Nestable and stacking document sorter

Abstract

A document sorter has a pair of laterally spaced apart side support beams. Each beam has a front end and a rear end. A plurality of generally vertically oriented dividers is spaced apart from one another along the beams. Each divider traverses a space between the side support beams and includes a front divider, a rear divider, and an intermediate divider therebetween. A storage space is defined above the side support beams between each adjacent pair of dividers. Each of the plurality of dividers has a portion positioned above an inner most edge of each of the side support beams. That portion has a width that is less than the space between the side support beams adjacent that divider. Each divider has laterally opposed ends connected one each to a respective one of the side support beams. The sorter can be stacked upon and nested with multiple like sorters.

1 . A sorter comprising: 
 a pair of laterally spaced apart support beams, each support beam having a front end and a rear end;    a plurality of dividers generally vertically oriented spaced apart from one another, and oriented generally parallel to one another, each divider traversing a space between the support beams, the plurality of dividers including a front divider positioned near the front ends of the pair of support beams, a rear divider positioned near the rear ends of the pair of support beams and an intermediate divider therebetween; and    a storage space defined above the side support beams and between each adjacent pair of dividers,    wherein each of the plurality of dividers has at least a portion positioned above an innermost edge of each of the pair of support beams, the portion having a width that is less than the space between the support beams adjacent that divider, and wherein each divider has laterally opposed ends connected one each to a respective one of the support beams.    
   
   
       2 . The sorter of  claim 1 , wherein the laterally opposed ends are connected to the support beams below and laterally outward of the inner most edges of the support beams.  
   
   
       3 . The sorter of  claim 1 , wherein the pair of support beams is inclined upward toward the rear ends thereof.  
   
   
       4 . The sorter of  claim 1 , further including a rear leg extending from the rear end of each support beam, the rear leg being of sufficient height to elevate the rear end of the sorter relative to the front end of the sorter.  
   
   
       5 . The sorter of  claim 4 , including two rear legs, each substantially a continuation of the rear divider and located proximate the opposed ends of the rear divider.  
   
   
       6 . The sorter of  claim 1 , wherein each of the pair of support beams has an outer edge and the space between the inner edges of respective support beams is traversed only by the plurality of dividers.  
   
   
       7 . The sorter of  claim 6 , wherein each of the pair of support beams are curved in a radial direction between the respective inner most and outer edges of the support beams.  
   
   
       8 . The sorter of  claim 7 , wherein the support beam curvature is convex relative to top edges of the dividers.  
   
   
       9 . The sorter of  claim 7 , wherein the support beam curvature is concave relative to top edges of the dividers.  
   
   
       10 . The sorter of  claim 7 , wherein the inner most edge of each of the pair of support beams is at a different elevation relative to the laterally corresponding outer edge of the support beam at any position along the pair of support beams.  
   
   
       11 . The sorter of  claim 1 , wherein each divider in the plurality of dividers includes an upper arch surface.  
   
   
       12 . The sorter of  claim 11 , wherein each divider in the plurality of dividers includes a lower edge that follows substantially the same contour as the upper arch surface forming an open front of the respective divider beneath the lower edge.  
   
   
       13 . The sorter of  claim 1 , wherein the front divider has a generally solid front surface beneath an upper edge thereof.  
   
   
       14 . The document sorter of  claim 1 , wherein the front divider includes a generally linear bottom edge.  
   
   
       15 . The sorter of  claim 1 , wherein the plurality of dividers each includes a slight convex curvature in a lateral direction and relative to the front end of the sorter.  
   
   
       16 . The sorter of  claim 1 , wherein each divider in the plurality of dividers terminates at opposed lower ends and each opposed lower end includes a laterally extending foot and wherein each foot includes an upper edge that is joined to an underside of the corresponding support beam of the pair of support beams.  
   
   
       17 . The sorter of  claim 16 , wherein each foot extends completely from the outer edge to the inner most edge of the corresponding support beam.  
   
   
       18 . The sorter of  claim 17 , wherein the feet of the front divider close off the front ends of the pair of support beams.  
   
   
       19 . The sorter of  claim 17 , wherein the feet of the rear divider close off the rear ends of the pair of support beams.  
   
   
       20 . A stack of sorters, the stack comprising: 
 a plurality of sorters, each sorter including: 
 a pair of laterally spaced apart support beams, each support beam having a front end and a rear end;  
 a plurality of dividers generally vertically oriented spaced apart from one another, and oriented generally parallel to one another, each divider traversing a space between the support beams, the plurality of dividers including a front divider positioned near the front ends of the pair of support beams, a rear divider positioned near the rear ends of the pair of support beams and an intermediate divider therebetween; and  
 a storage space defined above the side support beams and between each adjacent pair of dividers,  
 wherein each of the plurality of dividers has at least a portion positioned above an innermost edge of each of the pair of support beams, the portion having a width that is less than the space between the support beams adjacent that divider, and wherein each divider has laterally opposed ends connected one each to a respective one of the support beams;  
   wherein a first sorter in the plurality of sorters is vertically stacked with a second sorter in the plurality of sorters and wherein the dividers of the second sorter are received upward within the storage spaces of the first sorter and the support beams of the second sorter underlie the support beams of the first sorter providing a nested configuration.    
   
   
       21 . The sorter of  claim 20 , wherein the front divider of the second sorter is positioned forward of the front divider of the first sorter and a rear leg of the second sorter is positioned forward of a rear leg of the first sorter.  
   
   
       22 . The sorter of  claim 21 , wherein each divider in the plurality of dividers terminates at opposed lower ends and each opposed lower end includes a laterally extending foot and wherein each foot includes an upper edge that is joined to an underside of the corresponding support beam of the pair of support beams.  
   
   
       23 . The sorter of  claim 22 , wherein lower edges of the foot of each divider of the first document sorter are flush with the bottom of the outer edge of the support beams and provide contact points which bear against the upper surface of the support beams of the second document sorter.  
   
   
       24 . The sorter of  claim 22 , wherein lower edges of the foot of each divider of the first document sorter are raised above the bottom of the outer edge of the support beams and provide contact points which bear against the upper surface of the support beams of the second document sorter allowing the support beams of the first document sorter to at least partially overlap the support beams of the second document sorter.  
   
   
       25 . The sorter of  claim 1 , wherein each of the pair of support beams is curved in both a longitudinal direction between the front and rear ends and laterally across a width of the pair of support beams.  
   
   
       26 . The sorter of  claim 1 , wherein each of the pair of support beams is flat laterally across a width between the innermost edge and an outer edge.  
   
   
       27 . The sorter of  claim 26 , wherein each of the pair of support beams is curved in a longitudinal direction between the front and rear ends of the pair of support beams.  
   
   
       28 . The sorter of  claim 1 , including a plurality of intermediate dividers.  
   
   
       29 . A method of stacking sorters comprising: 
 providing a plurality of sorters, each sorter including: 
 a pair of laterally spaced apart support beams, each support beam having a front end and a rear end,  
 a plurality of dividers generally vertically oriented spaced apart from one another, and oriented generally parallel to one another, each divider traversing a space between the support beams, the plurality of dividers including a front divider positioned near the front ends of the pair of support beams, a rear divider positioned near the rear ends of the pair of support beams and an intermediate divider therebetween, and  
 a storage space defined above the side support beams and between each adjacent pair of dividers,  
 wherein each of the plurality of dividers has at least a portion positioned above an innermost edge of each of the pair of support beams, the portion having a width that is less than the space between the support beams adjacent that divider, and wherein each divider has laterally opposed ends connected one each to a respective one of the support beams;  
 positioning a first one of a plurality of sorters vertically above and rearwardly offset relative to a second one of the plurality of sorters;  
 inserting each the plurality of dividers of the second sorter into a corresponding aligned one of the storage spaces of the first sorter; and  
 lowering the first sorter until it contacts a portion of the second sorter thereby providing a nested configuration.