Document hold and view station for high speed item sorter apparatus

Claim 1

A hold and view station for reader/sorter apparatus wherein items such as checks and the like which for one reason or another cannot be read and properly sorted are diverted out of a mainstream item pathway into an unobstructed viewing area or station for suitable correction comprising: an item pathway along which items to be read and sorted are fed at high speed including one or more sorting pockets for receiving items which have been read, a hold and view area off-line with respect to said main item sorting pathway for receiving items which cannot be read by reading means, and means for diverting items which cannot be read out of the mainstream of readable items and into said hold and view area, means in said hold and view area for contacting said items along the transverse axial dimension thereof and for abruptly moving said items out of said hold and view area and back into the mainstream item pathway after correction in response to suitable signal information provided by said apparatus said means for moving said items out of said hold and view area further comprises a pair of semicircular cam members vertically disposed for rotation along the transverse axis of said items and being provided with a flexible peripheral member disposed about the peripheries of said cam members for contact with the surface of the items effective when said cam members are rotated to guide said items while moving the same out of said hold and view area and back into the mainstream of items being sorted.