JP2000003109A - Image forming device provided with automatic document feeder - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To quickly output a first sheet on which an image is formed by estimating the size of a document by a first document size detection means, selecting a read position where a document is roughly read and moving a read means to the read position. SOLUTION: The size of the document P in an automatic document feeder 2 is detected by the first detection means 41 and 44. Based on the detected result, the read position is selected. Then, the read means is moved to the read position. The document P carried by the feeder 2 is roughly read by the read means while the real size thereof is detected by a second size detection means. Based on a read document image, the image is formed on the recording sheet by an image forming means. Since the carrying action of the document by the feeder 2 is stopped when the combination of the selected read position and the detected document size is not optimum, the abnormal image is prevented from being formed on the recording sheet. When the carrying action is stopped in a case other than it, the read position is changed to the other read position by a read position change means.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus provided with an automatic document feeder, and more particularly, for example, to position a reading means at one of a plurality of reading positions while feeding a plurality of documents. The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus provided with an automatic document feeder for reading a document by scanning.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A conventional image forming apparatus provided with an automatic document feeder having a flow reading function is capable of flowing and reading all documents regardless of the size of the document, and is capable of flowing and reading only a predetermined document size. Some other size originals can only be fixedly read.

[0003] In the case of reading a document in these manners, if the apparatus does not depend on the size, the image forming apparatus main body determines whether or not to perform the reading in accordance with an operation mode set by an operator. At the same time as instructing the document feeding, an instruction is given as to whether the document is to be scanned or fixedly read.

[0004] In an apparatus capable of flowing reading depending on the document size, in addition to the mode set by the operator,
When a document is placed on the automatic document feeder, the size of the placed document is determined, and whether or not to perform drift reading is determined based on the result of instructing the main body of the automatic document feeder whether or not the document can be scanned. The image forming apparatus main body determines whether or not the document is to be fed, and at the same time instructs the automatic document feeder to feed the document, and at the same time, issues an instruction as to whether the document is to be scanned or fixedly read.

In this way, the original placement of the automatic document feeder is matched with the reading operation of the image forming apparatus main body.

[0006]

In the conventional apparatus, since the reading position at the time of performing the flow reading is one specific position, only the fixed reading operation or the flow reading operation is matched.

However, in the case where the flow reading is possible irrespective of the document size, and the position of the flow reading is different depending on the size of the document, the image forming apparatus main body determines whether or not to perform the flow reading according to the operation mode set by the operator. Judgment and instructing the automatic document feeder to feed the original, and at the same time instructing whether to perform the scanning operation or the fixed reading operation, the reading position recognized by the image forming apparatus and the automatic document Even if the reading position is different, the automatic document feeder operates without any problem in operation, but the output image of the recording sheet (transfer sheet of the toner image) does not match the document, so that a plurality of The image forming apparatus or the automatic document feeder determines where in the reading position the original is to be read by the optical system. It performs an operation.

At this time, in order to speed up the output of the first transfer sheet, it is necessary to speed up the reading of the first document. In the case of moving original reading, extra time is required before starting reading of the first sheet by the time required for the optical system of the image forming apparatus to move to the reading position, compared to the case of fixed reading. To eliminate this, the optical system must be moved to a predetermined reading position while the automatic document feeder conveys the document from the document tray to the reading position.

Therefore, before the document is conveyed from the document tray, the document size is detected in advance on the document tray, and the reading position of the optical system set for each document size is determined. The image forming apparatus starts operating.

However, if the detection result of the detecting means for detecting the actual document size, which is provided in the document conveying path from the document tray to the reading position, is different from the discrimination result on the document tray, the reading position is determined in advance. However, there is a problem that the position of the optical system moved to is not always the optimal reading position.

According to the present invention, there is provided an image forming apparatus provided with an automatic document feeder capable of properly reading a document fed by the automatic document feeder by a reading means moved to any one of a plurality of reading positions. It is intended to provide.

[0012]

The invention according to claim 1 is
An automatic document feeder for feeding a document placed on the document placing means to the reading section, a first document size detecting means for detecting a size of the document placed on the document placing means, Reading means for reading a document fed by the automatic document feeder, flow reading means for positioning the flow reading means at one of a plurality of reading positions and flow reading while transporting the document, Selecting means for selecting a reading position of the reading means according to the size of the document on the feeder; and a document conveying path for conveying the document to the reading section, provided upstream of the reading means, and A second document size detecting unit for detecting a true size, an image forming unit for forming an image on a recording sheet based on a document image read by the reading unit,
If the reading position of the reading unit selected by the selecting unit and the document size detected by the first document size detecting unit are not an optimal combination, the document conveying operation of the automatic document feeder is performed. Control means for stopping the operation;

According to a second aspect of the present invention, the selecting means includes:
Before the document is fed by the automatic document feeder, the reading position of the reading means is selected based on the document size detected by the first size detecting means.

The invention according to claim 3 is characterized in that the reading means is moved to a position selected by the selecting means by a reading means driving means.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, the reading position selected by the reading unit and the document size detected by the first document size detecting unit are not an optimal combination. The automatic document feeder has determination means for determining whether or not the document can be transported while performing appropriate reading at the reading position selected by the selection means. If it is determined that the apparatus is operable to convey the document, the document is read at a non-optimal reading position of the reading unit, and if it is determined that the apparatus is not operable, the document conveying operation by the automatic document feeder is stopped. It has a control means.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, the reading position of the reading unit selected by the selecting unit and the document size detected by the document size detecting unit are:
A reading position changing unit that changes a reading position of the reading unit when the document feeding operation of the automatic document feeder is stopped because the combination is not an optimal combination.

[Operation] Based on the above configuration, the size of the document in the automatic document feeder is detected by the first detecting means, and the reading position of the reading means is selected by the selecting means based on the detection result. The reading means is moved to the read position. The document conveyed by the automatic document feeder is read by the reading unit while being conveyed to the selected reading position while the true size is detected by the second size detecting unit. The image forming unit forms an image on a recording sheet based on the document image read by the reading unit.

Here, if the reading position of the reading means selected by the selecting means and the document size detected by the first document size detecting means are not the optimal combination, the automatic The document feeding operation of the document feeder is controlled to be stopped. This prevents an abnormal image from being formed on the recording sheet.

In the case where the reading position of the reading means selected by the selecting means and the document size detected by the first document size detecting means are not an optimal combination, the selected position is selected. At the reading position, the judging means judges whether or not the document can be transported in a state where the proper reading can be performed, and if operable, the original is read at the selected reading position, and the operation cannot be performed. If there is, the document feeding operation of the automatic document feeder is controlled to stop.

[0020] Further, since the reading position of the reading means selected by the selecting means and the document size detected by the first document size detecting means are not an optimal combination, the automatic reading operation is performed. When the document feeding operation of the document feeder is stopped, the reading position of the reading unit is changed to another reading position by the reading position changing unit.

[0021]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An image forming apparatus provided with an automatic document feeder according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

[Overview of Image Forming Apparatus] ... See FIG. 1 As shown in FIG. 1, this image forming apparatus has an image input section (hereinafter referred to as "reader section") 200 and an image output section (hereinafter referred to as "printer section"). ), And an automatic document feeder (hereinafter referred to as “ADF”) 2 disposed above the main body 1 of the copying machine. .

The reader unit 200 optically reads an image of a document P placed on a platen glass (platen) 3 which is a reading position of the copying machine main body 1, photoelectrically converts the image, and inputs it as image data. . This reader unit 200
Scanner unit (reading means) 204 having platen glass 3, lamp 202, and mirror 203, mirrors 205 and 206, lens 207, image sensor 20
8 and so on.

The printer section 300 is a known image forming section for outputting an image read by the reader section 200 to a predetermined recording sheet. The printer unit 300 will be described later in detail with reference to FIG.

The ADF 2 is for transporting the original P to a predetermined reading position of the main body 1 of the copying machine. AD
F2 has a document tray (document placing means) 4 on which documents P are stacked. The wide belt 7 wound around the drive roller 36 and the other turn roller 37 is disposed below the wide belt 7. The document P on the document tray 4 is
The paper is sequentially separated from the uppermost sheet and is conveyed to a platen glass (platen) 3 which is a reading position of the copying machine main body 1.

The wide belt 7 is in contact with the platen 3, and places the original P conveyed from the original tray 4 at a predetermined position on the platen 3, or places the original P on the platen 3. It is carried out onto the discharge tray 10. In addition, the manuscript P is one page (two pages), three pages (four pages),
Are placed on the tray 4 in this order. The ADF 2 will be described later in detail. The scanning unit 204 and the wide belt 7 that conveys the document P on the platen glass 3 constitute a flow reading unit that reads the document P while conveying it.

The present invention relates to a reader unit 200 and an ADF 2
Can also be applied as a reader in which is integrated.
Further, the copying machine main body 1 can include an ADF 2.

Hereinafter, the details of each of the above components will be described.

[ADF2] ADF2 will be described in detail below for each part.

1. Configuration of Document Tray and Its Surroundings 1.1 Document Tray—See FIG. 4 The document tray 4 is for stacking sheet-shaped documents P. On the document tray 4, a pair of width direction regulating plates are slidably arranged in the width direction of the document P. The document P placed on the document tray 4 is controlled by the width direction regulating plate.
By regulating the width direction, stability during feeding can be ensured.

At the downstream end of the document tray 4 in the transport direction,
A stopper 21 configured to be rotatable is provided.
By rotating the stopper 21 to a predetermined angular position as required, it is possible to prevent the document P set on the document tray 4 from inadvertently advancing downstream. .

1.2 Sensor on Document Tray—FIG.
Document set detection sensors 40a and 40b that detect that a document bundle has been set are provided near the upstream portion of the reference stopper 21. In this embodiment, transmission type optical sensors are used as the document set detection sensors 40a and 40b.

Further, in the middle of the document tray 4, a document trailing edge detection sensor 41 for determining whether the size of the set document P is a half size is provided. The document trailing edge detection sensor 41 is arranged at a distance of 225 mm from the stopper 21, and when a longitudinal document is set, its detection state is turned on. In the present embodiment, a reflection type optical sensor is used as the document trailing edge detection sensor 41.

A final document detection sensor 43 is provided between the document set detection sensor 40 and the rear end detection sensor 41. The detection result of the final document detection sensor 43 is used to determine whether the document P being transported is the final document. In this embodiment, a reflection type optical sensor is used as the final document detection sensor 43.

Further, below the document tray 4, a paper width detection sensor 44 for detecting the length in the width direction of the document bundle P set on the document tray 4 is provided. However, the paper width detection sensor 44 of the present embodiment actually detects the position of the width direction regulating plate.

The document P placed on the document tray 4 is detected by the document trailing edge detection sensor 41 and the paper width detection sensor 44.
A first document P size detecting means for detecting the size of the original document in advance is configured.

2. 3. Conveying Mechanism 2.1 Conveying Path See FIGS. 3 and 5 As shown in FIG. 3, from the document tray 4 to the platen 3, a document feeding path for guiding the document P onto the platen 3 (a). (B) and (c) are configured. The document feeding paths (a), (b), and (c) are bent (curved downward) and connected to a document conveying path (d) on the platen 3.

The document transport path (a) is a transport path in which the document P separated by the separation unit is transported downstream by the separation transport roller 8.

From the original feeding path (b) to the reverse feeding path (h)
(He) and (li) are extending. This reverse feed path (H)
(V) and (v) are used to turn the document P upside down before transporting the document P to the platen 3.

The document P inverted in the reversing feeding path (h), (h), and (l) is switched back, conveyed to the lip platen 3 through the document P feeding / ejecting path (e), and placed thereon.

Further, the document reversing path (g) branches off from the reversing feeding path (f) so that it can join the document feeding path (b). If the transport paths (e), (f), (g), and (c) are used, the document P on the platen 3 can be switched back, turned upside down, and returned to the platen 3 again.

The document P on the platen 3 is discharged to the paper discharge tray 10 through the document conveyance path (d) on the platen and the document discharge path (nu) shown in FIG.

An openable manual document tray 14 is provided on the right side of the ADF 2 (see FIG. 1). A document P (single document P) set on the manual document tray 14 can be fed to the platen 3 through a manual conveyance path (L).

2.2 Roller: See FIGS. 1, 3, 4, and 5 A first feeding roller 16 is provided between the original feeding paths (a) and (b). . The first feed roller 16 restrains the document P sent from the separation section (separation belt 6, separation conveyance roller 8), and prevents skew.

The separation / conveying roller 8 has a one-way mechanism. This reduces the transport load when the document P is pulled out of the separation unit by the first feeding roller 16.

A second feeding roller 9 is provided at the junction of the document conveying paths (a), (b) and (c) and the document reversing path (g). The second feeding roller 9 forms a loop on the reached document P to prevent the document P from skewing.

A first reversing roller 17 and a second reversing roller 18 are provided in the reversing feeding path (h), (f) and (i). The first reversing roller 17 and the second reversing roller 18
The document P is transported along a loop-shaped reversal path.

On the right side of the ADF 2, a manual feed roller 1 is provided.
3 are provided. The manual feed roller 13 feeds the document P set on the manual document tray 14 from right to left.

A manual registration roller 11 is provided between the manual paper feed roller 13 and the platen 3. The manual feed registration roller 11 is used to feed the manually fed original P
A skew is prevented by forming a loop. Further, the manual registration rollers 11 relay the discharge of the original from the platen 3.

A paper discharge roller 12 for discharging the discharged paper P to a paper discharge tray 10 is provided in the paper discharge path (nu).
Is provided.

2.3 Flapper ... See FIGS. 3, 4, and 5 FIGS. 4 and 5 show the positions of the flapper on the transport path. In addition,
Each feed path is as shown in FIG.

A reversing sheet flapper 22 is provided downstream of the second feeding roller 9 in the conveying direction. The reversing sheet feeding flapper 22 is for switching between a document feeding path (C) and a reversing feeding path (H). The reversing sheet flapper 22 is drawn by a solid line in FIG. 5 when the document P is conveyed to the reversing feeding path (h), (h), and (l). on the other hand,
When the document P is transported to the document feeding path (c) and the document transport path (d), the document P is swung to be in a state drawn by a chain line in FIG.

Downstream of the second reversing roller 18 in the transport direction,
A reversing flapper 23 is provided. The reversing flapper 23 is for switching between a reversing feeding path (i) and a document reversing path (g).

When the original P conveyed from the original feeding path (b) and the reverse feeding path (h) is turned upside down, the reversing flapper 23 is in a state drawn by a solid line in FIG. On the other hand, when the document P from the platen 3 is reversed through the document supply / discharge path (e), the reversing feed path (f), and the document reversal path (g), the document P is swung, and is drawn by a chain line in FIG. State.

A one-way flapper 24 (to which a mylar or the like is attached) is provided at the junction of the reversing feed path (h) near the upstream of the first reversing roller 17 and the document feeding / discharging path (e). Have been. The one-way flapper 24 serves as a guide when the document P is transported from the reverse feeding path (h) to the reverse feeding path (h). Further, the original P is transferred from the reverse feeding path (g) to the platen 3
When the document P is conveyed, the document P serves to prevent the document P from entering the reverse feeding path (h) in the reverse direction.

On the platen 3 side of the reversing supply / discharge path (e), a supply / discharge flapper 25 interlocked with the reversal sheet supply flapper 22 is provided. When the document P is transported from the document supply / discharge path (e) to the platen 3,
The state shown by the solid line is to prevent the leading edge of the document P entering the platen 3 from colliding with the end of the platen 3. When the document P is conveyed from the platen 3 to the document supply / discharge path (e), the document P is swung to a state drawn by a chain line in FIG. 5, and the document P from the platen 3 is skimmed. I have.

A paper discharge flapper 26 is provided between the right end of the platen 3 and the manual registration roller 11 (see FIG. 4). When the document P is conveyed from the manual conveyance path (L) to the platen 3, the discharge flapper 26 is drawn as a solid line in FIG. To prevent collision with the end. When the document P is discharged from the platen 3 to the document discharge path (nu), the document P is swung to be in a state drawn by a chain line in FIG. 4, and the document P from the platen 3 is scooped.

A one-way manual flapper 27 is provided at the confluence of the document discharge path (nu) and the manual feed path (see FIG. 4). The manual feed flapper 27 prevents the document P from entering the manual feed path when the document P is discharged from the platen 3.

A manual shutter 28 is provided near the downstream side of the manual paper feed roller 13 in the transport direction (see FIG. 4). This manual feed shutter 28 is used to copy the original P
This is for preventing the manual document P set on the manual document tray 14 from entering the manual registration rollers 11 during the discharge of the document. At this time, the conveying force is set low so that the manual feed roller 13 and the document P slip.

2.4 Sensors on the Transport Path--FIG.
The separation sensor 30 is provided between the separation conveyance roller 8 and the first feeding roller 16. This separation sensor 30
This is for detecting the document P transported by the separation transport roller 8. A skew detection sensor 31 is also provided at the same position in the transport direction as the separation sensor 30 and at a position separated by a predetermined distance in the thrust direction. The detection results of the skew detection sensor 31 and the separation sensor 30 are used to detect the skew amount of the fed document P.
In the present embodiment, a transmission type optical sensor is used as the separation sensor 30 and the skew detection sensor 31.

A mixed loading detection sensor 32 is provided near the downstream of the first feeding roller 16. The mixed detection sensor 32 detects the document P by moving the flag. The control device, which will be described later, determines the document P having a different size set on the document tray 4 by judging the detection result of the mixed detection sensor 32 and the detection results of various sensors on the document tray 4 together. , While the document P is being conveyed.

A paper feed sensor 35 is provided near the upstream of the second feeding roller 9. The paper feed sensor 35 is for detecting the front end and the rear end of the document P that has passed through one of the document feeding paths (a), (b), and (c) and the document reversing path (g). It is. In the present embodiment, a transmission type optical sensor is used as the paper feed sensor 35.

A registration sensor 39 is provided downstream of the feed roller 9. The registration sensor 39 is for detecting the rear end of the document P. The detection result is used for controlling the stop position of the document P. In the present embodiment, a transmission type optical sensor is used as the registration sensor 39.

A reversing sensor 50 is provided on the reversing conveyance path (e). The reversing sensor 50 is for detecting the document P discharged from the platen 3 or the document P entering the platen 3. In the present embodiment, a transmission type optical sensor is used as the reversing sensor 50.

The reversing feed sensor (3)
3 are provided. The reversing detection sensor 33 detects that the document P has been guided to the reversing feeding path (R). In the present embodiment, the inversion detection sensor 33
A type that detects the document P by moving the flag is used.

A manual registration sensor 34 is provided near the downstream of the manual registration roller 11 in the sheet discharging direction. The manual feed registration sensor 34 is provided on a manual feed path (R).
And a document P discharged from the platen 3 to the document P discharge path (nu). In the present embodiment, a transmission type optical sensor is used as the manual feed registration sensor 34.

A manual feed document detection sensor 60 is provided on the manual feed tray 14 side of the manual feed roller 13. The manual feed document detection sensor 60 is used for the manual feed tray 1.
4 is for detecting that the document P is set on the sheet No. 4. In the present embodiment, a sensor that detects the document P by moving the flag is used as the manual document detection sensor 60.

2.5 Drive System See FIGS. 4 and 5 FIG. 4 is a drive system diagram showing motors and solenoids for driving each transport roller and flapper.

The separation motor 100 drives the separation section (separation / conveyance roller 8 and separation belt 6) in the document conveyance direction and the document return direction, respectively. The driving force of the separation motor 100 is also transmitted to the sheet feed roller 5 via the separation clutch 106 to drive the same. In the present embodiment, a PLL-controlled DC is used as the separation motor 100.
A brush motor is used.

The separation motor 100 includes the separation motor 1
A mechanism is provided for generating a clock pulse (separated clock) proportional to the number of rotations when 00 rotates. This mechanism includes a clock plate 100a having a plurality of slits attached to the motor shaft of the separation motor 100.
Clock sensor 100 which is a transmission type optical sensor
b.

The transport motor 101 has a second feeding roller 9,
This is for driving the first reversing roller 17 and the second reversing roller 18. In this embodiment, a stepping motor that can rotate forward and backward is used as the transport motor 101.

The transport motor 101 includes the transport motor 1
01a, a mechanism for generating a clock pulse proportional to the number of rotations (second size detection means) 101a,
101b is provided. This mechanism includes a clock plate 101a provided with a plurality of slits attached to a driven roller shaft of the second feeding roller 9, and an inverted clock sensor 101b which is a transmission type optical sensor. Based on the number of clock pulses generated by this mechanism and the number of drive clocks of the transport motor 101, the amount of slip when the document P is being transported by the second feeding roller 9 can be measured.

The clock pulse generating mechanism 101a, 1
Reference numeral 01b constitutes a second size detecting means for detecting the true size of the document P fed from the document tray 4.

The belt motor 102 drives the wide belt 7 and the manual registration roller 11. The driving force of the belt motor 102 is transmitted to the wide belt 7 via the driving roller 36. After this,
This driving force is transmitted to the manual feed registration roller 11 via the wide belt 7 and the turn roller 37. In this case, the transport speed of the document P on the platen 3 and the transport speed of the manual registration roller 11 are set to be equal. In the present embodiment, a stepping motor that can rotate forward and backward is used as the belt motor 102.

The swing motor 103 is for driving the elevating arm of the paper feed roller 5. In this embodiment,
As the swing motor 103, a stepping motor that can be rotated forward and backward is used.

The paper discharge motor 104 is for driving the paper discharge roller 12 and the manual paper feed roller 13.
In the present embodiment, an FG servo control type DC motor is used as the discharge motor 104.

The discharge motor 104 is provided with a mechanism for generating a clock pulse proportional to the number of rotations. This mechanism includes a clock plate 104a provided with a plurality of slits attached to a motor shaft of the paper discharge motor 104, and a paper discharge clock sensor 104b which is a transmission type optical sensor.

The stopper solenoid 105 drives the stopper 21 at the paper feed end of the document tray 4.
When the stopper 21 is off, it is at the position shown by the solid line in FIG. 5, and when it is on, it swings to the position shown by the chain line in FIG.

The separation clutch 106 is connected to the separation motor 100
This is for controlling the transmission / interruption of the driving force to the sheet feeding roller 5, the separation belt 6 and the separation and conveyance roller 8.

The path switching solenoid 107 drives the reverse sheet feeding flapper 22 and the supply / discharge flapper 25. When the path switching solenoid 107 is off, the reverse sheet feeding flapper 22 and the supply / discharge flapper 25
Are in the state drawn by the solid line in FIG. 5, respectively. on the other hand,
When the path switching solenoid 107 is on, the reverse sheet feeding flapper 22 and the supply / discharge flapper 25
By swinging, each of them comes into a state drawn by a chain line in FIG.

The reversing flapper solenoid 108 drives the reversing flapper 23. When the reverse flapper solenoid 108 is turned off, the reverse flapper 23 is in a state drawn by a solid line in FIG. On the other hand, when the reversing flapper solenoid 108 is turned on, the reversing flapper 23 swings to be in a state drawn by a chain line in FIG.

The discharge flapper solenoid 109 drives the discharge flapper 26 and the manual shutter 28. When the discharge flapper solenoid 109 is turned off, the discharge flapper 26 and the manual shutter 2
8 is a state drawn by a chain line in the figure. On the other hand, when the discharge flapper solenoid 109 is turned on, the discharge flapper 26 and the manual shutter 28 swing to be in a state drawn by a solid line in the drawing.

2.6 Original Reading Position--See FIGS. 6 and 7 FIG. 6 is a diagram showing the original document reading position on the platen 3. As shown in FIG.

There are three document reading positions (reading position R1, reading position R2, reading position R3).
Either of these modes is selected according to the document transport mode and the size of the document to be transported.

The reading position R1 is used in the double-sided document mode. In this case, the reading of the image
Is performed by scanning the scanner unit 204 of the copying machine main body 1 with the document end placed on the reading position R1 (fixed reading mode).

The reading position R2 is used when reading a half-size original in the one-sided original mode. In this case, the reading of the image is performed while the scanner unit 204 is fixed at the reading position R2 and the document P is conveyed (flow reading mode).

The reading position R3 is used when a large-size original and a half-size original in the one-sided original mode are fed vertically. In this case, the reading of the image is performed while the scanner unit 204 is fixed at the reading position R3 and the document P is conveyed (flow reading mode).

In FIG. 6, L1 shown in the figure is the distance from the nip point of the second feeding roller 9 to the reading position R1. L2 is the distance from the nip point of the second feeding roller 9 to the reading position R2. L3 is the distance from the nip point of the second feeding roller 9 to the reading position R3.

L4 shown in FIG. 7 is the distance from the reading position R1 to the stop position for standby of the half-size document placed on the left side of the platen 3. L5 is a distance from the leading end of the document P stopped at the standby position to the reading position R2. L6 is a set value of a distance from the trailing edge of the preceding document P to the leading edge of the succeeding document (hereinafter, referred to as “paper distance”). During conveyance, the sheet distance is controlled to be L6. L7 is the distance from the reading position R1 to the manual feed registration roller 11.

The length of the half-size document in the transport direction is Lp
When h is set, the stop position of the half-size document is controlled so that the following relational expression holds.

L7 <[L4 + 2 × L6 + Lph] L2> [L5-Lph] As a result, as shown in FIG.
n, Pn-1 is stopped, the preceding original P
The rear end of n-2 passes through the nip of the manual registration roller 11. The rear end of the document Pn waiting for image formation passes through the nip of the second feeding roller 9.

2.7 Conveying Operation The document conveying operation of the document conveying apparatus will be described.

At the time of the transport, first, a common separating operation is performed in each document transport mode, and thereafter, a different operation is performed for each document transport mode. Hereinafter, the separation operation and the operation unique to each document transport mode will be described separately. Note that, in order to clarify the transport order, the document P transported earlier may be referred to as a “previous document”, and the document P transported later may be referred to as a “subsequent document”.

2.7.1 Separation Operation When the original set detection sensors 40a and 40b detect the bundle of originals on the original tray 4, the pre-separation operation is started. That is, first, the paper feed roller 5 is lowered and lands on the document bundle. In the following description, the documents stacked on the document tray 4 are referred to as a document P1, a document P2, a document P3,. When the order of the originals is not specified, the original is set as the original P.

When copy conditions are input on the operation unit of the copying machine and the start key is pressed, the size of the original is detected by a sensor on the platen 3 or the like. Further, the stopper 21
Is operated by the stopper solenoid 105 to release the path of the document bundle. The document bundle is fed by the paper feed roller 5, and the document P1 (uppermost document) advances to the downstream.

When the separation / conveyance roller 8 rotates in the document conveyance direction and the separation belt 6 rotates in the document return direction, the documents P that have advanced from the document tray 4 are separated one by one.
The separated document is transported downstream.

The document P that has passed through the separation section is
After the skew detection is performed by 0 and the skew sensor 31, the skew is conveyed by the first feed roller 16.

When the original is conveyed by the first feed roller 16, the feed roller 5 is raised. Subsequently, the separation belt 6 and the separation conveyance roller 8 stop. These stops are performed by turning off the clutch 106 and disconnecting the drive of the separation belt 6 and the separation conveyance roller 8.

After the driving is stopped, the separation / conveyance roller 8
The document P rotates (rotates) following the movement of the document P being conveyed.

The document P is conveyed only by the first feeding roller 16 and hits the stopped second feeding roller 9 to perform a known skew feeding.

When the skew feeding of the document P is completed, the first feed roller 16 and the second feed roller 9 start rotating at the same time. In this case, the first feed roller 16 and the second feed roller 9 are synchronously speed-controlled such that their transport speeds match.

The description of the operation of separating the document P has been completed.
After that, the operation of each document transport mode is performed.

2.7.2 Operation in Each Document Transport Mode The operation after the above-described document separation operation is described in each document transport mode (half-size single-sided document transport mode, large-size single-sided document transport mode, half-size double-sided document transport mode, The description will be made separately for each of the large-size double-sided document transport mode and the manual document transport mode.

2.7.2.1 Half Size Single-Sided Document Conveying Mode FIGS. 8 and 9 are schematic diagrams showing the flow of a document in the single-sided document conveying mode.

When the document transport mode is the one-sided document transport mode, the path switching solenoid 107 is controlled to be off,
The transport path is on the side of the document feeding path (C). In this state, the preceding document P1 enters the platen 3. At this time, the conveyance speed of the wide belt 7 is controlled in advance to match the speed of the second feeding roller 9.

When the trailing end of the preceding document P1 passes through the nip point of the sheet feeding roller 5, in preparation for the feeding operation of the succeeding document P2,
The feed roller 5 is lowered again.

Further, when the trailing end of the preceding document P1 passes through the nip point of the first feeding roller 16, the separation clutch 106 is turned on, and the feeding of the succeeding document P2 by the feeding roller 5 is started (see FIG. 4). FIG. 8A).

When the trailing end of the preceding document P1 passes through the nip of the second feeding roller 9, the second transport roller 9 is stopped. After the start of feeding by the feed roller 5, the succeeding document P2 is rapidly accelerated, and when the second feed roller 9 stops, the feed sensor 3
5 is controlled so as to reach the position detected. When the paper feed sensor 35 detects the succeeding document P2,
Control for skew removal is performed in the same manner as in the case of the preceding document P1.

At this time, the preceding document P1 has entered the transport path (d) on the platen 3 and is independently transported by the wide belt 7. Then, when the trailing end advances a predetermined distance after passing through the paper feed sensor 35, the preceding original P1 is temporarily stopped (see FIG. 8B).

At this time, the distance between the leading edge of the document P1 and the image reading position R2 is controlled to be L5.
The distance L8 from the rear end of the document P1 to the nip point of the second feed roller 9 is configured to be positive (the rear end of the document P1 passes through the nip of the second feed roller 9). There).

Note that L8 has the following relationship with L2, L5 and the size of the conveyed document.

L8 = L2-L5-conveyed document size L2: distance from image reading position R2 to second feeding roller 9 The ADF 2 temporarily stops the preceding document P1 and, at the same time, , And outputs a transfer completion signal 120. Then, it waits for the input of the transport start signal 121.

When the conveyance start signal 121 from the copying machine main body is received and the skew feeding control of the succeeding document P2 is completed, the wide belt 7 is started, and the preceding document P1 is conveyed at the image forming speed by the wide belt 7. Is done.

When the inter-sheet distance (the distance between the trailing edge of the preceding document P1 and the leading edge of the succeeding document P2) has reached a predetermined distance, the second
The feed roller 9 is activated. Then, the second original feed roller 9 conveys the succeeding original P2 at the image forming speed in the same manner as the preceding original P1.

In this case, when the conveying speeds of the wide belt 7 and the second feeding roller 9 coincide with each other, the above-mentioned sheet distance is changed to L6.
The activation and acceleration of the second feed roller 9 are controlled so that When the preceding original P1 reaches the reading position R2, the A
DF2 outputs an image arrival signal 122. Copying machine body 1
Receives this, starts reading the image of the preceding original P1.

FIG. 8C shows a state after the image reading of the original P1 has been completed. The document P1 is stopped after being transported a predetermined distance (L9) after the reading is completed. At this time, the subsequent document P2 is moved to the reading position R2.
Is stopped at a distance L5 from. Further, the subsequent document P3 is on standby while maintaining a loop for skew feeding by the second feeding roller 9.

In this state, when the conveyance start signal 121 is input from the copying machine main body 1, an image for the document P2 is formed. FIG. 9A shows a state in which an image of the original P2 is being read.
This shows the position of the original in the transport path. Manuscript P1
Is conveyed by a wide belt 7, a manual registration roller 11, and a paper discharge roller 12. At this time, the conveying speed of the wide belt 7 and the conveying speed of the manual registration roller 11 are configured to be equal. The transport speed of the discharge roller 12 is controlled to be equal to or slightly faster than these speeds.

FIG. 9B shows a state when reading of the succeeding original P2 is completed. After the reading is completed, the wide belt 7 is stopped.
3 is stopped on the platen 3. Since the trailing end of the preceding document P <b> 1 has already passed through the nip of the manual registration roller 11, it is independently conveyed by the discharge roller 12 and discharged to the discharge tray 10.

2.7.2.2 Large Size One-Sided Document Conveying Mode FIGS. 10 and 11 are schematic diagrams showing the flow of a document in the large size single-sided document conveying mode.

As in the case of the half-size (small-size) single-sided original transport mode, the path switching solenoid 10
7 is controlled to be off, and the transport path is on the side of the document feeding path (C). In this state, the preceding document P1 enters the platen 3. When the trailing edge of the preceding document P1 passes through the nip point of the separation / conveyance roller 8, the feeding roller 5 is lowered again in preparation for the feeding operation of the subsequent document P2.

Further, when the trailing end of the preceding document P1 passes through the nip point of the first feeding roller 16, the separation clutch 106 is turned on and the feeding of the succeeding document P2 by the feeding roller 5 is started (see FIG. 4). FIG. 10A).

The trailing edge of the preceding document P1 is
, The second feed roller 9 is stopped.
After the start of sheet feeding by the sheet feeding roller 5, the subsequent document P2 is rapidly accelerated, and is controlled to reach the sheet feeding sensor 35 when the second feeding roller 9 stops. Paper feed sensor 35
Detects the following document P2, the control for skew removal is performed as in the case of the preceding document P1.

At this time, the preceding document P1 has entered the transport path (d) on the platen 3 and is independently transported by the wide belt 7. When the trailing end advances a predetermined distance after passing through the paper feed sensor 35, the preceding original P1 is temporarily stopped (see FIG. 10B).

At this time, the distance between the leading edge of the document P1 and the image reading position R3 is controlled to be L5 as in the case of transporting a half-size document. The distance L10 from the rear end of the document P1 to the nip point of the second feeding roller 9 is configured to be positive (the rear end of the document P1 passes through the nip of the second feeding roller 9). There).

L10 has the following relationship with L3, L5, and document size.

L10 = L3-L5-Conveyed Document Size L3: Distance from Image Reading Position R3 to Second Feeding Roller 9 The ADF 2 stops the preceding document P1 once, and at the same time, , And outputs a transfer completion signal 120. Then, it waits for the input of the transport start signal 121.

When the conveyance start signal 121 from the copying machine main body is received and the skew feed control of the succeeding original P2 is completed, the wide belt 7 is started. Then, the preceding document P1 is conveyed by the wide belt 7 at an image forming speed. When the preceding original P1 reaches the reading position R3,
The ADF 2 outputs an image arrival signal 122. The copier body 1 receives this and starts reading an image of the preceding original P1.

When the inter-paper distance (the distance between the trailing edge of the preceding document P1 and the leading edge of the succeeding document P2) has reached a predetermined distance, the second
The feed roller 9 is activated. The second document feed roller 9 conveys the succeeding document P2 at the same image forming speed as the preceding document P1.

At this time, when the conveying speeds of the wide belt 7 and the second feeding roller 9 coincide with each other, the above-mentioned paper distance becomes L.
The start and acceleration of the second feed roller 9 are controlled so as to be 11. This state is shown in FIG.

FIG. 11B shows a state after reading of the image of the original P1 is completed. On the platen 3,
The succeeding document P2 has stopped. The sheet distance L11 is set to be greater than the distance from the leading edge of the succeeding document P2 to the nip point of the manual feed registration roller 11. Therefore,
When the succeeding document P2 is stopped, the rear end of the preceding document P1 has already passed the nip point of the manual feed registration roller 11, and the document P1 is independently conveyed and discharged by the paper discharge roller 12.

2.7.2.3 Half-Size Double-Sided Document Conveying Mode FIGS. 12, 13, 14 and 15 are schematic diagrams showing the flow of a document during double-sided document conveying. The transport speeds of the second feeding roller 9 and the wide belt 7 are controlled to be constant except in special cases.

When the document transport mode is the double-sided document transport mode, first, the reversing sheet feeding flapper 22 and the reversing flapper 23 are in a state drawn by solid lines in FIG. In this state, the document P1 is guided to the reverse feeding path (H), (H), and (R) (see FIG. 12A).

When the rear end of the document P1 passes through the one-way flapper 24, the rollers 17 and 18 are rotated in the reverse direction to convey the document P1 in the reverse direction. The supply / discharge flapper 25 is in a state drawn by a solid line in FIG.
Is guided to a document conveying path (d) on the platen 3 (FIG. 1).
2 (b)).

When the reversing sensor 50 detects that the rear end of the original in the conveying direction has been conveyed, and the original is further conveyed a predetermined distance, the wide belt 7 is stopped. As a result, the document P1 is placed on the reading position R1 in the fixed reading mode (see FIG. 13A). And in this state,
The reading scan of the second surface is performed by the scanner unit 204 of the copying machine body 1.

Around the completion of the placement of the document P1, the path switching solenoid 107 is turned off. Then, the reversing sheet feeding flapper 22 and the supply / discharge flapper 25 swing, and become in a state drawn by a chain line in FIG. Scanner unit 20
When the scanning of the second surface of the document P1 by the document 4 is completed, the wide belt 7 is rotated in the reverse direction, and the document P1 is conveyed to the document supply / discharge path (e). At this time, the reversing flapper 23 swings simultaneously with the reverse rotation of the wide belt 7, and is in a state drawn by a chain line in FIG. 5. Therefore, the document P1 is
The document is guided to the document reversing path (g) (see FIG. 13B).

When the reversing sensor 50 detects the leading edge of the document and conveys the document a further predetermined distance, the rotation of the wide belt 7 is temporarily stopped and then reversed (reverse rotation → forward rotation). When the leading end of the inverted document P1 approaches the document transport path (d) on the platen 3, the control is performed such that the transport speeds of the second feeding roller 9 and the wide belt 7 match.

The trailing end of the preceding original P1 is
, The second feed roller 9 is stopped and waits for the arrival of the succeeding document P2.

The preceding document P 1 is independently conveyed by the wide belt 7. However, when the document is further conveyed by a predetermined distance from the time when the paper feed sensor 35 detects the rear end of the document, the wide belt 7 is stopped. As a result, the document P1 is placed at the reading position R1 in the fixed reading mode. Then, in this state, the scanning scan of the first surface is performed by the scanner unit 204.

Further, before and after the trailing edge of the preceding document is detected by the paper feed sensor 35, the separating operation of the succeeding document P2 is started, and the well-known skew feeding is performed by the second feeding roller 9.

Original P1 by Scanner Unit 204
During the scanning of the first side, the reversing operation of the succeeding document P2 is completed. After the reversal, the subsequent document P2 stands by with the vicinity of the leading end thereof nipped by the first reversing roller 17 (FIG. 14).
(See (a)).

When the scanning of the first surface of the preceding document P1 is completed, the first reversing roller 17 and the second reversing roller 1
8 starts rotating, and the wide belt 7 starts rotating forward. As a result, the preceding document P1 and the succeeding document P2 are placed on the platen 3 with a predetermined inter-sheet distance L12 (see FIG. 14B).

Document P2 by Scanner Unit 204
Is completed, the reversing operation of the succeeding document P2 is started, as in the case of the preceding document P1.
2 and the preceding document P1 are transported in the direction of the reverse feeding path (e). However, while the preceding original P1 is still in the transport path (d) on the platen 3, the rotation of the belt is temporarily stopped, and then the rotation direction of the wide belt 7 is switched (Note: This is because the paper distance L12 Can be set to an appropriate value). As a result, the original P1 and the original P2
Is conveyed again in the direction of the paper discharge roller 12 and stops (see FIG. 15A). Then, in this state, reading of the first side of the document P2 is started again. The distance between the document P1 and the document P2 at this time is L13 (it is also possible to control to L12). Further, at this time, the subsequent document P3 stands by while being nipped by the first reversing roller 17, similarly to the case of the document P2 shown in FIG.

When the reading scan of the first side of the document P2 is completed, the first reversing roller 17 and the second reversing roller 18
, The forward rotation of the wide belt 7, and the rotation of the paper discharge roller 12 are started. As a result, the subsequent document P3, the document P2 for which image reading has been completed, and the document P1 are simultaneously conveyed.

When the wide belt 7 is stopped and the placement of the second surface of the succeeding document P3 is completed, the rear end of the preceding document P1 has already passed through the nip of the manual feed registration roller 11. Therefore, the preceding original P1 is thereafter
2 and is discharged to the discharge tray 10 (see FIG. 15B). This is achieved by setting the sheet distance to L13.

By performing the above operations continuously, when the reading scan of the first surface of the final document Pn is completed,
On the platen 3, the last original Pn and the last previous original Pn-1
Are discharged at one time by the continuous operation of the wide belt 7.

2.7.2.4 Large Size Double-Sided Document Conveying Mode FIGS. 16, 17, 18 and 19 are schematic diagrams showing the flow of a document when a large-sized double-sided document is conveyed. The transport speeds of the second feeding roller 9 and the wide belt 7 are controlled to be constant except in special cases.

When the document transport mode is the duplex document transport mode, first, the reverse sheet feeding flapper 22 and the reverse flapper 23
Is in a state drawn by a solid line in FIG. In this state, the document P1 is guided to the reverse feeding path (H), (H), and (R) (see FIG. 16A).

When the rear end of the document passes through the one-way flapper 24, the rollers 17 and 18 are rotated in reverse to transport the document P1 in the reverse direction.

Since the supply / discharge flapper 25 is drawn by a solid line in FIG. 5, the original P1 conveyed in the reverse direction is guided to the original conveying path (d) on the platen 3 (FIG. 16).
(B)).

When the reversing sensor 50 has conveyed the document P1 a predetermined distance from the time when the rear end of the document in the conveying direction is detected, the wide belt 7 is stopped. In this state, the original P1 is in the reading position R in the fixed reading mode.
1 (see FIG. 17A).

Around the completion of the document placement, the path switching solenoid 107 is turned off. Then, the reversing sheet feeding flapper 22 and the supply / discharge flapper 25 swing to be in a state drawn by a chain line in FIG. When the scanning of the second surface of the document P1 by the scanner unit 204 is completed, the wide belt 7 is rotated in the reverse direction, and the document P1 is transported to the document feeding / ejecting path (e). At this time, the reversing flapper 23 swings simultaneously with the reverse rotation of the wide belt 7, and is in the state shown by the chain line in FIG. Therefore, the document P1 is guided to the document reversing path (g) (see FIG. 17B).

When the document is further conveyed a predetermined distance from the time when the reversing sensor 50 detects the leading edge of the document, the rotation of the wide belt 7 is temporarily stopped and then reversed (reverse rotation → forward rotation). When the leading end of the inverted document P1 approaches the document transport path (d) on the platen, the control is performed such that the transport speeds of the second feeding roller 9 and the wide belt 7 match.

The rear end of the preceding original P1 is
, The second feed roller 9 is stopped and waits for the arrival of the succeeding document P2.

The preceding document P1 is independently conveyed by the wide belt 7. However, when the document P1 is further conveyed by a predetermined distance from the time when the paper feed sensor 35 detects the rear end of the document P1, the wide belt 7 is stopped. As a result, the document P1 is placed at the stop position R1 in the fixed reading mode.

In addition, before or after the trailing edge of the preceding document is detected by the paper feed sensor 35, the separating operation of the succeeding document P2 is started, and the well-known skew feeding is performed by the stopped second feeding roller 9. . And then, the reversing feed path (h)
The document P2 is guided to (f) and (d) (see FIG. 18A).

During the scanning of the first surface by the scanner unit 204, the reversing operation of the succeeding document P2 is completed as in the case of the preceding document P1. The subsequent document P2 after the reversal stands by near the leading end thereof while being nipped by the first reversing roller 17 (see FIG. 18B). The distance between the preceding document P1 and the waiting subsequent document P2 at this time is L1.
4 is controlled.

When the scanning for reading the first surface of the preceding original P1 is completed, the first reversing roller 17 and the second reversing roller 1
8 is started simultaneously with the forward rotation of the wide belt 7. Thus, when the succeeding document P2 is placed on the platen 3, the rear end of the preceding document P1 passes through the nip of the manual registration roller 11 (see FIG. 19). L14 mentioned above
Is set in advance in such a state.

Thereafter, the same operation is continued up to the final document Pn.

2.7.2.5 Manual Document Conveying Mode FIGS. 20 and 21 are diagrams showing the flow of a document when a manual document is conveyed.

When the manual document detection sensor 60 detects that the document P1 has been set (see FIG. 20A),
The manual flapper 27 and the manual shutter 28 are shown in FIG.
At the state drawn by the solid line. And this manuscript P
1 is conveyed by a manual paper feed roller 13 and is skewed by a stopped manual paper registration roller 11. Thereafter, the leading edge of the original is moved to the reading position R of the platen 3.
When the document P1 arrives, the conveyance of the document P1 is stopped (see FIG. 20B). At this time, the manual flapper 27
Then, the manual feed shutter 28 returns to the state drawn by the chain line in FIG. 4, and enables the next document set.

After the scanning by the scanner unit 204 is completed, the wide belt 7 is rotated in the reverse direction, so that the document P1 is discharged toward the discharge roller 12. The manual feed roller 13 also rotates with the rotation of the discharge roller 12. However, since the leading end of the document P2 is regulated by the manual feed shutter 28, the manual feed roller 13 slips and the document P2 does not advance (FIG. 21A).
reference).

When the trailing edge of the document P1 is detected by the manual registration sensor 34, the manual registration rollers 11
Stops (see FIG. 21B). Further, the manual flapper 27 and the manual shutter 28 are in a state drawn by a solid line in FIG.

Thereafter, the document P2 is conveyed to the manual registration roller 11 side by the manual paper feed roller 13, and is placed on the platen 3 in the same manner as the document P1 after the above-described skew feeding is completed.

[0164] 3. Control Configuration 3.1 Control Circuit... See FIG. 28 FIG. 22 is a block diagram illustrating a circuit configuration of a control device according to the present embodiment.

The control device (control means) 500 includes a microprocessor (CPU) 501, a RAM (not shown) backed up by a battery (not shown), a ROM (not shown) storing control sequence software, A communication IC 502 for controlling data communication with the copying machine body is provided. Drive circuits of various loads and sensor signals are connected to input / output ports of the CPU 501.

In FIG. 22, the separation motor 100 (DC
The brush motor) includes a driver 503 and a controller 50.
The drive is controlled by 3a. Controller 503
To a, a reference clock serving as a reference for the motor rotation speed, an on / off signal, and the like are input from the CPU 501.

In the present embodiment, the transport motor 101 (stepping motor) is
4 driven. Similarly, the belt motor 10
2 is also driven at a constant current by the stepping motor driver 505. Each driver receives a phase excitation signal from the CPU 501 and a motor current control signal.

Swing motor 103 (stepping motor)
Are driven at a constant voltage by the driver 506. The discharge motor 104 (DC brush motor) is a driver 50
7 and an FG servo controller 507a.

Each of the motors 100 to 104 has a clock plate 100a to 104a and a clock sensor 100b as a mechanism for detecting the rotation speed of the motor.
To 104b are attached (see FIG. 4).

Further, the stopper solenoid 105 is driven by the driver 508. Similarly, the separation motor 106 is driven by the driver 509, the path switching solenoid 107 is driven by the driver 510, the reverse flapper solenoid 108 is driven by the driver 511, and the paper discharge flapper solenoid 109 is driven by the driver 512. The driving means 110 is driven by a driver 513.

The drivers 503 to 513 are all CPU
The operation is controlled by a signal connected to the input / output port 501.

Further, a separation sensor 30, a skew detection sensor 31, a mixed loading detection sensor 32, a reversal detection sensor 33, a manual feed registration sensor 34, a paper feed sensor 35, and a reversal sensor 5
0, manual document detection sensor 60, registration sensor 39,
Document set detection sensor 40, document rear end detection sensor 41,
Various sensors such as a final document detection sensor 43, a paper width detection sensor 44, a paper feed roller home sensor 45, and a swing position sensor 46 are connected to an input port of the CPU 501.
It is used to monitor the behavior of a document and the behavior of a movable load in the apparatus.

The CPU 501 is connected to a reading position selecting unit 47, a document transportability determining unit 48, and a reading position changing unit 49. The reading position selecting means 47 detects a sheet size on the document tray 4 in advance and selects a reading position (flow reading position) of the scanner unit 204.

The above-mentioned original conveyance determining unit 48 determines whether the reading position selected by the reading position selecting unit 47 is
Clock pulse generating mechanism 101 as second detecting means
a, determining whether or not the original sheet size detected by steps 101a and 101b is not the optimal combination, and whether the original can be conveyed while reading the original at the reading position appropriately. It is.

The reading position changing means 49 sets the scanner unit 204 to another flow when the determining means 48 determines that the original can not be read properly at the inappropriate reading position. A means for changing to a reading position at which reading is performed is shown.

3.2 Control Operation 3.2.1 Overview of Control Operation FIG. 23 is a main flowchart of the control operation by the control device 500.

Control device 500 determines whether a document has been set on document tray 4, whether a document has been set on manual document tray 14, and whether a copy key (non- (Shown)
Is in a standby state while repeatedly determining (main
1, main3, main9). If a document is set on the document tray 14 and is in a standby state, an initial size check process (main2) is performed, an expected document size is determined in advance, and transmitted to the copying machine main body 1.

The determination as to whether or not a document is set is made based on the detection results of the document set detection sensor 40 and the manual document detection sensor 60. The expected document size is determined based on the detection results of the paper width detection sensor 44 and the document trailing edge detection sensor 41, and is applied to the standard size. The document trailing edge detection sensor 41,
The paper-width detecting sensor 44 constitutes a first document size detecting unit.

As a result of the determination, if the original is set on the original tray 4 and the copy key is pressed down, a determination process of main4 and main5 is performed.

The control device 500 determines that main4 and main4
In step 5, the copy mode transmitted from the copying machine main body and the flow reading position information are determined. Then, according to the result of the discrimination performed here, the copying process in each mode is performed (main6, main7, main).
8). That is, if the mode is not the one-sided original mode, a series of copying processes are executed in the two-sided original mode, and the operation is terminated (main8). If the mode is the single-sided original mode and the reading position is at the half-size reading position R2, a series of copying processes is executed in the first moving reading mode, and the operation ends (main6). If the mode is the one-sided original mode and the position is the large size reading position R3, a series of copying processes are executed in a second flow reading mode described later, and the process ends (main7).

The moving reading reading position information is based on the document size information in main 2 immediately before the copy key is depressed, and the reading position selecting means 47 of the copying machine main body 1 is used.
Indicates the scanning reading position R2 for the half size,
In the case of the large size, the flow reading position R3 is specified.

Note that the details of the first scanning mode, the second scanning mode, and the double-sided original mode will be described later with reference to FIG.
4 and FIG. 25 and FIG.

As a result of the above-described determination in main9,
If a document is set on the manual document tray 14 and the copy key is depressed, a series of copying processes are executed in a manual feed mode, which will be described later, and the operation ends (main 10). The details of the manual feed mode will be described later with reference to FIG.

Here, the mode selection according to the document size is performed based only on the detection result (ON / OFF) of the document trailing edge detection sensor 41, that is, based only on the length of the document in the feed direction. I was However, the mode may be selected using the detection result of the paper width detection sensor 44 (that is, the width of the document). By using the paper width detection sensor 44, it is also possible to detect vertical feeding of a half-size document and a large-size document.

3.2.2 Details of Control Operation in Each Mode 3.2.2.1 First Streaming Mode The details of the first streaming mode will be described with reference to FIG.

The control device 500 performs a pickup down process (to be described later) in order to move the paper feed roller 5 onto the paper placed on the document tray 4 (draftmd).
1). Thereafter, a separation process (draftmd2) for separating the uppermost document P by one sheet, and a paper feeding process (draftmd)
ftmd3).

If it is determined that the document is a large-size document in the size check process in the sheet feeding process described later, the following processing operation is disabled and the operation is stopped.

Further, a document flow reading process for reading a document image with the optical system of the copying machine main body 1 fixed at a predetermined position is started (draftmd4). Thereafter, the process continues to wait for the separation sensor 30 to detect the trailing edge of the document (draftmd5). When the separation sensor 30 detects the trailing end of the document, subsequently, based on the detection result of the document set detection sensor 40 that detects the break of the document bundle, it is determined whether or not the document fed at that time is the last document. Judgment (d
raftmd6). If the result of the determination is that the document is not the final document, a discharge process described later is started to discharge the document onto the discharge tray 10 (draftmd8). Thereafter, the process returns to (draftmd2) and the processing is repeated.

In the case of (draftmd6), if the original is the last original, the paper discharge process is started (draftmd6).
md7) Then, the pickup roller 5 is returned to the upper limit position by performing a pickup up process described later (draftmd).
9). Then, a series of processing ends.

When the length of the document in the feed direction is L ′ mm, the scanner unit 204 (FIG. 1)
It is located L'mm or more from the feed roller 9 and downstream of the transport path in the transport direction (read positions R2, R
3). The position control of the scanner unit 204 may be performed by well-known stepping motor control, or may be performed by another mechanical stopper configuration.

The various basic processes (for example, the pickup down process and the separation process) constituting the process in the first moving reading mode described above will be described later in detail.

3.2.2.2 Second Streaming Mode The second streaming mode will be described with reference to FIG.

The control device 500 performs a pickup down process (to be described later) in order to move the paper feed roller 5 onto the paper placed on the document tray 4 (draft2md).
1). Thereafter, a separation process (draft2md2) and a paper feed process (draft2md3), which will be described later, are performed to separate only the topmost document by one sheet. Further, a document flow reading process for reading a document image with the optical system of the copying machine main body 1 fixed at a predetermined position is started (draft2md).
4). Further, since the fixed position of the optical system is near the paper discharge unit, a paper discharge process described later is started to discharge the document P onto the paper discharge tray 10 (draft2md5). afterwards,
Control device 500 continues to wait for the trailing edge of the document to be detected by separation sensor 30 (draft2md
6). When the separation sensor 30 detects the trailing end of the document, the control device 500 determines that the document fed at that time is the final document based on the detection result of the document set detection sensor 40 that detects the break of the document bundle. It is determined whether or not there is (dr
aft2md7). If the result of the determination is that the document is not the final document, the process returns to (draft2md2) and the process is repeated.
On the other hand, if it is the last document, the pickup roller 5 is returned to the upper limit position by performing a pickup up process described later (draft2md8), and then a series of processes is ended.

At this time, the scanner unit 20
4 (see FIG. 1) is at the reading position R3 (see FIG. 6).

The various basic processes (for example, the pickup d
own processing and separation processing) will be described later in detail.

3.2.2.3 Duplex Document Mode The duplex document mode will be described with reference to FIG.

The control device 500 performs a pickup down process (to be described later) in order to move the paper feed roller 5 onto the paper placed on the document tray 4 (doublemd1).
Thereafter, a separation process (doubled2) described later is performed to separate only the uppermost document by one sheet. Further, a pre-reversal process (doublebled3), which will be described later, is performed so that the separated document is turned upside down so that the second surface of the document comes into contact with the platen 3 and is placed on the left end of the platen 3. Thereafter, an optical system moving original reading process for reading the original image while moving the optical system of the copying machine body is performed (dou).
blemd4). When the reading process is completed, a reversing process is performed again to reverse the front and back surfaces (doubled
5) After that, the reading of the original image on the first side is completed by performing the optical system moving original reading process (double).
md6).

During the reading process, the control unit 5
No. 00 determines whether or not the original P fed at that time is the final original based on the detection result of the original set detection sensor 40 (doublem 7). As a result of the judgment,
If the document is not the final document, a paper discharge process to be described later is started to discharge the document to the paper discharge tray 10 (doubled8).
Then, the process returns to (doubled2) and the same processing is repeated. On the other hand, in the case of the last original, after performing the sheet discharging process (doubled9), the pickup roller 5 is returned to the upper limit position by performing a pickup up process described later (doublebled10). Then, a series of processing ends.

Various basic processes (for example, pickup dow) constituting the process of the double-sided original mode described above.
n processing and separation processing) will be described later in detail.

3.2.2.4 Manual Feeding Mode The manual feeding mode will be described with reference to FIG.

The control device 500 controls the manual document tray 14
In order to convey the original P set in the printer 1 onto the platen 3 of the copying machine main body 1, a manual paper feed process is performed (manual
md1). Thereafter, an optical system moving original reading process is performed in which the reading of the original image is performed while moving the optical system of the copying machine body 1 (manualmd2). After the completion of the processing, the original P is discharged to the paper output tray 10. The paper ejection process is started (manualmd3). Thereafter, control device 500 continues to wait for the trailing end of document P to be detected by manual feed registration sensor 34 (manualmd
4). When the trailing end of the document P is detected by the manual feed registration sensor 34, the control device 500 determines the presence or absence of the next document based on the detection result of the manual document detection sensor 60 (manualmd5). If the result of the determination is that there is a next original, the process returns to (manualmd1) and the same processing is repeated. On the other hand, if there is no next original, a manual sheet discharging process is performed, and the series of processes ends.

The various basic processes (for example, the manual paper feed process and the original flow reading process) constituting the manual feed mode process described above will be described later in detail.

3.2.3 Basic Processing The basic processing constituting the control operation described above will be described.

3.2.3.1 Pickup Down Processing The pickup down processing will be described with reference to FIG.

The rocking motor 103 is driven so that the paper feed roller 5 is lowered from the position where the paper feed roller home sensor 45 is turned on to the document bundle P placed on the document tray (pickupdwn1). Then, the lifting arm 51 and the swing arms 57 and 53 are lowered. After the feed roller home sensor 45 is turned off, it is confirmed that the feed roller 5 has been lowered (pickup dwn2), and then the first swing position sensor 46 and the second swing position sensor 47 are turned on to supply the paper. When detecting that the paper roller 5 has dropped onto the paper surface (pickupdwn3), the drive of the swing motor 103 is stopped (pickupdwn4).

3.2.3.2 Pickup Up Processing The pickup up processing will be described with reference to FIG.

The control device 500 drives the swing motor 103 in order to raise the paper feed roller 5 to the retracted position (pickup 1). Paper feed roller home sensor 45
When it is detected that the upper limit position has been reached (pickup2), the drive of the swing motor 103 is stopped (pickup3). The swing motor 10 at this time
The rotation direction of No. 3 is opposite to that during the pickup down processing.

3.2.3.3 Separation Processing The separation processing will be described with reference to FIG.

The control device 500 turns on the separation motor 100 (sepa1), and the sheet feeding roller 5, the separation belt 6, the separation and conveyance roller 8, and the first and second rollers falling on the document bundle P.
By rotating the feed rollers 16 respectively, the original bundle P
Only the uppermost document P is separated and conveyed in the sheet path (a).

Thereafter, the control device 500 operates the separation sensor 3
0, the leading edge of the document P is
0 to continue monitoring whether the detection position has been reached (sepa
2). When the detection result of the separation sensor 30 is turned on,
That is, when the leading edge of the document reaches the detection position of the separation sensor 30, the speed of the separation motor 100 is controlled so that the separation process is completed within a predetermined time range (sepa3). The speed control is performed based on the remaining transport distance until the leading edge of the document is brought into contact with the second feed roller 9 to form a loop and the elapsed time until the separation sensor 30 is turned on.

At the same time, the count by the separation motor speed counter is started at a predetermined position (sequence).
pa4). The separation motor speed counter counts by a clock signal input from the separation clock. When the count value of the separation motor speed counter reaches a preset value (step
a5), the separation motor transport speed is changed to a predetermined speed (sepa6). As a result, the transport speed of the separation motor at the time of forming the registration loop is increased (or reduced) to the predetermined speed. Note that the sheet conveyance speed until the speed change to the predetermined speed is started in sepa6 is a value set for each of the operation modes (the above-described document conveyance mode).

Thereafter, the control device 500 controls the feed sensor 3
5, the leading end of the document is
Continue to monitor whether the detection position has been reached (sepa
7). When the detection result of the paper feed sensor 35 is turned on,
That is, when the leading edge of the document reaches the detection position of the paper feed sensor 35, the separation loop counter is started (sequence).
pa8). The separation loop counter counts by a clock signal input from a separation clock.

Thereafter, control device 500 waits for the separation loop counter to count to a predetermined value (sepa).
9). After the counting is completed, the control device 500 turns off the separation motor 100 (sepa10). Accordingly, the document P is stopped in a state where the leading end is abutted against the nip portion of the second feeding roller 9 and a predetermined amount of loop is formed, so that the skew that has occurred at the time of separation can be corrected.

3.2.3.4 Paper Feeding Process The paper feeding process will be described with reference to FIG.

As shown by the solid line in FIG. 5, the reversing sheet feeding flapper 22 is usually provided with the path switching solenoid 10.
When the switch 7 is off, the document P is urged to be conveyed to the sheet path (h).

The control device 500 first turns on the path switching solenoid 107 to switch the reversing sheet feeding flapper 22 to the state depicted by the chain line in FIG. 5 (e).
nt1).

Further, in order to transport the original P, whose tip is abutted against the second feed roller 9 and nipped by the first feed roller 16, to the sheet paths (c) and (d), the separation motor 100, the conveying motor 101 and the belt motor 102 are turned on (ent2). Thus, the driving of the first feeding roller 16, the second feeding roller 9, and the wide belt 7 is started.

At the same time, a size check counter is started (ent3). Note that the size check counter is a counter that counts with a clock signal input from an inverted clock.

Thereafter, based on whether or not the detection result of the registration sensor 39 is turned on (that is, whether or not the leading edge of the document has been detected), it is determined whether or not the document P has been conveyed to the sheet path (C). Wait state while determining (ent
4).

If it is confirmed that the document P has been conveyed to the sheet path (C), subsequently, it is determined whether or not the detection result of the separation sensor 30 is ON (that is, if the rear end of the document is the separation sensor). 30 is passed (ent5). As a result of the determination, when it is confirmed that the rear end of the document has passed the detection position of the separation sensor 30, the separation off counter is started (ent6).
The separation off counter counts with a clock signal input from the separation clock. The control device 500 includes:
It waits until the count for the distance from the first feed roller 16 to the separation sensor 30 is completed (ent7).

At the time when the counting is completed, the rear end of the original P has already been removed from the first feed roller 16, so the control device 500 turns off the separation motor 100 to
The driving of the feeding roller 16 is stopped (ent8).

After that, the control device 500
Wait for 5 to turn off (ent9). Paper feed sensor 35
Is turned off (that is, when the rear end of the document passes the detection position of the paper feed sensor 35), the size check counter is stopped (ent10), and the size check processing (ent11) is performed based on the data. I do.
The size check processing will be described later with reference to FIG.

Thereafter, a registration counter is started to stop the document P at a predetermined position on the platen 3 (ent12). The registration counter is counted by a belt excitation clock.

Thereafter, the control device 500 waits for the registration counter to count the distance L4 from the paper feed sensor 35 to the second feeding roller 9 (ent13). After the registration counter has counted the distance L4, the control device 500 turns off the transport motor 101 (ent1
4). Thereafter, the process waits until the started registration counter ends (ent15). When the count ends,
The control device 500 turns off the belt motor 102 (e
nt16). Further, the path switching solenoid 107 is turned off (ent17).

3.2.3.5 Pre-Inversion Processing The pre-inversion processing will be described with reference to FIG.

As shown by the solid line in FIG. 5, the reversing sheet feeding flapper 22 is usually provided with the path switching solenoid 10.
When the switch 7 is off, the document P is urged to be conveyed to the sheet path (h).

The tip of the second feeding roller 9 is abutted against
The separation motor 100 and the conveyance motor 101 are turned on so that the document P nipped by the first feeding roller 16 is conveyed to the sheet paths (c) and (d) (pre).
trn1). As a result, the first feeding roller 16, the second feeding roller 9, the first reversing roller 17, the second reversing roller 18
Is started.

At the same time, a size check counter is started (pretrn2). Note that the size check counter is a counter that counts with a clock signal input from an inverted clock.

Thereafter, based on whether or not the detection result of the registration sensor 39 is turned on (that is, whether or not the leading edge of the document is detected), whether or not the document P has been conveyed to the sheet path (h) is determined. Wait state while determining (pretr
n3).

If it is confirmed that the document P has been conveyed to the sheet path (C), subsequently, it is determined whether or not the detection result of the separation sensor 30 is ON (that is, if the rear end of the document is 30) (pretrn4). As a result of the determination, the separation sensor 3
When it is confirmed that the trailing edge of the document has passed the detection position of 0, the separation off counter is started (pret
rn5). The separation off counter counts with a clock signal input from the separation clock.

The control device 500 waits until the count for the distance from the first feed roller 16 to the separation sensor 30 is completed (pretrn6).

At the time when the counting is completed, the rear end of the document P has already been removed from the first feed roller 16, and the control device 500 turns off the separation motor 100 to
The driving of the feeding roller 16 is stopped (pretrn7).

After that, the control device 500
Wait for 5 to turn off (pretrn8). If the paper feed sensor 35 has been turned off (that is, if the rear end of the document has passed the detection position of the paper feed sensor 35), the size check counter is stopped (pretrn9),
A size check process is performed based on the data (pr
etrn10).

Thereafter, control device 500 waits for registration sensor 39 to be turned off (pretrn11).

When the registration sensor 39 is turned off (that is, when the trailing edge of the document passes through the registration sensor 39), the pre-scanning is stopped to stop the trailing edge of the document at a predetermined position through the sheet path (h). The inversion counter is started (pretrn12). The pre-inversion counter is a counter that is counted by an inversion excitation clock.

By the way, at this time, the reverse flapper 23
Are biased so that the document is conveyed to the sheet path (re) as shown by the solid line in FIG.

Thereafter, when the counting by the pre-inversion counter is completed (pretrn13), the control device 50
0 turns off the conveyance motor 101 (pretrn1
4).

After a lapse of a predetermined time, the transport motor 10
By starting the reverse rotation of 1 and turning on the belt motor 102, the document P is conveyed to the sheet path (e) (pretrn15).

The control device 500 confirms that the reversing sensor 50 is turned on, and determines that the document P is in the sheet path (e).
(Pretrn16).

Further, thereafter, after waiting for the reversing sensor 50 to be turned off, that is, for the rear end of the document to pass the detection position of the reversing sensor 50 (pretrn17),
The control device 500 turns off the transport motor 101 (p
retrn18). Further, a pre-feed counter is started to stop the document P at a predetermined position on the platen (pretrn19). The pre-feed counter is counted by the belt excitation clock. Then, when the count of the pre-feeding counter ends, (pretrn2
0), the belt motor 102 is turned off (pretrn
21).

3.2.3.6 Inversion Process The inversion process will be described with reference to FIG.

When the reversing flapper solenoid 108 is off, the reversing flapper 23 is biased so that the document P is conveyed to the sheet path (re) as shown by the solid line in FIG.

The control device 500 turns on the reversing flapper solenoid 108 to turn on the reversing flapper 23 as shown in FIG.
Switch to the state drawn by the solid line. Further, by turning on the path switching flapper solenoid 107, the reversing sheet feeding flapper 22 and the supply / discharge flapper 25 are each switched to the state drawn by the chain line in FIG.
rn1).

Subsequently, the control device 500 turns on the belt motor 102 and the conveyance motor 101 to convey the document P on the platen 3 to the sheet path (e) (trn
2). Thereby, the wide belt 7, the second feeding roller 9,
The first reversing roller 17 and the second reversing roller 18 are driven.

The control device 500 waits until the reversing sensor 50 is turned on (trn3). When the reversing sensor 50 is turned on (that is, when the leading edge of the document has passed the detection position of the reversing sensor 50), the reversing counter is started to count up to a predetermined value (trn4). The inversion counter is a counter that is counted by a belt excitation clock. The predetermined value here is set to stop / reverse the belt motor 102 when the leading edge of the document reaches a predetermined position in the sheet path (F) or (G).

Thereafter, control device 500 waits for the counting by the inversion counter to end (trn5). Then, when the counting by the reversing counter is completed, the belt motor 102 is turned off (trn6), and the reverse rotation of the belt motor 102 is started after a predetermined time has elapsed (trn6).
rn7).

During this time, the transport motor 101 is turned on, and the first reversing roller 17 with the original P
The second reversing roller 18 and the second feeding roller 9 are driven. Therefore, the document P is stored in the sheet path (to), (to)
Has been transported.

The control device 500 waits until the paper feed sensor 35 is turned on (trn8). Control device 500 determines that paper feed sensor 35 has been turned on (that is, paper feed sensor 3
5 that the leading edge of the document has passed) to confirm that the sheet path (G) is being conveyed.

Control device 500 waits until registration sensor 39 is turned on (trn9). And the control device 5
00 indicates that when the registration sensor 39 is turned on,
The transport motor 101 is turned off (trn10). At the same time, the counting by the reversal sheet counter is started to stop the document P at a predetermined position on the platen 3 (trn11). The reverse sheet feeding counter is counted by the belt excitation clock. And the control device 50
0 waits for the counting by the reversing sheet feeding counter to end (trn12).

When the counting by the reverse sheet feeding counter is completed, the control device 500 turns off the belt motor 102 (trn13). Further, by turning off the reverse flapper solenoid 108, the reverse flapper 23 is
In the state drawn with a solid line. Further, by turning off the path switching solenoid 107, the reverse sheet feeding flapper 22 and the supply / discharge flapper 25 are returned to the state drawn by the solid line in FIG. 5 (trn14).

At (trn7), the first reversing roller 17 and the wide belt 7 pull the document P in opposite directions. However, since the nip force of the first reversing roller 17 is stronger, the document P is conveyed following the first reversing roller 17. However, in the case of a document P that is long in the feed direction, the document P is largely not affected by the nip force between the pressing roller inside the wide belt 7 and the platen 3, and therefore does not follow the first reversing roller 17. Therefore, the timing of stopping the belt motor 102 and performing reverse rotation (ie, the value to be counted by the reversal counter) is set according to the length of the document P in the feeding direction.

3.2.3.7 Discharge Processing The discharge processing will be described with reference to FIG.

When the discharge flapper solenoid 109 is turned off, the discharge flapper 26 is urged so that the tip of the flapper is lower than the platen 3 as shown by the chain line in FIG. I have.

The control device 500 controls the document P on the platen 3
The belt motor 102 and the paper discharge motor 104 are turned on to convey the sheet to the sheet paths (d) and (d) (e).
jct1). As a result, the wide belt 7, the manual feed roller 13, and the discharge roller 12 are driven.

Control device 500 determines whether document P has been detected by manual feed registration sensor 34 (ie, whether the leading edge of the document has passed the detection position of manual feed registration sensor 34). Seat pass (nu)
Is confirmed to be conveyed (ejct2). When the detection result of the manual feed registration sensor 34 is turned on (that is, when it is confirmed that the document P is being conveyed along the sheet path (nu)), the detection position of the manual feed registration sensor 34 is subsequently changed. After the trailing edge of the document passes (ejct3), the belt motor 102 is turned off (ejct4).

The counting by the paper discharge counter is started (ejct5). The paper discharge counter counts according to a clock signal input from a paper discharge clock.
During this time, the control device 500 checks whether or not the count value of the paper discharge counter has reached a predetermined value (ejc).
t6). When the count value has reached the predetermined value, the discharge motor 104 is turned off (ejct7). At this time, the document P has already passed through the sheet path (N), has passed through the paper discharge rollers 12 and has been discharged onto the paper discharge tray 10.

3.2.3.8 Manual Feed Process The manual feed process will be described with reference to FIG.

When the discharge flapper solenoid 109 is off, the discharge flapper 26 is urged to a position where the tip of the discharge flapper is lower than the platen as shown by the solid line in FIG. The manual feed shutter 28 is in a state where the leading end of the document P set on the manual document tray 14 is abutted.

The control device 500 turns on the paper discharge flapper solenoid 109 and switches the manual feed shutter 28 and the paper discharge flapper 26 to the state shown by the chain line in FIG. 4 (m
ent1). Subsequently, the paper discharge motor 104 is turned on,
The manual feed roller 13 is rotated (ment2). As a result, the document P is conveyed in the sheet path.

The control device 500 determines whether or not the leading edge of the document has passed the detection position of the manual feed registration sensor 34 based on whether or not the detection result of the manual feed registration sensor 34 is turned on (ment3). . When the detection result of the manual feed registration sensor 34 is turned on (ie,
When the leading end of the document has passed the detection position of the manual feed registration sensor 34), counting by the manual feed loop counter is started (ment 4). The manual feed loop counter is counted by a clock signal input from a paper discharge clock. When the count by the manual feed loop counter reaches a predetermined value (ment5), the control device 500
Turns off the discharge motor 104 (ment 6). As a result, the leading end of the document P is abutted against the nip portion of the manual feed registration roller 11, the document P is stopped in a state where a predetermined amount of loop is formed, and the skew generated during the conveyance by the manual feed roller 13. Is corrected.

After a predetermined time has elapsed since the discharge motor 104 was turned off, the control device 500 turns on the discharge motor 104 and the belt motor 102 so as to convey the document P to the sheet paths (D) and (D). (Ment7). Thereby, the manual feed roller 13 and the manual registration roller 1
1 and the wide belt 7 are driven.

At the same time, the control device 500
Start the size check counter (ment
8). Further, a manual registration counter is started (ment9). The size check counter counts with a clock signal input from a belt clock. The manual registration counter is counted by a belt excitation clock to stop at a predetermined position on the platen 3. When it is detected that the manual feed registration sensor 34 has been turned off (that is, the rear end of the document has passed the detection position of the manual feed registration sensor 34) (ment 10), the size check counter is stopped. Then, based on the data, FIG.
The size check processing (ment11) shown in FIG.

Since the trailing end of the document has already passed through the manual feed roller 13, the control device 500 controls the discharge motor 1
04 is turned off (ment 12). Thereafter, when the count value of the manual feed registration counter reaches a predetermined value (ment 13), the belt motor 102 is turned off (ment 14). Then, the discharge flapper solenoid 1
09 is turned off (ment 15).

3.2.3.9 Document Flow Reading Process The document flow reading process will be described with reference to FIG.

The control device 500 includes an optical system fixed to the copier main body 1 (the scanner unit 2 serving as a reading unit).
04), the belt motor 102 is turned on (move 1) to read the image of the original P, and the wide belt 7
Drive. At the same time, when the leading edge of the document has reached the predetermined position, the image-on-counter is started to turn on the image-point signal (move 2). The image on-counter is counted by the belt excitation clock. By outputting an excitation clock signal based on the moving reading speed data (V) received from the copying machine main body 1 at this time, the rotation of the belt motor 102 is controlled at a constant speed. Thereafter, when the count value of the image destination ON counter reaches a predetermined value (move 3), the image signal is turned on (transmitted to the copying machine main body 1) (move 4).

After receiving the image point signal, the copying machine body 1 performs actual control of the time required for the leading edge of the document to reach the fixed position of the optical system at the time of moving reading, and performs actual image reading. . After a lapse of a predetermined time, the control device 500 turns off the image destination signal (move 5, 6, 7). Thereafter, when the rear end of the document has passed the reading position, the belt motor 102 is turned off (move 8).

The moving reading speed data (V) may be equal to or different from the reading speed (V1) when the optical system is moving (during fixed reading). In particular, when V> V1, the reading of the original image is completed in a shorter time than the normal optical system moving reading, so that the copying speed is improved.

3.2.2.3.10 Size Check Processing The size check processing of the document P will be described with reference to FIG.

In this size check processing, the original document P size (length in the feed direction) is corrected by adding the distance from the nip position of the second feed roller 9 to the paper feed sensor 35 to the size check counter data. Get (siz)
eck1). The document P is being conveyed by the second feed roller 35 and the wide belt 7, and the feed amount and the count value by the belt excitation clock surely match.

Thereafter, control device 500 determines the size of the obtained true document size (size 1 to size
zeck7). Then, based on the determination result, the size of the original P at that time is A5, B5, A4, B5R,
It is concluded which of A4R, B4, A3, etc. (size8-size14).

3.2.3.11 Selection of Flow Reading Position of Optical System Next, before the original is fed by the ADF 2, the scanner unit 204, which is an optical system, is moved to one of a plurality of flow reading positions in advance. The operation for canceling the output of the output sheet for image formation will be described.

When the document P is to be read in a stream, the scanner unit 204 moves the document P to one of a plurality of stream reading positions.
It is necessary to select and move and fix according to the size of the document P. However, if the scanner unit 204 is moved after detecting the true document size fed by the ADF 2, the first image is formed. Sheet output is slow.

In the present embodiment, the document tray 4 (FIG. 1)
When the document P is placed on the upper side, the document size is predicted in advance by the document trailing edge detection sensor 41 or the document trailing edge detection sensor 41 and the paper width detecting sensor 44 as first document size detecting means. Based on the document size information, the reading position selecting means 47 (FIG. 22)
04 is selected. After this selection, ADF2
Before the document P is fed, the scanner unit 204
Is driven by the scanner motor (reading means driving means) 110 to the selected flow reading position.

When the original P is being transported and read while the scanner unit 204 is moved to the selected drift reading position, the original P being transported is checked by a size check counter (second size detecting means). The true original size is detected by the number of clock pulses generated by the upper and lower clock sensors 101b) of the clock pulse generating mechanisms 101a and 101b.

If the reading position of the scanner unit 204 selected by the reading position selecting means 47 and the true original size detected by the second size detecting means are not the optimal combination, ADF
The document feeding operation 2 is controlled to be stopped. The stop of the ADF 2 is performed when an image of the document P is read at a reading position that is not the above-described optimal combination.
This is because an image abnormality may occur on the output sheet.

As described above, the scanner unit 2
When the ADF2 is stopped and the selected original reading position of 04 and the true original size are not the optimal combination, the original can be transported while reading the appropriate image at the position that is not the optimal combination. Is determined by the document transportability determining means 48 (FIG. 22).

If the result of the determination by the document transportability determining means 48 is that the document can be transported, the scanner unit 20
No. 4 continues reading of the document P at a reading position (flow reading position) which is not an optimal combination. When the result of the determination by the document transportability determining means 48 indicates that document transport is impossible, the operation of the ADF 2 is stopped.

If the reading position selected by the reading position selecting means 47 and the true original size are not the optimal combination and the operation of the ADF 2 is stopped, the scanner unit 204 sets the reading position changing means 49. Is driven by the scanner motor 110 to change to another reading position (flow reading position). Due to the change of the reading position of the scanner unit 204, there is a possibility that the reading position selected by the reading position selecting means 47 and the true document size are optimally combined.

As described above, before the document P is fed from the ADF 2 to the scanner unit 204, the size of the document P is predicted in advance by the first document size detecting means 41 and 44, and a plurality of pages which are to be flow-read are read. By selecting one of the reading positions and moving the scanner unit 204 to the selected reading position, the first sheet on which an image is formed can be output quickly.

The first document size detecting means 41 and 44 of the document P set on the document tray 4 of the ADF 2 are used.
Therefore, even if the document size detected in advance and the predicted document size and the reading position of the reading unit selected by the selecting unit are not the optimal combination, the sheet is not stored at the selected reading position. It is determined whether or not the document P can be read without causing an image abnormality, and the image reading is continued. Therefore, in an image forming apparatus having an automatic document feeder having a plurality of scanning reading positions, In this way, the original can be read without any image abnormality.

The description of the ADF 2 in this embodiment has been completed.

[Printer Unit 300] The printer unit 300 as an image output unit will be described with reference to FIG.

The sheet S on which an image is formed is stored in the upper cassette 302a, the lower cassette 302b, and the sheet stacking device 3.
08. Then, a photosensitive drum 3 to be described later
12 each time an image is formed on the cassette 302a, 30
2b, and is fed from one of the decks 308.

The sheets S in the upper cassette 302a are separated and fed one by one by the action of the separation claw and the feeding roller 301, and guided to the registration rollers 306. Similarly,
The sheets S in the lower cassette 302b are separated and fed one by one by the action of the separation claw and the feeding roller 303, and are guided to the registration rollers 306. Further, the sheet stacking device (deck type) 308 includes an intermediate plate 308a that moves up and down by a motor or the like. The sheet on the middle plate 308a is
The sheet is separated and fed one by one by the action of the feeding roller 309 and the separation claw, and is guided to the transport roller 310.

In addition, the sheet S can be supplied from the manual feed guide 304. The sheets placed on the manual feed guide 304 are supplied one by one to a roller 305.
Through the registration roller 306.

The image forming section (image forming means) includes a photosensitive drum 312, a developing device 314, a transfer charger 315, a separation charger 316, and the like. The image forming unit includes a reader unit 2
An electrostatic latent image of an image read by the scanner unit 204 is formed on the photosensitive drum 312. And
A toner image obtained by developing the electrostatic latent image is transferred to a sheet S fed from one of the cassettes 302a and 302b and the deck 308. The registration between the toner image on the photosensitive drum 312 and the fed sheet is performed by a registration roller 306.

The above image formation is repeated according to the set number of copies.

The sheet S, on which the toner image has been transferred in the image forming section, is fixed by a transport belt 317 to a fixing device 318.
, Where the toner image is fixed. After this,
The sheet S is transported by a conveying roller 319, a flapper 320,
The sheet is conveyed to the sorter 322 by the discharge roller 321 and the like.

The sorter 322 includes a non-sort tray 322.
a, sort bin tray 322b, non-sort tray discharge roller 322c, sort bin tray discharge roller 322d
have. The sorter 322 is a non-sort tray 3
The sheet S is divided one by one by moving up and down the sort bin tray 322b and the sort bin tray 322b. In addition, the sorter 322
Alternatively, a discharge tray may be mounted.

When the required number of copies have been formed, the ADF 2 discharges the original P from the platen 3 and conveys the next original P to position it on the platen 3. Hereinafter, the same applies.

The intermediate tray 400 stocks the sheet S on which the image has been formed once when forming an image on both sides of the sheet S or when forming an image on one side of the sheet S (multiple). It is for doing. The conveyance and accommodation of the sheet S on which the image is formed on the intermediate tray 400 is performed by the conveyance roller 401, the conveyance belt 402, the flapper 403, the conveyance belt 404, the conveyance roller 405, and the like.

In the case of double-sided copying, the sheet S
6 to an intermediate tray 400. In this case, the image surface of the sheet S is directed upward. In the case of the multiple copy, the sheet is guided to the intermediate tray 400 through the path 407. The image surface of the sheet S is directed downward.

Sheets S Loaded on Intermediate Tray 400
Is a pair of auxiliary rollers 409 and 410 and a pair of forward / reverse separation rollers.
The sheets 11 are separated one by one from below and fed again. The re-fed sheet S is transported by rollers 413 and 41
4, 415, the roller 310, and the registration roller 306, are again guided to the image forming unit. After image formation, the paper is discharged in the same manner as described above.

[0294] The procedure of double-sided copying will be described.

First, one-sided copying is performed on one document P placed on the platen in accordance with the number of copies set at that time. At this time, the sheet S on which an image is formed on one side is stacked on the intermediate tray 400. Thereafter, the document P on the platen 3 is turned over by the ADF 2 and then guided again to the platen 3. Then, the image of the document P is read again and formed on the sheet S re-fed from the intermediate tray 400.
They are sorted by the sorter 322 in page order.

There is also a method in which only one copy is created each time the document P is cycled by the ADF 2. According to this method, even when a plurality of copies are made, a copy group having the same page order can be obtained in order, so that a necessary number of copies can be obtained separately without the sorter 322. When making a double-sided copy in this manner, both sides of one original P are continuously read, copies are continuously output on the front and back of the sheet S, and then discharged. By repeating this process many times, a divided double-sided copy group can be obtained.

[0297]

As described above, according to the present invention,
Before the original is fed from the automatic document feeder to the reading section, the size of the original is predicted in advance by the first original size detecting means, and one of a plurality of reading positions for performing the flow reading is selected. Then, by moving the reading unit to the selected reading position, the first sheet on which an image is formed can be quickly output.

The original size of the original set in the automatic original feeder, which is detected in advance by the first original size detecting means, the predicted original size and the reading position of the reading means selected by the selecting means. Even if the combination is not the optimal combination, it is determined whether or not it is possible to read the document without causing an image abnormality on the sheet at the selected reading position, and the image reading is continued. Therefore, in the image forming apparatus including the automatic document feeder having a plurality of moving reading positions, the moving document can be read without causing an image abnormality.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a vertical sectional side view of an automatic document feeder according to the present invention and an image forming apparatus provided with the same.

FIG. 2 is a vertical sectional side view of a printer unit as an image forming apparatus main body.

FIG. 3 is a vertical sectional side view showing a document path section of the automatic document feeder.

FIG. 4 is a drive system diagram of the automatic document feeder.

FIG. 5 is a vertical sectional side view showing a separation sheet feeding unit of the automatic document feeder.

FIG. 6 is a side view showing a document reading position of the automatic document feeder.

FIG. 7 is a side view showing a document reading position of the automatic document feeder.

FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating a flow of a half-size document in the single-sided document transport mode.

FIG. 9 is a diagram showing a flow of a half-size document in the single-sided document transport mode.

FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating a flow of a large-size document in the single-sided document transport mode.

FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating a flow of a large-size document in a single-sided document transport mode.

FIG. 12 is a diagram illustrating a flow of a half-size document in a double-sided document conveyance mode.

FIG. 13 is a diagram showing a flow of a half-size document in the double-sided document conveyance mode.

FIG. 14 is a diagram illustrating a flow of a half-size document in a double-sided document conveyance mode.

FIG. 15 is a diagram illustrating a flow of a half-size document in the double-sided document conveyance mode.

FIG. 16 is a diagram illustrating a flow of a large-size document in the double-sided document conveyance mode.

FIG. 17 is a diagram illustrating a flow of a large-size document in the double-sided document transport mode.

FIG. 18 is a diagram illustrating a flow of a large-size document in the double-sided document conveyance mode.

FIG. 19 is a diagram illustrating a flow of a large-size document in the double-sided document conveyance mode.

FIG. 20 is a view showing the flow of a document when a manual document is conveyed.

FIG. 21 is a view showing the flow of a document when a manual document is conveyed.

FIG. 22 is a block diagram showing a circuit configuration of a control device of the automatic document feeder.

FIG. 23 is a flowchart showing an operation outline of the automatic document feeder.

FIG. 24 is a flowchart showing a process in a first moving reading mode.

FIG. 25 is a flowchart showing a process in a second moving-reading mode.

FIG. 26 is a flowchart showing processing in a two-sided original mode.

FIG. 27 is a flowchart showing a process in the manual document mode.

FIG. 28 Similarly, pickup do of paper feed roller lowering
7 is a flowchart showing wn processing.

FIG. 29 is also a diagram illustrating a pickup up in which a paper feed roller is raised.
5 is a flowchart showing processing.

FIG. 30 is a flowchart showing a document separation process.

FIG. 31 is a flowchart showing a sheet feeding process.

FIG. 32 is a flowchart showing a document pre-reversal process.

FIG. 33 is a flowchart showing a document inversion process.

FIG. 34 is a flowchart showing a document discharging process.

FIG. 35 is a flowchart showing a manual sheet feeding process.

FIG. 36 is a flow chart showing a document flow reading process.

FIG. 37 is a flowchart showing a document size check process.

[Description of Signs] P Document S Sheet D1 Fixed Reading Position D2 Flow Reading Position (Half Size Reading Position) D Flow Reading Position (Large Size Reading Position) 1 Copying Machine Body (Image Forming Apparatus Body) 2 ADF (Automatic Document Feeder) 3) Platen glass (document reading section) 7 Wide belt 7, 204 Flow reading means 41 Document trailing edge detection sensor 44 Paper width detection sensor 41, 44 First document size detection means 47 Reading position selection means 48 Document conveyance determination means 49 Reading position changing means (A) (B) (C) Document conveyance path 101a, 101b Clock pulse generating mechanism (second size detecting means) 101b Inverted clock sensor 110 Scanner motor (Reading means driving means) 200 Reader unit (Optical unit) System unit) 204 Scanner unit 300 Printer unit (image Forming portion) 312 a photosensitive drum (image forming means) 500 control unit (control means)

Continuation of the front page (72) Inventor Yuzo Matsumoto 3-30-2 Shimomaruko, Ota-ku, Tokyo Canon Inc. (72) Inventor Katsuya Yamazaki 3-30-2, Shimomaruko, Ota-ku, Tokyo Canon Inc. F term (reference) 2H027 DB01 DB09 DE07 DE09 DE10 EC10 ED30 EE04 EK06 FA12 FA15 FA18 FA22 FA35 FB19 HA08 HA18 HB05 HB06 HB11 2H076 AA04 AA07 AA57 BA15 BA56 BA71 BB04 BB06

Claims (5)

[Claims] An automatic document feeder for feeding a document placed on the document placing means to a reading section; and a first document detecting a size of the document placed on the document placing means. Size detecting means, reading means for reading a document fed by the automatic document feeder, and drift reading means for positioning the drift reading means at one of a plurality of reading positions and for drift reading while transporting the document. Selecting means for selecting a reading position of the reading means according to the size of the document on the automatic document feeder; provided on the document conveying path for conveying the document to the reading section upstream of the reading means, Second document size detection means for detecting the true size of the document being transported; image forming means for forming an image on a recording sheet based on the document image read by the reading means; If the reading position of the reading unit selected by the selecting unit and the document size detected by the first document size detecting unit are not an optimal combination, the document conveying operation of the automatic document feeder is performed. An image forming apparatus comprising: an automatic document feeder, comprising: control means for stopping; 2. The selection unit selects a reading position of the reading unit based on a document size detected by the first size detection unit before a document is fed by an automatic document feeder. 2. The method according to claim 1, wherein
An image forming apparatus provided with the automatic document feeder described in the above. 3. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the reading unit is moved to a position selected by the selecting unit by a reading unit driving unit. 4. The automatic document feeder, wherein the reading position of the reading device selected by the selecting device and the document size detected by the first document size detecting device are not an optimal combination. Has a judging means for judging whether or not the original can be conveyed while performing an appropriate reading at the reading position selected by the selecting means, and the automatic document feeder operates the original conveying by the judging means. When it is determined that the reading is possible, the reading unit performs reading of the document at a non-optimal reading position, and when it is determined that the reading operation is not possible, the control unit stops the document feeding operation by the automatic document feeder. An image forming apparatus comprising the automatic document feeder according to claim 1. 5. A document conveying operation of the automatic document feeder, wherein the reading position of the reading device selected by the selecting device and the document size detected by the document size detecting device are not an optimal combination. 5. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising: a reading position changing unit that changes a reading position of the reading unit when the reading is stopped.