Pitney Bowes Inc.

Carl R Chapman

Thomas M Lyga

James A Fairweather

Cormac O'Prey

Arthur H DePoi

Charles W Klein

Peter John Watson

David J Eaton

Joan T Doutney

Barry W Simkins

Boris Rosenfeld

Aris Ballestrazzi

Clock fan

A method and apparatus for folding inserts by inverting the insert sheet after the first fold is made and reintroducing the folded insert sheet into a first buckle chute from the opposite end. The second fold is then made in a second buckle chute which results in either a bottom address or a middle address appearing on the folded insert in a manner that the address will appear through the window of the envelope.

Paper folder utilizing sheet inversion to develop auxiliary fold types

A materials handling system includes a feeder station having a plurality of material feeders and an insertion subsystem. Each of the plurality of feeders are connected to a common material transport path. A first material transport path is connected to the common material transport path and to the insertion subsystem. A second material transport path is connected to the common material transport path and to the insertion subsystem. A third material transport path is connected to the first material transport path and to said insertion subsystem. The second material transport path may include a materials processing subsystem such as a folder subsystem. The common materials transport may include a pre-fold accumulator transport having a pre-fold accumulator gate. A first diverter may be provided to selectively divert materials being transported by the pre-fold accumulator transport to the first or to the second material transport. A second diverter may also be provided to selectively divert materials traveling along the first materials transport to the third material transport.

Paper handling system material feed path arrangement

A materials handling system includes an insertion subsystem for inserting materials into envelopes to form mailpieces of a first type and mailpieces of a second type. The materials handling syatem also includes a first mailpiece transport path located downstream from the insertion subsystem and having a curved portion along which mailpieces of said first type are transported, and a second mailpiece transport path being substantially horizontal, located downstream from the insertion subsystem, and along which mailpieces of the second type are transported. Further, a diverter is included that diverts mailpieces of the first type to the first transport path and mailpieces of the second type to the second transport path.

Paper handling system materials exit path arrangement

A process for performing a plurality of operations on an elongate element, in particular an envelope () in a folder-inserter machine, which operations, such as flapping (), inserting, moistening and sealing, are carried out at spaced-apart locations. The process enables various different lengths of envelope to be employed, without the need to adjust any of the mechanisms. This is achieved by feeding an envelope into the inserter unflapped and with its crease line trailing. A datum position for the crease line is determined following sensing (), and all the distances the envelope needs to be moved for the various operations, which may in practice be closely associated with that crease line, measured from that datum position. Irrespective of the lengths of the envelopes processed, the drive means () moving them from one particular operation location to the next then needs to be operated for the same time.

Envelope or other elongate element processing

A moistener for applying liquid to an envelope, for use in sealing the latter, comprises a liquid storage tank () and means, such as wicks () for transporting the liquid to the envelope (not shown). The level of liquid in the tank is visible to a user through a window (). In use of the moistener it is fully inserted into a housing (not shown) but with the window visible to the user. Partial removal of the moistener from the housing permits the tank to be filled with liquid via an opening ().

Apparatus for moistening an envelope

Sheet collation apparatus is disclosed in which an initial sheet (A ) from a sheet feeder ( ) is advanced to a collation station ( ), reversed into an accumulation station ( ) and then returned to the collation station where it is collated with the next sheet (A ) from the sheet feeder. This process may be repeated any number of times to form a collation of sheets of any required number.

Growing community of inventors

Monroe, CT, United States of America

Carl R Chapman