Patent US3884370A successfully refreshed from Google Patents.
US3884370A
Expired / Lapsed
US
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System for sorting and processing articles including flat mail pieces
Assignee: Unisys Corp
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Filing: 1973-09-28
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Granted: 1975-05-20
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Expires: 1993-09-28
Abstract
Abstract The present disclosure describes a system for sorting and processing a variety of articles including certain mail pieces known as flats which cannot be processed on letter mail equipment. The system includes mechanical carriers, which may be magnetically encoded with the sort destinations, to transport and remain with the respective items through the total processing cycle. The system further comprises a monorail conveyor distribution system having a three dimensional suspension system consisting of belts to provide transport, storage, switching and supporting of the carriers during the processing operation.
Inventors
- 👤 Robert S Bradshaw
- 👤 Alfred A Greene
- 👤 James R Hunter
- 👤 S James Lazzarotti
- 👤 Abe Mann
- 👤 Herbert L Rosenblatt
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-10-26 20:10
CPC Classifications
B; B07; B07C; B07C3/00; B07C3/02; B07C3/08; B07C3/082; B07C3/087; B65; B65G; B65G47/00; B65G47/34; B65G47/46; B65G47/50; Y; Y10; Y10S; Y10S209/00; Y10S209/90
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 14
Claim 1
Independent Claim
148 words
A system for sorting articles comprising in combination: carrier means coupled to said articles for providing support therefor and remaining therewith throughout the complete sorting process, each of said carrier means being comprised of a T-shaped upper section and a lower section for clamping at least one of said articles, said upper section having a springloaded clamp release lever protruding therefrom and being operatively connected to the clamping means in said lOwer section, transport means for transporting said carrier means to predetermined sort destinations and providing storage therefor at said destinations, escort memory means affixed to each of said carrier means and possessing information as to the sort destination therefor, gating means operatively positioned with respect to said transport means and responsive to the information contained in said escort memory means for switching said carrier means among a plurality of transport paths to achieve said predetermined sort destinations.
Claim 2
Independent Claim
148 words
A system for sorting articles comprising in combination: carrier means coupled to said articles for providing support therefor and remaining therewith throughout the complete sorting process, each of said carrier means being comprised of a T-shaped upper section and a lower section for clamping at least one of said articles, said upper section having a springloaded clamp release lever protruding therefrom and being operatively connected to the clamping means in said lOwer section, transport means for transporting said carrier means to predetermined sort destinations and providing storage therefor at said destinations, escort memory means affixed to each of said carrier means and possessing information as to the sort destination therefor, gating means operatively positioned with respect to said transport means and responsive to the information contained in said escort memory means for switching said carrier means among a plurality of transport paths to achieve said predetermined sort destinations.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
32 words
A system as defined in claim 1 wherein said transport means comprises a monorail conveyor suspension system having a plurality of friction belts arranged to support, transport and store said carrier means.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
151 words
A system as defined in claim 2 further characterized in that said plurality of friction belts include belts arranged respectively with their flat surfaces lying in horizontal and vertical planes, the lower surface on either side of the T-shaped section of said carrier means being adapted to selectively contact one of said belts, the belts having vertically oriented surfaces being utilized for direction changes of said carrier means in a horizontal plane, respective horizontally and vertically oriented belts being positioned in close proximity to each other and having a preselected elevation with respect to each other at predetermined portions of said transport paths such that an unconditional transfer of carrier means is accomplished from one belt to the other by the shifting of original contact with one belt by one side of said carrier means T section to contact with the other belt by the opposite side of said T section.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
116 words
A system as defined in claim 3 wherein said gating means comprises a vane-like member conditionally actuated in accordance with the sort destinations stored in said escort memory means, said vane being situated on one side of a horizontally oriented belt and being adapted when actuated to extend into the path of said carrier means and to engage one extremity of said T section, said carrier means being thereby deflected in a direction to cause the opposite extremity of said T section to contact a vertically oriented belt for transporting said carrier means to its sort destination, said vane when in an unactuated condition, permitting said carrier means to continue uninterrupted on its original transport path.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
60 words
A system as defined in claim 4 wherein said escort memory means comprises a magnetic stripe mounted on the surface of said carrier, the sort destination of said carrier being encoded on said stripe, a magnetic code reader operatively connected to read the information encoded on said stripe and solenoid means responsive to said reader for actuating said vane-like member.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
58 words
A system as defined in claim 5 wherein the friction belts used to transport said carrier means to said sort destinations are timing belts having a plurality of uniformly spaced teeth and said belts used for storage in said sort destinations are characterized by the absence of said teeth and the resultant close packing of said carrier means.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
35 words
A system as defined in claim 6 wherein the lower surface on either side of the T-shaped section of said carrier means comprises toothed sections adapted to mesh with the teeth of said timing belts.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
67 words
A system as defined in claim 7 wherein said sort destinations are comprised of a high density storage section capable of accommodating a large number of carrier means in a relatively small number of sort destinations for a primary sort and a low density storage section capable of accommodating a smaller number of carrier means in a relatively large number of sort destinations for a secondary sort.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
37 words
A system as defined in claim 8 wherein said storage sections are each comprised of a plurality of spaced-apart vertically mounted transport levels each having a transport path for each of the sort destinations on a level.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
32 words
A system as defiNed in claim 9 further including a control subsystem comprising a computer and a plurality of interface modules for communicating data and commands between the constituents of said system.
Claim 12
Dependent Claim
31 words
A system as defined in claim 10 further characterized in that said transport means are adapted to sweep a preselected sort destination in response to a command from said control subsystem.
Claim 13
Independent Claim
292 words
A system for sorting mail pieces comprising in combination: carrier means coupled to said mail pieces for providing support therefor and remaining therewith throughout the complete sorting process, transport means for transporting said carrier means to predetermined sort destinations and providing storage therefor at said destinations, escort memory means affixed to each of said carrier means and possessing information as to the sort destination therefor, gating means operatively positioned with respect to said transport means and responsive to the information contained in said escort memory means for switching said carrier means among a plurality of transport paths to achieve said predetermined sort destinations, an induction station including input buffer means for temporary storage of said mail pieces to be sorted, singulator means positioned in proximity to said buffer means and operatively connected to separate said mail pieces one from the other, means for attaching each of said mail pieces to one of said carrier means, a transport loop having a plurality of brackets capable of supporting said carrier means, a viewing station located along the path of said transport loop for permitting a determination of the sort destination of each mail piece, and means for encoding the sort destination information upon the escort memory means associated with each of said mail pieces, said input buffer means comprising a V-shaped trough for supporting the leading and lower edges of a plurality of said mail pieces, the respective support surfaces of said trough including toothed belts, the belts in the side wall of said trough contacting the leading edge of said mail pieces thereby causing the mail stacks to maintain a vertical orientation, said belts being adapted to be driven in unison in a direction to advance said mail pieces toward said singulator means.
Claim 14
Independent Claim
292 words
A system for sorting mail pieces comprising in combination: carrier means coupled to said mail pieces for providing support therefor and remaining therewith throughout the complete sorting process, transport means for transporting said carrier means to predetermined sort destinations and providing storage therefor at said destinations, escort memory means affixed to each of said carrier means and possessing information as to the sort destination therefor, gating means operatively positioned with respect to said transport means and responsive to the information contained in said escort memory means for switching said carrier means among a plurality of transport paths to achieve said predetermined sort destinations, an induction station including input buffer means for temporary storage of said mail pieces to be sorted, singulator means positioned in proximity to said buffer means and operatively connected to separate said mail pieces one from the other, means for attaching each of said mail pieces to one of said carrier means, a transport loop having a plurality of brackets capable of supporting said carrier means, a viewing station located along the path of said transport loop for permitting a determination of the sort destination of each mail piece, and means for encoding the sort destination information upon the escort memory means associated with each of said mail pieces, said input buffer means comprising a V-shaped trough for supporting the leading and lower edges of a plurality of said mail pieces, the respective support surfaces of said trough including toothed belts, the belts in the side wall of said trough contacting the leading edge of said mail pieces thereby causing the mail stacks to maintain a vertical orientation, said belts being adapted to be driven in unison in a direction to advance said mail pieces toward said singulator means.
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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) | 1978-05-19 | 1978-11-18 | 1979-05-20 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 1982-05-19 | 1982-11-18 | 1983-05-20 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 1986-05-19 | 1986-11-18 | 1987-05-20 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |