Abstract: Apparatus is provided for receiving sheets of paper from a host printer and selectively transporting the sheets to a stacker tray or to a selective tray sheet sorting machine of the bin opening type. The apparatus has a sheet transport system for receiving sheets and gating the sheets to an infeed for the stacker tray or transporting the sheets to the infeed of the sheet sorting machine. The sheet transport system is in part incorporated in a cabinet door which completes the sheet transport when closed and when opened affords access to the infeeds for the stacker tray and the sorter. The sorter has nested trays to occupy a small vertical space and a tray opener which moves to locations between trays to pivot the trays open adjacent to the sheet infeed to provide a large space between trays for entry of the sheets. The sheet infeeds to the stacker tray and sorter trays can be opened when the door is open to provide access, and a blocking device prevents clsoure of the door if one of the infeeds is open.

Abstract: A sorter has a tray moving cam construction which is an assembly of molded plastic parts including an elongated noncircular shaft and a pair of similar cam parts turned 180.degree., end-to-end and having a hub slidably applicable to the shaft from opposite ends, or over opposite ends of a supporting core shaft, the hubs or the core shaft having an axial opening conforming with the non-circular shaft keying them together for rotation, and complemental cam segments on the hubs combine to provide a complete cam profile when the cam parts are applied to the shaft or core shaft in opposite axial directions from opposite ends of the shaft.

Abstract: A moving bin sorter has a plurality of sheet receiving trays supported for shifting movement to enlarge the space between adjacent trays at a sheet entry location to facilitate the feeding of successive sheets forming a set of sheets into the successive trays. The trays are formed to allow a portion of a stapler to be moved from a non-stapling position to a position for stapling a set of sheets in the successive trays while displacing the previously stapled sets in their respective trays with another portion of the stapler to enable positioning of the stapler in its operative position to staple a set of sheets. The stapler may be mounted for movement relative to the successive trays for applying staples at more than one location in each set.

Abstract: A moving bin sheet sorter has rotatable cams which engage portions of the sorter trays to move the trays at the ends adjacent to a sheet entry location between positions at which those tray ends are closely spaced above and below the sheet entry location and further spaced apart at the sheet entry location for receiving sheets supplied from a copier or printer. The cams are driven by an electric motor which is controlled to operate at a low speed as the trays are initially engaged and disengaged from the cam and a high speed during the major movement of the trays, thereby reducing noise resulting from high speed impact and shock loading of the cams and cooperative portions of the trays, as well as reducing noise resulting from high speed impact of said cooperative portions of the trays in guides for the trays.

Abstract: A moving tray sorter has a set of trays forming sheet receiving bins to which successive sheets are to be supplied from a typical office copier or printer. The trays are mounted in a support at ends remote from the host machine to pivot on horizontal axes and move longitudinally as the ends of the trays into which sheets are supplied are moved vertically past a sheet entry location by a tray shifter which moves the trays sequentially and as a set between locations below a sheet receiving position, upwardly to the sheet receiving position. The ends of the trays adjacent to the host machine are separably supported one on the other and are shifted in unison upon upward and downward movement of the lowermost tray.

Abstract: A sheet sorter for a copy producing machine has trays which are sequentially moved past a sheet entry location by a tray shifting device. Sheets are fed into the trays to form collated sets. A gripper is moved from a retracted position into a position at the trailing edge of the sheets to grip a set of sheets during stapling operations and partially remove the set of sheets from the tray and move the set into the throat of a stapler. After stapling, the gripper returns the stapled set to the same tray and releases it. Alternative forms of devices are disclosed for opening the trays to receive sheets from an infeed and for affording space for the gripping means to move between adjacent trays in a space between trays provided by the tray shifting cams.