Patent ID: 6443311
Filing Date: 2002-09-03
Classification: B07C,B65H,Y10S

Abstract:
A system for collating a plurality of items into a final sequenced set of the items, reflecting a prioritized order, comprising:a) means for feeding the items from a single input stream to a staging station; b) means for sorting the items at the staging station into a plurality of subsets of items re-sequenced as an intermediate step to achieving said final sequenced set, said staging station having a plurality of storage units X1 to Xn, wherein n is the total number of storage units, said storage units temporarily storing said items in said subsets by; 1) inserting each item into any selected one of said storage units X1 to Xn in accordance with an insertion plan consistent with an extraction plan for the items from those storage units for achieving the prioritized sequence of the final sequenced set of items; and 2) selectively extracting the items from any selected one of the storage units X1 to Xn according to said extraction plan; , said extraction plan determining what time to extract an item based on its storage location wherein, if the current item being extracted is in a downstream position from the storage unit of the previously extracted item, then the current storage unit from which the item is to be extracted has to postpone extraction until the previous item has passed by, and then if the current storage unit from which an item is to be extracted is upstream from the previously extracted storage unit, then the current storage unit may extract an item before the previous item is extracted, and c) means for merging the extracted items into a single output stream from the respective subsets of items in said final sequenced set.