Apparatus and method for processing shipping articles provided with shipping addresses

The invention relates to an apparatus for processing shipping articles provided with shipping addresses. The apparatus comprises a device for transporting the shipping articles along a transport path. A device is disposed in the transport path for automatically reading the shipping addresses. An assessment device automatically assesses the read shipping addresses. The individual shipping articles are selectively deposited into cells of an intermediate storage device disposed in the transport path following the reading of the shipping address. A detection device detects an association between each cell and the shipping article deposited therein and in response to an assessment of the shipping address by the assessment device, produces a first removal signal for removing the shipping article from the cell and conveying the shipping article back to the transport path.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION 
This application claims priority of patent application Ser. No. 0499/95-4, 
filed in Switzerland on Feb. 21, 1995, the subject matter of which is 
incorporated herein by reference. 
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
The invention relates to an apparatus for processing shipping articles, for 
example, letters and shipping pouches which are provided with shipping 
addresses, and more particularly to an such an apparatus that includes a 
device for transporting the shipping articles along a transport path, a 
device for automatically reading the shipping addresses and a device for 
automatically assessing the read shipping addresses, as well as a 
corresponding method of using the apparatus. 
Apparatuses of this type are used in, for example, post offices in 
connection with sorting letters according to destination and delivery 
area. In this instance, the shipping addresses of the individual letters 
are automatically read with a camera. The destinations and delivery areas 
for the letters are determined in the assessment device based on the read 
shipping addresses. On the basis of this assessment, the letters can be 
automatically transported to collection containers for the individual 
destinations and delivery areas and deposited into them. 
In the operation of apparatuses of this type, the assessment of the 
automatically read shipping addresses can be rather time-consuming. 
Consequently, the sequence of operation is generally delayed unnecessarily 
because the number of letters that can be processed per unit of time is 
determined by the letter whose shipping address requires the most time for 
assessment. On the other hand, individual letters can be misrouted during 
operation of the known apparatuses because no allocation of the letters is 
possible until the result of assessment has been obtained. 
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
In view of the above described problems, it is an object of this invention 
to provide an apparatus and a method of the type mentioned at the outset 
which can simultaneously assure high operating reliability and high 
operating performance. 
The above and other objects are accomplished according to the invention by 
the provision of an apparatus for processing shipping articles provided 
with shipping addresses, comprising: a transport device for transporting 
the shipping articles, respectively, along a transport path; a reading 
device disposed in the transport path for automatically reading the 
shipping addresses; an assessment device coupled to the reading device for 
automatically assessing the read shipping addresses; an intermediate 
storage device disposed downstream of the reading device in the transport 
path and having a plurality of cells into which shipping articles, 
respectively, can be selectively deposited from the transport path and out 
of which a respective one of the shipping articles can be selectively 
guided back into the transport path in response to a first removal signal; 
and detection means coupled to the intermediate storage device and the 
assessment device for detecting an association between each cell and the 
shipping article deposited therein and for producing the first removal 
signal for removing the shipping article from the cell. 
The arrangement according to the invention of the intermediate storage 
device that has the cells permits the removal and further transport of the 
shipping articles on the transport path independently of the sequence of 
deposit of the shipping articles into the cells. Control of the removal 
and conveyance as a function of the assessment of the shipping addresses 
allows an adaptation of the time available for assessing the relevant 
shipping address of each shipping article to the assessment time required 
by the assessment device, regardless of the handling of other shipping 
articles. 
This means that, with the apparatus of the invention, shipping articles 
whose shipping addresses can be assessed quickly can be further 
transported after a brief holding period in the intermediate storage 
device, while a longer holding period in the intermediate storage device 
is allowed for shipping articles whose shipping addresses require a longer 
assessment time. As a result, an increase in operating performance can be 
attained with the apparatus of the invention, because the arrangement and 
control of the intermediate storage device in accordance with the 
invention permits a processing sequence in which the slowest element, that 
is, the most problematic shipping address, no longer predetermines the 
operating speed, i.e. the number of shipping articles that can be 
processed per unit of time. 
To assure further transport of the shipping articles which can be removed 
from the cells as a function of the assessment of the shipping addresses, 
the association between the cells and the shipping articles deposited 
therein is detected with the detection means. The unambiguous allocation 
of the shipping articles to the unambiguously identifiable cells takes 
place prior to completion of the assessment of the relevant shipping 
addresses. Consequently, high operating reliability of the apparatus of 
the invention can be assured, because the state in which no unambiguous 
allocation is possible for the individual shipping articles has already 
ended with the deposit of the articles into the cells of the intermediate 
storage device. 
As explained above, the apparatus of the invention permits the execution of 
a method of processing shipping articles provided with shipping addresses, 
in which the shipping articles are transported along a transport path and, 
in the process, the shipping addresses are automatically read and 
assessed. The arrangement according to the invention of the intermediate 
storage device allows the speed and reliability of such methods to be 
increased in that, after the shipping address of the shipping articles has 
been read, the shipping articles are selectively deposited into the cells 
of the intermediate storage device disposed in the transport path, and 
selectively removed from the cells as a function of the assessment of the 
shipping addresses and conveyed back to the transport path. 
In the operation of the apparatus of the invention, it is inevitable that 
the shipping address of one or a plurality of the shipping articles cannot 
be assessed. This can be the case, for example, with handwritten letter 
addresses. Shipping articles of this type must be removed from the normal, 
fully automatic processing and supplied to manual processing or, if the 
possibility exists that the relevant shipping addresses cannot be read 
properly with the automatic reading device, the shipping articles must be 
sent back to the reading device. To this end the shipping articles can be 
purposefully removed from the intermediate storage in response to a second 
removal signal for diversion from the transport path. The second removal 
signal is produced, according to a further feature of the invention, by 
the detection device if the read shipping addresses of the relevant 
shipping articles cannot be automatically assessed. 
The shipping articles diverted from the transport path can then be 
processed by hand or conveyed back to the apparatus of the invention. 
Moreover, it is also conceivable for the processing of the diverted 
shipping articles to be determined by appropriate personnel, and for the 
shipping articles to be conveyed back to the apparatus, for example at a 
location disposed downstream of the intermediate storage in the transport 
path, after manual entry of corresponding assessment information. 
As an alternative, however, it is also possible to display the addresses 
which cannot be assessed automatically on screens and have them assessed 
by appropriate personnel. The information required for further processing 
can then be entered manually. The first removal signal for the relevant 
cell can be produced after entry of this information. 
A further increase in the operating reliability of the apparatus according 
to the invention has attained if the detection device can be operated to 
control the deposit of the shipping articles into the cells. This can 
prevent double occupancy of the cells. 
In order to remove the shipping articles deposited in the cells, each 
storage cell can have a wall region that can be shifted between a storage 
position and a removal position for the shipping articles. Consequently, 
an unintentional removal of the shipping articles can be prevented, and 
the operating reliability of the apparatus can be increased. 
A particularly simple design of the apparatus according to the invention is 
attained when a driving device is provided with which each cell can be set 
in a predetermined position relative to the transport path. This permits 
the deposit of the shipping articles into the cells with a stationary 
transfer device in that the individual cells are moved into a transfer 
position that remains unchanged and is established by the predetermined 
relative position. 
In operation of this type of apparatus, it is conceivable to emit the first 
removal signals for the cells when it is determined that the shipping 
addresses of the shipping articles deposited therein can essentially be 
assessed automatically. Particularly reliable operation is achieved if 
release signals for the shipping articles deposited in the intermediate 
storage can be produced with the assessment device when an assessment 
result for the shipping address of the relevant shipping article is 
present, and the first removal signal can be produced in response to the 
release signal in order to convey the relevant shipping article back into 
the transport path. 
The cells are advisably driven to rotate endlessly, so that merely one 
simple driving motor, operable in one driving direction, is necessary. 
A particularly compact design results if the endless rotation of the cells 
follows a circular path that has an axis of rotation. 
If the individual cells are limited by cell walls disposed in axial planes 
extending radially of the axis of rotation, the deposit of the shipping 
articles can be effected by a simple movement in a radial direction with 
respect to the axis of rotation. 
An apparatus of this type can be designed to be particularly compact and 
structurally simple if a cell wall serves to limit two adjacent cells, 
i.e., is a common wall between two cells. 
An increase in operating reliability of such apparatuses is achieved if the 
cell walls are configured to be essentially rectangular with a side edge 
which extends parallel to the axis of rotation, because the transfer 
position for the individual cells remains the same over the entire axial 
expansion of the cells, and operational disturbances caused by axial 
changes in the position or size of the shipping articles to be deposited 
in the transfer position can be precluded. 
The shipping articles can be prevented from becoming jammed or wedged 
between the end regions of a cell facing the axis of rotation if the 
shipping articles can be made to extend from a jacket surface of a 
circular cylinder whose diameter is predetermined by the maximum allowed 
thickness of the shipping articles and whose cylinder axis coincides with 
the axis of rotation. 
The apparatus of the invention having cell walls disposed in axial planes 
that extend radially of the axis of rotation can be embodied in a 
structurally simple manner if the dimensions of the individual cells are 
identical. To this end the intermediate storage device is preferably 
constructed such that all angles formed between adjacent cell walls are 
identical. 
A particularly simple removal of the shipping articles from the individual 
cells of the intermediate storage device making use of gravity is 
permitted if the axis of rotation extends essentially vertically, i.e., in 
the direction of gravity, and the displaceable wall region of the cells is 
respectively disposed on the cell floor. 
As already mentioned, the above-described problems associated with 
apparatuses of the type that can be solved with this invention can be 
primarily attributed to the fact that the assessment of the shipping 
addresses is very time-consuming. To use the assessment information that 
has been obtained with a considerable expenditure of time in further 
processing of the shipping articles, it is particularly advantageous if, 
after their shipping address has been read, the shipping articles can be 
conveyed to a device for applying a code to the article, for example a 
barcode, which represents the result of assessment. Such a device for 
applying the code would be disposed downstream of the reading device in 
the transport path. 
The shipping articles are advisably supplied from the intermediate storage 
device to the device for applying the coding in response to the removal 
signal. 
These and other features and advantages of the invention will be further 
understood from the following detailed description of the preferred 
embodiments with reference to the accompanying drawing.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
Referring to FIG. 1, there is shown a feeder 10 containing an upright stack 
of letters 12 from which individual letters are drawn and guided into a 
transport path. Each letter 12 is first transferred in the direction of 
the arrow 17 into a detection region of a camera 18 so that the shipping 
address can be read. A suction device 16 disposed at an endlessly 
circulating conveyor belt 14 and connected to a pump, not shown, generates 
a vacuum that is used to draw off individual letters 12. As can be seen 
from the drawing, endlessly circulating conveyor belt 14 is guided around 
two rollers 14a and 14b which are essentially oriented vertically, causing 
the drawn-off letters 12 to maintain their orientation when they are 
transferred into the detection region of camera 18. 
After the letters leave the detection region of camera 18, they are 
transferred along their further transport path into a transfer position 
for individual cells Z of an intermediate storage device configured as a 
storage wheel 30 by a transfer device configured as an endlessly 
circulating conveyor belt 20, and are deposited into respective ones of 
the cells Z. Storage wheel 30 rotates about an axis of rotation 32 that 
extends vertically in the direction of gravity. For this purpose, a drive 
device 33 in the form of a drive motor 33a is coupled to the axis of 
rotation via a drive belt 33b. Individual cells Z are limited by cell 
walls 36 lying in axial planes that extend radially of axis of rotation 
32. Each of the cell walls 36 serves to limit two adjacent cells Z 
simultaneously. As can further be seen from the drawing, storage wheel 30 
has a uniform construction in which all angles formed between adjacent 
cell walls 36 are identical. It can also be seen that cell walls 36 extend 
from a jacket surface 38 of a circular cylinder which has a predetermined 
diameter and whose cylinder axis coincides with the axis of rotation 32. 
This ensures that a minimum spacing will be retained between the radially 
inside end regions of adjacent cell walls 36, the spacing being larger 
than the maximum thickness of the letters 12 to be processed, which can 
prevent the letters 12 deposited in cells Z from being jammed or wedged 
between the radially inside end regions of cell walls 36. 
Letters 12 deposited individually into cells Z are carried along with 
storage wheel 30, which rotates in the direction indicated by arrow 34. 
Letters 12 are deposited onto an endlessly circulating conveyor belt 40, 
which continues the transport path, by opening of removal flaps 37 
respectively disposed at the bottom of the individual cells and 
articulated to one of the side walls 36 of a cell Z as shown in FIG. 3 for 
pivoting about a pivot axis 37a. 
For simplification of the illustration, endlessly circulating conveyor belt 
40 is shown with lateral offset with respect to storage wheel 30. In 
actuality, conveyor belt 40 is disposed beneath storage wheel 30 such that 
letters 12 ejected from the cells of the wheel land on conveyor belt 40 in 
the correct position. Letters 12 are conveyed by conveyor belt 40 into a 
printing region of an ink jet printer 42. There a barcode representing the 
result of an assessment of the shipping addresses of the letters performed 
in an assessment device 100 coupled to camera 18 can be applied to the 
letter by printer 42 downstream of camera 18. 
Letters 12 are subsequently taken from a further endlessly circulating 
conveyor belt 44 of the transport path and transferred to a vertical 
conveyor 46. Letters 12 are placed individually into pockets 48 of an 
endlessly rotating transporter 50 by the vertical conveyor 46, with one 
letter being placed into each pocket 48. The letters 12 deposited in 
pockets 48 are transported to collection containers (not shown) arranged 
according to delivery area, and deposited into one of the collection 
containers as a function of the result of the assessment of the shipping 
address read with camera 18. 
Image signals representing the shipping addresses read by camera 18 are 
sent to assessment device 100 during operation of the above-described 
apparatus. In assessment device 100, the relevant letter is assigned to a 
specific delivery area or destination based on the read shipping address. 
A certain amount of time, depending on the legibility of the shipping 
address, is required for this assessment. 
During this time, the letters 12 are held respectively in cells Z of 
storage wheel 30. By way of a signal path 104, the association between the 
individual cells Z and the letters 12 deposited therein is detected by a 
detection device 102 based on the respective rotational position of 
storage wheel 30. Moreover, detection device 102 controls conveyor belts 
14 and 20 by way of signal paths 106 and 108, preventing double occupancy 
of cells Z. 
Upon completion of the assessment of the shipping address of one of letters 
12 deposited in a cell Z of storage wheel 30, a release signal for the 
relevant letter is sent to detection device 102 by assessment device 100 
by way of a signal path 105. After the release signal has been sent, a 
first removal signal for the relevant storage cell Z is produced by 
detection device 102 and sent to storage wheel 30 by way of signal path 
104 as soon as the relevant cell Z is located above conveyor belt 40. In 
response to the first removal signal, removal flap 37 located at the 
bottom of the relevant cell Z is opened and letter 12 lying therein is 
deposited onto conveyor belt 40. For this purpose, removal flap 37 is 
pivoted around pivot axis 37a into a release position in a vertical plane 
as shown by the broken line in FIG. 3. 
In addition to the release signal, another signal which represents the 
result of the assessment of the relevant letter address is sent by 
assessment device 100 to detection device 102 by way of signal path 105. 
In dependence on the time of emission of the release signal for the 
relevant letter, a control signal representing the assessment result is 
sent to ink jet printer 42 and transporter 50 by way of signal paths 110 
and 112. The control signal permits the printing of the relevant letter 12 
with a barcode representing the assessment result, and the transport of 
letter 12 to the collection container predetermined by the shipping 
address. 
In the case that assessment device 100 detects that automatic assessment of 
one of the read shipping addresses is not possible, a signal representing 
this result is sent to detection device 102 by way of signal path 105 for 
the relevant letter. In response to this latter signal, detection device 
102 produces a second removal signal for the relevant cell Z as soon as 
the cell is located above a collection point for letters 12 whose 
addresses cannot be assessed automatically. In response to the second 
removal signal, the removal flap disposed at the bottom of the relevant 
cell is opened, and the relevant letter 12 is conveyed to the collection 
point, as indicated by arrow 114. The letters collected at the collection 
point can either be conveyed back to the automatic apparatus or to manual 
processing. After these letters have been allocated to the corresponding 
delivery areas by the appropriate personnel and corresponding information 
has been entered into detection device 102, the letters can be conveyed to 
conveyor belt 40 and incorporated back into the automatic processing 
operation. 
Operation of the apparatus described above and illustrated in the drawing 
permits letters whose addresses allow for rapid assessment to be deposited 
onto conveyor belt 40 and conveyed to transporter 50 after only a 
half-revolution of storage wheel 30. On the other hand, letters whose 
addresses require more time for assessment can be held in one of cells Z 
for a plurality of revolutions of storage wheel 30 without influencing the 
deposit and further transport of letters whose addresses can be assessed 
quickly. Overall this can increase the number of letters processed per 
unit of time, because letters whose shipping addresses are difficult to 
assess do not unnecessarily delay the sequence of operation. Furthermore, 
the illustrated configuration of the intermediate storage as a storage 
wheel 30 having compartment-type cells Z is extremely compact, so that the 
described acceleration of processing operations can be achieved with an 
apparatus that requires only a small amount of space. This space 
requirement is further decreased with the apparatus illustrated in the 
drawing because conveyor belts 20, 40 and 44 are configured as conveyor 
walls against which the letters merely lean during transport. 
FIG. 2 illustrates another embodiment of the invention where like reference 
numerals identify like components. The only difference from the embodiment 
of FIG. 1 is that in FIG. 2 the intermediate storage device is configured 
as a conveying device 33' that circulates endlessly around two axes 32a, 
32b. Cells Z' in FIG. 2 are formed by adjacent cell walls 36' which extend 
from a jacket 38' that is driven about axes 32a, 33b in the direction of 
arrow 34'. The embodiment of FIG. 2 operates in a similar manner as that 
described in connection with FIG. 1. 
It will be understood that the above description of the present invention 
is susceptible to various modifications, changes and adaptations, and the 
same are intended to be comprehended within the meaning and range of 
equivalents of the appended claims.