The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
May. 22, 2001
Filed:
Dec. 16, 1999
Karel J. Janatka, Southbury, CT (US);
John W. Sussmeier, Cold Spring, NY (US);
William J. Wright, Killingworth, CT (US);
Pitney Bowes Inc., Stamford, CT (US);
Abstract
An envelope transport system, for transporting envelopes, flaps opened, along a final common path in a direction at ninety degrees from a feed direction along which the envelopes are provided in two parallel paths. The system includes an envelope hopper, for holding envelopes on edge and for providing the envelopes, in turn, on edge; a flipper gate, for receiving envelopes, in turn, and for providing the envelopes alternately to either of the two parallel transport feed paths, each of the feed paths for conveying the envelopes provided to the feed path by action of a sequence of nips arranged along the feed path; a merge station for receiving the envelopes, in turn, from the two parallel transport feed paths, for plowing open the flaps of the envelopes, and for redirecting the envelopes, with flaps open, all to the final, common path at substantially ninety degrees from the two parallel transport feed paths, the substantially ninety degrees measured with respect to the direction of the parallel transport feed paths at the point of entry to the merge station.