Sandvik Sorting Systems, Inc.

Goro Okada

Edward Ydoate

Ronald T Rutz

Coded articles are conveyed through an orienting section which tends to arrange the articles in single-file, spaced apart relationship. The articles are then conveyed through a reader/sensor mechanism where the codes are read and the spatial relationship of the packages is determined. Articles which are both properly scanned and properly spaced are conveyed to respective branch lines of a sorter section in accordance with information gleaned from the codes. Articles which are improperly scanned or improperly spaced are diverted to a recycle conveyor by a recycle diverter device located upstream of the sorter section and are re-routed back to the orienting section.

Sorter mechanism

A singulator conveyor receives randomly oriented articles and positions those articles in single file. The conveyor includes skewed rollers for driving articles longitudinally and laterally against a side wall. The width of the singulator conveyor becomes gradually stepped-down, and a return conveyor system is provided which includes secondary return conveyors or chutes disposed at respective ones of the steps for receiving excessive articles from the singulator conveyor and delivering them to a main return conveyor which returns the articles to an upstream end of the singulator conveyor.

Singulator conveyor system having package-return conveyors

Articles of random length are conveyed in single file while being transferred from a first driven conveyor to a second driven conveyor. The second conveyor is driven faster than the first conveyor so that an initial gap is established between the articles. Front and rear ends of the articles are sensed while traveling along the second conveyor toward a third conveyor. From that sensed information, there is determined an actual front-to-front distance between the front end of each article to the front end of the next article. The speed of the second conveyor is varied, as necessary, to create a desired minimum front-to-front distance between successive articles. Optionally, that minimum front-to-front distance is established while ensuring that a minimum gap is maintained between successive articles.

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Louisville, KY, United States of America

Goro Okada