Abstract: The invention is directed to a method and apparatus for combining randomly oriented containers on a conveyor into single file. The apparatus includes a pressureless combining conveyor having at least two or more conveyor sections adjacent to one another, and angled about the axis of a guide rail. The substantially linear guide rail extends at an angle across the combining conveyor. The guide rail is constructed such that the lower part of a container which starts to fall toward the guide rail contacts the guide rail first, then tilts toward the guide rail, touching the guide rail at a height of the container near the center of gravity of the container, and then returning to its stable position. The container's center of gravity always remains within its stability region. The apparatus includes an input conveyor to supply a plurality of containers having no specific orientation, and an input guide rail section to guide moving containers to one side of the input conveyor.

Abstract: A method of recovery from a machine paper jam with a plurality of sheets in a duplex tray of a machine operating in a pre-collation mode to provide multiple copy sets, including the steps of recycling the plurality of pre-collated or pre-ordered serial sheets in the duplex tray out of and back into the duplex tray to reorient the images on the sheets, reimaging the sheets that have exited the duplex tray but are still in process, stacking the reimaged sheets into the top of the duplex tray and recycling a second time the plurality of sheets originally in the duplex tray at time of jam into the duplex tray to reorient the images on the sheets for a second time.