Insertion control
View Patent ↗According to the invention, an insertion system for collating sheets of printed material for insertion into an envelope is disclosed. The insertion system includes an insertion machine, application software and an operating system. Included in the application software is a first function and a second function, where the first function performs tracking for each packet and the second function controls operation of the insertion machine. Each packet includes a plurality of pieces of printed material that may ultimately be sealed in an envelope. The operating system runs the application software at any given instant and executes the first and second functions.
1. An insertion system for collating sheets of printed material for insertion into an envelope, the insertion system comprising:
an insertion machine comprising a conveyor and a plurality of insertion stations for placing printed materials onto the conveyor to form packets; and
application software that comprises a first function and a second function; and
an operating system for running the application software at any given instant, wherein:
the first function performs tracking for each packet as it passes along the conveyor, and
the second function controls operation of the insertion machine, wherein the first and second functions are executed with the operating system.
2. The insertion system for collating sheets of printed material for insertion into the envelope as recited in claim 1 , wherein the insertion machine operates in a range of 3,000 to 20,000 packets per hour.
3. The insertion system for collating sheets of printed material for insertion into the envelope as recited in claim 1 , wherein the tracking includes correlating at least one of the plurality of pieces to a packet.
4. The insertion system for collating sheets of printed material for insertion into the envelope as recited in claim 1 , wherein the insertion machine includes a piece inserter, a transport track, and an envelope stuffer.
5. The insertion system for collating sheets of printed material for insertion into the envelope as recited in claim 1 , wherein:
a third function, that is part of the application software, tracks an operators interaction with the insertion machine, and
the third function is executed with the operating system.
6. The insertion system for collating sheets of printed material for insertion into the envelope as recited in claim 5 , wherein the third function stores information relating to an operator in a remote operator database.
7. The insertion system for collating sheets of printed material for insertion into the envelope as recited in claim 1 , further comprising a scanner for reading a code from one of the plurality of pieces.
8. The insertion system for collating sheets of printed material for insertion into the envelope as recited in claim 1 , wherein:
the second function performs machine control, and
the operating system is a consumer grade operating system without native real-time capability.
9. The insertion system for collating sheets of printed material for insertion into the envelope as recited in claim 1 , wherein:
the application software further comprises a maintenance request function that reports maintenance issues for the insertion machine to a point away from the insertion machine, and
the maintenance request function is executed with the operating system.
10. The insertion system for collating sheets of printed material for insertion into the envelope as recited in claim 1 , wherein:
the first function is performed by a first application,
the second function is performed by second application, and
the first and second applications are part of the application software.
11. An insertion system for collating pieces of printed material for insertion into an envelope, the insertion system comprising:
an insertion machine comprising a conveyor and a plurality of insertion stations for placing printed materials onto the conveyor to form packets; and
an insertion control function for controlling operation of the insertion machine;
a job tracking function for tracking each packet through the insertion machine and along the conveyor;
an operating system for running application software, wherein:
the application software performs the insertion control and job tracking functions, and
the application software is executed with the operating system.
12. The insertion system for collating pieces of printed material for insertion into the envelope as recited in claim 11 , wherein the insertion machine operates in a range of 3,000 to 20,000 packets per hour.
13. The insertion system for collating pieces of printed material for insertion into the envelope as recited in claim 11 , wherein the job tracking function includes correlating at least one of the plurality of pieces to a packet.
14. The insertion system for collating pieces of printed material for insertion into the envelope as recited in claim 11 , wherein the insertion machine includes a piece inserter, a transport track, and an envelope stuffer.
15. The insertion system for collating pieces of printed material for insertion into the envelope as recited in claim 11 , further comprising an operator tracking function, that is part of the application software and tracks an operators interaction with the insertion machine.
16. The insertion system for collating pieces of printed material for insertion into the envelope as recited in claim 15 , wherein the operator tracking function stores information relating to an operator in a remote operator database.
17. The insertion system for collating pieces of printed material for insertion into the envelope as recited in claim 11 , wherein the operating system is a consumer-grade operating system without native real-time.
18. The insertion system for collating pieces of printed material for insertion into the envelope as recited in claim 11 , wherein the application software further comprises a maintenance request function that reports maintenance issues for the insertion machine to a point away from the insertion machine.
19. A method for inserting pieces of printed material into an envelope with an insertion machine running an operating system, the method comprising steps of:
monitoring functions of the insertion machine while the insertion machine operates, wherein the insertion machine comprises a conveyor and a plurality of insertion stations for placing printed materials onto the conveyor to form packets;
commanding functions of the insertion machine while it operates;
tracking a plurality of pieces of printed material through the insertion machine and along the conveyor while it operates, wherein:
at least two of plurality of pieces are correlated to different envelopes, and
at least the tracking step and one of the monitoring and commanding steps are performed with the operating system.
20. The method for inserting pieces of printed material into the envelope with the insertion machine running the operating system as recited in claim 19 , wherein the preceding steps are performed without using a real-time operating system.
21. The method for inserting pieces of printed material into the envelope with the insertion machine running the operating system as recited in claim 19 , wherein the tracking step comprises correlating at least one of the plurality of pieces to a packet.
22. The method for inserting pieces of printed material into the envelope with the insertion machine running the operating system as recited in claim 19 , further comprising at least one of the following steps:
tracking an operators interaction with the insertion machine; and
reporting maintenance issues for the insertion machine to a point away from the insertion machine.
23. A computer-readable medium having computer-executable instructions for performing the computer-implementable method for inserting pieces of printed material into the envelope with the insertion machine running the operating system of claim 19 .