Machine for sorting objects such as postal envelopes

Details Machine for sorting objects such as postal envelopes Machine for sorting objects such as postal envelopes

1998-03-11

1999-12-07

Terrell, William E.

Classifying, separating, and assorting solids

Sorting special items, and certain methods and apparatus for...

Condition responsive means controls separating means

209587, 209902, B07C 500

Patent

active

059987537

DESCRIPTION:

BRIEF SUMMARY
BACKGROUND AND SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates to a machine for sorting objects flat in shape, such as postal envelopes for instance; whereby the sorting operation is performed according to criteria related to the nature of these objects: indexing code, morphology, all kinds of marking, or according to a simple counting.
This invention relates more especially to a sorting machine designed particularly for preparing and scheduling the postmen's round.
Usually, all those operations consisting in preparing a postman's round are performed manually, most of the time by the postman himself who, to this end, has a work station provided with pigeonholes which he uses to sort the mail.
This invention provides a sorting machine, similar to office equipment, and designed more especially to improve the quality of service, of productivity, by automating the mail processing tasks.
This machine may notably be ideal for instance for sorting and pigeonholing small format mail, ranging between 90.times.140 mm and 165.times.235 mm with maximum thickness of 7 mm.
The mail can be sorted using the indexing code affixed on the envelope in the form of fluorescent sticks, and according to the conventional principles of fragmented sorting and of reverse sorting.
The machine according to the invention may find many applications. Indeed, it can be suited to sorting and selection criteria adapted to objects other than simple mail, such as bundles of cheques or documents of all kinds liable to be inserted in addition to the postman's round.
The machine according to the invention also benefits, because of its contemplated application, from a compact architecture and a particularly ergonomic arrangement in order to facilitate the operator's work.
This machine comprises, generally:--a hopper to receive the stack of envelopes to be sorted,--an extraction head to pick up the envelopes one by one from one of the ends of the stack,--a conveyor interposed between the said extraction head and the pigeonholes of the sorted envelopes,--a device for locating and reading the sorting criterion, that is to say the indexing code, most of the time,--a junction system in order to direct the envelopes toward the said pigeonholes according to their indexing code and--a control panel. As this machine is more particularly suited for preparing and scheduling the delivery rounds, it shows a peculiar architecture and it comprises particularly, arranged in a compact and ergonomic fashion, in the standard operator work space: machine, in order to receive the stack of envelopes which is placed horizontally and extends to form a facade between the control panel and the extraction head, the preparation of a postman's round, whereby the said pigeonholes are located behind the transparent panel, behind one another, horizontally and on several levels, above the level of the hopper and slightly retracted in order to enable easy pick-up of the sorted envelopes located in the said pigeonholes, in order for instance to position them again in the hopper for a new sorting sequence, whereas the pigeonholes are supplied by a conveyor whose path is such that the sorted envelopes are inserted into the said pigeonholes according to an orientation corresponding to that they have in the hopper at the departure of the said conveyor.
According to a preferred arrangement of the invention, the machine comprises: envelopes widthwise, from the hopper where they are stacked to their pigeonholes and,--means for reading the indexing code according to a parallel mode taking into account that the indexing sticks are oriented in the same direction as that of the motion of the said envelopes.
This particularity relating to the conveying mode enables to improve the sorting speed; indeed the number of envelopes per linear meter is greater that when the envelopes are conveyed widthwise. When changing directions, it is also possible to accept small diameter drums, smaller than 200 mm for instance.
Besides, the reading system in the parallel mode accepts perfectly very high speeds,

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