Cantilevered sorter

Claim 2

A sorter comprising a plurality of vertically nestable moveable bins, a frame member for supporting said bins adjacent only one edge of said bins, said bins being supported in said frame in cantilevered fashion only about one edge and being open and unsupported at any other edge; each bin comprising a sheet stacking bed together with plural means to movably support and frictionally slide the bin in said frame, said plural means comprising at least two support means slidingly engagable with said frame and sufficiently vertically spaced apart to prevent static equilibrium of vertical forces acting on the support means when the coefficient of friction between the support means and the frame is at least 0.3 such that the friction force between the support means and the frame is less than the weight of the bin together with any copy sheets thereon and means to sequentially vertically move said bins in said frame past a sheet entrance position.

Claim 3

The sorter according to claim 1, wherein said at least two support means comprise substantially vertical legs attached to said sheet stacking bed with feet attached at the end and slidingly engagable with said frame member, said feet being vertically spaced apart.

Claim 4

The sorter according to claim 2, wherein said plural support means comprises three vertical legs attached to said sheet stacking bed with feet attached at the end and slidingly engagable with said frame member, at least one of said feet being below the sheet stacking bed and the remaining feet being above the sheet stacking bed.

Claim 5

The sorter of claim 2, wherein said frame member is a vertical planar member portions of which are substantially vertically slidingly engagable with the feet of said bin legs.

Claim 6

The sorter of claim 4, wherein said planar member portions comprise substantially vertical slots in said planar member for sliding engagement with said feet.

Claim 7

The sorter of claim 1, wherein said means to move said bins in said frame includes means to vertically bidirectionally move said bins past said sheet entrance position.

Claim 8

The sorter of claim 6, wherein said means to move said bins comprises at least one rotatably mounted cam having at least one notch in the peripheral surface thereof adapted to engage the feet of successive bins to move the bins from one side of the sheet entrance position to the other.

Claim 9

The sorter of claim 7, including means to resiliently urge the feet of successive bins into engagement with the peripheral surface of said cam.

Claim 10

The sorter of claim 8, wherein said means to urge comprises at least one spring connected to the lowermost bin of said plurality of bins to bias the uppermost bin of said plurality of bins located below said cam upwardly into engagement with the peripheral surface of said cam.

Claim 11

The sorter of claim 8, wherein said feet on the lowermost bin are of a unique shape such that engagement with said cam is prevented.

Claim 12

The sorter of claim 3, wherein said legs are inclined at a small angle from vertical to enable them to nest one on the other.

Claim 13

A printing system including means for producing fixed toner images on copy sheets, sorter means positioned to receive the copy sheets from said producing means at an inlet region for sorting the copy sheets into sets of documents said sorter comprising a plurality of vertically nestable movable bins, a frame member for supporting said bins adjacent only one edge of said bins, said bins being supported in said frame in cantileversed fashion only about one edge and being open and unsupported at any other edge; each bin comprising a sheet stacking bed together with plural means to movably support and frictionally slide the bin in said frame, said plural means comprising at least two support means slidingly engagable with said frame and sufficiently vertically spaced apart to prevent static equilibrium of vertical forces acting on the support means when the coefficient of friction between the support means and the frame is at least 0.3 such that the friction force between the support means and the frame is less than the weight of the bin together with any copy sheets thereon and means to sequentially vertically move said bins in said frame past a sheet entrance position.

Claim 14

A printing system including means for producing fixed toner images on copy sheets, sorter means positioned to receive the copy sheets from said producing means at an inlet region for sorting the copy sheets into sets of documents said sorter comprising a plurality of vertically nestable movable bins, a frame member for supporting said bins adjacent only one edge of said bins, said bins being supported in said frame in cantileversed fashion only about one edge and being open and unsupported at any other edge; each bin comprising a sheet stacking bed together with plural means to movably support and frictionally slide the bin in said frame, said plural means comprising at least two support means slidingly engagable with said frame and sufficiently vertically spaced apart to prevent static equilibrium of vertical forces acting on the support means when the coefficient of friction between the support means and the frame is at least 0.3 such that the friction force between the support means and the frame is less than the weight of the bin together with any copy sheets thereon and means to sequentially vertically move said bins in said frame past a sheet entrance position.

Claim 15

The printing system according to claim 12, wherein said at least two support means comprise substantially vertical legs attached to said sheet stacking bed with feet attached at the end and slidingly engagable with said frame member, said feet being vertically spaced apart.

Claim 16

The printing system according to claim 13, wherein said plural support means comprises three vertical legs attached to said sheet stacking bed with feet attached at the end and slidingly engagable with said frame member, at least one of said feet being below the sheet stacking bed and the remaining feet being above the sheet stacking bed.

Claim 17

The printing system according to claim 13, wherein said frame member is a vertical planar member portions of which are substantially vertically slidingly engagable with the feet of said bin legs.

Claim 18

The printing system according to claim 15, wherein said planar member portions comprise substantially vertical slots in said planar member for sliding engagement with said feet.

Claim 19

The printing system according to claim 12, wherein said means to move said bins in said frame includes means to vertically bidirectionally move said bins past said sheet entrance position.

Claim 20

The printing system according to claim 17, wherein said means to move said bins comprises at least one rotatably mounted cam having at least one notch in the peripheral surface thereof adapted to engage the feet of successive bins to move the bins from one side of the sheet entrance position to the other.

Claim 21

The printing system according to claim 18, including means to resiliently urge the feet of successive bins into engagement with the peripheral surface of said cam.

Claim 22

The printing system according to claim 19, wherein said means to urge comprises at least one spring connected to the lowermost bin of said plurality of bins to bias the uppermost bin of said plurality of bins located below said cam upwardly into engagement with the peripheral surface of said cam.

Claim 23

The printing system according to claim 19, wherein said feet on the lowermost bin are of a unique shape such that engagement with said cam is prevented.

Claim 24

The printing system according to claim 14, wherein said legs are inclined at a small angle from vertical to enable them to nest one on the other.