JP3337978B2 - Paper transport device - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a paper conveying device used in a facsimile, a printer, a copying machine, a scanner, and the like.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, many paper transport devices used in facsimile machines, printers, copiers, scanner devices and the like have a manual feed tray exposed to the outside of the main body of the device.

FIG. 8 shows an example of a conventional printer provided with such a manual feed tray 10. As shown in FIG. 8A, generally, the paper P placed on such a manual feed tray 10 is provided below the exit side of the manual feed tray 10, and is urged upward by a pressure spring 21. The lift plate 20 and the separating member 31 provided on the lower side of the exit side of the manual tray 10 also serve to remove the manual tray 10.
In general, the sheet is pressed against the rotating sheet feed roller 30 on the upper side of the outlet side to be separated and fed into the apparatus main body 40. The paper P fed into the apparatus main body 40 is discharged to a discharge tray on the upper surface of the apparatus via a predetermined conveyance path indicated by a dashed line.

In such a paper transport apparatus, the apparatus body 4
The cover of the apparatus main body 40 is configured to be openable and closable, or a part of the paper conveyance system can be pulled out from the apparatus main body as a conveyance unit in order to expose the conveyance path in the apparatus 0 and perform the jam processing. Often configured.

[0005] In the printer shown in FIG. 8, as shown in FIG.
0 is drawn out to the front side of the apparatus (in the direction of the arrow in the figure). The printer is usually installed on the front side of the apparatus with a space for pulling out the paper cassette 51 disposed below the transport unit 50. Thus, the transport unit 50 is pulled out to the front side of the apparatus as described above. With this configuration, this space is used as a space for pulling out the transport unit 50, and the jam processing is easy.

[0006]

However, when a plurality of sheets P are placed on the manual feed tray 10 and the transport unit 50 is pulled out for jam clearance or the like, FIG.
As shown in (1), the paper P on the manual feed tray 10 is lifted by the lift plate 20 urged upward because the paper feed roller 30 is no longer restrained from above. It scatters on the upper surface. For this reason, after the jam processing, the transport unit 50
In order to reset the paper, the paper P
Must be re-bundled and set on the manual feed tray 10 again, and there is a problem that the operability of the jam processing is poor despite the unitization of the paper transport system for facilitating the jam processing. Was.

[0007] In the paper transporting apparatus configured to pull out the transport unit 50 to the front side of the apparatus together with the manual feed tray 10, when the paper P is set on the manual feed tray 10, the paper is supplied to the lift plate 20. Paper roller 3
0 to form a gap for setting the paper P.
There is a problem that the lift plate 20 must be manually pushed down, and the operability of the paper setting is also poor.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned problems, and has a configuration in which a transport unit is pulled out from an apparatus main body to perform a jam process, but when the transport unit is pulled out, sheets on a manual feed tray are separated. It is an object of the present invention to provide a sheet transporting device that prevents jamming, obtains high operability of jam clearance, and enhances operability of setting sheets on a manual feed tray.

[0009]

In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, a paper transport apparatus according to the present invention is provided with a manual feed tray which is exposed to the outside of an apparatus main body and on which paper is placed, A paper feed roller that rotates so as to feed the paper placed on the manual feed tray into the apparatus main body; and a paper feed roller that is provided below the manual feed tray exit side and is urged upward. A lift plate that can take a paper-supplied state in which the paper placed on the manual feed tray is pressed against the paper feed roller, and the paper feed roller and the lift plate A paper transport device for feeding the loaded paper into the apparatus main body and transporting the paper along a predetermined transport path, wherein at least a part of a paper transport system including the manual feed tray includes the apparatus main body. Outside The lift plate is configured as a transport unit that can be pulled out, and at least when the transport unit is pulled out of the apparatus main body, the lift plate is pressed down against an urging force that urges the lift plate upward. Is provided with a lift plate position control means for enabling the sheet to be set in the paper setting state (claim 1).

According to this structure, when the transport unit is pulled out of the apparatus main body to perform a jam processing or the like, the lift plate is pressed down by the lift plate position control means.
Since the sheet can be set, the sheets placed on the manual feed tray are prevented from being separated from the manual feed tray by the upwardly biased lift plate.

The lift plate position control means is provided on the side of the transport unit, and is pressed down by abutting the lift plate to urge the lift plate downward so that the paper can be set. When provided on the apparatus main body side and the transport unit is set in the apparatus main body,
A lifting member that releases the contact between the pressing member and the lift plate by engaging the pressing member and lifting the pressing member, and bringing the lift plate into the paper-feedable state. (Claim 2).

According to the lift plate position control means having such a configuration, when the transport unit is pulled out of the apparatus main body, the lift plate is pressed down by the pressing member urged downward so that the paper can be set. While the paper placed on the manual feed tray is prevented from being disintegrated, when the transport unit is set in the apparatus main body, the lifting member lifts the pressing member to lift the lift plate. Since there is no urging force for urging downward, the paper can be fed by being pressed against the paper feed roller by the upward urging force.

Further, even when the transport unit is set in the apparatus main body, the lifting member engages with the pressing member and lifts the pressing member, so that the pressing member and the lifting plate are brought into contact with each other. The lifting state in which the contact is released and the lift plate is in a paper-supplyable state, and the lifting state in which the lifting plate is lifted to lift the pressing member and the lifting plate is released by the downward urging force of the pressing member to release the lifting plate in a paper setting state It is desirable to be able to switch between the state and the state (claim 3).

As described above, if the lifting member is configured to be switchable between the lifting state and the releasing state, even when the transport unit is set in the apparatus main body, the lift plate is moved only when necessary. Can be brought into a state in which the sheet can be fed.

In particular, the lifting member is set in a lifting state in which the pushing-down member is lifted only when the transport unit is set in the apparatus main body and the paper on the manual feed tray is fed into the apparatus main body. With this configuration (Claim 4), the lift plate is in a state in which the lifted plate can be set down other than during paper feeding, so that high operability can be obtained for paper setting operation on the manual feed tray.

[0016]

FIG. 1 shows an embodiment of a sheet conveying apparatus according to the present invention. This paper transport device is applied to a printer, and a lower portion of the device is a transport unit 5.
It is configured so that it can be pulled out from the apparatus main body 40 to the apparatus front side as 0.

First, an outline of the configuration and operation of the entire apparatus will be described.

FIG. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view of the printer viewed from the left side. In this figure, the same components as those of the conventional apparatus shown in FIG. 8 are denoted by the same reference numerals, and a dashed line in the apparatus main body 40 indicates a paper transport path.

This apparatus includes a paper cassette 51 provided as a drawer at the bottom of the apparatus as a paper supply means,
Two manual trays 10 are provided on the front side of the apparatus so as to be openable and closable, and these are configured to be switchable according to a user's selection.

The paper set in the paper cassette 51 is
One sheet at the uppermost position is separated by the sheet feeding roller 33 and fed to the conveyance path, and the conveyance direction is U-turned by the reversing roller 52 to reach the registration roller pair 53. The registration roller pair 53 forms a bend in the sheet by stopping when the sheet is conveyed, and then starts rotating at a predetermined timing, so that the leading ends of the sheet are aligned to form the image forming unit. 54.

The image forming section 54 includes an exposure optical unit 542 on the upper side, a developing device unit 543 on the right side, and a transfer roller on the lower side of the photosensitive drum 541 disposed above the transport path. 544, a cleaning unit 545 is disposed on the left side. When the photosensitive drum 541 rotates in the sheet transport direction, the photosensitive drum 541 and the transfer roller 544 are rotated. A known image forming process is performed.

The sheet on which the image has been transferred is fixed by the fixing roller pair 55 and then further conveyed by the discharge roller pair 561 to be mounted outside the apparatus main body according to the switching state of the switching guide 57. The external discharge tray 58 or the second and third discharge roller pairs 562 and 5
The paper is discharged to any one of the upper discharge trays 59 in the upper part of the apparatus main body through 63.

On the other hand, the sheet set on the manual feed tray 10 is separated by the lift plate 20, the separating member 31, and the sheet feeding roller 30 into one sheet at the uppermost position, as described later in detail. After the image is formed by the same transporting procedure as the paper fed from the paper feed cassette 51 and fed to the transport path, the paper is discharged to the external discharge tray 58 or the upper discharge tray 59. ing.

In the paper transport apparatus (printer) configured as described above, the lower part of the apparatus including the paper cassette 51 and the manual feed tray 10 and indicated by a broken line in FIG. The device 50 is configured to be able to be pulled out of the apparatus main body 40 (see FIG. 1). As described above, in this apparatus, a part of the sheet conveyance system is configured to be able to be taken out from the apparatus main body 40 as the conveyance unit 50, so that the jam processing can be performed. Particularly, since the drawing direction of the transport unit 50 matches the drawing direction of the paper cassette 51, the paper cassette 51
Front side (right side in FIG. 2) that is a drawer space
This space can function as a space for pulling out the transport unit 50 at the time of jam processing, and the jam processing is particularly easy.

Next, a manual paper feed mechanism from the manual feed tray 10 will be described in detail with reference to FIGS.

FIG. 3 shows the structure around the manual feed tray 10. As shown in FIG.
0, a paper feed roller 30 and the paper feed roller 30
Member 31 urged upward so as to slide on
And a lift plate 20 provided below the paper feed roller 30.
A lifting plate pressing spring 21 for urging the lifting plate 20 upward, a pressing cam 22 for pressing down the lifting plate,
A tension spring 23 for urging the pressing cam 22 downward.
And a rotating cam (lifting member) 24 for driving the pressing cam 22 up and down.

FIG. 4 shows only components provided on the side of the transport unit 50 among the components around the manual feed tray 10. That is, FIG. 4 shows a state where the transport unit 50 is pulled out from the apparatus main body 40.

As shown in FIG.
Is rotatably attached to a rotating shaft 26 provided in the transport unit 50, so that it can be opened and closed with respect to the apparatus main body 40. The lift plate 20 provided on the lower side of the exit side of the manual feed tray 10 is rotatably mounted on the same rotation shaft 26 as the manual feed tray 10, and is urged upward from below by a lift plate pressing spring 21. I have. A push-down cam (press-down member) 22 is also rotatably attached to a rotating shaft 26 to which the manual feed tray 10 is attached, and is urged downward by a tension spring 23.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing the vicinity of the push-down cam 22. As shown in this figure, the push-down cam 22 is moved in the width direction of the lift plate 20 (horizontal direction orthogonal to the sheet conveyance direction).
As shown in FIG. 4, the push-down cam 22 has its leg 221 abutting against one end of the lift plate 20 from above, and the downward biasing force of the tension spring 23 causes the push-down cam 22 to move downward. The lift plate 20 is being pushed down.

The lift plate 20 thus depressed is
The inclination angle is substantially the same as that of the manual feed tray 10, and the end of the apparatus main body 40 is located below the abdomen 311 of the separating member 31. For this reason, even if the paper set on the manual feed tray 10 slides down to the outlet side (apparatus main body 40 side) due to the inclination of the manual feed tray 10 and the lifted lift plate 20, the abdomen 311 of the separating member 31.
And stays on the manual feed tray 10.

That is, according to this device, the lift plate 2
0 is urged by the lift plate pressing spring 21 so as to push up the sheet P. However, when the push-down cam 22 pushes down the lift plate 20 by the urging force of the tension spring 23, the transport unit 50 In the pulled-out state (FIGS. 4 and 5), the sheets set on the manual feed tray 10 are not scattered on the upper surface of the transport unit 50. Therefore, the operation when the transport unit 50 is pulled out to perform the jam processing is performed. The nature is high.

Next, returning to FIG. 3, a state in which the transport unit 50 thus configured is inserted into the apparatus main body 40 will be described.

As can be seen by comparing FIG. 3 with FIG. 4 described above, of the members shown in FIG.
And the rotating cam 24 formed in a substantially triangular shape
This is a member provided on the 0 side.

The paper feed roller 30 is in contact with a separating member 31 urged upward, and is rotatable so as to separate the sheet and feed the sheet to a transport path in the apparatus main body 40.

When the transport unit 50 is set in the apparatus main body 40, the rotating cam 24 rotates to a position where the upper end thereof is engaged with the lower surface of the upper edge 222 of the push-down cam 22 described above. 25. The mounting position of the rotary cam 24 with respect to the camshaft 25 is eccentric with respect to the rotation center of the camshaft 25 as shown in FIG. 3, and the rotary cam 24 rotates in accordance with the rotation of the camshaft 25. Thus, the height position of the upper end fluctuates up and down.

The cam shaft 25 is connected to a rotation drive mechanism of the paper feed roller 30 via a spring clutch mechanism (not shown), and rotates half a rotation (18) at a predetermined timing described later.
(Rotation by 0 degrees).

FIG. 3 shows a state in which the height of the upper end of the rotary cam 24 is at the lowest position. In this state, the upper end of the rotary cam 24 and the upper edge 222 of the push-down cam 22 are shown. A slight gap is formed between the lower surface. Accordingly, the push-down cam 22 pushes down the lift plate 20 by the downward urging force of the tension spring 23 in a manner similar to the state where the transport unit 50 shown in FIG. As described above, if the lift plate 20 is pushed down, it is possible to set the paper on the manual feed tray 10, and such a state is referred to as a “paper set ready state”. In the state where the transport unit 50 is pulled out, the lift plate 20 is always depressed and also in the “paper setting enabled state”.

FIG. 6 shows a state in which the camshaft 25 makes a half turn (180 degree rotation) from the state in FIG. In this state, the pressing cam 2
2, the lower surface of the upper edge 222 is lifted by the upper part of the rotary cam 24. When the push-down cam 22 is lifted upward, the lift plate 20, whose upper surface has been pressed by the leg portion 221 of the push-down cam 22, is pushed up by the upward urging force of the lift plate pressing spring 21, and FIG. As shown in (2), the paper feed roller 30 is pressed against the lower surface of the paper feed roller 30 located above it.

As described above, the lift plate 20 is connected to the paper feed roller 3
When the paper feed roller 30 is rotated in a state where the paper is pressed to 0, the paper set on the manual feed tray 10 is
The lift plate 20 and the paper feed roller 30 allow the apparatus body 4
The sheet is sent out to the zero side, further separated by the separating member 31 pressed against the sheet feeding roller 30 and the sheet feeding roller 30, and fed to the transport path in the apparatus main body 40. Therefore, such a lift plate 20 is connected to the sheet feeding roller 30.
The state where the sheet is pressed against is referred to as a “sheet feedable state”.

As described above, the rotation of the rotation shaft 24 by the rotation of the cam shaft 25 causes the depression cam 22 to rotate.
State in which the lift plate 20 can set the paper via (FIG. 3)
, And a paper-feedable state (FIG. 6).

In the configuration of the paper transporting apparatus, a push-down cam 22 urged so as to push down the lift plate 20, a rotary cam 24 having a function of lifting the push-down cam 22, and a rotary cam 24 are provided. The cam shaft 25 and the like that are driven to rotate form lift plate position control means.

Next, the timing of the operation of each part from the operation state of the rotary cam 24 by the rotation of the cam shaft 25 to the sheet feeding will be described.

FIG. 7 shows a timing chart of the operation of each unit. FIG. 7A shows the operation state of the rotary cam 24, and FIG.
7B shows the operation state of the push-down cam 22, FIG. 7C shows the operation state of the lift plate 20, and FIG. 7D shows the operation state of the paper feed roller.

As shown in this figure, when the height position of the upper end of the rotating cam 24 is low and the upper edge 222 of the push-down cam 22 is not lifted (released state) (the state of FIG. 3). The push-down cam 22 is in a state where the lift plate 20 is pushed down, and the lift plate 20 is pushed down in such a manner that the paper can be set. In this state, the sheet feeding roller 30 is in a stopped state, and the sheet feeding operation is not performed.

On the other hand, the height position of the upper end of the rotating cam 24 is increased by the half rotation (180-degree rotation) of the cam shaft 25, and the upper edge 222 of the push-down cam 22 is raised (lifted state). At some point (the state shown in FIG. 6), the push-down cam 22 is lifted upward, and is in a retracted state in which the force for pushing down the lift plate 20 is lost. Has become. In this state, the paper supply roller 30 is in a rotating (paper supply) state, and the paper on the manual feed tray 10 pressed against the paper supply roller 30 by the lift plate 20 is separated by the separation member 31, and the paper inside the apparatus main body 40 is removed. The paper feeding operation is being performed toward.

That is, in this apparatus, only when paper is fed by rotating the paper feed roller 30, the rotating cam 24 is in the lifted state, and the pushing cam 22 is lifted and the lift plate When the feeding unit 20 is in a paper-ready state and the paper is not fed, the rotating cam 24 is always in the released state, even when the transport unit 50 is pulled out from the apparatus main body 40. The push-down cam 22 pushes down the lift plate 20 so that the paper can be set.

Therefore, according to this apparatus, when the manual feed tray 10 is opened, it is not necessary to manually depress the lift plate 20 to form a space for setting the paper, and the paper is set on the manual feed tray 10. The operability when performing is high.

Further, regardless of whether the lift plate 20 is in the sheet settable state (the state shown in FIG. 3) or the sheet supply state (the state shown in FIG. 6), the transport unit is used for jam clearance or the like. When the pullout 50 is pulled out, the rotary cam 24 capable of lifting the push-down cam 22 is attached to the apparatus main body 40 side, so that the push-down cam 22 cannot be lifted, and the pull-down cam 22 is urged downward. The lift plate 20 is pushed down by the urging force of the spring 23, so that the sheet can always be set. Therefore, the sheets set on the manual feed tray 10 will not be scattered, and the operability of the jam processing will be high.

As described above, the present invention has been described with reference to the embodiment. However, the present invention is not limited to the above embodiment, and may be configured as follows. (1) In the above embodiment, the rotary cam 24 is formed in a substantially triangular shape, and the cam shaft 25 rotates half a turn (rotates 180 degrees)
The operation is switched between a lifting state in which the press-down cam (pressing member) 22 is lifted and a release state in which the lifting force is released. The shape of the rotary cam 24 is such that the press-down cam 22 is lifted. Any shape may be used as long as it can take a state to be released.
For example, the shape may be elliptical.

Furthermore, instead of switching between the lifted state and the released state by the rotation of the camshaft 26,
A configuration may be adopted in which a lifting state in which the pressing down cam (pressing down member) 22 is lifted by a lever member or the like that swings by a solenoid or the like and a releasing state in which the lifting force is released are switched. (2) In the above embodiment, the rotation drive source of the paper feed roller 30 is used as the drive source of the rotary cam 24 via the clutch. However, a drive source separate from the drive source of the paper feed roller 30 is used. May be used. Alternatively, a configuration in which a drive source such as another sheet transport roller is shared may be used. (3) In the above embodiment, when the transport unit 50 is pulled out of the apparatus main body 40, the paper set on the manual feed tray 10 is brought into contact with the abdomen 311 of the sorting member 31 by the leading end thereof. 10, a member different from such a separating member 31 is provided at a position in contact with the leading end of the paper on the manual feed tray 10, and the conveying unit 50 is pulled out of the apparatus main body by the other member. In such a case, the paper may be retained on the manual feed tray 10. (4) In the above-described embodiment, the printer in which the manual feed tray 10 is provided on the front surface (one side surface) of the apparatus main body 40 so as to be openable and closable is described as an example, but the present invention is not limited to the printer. However, the present invention is also applicable to facsimile machines, copiers, scanners, and the like, and is an apparatus provided with a manual feed tray 10 which cannot be opened or closed, or an apparatus provided with a manual feed tray 10 on the upper surface of the apparatus main body 40. Even can be applied.

[0051]

As described above, according to the paper transport apparatus of the present invention, when the transport unit is pulled out of the apparatus main body for performing a jam clearance or the like, the lift plate is pressed down by the lift plate pressing means. The paper loaded on the manual feed tray can be prevented from being separated from the manual feed tray by the lift plate that is urged upward. The operability of the jam processing performed by pulling out the sheet can be improved.

The lift plate pressing means is provided on the transport unit side, and is provided with a pressing member which is urged downward so that the lift plate can be set in a sheet setting state. When the transport unit is pulled out of the apparatus main body, the lift plate is pushed down by the push-down member so that paper can be set when the transport unit is pulled out of the apparatus main body. This prevents the paper placed on the manual feed tray from being unraveled, while the lifting unit raises the push-down member when the transport unit is set in the apparatus main body, thereby lifting the lift plate. The sheet can be fed, and the sheet feeding operation can be performed.

Further, even when the transport unit is set in the apparatus main body, the lifting member is brought into a lifting state in which the lifting member is engaged with the pressing member to lift the lifting member so that the lift plate can be fed. If the lifting state is released and the lift plate is configured to be switchable between a release state and a release state where the paper can be set, even when the transport unit is set in the apparatus main body, even when the paper is set, The operability of the paper setting can be enhanced by setting the paper setting enabled state.

In particular, the lifting member is in a lifting state in which the pressing member is lifted only when the transport unit is set in the apparatus main body and only when paper on the manual feed tray is fed into the apparatus main body. With this configuration, the lift plate is pushed down except during paper feeding, so that paper can be set on the manual feed tray at any time, and high operability in paper setting operation can be obtained.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic view illustrating an embodiment of a sheet conveying device according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view of the same device.

FIG. 3 is a longitudinal sectional view of a peripheral portion of a manual feed tray 10 of the apparatus.

FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram showing members provided on the same side of the transport unit 50;

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of a portion around a lift plate 20;

FIG. 6 is a vertical cross-sectional view showing a state where a sheet can be fed around a manual feed tray 10;

FIG. 7 is a timing chart of a sheet feeding operation in the apparatus.

FIG. 8 is a longitudinal sectional view showing an example of a sheet transport device applied to a conventional printer.

[Explanation of symbols]

 REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 10 manual feed tray 20 lift plate 21 lift plate pressing spring 22 pressing down cam (pressing down member) 23 tension spring 24 rotating cam 30 paper feed roller 31 separating member 40 device body 50 transport unit

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continuation of the front page (56) References JP-A-64-15764 (JP, A) JP-A-62-96230 (JP, A) JP-A-9-175667 (JP, A) JP-A-10-107 59556 (JP, A) JP-A-11-189338 (JP, A) JP-A-2-142750 (JP, U) (58) Fields investigated (Int. Cl. ⁷ , DB name) B65H 1/26 314 B41J 13/00 B65H 1/24 G03G 15/00 514

Claims (4)

(57) [Claims] 1. A manual tray that is exposed to the outside of the apparatus main body and on which sheets are placed, and is provided above the manual tray exit side, and the sheets placed on the manual tray are placed in the apparatus main body. A paper feed roller that rotates so as to feed paper and a paper feed roller that is provided below the manual feed tray exit side and is urged upward to press the paper placed on the manual feed tray against the paper feed roller. A lift plate capable of taking a paper-suppliable state, and feeding the paper placed on the manual feed tray into the apparatus main body by the paper feed roller and the lift plate; A paper transport device that transports along a transport path, wherein at least a part of a paper transport system including the manual feed tray is configured as a transport unit that can be pulled out of the apparatus main body, and at least the transport unit When the lift plate is pulled out of the apparatus main body, the lift plate is pressed down against the urging force for urging the lift plate upward, whereby the lift plate position control means for setting the lift plate to a paper setting ready state is provided. A paper transport device comprising: 2. A push-down member provided on the side of the transport unit, wherein the lift plate position control means is abutted against the lift plate and urged downward so that the lift plate can be set in the paper setting state. And provided on the apparatus main body side, when the transport unit is set in the apparatus main body, engages with the pressing member and lifts the pressing member, so that the pressing member and the lift plate 2. The sheet transport device according to claim 1, further comprising: a lifting member that releases the contact of the lift plate and brings the lift plate into the paper-feedable state. 3. The push-down member and the lift plate, wherein the lifting member engages with the push-down member to lift the push-down member when the transport unit is set in the apparatus main body. Lifting the lifting plate to release the contact with the lifting plate and the lifting plate to lift the pressing member, thereby releasing the lifting plate by the downward urging force of the pressing member. 3. The sheet conveying device according to claim 2, wherein the sheet conveying device is configured to be able to switch between a state in which the sheet can be set and a release state. 4. The lifting member assumes the lifting state only when the transport unit is set in the apparatus main body and when paper on the manual feed tray is fed into the apparatus main body. 4. The paper transport device according to claim 3, wherein the paper transport device is configured as described above.