US-20260125224-A1 - CONVEYOR PARCEL ACCUMULATION CHUTE ASSEMBLY

US20260125224A1US 20260125224 A1US20260125224 A1US 20260125224A1US-20260125224-A1

Abstract

A conveyor system has conveyors having conveying surfaces arranged for moving and separating side-by-side packages. Nonconforming parcels are urged off the lateral edge of a selected conveyor onto a downward-sloped chute for removal or recirculation. The parcels often accumulate prior to removal from the chute and cause the conveyor system to halt. To maximize the number of parcels that can accumulate in the chute prior to halting the conveyor system, the geometry of a traditional chute can be modified to direct packages to fill the lower comers of the chute instead of forming a single, narrow stack of packages. The improved chute assembly incorporating anti-towering chute geometry utilizes a floor made from a plurality of surfaces that angled at their common edges to direct packages towards the bottom comers of the chute depending upon the packages'geometry and momentum, thereby preventing the “towering” of packages.

Inventors

Ray William Cecil
Brandon James Leffler
Steven Russell Asbury

Assignees

FIVES INTRALOGISTICS CORP.

Dates

Publication Date: 20260507
Application Date: 20241231

Claims (15)

1 . A conveyor shoe sorter parcel accumulator chute, comprising: a floor composed of at least three multiple angled segments incorporating anti-towering chute geometry including a first angled surface, a second angled surface, and a third angled surface sloped downward in a lateral direction toward a holding area; said first angled surface is angled downward in a forward direction; said second angled surface is angled in the forward direction; said third angled surface is angled downward relative to both an original lateral and a forward direction of motion of said parcel; a peak is formed at a first common edge between said first angled surface and said second angled surface; a valley is formed at a second common edge between said second angled surface and said third angled surface; said valley directs packages towards a bottom left first corner of said holding area; said first angled surface terminates near a bottom right second corner of said holding area; and a middle holding area is disposed between said left first corner and said right second corner.
2 . The conveyor shoe sorter parcel accumulator chute of claim 1 , wherein an angle between said first surface and said second surface ranges from 4 to 12 degrees.
3 . The conveyor shoe sorter parcel accumulator chute of claim 1 , wherein an angle between said first surface and said second surface ranges from 7.5 to 10 degrees.
4 . The conveyor shoe sorter parcel accumulator chute of claim 1 , wherein an angle between said third surface and said second surface ranges from 10 to 30 degrees.
5 . The conveyor shoe sorter parcel accumulator chute of claim 1 , wherein an angle between said third surface and said second surface ranges from 15 to 25 degrees.
6 . The conveyor shoe sorter parcel accumulator chute of claim 1 , wherein said angle between an third surface and said second surface ranges from 18 to 22 degrees.
7 . The conveyor shoe sorter parcel accumulator chute of claim 1 , wherein an angle of said second surface ranges between 10 to 25 degrees from ground level.
8 . The conveyor shoe sorter parcel accumulator chute of claim 1 , wherein an angle of said second surface ranges between 12 to 18 degrees from ground level.
9 . The conveyor shoe sorter parcel accumulator chute of claim 1 , wherein an angle of said first surface ranges between 10 to 25 degrees from ground level.
10 . The conveyor shoe sorter parcel accumulator chute of claim 1 , wherein an angle of said first surface ranges between 14 to 20 degrees from ground level.
11 . The conveyor shoe sorter parcel accumulator chute of claim 1 , wherein an angle of said third surface ranges between 14 to 20 degrees from ground level.
12 . The conveyor shoe sorter parcel accumulator chute of claim 1 , further comprising a deflector in cooperative engagement with said primary conveying lane for diverting said parcels moving forward on a primary conveying lane at an angle of from 20 to 30 degrees onto said parcel accumulation chute.
13 . A method of accumulating parcels in a conveyor shoe sorter accumulator to prevent stacking, comprising the steps of: incorporating anti-towering chute geometry in a parcel accumulation chute including a first surface, a second surface, and a third surface in accordance with claim 1 ; selecting an optimal conveyor divert location relative to said parcel accumulation chute geometry; diverting said parcels moving forward on a primary conveying lane at an angle of from 20 to 30 degrees onto said parcel accumulation chute comprising a floor composed of multiple segments seamlessly connected to one another wherein said parcel first enters said parcel accumulation chute on said second surface which is angled downward relative to the lateral direction of motion and upward relative to the forward direction of motion, to slow or stop a forward velocity of said parcel; whereby any packages stopped in the forward direction of motion will then slide laterally down the chute towards a first surface that is angled downward relative to both an original lateral and forward direction of motion of the parcel and said parcels flow toward a valley created between a common edge of said first surface and said second surface to a lower left corner of said parcel accumulation chute; packages maintaining forward momentum after dropping onto said second surface continue forward over a top edge of the said second surface which forms a peak along an edge shared by said second surface and said third surface whereby said third surface is angled downward relative to both the original lateral and forward direction of motion of the parcel; parcels overcoming said peak are directed towards a bottom right corner of said parcel accumulation chute; as parcels accumulate in a first lower corner and in a second lower corner a middle section of the package accumulation chute fills utilizing an entirety of said package accumulation chute; upon filling said parcel accumulation chute to a selected level, said packages accumulating on said second surface and/or said third surface block a photo eye or trigger a detection sensor halting the primary conveying lane.
14 . The method of accumulating parcels in the conveyor shoe sorter accumulator of claim 13 , wherein a valley between said second surface and said third surface directs parcels to fill said first lower corner.
15 . The method of accumulating parcels in the conveyor shoe sorter accumulator of claim 13 , wherein said first surface is from 20 to 22 degrees relative to a floor along an outer side edge and a bottom edge inclines toward a convergence of said first surface, said second surface, and said third surface at a small angle of less than five degrees.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION This invention relates generally to take-off chute configurations for parcel and package conveyors providing cost effective solutions that maximize parcel accumulation onto shoe sorter accumulation chutes. BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to material handling and in particular to methods and apparatuses for conveying packages and a mechanism for controlling the location of packages on a take-off conveyor parcel accumulation chute. Conventional conveyor systems convey large numbers of packages at high speed, especially in the parcel delivery industry wherein the packages are sorted according to desired categories. The efficiency of handling packages can be seriously diminished when a plurality of smaller packages, irregular sized or shaped items, or a mixture of large and small articles pass together on the conveyors as a single unit. Problems occur with scanning and separating packages and parcels that travel through the conveyor system as an aggregate unit rather than in a single file. Large packages can hide small parcels, and small side-by-side packages can be misidentified and incorrectly sorted when passing simultaneously through a code scanner. Moreover, sorting problems arise when packages do not move in predictable lateral patterns. Such packages may include irregularly shaped packages, such as bags or other flexible containers having unevenly distributed weight; packages with extreme widths or lengths; and packages that are only partially filled, such as a bag of mail. A singulator is a device used in conveyor systems to organize items into a single-file line. Singulators are often used in logistics, manufacturing, and distribution to ensure that items are properly spaced and aligned for further processing. Singulators help to prevent jams and improve efficiency by separating and aligning items that would otherwise come off the conveyor in bulk. However, rearrangement of clusters of articles into a single-file is difficult to accomplish with packages having one dimension that is significantly greater than its other dimensions, or when the packages have unequal loading, partial filling, or long and slender sides. The singulation is especially difficult over a short distance and residence time, which are desired for efficiency and to conserve floor space. Packages having unequal weight, irregular dimensions, and off-set center of gravity can get repeatably shifted onto the output of the singulation conveyor. Occasionally instead of being positioned in a single file, some of the packages may be conveyed abreast of one another, i.e., in side-by-side relationship traveling two abreast. The combined width of the two packages may present a problem at a downstream location in the conveyor system. Typical singulator conveyor systems for sorting parcels in typical applications comprise devices that convert a flow of randomly arranged items into single file. The items are conveyed with both forward and lateral forces to align the packages along one side of the conveyor system. Packages that are unable to be sorted and arranged on the primary line are separated by a device that applies lateral forces to the packages, directing the packages to the opposite edge of the conveyor where they fall off the conveyor into a take-off chute. Typical conveyor system configurations recirculate the laterally removed items back upstream to the primary conveyor to provide an additional opportunity to be properly separated and aligned. Traditional take-off chutes have only a single uniformly sloped flat bottom. Packages having similar momentums exit the conveyor and enter the take-off chute in approximately the same location, thereby causing packages to stack atop one another instead of accumulating across the width of the chute. When a take-off chute becomes filled, a sensor such as a photo eye or limit switch halts the primary conveyor line until more room is made available in the chute. The towering of packages causes the detection sensor to be activated prior to the entire volume of the chute being filled. The halting of the primary conveyor reduces the efficiency of operations. What is needed, therefore, is an economical means to prevent packages from towering in the chute, so that the entire volume of the chute is used effectively. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION This invention relates generally to take-off chute configurations for parcel and package conveyors providing cost effective solutions that maximize parcel accumulation onto shoe sorter accumulation chutes. A conveyor system has conveyors that convey, align, and organize randomly supplied articles, including side-by-side articles, received from a feed conveyor into a single-file relationship. The articles are conveyed onto a singulator device having separating capabilities which includes a multi-lane conveyor assembly following the feed conveyor. The singulator is arranged in alignment with and downstream of the