Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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CARD PACKAGE PRODUCTION S3tSTEM HAVING
MtJhTIDIRECTIONAL CARD PACKAGE DISTRIBUTION MODULE WITH
STALKER AND REJECT GATE AND METHOD
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CROSS-REFERENCE TO RE?~ATED APP?~ICATION ,
This application claims under 35 U.S. C. 119(e) the
benefit of U. S. Provisional Application NQ. 60/184,443,
filed February 23, 3000, and entitled "Card Package
Production System and Method", and assigned to the assignee
of the present application.
BACKROUND OF THE INVENTION
Field of the Invention
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This invention generally relates to card package
production systems and methods of the type that
automatically produce card packages of cards, such as
credit cards, to matching carrier forms for mailing, and
more particularly to such a system with a distributor
mechanism and method.
Description of the Prior Art
Card package production systems that produce card
packages comprised of cards, such as plastic credit or
debit cards, to matching paper carriers that bear printed
information including the card owner's name and address in
a location for viewing through a window envelope into which
the carrier packages may be ultimately inserted, or
"stuffed", for mailing to the owner.
Examples of such card package production systems in
which the cards are mechanically attached to the carriers
are shown in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/081,312,
filed May 19, 1998, of Bxetl et al. and entitled "Card
Package Production System with a Multireader Card Track and
Method", and in U.S. patents 5,494,544 issued February
27,1996 to Hill et al. and entitled "Automatic Verified
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Embossed Card Package Production Methods"; 5,541,395 issued
July 30, 1996 to Hill et al. and entitled "Card Package
Production System with Burster and Code Reader"; 5,388,815
issued February 14, 1995 to Hill et al. and entitled,
"Embossed Card Package Production System with Modular
Inserters for Multiple Forms"; 5,509,886 issued April 23,
1996 to Hill et al, for "Card Package Production System
with Madular Carrier Folding Apparatus for Multiple Forms";
and 5,433,364 issued July 18, 1995 to Hill et al. for "Card
Package Production System with Burster and Carrier
Verification Apparatus", all assigned to the assignee of
the present invention, and all of which. together with the
references cited therein are hereby incorporated by
reference.
In known card package production systems, the
successfully completed card packages are output from the
system at a single outlet slot from which they are fed to
an envelope stuffing machine or a card package stacker, as
may be joined to the single outlet slot. In order to switch
from one to the other, the positions of the envelope
stuffing machine and the card package starker must be
exchanged.
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Moreover, in known systems, the card package starkers
extended in a substantially horizontal direction and thus
required substantial amounts of floor space.
SUMMARY OF THE TNVENTION
It is therefore an object of the present invention to
provide a card package production system having a
multidirectional card package distribution module that
provides multiple outlets for correctly prepared card
packages for different purposes, or for rejection of
incorrectly prepared purposes and a method of selectively
changing which outlet is used on a real-time basis during
operation of the distributor.
'this objective is achieved in part by providing a card
package production system for producing card packages with
printed paper carriers with matching cards attached to the
carriers and having a frame and a housing overlying the
frame with a card package multi-directional distribution
module having a card package transport faith a primary
carrier transport path extending between a card package
inlet and a primary card package outlet for transporting
the card packages along the primary carrier transport path,
a starker module for stacking the card packages having a
starker input intermediate the carrier inlet and the
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primary carrier outlet, and a movable starker gate mounted
for movement between a stacking position in which the
carriers are guided by the gate off the primary carrier
transport path and into the starker input, and a
nonstacking position in which the card packages are allowed
to continue past the starker input and toward the primary
carrier outlet.
Preferably, the starker inlet has an associated pair
of starker input rollers into which the card packages are
guided by the starker gate for transport into a stacking
position. A solenoid is connected with the stacking gate,
and a controller selectively energizes the solenoid to
selectively move the stacking gate to the stacking
position. The controller selectively energizes the stacking
gate based on information associated with each carrier to
be stacked. A movable reject gate located along the primary
carrier transport path intermediate the starker gate and
the primary carrier outlet is mounted for movement between
a reject position in which the carriers are guided by the
gate off the primary carrier transport path and into a
reject input, and a nonreject position in which the
carriers are allowed to continue past the reject input and
out of the primary carrier outlet. When a defective card
package is detected a reject solenoid connected with the
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movably mounted reject gate, and a controller for
selectively energizing the solenoid to selectively move the
stacking gate, said controller selectively energizing the
reject solenoid in response to the detecting means.
Preferably, the defective card packages are detected
measuring the thickness of the card package moving along
the primary card path before the card package passes the
reject gate to determine if the card is defect~.ve.
The objective is also achieved partly by providing in
a card package production system for producing card
packages with printed paper carriers with matching cards
attached to the card packages and having a frame and a
housing overlying the frame, a method of distributing the
card packages by performing the steps of transporting with
a card packages transport the card packages along a primary
card package transport path extending between a carrier
inlet and a primary card package outlet with a primary card
package transport path, selectively moving a movable
stacker gate mounted for movement between a stacking
position in which the card packages are guided by the gate
off the primary carrier transport path and into a starker
input intermediate the carrier inlet and the primary card
package outlet of a starker module for stacking the card
packages, and selectively moving the movable staeker gate
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to nonstacking position in which the card packages are
allowed to continue past the stacker input and toward the
primary card packages outlet.
Also, an objective of the invention is achieved by
providing in a card package production system for producing
card packages with printed paper carriers with matching
cards attached to the carriers overlying the frame, a
defective card package reject apparatus having a primary
carrier transport path extending between a carrier inlet
and a primary carrier outlet, means for transporting the
carriers along the primary carrier transport path, a reject
for receipt of defective carrier packages, a movable reject
gate mounted for movement between a reject position in
which the carriers are guided by the gate off the primary
carrier transport path and into the reject outlet, and a
nonreject position in which the carriers are allowed to
continue past the stacker input and toward the primary
carrier outlet.
Also, another object is achieved by providing a card
package production system for producing card packages with
printed paper carriers with matching cards attached to the
carriers overlying the frame, with a defective card package
reject apparatus having a primary card transport mechanism
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for directing card packages from a card package inlet to a
card package outlet, and means for measuring the thickness
of the card packages before they reach the card package
outlet, and means responsive the thickness measuring means
for redirecting defective card packages to a reject package
outlet.
Preferably the card package production system has
means responsive to the thickness detector for converting
thickness to a number of cards corresponding to the
measured thickness, means for storing the number of cards
to be part of each correctly prepared card package, and
means for comparing the corresponding number of cards
determined by measuring the thickness of the card package
with the stored correct number of cards for the card
package, said redirecting means redirecting a card package
to the reject package outlet if a measured number of cards
for a card does not correspond to the stored correct number
of cards for the card package.
Another objective is obtained by providing a card
package production system for producing card packages with
printed paper carriers with matching cards attached to the
carriers over7.ying the frame, wit$ a method of rejecting
defective card package by performing the steps of directing
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card packages from a card package inlet to a card package
outlet with a primary card transport mechanism, and
measuring the thickness of the card packages before they
reach the card package outlet, and responding to the
thickness measuring means for redirecting defective card
packages to a reject package outlet in response to the
thickness of the card packages.
Also, the objective of the invention is obtained in
part by providing a card package production system for
producing card packages with printed paper carriers with
matching cards attached to the carriers overlying the frame
with a method of rejecting defective card packages by
performing the steps of transporting carrier packages along
a primary carrier transport path extending between a
carrier inlet and a primary carrier outlet, moving a
movable reject gate mounted for movement between a reject
position in which the carriers are guided by the gate off
the primary carrier transport path and into the reject
outlet, and a nonreject position in which the carriers are
allowed to continue past the stacker input and toward the
primary carrier outlet.
It is also an object of the present invention to
provide a card package production system having a non-
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horizontal stacker and method of stacking card packages
non-horizontally.
This objective is achieved by providing a card
package production system for producing card packages with
printed paper carriers with matching cards attached to the
carriers with a card package stacking apparatus, a card
package transport path along which card packages are moved
seriatim, a card package stacking frame with an open top, a
bottom with an opening beneath the open top, and elongate
members extending between the open top anal the bottom
opening for at least lateral support of a stack of card
packages, and a card package stacker inserter with a
stacker inserter input relatively positioned to receive
card packages from the card package transport path, and
means for inserting card packages received at the stacker
input into the bottom opening at the bottom of the stack of
card packages, insertion of each successive card package
pushing previously inserted card packages upwardly
simultaneously as a stack of card packages toward the open
top, said open top being reached by the card packages in
whatever order they are inserted into the bottom opening.
Preferably, the bottom opening faces downwardly and
has a one-way door located to prevent card packages from
dropping out of the downwardly facing door.
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The object is also achieved in part by providing in a
card package production system for producing card packages
With printed paper carriers with matching cards attached to
the carriers, a method of stacking card packages in a non-
horizontal stack by performing the steps of transporting
seriatim card packages along a card package transport path,
locating a card package stacking frame with an open top, a
bottom with an opening beneath the open top, and elongate
members extending between the open top and the bottom
opening for at least lateral support of a stack of card
packages for receipt of card packages on the card package
transport path, receiving card packages into a starker
inserter input of a card package starker inserter
relatively positioned to receive card packages from the
card package transport path, and inserting card packages
received at the starker input into the bottom opening at
the bottom of a stack of card packages, pushing previously
inserted card packages upwardly simultaneously as a stack
of card packages toward the open top with another card
package being inserted into the bottom opening, said open
top being reached by the card packages in whatever order
they are inserted into the bottom opening.
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BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF T8E DRAWINGS
The forgoing advantages and objectives will be
described in detail and others will be made apparent in the
detailed description of the best mode of practicing the
present invention which is given below with reference to
the several views of the drawing, in which:
Fig.1 is a perspective view of the card package
production system of the present invention;
Fig.2 is a perspective of a card package of the type
produced by the card package production system of Fig.1
with the card attached to the carrier;
Fig.3 is a an end view of the card package of Fig.2 in
a folded state ready for mailing;
Fig.4 is a perspective of the card package of Fig.2
but with the card detached and showing the adhesive label
remaining attached to carrier;
Fig.5 is a front elevational view of the card package
production system of Fig. l;
Fig.6 is a side elevational view of the card package
production system of Fig.1 with portions of the card
attachment module broken away to show selected internal
features;
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Fig.7 is a plan view of the Card package production
system of Fig. l;
Fig. is side, partially schematic view of the inter-
module guide extending between the carrier printer module
outlet to the card attachment module carrier inlet shown as
also seen in the plan view of Fig.7;
Fig.9 is a plan view of the inter-module guide showing
the release opening in the upper guide body;
Fig.lO is a sectional side view taken along section
line 10-10 of Fig.9;
Fig. 11 is a plan view of the carrier transport
showing the carrier inlet station, the intermediate standby
station, ~Ghe card attachment station and the folding
station;
Fig. l2 is a side view of the carrier transport with
carrier restraint assemblies shown in broken line in their
inoperative elevated positions to provide access to enable
clearing of jams and general maintenance;
Fig.l3 is a schematic illustration of a side view of
only the multilevel carrier transport shown in Fig. l2;
Fig.l4 is a schematic illustration of the movement and
the overlapping position of the carriers on the multilevel
support of Figs. l2 and 13 in the event of the card package
production system being stopped during operation;
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Fig.lS is a plan view of the adjustable carrier
restraint assembly for keeping the carriers on the carrier
transport path;
Fig. l6 is a sectional side view taken along section
line 16-16 of Fig. l5;
Fig. l7 is an exploded perspective view of the carrier
guide adjustment assembly shown in Figs.l5 and 16;
Fig.l8 is a schematic illustration of the movement of
the carrier being passed to the card loading station;
Fig.l9 is a schematic illustration of the carrier at
the card attachment station immediately before the card
drops onto the carrier to which it is to be attached;
Fig.20 is a schematic illustration of the carrier at
the card attachment station after the card has dropped onto
the carrier and slid downwardly to the nib of the card
attachment station carrier feed rollers;
Fig.21 shows the carrier feed rollers reversing
direction to again pass, in reverse direction, the carrier
and the card resting on the card partially back through the
set of rollers to press the card with the attached adhesive
label to the carrier sufficiently to ensure adhesive
attachment of the card to the carrier;
Fig.22 shows the carrier with adhesively attached card
being passed to the second stage of the carrier folder;
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Fig.23 shows the carrier with adhesively attached card
being passed to the second stage of the carrier folding
station;
Fig.24 shows the carrier at the third stage location
in which the newly folded carrier is being moved to the
card count detection stage;
Fig.25 shows the card count stage in which the
thickness of the loaded and folded carriers are measured at
a plurality of locations to determine the number and
correct location of the card or cards attached to the
carrier;
Fig.26 shows the folded carrier with attached card or
Cards being moved to the FTFO stacker module due to the
uplifting actuation of the starker gate;
Fig.27 shows the card package passing the card starker
gate to move to a reject gate;
Fig.28 shows the card package being moved past the
reject gate to a card package outlet that is generally
connected to an envelope stuffer (not shown);
Fig.29 shows the card package being directed away from
the primary card package outlet by a reject gate and,
instead, being re-directed to a card package reject bin;
Fig.30 is a side elevational view of one side of the
"clam shell" card package distribution module of the card
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package production system of Fig.1 with parts broken away
to show the rollers and integrated drive system, and also
illustrating in broken line the pivotal open position in
which card packages may be removed or jams may be cleared
and maintenance be easily performed;
Fig.31 is a side elevational view of another side of
the "clam shell" card package distribution module of Fig.30
showing the intermeshing drive and driven gears in the
hinged lower and upper module frames;
Fig.32 is an enlarged perspective view of the side of
the distribution module of Fig.31 providing a better view
of the intermeshing gears and resilient mounting of the
rollers;
Fig.33 is an enlarged perspective view of either side
of the distribution module of Figs. 30 and 32 showing the
releasable fasteners used to hold the upper frame and the
lower frame in closed operative engagement;
Fig.34 is a front elevational view of the adhesive
label attachment station at which the heat activated
adhesive on one side of the adhesive label is attached to
the back side of the card;
Fig.35 is a side elevational, cross sectional view
through section line 35-35 of Fig.34 showing the label
attachment station with the label roll feed and backing
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paper take-up reels and the variable label tape drive used
to drive both reels;
Fig.36 is a cross sectional view of the counter member
of Fig.35 that holding the card down while the adhesive
label is being applied;
Fi.g.37 is an enlarged side view of the label
attachment station of Fig.35 with the label attachment
finger in a position at which the heated label is first
pressed against the card dur~.ng the card attachment stroke;
Fig.38 is an enlarged side view similar to that of
Fig.35 but with the label attachment finger in another
position at the end of a card attachment stroke after the
label has been swiped onto the back of the card;
Fig.39 is a perspective view of the pivotably and
manually removably mounted, card counter member, or card
retention member, preveiously shown in cross section in
Fig.36 which holds the card down against the upward force
of the label attachment finger during the card attachment
stroke;
Fig.40 is a perspective view of the label attachment
station showing the manner of manual removal of the card
retention member of Fig.39, and with a portion broken away
to show the heating platen with offsets on the sides that
are spaced from the opposite ends of the label to create a
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heating "dead zone" on the opposite ends of the label to
facilitate the removal of the label from the card after
attachment
Fig.41 is a perspective view of a card sled section of
the card transport mechanism, or card track, that moves the
card with the attached label to a card drop position at
which the card is dropped onto the matching carrier;
Fig.42 is a perspective view of an end of the card
track with a card reject bin to receive cards that have
been rejected and have not been dropped onto a carrier at
the card drop position;
Fig.43 is a perspective view of the FIFO card package
starker that stacks the completed card packages in which
newly completed card packages are inserted at the bottom of
a stack of completed card packages arid earlier completed
card packages are located at higher positions on the stack,
with a stack pusher being in a first position awaiting the
card package to be laterally inserted into a loading
position beneath a stack inlet opening ;
Fig.44 is a perspective view similar to that of Fig.43
but with the stack pusher in a relatively elevated position
to push the card package through the inlet opening and past
the underlying resilient;
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Fig.45 is a an enlarged perspective view showing the
drive linkage for the stack pusher;
Fig.46 is a schematic side view of the card transport
track from the card track inlet to the card reject bin;
Fig.47 is a schematic illustration showing the
relative locations of the sensors and drive motors
associated with the card transport path;
Fig. 48 is a schematic side view of the entire carrier
transport path and from the inlet to the card folding
station;
Fig.49 is a schematic illustration showing the
relative locations of the carrier sensors and carrier
transport drive motors of the carrier transport of path of
Fig.48;
Figs.50A and 50B are elevational views of the control
module arrays composed of a controller board, a brain board
and a plurality of control modules used to control the
system that is made by OPTO 22 described more fully below;
Fig.50C is a chart showing all of the connections of
the control modules of Fig.50A and Fig.50B to the various
sensors and motors that make up the control system;
Figs.51-60B are all special programming flow charts of
the controller made pursuant to the protocols and
procedures specified by OPTOCONTROZ to operate the control
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module, controller board and brain board of the controller
of Figs.50A, 50B and 50C;
Figs.51 is a flow chart of the power up routine of the
preferred embodiment;
Fig.52A, B, and C. is a flow chart of the interrupt
routine of the preferred embodiment;
Fig.53 is a flow chart of the card label routine of
the preferred embodiment;
Fig.54 is a flow chart of the card push routine of the
preferred embodiment:
Fig.55 is a flow chart of the form feed B routine of
the preferred embodiment;
Fig.56 is a flow chart of the form feed C routine of
the preferred embodiment;
Fig.57 is a flow chart of the form feed D routine of
the preferred embodiment;
Fig.58 is a flow chart of the heater routine of the
preferred embodiment;
Fig.59 is a flow chart of the card picker mechanism
Routine of the preferred embodiment;
Fig.60A and B is a flow chart of the card position
routine of the preferred embodiment; and
Fig.61 is a generic flow chart illustrating the
operation for sensing the numbers of cards in each card
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package and rejecting card packages if the correct number
of cards preselected for each designated location are not
present in the carrier.
DETAIT~ED DESCRIPTION
Referring to Fig.l, the preferred embodiment of
the card package production system printer 100 of the
present invention is seen to include a free standing
printer module 102 and a card attachment module 104.
Referring to Fig.2, the printer module prints card holder
name and address and other account information 106, on one
of three panels 108, 110 and 112 of a paper sheet carrier
113, such as the middle panel 110. The three panels are
defined by two pre-weakened fold-lines 114 and 116. The
printer module also prints a bar code 120 representative of
information concerning the account on another of the
panels, such as the end panel 112, such as the account
number.and the number of cards that are to be attached to
the carrier 113. The printer module is controlled by a
computer (not shown) and controller, described below. The
printer preferably prints carriers at a minimum speed of
32/minute and has a resolution of no less than 300dpi X
300dpi. The normal speed of operation is approximately 2000
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carriers per hour, or approximately thirty-three carriers
per minute. The printer module 102 is preferably a model
PLAY PLEX printer made by OLYMPUS, or equivalent. The
details of the printer module form no part of the present
invention but reference may be made to operator's guide for
.,
the above identified model MS32NSSpublished by OLYMPUS.
The operation is described pursuant to the example of
the card holder information 106 being located on panel 108
and the bar code 120 being mounted at the location shown on
panel 112. However, the PRINTER is capable of printing both
the card holder information 206 and the bar code
information 120 at other selected locations on the carrier
113. The card attachment module 104 is capable of reading
the information at other informational locations on the
carrier.113 than the example shown in Fig.2. The printed
carriers 113 from the printing module 102 are passed to the
attachment module 104 by means of an inter-module carrier
guide 122. The inter-module carrier guide is better seen in
Fig.7, and is described in detail with reference to Figs.
8-10. Referring to Figs.6 and 7, the guide 122 passes
carriers 113 from an outlet 124 of the carrier printer
module 102 to a carrier inlet 126 of the attachment module
104.
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Referring again to Figs.1 and 2, the attachment module
takes cards from a stack of pre-embossed cards 128' from a
card picker assembly 140 and attaches cards 128, such as
embossed and/or magnetically encoded credit cards, encoded
chip cards, R/F cards, etc. to the carrier 113 at one or
more locations 130 and 132 or on like locations on one or
more or all of the three panels. It then folds the carrier,
as shown in Fig.3, to form a card package 115.
The details of the card picker assembly forms no part
of the present invention, and preferably is substantially
the same as the one shown in U.S. patent application of
Bretl et al., Ser. No. 09/081,312, filed may19,1998, and
entitled "Card package Production System With a Multireader
Card Track and Method", which is hereby incorporated by
reference.
The cards 128 generally have an account number and an
account holder's name embossed on the card and the same
information encoded on a magnetic stripe on the back of the
card 128. Additional information, such as the number of
cards to be attached to the carrier may also be~contained
in the bar code. In addition, the back of the card has the
account number and account name encoded in bar code printed
on the back of the card. This information is checked for
proper encoding and if the coding is not correct or if the
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coding does not match the encoded information of a carrier
to which it is to be attached, the card 128 is passed
through the attachment module 104 to a card reject bin 134.
Other wise the cards 128 are attached to the matching
carrier 113 to form the card package 115, and the card
packages 115 are passed to a card package distribution
module 136 for distribution in three different ways
depending upon. circumstances. In one case, if the card
packages 115 are unacceptable due to having too many cards,
not enough cards or cards in the wrong location, then they
are passed to a card package reject bin 142. If the card
package is correctly prepared and is to be passed directly
to an envelope stuffing machine (not shown), such as a
model SERIES 5 envelope stuffer made by PITNEY BOEWES, then
the card packages are passed directly to the envelope
stuffer through a primary card package outlet 144.
Otherwise, the card package 115 is passed to a FIFO card
package starker 146 to form a stack of card packages 115'.
Referring to Figs.3 and 4, the card 128 is attached to
the carrier 113 by means of an adhesive label 148. One side
of the adhesive label 148 is attached to the card by a heat
activated adhesive, such as releasable adhesive made by,
MAPLE ROLL, a division of ITW. The other side of the label
is attached to the carrier by means of a permanent
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adhesive. The labels are adhered to a roll of backing paper
tape by the permanent adhesive. Preferably, the adhesive
labels 148 are those made by MAPLE ROLL note above, or the
like.
As illustrated in Fig.4, when the card 128 is lifted
off the carrier 113, the adhesive label 148 remains
attached to the carrier 113 and does not adhere to back
128' of the card 128. This is because the attraction of the
permanent adhesive to the carrier 113 is stronger than the
bond between the heat activated adhesive and the back of
the card and, because in keeping with one aspect of the
invention only a middle section of the label is heat
activated to provide a "dead zone" of nonactivated adhesive
at opposite ends of the label 148. Advantageously, once the
heat activated label 148 is removed from the back 128' of
the card 128, the heat activated adhesive losses its
adhesive qualities unless it is again heated to the
necessary minimum activation temperature of approximately
160-degrees Fahrenheit.
Turning now to Fig.5, the housing has a flat top on
which a computer display monitor 152 and a computer
keyboard 154 of the computer (not shown) are supported. The
computer is protectively contained within the housing
section 161. The computer housing section 161 has a hinged
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door to enable access to the computer. Preferably, the
computer that is used to control the card package
production system 100 including the attachment module 104
is a model PRESARIO computer made by COMPAQ having a
minimum processor speed of 333MHZ and a minimum hard drive
memory capacity of 4GB, or the like. The computer controls
all of the automatic operations of the attachment module
104 and the printer module 102, in accordance with the flow
charts of Figs. 50-60B and 61.
The card attachment module 104 also has a hinged
housing section 156 with an upper housing portion 156' that
may be elevated for access to the carrier and card
transport paths. Both housing sections 104 and 156 are
supported on a lower housing section 158 that has a storage
space 161. In keeping with one aspect of the invention, the
card distribution module 136 which extends in cantilever
fashion from the housing frame (not shown) in front of the
upper portion 156' of the tracks housing 156, but does not
interfere with the opening of the upper housing portion
156'. It is mounted to the frame by means of two elongate
bars 160 and 162 that are received within mating bar
receptors described below to facilitate easy removal and
attachment to facilitate shipping of the distribution
module.
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During shipping of the distribution module 136, the
distribution module 136 is detached from the main frame of
the attachment module 104 and is inserted into the storage
space 161. Upon safe arrival at the customer's site it is
easily securely reattached to the housing and in proper
alignment due to the two mounting bars 160 and 162 and
mounting bar receptors.
Referring to Fig.7 again, the inter-module guide 122
is aligned with a carrier transport path 164 that extends
straight from the carrier inlet 126 toward the card package
distribution module 136. However before the carrier reaches
the card package distribution module 136, it intersects at
a right angle with the card transport path 166 that extends
from the card tray 140 to an intersection 168 with the
carrier transport path 164. At the intersection 168 card
attachment station attaches the card or cards 12$ to the
carriers. The carriers with attached cards are then folded
at a folding station to form card packages 115. The card
packages 115 then move along a card package transport path
170 to the card package distribution module and distributed
according to the circumstances note above. The card
transport path is elevated relative to the carrier
transport path and the cards are dropped onto the carriers
for attachment. If rejected and not attached, they proceed
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past the card attachment station along a card reject
transport path 172 to the card reject bin 134.
Referring to Fig.6, it is seen that the printer module
102 is kept in proper alignment with the attachment module
by means of a generally triangular brace member 174 fixedly
attached to a printer stand 176 of the printer module 102
and at one end. The opposite end is attached to a back wall
178 of a housing portion 158' beneath the track housing
158. The attachment to the back wall 178 is by way of a
universal joint with two orthogonal pivot axis defined by
locking serews 180 and horizontal pin 182. This universal
connection faint facilitates interconnection of the two
modules despite slight misalignments of the modules in any
direction.
Still referring to Fig.6, the carrier transport path
is seen to .include a carrier inlet station with carrier
inlet rollers 184, and intermediate station with carrier
intermediate rollers 186 and a card attachment rollers 188
at the card attachment station 190 at the intersection 168
of the card carrier transport path 164 and the card path
164, as seen here and in Fig.7. Following the card
attachment station is the carrier folding station 192, and
then the card packages are passed to a card package inlet
of the card package distribution module 136.
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Referring now to Figs. 8,9 and 10, the inter-module
carrier guide, or guide assembly, 122 includes a lower
guide body 194 with a generally flat, rectangular,
underlying support member 196 extending from the carrier
inlet 126 of the attachment module 104 to the outlet end of
the printer module 102. Generally right triangularly
shaped, parallel guide walls 198 and 199, located at a pair
of opposite sides of the underlying support member 196,
keep the carriers from moving laterally off of the support
member 7.96 and insures that the carriers straightly enter
the attachment carrier inlet. An upper guide body 200
overlying the support member 196 is pivotally mounted to
the guide walls 198 and 199 at a pivot axis 202 by means of
a suitable hinge pins, and has a cover plate 204 that spans
the space between the parallel guide walls 198 and 199.
Restraint members 206 and 207 extend downwardly from the
cover plate 204 between and respectively adjacent to the
guide walls 198 and 199. The bottom edges of the restraint
members 206 restrains carriers 123 at their opposite sides
against upward movement alcove the top edge or level of the
guide walls 198 and 199 which would result in loss of
lateral restraint. In addition, the upper guide body also
restrains the carriers 113 against vertical movement to
positions out of vertical alignment with the attachment
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module carrier inlet 126. A curled forward edge 208 of the
cover plate 204 is supported atop the walls 198 and 199.
At least one release opening 210 to allow moisture
contained within the paper carriers to escape to atmosphere
prior to entry into the attachment module. This minimum
ventilation has been empirically determined necessary to
prevent condensation water from forming within the
attachment module adjacent the inlet station.
The condensation is believed to occur when some of the
moisture in carrier paper heated from the heat sources and
inside the printer, including the light sources used to
print onto the carriers, first evaporates. Then as the
carrier is passed though cooler air and past the relatively
cooler surfaces adjacent the carrier inlet opening of the
attachment module 104 the evaporated moisture condenses out
onto the cooler surfaces. While the moisture from only one
carrier is not significant, when approximately two thousand
carriers per hour are passed into the carrier inlet the
inlet area becomes wet in the absence of the release
opening.
Preferably, there is a plurality of substantially
identical, elongate release openings 210 extending in a
direction generally parallel to the sidewalls 198 and 199.
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The eight release openings 210 are generally evenly
distributed across the width of the support member 196 and
extend a substantial the entire length of the cover plate
204.
Thus,~it is seen that in an attachment module of a
card package production system being fed carriers from a
carrier printer module, a method of reducing the formation
of condensation in the attachment module from moisture
evaporating from the carriers is provided. This method
comprises the steps of (1) providing underlying support for
the carriers from an outlet of the printer to an inlet of
the card attachment module by means of a lower guide body
with a generally flat, rectangular support member extending
between the printer, (2) restraining the carriers to remain
on the support member with a pair of parallel guide walls
carried by the support member, (3) restraining the carriers
to remain between the guide walls with an upper guide body
having at least one release opening, and (4) passing
moisture evaporated from the carrier paper through the at
least one release opening to atmosphere before the carrier
enters the attachment module.
Because the release openings are elongate in a
direction generally parallel to the sidewalls, the moisture
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is passed through the elongate opening substantially along
the entire guide body.
Snagging of the carriers by the forward edge of the
release openings is reduced by the step of providing the
upwardly recessed portion 21C' of the bottom surface 216.
Because there are a plurality of substantially
identical release opening distributed generally equally
across the support member the step of passing moisture is
performed generally evenly across substantially an entire
width dimension of the carrier while the carrier is
crossing from the printer module to the attachment module.
Referring to Fig.lO, each of the elongate release
openings 210 has a forward edge 212 closest to the carrier
inlet 126 that is arcuate. The support member 196 has a top
surface 214 and a bottom surface 216. A portion 216' of the
bottom surface 216 adjacent the forward edge 212 of the
elongate opening 210 is recessed upwardly toward the top
surface 214. This recessed portion 216' reduces snagging of
the carriers 113 by the forward edge 212 of the release
opening 210. The arcuate shape of the recessed portion 216'
is generally concentric with and generally conforms in
shape arcuate shape of the forward edge 212. Adjustable
legs 214, Fig.6, provide the means for mounting the
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underlying support member 19& in alignment with the carrier
inlet 126 of the attachment module 104.
Referring to Figs.ll-14, another advantageous feature
of the invention is provision of a carrier transport path
with an anti-jamming carrier transport mechanism. The
carrier transport path 164 has a carrier inlet station 218,
followed by an intermediate, standby station 220 which, in
turn, is followed by a card attachment station 222. These
stations have underlying carrier support members 224, 226
and 228 as best seen in Fig, l2. The forward, or upstream,
edges of carrier support members 224 and 226 are elevated
relative to the downstream edges of carrier support members
226 and 228, respectively, at junctures 225 and 227, as
best seen in Fig.l3. Accordingly, should a carrier still be
in a position resting on support members 224 and 226,
another carrier may be still passed into the standby
station 220 and the card insertion station 222 without
jamming into the end of the preceding carrier and thereby
causing a jam. Instead, referring to Fig.24, because of the
relative differences in elevation at 225 and 227, a carrier
113A may be passed from the inlet station 126 into
overlying relationship with respect to the downstream end
of the carrier 1138 which is already at the intermediate
standby station 220, as illustrated in Fig.l4. Likewise, if
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the carrier 113B enters into the card attachment station
while another carrier 113C is still at the card attachment
station, the carrier 113B will pass over the top of the
carrier 113C instead of jamming ,into the lagging end of the
carrier 113C. This anti-jamming featuxe can be used to
increase the rate of carrier throughput rate down the
carrier path. However, under normal speed operation only
the carrier 113A will overlap the carrier 113B only when an
incorrectly prepared card package 115 is detected and the
printer passes one more carrier 113 to the carrier islet
126 after the carrier transport mechanism has been stopped
and the printer given a stop command.
Referring to Figs.ll and 12, the intermediate standby
station 220 and the hard attachment station 222 have
movably mounted carrier restraint assemblies 230 and 232,
respectively. Carrier restrain assembly 230 is mounted for
pivotal movement about a pivot axis 234, and carrier
restraint assembly 232 is pivotally mounted for rotation
about an axis 236 by a suitable hinge assembly. Each of the
carriex restraint assemblies 230 and 232 has a pair of
paxallel, elongate, vertical restraint members, such as
vertical restraint members 230A and 230B of restraint
member 230 which are fastened together by a protective
cover plate 238. The restraint members are thus mounted
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for pivotal movement between an operative, down position in
which they disposed generally parallel to the carrier
transport path and slightly above it to prevent the
carriers from rising off the path, and an inoperative
position. In the inoperative position, as shown in broken
line in Fig.l2, the restraint assemblies are pivoted up and
away from the carrier transport path 164 to enable manual
access to the carrier path 164 for maintenance and for
manually removing carrier forms 113 from the carrier
transport path. The protective carrier plate, such as cover
plate 23'8, is made of substantially transparent plastic to
enable viewing of the carriers 113 moving along the carrier
transport path 164.
When in the operative position, the parallel arms,
such as arms 230A and 230B are held in operative position
by a generally C-shaped resilient snap fasteners 240 at the
ends of the arms opposite the pivotal connection. The
resilient snap fasteners 240 of the restraint assembly 230
releasably lock the ends of the arms 230A and 230B to the
axle of an upper roller 242A of an intermediate roller
assembly 242, and resilient snap fasteners 241 at the ends
of arms 232A and 232B are resiliently locked to mating
posts 244 fixedly mounted at opposite sides of the carrier
transport path 164. The snap fasteners enable the carrier
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restraint assemblies to be moved into and out of the
operative positions without the need for any tools.
Another feature of the present invention is the
provision of a bar code reader 246 that is mounted to the
carrier restraint assembly 232 and moves with the restraint
assembly 232 when pivoted to the inoperative position.
Unlike most bar code readers that employ a laser light
source which could scan over and damage a person's eye when
being moved to different positions with the restraint
member 232. .However, in the present invention a non-laser
light source is employed in the bar code reader 246 to read
bar code 120 from carriers 113 passing by the restraint
member 132. When the restraint assembly 132 is in an
operative, down position t~.e bar code 120 can be read arid
the bar code'reader 246 is operative. When the restraint
assembly 132 is moved to the inoperative position then the
bar cede 120 cannot be read and the bar code reader 246 is
in an inoperative position. The use of anon-laser light
source eliminates any risk of the laser beams striking a
person's eye during movement of the bar code reader 246
between the operative and inoperative positions and thus
enables such movable mounting. Preferably, the bar code
reader 246 is a model BZ185 bar code reader made by
KEYENCE.
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As best seen in Fig.ll, the bar code reader 246 is
adjustably mounted to the restraint assembly 232 by means
of a mounting member 248 with an elongate slot 250 and
fasteners 252 that are attached to the bar code reader 246
and ride within the slot 250. The elongate slot 250
substantially spans the carrier path to enable reading of
bar code at different locations on the carrier 113.
As seen in Fig.ll, the intermediate station also has a
pair of parallel, lateral guide walls 231 and 233 on
opposite sides of the carrier path to keep them moving in a
direction parallel to the carrier transport path 164 and
normal to the elongate directions of the rollers, The entry
ends have canted, or funnel, portions 239 and 241 that are
farther apart than the remaining interior portion of the
guide walls 231 and 233 and wider than the carriers 213 at
their open ends and then taper inwardly to insure receipt
of the carriers 113 within the opening between the funnel
portions. Advantageously, the separation between the
lateral guide walls 231 and 233 is easily adjustable to
accommodate carrier of different size by means of manual
movement of a simple lever 241, Fig.l5, between two
different positions.
Referring to Figs. l5, 16 arid 17, the manually
actuatable lever 243 is mounted for pivotal movement
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between two positions respectively associated with two
different carrier widths: standard U.S. letter width and
European A4 width. When the lever is in the forward
position as shown in Fig.lS, the guide walls are located
relatively far apart to accommodate standard U.S. letter
size carriers and when the lever 243 is moved to an a
rearward position, as shown in Fig.26, then the lateral
guide walls 231 and 233 are moved through a linkage with
the lever 243 to move the guide walls nearer to each other
to accommodate A4 size carriers. The linkage advantageously
maintains the walls in generally parallel relationship
while they are being moved. The walls are respectively
carried at the opposite sides of two separate plates 245
and 247 that are mounted for movement toward and away from.
each other in response to actuation of the lever 243. The
plates 245 and 247 are separated across their width and
also along their length at edges 245' and 247' at two
junctures 249 and 251. As best seen in Fig. l7, the edges
have arcuate slots 253 and 255. A pair of cylindrical pins
257 and 259 is carried by a pin holder 261 with an axle
263. The axle 263 passes through a central mounting hole
265 of fixedly mounted support member 267 and into locked
engagement within a mounting hole in a lever connector 269.
The drive pins 257 and 259 that also mounted within
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mounting hole in the top of the pin holder 261 also extend
through arcuate pin guide slots 271 and 273 and into the
slots 253 arid 255, respectively, on opposite sides of the
axle mounting hole 265. When the lever connector 269 is
rotated by movement of the lever 243, the axle is rotated
which causes the pins 257 and 259 to rotate. When the pins
are rotated in one direction the plates edges 245' and 247'
of the plates are slid closer together and when the pins
are rotated to another position that,is normal to the one
position then the plates are moved to their closest
position.
In addition to adjusting for the widths of different
types of carrier, the card package production system also
has means for adjusting for the different lengths of the
carriers 113. Referring again to Fig.2l, the fixed folding
wall 254 has a stop 254' at the top and a stop mounting
bracket with adjustment screws and slots for mounting the
stop 254' at different levels, as shown in broken line.
Likewise, Referring to Fig.24, the end 259' of the pivotal
folding wall 259 is likewise adjustable in the same manner
to different positions=as shown in broken line.
Referring to Fig.l2, another advantageous feature of
the invention is that the card attachment station 190 has a
set of rollers 253 that are controlled to reverse direction
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after a card 128 with a heat activated label 148 has been
dropped onto the carrier 113. The rollers 252 first rotate
in one direction to move the selected portion of the
carrier 113 to the card drop location. The card 128 with an
adhesive label attached 148 is then dropped onto the
portion of the carrier that is resting on the upwardly
slanted carrier support 254 on the upstream side of the set
of rollers 252. After the card is dropped onto the carrier
113, the card 128 slides down the slanted carrier at the
slanted carrier support 254 and against the upstream one of
the set of rollers 252. Then the rollers 252 are controlled
to reverse direction to partially pass the carrier 113 with
the card 128 on the carrier in a downstream direction back
past and between the set of rollers 252. The set of rollers
252 then press the permanent, pressure sensitive adhesive
on the label attached to the card and the card 128 against
the carrier 113 to adhere the card 128 to the carrier 113.
After the card 128 has been adhered to the carrier 113
during this reverse rotation of the rollers 252, the
rollers 252 are controlled to again reverse direction move
the carrier with the adhered card in the upstream direction
toward the folding station 192.
This sequence of events is schematically illustrated
in the sequence of drawing Figs.l8-22. In Fig.l8, the
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carrier 113 i5 seen approaching the set of rollers 252. In
Fig.l9, the carrier 113pauses in the correct position for
receipt of the card 128 on the middle panel, for example.
In fact, the carrier may be positioned for receipt of cards
at any of the three panels. In such case the cards are
attached to the different panels at different time with the
panels moving successively into position to receive the
cards and then backing up each time to press the cards
against the carriers. The card attachment station has a
plurality of different lateral positions from which the
card can be dropped, and the controller controls the card
attachment station to drop the card at a preselected one of
the plurality of different lateral positions. The card
attachment station includes means for dropping a plurality
of cards onto a plurality of different preselected card
attachment positions on a single carrier, and if multiple
cards are to be attached to the carrier 113 then the
carrier is held in the correct position to receive all of
the cards before the carrier is backed through the set of
rollers 252 so that all cards are pressed against the
carrier simultaneously.
In Fig.20, the card 128 has dropped onto the carrier
113 and slid down to a position with an edge held between
the nib of the upstream roller and the carrier 113. In
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Fig.2l, the set of rollers 252 is reversed and the carrier
is partially backed through the set of rollers 252 to press
the card 128 against the carrier 113. In Fig.22, the set of
rollers have again reversed direction to pass the carrier
with adhesively attached card to the folding station 192.
Advantageously, the bottom one of the set of rollers
252 is mounted for resilient self-adjustment to accommodate
different thickness of carriers without attached cards and
carriers with different number of attached cards. The axle
to which the lower roller is mounted is mounted in a slot
and is spring biased in an upward direction in a manner
that will be illustrated with reference to other
resiliently movably mounted rollers of the card package
distribution module 136.
The card package distribution module 136, as
previously note, has a card package reject bin 142 to which
card packages are passed that have too many cards, too few
cards or cards in an incorrect location. Referring to
Figs.25, this determination is made by measuring the
thickness of the card packages after they have been
produced at the folding station 192.
The folding begins when the forward edge of the card
is pressed against a stop member 254 at the top of a
folding wall 256, schematically shown in Fig.22, and also
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seen in Fig.22. After hitting the stop member, continuing
forward movement caused by forward rotation of the set of
rollers 252 causes the carrier 113 to buckle at fold line
13.6. mhe fold line 2.16 is then pushed into engagement with
another set of rollers 25$, seen in Figs.22 and 23.
Referring to Fig.23 the leading edge of the partially
folded carrier is then pushed into a V-shaped, pivotally
mounted folding wall 259, and the carrier 113 is folded
along fold line 114, referring to Fig.24, the panels an
opposite sides of the fold line 114 are then pushed into
the nib of a pair of rollers 260. fihis causes the entire
carrier to pivot upwardly whiles still contained within the
V-shaped folding wall 262 and to then pass entirely through
the rollers 260 to card package input rollers of the 262,
as schematically illustrated in Fig.25.
Referring to Fig. 25, between the outlet rollers 260
of the folding station and the intake rollers 262 of the
distribution module 136, a defective carrier detector 264
located along the primary carrier transport path 164
detects defective card packages 115. The determination of
whether a card package is defective is made by measuring
the thickness of the card package at a plurality of
locations across the carrier 113. This measurement is made
with a plurality of substantially identical linear
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potentiometers 266, each of which is linked through a
resiliently biased, bent, elbow-shaped lever 268. The bent
lever 268 is mounted for pivotal movement about a pivot
axis 269 and is resiliently biased by a spring (not shown)
of the linear potentiometer to pivot against and ride on
top of the carrier packages 115 as they pass. A roller 270
is attached at the end of a relatively short arm 272
extending from the pivot axis 269 that resiliently presses
against the carrier packages 115. Another relatively longer
arm 274, approximately twice as long as the relatively
short arm 272, is attached to a plunger 276 of the linear
potentiometer 266. When the roller moves up a given
distance the end of the long arm 274 and the plunger 276
moves approximately twice the distance for an enhanced
resolution factor of approximately 2:1.
The movement of the plunger creates different levels
of voltage output signals of the potentiometer 266 that are
translated by the controller and compared to the thickness
that the caxd package 115 under consideration should have
if it has the correct number of cards 128 that have be
preselected for the particular carrier 113. The linear
potentiometer 264 is preferably one made by BOURNS..
If the card package 115 has the correct number and
locations of cards 128 that have been pre-designated for
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the carrier 113 in question, then depending upon other pre-
selections for the card package 115, it is passed to either
the primary card package outlet 144, Fig.l, as shown in
Fig.28, or is diverted to a card starker location as shown
in Fig.2&. However, if correctness is not the case, then
the card package 115 is passed to the card package reject
bin 142, as shown in Fig.29. A simplified flow chart for
control of the reject gate is shown in Fig.61 to which
reference should be made.
Referring to Fig.26, if the card package has been
selected for stacking and is not to be rejected, then after
thickness measurement by the linear potentiometer 266, the
card package is passed through another set of rollers 278
to a starker gate assembly 280 which is moved to a starker
position as shown. The starker gate assembly 280 has a gate
282 that engages the bottom of the carrier package 115 to
direct the card package upwardly into a pair of starker
rollers 284 when in the uplifting stacking position shown.
The gate is pivotally mounted to a linkage 286 that, in
turn, is connected through another pivotal linkage 288 to a
rotatable arm 290 of a rotary solenoid 292. When this
starker gate solenoid 292 is energized by the controller,
the arm 290 rotates in the direction of arrow 294 to the
stacking position shown in Fig.26.
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Referring to Fig.27, if the starker solenoid 292 is
not energized, then the starker gate 282 is moved to a
generally horizontal position to direct the card package to
another set of rollers 296 and through a guide 298 to yet
ariother pair of rollers 300. After entering the pair of
rollers 300, the card package is either allowed to continue
on a primary card package transport path past a reject gate
302 to the primary card package outlet 144 for passage to
an envelope stuffing machine (not shown), as illustrated in
Fig.28, if not detected to be a reject, or the reject gate
302 is actuated to redirect the card package to the card
package reject bin 142 primary output 144, as shown in
Fig.29, if the card package is to be rejected. Actuation of
the solenoid is achieved by means of a rotary solenoid 304
connected directly to the reject gate 302 by an arm 306.
both solenoids 292 and 304 are preferably solendoids made
by ZUCAS LEDEX. The starker gate solenoid is Model No.810-
282-530 and the reject gate solenoid is Model. No. H-1146-
033. Referring to Figs.30 and 31 another advantageous
feature of the card package distribution module is that has
a foldable "claim shell" configuration to enable easy
access to the internal workings of the distribution module
136 previously describe with reference to Figs.26-29. The
distribution module 136 has a base distribution module
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frame 308 arid a top distribution module frame 310. A hinge
31.2 interconnects the base distribution module frame 308
and the top distribution module frame 310 for relative
pivotal movement. The relative pivotal movement is between
an open position for access to the interior of foldable
distribution module 136 between the base distribution
module frame 308 and the top distribution module frame 310,
as shown in broken line in Figs.30 and 31, and a closed,
operative position in which the internal workings are
protected between the top frame 310 and the bottom frame
308, as shown in solid line in Figs. 30 and 31.
Referring to Fig.30, the base module frame 308
contains the bottom rollers of the roller sets 278, 296 and
300 one transport roller for engagement with and transport
of the carrier while the top distribution frame 310 mounts
the mating upper rollers of the roller sets 278, 296 and
300. TnThen the top distribution frame 310 is closed on top
of the base distribution frame 308, the mating rollers of
the roller sets are moved into operative interrelationship
with one another, but when the top frame 310 is moved to
the open position shown in broken line then they are
completely separated arid any card packages previously held
between the upper and lower rollers may be easily accessed
and removed.
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As best seen in Fig.32, this is achieved in part by
mounting each of the opposite ends of the axles of the top
rollers of the roller sets, such as roller set 300, to a
male axle mount 314 that has a rectangular cross section
and is mounted for sliding movement toward and away from
the bottom roller of the roller set within a slot 316
within in the side of the upper frame 310. The axle mount
314 is spring biased toward the bottom roller by means of a
coil spring 318 that is stretched over the top of the axle
mount protruding through the slot 316 from the top frame
310 and anchored to posts 320 on opposite sides of the
mounting slot 316. This resilient mounting of the upper
rollers causes the upper rollers to self adjust into
operative relationship with the lower rollers when the two
halve of the "clam shell" are brought together and to
adjust for card packages of different thickness.
Still referring to Figs.31 and 32, the "clam shell"
design is also made possible by means of arranging a drive
gear 322 mounted the base distribution frame 308 and
powered by a motor 324 and a pulley linkage 326, Fig.30,
both of which are mounted within the base distribution
frame 308 to mesh with a driven gear 328 mounted within the
top distribution frame 308. The driven gear 328 is linked
to another gear 330 that, in turn, drives the bottom roller
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of the stacker roller set 284 to move card packages into
the stacker loading position. Thus, the upper frame neither
requires its own motor or wiring connection for a motor and
the upper and lower rollers automatically self-adjust so no
manual adjustments are needed after the distribution module
is opened and again closed.
Still referring to Fig.32, the upper distribution
frame also carries a photosensor 332 for sensing the card
package 115 when it is opposite the sensor. The photosensor
332 is mounted for movement within a slot to two different
positions associated with. sensing card packages using
standard 8-1/2" X 11"sized carriers 113 or carriers of A4
size which is slightly narrower and slightly longer.
Also, seen in Fig.32, is an adjustment mechanism 334
for adjusting the bypass level of the stacker gate 282. The
stacker gate pivots with a rotating axle 336, and blocking
adjustment screw 338 engages a mating radial arm 340
extending from the axle 336 to prevent the axle 336 from
further rotation. The blocking screw is threaded into a
mounting tab 342 to enable threaded adjustment of the level
at which the blocking adjustment screw 338 engages the
mating radial arm 340.
The distribution module also has a pair of
substantially identical, releasable lock assemblies on
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opposite sides of the distribution module, such as lock
assembly 344, Fig.32, that releasably hold the upper frame
310 lateral movement relative to the lower frame 308.
Referring to Fig.33, the distribution module lock assembly
344 has a male lock member 346 with a tapered end 347. The
male lock member is threaded into a bore in the bottom end
of the upper frame side wall to allow for vertical
adjustment. The tapered end 347 is aligned with and
received within a mating female lock receptor slot 348 in a
U-shaped cross member 350 whenever the upper and base
frames are closed together in operative relationship. The
cross member 350 spans a slot 352 in the upper end of the
base frame side wall. Screws 354 secure the ends of the
cross member 350 to the top of the side wall, and cutouts
356 provide space for the mounting screws 354.
Referring to Fig.30, the mounting bars 160 of Fig.6
that enable easy removal of the card package distribution
module 136 plural, have a generally rectangular cross.
section and are fixedly attached to the underside by means
of an L-shaped mounting bracket 358 with one leg bolted to
the underside of the base distribution frame 308 by bolts
360. The other leg extends vertically downwardly and is
attached to one end of the mounting bar 160 by means of
four other bolts 362. The protruding end of the bar 160 has
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a beveled end 16D' to facilitate insertion into a mating
mounting bar receptor 364 fixedly attached to the main
frame of the attachment module 104, The receptor 364 has a
rectangular tubular body for providing snug support in all
direction for the mounting bar. A pair of bolts 366
extending cross ways to the elongate directions of the
mounting bar 160 and the mounting bar receptor 364 hold
them together. They extend through bolt holes in the bottom
wall of the mounting bar reoeptor 364 and are threaded into
aligned threaded bores in the mounting bar 160 to
releasably hold the mounting bar 160 against sliding
removal from within the mounting bar receptors 364. The
mounting bar 160 is preferably made of machine finished
aluminum bar stock and has a rectangular cross section with
dimensions of 1"x3".
Referring to Figs. 34, 35 and 36 the label attachment
station 358 heats and then attaches the heat activated
adhesive side to each of the cards 128 prior to dropping
the card onto the carrier 113. The double adhesive sided
labels 148 are adhered to a roll 360 of backing paper 362
by pressure sensitive permanent adhesive. The outwardly
facing side of the labels bear a coating of heat activated
adhesive that is used to attach the labels to the cards
128. The adherence of the heat activated label 148 to the
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card 128 is stronger than the adherence of the other side
of the label to the backing paper, and once the label is
attached to the card movement of the card away from the
backing paper removes the label from the backing paper.
After the label is attached to the card, the card is passed
to the card drop location for attachment to the carrier as
explained above.
Referring to Fig.35, the full roll 360 is mounted for
rotation within a roller caddie 364 and passes around a
roller 366 and over the label pressing member 372. A
heating element 373 at the underside of the pressing member
heats at least two labels to activate the heat activated
adhesive on the label immediately before being pressed onto
the card. Importantly, as seen in Fig. 40, the heating
platen 361 over which the labels travel have offsets 363 on
opposite sides at which the labels are not heating leaving
adhesive "dead zones" 365 on opposite sides of the label at
which the adhesive is not activated and will not adhere to
the card. It has been determined that these dead zones
facilitate removal of the label from the card. As seen in
Fig.40, the labels are heated through the backing paper
362. The pressing member 372 presses the heated adhesive
label against a card 113 at the attachment position by
pressing against a side of the backing paper opposite the
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heated adhesive label and opposite the heat activated
adhesive.
A removably mounted, pivotal, counter member 375 holds
the card down against upward pressure from the pressing
member 372, as shown in Fig.36. A photosensor 367 senses
the presence of labels between the roller 366 and the
roller 368.
After the label has been attached to the card the
backing paper alone is routed over a roller 374 and a
driven roller 376 and wrapped around a driven take-up reel
378. The roller 376 is driven by a drive roller 380 powered
by an electrical drive motor 382. The backing paper tape is
squeezed between the drive roller 380 anal the driven roller
376 and is driven toward the take up reel 378. At the same
time a pulley 384 connected between the driven roller 376
and the take up reel 378 rotates the take up reel 378. The
pulley 384 has a smooth circular cross section that
facilitates clutch-like slippage when the roller 376 and
the reel 378 rotate at different speeds due to the
increasing diameter of the roll of spent backing tape on
the take up reel 378.
Also, importantly, the heating platen 361 has a length
sufficient to heat two labels 148, simultaneously. It has
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been determined that the additional heating time is needed
to insure good activation of the heat activated adhesive.
Referring now to Figs. 37 and 38, it is seen that the
movement of the pusher member is not merely pushing but is
pushing while sliding across the surface, i.e. the adhesive
label is swiped onto the card with the pusher member 372.
The pusher member 372 is pivotally mounted for rotation
about a pivot axis 384 at the end of an arm 386. Arm 386,
in turn, is mounted for pivotal movement about a pivot axis
388. The arm 386 is also pivotally attached at a pivot axis
390 to one end of a drive link 392. The other end of the
drive link 392 is pivotally mounted to an eccentrically
mounted post 394 on a rotating disc 396. The rotating disc
396 has a central rotary axis 398. The disc is driven by an
electrical control motor. The pressing member 372 is spring
biased toward counter-clockwise toward the card 113 by a
leaf spring 400. Accordingly, as the disc rotates from the
position shown in Fig.37 to the position shown in Fig.38,
the end of the arm moves the pusher member across the label
while the leaf spring 400 and pivotal connection of the
pusher member allows the pusher member to pyvot as
necessary to slide along the surface of the back side of
the tape and card.
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Referring now to Figs.39 and 40, the counter member
375 is mounted for pivotal rocking movement to a post 402
that is removably received within a mounting bore 404 that
passes through a front section 406 of the counter member
375 and communicates with the end of a horizontal slot 408.
This slot enables tool-less mounting and dismounting of the
counter member 375 to the pivot post 402 with the bottom
surface 410 in adjacent, counter-pressing relationship with
the card 113 while still permitting a small amount of
rocking motion. The counter member is attached by first
laterally sliding it along the card track until the bore
404 is aligned with the pivot post 402 and then pushing it
onto the post 402. The rocking motion is needed to
facilitate the movement of the top of the embossed card
beneath the bottom surface 410. The bottom surface is
preferably TEFLON coated to minimize friction between the
bottom surface 410 and the card 113. Also, the card
receiving end 412 is canted to guide the top surface of the
card beneath the bottom surface 410 of the counter member.
In addition, to accommodate the raised embossed
alphanumeric letters (not shown) at the front of the card,
the counter member 375 has upwardly extending slots 414, as
seen in Figs.37 and 38, that are aligned with the standard
embossed character locations on the card 113.
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During application of the labels 148, the platen 361
is maintained at an average temperature of no less than 200
degrees Farenheit and the labels are engaged with the
platen for no less than 1000 milliseconds. The pressing
member 372 presses the label against the card within no
less than 500 milliseconds of the label leaving the heating
platen and takes 500 milliseconds for one label swipe
cycle.
Referring to Figs.41 and 42, the card transport path
166 includes a portion that is downstream of the label
attachment module 358 referred to as the card shuttle 412.
The card shuttle 412 is mounted via a pulley mount 414 to a
pulley 416 driven by a shuttle pulley motor, Fig.47. At the
beginning of each card shuttle cycle, the card shuttle is
located against a wall 418 at a shuttle home position and
awaits receipt of a card 128. The presence of the shuttle
at this home position is sensed by a photosensor 494,
Fig.47, when a sensor tab 417 is received within a mating
slotted member 419 at the wall 418. The card 128 is pushed
along the card track 166 by a card pusher 420 and at the
same time read with readers of various types and compared
to data to make sure the card is the correct card for the
carrier. The details of how this pusher is moved, the part
of the card track 166 down which it moves and the reading
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of the card during this portion of the cycle does not form
a part of the present invention, and is substantially like
the card path and reading and verifying system as shown and
described in the aforementioned U.S, patent application
Ser. No. 09/081,132, which is incorporated by reference.
Further details concerning cards and their manufacture
and insertion into carrier that are needed to understand
an,y of the part of the system 100 that have not been
disclosed in detail may be had by reference to the
following patent, which are hereby also incorporated by
reference:U.S. patent numbers 5,494,544;4,034,210;b1
4,194,685;4,429,217;and 5,388,815.
When the leading edge of the card 128 engages the
beveled guide surface 422 of a card shuttle pusher member
423, the card is caromed downwardly, being a resilient
plastic, and then snaps back up to ride along an upper edge
424 of the card shuttle 412 until it engages a downwardly
extending card stop 414. At that point, the lagging edge of
the card 128 is received in front of the card shuttle
pusher member 423 and nestles within the card shuttle
between the pusher member 423 and the stop member 414 and
is tangent along its top surface with the downwardly facing
card engaging surface 424 of the card shuttle 412. As it
passes a sensor arm 426 the presence of a card nestled
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within the card shuttle 412 is detected and reported to the
controller. The card 128 is then moved by the shuttle 412
to the preselected card drop location, at which point the
removable card support member 428 is pivoted out of
supporting relationship with the card 128 and is dropped
onto the carrier 113.
Advantageously, unlike known card movement mechanisms,
the card shuttle captures the card 113 between the card
stop 414 and the inner wall of the Card shuttle pusher
member 423. Accordingly, the card shuttle is capable of
moving the card in either of two directions and not only in
the direction of normal travel indicated by arrow 434. The
card shuttle is capable of moving the card to any selected
drop location to drop the card at any selected location on
the carrier. In keeping with on aspect of the invention the
card track is moved by means of an encoded motor that
drives the pulley 416. The controller first applies full
power to the shuttle to accelerate the card toward the
desired drop location, but then when the encoder signal
indicates that the selected location is near power is
reduced and the speed of the shuttle is slowed to prevent
aver travel due to the momentum of the card shuttle at the
higher speed. After the card drop, the shuttle 412 rapidly
returns to the home position in which a T-shaped member 436
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is received within a mating slot of a sensor member 438.
Once the shuttle is sensed being at the home position, the
pusher 420 is actuated to load the next card into the
shuttle 412.
Turning now to Fig.42, in the event the card 128 is
determined to be defective, then the shuttle 412 continues
past any possible card drop location and to an open end 438
of the card track portion 172, Fig.7. The underlying
support of the card 128 is lost at the end, and the card
128 slides into the card reject bin 134. A sensor 440
senses the passage of the rejected card to the reject bin
and the controller responds by recording the reject and
information relating to the rejected card.
Referring now to Figs. 43, 44 and 45, the FIFO stacker
module 146 is seen to include a rectangular, tubular
stacking frame, or housing, 442 within which the card
packages 115 are stacked. The stacker module 146 also has
open top 444 and an elongate finger slot 446 to facilitate
removal of the card packages 115 from the stacking frame
442, as best seen in Fig. 1.
. The card packages 115 are passed through a bottom
opening 448 adjacent the bottom of the stacker frame 442 by
a set bf rollers 284, as shown in Fig.26, when a card
package is selected for stacking and the stadcker gate 280
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haS been activated. The card packages 115 are placed on top
of a stacker pusher plate 450 when the pusher plate is in a
home position as shown in Fig.43. In the home position the
pusher plate is located beneath a set of four,
substantially identical resilient support members 452 to
allow for passage of the card package beneath the support
members 452. Each of the support members 452 is made of
spring steel a,nd have inwardly and upwardly projecting
support tab 453. Two of the support members 452 are on the
back side, and the other two are located on the front side
directly opposite the two on the back side. The distance
between the opposed card package support tabs 453 on
opposite sides is less that. the width of a carrier package
115.
After a card package is inserted into the opening 448,
which is sensed by a card stack sensor 454, Fig.26, and is
resting atop the pusher plate 450, a pusher plate motor 456
raise the pusher plate in the direction of arrow 458 from
the home position shown in Fig.43 toward a loading
position, as shown in Fig.44. When the loading position is
reached, the carrier package 115 is elevated by the plate
450 above the card package support tabs 453. Any card
packages already in the stack are also raised at the same
time to make room for the latest card package to be added
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to the bottom of the stack. The starker plate 450 is then
lowered to the home position while the card package it was
previously carrying remains at the bottom of the stack and
supported by the four card package tabs 453. Thus, as the
card packages 115 are added to the bottom of the stack, one
package at a time, the stack is moved upwardly toward the
open top from which they the first card package of a run is
advantageously located on top. The first card package into
the starker is the first one to reach the open top 444,
Fig.1 and may be easily removed.
The movement of the starker plate is achieved by
means of a linkage 459 also shown in Fig.45. A pusher link
460 is supported for sliding movement within support tracks
of a support member 462. The linkage has a slot 464 within
which is slideably receive a metal pin roller 466. The
roller 466 is attached to the end of a crank arm 468. The
crank arm 468 is driven by the motor 456 to rotate about a
rotary axis 470, and as the crank arm rotates, the linkage
459 moves up and down with the up and down movement of the
the pin roller 466 within the slot 464. A sensor 472
detects when a detection member 474 attached to the linkage
459 and thus the linkage have reached the home position so
that another card may be inserted through the lateral load
opening 448 and placed into loading position.
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Turning now to Figs. 46 and 47, the card transport
track 166 including the card shuttle section 166'is seen to
include a plurality of servo motors and sensors some of
which are not well seen in the other drawing figures. The
relative location and of these card track elements are
schematically shown in Fig.47. The controller, that will be
described below receives information from the sensors and
use such information to control the application of power to
motors. Starting from the beginning of the card track 166
on the right, the first motor is a card pusher motor 474
which powers a card pusher to push a card dropped onto the
card track from a card hopper 144, Fig.l. Next, there is a
first "pusher home right" sensor 476 is a photosensor that
detects when the pusher is in a first home position on the
right and is ready to receive a card from the right hand
card drop location of the right hand side of the two card
stack hopper 140. The card is dropped on the left of the
right home position to push the card to the left. The "card
dropped right" proximity switch sensor 478 has detects when
the card has been dropped to the right side card drop
location and is in position to be pushed down the card
track 166. The next "pusher home left" photosensor 480
performs the same function as the sensor 476 but does so
for the left home. position for pushing cards dropped from
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the left side of the dual stack card hopper from the left
home position. Likewise, the "card dropped left" proximity
switch sensor 482 senses when a card has been dropped to
the left side card drop location.
Advantageously, the proximity switch sensors 478 and
482 have rounded caps attached to the conventional
actuation levers 484 to protect the levers 484 against
damage in the event a card is inadvertently moved across
the lever in a direction opposed to its normal direction of
movement.
The next sensor is the "reading position" photosensor
488 which detects when the card is in position at the
beginning of a portion of the track at which data is read
from the card and compared to the data base and to the
information carried by the carrier.
The following sensor is the "labeling position"
photosensor 490 which detects when the card 128 is in
position for receipt of an adhesive label 148. This is
followed by a "pusher away" photosensor 492 that detects
when a card pusher (not shown), has moved from its home
position.
The remaining elements of the card track 166 are on
the card shuttle portion 166'. The first sensor is the
"shuttle home'° photosensor 494 as also seen in Fig.41 which
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detects when the shuttle 412 is in the home position when
the tab 417 is received within slot 419, Fig.4l. The last
"card present" sensor 496 detects when the card the sensor
arm 426, Fig.41 has been moved to the detection position
when the card becomes fully nested within the card shuttle.
The shuttle motor 498 moves the shuttle pulley belt 416 by
driving pulley wheel 421, Fig. 41.
Referring to Figs.48 and 49, the first sensor along
the carrier path 164 is seen to include the carrier inlet
feed sensor 234, Fig.l2, which detects that a carrier 113
has been fed into the carrier inlet 126, This causes the
carrier inlet drive motor 500 to drive the carrier inlet
rollers 235 to move the carrier to the second set of
rollers 242, Fig. l2, which are driven by the intermediate
carrier drive motor 502. Next, a photosensor 504 detects
when the carrier has emerged from the intermediate carrier
rollers 242. Then a photosensor 506 detects when the
carrier 113 is at the card attachment station in front of
attachment rollers 252. These card attachment rollers are
driven by the reversing motor 508. Next there is folding
station photasensor 510 that detects when the partially
folded carrier is being passed to the folding station
rollers 258. These motors can also be seen in Fig.ll.
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All of the mechanically actuated proximity switches are
preferably Model No. 0P8850 made by OPTEK.
By controlling the above described motors based on the
information sensed from the various sensors card package
production system 100 is capable of attaching cards, up to
six cards anywhere on the carrier 113. There is only room
to mount two cards on each of the three panels but each
panel can have two cards mounted for a total of six cards.
If only one card is to be mounted to the carrier then it
may be mounted in the middle of a panel. This ability is
achieved by controlling the longitudinal position of the
carrier relative to the card drop location when the card is
a
dropped to select which of the three panels will receive
the dropped card. On the other hand, the lateral position
of the card on a panel is determined by what position along
the card shuttle path 166' the shuttle is controlled to be
when the card is dropped, there a plurality of card
loading, or drop, positions located across,the width of the
carrier path.
The controller described belaw controls the card
loading station to selectively laterally position the card
across the width of the form and to selectively align one
of the plurality of positions with the card loading station
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to longitudinally position the card along the length of the
carrier.
Referring now to Figs.50A and 50B the control system
is seen to include an OPTO 22 model controller system made
by OPTO 22 of Temecula, California and having a web site at
wwv~t.optto22.com. The OPTOCONTROL system has two brain
boards 600A and 600B that interface an LCSX controller 605
with a plurality of control modules 606. The control
modules interface with the sensors and the control motors.
The controller, in turn, operates in accordance with the
OPTOCONTROL programming flow chart. Pursuant to the
OPTOCONTROL, the OPTOCONTROL software automatically
generates the code needed to effectuate the flow chart. The
actual code is attached as Appendix A.
Referring now to Figs.5l, 52A, B, C, 53, 54, 55, 56,
57, 58, 59, 60A, and B showing the operational routine flow
charts of the preferred embodiment. The flow charts are
compiled and entered into a software designer progxam to
generate a source code, attached as APPENDTX A, used to
control mechanical devices such as the preferred
embodiment. The software designer program is called
"OPTOCONTROL" manufactured by OPTO 22. Instructions on the
use of this software and the flow chart conventions and
protocol can be found in the OPTOCONTROL USER'S GUIDE, Form
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number 724-990831-August, 1999; the OPTODISPZAY USER'S
GUIDE, Form 23-990831-August, 1999: and the OFTOCONTROZ
COMMAND REFERENCE, Form number 725-990831-August 1999, all.
of which are hereby incorporated by reference.
67
