Abstract: An apparatus and method are disclosed for preventing components in an inserter machine from causing the inserter machine to stop or function less than optimally due to lack of proper attention from an operator. Accordingly, various component conditions are categorized based upon two or more levels of urgency, and each component having such a condition signals the category of urgency to an operator.

Abstract: A flexible buffer transport system for staging accumulated documents for transfer to a synchronous downstream transport. Control of movement of accumulations in the buffer being independent of the length of the documents. The system includes a plurality of roller nips in series. The roller nips are spaced a uniform distance apart. Each of the roller nips are driven by an independently controllable motor in communication with a controller. Position sensors also communicate with the controller. The sensors sense positions of lead and trail edges of accumulations of documents within the buffer transport system. For each sampling period in the operating cycle and for each roller nip, the controller determines motion control. First, the controller determines which nips should be slaved together based on which are needed to control a particular accumulation of documents under its control.

Abstract: A buffer transport system for staging accumulated documents produced by an input module of an inserter system. The system including a plurality of roller nips in series. Each of the roller nips are driven by an independently controllable motor in communication with a controller. The series of roller nips form stopping stations along the length of the buffer transport. Each of the stopping stations has a uniform length and is comprised of two or more of the roller nips. The roller nips in any given stopping station are electronically geared together under the control of the controller. The controller controls stopping stations to transfer accumulated documents within the stopping stations to a next downstream stopping station when it is sensed that the next downstream stopping station is open. If the next downstream station from a given station is not open, then the controller does not instructs the station to transfer documents downstream.

Abstract: The present invention is directed to a system and method that identifies potentially life harming mailpieces. The system generally comprises a mailpiece sorting apparatus which includes a scanner, a scale, a appropriate thickness and length measurement sensors and compartments or bins for receiving sorted mailpieces, an OCR system for reading address information, one or more databases, microprocessor based control system, a document scanner and email functionality. The system and method captures and analyzes mailpiece metrics. The metrics are incorporated into a decision making process as to how the mailpiece should be sorted. The system and method identifies potentially life harming mailpieces with mailpiece processing so as to help deter delays in incoming mail delivery caused by the presence of life harming material in mailpieces and helps to protect the intended recipients from harm.

Abstract: A system and method for correcting the timing and spacing between envelopes being serially processed in a high speed mail processing inserter system, whereby a pitch correcting module receives sensor input detecting unwanted pitch variation between envelopes and a transport mechanism in the pitch correcting module accelerates or decelerates an envelope according to a pitch correcting profile calculation performed by the pitch correcting module, the pitch correcting module being dimensioned to optimally perform pitch correction without interfering with high speed mail processing.

Abstract: A system and method for correcting the timing and spacing between envelopes being serially processed in a high speed mail processing inserter system, whereby a pitch correcting module receives sensor input detecting unwanted pitch variation between envelopes and a transport mechanism in the pitch correcting module accelerates or decelerates an envelope according to a pitch correcting profile calculation performed by the pitch correcting module, the pitch correcting module being dimensioned to optimally perform pitch correction without interfering with high speed mail processing.

Abstract: A concentric ring target detector receives input pixel data from an optical scanning device. The pixel data represents images on a conveyor belt and moving objects bearing information-encoded labels which are advanced by the conveyor belt. Input pixel data is alternately applied to a pair of FIFO blocks, one of such blocks receiving odd and even pixels from scan line N, the other of the blocks receiving pixels from scan line N-1. Pixels from the FIFO blocks are coupled through a pixel switch to a multi-tap first-in first-out block. Each FIFO block applies data to the pixel switch at one-half the rate at which it was received by the FIFO block to maintain constant throughput without the FIFO's overflowing or emptying. The pixel switch ensures that the pixels from scan lines N and N-1 remain in serial order. Pixels from scan line N and N-1 are shifted through a multi-tap FIFO.

Abstract: A stationary optical scanning system for the decoding of a plurality of optically readable information bearing symbols encoded using at least first and second different optical codes, and for the detection of a plurality of optical targets having at least first and second different target configurations and target data signals representative of the differing target configurations, includes a single optical sensor for optically sensing the different target configurations and optical codes as objects affixed with the information bearing symbols continuously pass within a field of view and for generating the target data signals from the sensed field of view.

Abstract: The system has an optical scanning device formed of a plurality of pixel elements for providing a scan output signal representative of a scanned region of an object. The system has a reflector, an illumination source, a light compensator, and an object positioner. The reflector defines an ellipse. The object positioner disposes the object substantially near the major axis of the ellipse. The illumination source emits and applies light energy to the object disposed at a first focus of the ellipse. The light compensator, which varies the light energy emitted from the illumination source, has one or more dedicated pixels of the optical scanning device. The light compensator also has fiber optical transmitters that receive light transmitted from the illumination source and couple to the dedicated pixels, which are unavailable for receiving reflected light from the scanned region of the object.

Abstract: The camera system of the present invention simultaneously searches for a number of differing optical acquisition targets. This system may decode, for example, both bar codes and concentric rings. The scan signal is constantly adjusted according to both a dark reference for correcting offset and a white reference for correcting gain. The gain is also corrected according to the scanning rate as well as the amount of illumination present. A measure of this illumination may be applied directly to the optical scanning device by way of a fiber optic cable which transmits light from the illumination source. Optical calibration is eliminated by fixed optics wherein all optical elements are rigidly mounted at very close tolerances. The illumination source is disposed on one focus of an ellipse wherein the other focus is disposed at the maximum scanning distance and the reflector is formed to define the illumination ellipse to maximize the light applied to the object.