Apparatus with a pluggable scale module

US7208688B2 · kind B2 · utility

Assignee

• Francotyp-Postalia GmbH · DE

Inventors

• Joachim Jauert · Berlin, DE
• Axel Ortmann · Berlin, DE
• Tilmann Schilling · Berlin, DE

Key dates

• Filing date: Jul 5, 2005
• Grant date: Apr 24, 2007
• Expiry date: Sep 27, 2025

Classification

• Technology area (CPC G): Physics
• CPC primary: G07B2017/00701
• WIPO field: Control
• WIPO sector: Instruments

Abstract

An apparatus, such as mail processing apparatus, has a housing with a cavity therein, a grounded metal chassis in the housing, an electronics mainboard in the housing having a first plug and contact arrangement, with a scale module that is pluggable into the cavity of the housing. The scale module has a base plate having a grounding arrangement, and a load cell and weighing electronics both mounted on the base plate. The weighing electronics has a second plug and contact arrangement that mates with the first plug and contact arrangement when the scale module is plugged into the cavity. A metal part in the housing is mechanically connected to the chassis and has a plate part that protrudes into the cavity. This plate part makes planar electrical contact with the grounding arrangement of the base plate, to produce a grounding path for the base plate, substantially immediately at the beginning of the act of plugging the scale module into the cavity.