Finmeccanica Spa

Michele Scarnera

Mauro Levaro

Mauro Dal Toso

Andrea Faeti

A mail accumulating device having a number of stream forming units, each of which has a pair of powered belts superimposed at a point of contact defining the input of the unit. Each stream forming unit is provided with a sensor for detecting the passage of a mail item into the unit, and for generating a signal for activating the belts, thereby moving the mail items retained on the belts from the input to the output of the unit in discrete steps, and forming a group of overlapping mail items with the leading edges separated by a substantially constant distance. The device also includes a number of conveyor belt devices, each of which has an input communicating with the output of a respective stream forming unit, to enable the conveyor belt to receive a group of mail items at the input and feed the group of mail items to an output of the conveyor belt device to define an accumulating unit.

Mail accumulating device

A separating device wherein two belts with different friction coefficients present respective straight portions facing each other and converging at a contact portion. The belts are fed with a number of mail items which are wedged in the V-shaped opening defined by the straight portions and are fed singly through the contact portion by the higher friction coefficient belt and to the input of a follow-up conveyor belt system. The device comprises a barrier of sensors located between the contact portion and the input of the conveyor belt system, and which provide for determining the form and spacing of the mail items. The signal generated by the barrier of sensors is used for adjusting operation of the higher friction coefficient belt.

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Genoa, Italy

Michele Scarnera