GB2176770A

GB2176770A - Zig-zag stacker for continuous stationery

Info

Publication number: GB2176770A
Application number: GB08613228A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Ian Geoffrey Kershaw
Original assignee: Xerox Corp
Current assignee: Xerox Corp
Priority date: 1985-06-24
Filing date: 1986-05-30
Publication date: 1987-01-07
Also published as: JPS6227275A; GB8515939D0; GB8613228D0

Abstract

Apparatus for restacking a fan-fold documents for use as an integral accessory with a xerographic or other copier, has an upwardly-output tray 10 with a ledge 12 at its lower edge 11a for locating the bottom edge of the stacked document. The document is fed into the tray from a horizontal baffle 1 via an upwardly-inclined ramp 3 which preferably is rounded at its highest level 7. The output tray 10 is arranged so that its lower edge 11a is at a level below the top of the ramp, preferably below the horizontal baffle 1 and is spaced forward of the ramp 3 in the direction of document feed, and its upper edge is at a level above the horizontal baffle 1. <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION Restacking apparatus This invention relates to apparatus for restacking a fan-fold document particularly, but not exclusively, intended for use with a xerographic or other copier capable of handling such a document.

In the present context the term fan-fold refers to a document having a continuous form and prefolded with folds extending in the width direction at equal intervals along the length of the document. Each pair of folds thus defines a page or sheet and the document can be stacked by making alternate folds backwards and forwards in the manner of a fan so that all the sheets are arranged in face-to-face relationship. Printers for computers frequently use fan-fold documents which are known in the art as computer fanfold (CFF). Usually OFF is perforated along the folds.

Xerographic copiers are known which have document handlers capable of operating with OFF but a difficulty arises in restacking (i.e. in original format) the OFF as it is ejected from the document handler. In fact it is common practice to restack the document on the floor or in a container near the floor, below the output end of the document handler.

US Patent No. 4 086 007 discloses copier which has adjacent a horizontal platen in the document feed path an upwardly inclined tray for collecting original OFF documents. Also, an upwardly inclined tray is provided downstream and at a level below an upwardly inclined ramp in the copy sheet path for collecting OFF copy sheets.

According to the present invention there is provided apparatus for restacking a fan-fold document, comprising means for feeding the document from a substantially horizontal path along an upwardly-inclined ramp onto an upwardly-inclined support surface, the support surface being disposed such that its lower part is at a level below the top of the ramp and its upper part is at a level above said horizontal path, abutment means being provided at the lower edge of the support surface for locating the bottom edge of the restacked document.

This fan-fold document stacking apparatus has the advantage that the support surface on which the document is restacked can be ar ranged at a convenient height for access by the operator leaving the floor space clear, and does not require any additional transport means to convey the document to the restacking apparatus. Moreover, when used in conjunction with a xerographic or other copier having for example a stacker or other device for collating and/or finishing copy sheets, the support surface may be located directly above the stacker itself thereby minimising the overall volume of the copying machine. Suitably the apparatus may be formed as a separate unit supported by, but removable from, the sorter or finisher.Furthermore, unlike many prior art arrangements, this apparatus is not limited to operate with a particular OFF document, but is capable of handling a range of sheet sizes and weights and at relatively high operating speeds, typically 300-400 mms-'.

An embodiment of the invention will now be described, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings in which: Figure 1 is a schematic sectional view of apparatus for restacking a fan-fold document in accordance with the present invention, Figure 2 is a front elevation of the ramp portion of the apparatus in Fig. 1 and, Figures 3a-3e are diagrammatic representations showing various stages in the operation of the restacking apparatus of Figs. 1 and 2.

Referring to Fig. 1, the restacking apparatus comprises a horizontal fixed baffle 1 disposed at the output end of a pair of driven nip rolls 2. The nip rolls 2 suitably are the output rolls of a document handler in a xerographic copier and are arranged to feed a fan-fold document from right to left as shown in Fig. 1. The feed speed may be, for example, 300-400 mms-'.

It is noted that the nip rolls 2 shown and described herein are merely exemplary, and it will be evident to a person skilled in the art that other forms of sheet transport means may alternatively be employed, for example an endless rotating friction belt coacting with a stationary surface such as the platent of the copier.

Disposed on the left-hand side of the baffle 1 is an upwardly-inclined ramp 3 comprising a sloping portion 4 integral with the baffle 1. To the left of portion 4 is an integral plateau portion 5 extending therefrom. Mounted on the plateau portion 5 is a parallel array of, for example nine, upstanding substantially right-triangular vanes 6 (see also Fig. 2) provided with rounded uppermost portions 7. The sloping sides 6a of the vanes 6 are arranged to lie in the same plane as the sloping portion 4.

The sloping portion 4 and the vanes 6 thus together form the ramp 3 which is inclined at between 10 and 18 with respect to the horizontal. The preferred angle of inclination for the ramp is 14 .

To the left of the ramp 3 is a tray 10 for collecting a fan-fold document to be restacked, comprising a support face 11 inclined at between 30 and 40 and preferably at 35 with respect to the horizontal. The bottom edge 1 lea of the support face 11 is at a level lower than the horizontal baffle 1 and, taken in the direction of sheet feed, is spaced for ward of the ramp by approximately 3cm. The upper portion of the support surface 11 extends to a level above the horizontal baffle 1 and above the top of the ramp 3. In use with a xerographic copier having a sorter the tray 10 can be supported at its lower edge 1 lea on the top surface 15 of the sorter's outer cabinet.An upwardly-inclined ledge 12 is present along the bottom edge of the support face 11. The ledge 12 has at its uppermost portion a horizontal lip 1 2a which is secured to the plateau portion 5 so that the whole stacking apparatus forms an integral unit which suitably may be removable from the main system. The ledge 12 acts as an abutment means for locating the bottom edge of the document as it is restacking in the tray 10.

The depth of the ledge 12 can be chosen according to the desired capacity of the tray 10. The collection tray 10 further comprises at the upper portion of the support surface 11 a relatively narrow, substantially horizontal section 13 extending away from the ramp 3.

There will now be described with reference to Figs. 3a-3e the manner in which computer fan-fold or a like document folds automatically as it restacks in the collection tray 10. Figs.

3a-3e shown the situation after the restacking process has got under way, the document being fed from right to left as mentioned previously. As shown in Figs. 3a-3e the weight of the sheets 20 already stacked in the tray 10 keep the bottom edge of the fan-folded stack located against the ledge 12. As the document is driven forward a "bow-wave" 21 is created in the document above the support face 11 whereby the fold 22 of the next sheet to be stacked is raised up above the ramp 3 (see Fig. 3a). The perforations running the length of the folds 22 in the computer fan-fold are responsible for a local reduction in stiffness so that as shown at successive stages in Figs. 3b and 3c the subsequent sheet of the document folds back on itself instead of continuing to travel out over the end of the output tray.

It is noted here that in the case of lightweight documents, the fact that the folds have been preset in one direction or the other by the original folding means that the perforation lines can have a stiffness greater than the general document stiffness. In this situation, the short horizontal section 13 of the tray assists the following sheet folding back on the sheet already stacked.

As the document continues to be fed, the fold 23 of the next sheet ascends the ramp 3 as shown in Fig. 3d and begins to overhang the rounded edge portion 7 of the ramp 3 until enough of the following portion of the document is available to enable the fold 23 to fall under the weight of the adjoining document down onto the support surface 11 against the ledge 12 whereafter a new "bowwave" 24 starts to form in the following sheet. The whole process as described with reference to Figs. 3a-3e then repeats for stacking the remaining sheets.

It will be evident to a person skilled in the art that various modifications may be made to the apparatus described within the scope of the present invention. For example, the inclination of the ramp and tray support surface may be varied depending on the document output speed. Also, it is not necessary for the ramp to comprise upstanding vanes as described above, but instead it may comprise a continuous sloping surface. Moreover, the uppermost portions of the ramp need not be curved as shown in the Figures, but may instead be faceted so as to present a generally rounded configuration. In one form there may even be a plateau region present intermediate the ramp and the tray. In a further modification, the bottom edge of the support face may be at substantially the same level as the horizontal baffle.

Claims

1. Apparatus for restacking a fan-fold document, comprising means for feeding the document from a substantially horizontal path along an upwardly-inclined ramp onto an upwardly inclined support surface, the support surface being disposed such that its lower part is at a level below the top of the ramp and its upper part is at a level above said horizontal path, abutment means being provided at the lower edge of the support surface for locating the bottom edge of the restacked document.

2. Apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein the lower edge of the support surface is spaced forward of the ramp in the direction of document feed.

3. Apparatus as claimed in claim 1 or 2, wherein the abutment means is a ledge at the bottom edge of the support surface.

4. Apparatus as claimed in any of the preceding claims, wherein the ramp is less steeply inclined than the support surface.

5. Apparatus as claimed in claim 4, wherein the angle of inclination of the ramp with respect to the horizontal path is between 10 and 18 .

6. Apparatus as claimed in claim 4 or claim 5, wherein the angle of inclination of the support surface with respect to the horizontal path is between 30 and 40".

7. Apparatus as claimed in any of the preceding claims, wherein the ramp is rounded at its highest level.

8. Apparatus as claimed in any of the preceding claims, wherein the ramp comprises a plurality of mutually parallel upstanding vanes.

9. Apparatus as claimed in any of the preceding claims, wherein the support surface has at its upper portion a substantially horizontal section extending away from the ramp.

10. Apparatus for restacking a fan-fold document substantially as herein described with reference to and as illustrated in the accompanying drawings.