Automated print jobs distribution system for shared user centralized printer

• US 5,525,031 A
• Filed: 02/18/1994
• Issued: 06/11/1996
• Est. Priority Date: 02/18/1994
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Xerox Corporation (Xerox Holdings Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Xerox Corporation (Xerox Holdings Corp.)
• Inventors: Fox, Elizabeth D.
• Primary Examiner(s): Merritt, Karen B.
• Assistant Examiner(s): KRIZEK, JANICE LEE
• Application Number:
  US08/198,715
• Time in Patent Office: 844 Days
• Field of Search: 271/287, 414/279, 414/395, 414/789.7, 414/521, 355/321, 355/322, 355/323
• US Class Current: 414/789.7
• CPC Class Codes: B65H 2220/01 indicating an entity as a function of which control, adjustment or change is performed, i.e. input
• CPC Class Codes: B65H 2407/30 Means for preventing damage of handled material, e.g. by controlling atmosphere
• CPC Class Codes: B65H 2408/112 with stationary location in space of the bins and in-feed member movable from bin to bin
• CPC Class Codes: B65H 2511/412 of user, e.g. user code
• CPC Class Codes: B65H 2551/13 Remote control devices, e.g. speech recognition
• CPC Class Codes: B65H 2801/27 Devices located downstream of office-type machines
• CPC Class Codes: B65H 39/11 in superposed carriers

Abstract

An output sheets collection, separation and distribution system for printed sheets outputted from a shared centralized printer to which plural remote users electronically send respective print jobs from a plurality of separate user sites remote from said centralized printer location. A mobile vehicular mailboxing module is docked with the printer to collect the print jobs stacked in plural user-assigned mailbox bins by an internal sheet feeding and distribution system. The mobile mailbox module is then undocked and automatically sequentially driven to the separate remote user sites and distributes the respective print jobs to the respective users at those sites, or other designated sites, stopping only at those sites for which the moving mailboxing module contains designated print jobs in one or more bins. The remote user sites may have separate stationary print job delivery bins and the plural users may have distinguishable electronic codes, and the mailbox bins may have lockable access restricting privacy doors respectively electronically unlockable by user access codes, which may be automatically provided at the job receiving sites by digital signal sources there.

Claims

1. An output sheets collection, separation and distribution system for printed sheets outputted from a shared centralized printer at a centralized printer location to which plural remote users electronically send respective print jobs, said plural remote users being located at a plurality of separate user sites in different locations remote from said centralized printer location;

comprising a mobile mailboxing module dockable with said centralized printer to collect said outputted sheets, said mobile mailboxing module having an arrayed multiplicity of user-assigned mailbox bins and a distribution system for automatically collecting said outputted sheets of said centralized printer in user print jobs of plural said outputted sheets which are stacked into different user-assigned mailbox bins for different respective users of said centralized printer, said mobile mailboxing module distribution system including a sheet feeding system for automatically feeding said outputted sheets from said centralized printer to said respective user-assigned mailbox bins to stack said user print jobs therein, and said mobile mailboxing module being a vehicular print jobs distributor automatically sequentially movable to various said plurality of separate user sites remote from said centralized printer location for distribution of said print jobs to respective said separate user sites from which print jobs were electronically sent to said centralized printer to be printed and stacked into said user assigned mailbox bins of said mobile mailboxing module.

2. The output sheets collection, separation and distribution system of claim 1, wherein said printer and said mobile mailboxing module therefor are shared by said remote plural users having respective distinguishable user electronic codes, and wherein at least some of said mailbox bins have lockable access restricting privacy doors respectively electronically unlockable by said respective remote user electronic access codes.

3. The output sheets collection, separation and distribution system of claim 2, wherein said separate user sites have plural stationary print job delivery bins, and said mobile mailboxing module further includes an automatic unloading system for unloading said print jobs from respective user-assigned mailbox bins into said stationary print job delivery bin for said user at said users site in response to said user electronic code.

4. The output sheets collection, separation and distribution system of claim 1, wherein at least some of said separate remote user sites have plural stationary print job delivery bins located at said sites.

5. The output sheets collection, separation and distribution system of claim 4, wherein said mobile mailboxing module further includes an automatic unloading system for unloading said print jobs from respective user-assigned mailbox bins into respective said stationary print job delivery bins for said users at said user sites.

6. The output sheets collection, separation and distribution system of claim 4, wherein said stationary print job delivery bins comprise a plurality of separate and normally locked mail bins for respective designated users, which locked mail bins are automatically unlocked by said mobile mailboxing module when said mobile mailboxing module contains a print job for a said respective designated user.

7. The output sheets collection, separation and distribution system of claim 4, wherein said mobile mailboxing module automatically stops at said stationary print job delivery bin at a said user'"'"'s site and unlocks at least one said mailbox bin, and discharges that user'"'"'s print job from that user'"'"'s assigned mailbox bin into that stationary bin at that user'"'"'s site.

8. The output sheets collection, separation and distribution system of claim 1, further including an additional, stationary, mailboxing module maintained at said printer and connected to said printer to selectively alternatively collect said output sheets of said printer in an arrayed multiplicity of mailbox bins in user print job sets of plural said output sheets per job set stacked into different respective user-assigned mailbox bins.

9. The output sheets collection, separation and distribution system of claim 1, wherein said remote users may optionally direct print jobs to be delivered to said sites other than their own.

10. The output sheets collection, separation and distribution system of claim 1, wherein plural said mailbox bins are lockable and are electronically unlockable by remote site print job receivers when said print job receivers are approached by said vehicular print jobs distributor.