Patent GB-1077120-A (GB)
Title: Document sorting apparatus
IPC: G06F7/22
Filed: 1965-12-13
Abstract: 1,077,120. Collating records. INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINES CORPORATION. Dec. 13, 1965 [Dec. 24, 1964], No. 52767/65. Heading G4M. A document collating machine comprises two groups of magazines 10, 11 each magazine being associated with a respective reversible transport belt A-F, and a transfer belt 35, by means of which a document may be transferred from any transport belt of group A-C to any transport belt of group D-F or vice versa. Operation.-Documents are withdrawn from stacks 10 by belts A, B, C and are sensed at respective stations 34, the information sensed being supplied to storage and comparison circuitry which may form part of a general purpose computer. As a result of the comparison, the lowest valued document (for an ascending sequence) is then moved by its transport belt on to the transfer belt 35, and at the same time another document is withdrawn from the associated stack 10, the information thereon being sensed and stored. A magazine in group 11 is then chosen (this may be programmed in the computer) in which to start the first sequence, and transfer belt 35 is moved as necessary to align the selected document carried thereby with the corresponding transport belt D-F. Next, the three documents on belts A-C are compared, the lowest is selected and moved on to the transfer belt, a new document is withdrawn, and at the same time, the previously selected document is withdrawn from the transfer belt by the chosen transport belt D-F. If the compared documents are of equal value, they are selected in a predetermined order which may be programmed in the computer. This sequence of operations is repeated until one of the documents on belts A-C is of lower value than the last selected document. When this occurs, documents are only taken from the remaining stacks in group 10, until eventually all three documents on belts A, B, C are lower than the last selected document. A new sequence is then started in another magazine of group 11, starting again with the lowest document on belts A-C. At the end of a run, i.e. when the magazines of one group are all empty, the machine automatically reverses to perform the same sequence of operations in the opposite direction. this being repeated until eventually only one magazine contains documents at the end of the run. This condition is detected automatically and the machine is stopped. Transport and transfer belts.-The belts are made of an electrically conductive material such as steel and are covered on the documentcarrying surface with a high friction material such as rubber or polyethylene. The belts are selective driven in one direction or the other by pairs of counter - rotating electrostatic clutches 17, 18 and 36, 37. The transport belts have raised divider sections 25 forming pockets for the documents, each pocket having a set of perforations through which a vacuum may be applied from chambers 26-28. Chamber 26 is evacuated when a document is being inserted into or withdrawn from a magazine, chamber 28 is evacuated when a document is being moved on to or from the transfer belt 35 and chamber 27 is evacuated all the time a document is in the intermediate position. Connection of vacuum to each chamber is through valves controlled by document sensors and belt drive signals. The transfer belt, Fig. 2 (not shown) has sets of perforations (39) in three transverse positions, these co-operating with chambers (43-45) respectively. Each set of perforations (39) has an associated refletive spot (50a-52a) which is sensed by a photocell (PS-50) to (PS-52). Which one of chambers (43-45) is evacuated depends on the present position of the transfer belt (35) as sensed by the photo-cells and on which transport belt delivers a document to the transfer belt. For example, if a document is fed from transport belt A into pocket (42-1), then chamber (43) will be evacuated. This arrangement enables vacuum to be applied while the transfer belt is in motion but requires a minimum of pump capacity.