Patents by Inventor Kirk Kaaz

Kirk Kaaz has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Patent number: 7510183
    Abstract: The present invention provides an apparatus for facing documents during high speed processing. The present invention employs at least one sensor to scan the documents individually as they are fed sequentially through a processing machine. The sensor determines the direction the documents are facing. Depending on the direction the documents are facing, a path selector directs the documents to one of two equal length paths within the processing machine. If a document is facing up, the path selector directs the document along a first path that leads directly to a collection point. If a document is facing down, the path selector directs the document along a second path that includes a twisted conveyor belt which turns the document about the longitudinal axis to face up. The second path meets with the first path, wherein the conveyor belt reinserts the faced documents back into the same sequential position that the document was in relative to the other documents before being diverted by the path selector.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 21, 2006
    Date of Patent: March 31, 2009
    Assignee: De La Ru Holdings, PLC
    Inventors: Jerry Edwards, Kirk Kaaz
  • Publication number: 20080116628
    Abstract: The present invention provides an apparatus for facing documents during high speed processing. The present invention employs at least one sensor to scan the documents individually as they are fed sequentially through a processing machine. The sensor determines the direction the documents are facing. Depending on the direction the documents are facing, a path selector directs the documents to one of two equal length paths within the processing machine. If a document is facing up, the path selector directs the document along a first path that leads directly to a collection point. If a document is facing down, the path selector directs the document along a second path that includes a twisted conveyor belt which turns the document about the longitudinal axis to face up. The second path meets with the first path, wherein the conveyor belt reinserts the faced documents back into the same sequential position that the document was in relative to the other documents before being diverted by the path selector.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 21, 2006
    Publication date: May 22, 2008
    Inventors: Jerry Edwards, Kirk Kaaz