US3864559A
Expired / Lapsed
US
⏱️ 0.0 years remaining
Apparatus for classifying sheet-like material
Assignee: Toshiba Corp
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Filing: 1973-12-21
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Granted: 1975-02-04
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Expires: 1993-12-21
Abstract
Abstract An apparatus for classifying a sheet-like written piece in the designated pocket corresponding to the classification code indicated on the surface of the written piece selected from among the pockets provided on a written material passageway, which comprises a device for supplying data designating the pocket to which the written piece is to be distributed; a device for furnishing data on the current position of the written piece when it passes during transit on the passageway through one of a plurality of detectors provided thereon; a counting device for counting the length of time required for the written piece to cover a distance between the adjacent ones of said detectors; a memory device consisting of at least as many storing sections as written pieces jointly traveling on the passageway at a given time, each of said sections being stored with data designating the pocket in which the written piece is to be received, data on the current position of the written piece and a counted time required for the written piece to cover a distance between any two adjacent ones of the plural detectors; a data-replacing device for successively replacing data on the current position of the written piece while traveling on the passageway and, when a prescribed relationship is detected to exist between the pocketdesignating data and data on any current position of the written piece, guiding the written piece into the designated pocket; and a device for taking proper measures to cope with the abnormal condition when a signal denoting an excess time count over a prescribed level is detected.
Inventors
- 👤 Kenichi Mori
- 👤 Naoto Nakayama
- 👤 Takeshi Osawa
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-10-26 18:33
CPC Classifications
B; B07; B07C; B07C3/00; B07C3/003; B07C3/006; B07C1/00; B07C1/02
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 6
Claim 1
Independent Claim
406 words
An apparatus for classifying sheet-like written material designed to transport a series of written pieces one by one on a passageway and receive a particular written piece in the designated one of a plurality of pockets provided along the passageway which corresponds to the classification code of the written piece, characterized in that the apparatus comprises means for reading out the classification code of a written piece and supplying a pocket designating code signal designating the pocket in which the written piece is to be received; means for supplying a current position code signal of a traveling written piece which means comprises a plurality of detectors disposed along the passageway and including those corresponding to each of the pockets and supplies the current position code signal when the traveling written piece passes through the detectors; a timecounting device for counting a length of time required for a transported written piece to cover a distance between any two adjacent detectors; a memory device including at least as many storing sections as a plurality of written pieces jointly traveling on the passageway at a given time, each of said storing sections being stored with a pocket-designating code signal designating a pocket associated with a given traveling written piece, data on the current position thereof and data on a length of time counted by the time-counting device; means for replacing the preceding time count of the time-counting device stored in the storing section by another time count freshly obtained thereby as a traveling written piece passes through a distance between any two succeeding adjacent detectors; means for detecting whether the time count stored in the storing section lies within a prescribed range and, in that case, replacing data on the first current position of a written piece already stored in the storing section by data on the second current position of the written piece corresponding to a detector following that associated with the first current position of the written piece; means for comparing the pocket-designating data with data on the second current position of a written piece and, when a predetermined coincidence is detected to exist between both data, receiving the written piece in the designated pocket; and means for detecting whether a time count stored in the storing section lies outside of a prescribed range, and in that case, taking proper measures to cope with the abnormal condition in which a written piece was transported on the passageway.
Claim 2
Independent Claim
406 words
An apparatus for classifying sheet-like written material designed to transport a series of written pieces one by one on a passageway and receive a particular written piece in the designated one of a plurality of pockets provided along the passageway which corresponds to the classification code of the written piece, characterized in that the apparatus comprises means for reading out the classification code of a written piece and supplying a pocket designating code signal designating the pocket in which the written piece is to be received; means for supplying a current position code signal of a traveling written piece which means comprises a plurality of detectors disposed along the passageway and including those corresponding to each of the pockets and supplies the current position code signal when the traveling written piece passes through the detectors; a timecounting device for counting a length of time required for a transported written piece to cover a distance between any two adjacent detectors; a memory device including at least as many storing sections as a plurality of written pieces jointly traveling on the passageway at a given time, each of said storing sections being stored with a pocket-designating code signal designating a pocket associated with a given traveling written piece, data on the current position thereof and data on a length of time counted by the time-counting device; means for replacing the preceding time count of the time-counting device stored in the storing section by another time count freshly obtained thereby as a traveling written piece passes through a distance between any two succeeding adjacent detectors; means for detecting whether the time count stored in the storing section lies within a prescribed range and, in that case, replacing data on the first current position of a written piece already stored in the storing section by data on the second current position of the written piece corresponding to a detector following that associated with the first current position of the written piece; means for comparing the pocket-designating data with data on the second current position of a written piece and, when a predetermined coincidence is detected to exist between both data, receiving the written piece in the designated pocket; and means for detecting whether a time count stored in the storing section lies outside of a prescribed range, and in that case, taking proper measures to cope with the abnormal condition in which a written piece was transported on the passageway.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
53 words
A written material-classifying apparatus according to claim 1 wherein the means for supplying the pocket-designating code comprises a readout device for reading out the classification code indicated on the surface of a written piece and a first code signal converter for converting the readout classification code signal into a prescribed pocket-designating code signal.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
116 words
A written material-classifying apparatus according to claim 2 wherein the first code signal converter comprises a memory device stored with a plurality of different classification codes for the same sequential number of a given pocket, the different classification codes being correspondent to the classification codes indicated on the surface of written pieces; a code comparator for comparing the readout code of a written piece with the different classification codes already stored in the memory device; and a pocket-designating code signal generator for reading out the sequential number of a pocket associated by an output coincidence iignal from the code comparator and converting the readout sequential number of the given pocket into a prescribed pocket-designating code signal.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
71 words
A written material-classifying apparatus according to claim 1 wherein the means for supplying the current position code signal of a written piece comprises a detector for generating a detection signal when a traveling written piece shuts off a light path; and a second code signal converter for converting the detection signal into a prescribed current code signal denoting the current position of the traveling written piece corresponding to the associated detector.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
72 words
A written piece-classifying apparatus according to claim 1 wherein that of a plurality of storing sections constituting the memory device which is stored with data on a given traveling written piece is further stored with a busy signal and, after the written piece is received in the designated pocket, has the stored busy signal cleared together with other stored data, and is rendered ready to be used with another traveling written piece.
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USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows
| Annuity Stage | Window Opens | Payment Deadline | Surcharge Period Until | Estimated Fee | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.5 Years (Year 4) | 1978-02-03 | 1978-08-05 | 1979-02-04 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 1982-02-03 | 1982-08-05 | 1983-02-04 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 1986-02-03 | 1986-08-05 | 1987-02-04 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |