Disclosed is an automated insert feeding system and related methods, capable of removing bulk-packaged items from a tray or other package, and separating the bulk-packaged items individually for distribution into individual packages in high speed reliable fashion. The disclosed systems can also be loaded with multiple packages of the pre-packaged items for automatic feeding into the system which allows human operators to load several packages and allow the system to work unattended, thereby reducing man-hours spend on the process.

A sheet-fed press includes at least two units embodied as modules. The at least two modules respectively each comprise at least one individual drive, each individual drive being configured as a position-controlled electric motor. At least one of the at least two modules is configured as a non-impact coating module, and the at least coating module is arranged as at least another of at least two modules that is configured as a primer module or as a painting module.

A mail singulator system determines a position of an optical panel to automatically adjust a loading conveyor speed to prevent stacked and overlapped mailpieces in the singulator and large gaps between mailpieces. The optical panel is configured between the front mailpiece of a mail stack on the loading conveyor and the optical sensor. The optical panel changes position with the pressure exerted by the mail stack and provides signals to the controller to adjust the conveyor speed. An optical sensor may detect a far threshold position or limit distance to increase the speed of the conveyor and may detect a near threshold position of limit distance to reduce the speed of the conveyor. The optical panel may have a low friction surface to allow the mail to slide into the conveyor and an optical surface to allow reliable optical sensor detection of the optical panel position.

A sheet conveying device includes a first conveyer and a second conveyer, each including a upstream-side pulley and a downstream-side pulley with respect to a conveying direction, an endless belt stretched around these pulleys, and a suction mechanism provided on an inner periphery relative to a conveying surface of the endless belt, along the conveying direction, wherein a third conveyer including a upstream-side pulley and a downstream-side pulley relative to the conveying direction and an endless belt stretched around these pulleys is provided between the first conveyer and the second conveyer, and in a state where the third conveyer is viewed from a side of the conveying surface, the upstream-side pulley of the third conveyer is arranged to be overlapped with the downstream-side pulley of the first conveyer, and the downstream-side pulley of the third conveyer is arranged to be overlapped with the upstream-side pulley of the second conveyer.

The sheet stacker includes a sheet conveyor arrangement, configured for feeding a plurality of sheets and having a sheet discharge end, and a stacking bay. In the stacking bay sheets delivered by the sheet conveyor arrangement are formed into stacks. A stack conveyor is provided in the stacking bay and is movable in a conveyor direction parallel to a sheet feeding direction, according to which the sheets are fed from the sheet discharge end onto the stack conveyor. The sheet discharge end is configured and controlled such that it is gradually lifted during sheet stacking, in order to accommodate a growing stack of sheets being formed on the stack conveyor. A stop plate is positioned in the stacking bay above the stack conveyor and in front of the sheet discharge end of the sheet conveyor arrangement. The stop plate is configured and controlled to be gradually lifted from the stack conveyor as the sheet stack grows, to be withdrawn upon completion of the stack thus allowing removal of the stack in an evacuation direction substantially parallel to the conveyor direction, and to be lowered towards the stack conveyor again.

A transport device stacks partial book blocks along a transport path formed of transfer paths, and includes: a first transfer path at a start of the transport device; a first separating element downstream of the first transfer path and upstream of a second transfer path; a second separating element downstream of the second transfer path and upstream of a processing machine that is operatively connected to the transport device; and a transition path which is arranged either upstream or downstream of the second separating element and within which a book block product that is to be introduced therein is transferable from a transport position where it is lying flat and into a transport position where it is guided standing up. At least one of the transfer paths is equipped with at least one sheet stack feed unit and/or at least one collator-feeder.

Embodiments of a system and method for shingulating, singulating, and synchronizing articles in an article feeder system are disclosed. The article feeder system may include a shingulating device configured to receive a stack of articles and to produce a positively lapped stack of articles, a plurality of picking devices configured to pick one or more articles from the positively lapped stack of articles and to produce one or more singulated articles, and one or more synchronization devices configured to deliver the one or more singulated articles to one or more sorter windows.

A mail hazard screening machine is configured to compress mail pieces or envelops through compression rollers and draw out this air and any hazard that may have been contained in the envelope. The system may be able to detect a wide range of hazards such as chemical, biological, radioactive, nuclear, explosive and drugs, abbreviated CBRNE+D. The sample air, the air drawn out from the hazard screening system, may be directed to one or more analysis devices and the mail processing machine may be stopped if any hazard is detected. The mail piece containing the hazard can then be found and further inspected safely.

A mail feeder system may be configured to deliver mail pieces to the hazard screening system without compression of the mail pieces or envelopes

An image forming apparatus includes a transfer unit including a transfer nip portion, a fixing unit including a fixing nip portion, a suction belt conveyance unit arranged between the transfer unit and the fixing unit and conveying the sheet toward the fixing nip, a first casing, a second casing connected to the first casing and supporting the fixing unit, a first positioning portion, and, a second positioning portion. The first positioning portion is disposed in the first casing and performs positioning of the suction belt conveyance unit in a predetermined direction along a surface perpendicular to a width direction of the sheet. The second positioning portion is disposed in the second casing and performs positioning of the suction belt conveyance unit in the predetermined direction.

A mail processing system utilizes a conveyor to shingle or de-shingle mailpieces as they move through the processing system and utilizes belts to move the mailpieces. A first shingling conveyor moves a first mailpiece to overlap with a second mailpiece to create shingled mailpieces. A second shingling conveyor moves a first mailpiece away from a second mailpiece to de-shingle them to create singulated mailpieces. A camera takes images of the mailpieces in the conveyor and image analysis software is used to determine dimensional aspects of the mailpieces that are used to control the belt speeds to move mailpieces with respect to each other. A mail processing system may include a mail processing station that scans addresses, applies postage and/or weighs the mailpieces. Mail may be de-shingled prior to being weighed and then re-shingled for subsequent processing, or mail may shingled prior to passing through a scale if weighing is not necessary.