Automatic loading/unloading apparatus for automatically loading/unloading flat articles stacked on edge, a sorting machine for sorting flat articles, an unloading method, and a postal sorting method

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9376273-B2
Application number	US-201213805925-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Oct 12, 2012
Priority date	Dec 22, 2011
Publication date	Jun 28, 2016
Grant date	Jun 28, 2016

Abstract

Automatic loading/unloading apparatus ( 1 ) for automatically loading flat articles ( 200 ) stacked on edge into storage trays ( 300 ) and for automatically unloading flat articles ( 200 ) stacked on edge therefrom, each of the storage trays ( 300 ) having a bottom plate ( 301 ) provided with a through window ( 306 ), said automatic loading/unloading apparatus having a stationary actuator ( 4 ) in register with said window and a moving actuator ( 5 ) that receives said storage tray ( 300 ) and that is mounted to move between:
a waiting position in which said stationary actuator ( 4 ) is set back from said moving actuator ( 5 ) and is not in contact with said flat articles ( 200 ); and an unloading position in which said stationary actuator ( 4 ) passes through said window ( 306 ) while carrying said flat articles ( 200 ) until it comes flush with said stacking zone ( 3 ) suitable for receiving said flat articles ( 200 ) without said storage tray ( 300 ) being interposed between said flat articles ( 200 ) and said stacking zone ( 3 ).

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. An automatic loading/unloading apparatus ( 1 , 101 ) for automatically loading flat articles ( 200 ) stacked on edge into storage trays ( 300 ) and for automatically unloading flat articles ( 200 ) stacked on edge therefrom, each of said storage trays ( 300 ) having a bottom plate ( 301 ) receiving the edges of the flat articles ( 200 ) and provided with at least one through window ( 306 ), said automatic loading/unloading apparatus ( 1 , 101 ) having at least one tray-receiving zone ( 2 , 102 ) suitable for receiving said storage trays ( 300 ) successively and at least one stacking zone ( 3 ; 103 ) suitable for receiving said flat articles ( 200 ) stacked on edge in the stacking direction (F) before loading/after unloading, said automatic loading/unloading apparatus having at least one stationary actuator ( 4 ; 104 ) and at least one moving actuator ( 5 , 105 ), which actuators are designed so that, simultaneously, one of them is in register with said window ( 306 ) and the other of them receives said storage tray ( 300 ) bearing against it, and so that said actuators are movable relative to each other between:
a waiting position in which said stationary actuator ( 4 ) or said moving actuator ( 105 ) that is in register with said window ( 306 ) is set back from said moving actuator ( 5 ) or from said stationary actuator ( 104 ) so that said storage tray ( 300 ) can rest respectively on said moving actuator ( 5 ) or on said stationary actuator ( 104 ) without respectively said stationary actuator ( 4 ) or said moving actuator ( 105 ) being in contact with said flat articles ( 200 ); and
an unloading position in which respectively said moving actuator ( 5 ) or said stationary actuator ( 104 ) is set back from said stationary actuator ( 4 ) or from said moving actuator ( 105 ) so that said stationary actuator ( 4 ) or said moving actuator ( 105 ) can pass through said window ( 306 ) while carrying said flat articles ( 200 ) to be loaded/unloaded until it comes flush with said stacking zone ( 3 ; 103 ) without said storage tray ( 300 ) being interposed between said flat articles ( 200 ) and said stacking zone ( 3 ; 103 ), said automatic loading/unloading apparatus ( 1 , 101 ) being characterized in that it has adjustment means ( 8 , 83 , 84 , 9 ) arranged to adapt the length of said stacking zone ( 3 ; 103 ), in said stacking direction (F), between a maximum length and a minimum length corresponding to the length of the stack of flat articles ( 200 ) that it receives.

2. The automatic loading/unloading apparatus ( 1 , 101 ) according to claim 1 , characterized in that it has at least one shuttle ( 8 ) carrying said stationary actuator ( 4 ; 104 ) and said moving actuator ( 5 ; 105 ) and defining said tray-receiving zone ( 2 ; 102 ), said shuttle ( 8 ) being mounted to move in said stacking direction (F), so that said tray-receiving zone ( 2 ; 102 ) remains adjacent to said stacking zone ( 3 ; 103 ) regardless of the length of said stacking zone ( 3 ; 103 ), said shuttle ( 8 ) thus being mounted to move between an upstream position corresponding to said stacking zone ( 3 ; 103 ) having a maximum length and a downstream position corresponding to said stacking zone ( 3 ; 103 ) having a minimum length.

3. The automatic loading/unloading apparatus ( 1 ; 101 ) according to claim 2 , characterized in that it has at least one main belt ( 9 ) of the endless type, guided by pulleys including at least one high intermediate pulley ( 83 ) and at least one low intermediate pulley ( 84 ) that are carried by said shuttle ( 8 ), and a high downstream pulley ( 402 ), a low downstream pulley ( 403 ), and an upstream pulley ( 404 ) that are carried in stationary manner and that are provided on either side of said shuttle ( 8 ), the working run ( 90 ) of said belt ( 9 ) extending between said high intermediate pulley ( 83 ) and said high downstream pulley ( 402 ) and defining said stacking zone ( 3 ; 103 ), and in that said shuttle ( 8 ) moving in translation simultaneously causes the length of said stacking zone ( 3 ; 103 ) to vary, and causes said tray-receiving zone ( 2 ; 102 ) to be kept adjacent to said stacking zone ( 3 ; 103 ).

4. The automatic loading/unloading apparatus ( 1 ) according to claim 3 , characterized in that, between said upstream pulley ( 404 ) and said low intermediate pulley ( 84 ), said main belt ( 9 ) defines an opposite run ( 91 ) that is substantially parallel to said working run ( 90 ) so that the variation in the length of the stacking zone ( 3 ; 103 ) while said shuttle ( 8 ) is moving does not have any impact on the total length of said main belt ( 9 ).

5. The automatic loading/unloading apparatus ( 1 ; 101 ) according to claim 3 , characterized in that it has a slidably mounted rigid bed ( 10 ) provided under said working run ( 90 ) of said main belt ( 9 ) and arranged to stiffen said working run ( 90 ), said rigid bed ( 10 ) being arranged to be slidably mounted and to be servo-controlled to said shuttle ( 8 ) in such a manner as to follow the variation in the length of said stacking zone ( 3 ; 103 ).

6. The automatic loading/unloading apparatus ( 1 ; 101 ) according to claim 1 , characterized in that it has at least one paddle ( 7 ) mounted to move between at least one high reception position in which it is above said tray-receiving zone ( 2 ; 102 ), an upstream low reception position provided under said high reception position and in which it is designed to be received in said storage tray ( 200 ) behind the flat article that is furthest from said stacking zone ( 3 ; 103 ), a stacking position offset downstream from said low reception position and in which it is designed to retain the upstream end of said stack of flat articles ( 200 ) that are to be unstacked/that have been unstacked.

7. The automatic loading/unloading apparatus ( 1 ; 101 ) according to claim 6 , characterized in that said paddle ( 7 ) is coupled to settling means arranged to move said paddle ( 7 ) from its upstream low reception position towards a downstream low reception position so as to tamp said flat articles ( 200 ) contained in the storage tray ( 300 ) in said stacking direction (F) and with a predetermined pressure value.

8. The automatic loading/unloading apparatus ( 1 ; 101 ) according to claim 6 , characterized in that said paddle ( 7 ) is coupled to steering means that are suitable for modifying the inclination of said paddle ( 7 ) between a vertical position in which it is substantially perpendicular to said stacking direction (F) and suitable for being inserted in said storage tray ( 300 ), and an inclined position in which its low portion is downstream from its high portion relative to said stacking direction (F) so that it can retain a stack of flat articles ( 200 ).

9. A sorting machine ( 400 ) for sorting flat articles ( 200 ), the sorting machine including at least one unstacker, conveyor means, and sorting outlets into which said flat articles are to be distributed in compliance with a predetermined sorting plan, said sorting machine being characterized in that it includes at least one automatic loading/unloading apparatus ( 1 ; 101 ) according to claim 1 and provided respectively upstream from said unstacker and downstream from at least one of said sorting outlets.

10. A method of automatically unloading flat articles ( 200 ) stacked on edge into/from storage trays ( 300 ), each of which has a bottom plate ( 301 ) receiving the edges of said flat articles ( 200 ) and provided with at least one through window ( 306 ), said method being characterized in that it comprises at least:
a feed step during which at least one storage tray ( 300 ) containing flat articles ( 200 ) stacked on

Assignees

• Solystic

Inventors

• Hugues Damien
• Campagnolle Pierre
• Petit Marie

Classifications

• B65H2701/1916

  Envelopes and articles of mail · CPC title

• B65H1/28

  compartmented to receive piles side-by-side · CPC title

• B65H1/30

  with means for replenishing the pile during continuous separation of articles therefrom {(B65H1/22 takes precedence)} · CPC title

• B07C3/008 Primary

  Means for collecting objects, e.g. containers for sorted mail items (pile receivers in general B65H31/00) · CPC title

• B65G65/005 Primary

  Control arrangements · CPC title