Container redemption method and apparatus

Claim 1

Apparatus for the selective redemption-processing of authorized, redeemable beverage containers, and the like, of the type bearing externally readable, redemption-significant, coded indicia including a general UPC-type indicia on the side of the container and region specific indicia on an end of the container comprising means defining an intake station for receiving such containers and for delivering the same downstream in the apparatus, automated reading means disposed adjacent and downstream from said intake station for accepting delivered containers, and for reading, and deriving information from, such indicia, said reading means including first and second reading structure for reading, respectively, the UPC-type indicia and the region specific indicia, and programmed intelligence means operatively connected to said reading means for acquiring and interpreting such derived information, operable, with respect to each accepted container, in response to the acquisition of related derived information which reflects authorized container redeemability, to effect a redemption-cycle operating procedure whereby the associated container is retained for further handling, and management control data is generated regarding such retained container, and in response to the acquisition of related derived information which reflects non-authorized container redeemability, to effect a rejection-cycle operating procedure whereby the associated container is rejected from further redemption handling.

Claim 4

A method for the automatic, selective redemption-processing of authorized, redeemable beverage containers, and the like, of the type bearing externally readable, redemption-significant, coded indicia, including a general UPC-type indicia on the side of the container and region specific indicia on an end of the container, said method comprising scanning the side surface of each such container which is presented for redemption to read, and derive information from, such UCP-type indicia, scanning the ends of each such container which is presented for redemption to read and derive information from such region specific indicia, from said scanning, generating an electrical signal having characteristics uniquely related to such derived information, coupling each such signal to a programmed digital computer, employing the computer, with respect to each such coupled signal, to interpret the same with respect to authorized container redeemability as reflected by the signal, and as a consequence of said interpreting, retaining for further processing all containers whose indicia effect an indication of authorized container redeemability, and rejecting all other containers.

Claim 5

A method for the automatic, selective redemption-processing of authorized, redeemable beverage containers, and the like, of the type bearing externally readable, redemption-significant, coded indicia, including a general UPC-type indicia on the side of the container and region specific indicia on an end of the container, said method comprising scanning the side surface of each such container which is presented for redemption to read, and derive information from, such UCP-type indicia, scanning the ends of each such container which is presented for redemption to read and derive information from such region specific indicia, from said scanning, generating an electrical signal having characteristics uniquely related to such derived information, coupling each such signal to a programmed digital computer, employing the computer, with respect to each such coupled signal, to interpret the same with respect to authorized container redeemability as reflected by the signal, and as a consequence of said interpreting, retaining for further processing all containers whose indicia effect an indication of authorized container redeemability, and rejecting all other containers.