Sorting device for magazine or the like
First Claim
1. A sorter comprising an elongated bed, a hopper at one end of said bed for receiving a stack of magazines, belt means constantly movable along said bed, a portion of said belt means extending beneath said hopper, a scanner downstream from said hopper, diverter means on said bed downstream from said scanner, and separating means for ensuring that there is adequate space between magazines when they reach said scanner, said separating means comprising lifting means at the bottom of said hopper adjacent said belt means and movable between an upper position raising said magazines above said belt means and a lower position permitting the lowermost magazine to be removed from the stack by said belt means, and separating finger means downstream from said lifting means and movable between an upper position permitting the magazines on said belt means to pass therebelow and a lower position urged against said bed so as to intercept and stop an approaching magazine.
1 Assignment
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
A device for separating, scanning and sorting publications bearing the Universal Product Code. The device comprises a flat bed extending horizontally but inclined to one side, along which move parallel belts at high speed. A loading bit or hopper at one end receives magazines stacked in random sequence. These are separated by means of the synchronized movement of stack lifting bars at the bottom of the bin and movable separating fingers downstream. The fingers drop on each magazine as it begins to pass beneath them, and the stack lifters are simultaneously raised to lift the remaining magazines off the belts. The fingers are lifted a short time after the trailing edge of the magazine passes them to ensure a gap between adjacent magazines. The stack lifters to drop as the trailing edge passes the fingers, without a time delay. Means are also provided for initially stepping back the leading edges of the magazines in a stack, this means comprising a novel forward wall construction for the bin, and flat springs between the stack lifters and the separator fingers.
The separated magazines pass a conventional scanner which, through a computer, controls shift registers corresponding in number to the diverter gates. The diverter gates include fingers which are rockable from a position flush with the bed to a diverting position in which a magazine impelled by the belts will strike the fingers and be diverted laterally. Concave scoop-like members are mounted adjacent each set of diverter fingers to aid the diverting action.
17 Citations
20 Claims
- 1. A sorter comprising an elongated bed, a hopper at one end of said bed for receiving a stack of magazines, belt means constantly movable along said bed, a portion of said belt means extending beneath said hopper, a scanner downstream from said hopper, diverter means on said bed downstream from said scanner, and separating means for ensuring that there is adequate space between magazines when they reach said scanner, said separating means comprising lifting means at the bottom of said hopper adjacent said belt means and movable between an upper position raising said magazines above said belt means and a lower position permitting the lowermost magazine to be removed from the stack by said belt means, and separating finger means downstream from said lifting means and movable between an upper position permitting the magazines on said belt means to pass therebelow and a lower position urged against said bed so as to intercept and stop an approaching magazine.
- 4. Separating means for flat objects, such as magazines, which are to be stack-loaded into a hopper and moved singly along a bed, comprising a conveyor extending along said bed and having a portion at the bottom of said hopper, stack lifting means alongside said conveyor at the bottom of said hopper, said lifting means being movable between an upper position in which the magazines are held away from said conveyor, and a lower position in which the lowermost magazine is engageable by said conveyor, separating finger means downstream from said lifting means and movable between an upper position in which said magazines are permitted to pass therebeneath and a lower position urged against said bed, and means responsive to arrival of a first magazine at a predetermined point along said bed for causing said finger means to move to its lower position whereby the leading edge of a magazine approaching the finger means will be stopped thereby.
- 17. A sorter comprising an elongated bed inclined downwardly to one side, a plurality of belts movable along said bed, and diverter means on said bed comprising a plurality of diverter fingers rockable on a common pivot axis below the surface of said bed and in a plane parallel thereto, said axis being inclined with respect to the path of said belts so as to extend upwardly and rearwardly, said diverter fingers extending downstream therefrom parallel to said belts, and means for moving said fingers between a first position in which said fingers are substantially flush with said bed and a diverting position in which said fingers are inclined upwardly from said bed so as to deflect an article being carried by said belts laterally off said bed.
Specification