Data processing: generic control systems or specific application – Specific application – apparatus or process – Article handling
Reexamination Certificate
1998-11-10
2001-02-20
Ellis, Christopher P. (Department: 3651)
Data processing: generic control systems or specific application
Specific application, apparatus or process
Article handling
C270S052020, C700S215000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06192295
ABSTRACT:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a method of sorting printed documents consisting of one or a plurality of paper sheets in a stacker and feeding the documents to a finishing machine, e.g. a folding and enveloping machine or a binder.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
In modern high speed printing machines, e.g. laser printers, the individual papers of the successive documents or jobs are printed in successive order of their page number and outputted with their printed side down. The printed papers are stacked in a stacker. The sheets of the individual documents are then in correct order. If the sheets are printed in Duplex mode, the odd page numbers usually face down. The printing may also be done in the reverse order of the sheet numbers and the stacking performed with the printed side or the odd page numbers up.
In U.S. Pat. No. 5,439,209 to Kurt Rünzi a stacker is disclosed which is capable of separating the individual jobs on the stack. The papers are fed to a conveyor belt which transports them to the stack in a cassette. A lateral guide rail for the papers can be swiveled between two positions. The switching position of the guide rail is changed each time a document or job is finished, i.e. after the last page of that job has passed the conveyor belt.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The problem to be solved with the present invention is to improve the handling of such a stacker and to enable an efficient further processing of the stacked documents in a finishing machine.
This problem is solved by the present invention which comprises a method of sorting printed documents consisting of at least one sheet of paper and feeding them to a finishing machine. The sheets which are outputted from a printing device are stacked in an exchangeable cassette mounted on an input unit in successive order as they are printed. An identifying label on the cassette is read by a reader and stored in a central controller. An address of each document, and preferably of each page of each document, is stored in the controller in successive order and associated with the label signal as the documents are stacked. An output unit for picking up the individual documents is associated with a finishing machine. A full cassette is introduced into the output unit. A second reader on the output unit reads the label on the cassette that has been placed into the output unit. The second reader is connected to the controller. The finishing machine is controlled by the controller in response to the label signal and the address signals of the documents.
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Browdy and Neimark
Ellis Christopher P.
Mackey Patrick
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