It is known to provide a conveyor behind ticket counters, typically airport ticket counters, to transfer baggage away from the ticket counter area toward a baggage handling area. A conveyor is typically located along a wall which extends behind the ticket counter or behind a row of ticket counters. A floorspace between the ticket counter and the conveyor is typically large enough to provide a space for at least one person to walk between a ticket agent and the conveyor.

It is also known to provide a scale adjacent to a ticket counter for weighing baggage prior to transferring the baggage to the conveyor or baggage handling area.

Ticket agents typically transfer baggage from the counter or from a scale adjacent to the counter or from a floor adjacent to the counter onto the conveyor by manually lifting and carrying the baggage. Ticket agents may suffer excessive fatigue and risk serious injury by repetitively lifting heavy baggage from the counter area and by twisting their back while lifting heavy baggage up and onto a conveyor. Baggage which is temporarily placed on the floor between the ticket counter and the conveyor may cause a tripping hazard for people walking behind the counter.

Passengers also risk injury by lifting heavy baggage onto the scale if the scale surface is too high. It is desirable to minimize height to which passengers must lift baggage.

One apparent solution would be to provide a first conveyor to transport baggage from the counter area onto the final conveyor. However such a first conveyor would obstruct the space where people walk between the ticket counter and the final conveyor. Furthermore, such an apparent solution would still require a ticket agent or passenger to lift baggage onto a scale and from a scale onto the first conveyor.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Accordingly the invention is a Ticket Counter Conveyor Apparatus comprising a scale conveyor placed adjacent to a ticket counter, typically an airline ticket counter, preferably having a front end which has a minimum height facing the passengers, an extendable conveyor mounted behind the scale conveyor and an optional mating receptacle for mounting to a final conveyor which aligns and supports an extendable bed of the extendable conveyor. The height of the conveyor beds are aligned so that baggage is transported by the scale conveyor belt onto the extendable conveyor belt and- then onto a final conveyor belt behind the ticket agent.

The scale conveyor or the extendable conveyor may be angularly inclined so that the conveyor end nearest the passenger side of the ticket counter has a minimum height and the end nearest the final conveyor is aligned with or slightly higher than the final conveyor height.

The scale conveyor may include a scale to weigh the baggage or may be mounted onto an existing scale.

The extendable bed of the extendable conveyor interferes with the walking space behind the ticket agent and may be extended or retracted by manual operation of an electric switch to control an extension motor. The extendable conveyor may also be automatically retracted by sensors or switches which detect an obstruction and signal the extension motor.

It is a principal advantage of the invention to reduce the distance and height to which baggage is manually transported and thereby reduce occurrences of fatigue and injury by eliminating a labor step of manually removing baggage from a scale.

It is another advantage of the invention to reduce or eliminate the occurrence of hazards caused by baggage being placed on the floor behind the ticket counter.

It is still another advantage of the invention to provide simple or automatic extension and retraction of a portion of the apparatus to avoid interfering with a walking area.

Other features and advantages of the invention are set forth in the detailed description.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Fig. 1 is a perspective view of the scale conveyor component of the apparatus for weighing and transporting baggage in accordance with the present invention.

Fig. 2 is a perspective view of the optional mating receptacle component for use in conjunction with of the apparatus of Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a perspective view of the extendable conveyor component of the apparatus of Fig. 1.

Fig. 4 is a schematic top view of the apparatus of Fig 1.

Fig. 5 is a schematic side view of the apparatus of Fig 1.

Fig. 6 is a perspective view of the apparatus of Fig. 1 with. optional posts and a pressure sensitive mat.

Fig. 7 is a sectional side view of the extendable component of the apparatus of Fig. 1.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT The scale conveyor comprises a scale conveyor chassis 1, a scale conveyor top surface 2 comprising a scale conveyor bed 3, a scale conveyor belt 4, a series of scale conveyor rollers (not shown) which define a circuitous scale conveyor belt path (not shown), means for propelling the scale conveyor belt around the circuitous scale conveyor belt path (not shown) including a portion of the path over the top surface of the scale conveyor bed. A scale comprising load cells incorporated into vertical stress bearing members 5 of the scale conveyor chassis or a separate scale component (not shown) mounted beneath the chassis. The scale conveyor bed 3 may be angularly inclined to a lower surface in front to allow more convenient loading of baggage and to reduce the users work load by carrying the baggage to the height of a final conveyor 6.

The extendable conveyor apparatus comprises an extendable conveyor chassis 7, a top surface of the extendable conveyor chassis 8 comprising a stationary bed section 9, an extendable bed section 10 slidingly affixed to the top surface of the extendable conveyor chassis 7 and at least partially overlapping the stationary bed section 9, a conveyor belt 11 and roller system wherein the conveyor belt traverses a path along the entire top surface of both the stationary bed section 9 and the extendable bed section 10 following a circuitous path around a plurality of rollers.

The conveyor belt is propelled by a motorized drive roller 13. A traveling roller 14 is mounted across a rear span 15 of the extendable bed 10 toward an inboard end 16 of the extendable bed. A portion of the conveyor belt path 17 follows the bottom surf ace of the extendable bed 15 from an outboard end 18 of the extendable bed around the traveling roller 14. The traveling roller 14 defines the beginning of another section 19 of the belt path where the belt 11 then travels back again toward an outboard end of the extendable conveyor chassis 20.

A traveling roller axle is fixed to the extendable bed 10 so that when the bed is extended the section 19 of the belt path beneath and substantially parallel to the extendable bed 10 is shortened by the same length as the bed is extended. Accordingly the belt path length remains constant and no slack is created in the belt 11 by displacement of the extendable bed 10. An extension motor turns a lead screw 23 which extends and retracts the extendable bed 10 by moving a lead screw nut 24 which is affixed to the underside 15 of the extendable bed 10.

A sensor switch (not shown) in communication with the lead screw 23 controls the extension motor 22 by causing the extension motor 22 to retract the extendable bed 10 when the extendable bed 10 encounters an obstruction.

A sensor switch may also be incorporated into a pressure sensitive floor mat 25 placed on the floor beneath the path of the extendable bed 10 which would cause the extension motor 22 to retract the extendable bed 10 when a person steps on the mat. The mating receptacle 26 comprises a bracket 27 to be mounted over a front 29 and top 30 surface of a final conveyor bed 28. Optional protrusions 31 on top of the bracket define a cavity 32 slightly greater than the width of the extendable bed section 10 of the extendable conveyor.

Photoelectric sensors 32 may be mounted within the protrusions 31 to electrically communicate with the extension motor 22. An electrical signal from the photoelectric sensor 32 may trigger a delay timer when baggage is sensed proximate to a protrusion 31 if the extendable bed section 10 is in an extended state.

The timer may thereby prevent the extendable bed section 10 from retracting when baggage is passing between the extendable bed section 10 and the final conveyor. An electrical signal from the photoelectric sensor 32 may also prevent an extension of the extendable bed section 10 when baggage is sensed proximate to a protrusion 31 if the extendable section 10 is in a retracted state. The electrical signal may thereby provide a secondary means to prevent personal injury or property damage if a the

mating receptacle 26 is obstructed. A push-button switch 34 may be mounted on a post to initiate an electrical signal to the extension motor 22 which would cause the motor to retract the extension bed 10 of the extendable bed conveyor. An arm 35 extending over the final conveyor 6 may be mounted on one of the posts 33 which would knock over and thereby stabilize baggage that is standing upright on the final conveyor.