jll determines that the mail P is longer than the reference value and controls the gate 16 to transport the mail P to a reject section (not shown), and if the transit time is smaller than the reference value, CPtJll determines that the mail P is shorter than the standard and controls the gate 16 to convey it to a subsequent sorting and stamping section (not shown).

Further, as a result of the determination in step S1, if the reference value is outside the predetermined range, the CPU 11 determines that the reference value has been deleted or changed, reads the standard value from the ROM 13, and replaces this standard value with a new one. RAM12 as standard value
(S4). Thereafter, the above-described determination process is performed using the standard values stored in the RAM 12 (S2.83).

As mentioned above, if the standard value is stored in the ROM and the standard value stored in the RAM is erased or changed due to a defective backup battery, etc., the RAM is rewritten using the standard value as the standard value. I made it. Therefore, the length of the mail piece can be continuously determined based on the standard value, and processing can be continued.

Furthermore, when only functions are to be confirmed in a test mode or the like, there is no need to set a reference value each time.

Although the above embodiments have been explained using mail as an example, the present invention is not limited to this, but can also be applied to length determination for paper sheets such as securities, parcels, packaging tube products, etc. The same can be done.

Further, although the embodiment has been described as a device for determining length, it is also applicable to a device for determining thickness, weight, etc., for example.

Further, in one embodiment, the reference value is set in the RAM using a reference card for one letter, but it may be an average value for a plurality of letters, for example.

[Effect of the invention 1 As described above, according to the present invention, even if the reference value as a criterion for determining the length, thickness, or weight of an article is erased or changed, the length, thickness, or weight of the article can be determined. It is possible to provide an article discrimination device that can continuously discriminate weight, etc.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

The drawings show one embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 1 is a block diagram schematically showing the configuration of an article discrimination device, and FIG. 2 is shown to explain the relationship between mail and a detector. Figure, 3rd
The figure is a flowchart shown to explain the determination operation. 2...Detector, 10...Signal processing circuit, 11.CP
LJ, 12-RAM, 13-ROM. 15...driver, 16...gate. Applicant's representative Patent attorney Takehiko Suzue 1st figure

Claims (3)

[Claims] (1) Detect the length, thickness, weight, etc. of the article being conveyed along the conveyance path, and store the length, thickness, weight, etc. of the article in the first storage means. A predetermined range is stored in an article discriminating device that discriminates the length, thickness, weight, etc. of the article by comparing the length, thickness, weight, etc. a second storage means for determining whether or not the reference value stored in the first storage means is within a predetermined range stored in the second storage means; writing means for writing a standard value within the predetermined range stored in the second storage means into the first storage means if the reference value is not within the predetermined range as a result of the judgment by the judgment means; An article discrimination device characterized by comprising: (2) The article discriminating device according to claim 1, wherein the first storage means comprises a rewritable memory. (3) The article discriminating device according to claim 1, wherein the standard value is a central value in a predetermined range.