Dual tote sorter and stacker

An apparatus for receiving, transporting, and stacking sheets into stacks comprising the combination of:

• (a) a support frame defining an enclosure, said enclosure having sheet receiving means for entry of said sheet into said enclosure;
• (b) vertical conveyor means extending along one wall of said enclosure;
• said vertical conveyor having a plurality of foraminous belts through which air is drawn into a vacuum plenum, a wall of said vacuum plenum supporting said belts for movement thereon, said belts being trained about upper and lower rollers;
• (c) means for conducting said sheets from said receiving means to said vertical conveyor;
• (d) means for removing said sheets from said vertical conveyor and placing said sheets in a stack on a support surface, said means for removing comprising a carriage assembly abutting said vertical conveyor and having means to raise and lower said carriage assembly engaging said frame, said means for removing having a transfer deflector attached in said carriage, said transfer deflector being located between said vacuum plenum and said foraminous belts, and extendable into the path of sheets travelling along said vertical conveyor to deflect said sheets onto said carriage assembly, further comprising means to deliver sheets to an inclined tray and an extendable and retractable sheet transfer support surface over which said sheets move from said vertical conveyor to said tray;
• (e) an inclined tray assembly, said tray assembly having an inclined tray removably attached to said support frame and being located near the end of said extendable and retractable sheet transfer surface, said tray receiving sheets from said carriage, the vertical location of said carriage indexing with the height of the stack of said sheets within said tray.