A method and apparatus are provided for sorting or retrieving items to/from a plurality of destinations areas. The items are loaded onto one of a plurality of independently controlled delivery vehicles. The delivery vehicles follow a track that guides the delivery vehicles to/from the destination areas, which are positioned along the track. Once at the appropriate destination area, an item is transferred between the delivery vehicle and the destination area.

Methods, systems and devices for item processing. The systems can include a PASS module that can include features that receive inputs relating to an item for processing and provide those inputs to other components and/or modules of a PASS system and/or of another system. The PASS system can include a variety of modules, including the PASS module, and can collect information and/or inputs from the variety of modules of the PASS system and use that information in item processing. The methods of item processing can use the PASS system and the PASS module to perform a variety of functions including, for example, revenue protection, sorting of items, task management, sampling and data collection, redirecting if enroute items, and personnel management.

A selective sorting method in order to identify and sort material objects of different natures, sizes and shapes having the form of a pile is described. The method is characterized in that the choice of a gripping zone, associated with an object contained in the pile to be sorted, is carried out automatically, and in that the defining of the nature of the object associated with this gripping zone is carried out using at least one sensor that measures at least one electromagnetic radiation emitted by this object. A device able to implement such a method is also described.

There is provided a projection instruction device that generates a projection image to be projected on parcel based on sensing information of the parcel, the device including: a processor; and a memory, in which by cooperating with the memory, the processor performs weighting on a value of a feature amount of a color image of parcel included in the sensing information based on a distance image of parcel included in the sensing information, and tracks the parcel based on the weighted value of the feature amount of the color image.

A method and apparatus are provided for sorting or retrieving items to/from a plurality of destinations areas. The items are loaded onto one of a plurality of independently controlled delivery vehicles. The delivery vehicles follow a track that guides the delivery vehicles to/from the destination areas, which are positioned along the track. Once at the appropriate destination area, an item is transferred between the delivery vehicle and the destination area.

Systems and methods for facilitating the sorting of assets to sort locations. In various embodiments, a sort employee scans an asset indicia using a user device, which stores asset data corresponding to the stored asset. As the sort employee nears a sort location (e.g., a delivery vehicle) with the asset and the user device, the user device automatically communicates wirelessly with a sort location receiver to associate the asset data with data indicative of the sort location where the user deposits the asset. In various embodiments, a device may determine whether the user device is proximate the appropriate sort location for the item, and may generate an alert upon a determination that the user device is proximate an incorrect sort location.

The method of sorting pre-sorted mailpieces in a postal sorting machine comprises the steps consisting in: detecting loading in the feed inlet of the machine of a batch of mailpieces pre-sorted by a mailer of the mailpieces on the basis of their delivery addresses; and, in response to said detection, loading, in the reference database of the address recognition system, a lexicon comprising the delivery addresses for only the pre-sorted mailpieces of the batch, and, by means of the monitoring and control unit and for each current mailpiece, comparing the result of the OCR reading with said delivery addresses of the lexicon so as to recognize the delivery address of said current mailpiece.

A method and apparatus are provided for sorting or retrieving items to/from a plurality of destinations areas. The items are loaded onto one of a plurality of independently controlled delivery vehicles. The delivery vehicles follow a track that guides the delivery vehicles to/from the destination areas, which are positioned along the track. Once at the appropriate destination area, an item is transferred between the delivery vehicle and the destination area.

There is provided a projection instruction device that generates a projection image to be projected on a parcel based on a reading result of parcel identification information included in a label attached to the parcel, the device including: a processor; and a memory, in which by cooperating with the memory, the processor detects occurrence of an error, and moves the parcel to upstream in a case where the occurrence of the error is detected.

There is provided a projection indication device that generates a projection image to be projected on parcel based on sensing information of the parcel, the device including: a processor; and a memory, in which by cooperating with the memory, the processor specifies parcel based on a distance image of the parcel included in sensing information, tracks the parcel based on a color image of the parcel included in the sensing information, and tracks the parcel based on the distance image of the parcel in a case where the color image of the parcel on which a projection image is projected includes a white region expressed in white which is not an original gradation.