US3651940A - Sorting conveyor arrangements - Google Patents
Sorting conveyor arrangements Download PDFInfo
- Publication number
- US3651940A US3651940A US886665A US3651940DA US3651940A US 3651940 A US3651940 A US 3651940A US 886665 A US886665 A US 886665A US 3651940D A US3651940D A US 3651940DA US 3651940 A US3651940 A US 3651940A
- Authority
- US
- United States
- Prior art keywords
- sorting
- articles
- conveyor
- store
- sorting conveyor
- 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 - Lifetime
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Classifications
-
- B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
- B65—CONVEYING; PACKING; STORING; HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL
- B65G—TRANSPORT OR STORAGE DEVICES, e.g. CONVEYORS FOR LOADING OR TIPPING, SHOP CONVEYOR SYSTEMS OR PNEUMATIC TUBE CONVEYORS
- B65G1/00—Storing articles, individually or in orderly arrangement, in warehouses or magazines
- B65G1/02—Storage devices
- B65G1/04—Storage devices mechanical
Definitions
- An article sorting arrangement in which articles are fed to one or more sorting stations and from the sorting stations to one or more sorting conveyors, each sorting station including a store in which articles are accumulated after sorting and then fed successively to the sorting conveyor.
- Each store consists of a number of compartments separated by controllable dividing means, these means being operated in such a way that the articles accumulating in the store travel progressively towards the sorting conveyor, the order of filling the compartments being arranged so that the compartment in each store nearest the sorting conveyor is filled first.
- the arrangement may include feeder conveyors for supplying the sorting station, and preferably includes means to ensure that articles which are not sorted are recycled until sorting can be effected.
- SHEET 1 [IF 2 SYDNEY W ROOKE b* W N/6M SYDNEY w. koows bf 601mm I Em SORTING CONVEYOR ARRANGEMENTS
- This invention relates to sorting arrangements for articles, for example to parcel sorting arrangements in which parcels are fed by sorters to a sorting conveyor and the arrangement is particularly intended to ensure that the sorting conveyor operates at its optimum capacity.
- the sorting arrangement comprises a main feeder conveyor supplying articles to be sorted to at least one marshalling region or glacis from each of which the articles are supplied to a secondary feeder conveyor in a predetermined orientation, and at least one sorting station is provided adjacent to and supplied by said secondary feeder conveyor, the articles being sorted at said sorting station and fed therefrom to a sorting conveyor, each sorting station including a store for the articles which is operable in such a manner that the part of the store nearest to the sorting conveyor is filled first, the articles in the store being removed by the sorting conveyor in dependence on its capacity, so that as articles are successively fed to the sorting conveyor, the remaining articles in the store move progressively towards the sorting conveyor.
- each sorting station includes an accelerating conveyor between the sorting conveyor and the store compartment nearest to it to ensure that the articles fed to the sorting conveyor do so at the optimum speed.
- FIG. 1 is a schematic plan view ofa complete parcel sorting installation with inessential parts omitted for clarity;
- FIG. 2 is a side elevation taken on the line AA of FIG. 1;
- FIG. 3 is a side elevation taken on the line B-B of FIG. 1;
- FIG. 4 is a side elevation of an alternative arrangement of FIG. 3, and
- FIG. Si is a side elevation taken on the line C-C of FIG. 3.
- a parcel sorting arrangement is supplied by a main feed conveyor 1, which is for example a travelling band onto which parcels are fed at random.
- a main feed conveyor 1 which is for example a travelling band onto which parcels are fed at random.
- this conveyor Along one or both sides ofthis conveyor are a number of marshalling areas or glacis 2 into which parcels are directed by controllable means 3 such as ploughs which are arranged for graduated operation so that each glacis is continually supplied with parcels without overflowing.
- each glacis is in communication with a secondary feeder conveyor 4, and each of the secondary conveyors runs past one or more sorting stations controlled by a sorter.
- Each sorter may be responsible for one or more such stations, and the system may be so arranged that two sorters can operate three or even four such stations.
- Each station is arranged to supply a sorting conveyor 5, and the sorting conveyor accepts parcels from each store in a sequence and at a rate according to its space capacity.
- the main feeder conveyor 1 which may be a flat belt with ploughs or a tilted band with controllable gates or ploughs 3 is at a relatively high level and parcels are delivered therefrom into inclined collecting areas or glacis 2 which feed the parcels gravitationally towards a single outlet.
- This outlet stands a facer who turns each parcel round until its label can be read by other operatives who act as sorters.
- Each outlet feeds a secondary feeder conveyor 4 which extends horizontally and at a right angle to the main conveyor.
- each secondary feeder On one side of each secondary feeder are a number of pushbutton sorting stations, each controlled by a sorter. Each station is inclined towards a sorting conveyor 5 to which parcels are fed, this feed being facilitated by the inclusion, at the discharge end of each station, of an accelerating conveyor (not shown) which ensures delivery of the parcels to the sorting conveyor 5 at the appropriate speed which ensures that the sorting conveyor operates at its optimum capacity.
- a sorting conveyor 5 On one side of each secondary feeder are a number of pushbutton sorting stations, each controlled by a sorter.
- Each station is inclined towards a sorting conveyor 5 to which parcels are fed, this feed being facilitated by the inclusion, at the discharge end of each station, of an accelerating conveyor (not shown) which ensures delivery of the parcels to the sorting conveyor 5 at the appropriate speed which ensures that the sorting conveyor operates at its optimum capacity.
- each sorting station is divided into a row of compartments 6, separated by controllable gates 7 and the arrangement is so operated that parcels fed to the store by the sorter are placed individually in adjacent compartments, the compartment nearest to the sorting conveyor 5 being filled first. As soon as a parcel is taken by the sorting conveyor 5, all the parcels remaining in that store move to the next empty compartment, their movement being controlled by appropriate sequential operation of the gates 7.
- the lowest gate 7 opens and the parcel is fed by the accelerating conveyor to the sorting conveyor 5, by which it is eventually delivered to the correct distribution point.
- the discharge gate 7 closes and the next upper gate 7 opens, closing again when a parcel has moved into the recently emptied compartment 6. This is repeated along the row of compartments 6 in each store until the empty compartments are nearest to the sorter, who is thus able to form a queue" of parcels waiting to be loaded onto the sorting conveyor.
- the sorting stations are arranged in pairs, the pairs being separated by a suitable interval, when a signal is given by the sorting conveyor 5, the parcels from the first pair of stores 6 are fed to the sorting conveyor, and after a suitable delay, the parcels from the second pair are similarly loaded. No parcels are taken while the conveyor 5 is fully loaded.
- the sorting stations may be parallel, or as shown in FIG. 4 they may be arranged to converge towards the sorting conveyor 5, and it is preferable for the sorters to face the oncoming parcels.
- each secondary feeder conveyor 4 By placing each secondary feeder conveyor 4 at a relatively high level above the sorting conveyors 5 as shown in the drawings a number of systems can be arranged in an overlapping relationship, the sorting conveyor 5 of one line being beneath the secondary feeding conveyor 4 or the sorters platforms 17 (FIG. 3) of an adjacent line.
- Sorting conveyors tend to have discrete acceptance positions, or at least to have articles spacing requirements, and the present invention provides a way of ensuring that the conveyor 5 operates at optimum capacity.
- Sorters work at a rate which is dependent on such factors as the legibility of labels and the shape or handiness" of the article being sorted, and the use of a number of sorters each controlling one or more stores enables the parcels to be sorted at maximum efficiency of both sorters and the sorting conveyor.
- the sorting conveyor is a continuous band. It may, however, be of any suitable type, such as a plurality of separate carriers.
- the secondary feeder conveyors are so arranged that any parcels not taken by the sorters are returned to the beginning and recycled.
- the parcels or other articles travel through a path which is as follows, commencing with the conveyor 8 to which parcels are originally fed.
- This conveyor carries the parcels to an ascending run 9 from which they descend to the ascending conveyor 10 which delivers the parcels to the main feeder conveyor 1.
- each store may be provided with a conveying means which transports the parcels towards the sorting conveyors, and this conveying means may be for example an escalator conveyor, the steps of which move individually when occupied to transfer the parcels, or for uniform parcels a pusher type may be employed, the bars of which are arranged to engage the parcels and when loaded to move through the store in the correct sequence.
- This two latter methods will also be capable of providing a more rapid movement of the queue of parcels than the purely gravitational method described above.
- the system may be modified where the parcels can be suitably coded, so that the reading of addresses and sorting can be automated, provided that the parcels are correctly oriented on the secondary feeder conveyor 4.
- the supply of parcels to each glacis 2 is preferably controlled by movable ploughs 3 which may have a graduated movement across the conveyor surface to allow progressive feed which ensures that each glacis is properly filled.
- the plough control may be manual or automatic.
- the main feeder conveyor may be a tilted band conveyor with controllable side gates at each glacis.
- each gate may have to be operated extremely rapidly and its operation preferably controlled by the use of photoelectric means.
- each store may have controllable belt conveyors carrying the articles towards the sorting conveyor. Such an arrangement would allow the stores to be horizontal, and each belt would run until an article reached its head and the following belt was also occupied, detection of articles on the belts being performed for example by photocells.
- a sorting apparatus comprising,
- each store comprising a plurality of compartments separated from each other and from the sorting conveyor by selectively controllable gates
- the gates being provided with actuating means operable to deliver the first article placed in said store to the compartment nearest the sorting conveyor,
- said sorting conveyor including means to remove articles from the or each said store
- said gate actuating means being operable to cause the articles in the or each said store to move sequentially to to next empty compartment in the direction of the sorting conveyor.
- a sorting arrangement characterized in that the main feed conveyor is an endless band provided with controllable article deflecting means which are operable to deliver the articles to be sorted to a selected marshalling region, the deflecting means being arranged for graduated operation whereby each marshalling region is supplied with articles without exceeding its capacity.
- controllable article deflecting means comprise selectively operable plough members.
- a sorting arrangement according to claim 1 characterized in that the articles are fed to the marshalling regions by automatically controlled means.
- a sorting arrangement according to claim 1 characterized in that the articles move from the main feeder conveyor to the sorting conveyor under the influence of gravity.
- a sorting arrangement characterized in that the main feeder conveyor and each secondary feeder conveyor are interconnected by further conveyors which are arranged to recycle any article not delivered into a store.
- a sorting arrangement according to claim 6 characterized in that the sorting conveyor is arranged to deliver articles not selectively removed therefrom back to the main feeder conveyor.
- a sorting arrangement which supplies articles to a sorting conveyor and comprising at least one sorting station, the articles being sorted at the or each sorting station and fed therefrom to the sorting conveyor, characterized in that each sorting station includes a store for the articles which is operable in such a manner that the part of the store nearest to the sorting conveyor is filled first, the articles in the store being removed by the sorting conveyor in dependence on its capacity, so that as articles are successively fed to the sorting conveyor, the remaining articles in the store move progressively toward the sorting conveyor, said sorting station being provided with an accelerating conveyor between the sorting conveyor and the part of the store nearest thereto, the accelerating conveyor being driven at a speed which feeds the sorted articles to the sorting conveyor at a predetermined velocity.
- a sorting arrangement which supplies articles to a sorting conveyor and comprising at least one sorting station, the articles being sorted at the or each sorting station and fed therefrom to the sorting conveyor, characterized in that each sorting station includes a store for the articles which is operable in such a manner that the part of the store nearest to the sorting conveyor is filled first, the articles in the store being removed by the sorting conveyor in dependence on its capacity, so that as articles are successively fed to the sorting conveyor, the remaining articles in the store move progressively toward the sorting conveyor, each sorting station comprising a row of compartments arranged between the secondary feeder conveyor and the sorting conveyor, the compartments being separated from each other and the sorting conveyor be controllable gates, the movement of the gates being arranged such that the compartment nearest the sorting conveyor is filled first with sorted articles, and as these articles are successively discharged to the sorting conveyor the gates are operated in sequence to move the articles remaining in the store to the next empty compartment in the direction of the sorting conveyor.
- a sorting arrangement characterized in that the sorting stations are arranged in pairs, the pairs being separated from each other, and wherein each sorting station includes two stores, the articles being fed to the first store in each pair, with respect to the direction of travel of the secondary feeder conveyor, until said first store is filled to a predetermined level, following which the articles are fed to the next store, the sorting conveyor being arranged to receive articles from the first pair of stores before receiving articles from succeeding pairs.
- a sorting arrangement which supplies articles to a sorting conveyor and comprising at least one sorting station, the articles being sorted at the or each sorting station and fed therefrom to the sorting conveyor, characterized in that each sorting station includes a store for the articles which is operable in such a manner that the part of the store nearest to the sorting conveyor is filled first, the articles in the store being removed by the sorting conveyor in dependence on its capacity, so that as articles are successively fed to the sorting conveyor, the remaining articles in the store move progressively toward the conveyor, each store being provided with additional conveying means which transports the articles toward the sorting conveyor.
- a sorting arrangement characterized in that the additional conveying means comprises an escalator conveyor, the steps of which move individually when occupied to move the articles towards the sorting conveyor.
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- Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
- Mechanical Engineering (AREA)
- Branching, Merging, And Special Transfer Between Conveyors (AREA)
Abstract
Description
Claims (14)
Applications Claiming Priority (1)
Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
---|---|---|---|
GB6140468 | 1968-12-24 |
Publications (1)
Publication Number | Publication Date |
---|---|
US3651940A true US3651940A (en) | 1972-03-28 |
Family
ID=10486998
Family Applications (1)
Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
---|---|---|---|
US886665A Expired - Lifetime US3651940A (en) | 1968-12-24 | 1969-12-19 | Sorting conveyor arrangements |
Country Status (2)
Country | Link |
---|---|
US (1) | US3651940A (en) |
GB (1) | GB1265975A (en) |
Cited By (3)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
US3804248A (en) * | 1971-12-30 | 1974-04-16 | R Talamantz | Sortation system |
US3924381A (en) * | 1974-04-18 | 1975-12-09 | Pennwalt Corp | System for the handling of fruits and vegetables |
US5249690A (en) * | 1991-10-15 | 1993-10-05 | Patterson Gill R | Apparatus and method for sorting commingled waste materials for recycling |
Citations (3)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
US825667A (en) * | 1905-01-30 | 1906-07-10 | Cora M Latchford | Apparatus for preparing fruit for canning. |
US1616693A (en) * | 1925-03-24 | 1927-02-08 | Russel K Havighorst | Structure for facilitating sorting and delivering of packages |
US2856071A (en) * | 1956-04-24 | 1958-10-14 | Victor L Williamson | Sorting apparatus |
-
1968
- 1968-12-24 GB GB6140468A patent/GB1265975A/en not_active Expired
-
1969
- 1969-12-19 US US886665A patent/US3651940A/en not_active Expired - Lifetime
Patent Citations (3)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
US825667A (en) * | 1905-01-30 | 1906-07-10 | Cora M Latchford | Apparatus for preparing fruit for canning. |
US1616693A (en) * | 1925-03-24 | 1927-02-08 | Russel K Havighorst | Structure for facilitating sorting and delivering of packages |
US2856071A (en) * | 1956-04-24 | 1958-10-14 | Victor L Williamson | Sorting apparatus |
Cited By (3)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
US3804248A (en) * | 1971-12-30 | 1974-04-16 | R Talamantz | Sortation system |
US3924381A (en) * | 1974-04-18 | 1975-12-09 | Pennwalt Corp | System for the handling of fruits and vegetables |
US5249690A (en) * | 1991-10-15 | 1993-10-05 | Patterson Gill R | Apparatus and method for sorting commingled waste materials for recycling |
Also Published As
Publication number | Publication date |
---|---|
GB1265975A (en) | 1972-03-08 |
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Legal Events
Date | Code | Title | Description |
---|---|---|---|
AS | Assignment |
Owner name: CITIBANK, N.A., NEW YORK Free format text: SECURITY INTEREST;ASSIGNOR:SHELLER-GLOBE, CORPORATION;REEL/FRAME:004635/0385 Effective date: 19860610 Owner name: CITIBANK, N.A., 641 LEXINGTON AVENUE, NEW YORK, NE Free format text: SECURITY INTEREST;ASSIGNOR:SHELLER-GLOBE, CORPORATION;REEL/FRAME:004635/0385 Effective date: 19860610 |
|
AS | Assignment |
Owner name: SHELLER-GLOBE CORPORATION Free format text: RELEASED BY SECURED PARTY;ASSIGNOR:CITIBANK, N.A., AS AGENT;REEL/FRAME:004748/0264 Effective date: 19870401 |
|
AS | Assignment |
Owner name: SHELLER-GLOBE CORPORATION, A CORP. OF DE Free format text: RELEASED BY SECURED PARTY;ASSIGNOR:CITIBANK, NA AS AGENT;REEL/FRAME:005110/0871 Effective date: 19881209 |