FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is in the field of a sorter for stor age, a method of sorting objects, and use of said sorter for storing garments for a period of 1 hour-7 days.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is in the field of a sorter for stor ing, especially for storing garments for a period of 1 hour-7 days .

Nowadays the private laundry in industrial laundry of nurse ries and old folk' s homes is sorted manually or batch-wise for a group of persons, typically using a sorting cabinet, equipped with a paternoster system to move the shelfs/positions up and down. Identification of the garments is done by barcode or RFID chip. After sorting batch is completed the cabinet is emptied manually. Typically a maximum number of positions in such a cab inet is in the order of 140-280, depending on the height and width. Hence a limited efficiency and a limited storage capacity is effected.

In a laundry for work wear to be treated or treated garments are sorted hanging on a hanger. These systems are extremely com plex, with a lot of mechanical and electronical parts, which have to be maintained. It is noted that in order to handle typi cal volumes of large customers or delivery routes these systems may buffer 10.000-20.000 pieces of garment at any given moment. After sorting the garments may be delivered on a hanger or fold ed, packed and delivered as flat items. Identification of the garments is typically done by barcodes or chip codes, linked to a further barcode or chip code in the hanger.

So typically customer owned flat linen and/or folded garments are sorted by route, customer, department or user. Currently this is done by separating a batch of a given customer from oth ers, and if necessary, manually sorting by department or user. Although a number of tools exist, such as sorting cabinets, the handling of the materials is typically still a manual operation. Automatic sorting devices have been developed for hanging material, including bags in which a folded or packed item can be in serted. However, inserting a folded item in a bag requires addi- tional manual handling to put it in and take it out after sort ing .

A prior art document reciting an apparatus for classifying and otherwise handling articles is US 3,302,804 A. It describes a sorter for storage with an input area, a storage area, and a conveyor, dedicated for postal sorting. The apparatus is rela tively complex and typically uses bins. A number of layers may be present above one and another, with a relatively large space in between layers.

US 6,212,832 recites a silo structure of a vehicle parking system including multi-layers of parking floors, wherein twelve sector-shaped parking spaces are separated equally at 30° angle intervals around the central axis of the silo structure. An ele vator carrier moves vertically in the inner shaft up and down to convey a pallet with a vehicle from the entry/exit opening to parking floors. A rotary base mounted on the elevator carrier rotates 360 DEG around the central axis.

The present invention therefore relates to an improved sort er, which solve one or more of the above problems and drawbacks of the prior art, providing reliable results, without jeopardiz ing functionality and advantages.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a sorter for storage accord ing to claim 1 which is much simpler and much more efficient than typical prior art sorters, and still having a large storage capacity. The sorter comprises a storage area 70 of limited, but not too limited, size. The sorter is especially intended for sorting and/or stacking garments and the like, but is equally applicable to sorting quantities of goods, such as packages. For entering objects into the sorter and especially the storage area a carrier 10 may be provided. For adapting e.g. to different types of carriers an interface may be provided at an input open ing 80. In principle the carrier is equally suited to retract objects from the sorter; in an alternative a further carrier is provided to extract objects from the sorter. In the sorter ob jects are stored and tracked, typically temporarily stored. In the storage area a conveyor 21 is provided for transporting the object from the input opening 80 to a receptacle 40, and vice versa; the receptacle is typically accessible at a side thereof through an opening, in use the conveyor may receive the object from the carrier on a conveyor arm 22. The present conveyor may be movably attached to a frame. When the object is on the arm the conveyor arm typically is retracted partly or fully; with reference to a central point 21a of the conveyor the arm is ca pable of extending in two opposite directions, which may be regarded as backward and forward movements. The conveyor can rotate over a predetermined angle, from a position towards the carrier, to a position towards a receptacle; the extension of the conveyor arm and angle of rotation can be optimized such that a rotation over a limited angle is required in combination with an extension in a forward or backward direction, whichever is most suited. The conveyor is provided in a central space 35 of the storage area, implying that receptacles are located adja cent to the central space somewhat more to an outer side thereof. As typically two or more layers, hence a stack of layers, are present, each layer comprising at least two receptacles 40 for receiving at least one object, the conveyor is adapted to move vertically from one layer 30 to the next as well as to the at least one carrier. In each layer receptacles are present for receiving and typically temporarily storing at least one object. Thereto each receptacle is accessible through a central space 35 by the conveyor. In each layer the receptacles are distributed horizontally over the layer, that is typically adjacent to one and another in a horizontal plane. The layers are on top of one and another, hence stacked. In order to manage and monitor the sorter a tracking device 50 for tracking the object is provided. Such implies that each object per se is traceable and therefore trackable. In order to store data, such as that of the tracking device, a data recorder 60 is provided. For operating the pre sent sorter a controller, such as a programmable logic control ler, is typically provided. The controller addresses e.g. the present conveyer to move in a vertical direction and to rotate typically to specific coordinates. Typically the present sorter comprises a computer or the like, for instructing the control ler. And advantage of the present sorter is that it is capable of sorting much quicker and in a more reliable manner than typi cally used sorters. In addition, which is especially relevant if objects of one client and likewise one supplier thereof travel different trajectories, that is are being separated when being processed, the present sorter is capable of regrouping objects in view of said client and supplier; there is therefore no or limited need to regroup objects when these are retracted from the sorter and are delivered.

The present sorter, which may be regarded as a flat-sorter, is a versatile machine for handling items. In an example the ma chine may comprise a conveyor with 2 retractable belts plus 1 belt with a fixed length plus a circular racking system. The 3 belts are positioned in a row on a frame, the standard belt in the middle. The frame can be moved vertically and rotated by -90 till +90 degrees.

The present sorter is very flexible. For instance an in- /outlet can be positioned at any location (in height and in ori entation) on a typically circular rack. Thereby the present sorter can be installed in a straight line, in a curve, and in a corner, and combinations thereof; an in- and outlet can also be located on a different heights (e.g. floor), such as an inlet at a bottom and an outlet at the top.

A capacity and a size of the sorter can be adapted easily to a specific application, such as by adapting a diameter of the sorter, by adapting a length of a central belt, adapting a number of trays, adapting a height of the sorter, applying multiple levels of trays, and spacing of the levels for single items or stacks. The present sorter is very suited for continuous opera tion; therein objects are entered into the system and retracted from the system (after being sorted) continuously. Therewith an unsorted stream of objects may enter the present sorter and a sorted stream of objects exits the sorter. In addition or as an alternative the objects may be stacked. As the present sorter is very versatile, such as in dimensioning and in functionality, it can be adapted to a given process. As sorting and temporarily storing can be performed at relatively high speed, the sorter can be relatively compact.

A typical size of the present sorter could be an outer diameter of 2.5 m and a height of 3 m, with an infeed/outfeed at 1.5 m. Such a system could contain in the order of 140 positions (receptacle) and may contain stacks with in total 1500+ items, depending on the item type. A typical sorting speed is in the order of 500-1000 pieces/hr., depending on configuration, type of items, type of feed system etc. Note that an infeed and out- feed can be positioned at any level (or height) in the system, and at any orientation, depending on space and geometry availa ^¬ ble .

The present sorter can be used for sorting flat linen and/or folded garments, for storing and retrieving items, as a garment issuing device (laundry staff or any other staff fills the sorter with garments of various specs. A user can order one or more items, by using a code or a badge, e.g. depending on his rights.}, automatic mail sorting (letters/papers/small packag ^¬ es) , warehousing & logistics (storing and retrieving any type of products (order picking) . By using grippers instead of belts bins or boxes, containing multiple articles, could be stored and retrieved. ) .

In a second aspect the present invention relates to a method of sorting objects with the present sorter. Therein a number objects, such as washed garments, are provided. Typically said number is in the order of 100-10000. The objects are inserted into the sorter, typically one by one, and/or typically in a se quential order. The object are typically inserted through an in put opening 80. The input opening 80 may also function as an output opening, especially if only one opening is provided. If the present sorter is for instance part of a logistic process the sorter may comprise at least one output 80. During the pro cess of sorting and storing the objects are tracked, typically in a wireless mode and/or optically. The objects are then trans ported to a receptacle, typically a predetermined receptacle, such as in view of the tracking information.

In a third aspect the present invention relates to a use of the present sorter for storing garments for a period of at least 10 seconds. So objects may be stored very shortly, and thereaf ter being resubmitted almost directly to a further process, and can be stored much longer, until it is required to retrieve the obj ects .

Thereby the present invention provides a solution to one or more of the above mentioned problems and drawbacks.

Advantages of the present description are detailed throughout the description. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates in a first aspect to a sorter according to claim 1.

In an exemplary embodiment of the present sorter the carrier (10) may be selected from a transport band, a conveyer belt, a retractable belt, a series of rotating cylinders, a grasp, and combination thereof.

In an exemplary embodiment of the present sorter the conveyor comprises may comprise at least one of a swivel element (26) for rotating, a conveyor arm support (24), and a vertically movable support (25) .

In an exemplary embodiment of the present sorter the conveyor arm may comprise a central element (22a) , one or two first extending elements (22b-c) , and optionally two-four second extend ^¬ ing elements (22d-e) , wherein each second extending element is adapted to extend with respect to an adjacent first extending element, and wherein each first extending element is adapted to extend with respect to the central element. When positioning an object in a receptacle or retrieving it therefrom the conveyor arm may be extended by moving the extending element (s) away from the central point or towards said central point, respectively.

In an exemplary embodiment of the present sorter each element of the conveyor arm may comprise independently selected one or more of a transport band, a conveyer belt, a series of rotating cylinders .

In an exemplary embodiment of the present sorter the conveyor may be adapted to move half a layer upwards and/or half a layer downwards and multitudes thereof. Typically the central layers of the stack of layers, or a bottom or top layer, are located half a layer above or below the carrier. Clearly a next layer is than located one layer higher or lower, respectively (see e.g. fig. 2) . The conveyer typically moves towards a position slight ly higher than a bottom level of a receptacle, such as 1 cm higher. In addition if the receptacle is partly filler the con veyor may move to a level slightly higher than the filled level. To that end the conveyor may comprise a photon generator, such as a LED, a photo cell for detecting reflected light, whereas the receptacle may have at in inner wall opposite to the central space an optical reflecting element. The conveyor typically moves in a step less manner. In an alternative a step motor is provided for precisely controlling vertical movement. In a fur ther alternative the conveyor is moved by changing a magnetic field.

In an exemplary embodiment of the present sorter the stack of layers may comprise 2-50 layers, preferably 3-30 layers, more preferably 4-20 layers, such as 5-10 layers.

In an exemplary embodiment of the present sorter each layer may comprise 3-50 receptacles, preferably 4-40 receptacles, more preferably 5-30 receptacles, even more preferably 6-25 recepta cles, such as 10-20 receptacles.

In an exemplary embodiment of the present sorter the recepta cles may be evenly distributed horizontally around the central point. The receptacles may be located in a circular mode, in a multigonal mode, such as a hexagonal mode, a heptagonal mode, an octagonal mode, a nonagonal mode, a decagonal mode, an undecago- nal mode, etc. The present storage area may as a consequence al so be of multigonal or circular shape.

In an exemplary embodiment of the present sorter each receptacle may be adapted for storing 2-20 objects, preferably a stack of objects. Such is especially suited for storing rela tively flat objects, such as linen and T-shirts. When all ob jects are similar or the same identification of the objects may be left out.

In an exemplary embodiment the present sorter may comprise a wireless and/or optical identifier, preferably capable of identifying one or more of an RFID, a near field communicator, a near infrared communicator, a bar code, and a two-dimensional code such as QR-code. As such objects entering or leaving the present sorter can be identified directly. In combination with tracking a location of the object can be established and is then known. Identification can be done manually, inserting information in a computer system, or automatically by barcode or chip reading or any other means.

In an exemplary embodiment of the present sorter the data re corder may be one or more of a computer, a remote SDD, and a re mote recorder. In an exemplary embodiment of the present sorter the central space may have a diameter of 0.3-7 m, preferably 1-5 m, such as 2-4 m.

In an exemplary embodiment of the present sorter the recepta cle may have an opening of 20-50 cm by 50-80 cm, such as 30-40 cm by 60-70 cm, preferably an opening at a side thereof (sideopening) , that is at the side facing the central space.

In an exemplary embodiment of the present sorter the receptacle may have a depth of 20-100 cm, such as 30-60 cm.

In an exemplary embodiment the present sorter may comprise at least one buffer for temporarily storing objects. The buffer may be located in the storage area or at a distance of said storage area. A buffer may be practical for improving logistics, such as a sequence, for addressing overflow, for emptying the buffer and storing when a flow of objects is relatively low, etc.

In an exemplary embodiment the present sorter may comprise a locking system, which locking system can be opened by a user up on providing a key and/or code. As such the present sorter may be accessible by a user at any time during the day; a user may collect his/her items by providing a (user) code and/or by using a key; such may be in a wireless mode. The user may even access the present sorter from an outside.

In a second aspect the present invention relates to a method of claim 15. It is noted that if sorters are placed in series or in parallel inserting may also independently relate to stack of objects .

In an exemplary embodiment of the present method the conveyor may rotate clockwise or counter clockwise from 0-90 degrees. As such the construction of the conveyor and method of operating can be simplified, as rotation is always limited.

In an exemplary embodiment of the present method for a receptacle located at an insert side (81) of the sorter the conveyor may transport the object in a backwards motion into the recepta cle. Likewise objects at the other side are transported in for ward motion.

In an exemplary embodiment of the present method two or more objects may be stacked in one receptacle. Therewith object can be combined, such as objects belonging to a same person or company . In an exemplary embodiment of the present method objects may be stacked in a receptacle in a predetermined order, and/or wherein objects are combined to a stack within one receptacle.

For instance, a stack of linen can be combined and sorted in a practical order.

In an exemplary embodiment of the present method objects may be selected from garments, folded garments, flat linen, letters, papers, packages, medicine packages, and goods.

In an exemplary embodiment of the present method objects may originate from a multitude of sources, and wherein object enter the sorter unsorted.

In an exemplary embodiment of the present method objects may be of different type and/or nature, and wherein a stack of objects of different type/nature may be provided.

In an exemplary embodiment of the present method objects may be buffered in the sorter.

In a third aspect the present invention relates to a use of the present sorter of claim 24. It is noted that if objects need not be sorter they may directly pass through the present sorter, hence a residence time in the sorter is limited, or skip the sorter all together. If stored, a storage time typically depends on other logistic factors, such as further objects to be optionally combined with, a scheduled delivery time, a scheduled fur ther process step, etc.

The one or more of the above examples and embodiments may be combined, falling within the scope of the invention.

FIGURES

Figures la-y: Top views of a schematic layout of the present sorter .

Figures 2a-v: Side views of a schematic layout of the present sorter.

Figure 3: schematic top view of the present sorters in series and in parallel.

Figures 4a-c: show a schematic layout of an exemplary conveyor.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

In the figures:

100 sorter

10 carrier

21 conveyor 21a central point of conveyor

22 conveyor arm

22a central element conveyor arm

22b-c first extending element conveyor arm

22d-e second and further extending element conveyor arm

23 swivel

24 conveyor arm support

25 lifting element

26 rotator

30 stack of layers

35 central space

40 receptacle

50 tracking device

60 data recorder

70 storage area

80 input opening; optional output opening

81 insert side

90 object

Figures la-y: Top views of a schematic layout of the present sorter. In figure la a number of receptacles 40 is shown. The present conveyor 21 comprising a conveyor arm 22 can move objects 90 from a carrier 10 to the receptacle. One object 90 is shown outside the present sorter. In figure lb the object 90 is entered into the sorter. A second object 90 already approaches the present sorter. The central point 21a of the conveyor, as well as first extending elements 22b, c, at a left and right side of the conveyor arm, are shown. Also indicated is the central space through which the objects can be transported and the conveyor can move. In figure 2c the object 90 is moved into the present sorter. Also the central element 22a of the conveyor arm is indicated. Of the stack of layers 30 one stack is visible, as the figure in this sense represent a cross/section of the sort er. In figure Id the conveyor is rotated. Also the storage area is indicated. When rotated over the required angle the object is entered into a receptacle by extending the conveyor arm in fig ure le. Also indicated is an insert side 81 at an internal side of the storage area. In figure If the rotation angles are indi cated by a double arrow. A second object 90 has now been en tered, whereas a further object 90 is waiting outside the pre- sent sorter. The second object is rotated in figure lg and transferred into a receptacle in figure Ih. A third object 90 is entered into the present sorter (fig. li) , rotated (fig. 1j ) and transferred to a receptacle (fig. Ik) . The conveyor is rotated back towards a "neutral" position, ready to receive a further object (fig. 11) . In reverse operation the conveyor is rotated (fig. lm) , an object is retracted from a receptacle (fig. In) , the conveyor is rotated to its neutral position (fig. lo) , and the object 90 is moved towards an output opening (fig. Ip) . The object 90 is transferred to a further carrier 10 (fig. lq) and then transferred over the carrier (fig. lr) . Also the conveyor is rotated towards a further object (fig. lq) and transferred to the conveyor arm (fig. lr) . Also the further object 90 is now transferred to the further carries (figs, ls-lv) . Finally the last object 90 is transferred from a receptacle towards the fur ther carrier (figs lu-ly) . Figure 1 shows amongst others rota tional aspects of the present sorter.

Figures 2a-v: Side views of a schematic layout of the present sorter. Figure 2 shows amongst others vertical aspects of the present sorter. In figure 2a the present sorter is shown. An in put opening 80 and an output opening 80 are shown; through the input opening an object 90 enters the sorter. A conveyor 21 in a central space, as well as a number of receptacles 40 are shown.

In figure 2b the object 90 is in the input opening. The central space 35 is indicated as well as the stack of layers (in this case 6, three above and three below the conveyor) and the storage area 70. In addition the carrier 10 both at a left and right side of the sorter is shown. In figure 2c also a tracking device 50 and a data recorder 60 are shown; the data recorder can be located close to or in the sorter, or can be in connection with the sorter. The object 90 has now entered the sorter. Also the stack of layers 30, i.e. in cross-section the right side there of, is shown. In figure 2d the object 90 is lifted by the con veyor to a height if a first stack layer above the level of the carrier. The object is then transferred into a receptacle in fig. 2e. In fig. 2f a second object 90 enters the sorter and is transferred to the conveyor in fig. 2g. The second object 90 is lifter in fig. 2h and placed on the first object in the receptacle in fig. 2i. In fig. 2j a third object enters the present sorter, which is moved to the conveyor, lifted and transferred to a receptacle (figs. 2j-k). The first two objects are then moved to the conveyor and transferred to the receptacle of the third object and stacked on the first object (figs. 21-p) . When required the three objects are then transferred to the conveyor and moved to the output where the (further) carrier transport the stack of objects to a further location.

Figure 3: schematic top view of the present sorters 100 in series and in parallel. At a left hand side a single sorter is shown which is in logistic connection with four further sorters which are located in parallel. Figure 3 schematically shows that the present sorter can form part of a logistic chain, wherein further sorters as well as other logistic elements may be pre sent, such as carriers, washing equipment, lining equipment, in take and output elements. Such a system incorporates sorters, which may handle single items, give an output of stacks, which may be the input for a next sorter, e.g. to sort a stack se quence. A capacity may be increased by operating in series and can further be increased by adding sorters for handling single items (modular design) . Assuming an average stack height of 4 items, the sorter in series could handle the output from 4 single item sorters.

Figures 4a-c show a schematic layout of an exemplary convey or. In fig. 4a a side view of a conveyor arm with a central ele ment 22a and two first extending elements 22b, c, a support 24 for the conveyor arm, a rotator 26, and a lift 25 are shown.

The rotator may be a swivel. The lift may be a cylindrical beam which can move step less in a vertical direction. Fig. 4b shows a top view of fig. 4b. Fig. 4c shows second extending elements 22d-e of the conveyor arm.

EXAMPLE

The invention is further detailed by the accompanying exam ple, which is exemplary and explanatory of nature and are not limiting the scope of the invention. To the person skilled in the art it may be clear that many variants, being obvious or not, may be conceivable falling within the scope of protection, defined by the present claims.

Example At a given receptacle- or tray-size (55 cmx35cm) a ring con tains 14 trays. A diameter of the system is 270 cm. By extending a central conveyor belt length from 55 cm to 100 cm the number of trays increases to 18. At a standard height per level or layer of 30 cm, 10 levels can be accommodated in a system with a height of 350 cm, resulting in 140 positions (or 180 respective ly) . By reducing the spacing to 15 cm, a number of layers can be increased to 20, resulting in a total of 280 positions (or 360 respectively) .

In the following sections a number of applications are given. Although the examples are especially suited for a laundry environment, applications are not limited to the laundry. With minor modifications the same system can be used in various industries and logistics applications.

Buffering items

In its simplest form the sorter can be used in a 2 dimension al configuration for vertically buffering items in a line be tween further machines, for instance between a folding and sealing/packing machine. Nowadays a machine line may stop, such as when there is a disturbance in the folding or packing machine, or when a new reel of foil has to be put in. By installing the vertical buffer a number of items can be buffered to overcome smaller disturbances. For a garment folding machine with an out put of 900 pcs/hr. and a maximum height of the folded garment of about 10 cm, a buffer with a height of 3.5 m can accommodate 60 items or equivalently buffer for 4 minutes. A capacity can be increased by adding a three-dimensional configuration comprising of a limited sorter with a width of 1.5 m and 6 positions per level, which constitutes 180 items or a buffer capacity of 12 minutes. With a full circular system, 280 items can be buffered.

Another position in the laundry line could be for making packages of different types of items coming from different machines: such as when creating packages of bedsheets, pillowcases and towels for a hospitality market. In such a case the opera tion of the different ironers might need to be synchronized. By application of a buffer the load can be balanced.

In this case no identification of items would be required.

Storage system The sorter can be used to store items. Items may need to be identified by barcode or RFID-chip. At the inlet of the machine, an item will be identified and fully automatically stored and retrieved. Storage in the stack of layers and racks or recepta cles could be randomly or according to preset loading rules. By selecting an article or barcode the item can be retrieved.

In such an application the footprint could be up to 5x5 m, and a height maximized to the height of the building (6 ). At a standard tray size, on 1 level may comprise 35 trays, with a working height of 15 cm per level, and the total number of re ceptacle then is 1400.

In such a case identification of items could be required.

Vending machine

A variation on a storage system is a vending machine. In this case the sorter is filled by an operator and a client can re trieve a garment by using a badge or log-in code and selecting the required item.

In such a case identification of items typically is required.

Such an application may be considered as an alternative for hospital garments: these are currently delivered as hanging gar ments, inserted in a carousel vending machine in the hospitals. Transporting hanging garments is considered an inefficient way of transport. Savings in handling and logistics can be obtained by folding and by automatically packing garments in trolleys. Automatic unloading of trolleys to feed the vending machine is another feature which increases productivity.

Batch sorting

The present sorter can fully automatically perform loading, sorting and unloading of the garments of a batch.

Continuous sorting

The present sorter is a simple alternative for the complex and expensive prior art systems. To meet the capacity require ments in terms of number of items to be sorted per hour and to cover the spread in residence time it may be required to operate with multiple sorter units.

Parallel operation

Sorting can be done according to any required sorting key. To manage larger volumes a capacity therefore can be matched by op- erating various sorter units in parallel.

Cascade operation

When sorting on parameters as customer and route it is also possible to operate sorter systems in series: in a first stage items are sorted on wearer/lockers/article/size level in stacks, while in a second stage the stacks of the first stage are sorted into to be followed routes. As the load of the second stage may depend on stack height a fraction of the first stage, can be fed to multiple units in a second stage for sorting on custom- er/route level.

Thus, a combination of parallel and series operation may be considered. For example, at an average stack height of 4 pieces a typical configuration for a large volume operation could be 4 parallel units, sorting on wearer/locker/article/size, and 1 unit in series to all 4 of the parallel units, to sort the stacks into the right customers/routes.