Letter Insertion Device

Abstract

To provide a posting device that can prevent a package from being wet even in a case where it is installed outdoor.SOLUTION: A posting device 1 includes an enclosure 2 having a posting port 11 for a package P. The enclosure 2 has a front surface part 3 provided with the posting port 11, a rear surface part 4 positioned on the side opposite to the front surface part 3, and a top surface part 6 on which the package P can be placed temporarily. The top surface part 6 is an inclined surface 21 inclined downward from the front surface part 3 side to the rear surface part 4 side. A package placing rod extending in a direction that connects the front surface part 3 and the rear surface part 4 is provided for the inclined surface 21.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a mailing device.

Background Art

[0002] As a conventional mailing device, there is, for example, the mailing device described in Patent Document 1. This conventional mailing device is a so-called delivery box, which is mainly installed at the entrance of a house, a fence, etc., and is configured as a device for a delivery company to mail packages such as small parcels. The device has opening / closing plates on both the outdoor side and the indoor side. The outdoor opening / closing plate is provided with a locking device that can be locked from the outdoor side and unlocked from the indoor side. The indoor opening / closing plate is provided with a locking device that can be locked and unlocked only from the indoor side.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] In recent years, with the spread of the Internet, the modes of delivery have diversified, such as the shipping of items through online sales and the shipping of items through online auctions between individuals. Conventional mailing devices have been installed indoors, such as in affiliated stores or within station premises, but in view of improving user convenience, it has been considered to install the mailing device outdoors.

[0005] On the other hand, when installing the mailing device outdoors, it is conceivable that the device will be exposed to rain. When a user uses the mailing device to mail a package, certain operations such as operating the mailing device and preparing for delivery will occur. Therefore, considering the environment where the package may get wet due to rain, etc., it is necessary to facilitate the convenience of the user.

[0006] The present disclosure has been made to solve the above problems, and an object thereof is to provide a mailing device capable of suppressing wetting of packages even when installed outdoors in the rain or the like.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0007] The mailing device according to one aspect of the present disclosure includes a housing having a package mailing opening. The housing has a front portion provided with the mailing opening, a rear portion located on the opposite side of the front portion, and a top portion on which packages can be temporarily placed. The top portion is an inclined surface that slopes downward from the front portion side toward the rear portion side, and a package support bar extending in a direction connecting the front portion and the rear portion is provided on the inclined surface.

[0008] In this mailing device, while the user is operating the mailing device or preparing for delivery, it is possible to temporarily place the package on the top portion of the housing, improving the convenience for the user. Since the top portion is an inclined surface that slopes downward from the front portion side toward the rear portion side, even when the mailing device is installed outdoors and exposed to rain, the water on the top portion can be quickly drained to the rear portion side. In addition, the package support bar provided on the inclined surface can hold the package in a state of being lifted from the top portion. Therefore, even if water adheres to the top portion, it is possible to prevent the package from getting wet.

[0009] At least two package support bars may be provided at a predetermined interval. In this case, the package can be held more stably in a state of being lifted from the top portion. Therefore, it is possible to more reliably prevent the temporarily placed package from getting wet in the rain or the like.

[0010] The package support bar may extend to at least one of the edge on the front portion side and the edge on the rear portion side of the inclined surface. In this case, the package can be held more stably in a state of being lifted from the top portion. Therefore, it is possible to more reliably prevent the temporarily placed package from getting wet in the rain or the like.

[0011] The cross-sectional shape of the load-bearing bar may be semi-circular. In this case, the contact area between the temporarily placed luggage and the load-bearing bar can be reduced. Also, since the cross-sectional shape of the load-bearing bar flares towards the top surface, water adhering to the load-bearing bar can flow quickly. Therefore, the wetting of the luggage can be more effectively suppressed.

Advantages of the Invention

[0012] According to the present disclosure, even when installed outdoors, it is possible to prevent luggage from getting wet due to rain or the like.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0013]

Figure 1

Figure 2

Figure 3

Figure 4

Modes for Carrying Out the Invention

[0014] Hereinafter, with reference to the drawings, a preferred embodiment of a mailing device according to one aspect of the present disclosure will be described in detail.

[0015] Fig. 1 is a front view of a mailing device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. Fig. 2 is a side view thereof. The mailing device 1 shown in Figs. 1 and 2 is configured as a device for collecting luggage P such as documents and items. The mailing device 1 is managed, for example, by a delivery operator and is installed outdoors such as on the premises of a store or in a parking lot.

[0016] As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the mailing device 1 has a housing 2 made of, for example, metal. The housing 2 has a front portion 3, a rear portion 4, a pair of side portions 5, 5, a top portion 6, and legs 7, and has a generally vertically elongated rectangular parallelepiped shape as a whole. The height of the housing 2 (the position of the top portion 6) is set to be, for example, at the level of an adult's chest.

[0017] The housing 2 is provided with a mailing opening 11 for the package P and an accommodation space V for the collection box B that receives the package P mailed through the mailing opening 11. The mailing opening 11 is provided at a position slightly higher than the center in the height direction of the front portion 3, for example, in consideration of the convenience of mailing the package P. A lid portion 12 is provided at the mailing opening 11. The opening and closing of the lid portion 12 are controlled by an electronic lock (not shown) built into the housing 2, and it is normally in a closed state except during authentication.

[0018] The accommodation space V of the collection box B is set as the space from a position lower than the mailing opening 11 to the legs 7 inside the housing 2. The collection box B is, for example, a bottomed box-shaped member with an open upper surface. The collection box B is composed of, for example, plastic corrugated cardboard. A collection door 13 is provided at the front portion 3 corresponding to the accommodation space V. The collection door 13 can be unlocked by a mechanical key such as a cylinder key, and is opened when a delivery operator retrieves the package P from the collection box B in the accommodation space V.

[0019] An operation panel 14 is provided above the housing 2 at a position higher than the mailing opening 11. The operation panel 14 is provided with, for example, a touch panel 15, a barcode reader (reception unit) 16, an output port 17 of a label printer, and the like. The touch panel 15 is a part that, for example, displays instructions on the use of the mailing device 1 for the user and receives various input items.

[0020] The barcode reader 16 is a part for reading a two-dimensional barcode (authentication information) used for, for example, user authentication. The two-dimensional barcode is issued to the user from a system managed by a delivery company when using the mailing device 1 and is pre-transmitted to a smartphone or the like owned by the user. The information of the two-dimensional barcode read by the barcode reader 16 is transmitted to the system managed by the delivery company. When the collation of the two-dimensional barcode information is completed, completion information indicating that the collation is completed, delivery information indicating the sender and the recipient, etc. are transmitted to the mailing device 1. When the completion information is received, the lid portion 12 of the mailing port 11 is opened by the electronic lock for a certain period of time.

[0021] The output port 17 of the label printer is a part for outputting a delivery note used for the delivery of the package P. When the collation of the two-dimensional barcode information is completed, a delivery note with the sender and the recipient printed thereon is output from the output port 17 of the label printer based on the delivery information transmitted together with the completion information. The user can complete the delivery procedure by attaching the output delivery note to the package P and then mailing the package P into the mailing port 11.

[0022] The top surface portion 6 of the housing 2 located above the operation panel 14 can be used as a temporary package placement area. The user can proceed with the work with the package P placed on the top surface portion 6 of the housing 2 from the reading of the two-dimensional barcode until the package P is mailed into the mailing port 11.

[0023] Next, the configuration of the top surface portion 6 of the housing 2 described above will be described in more detail.

[0024] As described above, the top surface portion 6 of the housing 2 serves as a temporary luggage placement area and is configured to allow temporary placement of the luggage P. In the present embodiment, the top surface portion 6 of the housing 2 is configured to be flat. Considering that the mailing device 1 is installed outdoors and exposed to rain, as shown in FIG. 2, the top surface portion 6 is an inclined surface 21 that slopes downward from the front portion 3 side toward the rear portion 4 side. The inclination angle of the inclined surface 21 with respect to the horizontal plane is, for example, 2° to 5° based on the balance between the ease of placing the luggage P and the ease of water flowing on the top surface portion 6.

[0025] On the inclined surface 21, there is provided a luggage placement bar 22 extending in the direction connecting the front portion 3 and the rear portion 4. In the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 1, two luggage placement bars 22, 22 are arranged in parallel with a predetermined interval in the width direction of the housing 2 (the direction connecting the side surface portions 5, 5). There is no particular limitation on the interval between the luggage placement bars 22, 22, but it is appropriately set in consideration of the number of arranged luggage placement bars 22 and the assumed dimensions of the luggage P (or the lateral width of the mailing opening 11).

[0026] Each of the luggage placement bars 22 has a semi-circular cross-section (see FIG. 1) and extends to the edge 3a on the front portion 3 side and the edge 4a on the rear portion 4 side of the inclined surface 21 in a state orthogonal to the front portion 3 and the rear portion 4. The height of the luggage placement bar 22 from the inclined surface 21 is constant from the edge 3a on the front portion 3 side to the edge 4a on the rear portion 4 side. That is, the height of the luggage placement bar 22 with respect to the horizontal plane gradually decreases from the edge 3a on the front portion 3 side to the edge 4a on the rear portion 4 side according to the inclination of the inclined surface 21.

[0027] In the mailing device 1 as described above, while the user operates the mailing device 1 or prepares for delivery, it is possible to temporarily place the package P on the top surface portion 6 of the housing 2, improving the convenience for the user. Since the top surface portion 6 is an inclined surface 21 that slopes downward from the front surface portion 3 side toward the back surface portion 4 side, even when the mailing device 1 is installed outdoors and exposed to rain, the water on the top surface portion 6 can be quickly drained to the back surface portion 4 side. Since the water on the top surface portion 6 does not easily flow toward the front surface portion 3 side, it is also possible to prevent the user who operates the mailing device 1, etc. from getting wet by the water flowing on the front surface portion 3. Also, the package P can be held in a state of being lifted from the top surface portion 6 by the package support bar 22 provided on the inclined surface 21. Therefore, it is possible to more surely prevent the temporarily placed package P from getting wet by rain or the like.

[0028] In the mailing device 1, two package support bars 22 are arranged at a predetermined interval. Thereby, the package P can be held more stably in a state of being lifted from the top surface portion 6. Therefore, it is possible to more surely prevent the temporarily placed package P from getting wet by rain or the like. In the mailing device 1, the package support bars 22 extend to the edge 3a on the front surface portion 3 side and the edge 4a on the back surface portion 4 side in the inclined surface 21. This also contributes to the stable holding of the package and can enhance the effect of preventing the temporarily placed package from getting wet by rain or the like.

[0029] In the mailing device 1, the cross-sectional shape of the package support bar 22 is semi-circular. With such a configuration, the contact area between the temporarily placed package P and the package support bar 22 can be reduced. Also, since the cross-sectional shape of the package support bar 22 flares toward the top surface portion 6, it is possible to quickly drain the water adhering to the package support bar 22. Therefore, it is possible to more effectively prevent the package P from getting wet.

[0030] The present disclosure is not limited to the above-described embodiment. For example, in the above-described embodiment, the package support bar 22 having a semi-circular cross-sectional shape is exemplified, but the cross-sectional shape of the package support bar 22 can adopt various modifications. For example, as shown in FIG. 3(a), a package support bar 22A having a triangular cross-sectional shape may be used, or as shown in FIG. 3(b), a package support bar 22B having a semi-elliptical cross-sectional shape may be used. As shown in FIG. 3(c), a package support bar 22C having an isosceles trapezoid cross-sectional shape may be used.

[0031] The cross-sectional shape of the load placement bar 22A is an equilateral triangle, but it may also be other triangular shapes such as an isosceles triangle. The cross-sectional shape of the load placement bar 22B is a semi-elliptical shape divided into two along the major axis, but it may also be a semi-elliptical shape divided into two along the minor axis. In the former case, the stability when placing the load P is increased, and in the latter case, the attached water can flow quickly.

[0032] Also, in the above embodiment, the two load placement bars 22, 22 extend to the edge 3a on the front part 3 side and the edge 4a on the back part 4 side in the inclined surface 21 in a state orthogonal to the front part 3 and the back part 4, but various modifications can be adopted for the arrangement mode of the load placement bars 22. For example, as shown in FIG. 4(a), the two load placement bars 22, 22 may extend obliquely with respect to the front part 3 and the back part 4. According to such a configuration, the direction of the water from the top surface part 6 to the back part 4 can be adjusted.

[0033] The load placement bar 22 does not necessarily have to extend to both the edge 3a on the front part 3 side and the edge 4a on the back part 4 side in the inclined surface 21. The load placement bar 22 may extend to at least one of the edge 3a on the front part 3 side and the edge 4a on the back part 4 side in the inclined surface 21. It is preferable that at least two load placement bars 22 are provided at a predetermined interval, and three or more may be arranged. The load placement bars 22 do not necessarily have to be continuously in a straight line, and may be provided in a broken line shape or a dotted line shape.

[0034] Also, in the above embodiment, the height of the load placement bar 22 from the inclined surface 21 is constant from the edge 3a on the front part 3 side to the edge 4a on the back part 4 side, but as shown in FIG. 4(b), the height of the load placement bar 22 from the inclined surface 21 may gradually increase from the edge 3a on the front part 3 side to the edge 4a on the back part 4 side. In this case, by making the height of the load placement bar 22 with respect to the horizontal plane constant in the extending direction of the load placement bar 22, the stability when placing the load P can be enhanced.

[0035] In addition, in the above-described embodiment, the top surface portion 6 of the housing 2 is flat, but the top surface portion 6 of the housing 2 does not necessarily have to be flat. The top surface portion 6 may have unevenness or curvature within a range where the package P can be temporarily placed.

[0036] The gist of the present disclosure is as follows in [1] to [4] below. [1] A mailing device including a housing having a mail slot, the housing having a front portion provided with the mail slot, a rear portion located on the opposite side of the front portion, and a top surface portion on which the package can be temporarily placed, the top surface portion being an inclined surface that slopes downward from the front portion side toward the rear portion side, and a load bar extending in a direction connecting the front portion and the rear portion being provided on the inclined surface. [2] The mailing device according to [1], wherein at least two load bars are provided at a predetermined interval. [3] The mailing device according to [1] or [2], wherein the load bar extends to at least one of an edge on the front portion side and an edge on the rear portion side in the inclined surface. [4] The mailing device according to any one of [1] to [3], wherein a cross-sectional shape of the load bar is a semicircle.

Description of Reference Numerals

[0037] 1... mailing device, 2... housing, 3... front portion, 3a... edge, 4... rear portion, 4a... edge, 6... top surface portion, 11... mail slot, 21... inclined surface, 22, 22A to 22C... load bars, P... package.

Claims

1. A mailing device comprising a housing having a mail slot for articles. The housing has a front portion provided with the mail slot, a rear portion located on the opposite side of the front portion, and a top portion on which the articles can be temporarily placed. The top portion is an inclined surface that slopes downward from the front portion side toward the rear portion side. The inclined surface is provided with a loading bar extending in a direction connecting the front portion and the rear portion for the mailing device.

2. The mailing device according to claim 1, wherein at least two loading bars are provided at a predetermined interval.

3. The mailing device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the loading bar extends to at least one of an edge on the front portion side and an edge on the rear portion side of the inclined surface.

4. The mailing device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the cross-sectional shape of the loading bar is semi-circular.

5. The mailing device according to claim 3, wherein the cross-sectional shape of the loading bar is semi-circular.

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