US2024785A - Continuous-form shipping and accounting device - Google Patents

Description

D@ 17, 1935. H. @,-rosev 2,024,785

CONTINUOUS FORM SHIPPING AND' ACCOUNTING DEVICE Filed Oct. 13, 1932 7 Sheets-Sheet 1 Dec. 17, 1935. H. c. TOBEYY CONTINUOUS FORM SHIPPING AND ACCOUNTING DEVICE Filed Oct. 13, 1952 7 Sheets-Sheet 2 WWA .Mummia EANRNMN @C NULO Zofrczrrnwn OP .NM/HUN H M. .UHN H Il u Mfg@

k1. 71 71 for jfarfsy yH. c. 'roBEY CONTINUOUS FORM SHIPPING AND ACCOUNTING DEVICE H. C. TOBEY Dec; 17, 1935.

CONTINUOUS FORM SHIPPING AND ACCOUNTING DEVICE FII Ni f@ CONTINUOUS FORM SHIPPING AND ACCOUNTING DEVICE Dec. 17, 1935.

zonEOU morto UZWZBE @h fdl mi; ...z

Dec. 17, 1935. H. c. ToBEY 2,024,785

CONTINUOUS FORM SHIPPING AND ACCOUNTING DEVICE Filed oct. 1s, 1932 'r sheets-sheet e 3 mi?? lig 3 www OFFICE: ,vf; *2:2217 Ttt 7m* Biff# Pfff E l A//' AlRwmr ExPRnssAaeNcv N3 2 'E (aa-mcmcnao, n l.. g; 6 2

No. 1446 WEIGHT E Q Zai Q I .Vl STAMP ROUTING IN 5 A VE-EXCEPT WEIGHT SPACE SPNIIDC CORDOFR ENTIOH GIMSHPHENTKING,FEEDMG'WITERINGIREPNRIHG'ETL.

1ST UETMH v l NERE AlRwAY EXPRESS AGENCY o. 46 83 CHICAGOILL. f 6.8) wAYaILL LABEL -f' A FROM coNsxGNEE 1F WAYBI LL BECGH DETRCHED STAMP ROUTING BELOW Al RWAY EXPRESS AGENCY @WQ fm EV@ Dec. 17, 1935. H. c. lroel-:Y

CONTINUOUS FORM SHIPPING AND ACCOUNTING DEIICE Filed Oct. l5, 1932 Tgjl.

7 Sheets-Sheet '7 T0 DESTINATION OFFICE R ICL DESC! IN SHIPPSR U.A. COMPANY SII 5 STREET Danesa 5000 $0. CALIFORNIA AYE.

C: (I.) U.A. COMPANY CHICAGO SMIPPER'S MEMORANDUM COPY 1'o @waa $1'. Anm-enc 4l5`a a wzlaur my fb M f f 180 l DATE Youn cansa No 403i/ l/onn 60x75* l L 32 :xvmscmnsss AR-rLE(j )PIECE-5(1) 22 wowwum. use nos. FROM 5001 vsscmpflau aan To .29.999 ZEMQW `\DETACH Patented Dec. 17, 1935 UNITED STATE CONTINUOUS-FORM SHIPPING AND ACCOUNTING DEVICE Harry C. Tobey, Chicago, Ill., assigner to United Autographlc Register Co., a corporation oi' Illinois Application October 13, 1932, Serial No. 637,627

s claims. (c1. 282-12) This invention relates particularly to means for facilitating shipments and accountings pertaining thereto. The device is well adapted, for example, to the purpose of express shipments, whether sent C. O. D. or otherwise.

The primary object is to provide a continuousform multi-copy device adapted for the use of shippers which may be filled out in the office of the shipper, each set of forms providing all the record-slips, or record-coupons, needful for the record-files of the shipper and the express company, or carrier. y

In the improved device, provision is made for attaching to the package to be shipped a delivery sheet which is to be signed and given as a receipt to the express company by the consignee; a waybill which ultimately is forwarded to an auditor of express receipts foraccounting purposes (distribution of revenue to carriers); and a way-bill label which remains on the package, but is available for identification of the package in the event that the other slips or Vcoupons become injured or detached during transit.

The improved device preferably comprises at least four strips of continuous forms, the forms being arranged in sets and detachably connected together at their ends. The slips and/ or coupons of each set are given an identifying character or number which may be printed thereon at the time of the printing of the forms. The sets of forms may be numbered serially, and this number may serve as the shippers identifying number for the shipment to which the particular set was applied. The forms may also be provided with blanks for receiving the customers order number and the shippers factory order number.

Preferably, the two intermediate strips are detachably connected together at one lateral edge, thus forming a dual strip; and this dual strip comprises the delivery sheet, the way-bill, and the way-bill label. The slip of which the delivery sheet forms a coupon also has another coupon which may be utilized as a shipping label, or as a shipment-data coupon containing detailed data of the shipment, as desired.

When it is desired to make a shipment, the shipper may cause a set of the forms to be filled out, employing for the purpose an autographic register, a typewriting machine, or a. duplicating machine of any suitable character.

The invention is illustrated in a preferred embodiment in the accompanying drawings in which:

Fig. 1 is a broken perspective view of an autographic register loaded with a zig-zag folded packet of continuous-form stationery embodying 1G?. the invention; Fig. 2, a broken perspective view showing a. portion of the continuous-form stationery; Fig. 3, a front face view of the front or upper form of a set as preferably arranged, this 5 slip constituting a shippers receipt; Fig. 4, a reverse face view of the slip shown in Fig. 2, the terms and conditions, of agreement between the express company and the shipper appearing thereon; Fig. 5, a developed (open) view of a dual 10 slip which, according to the preferred arrange-*-` ment, constitutes the two intermediate slips oi4 a set, embodying a delivery sheet (coupon), a waybill, a way-bill label, and an additional coupon which, in Fig. 3, appears as a shipping label; Fig. i5 6. a reverse-side view of the dual form shown inlf Fig. 5; Fig. 7, a front face view showing a combined forwarding-omce coupon and destination district accounting oflice coupon (abstract advice), which constitutes the fourth slip of the set, 2o according to the .preferred arrangement; Fig. y*8, a view'illustrating the manner in which the delivery sheet, the way-bill, and the way-bill label are folded (after first detaching the shipping label) to enable the folded parts to be attached 25 to the package, the reverse-side-of the way-bill label appearing in Fig. 8; Fig. 9, a front view of the folded device shown in Fig. 8, this view showing the reverse side of the way-bill which 1s adapted to contain routing information, or the like,` to 30 be lled in by agents of the express company?Jv Fig. l0, a view of the folded device after the d elivery sheet (coupon) and the way-bill (coupon) have been detached at the destination, it being understood that the way-bill label and the pasting strips employed for securing the delivery sheet of the way-bill to the package remain pasted upon the package after detachment of the delivery sheet and way-bill; Fig. l1, a view illustrating the delivery sheet and the way-bill (cou- 40 pons) after detachment thereof from the package; Fig. l2, a broken view illustrating the manner in which the shipping label and the combined delivery sheet, Way-bill, and way-bill label may be attached to a package; and Fig. 13, a plan view 45 of a shipment-data coupon which may be employed in the continuous-form stationery asfa substitute for the shipping label, in which case the package may be addressed in any desired manner, and the shipment-data coupon maybe 50 retained by the shipper, or may be forwardedto the consignee, according to the pleasure of the shipper. 11

Describing the preferred construction illustrated, I designates slipone of a. set of forms, 55

constituting a shippers receipt, this slip having printed on vits back the terms and conditions of the agreement upon which the shipment is made: II designates a dual slip, which comprises the two intermediate slips of the set, one slip comprising the shipping-label and the' delivery-sheet and the other slip comprising the way-bill label and the way-bill; and III designates the fourth slip of the set, which comprises the forwarding-cnice coupon and the destination district accounting oflice coupon.

Referring to Fig. 1, R designates a small portable autographic register which may -be employed as a simple means for enabling a set of forms to be filled in, and P designates a packet of zigzag folded stationery embodying the invention, the strips of stationery being folded in such manner that the various slips of each set are in superposed relation. Fig. 2 shows a fragment of the continuous-form stationery previous to the zigzag folding of the stationery to form a packet, it being understood that the folding occurs along the line of weakening between the sets of forms.

Describing the improved shipping and accounting device more in detail, the ilrst sheet of the set of forms is designated A. The front face 'of this sheet is provided with vblanks for the name and address of the consignee, indicated at the points I; a blank for the customer's order number, indicated at 2; a blank for the shippers factory order number, indicated at l; a'serial number for the set of forms, indicated at 4 as the number 1446; the name of the shipper, indicated at 5; blanks for the signatures of the shippers representative and the express company representative, indicated at 6 and 'l respectively; and a title for the sheet indicated at l as shippers receip i The face of the slip A also contains suitable blanks for receiving data, such as the Declared value" of the shipment, the weight of the shipment, etc.

Upon the reverse side of the slip A are printed the usual terms and conditionsupon which the shipment is made, as partially indicated at 9.

Referring to Figs. 5 and 6, the dual-slip device 1I comprises a slip B and a slip C which are detachably connected at one lateral edge at the perforate line III. In practice, thedual-slip is folded so that the slip C will lie back of the slip B. I 'I'he slip B is shown as comprising a shipping-label B', a delivery sheet (consignee's receipt to express company) B2, and a pasting strip Bl.- 'I'he coupons B' and Bz are detachably connected at the transverse perforate line Il; and the pasting strip is detachably connected with the coupon B2 at the perforate line I2. The strip B3 preferably is provided with perforations Il for a purpose which will be explained later.`

The coupons of the slip B are, in general', provided with blanks which correspond with the blanks on the shippers receipt A, and, in practice,

Aa carbon sheet is interposed between the slip A and the slip B,so that data illled in the blanks on slip A will be reproduced upon the coupons B and B. 'I'he coupon B2 is provided with a consignees signature blank as indicated at I 4.

As appears from Fig. 6, the reverse side of the coupon B' is left blank, and has printed thereon notice that this surface is to be used as a pasting surface by means of which the shipping-label may be attached to the package.

The reverse side of the delivery-sheet or coupon B2 preferably is provided with a carbonlzed surface as indicated at I5. This serves as a `indicated at l'l.

transfer medium whereby the way-bill Ca is nlled out at the time when the shippers receipt A is filled out in the omce of the shipper. It would be possible to employ a transverse slip of carbon paper at this point, but the carbonised surface 5 is simpler.

The front surface of the way-bill label C' is provided with blanks, as indicated at II, wherein the routing may be stamped by an express agent in case the way-bill becomes detached. l

-The reverse side of the way-bill Cz is provided with blanks wherein routings may be stamped byV an express company agent, these blanks being It will be understood that this surface of the way-bill is not illled in at the omce l of the shipper.

The slip or sheet III which constitutes the fourth slip of the set is designated D. It'comprises, as shown in-Fig. 7, a forwarding office coupon D' and a destination district accounting 20 omce coupon (Abstract advice) D connected by a. line of weakening Il. In practice, a carbon sheet may be interposed between the rear surface of the slip C and the front surface of the slip D so that the necessary data will be filled in by transfer when slip A is iilled in at the oilice of the shipper. The slip D' preferably is provided with a printed description indicating that this coupon is to be retained by the forwarding oilice of the express company. Thus. at the point I8a 30 appears thelegend Forwardly oilice coupon. Also, the coupon D2 preferably is provided with means to indicate that this coupon is to be forwarded to the destination district accounting omce. Thus, at the point I9 is the legend "Des- 35 Vtination district accounting ofl'lce coupon.

Assuming a set of forms to have been properly filled in at the oillce of the shipper, the necessary data pertaining to the particular shipment having been written or printed in the appropriate 40' blanks, the shipment is received by the express company and an agent of the express company signs the shippers receipt at the blank designated 1, this slip being then given to the shipper.

If desired, before the shipment is taken to the express ofllce, the shipper may detach the coupon B (the shipping label) and paste this label upon the package; or thisy may be left for the express company to attend to.

The delivery sheet or coupon B2 and the under- 50 lying way-bill coupon Ca are then folded upwardly over the face of the way-bill label C', it being noted that the coupons C and Cn are detachably connected together at the Derforate line 20. The coupons are so proportioned that the attaching strips B:l and C3 project beyond the upper edge of the way-bill label, it being noted that the coupon B2 lies between the coupon C2 and the face side of the way-bill label. An adhesive is then applied to the rear face of the coupon C' and'perforate 6 attaching-strip B3. Some of the adhesive will pass through the perforations, so that the attaching-strip C3 will be secured to the attachingstrip Ba and the latter will be secured to the package. Thus, the way-bill label may be nrmly glued 5 to the package, and the attaching-strips projecting above the upper edge of the way-bill label may be firmly glued to the package. In this condition, the delivery sheet B2 is housed between the way-bill Ca and the way-bill label, the latter two elements remaining connected together along the perforate line 20.

When the package reaches its destination, the delivery-sheet and way-bill may be readily detached by tearing ilrst along the perforate line 7 5 vention.

20 and then along the coincident perforate lines I2 and 2|, the latter being the line of connection between the coupon C2 and the attaching strip C3,

The agent of the express company at the delivery station obtains the signature of the consignee on the coupon B2. The coupon B2 is then forwarded to the district accounting .bureau in charge of the destination oflice; the way-bill is passed `on to the auditor of express receipts, to enable proper distribution of revenue to the carriers to be effected; and the Way-bill label remains on the package.

Referring to Fig. 13, the coupon B may be used in the improved device in lieu of the shipping label, in which event the package may be addressed to the destination office in any desired manner. The coupon B is provided with suitable blanks for receiving the name of the consignee, the customers order number, the shippers factory order number, and is provided with additional data blanks, as indicated at 22. Thus, this coupon may be employed by the shipper for receiving detailed data concerning the particular shipment.

The improved device enables all the various coupons desirable for effecting and keeping a proper record of shipments of this nature and enabling proper accountings to be made as between the express company and the shipper and as between the express company and the various carriers over Whose lines the shipment is made, enables these coupons to be filled out in an orderly manner in the office of the shipper, thus obviating the dangerof errors, avoiding loss of slips, etc. Numerous grave objections to devices which have long been in use for effecting shipments of this character are overcome by the present in- It is unnecessary to enumerate the many objections which exist with respect to devices previously in use. Not only are the more common objections of serious character overcome by the improved device, but a vast amount of wastage of shipping forms is obviated, also.

Those skilled in the art will readily understand that the provision of continuous-form stationery having all of the necessary coupons for record and accounting purposes required by shipper and express company enables the forms to be filled in on a suitable machine with precision and high legibility, thus obviating troublesome and expensive errors.

The foregoing detailed description has been given for clearness of understanding only, and no unnecessary limitations should be understood therefrom, but the appended claims should be construed as broadly as permissible in view of the prior art. Additional copy strips may be employed, if desired; the order of the strips may be changed without departure from the invention; and some variation in the constitution and arrangement of the various coupons may be desirable for certain purposes. Preferably the slips B and C are detachably united at one edge; and, preferably, slips A and D are wholly separate from slips B and C. However, a differential-rangement may be adopted, if desired. The folding of the duplicating strips in zig-zag manner to form a packet enables the continuous-form stationery to be kept in neat packages and placed in a suitable machine for use. The lines of folding are at the perforate lines where the forms are connected together at their ends.

Referring to Fig. 1, 22 designates a carbonsheet between the slips A and B; and 23 designates a carbon-sheet between the slips C and D Referring to Fig. 3, the blanks designated 2l bear an inscription to prevent marking thereat. 5 Corresponding spaces are thus left free at 24B (Fig. 5), at 2lb (Fig. 6), and at 24 (Fig. rl) for the use of the express agency.

Also, as appears from Fig. 6, no transfer medium is applied to the back of the shipping-label l0 B', so that the blanks I6 of the way-bill label C' (Figs. 6 and 10) will be available to the express agency, if needed, as by loss of way-bill and delivery-sheet.

Referring to Fig. 9, the back of the way-bill l5 coupon C2 is provided with blanks 25 which are available vto the express agency for ,the stamping of routings. This side of the way-bill is exposed to view during shipment.

The serial (form) number 1446 appears (print- 20 ed) on all coupons, including the shppingdabel, the way-bill label, and the shipment-data label (when employed).

What I regard as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is: 23 1. Continuous-form stationery adapted for use in a duplicating machine, comprising a series of similar sets of forms connected end-to-end, each set having an upper slip and an underlying registering slip connected with each other at one 30 lateral edge by a line of folding, each of said slips being similarly divided into two adjacent parts by a transverse fold line and each of said slips being provided at one end with a transverse strip connected thereto by a line of weakening, said 35 strips being in register and one having cut-out portions to admit glue to the companion strip.

2. Continuous-form stationery, adapted for use in a duplicating machine. comprising a series of similar sets of forms connected end-to-end, each set having an upper slip and an underlying registering slip connected with each other at one lateral edge by a line of weakening, each of said slips being divided by registering transverse lines of weakening into two adjacent and substantially equal parts and a smaller third part, the equal parts being adapted to be folded together along their connecting transverse lines -of weakening into registration and the third part of one of said slips having cut-out portions whereby glue may be applied to one of the equal parts and to both of the third parts simultaneously.

3. A packet of zig-zag folded continuous-form stationery, adapted for use in aduplicating machine, comprising: a series of similar sets of forms connected end-to-end, each set having an upper slip and an underlying registering slip connected with each other at one lateral edge by a line of weakening, each of said slips being divided by registering transverse lines of weakening into an upper part, an adjacent lower part of substantially equal size, and a smaller bottom part, the upper parts of both slips having register perforations and adapted to be folded along their connecting transverse lines of weakening into registration with the lower parts, and the bottom part of the upper slip having cut-out portions whereby glue may be applied to the back of the upper part of the underlying slip and to both of said bottom parts simultaneously.-

HARRY C. TOBEY.

Images