Method for controlling an accumulating device
AssigneeElsag SpA
InventorsGuido De Leo, Francesco Stomeo
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
Method for controlling an accumulating device (buffer) having a number of tracks each of which defines at least one accumulation segment along which may be arranged sets of postal items partially overlying each other (shingled). One first section and one second section are defined as including, respectively, one first and one second sub-set of tracks designed to communicate at output, through singling devices, with sorting devices. For each section, successive phases of accumulation and unloading are carried out, thus achieving with great efficiency the unloading of postal items towards sorting devices, and thus enabling the handling of a large number of postal items towards the highest possible number of destinations.
Claims31
A method for controlling an accumulating device designed to receive, as input, postal items and designed to feed as output postal items to at least one mail sorting device designed to address (T) each postal item fed as input towards a corresponding output according to data (CODE1, CODE2) associated to the item itself, the method comprising the steps of:
- providing said accumulating device which includes a number of tracks, each of which extends between an input designed to receive postal items and an output;
- said tracks defining at least one accumulation segment, along which postal items can be accumulated
- defining at least one section comprising a set of tracks;
- carrying out an ordinary operating phase for said at least one section, according to which the section is designed to communicate with at least one mail-sorting device performing a corresponding sorting program (PROG-A, PROG-B, PROG-C, . . . , PROG-N) in order to sort usefully a specific type of postal items (A, B, C, . . . N);
- wherein said ordinary operating phase comprises the phases of accumulating in the at least one section and unloading towards the sorting device postal items that constitute a typical mail which can be usefully sorted by the program being used in the sorting device communicating and operating with the at least one section;
- said ordinary operating phase including the phase of accumulating in the at least one section postal items that constitute atypical mail which can be sorted usefully by at least one program different from the program currently being used in the sorting device with which the section is operating and communicating;
- detecting a condition of end of ordinary operation;
- and
- carrying out a phase of transition from the phase of ordinary operation towards a different phase of operation in which at least one type of atypical mail previously stored in the at least one section may be handled;
- detecting the end of the transition phase and performing a switching operation in such a way the, following upon switching, said at least one section may operate with a sorting device performing a different sorting program to carry out said different operating phase in which mail previously accumulated is fed towards the sorting device that can usefully sort said previously accumulated mail.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.