Document conveyor system

A transport mechanism is disclosed for transporting a document around a track in a groove. A boundary wall in the form of a continuous wall or an array of guide cylinders is provided on the outside of a corner around which the track passes. A breaking cylinder which is rotated with the same surface velocity as the document constricts the document against the boundary and opens out any longitudinal folds therein to reduce the mechanical strength which they cause in the document. A drive mechanism then flattens the document against the boundary and renders the document flexible for the continuation of its transportation around the curved track. Dog-ears on the leading edge of a document are conditioned to prevent their causing impediment to further document transportation either by being folded back against the document or by being folded back into the plane of the document.

BACKGROUND TO THE INVENTION 
1. Field of the Invention 
The present invention relates to a document conveyor for the transportation 
of a document around a corner. It further relates to such a transport 
mechanism for use in banking equipment for the transportation of checks 
and other documents which may have been subjected to crumpling and folding 
before being presented to the banking equipment. It yet further relates to 
an apparatus capable of dealing with dog-ears on documents to render a 
dog-eared document capable of transportation in conventional tracks. 
2. The Prior Art 
It is well-known in banking to employ check encoding machines for the 
automatic handling of checks and related documents. A check encoding 
machine is fed with a stack of checks, and the individual checks are 
transported throughout the machine for data to be read therefrom and to be 
stacked in an appropriate output pile. In order to minimize the size of 
such machines, it is necessary to deviate from the otherwise ideal 
construction of a single straight track, and to use a track including one 
or more curves. The checks or related documents are subjected to 
mechanical abuse by the public before receipt thereof by the banking 
system. The checks can be folded. Folds in a document impart mechanical 
strength to the document which it would otherwise not possess. There is, 
therefore, a problem in handling folded documents, particularly those 
having a fold or folds lying in the direction of transportation. Firstly 
the document, being folded, presents a larger effective cross-sectional 
area than would otherwise be expected and runs the risk of jamming against 
the sides of narrow openings which would otherwise accept the document. 
The fold or folds in the document impart longitudinal strength to the 
document which resists its forceable entry into an opening. When the limit 
of the mechanical strength of the folded document is overcome, the 
document can give way and collapse causing a jam in the document transport 
mechanism. 
The transportation of a folded document can be achieved around corners of 
very large radius where the frictional opposing force of the folded 
document against the boundaries of the corner in opposition to the 
document's movement is insufficient either to stop the document or to 
cause its collapse. It is inefficient to build document processing 
equipment where documents are moved around large radii corners by virtue 
of the additional dimensions required of the equipment to accommodate the 
corners of large radii. It is therefore desirable to provide a document 
conveyor capable of moving documents, folded in a direction lying in the 
direction of transportation, around a corner of small radius. 
A dog-ear is hereinbefore and hereinafter defined as a portion of the 
leading edge of a document folded out of the plane of the document. 
Mishandling of checks and banking documents often means that a document 
becomes dog-eared, that is to say, that a corner of the document becomes 
folded out of the plane of the document. The dog-ear adds to the width of 
the document, and is able to prevent the ingress of the document into 
document-handling tracks. It is therefore desirable to provide an 
apparatus capable of rendering a dog-eared document suitable for 
transportation along a document track. 
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
The present invention resides in a document conveyor for transporting a 
document around a corner. 
The document conveyor includes a curved track for guiding an edge of a 
document in a curved path around the corner. A driver is provided for 
urging the document along the curved path. 
A curved boundary, adjacent to the rack on the outside of the corner, 
supports the document transversely to the surface of the document and to 
the path. A breaking cylinder is disposed in a spaced relationship to the 
boundary across the entrance to the conveyor. 
The breaking cylinder and the boundary are cooperable, upon a document 
entering the conveyor and passing therebetween, to open a fold or folds in 
the document lying in the direction of the path, to thereby reduce the 
mechanical strength imparted to the document transverse to the surface of 
the document by the fold or folds in the direction of the path. 
Thereafter, the driver is operable to urge the document against the curved 
boundary and thereby flatten the document against the curved boundary in 
order to make the document flexible for the completion of its 
transportation around the corner. 
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
In a first preferred embodiment there is provided a curved track, wherein a 
groove accepts the lower edge of a document. A curved boundary is provided 
adjacent to the track. In the first preferred embodiment, the curved 
boundary is a wall. The wall supports the document against tilting out of 
the track as the document goes around the curve. The wall preferably forms 
one side of the groove and extends throughout the height of the document. 
A breaking cylinder is provided at the entrance to the document conveyor 
on the side of the track opposite the wall spaced away from the wall. A 
document enters the conveyor by passing between the breaking cylinder and 
the wall. The breaking cylinder cooperates with the wall to open out any 
longitudinal folds in the document as it enters the conveyor. 
The document is urged into the conveyor and around the curve by a driver. 
The driver preferably consists in a driven friction wheel pressing against 
an idler pinch wheel. The document is preferably gripped near its edge 
adjacent to the groove between the friction wheel and the idler wheel to 
be urged around the track. 
The driver urges the document, whose folds have been opened out, around the 
track and against the wall. The document is flattened against the wall and 
thereby rendered flexible for continued transportation around the corner. 
The breaking cylinder is rotated in such a manner as to urge the document 
around the track and, in the event of a fold striking the breaking 
cylinder, the rotation of the breaking cylinder urges the corner of the 
fold towards the wall, thereby preventing jamming of the document. It is 
preferred that the breaking cylinder rotates with a surface velocity equal 
to the transportation velocity of the document around the track. The 
breaking cylinder is preferably mounted to be corotational with the 
friction wheel, in which case, the breaking cylinder is preferably 
coaxially mounted atop, and co-rotational with, the friction wheel. 
The breaking cylinder is tilted through a small predetermined angle in the 
direction of transportation of the document such that the rotation of the 
breaking cylinder tends to urge the document into the groove. The friction 
wheel and idler pinch wheel assembly is preferably angled in a similar 
manner also to urge the document into the groove in the track. 
In a first version of the first preferred embodiment, the combination of 
the breaking cylinder and the driven friction wheel is preferably driven 
by means of a motor coupled coaxially beneath the track to the driven 
friction wheel. In a second version of the first preferred embodiment, the 
breaking cylinder assembly is preferably driven by means of a belt drive 
which, in turn, rotates the driven friction wheel. 
The wall preferably comprises a lip adjacent to the breaking cylinder at 
the entrance of the conveyor for forming a reducing path between the wall 
and the breaking cylinder for the gradual opening of a fold or folds in 
the document. 
In a second preferred embodiment of the invention, everything is as for the 
first preferred embodiment save that the curved boundary, previously a 
wall, is replaced by a plurality of guide cylinders arranged on the far 
side of the groove on the outside of the curve around the curved track. In 
a first version of the second preferred embodiment, the guide cylinders 
are idler cylinders rotatable by virtue of the passing document engaging 
therewith. In a second version of the second preferred embodiment, the 
guide cylinders are actively rotated to assist the document around the 
track. Where the breaking cylinder is rotated via a belt drive mechanism, 
the belt drive mechanism is preferably adapted to drive the guide 
cylinders. In a preferred variation upon the second version of the second 
preferred embodiment, the guide cylinders are angled in the same manner as 
for the breaking cylinder to urge the document into the groove in the 
track. 
Both the first and second preferred embodiments are operable to deal with 
dog-ears on the leading edge of a document. The dog-ear is presented 
between the breaking cylinder and the boundary at the entrance to the 
conveyor. If the tip of the dog-ear lies at less than a predetermined 
distance from the plane of the document, the dog-ear is entrained between 
the breaking cylinder and the boundary, and thus straightened out to lie 
once more in the plane of the document. If the tip of the dog-ear is at 
more than a predetermined distance from the plane of the document, the 
boundary from the breaking cylinder folds the dog-ear right back against 
the surface of the document. In either case, the progress-impeding 
additional width imparted to the document by the dog-ear is removed.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
FIG. 1 shows a projected view of the first preferred embodiment of the 
invention. 
A curved track 10 comprises a groove 12 wherein the lower edge 14 of a 
document 16 is accepted. The groove 12 acts to guide the document 16 
around the corner defined by the curved track 10. A platform 18 defines 
the limit of the groove 12 on the inside of the corner, and a curved 
boundary in the form of a boundary wall 20 defines the side of the groove 
12 on the outside of the corner. It is preferred that the boundary wall 20 
itself defines the outside limit of the groove 12. It is, however, 
acceptable that the boundary wall 20 be separate from the groove 12 and 
merely placed adjacent thereto. A degree of radial separation between the 
outer limit of the groove 12 and the boundary wall 20 is also acceptable 
in a manner which will become clear from the later description. 
The document 16 may comprise one or more longitudinal folds 22. The 
longitudinal folds 22 need not lie exactly in the direction of transport 
of the document 16 as indicated by a first arrow 24 for the folds 22 to 
impart strength to the document 16. It is merely necessary that the folds 
22 have a directional component lying in the direction of transportation. 
The longitudinal folds 22 are undesirable and impart a mechanical strength 
to the document 16 which resists bending of the document 16 in a direction 
transverse both to its direction of transportation and to its surface. 
A driven friction wheel 28 engages the document 16 near to its lower edge 
14. The driven friction wheel is rotationally mounted upon the platform 
18. A breaking cylinder 30 is coaxially mounted upon the driven friction 
wheel 28. The breaking cylinder 30 rotates with the friction wheel 28 and 
is affixed thereto. Both are driven by a coaxial direct drive motor 32 
mounted beneath the platform 18 and imparting rotational drive to the 
combination of the breaking cylinder 30 and the driven friction wheel 28 
by means of a direct drive shaft 34 through penetrative of the platform 
18. 
The breaking cylinder 30 is spaced away from the boundary wall 20 by a 
distance sufficient to allow the passage of a folded document 16 
therebetween. The boundary wall 20 comprises an entrance lip 36 adjacent 
to the breaking cylinder 30. 
As the folded document 16 is engaged by the friction wheel 28, it is drawn 
into the space between the breaking cylinder 30 and the boundary wall 20 
with its entrance lip 36. The folds can be a little wider than the 
clearance between the breaking cylinder and the entrance lip 36 since any 
sharp corners of a fold can slide against the curved surface of the 
breaking cylinder 30 and the angled surface of the entrance lip 36. 
Further, the rotation of the breaking cylinder 30 is operative to cause 
the breaking cylinder 30 to deflect any sharp folded edges and to draw the 
folded document 16 towards the space between the breaking cylinder 30 and 
the boundary wall 20,36. 
The combination of the entrance lip 36 and the breaking cylinder 30 form a 
reducing path for the document 16 as it proceeds into the track 10. The 
curve of the cylindrical surface of the breaking cylinder 30 and the 
entrance lip and the wall 20 cooperate to steadily reduce the amount of 
width available to the document 16 and thereby to open out the folds 22 in 
the document 16. By opening out the folds 22, the mechanical strength 
imparted to the document 16 which would otherwise resist bending of the 
document in a direction both transverse to its path and to its surface is 
reduced. The residual small angle allowed to remain at the apex of each 
fold 22 is no longer sufficient for the document 16 to resist flexing by 
jamming against the boundary wall 20. The friction between the document 16 
and the boundary wall 20 is such that the document 16 slides thereagainst 
despite any residual fold, and the document 16 is thereby flattened 
against the boundary wall 20 to become totally flexible for continued 
transportation around the groove 12. 
The force for flattening the document 16 against the boundary wall 20 is 
imparted via the friction wheel 28 and, in part, via the breaking cylinder 
30 from the direct drive motor 32. The direct drive motor 32 can be a 
speed controlled brushed or brushless commutator motor, or can equally be 
a stepping motor. The direct drive may be imparted via a gear box. 
FIG. 2 shows a view of the conveyor apparatus of FIG. 1 viewed along the 
line A--A' in the direction of the arrows. The direct drive motor 32 is 
omitted for simplicity. 
The friction wheel 28 rotates in engagement with an idler pinch wheel 38 
mounted on an entrance platform 40 of the track 10 on the opposite side of 
the groove 12. The breaking cylinder 30 is mounted such that its axis is 
parallel to the plane of the boundary wall 20 adjacent to the entrance lip 
36, and parallel to the surface of a document 16 as it enters the 
transport mechanism. It is not necessary that the axis of the breaking 
cylinder 30 to be exactly parallel to the wall 20 at the entrance to the 
track 10,12. The breaking cylinder 30 can be angled to accommodate wider 
folds 22 in one portion of a document 16 than in another without departing 
from the operation of the invention as described. Similarly, the role of 
the idler pinch wheel 38 and the driven friction wheel 28 can be reversed, 
the idler wheel 38 being driven instead by the motor 32 and imparting 
rotation to the friction wheel 28 by mechanical frictional coupling both 
directly and, when a document 16 is present, through the document 16. In 
either case, the rotation of the driven friction wheel 28 imparts rotation 
to the breaking cylinder 30 which is coaxially attached thereto. 
FIG. 3 shows the apparatus of FIG. 1 viewed along the line B--B' in the 
direction of the arrows. Once again the direct drive motor 32 has been 
omitted for simplicity. 
The axis 42 of the breaking cylinder 30 is tilted through an angle .theta. 
away from being at 90.degree. to the direction of transportation of a 
document 16 such that the rotation of the breaking cylinder 30 urges the 
document 16 down into the groove 12 as it passes along the track 10. The 
axis of the friction wheel 28 is similarly tilted, and it too urges the 
document 16 into the groove 12. It is preferred that the idler wheel 38 is 
similarly angled, but those skilled in the art will be aware of methods 
whereby the idler wheel 38 may be placed in another plane. 
The friction wheel 28 and the idler wheel 38 combination is employed in the 
preferred embodiment of the the present invention merely by way of 
preference. Any other method for transporting a document 16 along the 
track 10 in the groove 12 would be acceptable. The breaking cylinder 30 
can be made independently rotatable. It is preferred that the breaking 
cylinder 30 rotates with a surface velocity equal to the velocity of 
transportation of the document 16 around the track 10. In the preferred 
embodiment here shown, this is achieved by arranging that the diameter of 
the breaking cylinder 30 be the same as the diameter of the friction wheel 
28. The breaking cylinder 30 can be rotated with a surface velocity 
greater than the velocity of transportation of the document 16, the better 
to urge the document 16 into the groove 12 of the track 10. Equally the 
breaking cylinder 30 can be made of low-friction material for the document 
16 to slide without impediment thereagainst whenever a difference between 
the velocity of transportation of the document 16 and the surface velocity 
of the breaking cylinder 30 exists. 
The apparatus shown in FIGS. 1, 2 and 3 provides the transportation of a 
document 16 through an angle of 90.degree.. It is to be appreciated that 
the document may be transported through an angle greater or less than 
90.degree.. It is further to be appreciated that additional drivers may be 
included around the track 10 for moving the document 16. The additional 
drivers can comprise extra pairs of friction drive wheels 28 and idler 
wheels 38 arranged to pick up the document 16 before the document 16 
passes completely from another pair of friction wheels 28 and idler wheels 
38 earlier in the track 10. 
FIG. 4 shows a variation upon the preferred embodiment of FIG. 1 allowing 
the transport mechanism to be mounted entirely upon a flat surface with no 
element thereof penetrating below the level of the track 10. Instead of 
the direct drive motor 32, a belt drive motor 44 is provided for driving 
the combination of the breaking cylinder 30 and the friction wheel 28 by 
means of a belt 46 passing around a pulley 48 on the belt drive motor 44, 
and around a waisted section 50 between the breaking cylinder 30 and the 
friction wheel 28. The belt drive motor 44 can be mounted substantially in 
the plane of the track 10 and projection of the document conveyor beneath 
the plane of the track 10 is therefore unnecessary. The waisted section 
50, although shown in FIG. 4 for the sake of clarity as being fairly 
large, should in fact, encompass as little as possible of the length of 
the breaking cylinder 30 so that the breaking cylinder 30 is able to 
engage the maximum number of folds 22 across the width of a document 16 to 
open the folds 22. As an alternative construction, the waisted section 50 
can be made as a simple slot in the surface of the breaking cylinder 30. 
FIG. 5 shows a second preferred embodiment of the invention. Everything is 
as shown in FIG. 1, save that the wall 20 has been replaced by a plural 
array of guide cylinders 52 arranged on the track 10 on the outside of the 
curve on a shoulder 54 of the track 10. The guide cylinders 52 define a 
path for the document 16 identical to that otherwise defined by the wall 
20. The first guide cylinder 52 in the track 10, by virtue of its curved 
surface, effectively performs the same operation as is performed by the 
wall 20 and the entrance lip 36 shown in FIG. 1. Whilst the guide 
cylinders are here shown as being of the same diameter as the breaking 
cylinder 30, it is to be appreciated that the guide cylinders 52 can have 
a different diameter from that of the breaking cylinder 30. Further, the 
guide cylinders 52 need not have the same diameter as one another. 
In a first version of the second preferred embodiment, the guide cylinders 
52 are idler cylinders. The guide cylinders 52 are mounted to rotate about 
their axes in the shoulder 54 of the track 10. When the document 16 
impinges upon the guide cylinders 52, the guide cylinders 52 rotate by 
virtue of the friction of the document 16 and impart a frictional 
obstruction to the passage of the document 16 which is less than that 
which would be imparted by the wall 20 of FIG. 1. The guide cylinders are 
mounted with their axes parallel to the surface of the document 16, and at 
a right angle to the path of the document 16. 
In a second version of the second preferred embodiment, the guide cylinders 
52 are driven. The guide cylinders 52 are driven to rotate with a surface 
velocity equal to the velocity of transportation of the document 16. The 
document 16 therefore experiences no friction against the guide cylinders 
52. The guide cylinders 52 can each be rotated by an independent motor. 
The guide cylinders 52 may be rotated by a common motor. Similarly, both 
the guide cylinders 52 and the breaking cylinder 30 may be rotated by the 
same motor. In this second version of the second preferred embodiment, it 
is preferred that the guide cylinders 52 are angled to tilt in the 
direction of movement of the document 16 in the same manner as for the 
breaking cylinder 30 for urging the document 16 into the groove 12. The 
guide cylinders 52 can be operated in conjunction with a friction wheel 28 
and pinch wheel 38 pair in the same manner as the breaking cylinder is 
operated. 
Whilst the second preferred embodiment shown in FIG. 5 is shown used in 
conjunction with a direct drive motor 32, it is to be appreciated that the 
embodiment of FIG. 5 can equally be used with any belt drive arrangement 
44, 48, 46, 50 shown in FIG. 4, and imparting the same space-saving 
advantage. 
The angle of tilt .theta. of the axis of the breaking cylinder 30 is, in 
the preferred embodiment hereinbefore described, chosen to be in the range 
5.degree. to 10.degree.. It is to be appreciated that the angle .theta. 
can be chosen to have a different value dependently upon the frictional 
properties of the document 16 with the track 12, the breaking cylinder 30, 
the boundary 20,52, and the combination of the friction wheel 28 and the 
idler wheel 38. 
FIG. 6A shows a document 16 in a dog-eared condition. A row of numbers 53 
to be read by the banking equipment is provided proximate to the lower 
edge 14 of the document 16. The document 16 is conveyed in the direction 
of a second arrow 54. A dog-ear 56 occurs in the leading edge 57 of the 
document 16 by folding along a fold line 58 out of the plane of the 
document 16 as indicated by a third arrow 60. 
FIG. 6B shows the result of passing the document 16 through the conveyors 
of FIGS. 1 to 5, where the tip of the dog-ear 56 is far enough out of the 
plane of the document 16 for the tip to be pushed back by the breaking 
cylinder 30. In being pushed back, the dog-ear 56 is folded, as indicated 
by a fourth arrow 62, to lie flat against the plane of the document 16. 
Since the row of figures 53 to be read by the equipment (by means not 
shown) lies proximate to the bottom edge 14 of the document 16, the 
folding over of the dog-ear 56 as shown in FIG. 6B in no way impairs the 
subsequent action of the reader, renders the document 16 flexible and of 
substantially the same cross-sectional area as it would have been if the 
dog-ear 56 had not existed. The document 16 is thereby thereafter allowed 
access into conventional document-handling conveyors. 
FIG. 6C shows the document 16 of FIG. 6A having passed through the 
conveyors of FIGS. 1 to 5, where the tip of the dog-ear 56 was 
sufficiently close to the plane of the document 16 to become entrained 
between the breaking cylinder 30 and the boundary 20,52 to be folded back 
into the plane of the document 16 as indicated by a fifth arrow 64. The 
rotation of the breaking cylinder 30 has the effect of pulling the dog-ear 
56 into the plane of the document 16 by catching the dog-ear 56 by 
friction. In this instance, it is preferred that the breaking cylinder 30 
rotates with a surface velocity in excess of the linear velocity of the 
document 16 in the track 10. 
Whilst in FIGS. 6A and 6B it has been assumed that the dog-ear 56 lies to 
that side of the document 16 whereon the breaking cylinder 30 is situated, 
it is to be appreciated that a dog-ear 56 lying on the other side of the 
document 16 will be in engagement with the boundary 20, and be folded back 
against the document 16. If the boundary 20 consists in a series of driven 
guide cylinders 52 as shown in FIG. 5, the first guide cylinder 52 
encountered by the document 16 can be driven with a surface velocity 
higher than the linear velocity of transport of the document 16 for the 
first-encountered guide cylinder 52 to be able to open out any dog-ear 56 
whose tip is within a predetermined distance away from the plane of the 
document 16 back into the plane of the document 16 as shown in FIG. 6C. 
Whilst the document 16 shown in FIGS. 6A, 6B and 6C have not been shown as 
possessing any longitudinal folds 22, it is to be appreciated that the 
documents 16 in FIGS. 6A, 6B and 6C can equally well include longitudinal 
folds 22. 
The invention and its embodiments hereinbefore described have the effect of 
conditioning a document 16 in such a way that it can be handled by 
conventional prior art document-handling equipment subsequently to its 
passage through the conveyor systems described with respect to the present 
invention. The present invention may therefore be used ssimply as a 
document conditioning station without necessarily turning a document 16 
through an angle. Thus, the track 10 need only be curved through a small 
angle sufficient to break the longitudinal folds 22 as a document 16 is 
driven by the driver 38,28 against the boundary 20,52. Similarly, the 
function of the breaking cylinder 30 and the boundary 20,52 being 
cooperative to reduce and eliminate the impediment to document progress 
caused by a dog-ear 56 can be separately employed at the beginning of, and 
throughout, document-handling equipment for the removal of dog-ears 56 and 
for the reconditioning of dog-ears 56 which may re-establish themselves 
during the transportation of a document 16.