JP2000255811A - Paper feeding device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To surely prevent failure of feeding sheets stacked at full length in the sheet conveying direction. SOLUTION: This device has a paper feeding table 10, a sheet leading end regulating member 14 for regulating leading ends of sheets 11 stacked on an upper surface 10a of the paper feeding table 10, a paper feeding roller 16 disposed below the sheet leading end regulating member 14, and a sheet guide member 22 having an inclined surface portion 25 and disposed on the paper feeding table 10 behind the sheet leading end regulating member 14 with respect to the sheet transferring direction T. The sheet guide member 22 is disposed on the paper feeding table 10 movably in the sheet transferring direction T, and a rotary body 27 is rotatably disposed on an upper portion of the inclined surface portion 25 of the sheet guide member 22. When the sheet 11 is rather longer considering a nerve of the sheet itself, the sheets 11 are fed and then transferred from the lowermost one by the paper feeding roller 16 while supporting the leading end of the sheet 11 by the paper feeding roller 16 and a behind side of the sheet 11 by an outer peripheral surface 27a of the rotary body 27 of the sheet guide member 22.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a sheet feeding device for conveying sheets, such as envelopes, stacked on a sheet feeding table in order from the lowest position by rotating a sheet feeding roller.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art This type of paper feeding apparatus is applied to a sheet feeding portion of a printing machine, a copying machine or the like. FIGS. 6 to 9 show a conventional paper feeding apparatus applied to an offset printing machine. ing. As shown in FIGS. 6 to 9, an envelope 2 which is a sheet is placed and stacked on the upper surface 1 a of the sheet feeding table 1 in a horizontal or vertical direction, and the rear end of the stacked envelope 2 is a sheet rear end guide member. 3, the distal end side is arranged in a state of being inclined downward.

A pair of sheet side guide members 4, 4 are provided on both left and right sides of the upper surface 1a of the sheet feeding table 1, and both sides of the laminated envelope 2 are guided by the pair of sheet side guide members 4, 4. I have. Further, inside each of the pair of seat side guide members 4, 4, a sheet leading end regulating member 5
Are fixed respectively, and the leading end of the stacked envelopes 2 is regulated by the pair of sheet leading end regulating members 5, 5. Lower end of a pair of sheet leading end regulating members 5 and 5 and sheet feeder 1
A predetermined gap is formed between the sheet and the upper surface 1a, and a plurality of sheet feed rollers 6 are arranged below the pair of sheet leading end regulating members 5 and 5. Each paper feed roller 6 partially protrudes from the upper surface 1 a of the paper feed table 1.

[0006] Further, as shown in FIG. 6, a left / right position correction unit 7 is provided downstream of the sheet feeding device in the sheet conveyance direction T, and is shown at a position downstream of the left / right position correction unit 7 in the sheet conveyance direction T. No printing unit is provided.

Although the mechanism for correcting the left / right position (skew correction) is not shown in the right / left position correction section 7, it reciprocates in a direction perpendicular to the sheet transport direction. A pair of left and right paper aligning plates is provided, and an operation of sandwiching the envelope 2 a plurality of times from both sides by the pair of paper aligning plates is performed, thereby performing skew correction of the envelope 2.

In the above configuration, when the paper feed roller 6 rotates, a conveying force due to friction acts on the envelope 2 at the lowermost position, and the envelope 2 at the lowermost position is sent out in the sheet conveying direction T. The sent envelope 2 is conveyed to the left / right position correction unit 7 by, for example, a conveyance belt, where the left / right position is corrected, and is conveyed to the printing unit side.

As shown in FIGS. 6 and 8, when the envelopes 2 are stacked horizontally, the contact width between the envelope 2 and the pair of sheet side guide members 4 is short, so that the pair of sheet The left / right position correction unit 7 that corrects the inclination of the envelope 2 in the left / right direction is indispensable because the left / right control by the side guide members 4 and 4 is not sufficient. Conversely, in an apparatus that does not have the left / right position correction unit 7, the envelopes 2 cannot be stacked horizontally, and the envelopes 2 are stacked vertically. That is,
This is because when the envelopes 2 are vertically stacked, the pair of sheet side guide members 4 and 4 sufficiently regulate the left and right of the envelopes 2, so that the conveyance in the longitudinal direction is stabilized.

FIGS. 7 and 9 show a case where the envelopes 2 are stacked vertically, and the envelopes 2 are arranged on the upper surface 1a of the sheet supply table 1. FIG.
The sheet feeding roller 6 is supported at the front end and the sheet rear end guide member 3 at the rear end. That is, by arranging the envelope 2 without making contact with the upper surface 1a of the paper feed table 1, the conveyance resistance at the start of conveyance is minimized, so that the envelope 2 can be conveyed reliably.

[0009]

However, in the above-mentioned conventional paper feeding apparatus, as shown in FIG. 8, when the length of the envelope 2 is shorter than the stiffness of the envelope itself, the envelope 2 is not used.
Can be arranged without contacting the upper surface 1a of the sheet feeder 1. However, as shown in FIG. 9, if the length of the envelope 2 is longer than the stiffness of the envelope itself, The envelope 2 is easily deformed due to the weight, and tends to have a downwardly convex bow shape when viewed from the side. When the envelope 2 is deformed in this manner, a portion 2a on the front end side of the lower surface of the envelope (a portion connected to the front end, and the area of this portion increases as the deformation of the envelope 2 proceeds) 2a comes into contact with the upper surface 1a of the paper feed table 1. I will be. Then, since the frictional resistance of the envelope 2 at the time of conveyance increases, there is a problem that the idle feeding is likely to occur.

Accordingly, the present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned problem, and can reliably prevent idle feeding of sheets even when the sheets are stacked so that the sheet length becomes longer in the sheet conveying direction. It is an object to provide a paper feeding device.

[0011]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a sheet feeder, a sheet leading end regulating member for regulating a leading end of sheets stacked on the upper surface of the sheet feeder, and a sheet leading end regulating member. A sheet guide roller provided below the sheet feeder, and a sheet guide member having an inclined surface portion and provided behind the sheet leading end regulating member in a sheet conveying direction on the sheet feeder, and an upper surface of the sheet feeder The sheet stacked on the sheet is held by the sheet leading end regulating member and the sheet guide member in a state where the rear end side of the sheet in the sheet conveying direction is inclined above the leading end side, and the sheet is fed. In a sheet feeding device that sequentially separates and transports the sheet from a lowermost position by a paper roller, the sheet guide member is provided movably in a sheet transport direction on the sheet supply table, and the sheet guide member is tilted. Characterized in that the outer peripheral surface of the rotating body above the surface portion is provided rotatably in a state projecting from the sheet guide member.

In this sheet feeding apparatus, when the sheet length is shorter than the stiffness of the sheet itself, the front end of the sheet is supported by the sheet feeding roller, and the rear end of the sheet is supported by the inclined surface of the sheet guide member. If you place it on the top of the paper feed table
The sheet is conveyed while being supported only by the sheet feeding roller and the sheet guide member.

When the sheet length is longer than the stiffness of the sheet itself, the front end of the sheet is supported by a feed roller, and the rear portion of the sheet is supported by the outer peripheral surface of a rotating body of a sheet guide member. If the sheet is placed on the upper surface of the sheet feeding table, the front end portion of the sheet is bent downward by the weight of the sheet, and the sheet is supported without contacting the upper surface of the sheet feeding table. When the transfer force acts on
The sheet is conveyed by the rotation of the rotating body without the sheet sliding on the upper surface of the sheet feeding table.

[0014]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS One embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1A is a sectional view of a sheet feeding apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 1B is a sheet feeding apparatus in which sheets such as an L3-sized envelope are vertically stacked and stacked. FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view showing a state in which a sheet guide member used in the sheet feeding device is in a contracted position; FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view showing a state in which the sheet guide member is in an extended position; FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view showing a state in which the sheets of the L1 size of the paper feeding apparatus are vertically stacked and stacked, and FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view showing a state in which the sheets of the L2 size of the paper feeding apparatus are vertically stacked and stacked. FIG.

As shown in FIGS. 1, 4 and 5, the sheet feeding table 10 of the sheet feeding device is disposed so that its upper surface 10a is inclined downward in the sheet conveying direction T.
A sheet 11 of a predetermined length such as a sheet, an envelope, a card, etc. is placed and laminated on the upper surface 10a. A guide shaft 1 extending above the sheet feed table 10 and extending in a direction orthogonal to the sheet conveying direction T.
The guide shaft 12 supports a pair of seat side guide members 13. The pair of seat side guide members 13, 13 are configured to be able to move in the orthogonal direction U of the sheet conveying direction T by being guided by the guide shaft 12, and adjust the interval between the pair of seat side guide members 13, 13. Paper feed table 1
The both ends of the sheet 11 can be guided in accordance with the width (dimension) of the sheet 11 placed on the upper surface 10a of the zero.

A seat leading end regulating member 14 is fixed to the inner surface of each seat side guide member 13, respectively.
The sheet leading end regulating members 14 regulate the leading ends of the sheets 11 placed and stacked on the upper surface 10a of the sheet feeding table 10, respectively. Further, a rubber (not shown) is attached to the sheet contact surface side of the sheet leading end regulating member 14. Further, a lower portion of the sheet leading end regulating member 14 is configured as a sheet separating portion 15, and the sheet separating portion 15 has a curved shape bent in the sheet conveying direction T as approaching the upper surface 10 a of the sheet feeding table 10.

Between the lower end of the sheet separating section 15 and the upper surface 10a of the sheet feeding table 10, there is provided a clearance for sheet passage with a predetermined clearance, and the sheets 11 are conveyed one by one from the clearance for sheet passage. The position of the sheet feeding table 10 provided with the sheet passage gap, that is, the sheet leading end regulating member 1
Roller openings 10b are provided at three positions on the sheet supply table 10 below the roller 4. The roller openings 10b are arranged so that a part of the outer peripheral surface of the sheet supply roller 16 projects. Each paper feed roller 16 is a rubber roller, and has the same shaft 1
7 is fixed. The shaft 17 is rotated by a driving force of a paper feed motor (not shown).

Further, two roller notches 10c are formed on the upstream side of the roller opening 10b in the sheet conveying direction T, and each roller notch 10c has an outer peripheral surface of the lower conveying roller 18. The parts are arranged so as to protrude. An upper transport roller 19 is arranged above the lower transport roller 18, and the sheets 11 are transported one by one between the pair of transport rollers 18, 19.

The sheet transporting direction T
A pair of guide pin support members 20, 20 are fixed to each other, and a guide pin 21 is fixed to each of the two guide pin support members 20 so as to protrude. The guide pins 21 on both sides are respectively inserted into a pair of guide grooves 28, 28 described later of a sheet guide member 22 made of a metal plate.

The sheet guide member 22 is connected to the sheet supply table 10.
, A pair of guide rails 24 formed by bending both sides of the flat plate 23 downward, and an inclined surface 25 fixed to the upper surface of the rear part of the flat plate 23. And a rotating body supporting portion 26 integrally provided above the inclined surface portion 25, and a rotating body 27 rotatably supported by the rotating body supporting portion 26 via a support shaft 27b. .

Guide grooves 28 are formed in the pair of guide rails 24, 24, respectively.
Has an elongated shape extending in the sheet conveying direction T. Then, the guide pins 21 are engaged with and slide in the respective guide grooves 28, so that the sheet guide member 22 contracts as shown in FIG. 2 (the position indicated by the solid line in FIG. 1A) and extends as shown in FIG. The position (the position of the imaginary line in FIG. 1A) is movable in the sheet transport direction T. The contracted position shown in FIG. 2 is a position where the sheet guide member 22 is closest to the sheet leading end regulating member 14, and the extended position shown in FIG. 3 is a position where the sheet guide member 22 is farthest away from the sheet leading end regulating member 14. Position. The inclined surface portion 25 of the sheet guide member 22 is gradually inclined upward with respect to the flat plate portion 23 in the direction opposite to the sheet conveying direction T.

The rotator 27 is composed of a cylindrical roller, and is rotatably supported in a substantially rectangular opening 26a of the rotator support 26 via a support shaft 27b. Further, a part of the outer peripheral surface 27 a of the rotating body 27 protrudes upward from the rotating body supporting portion 26. That is, when the sheet guide member 22 is at the extended position shown in FIGS. 1B and 3, the protruding position of the outer peripheral surface 27 a of the rotating body 27 rotates the rear part of the sheet 11 on the sheet feed table 10. The inclination angle of the sheet 11 with respect to the upper surface 10a of the sheet feeding table 10 in a state where the sheet 11 is placed on the outer peripheral surface 27a of the body 27 is set so as to be an ideal inclination angle A for sheet conveyance. Here, the inclination angle A ideal for sheet conveyance
Refers to an angle that is substantially the same as the angle at which the sheet 11 enters the sheet separating section 15.

In FIG. 1A, reference numeral 29 denotes a pulley;
Reference numeral 30 denotes a transport belt hung on a pulley 29, which transports the sheet 11 supplied from the paper feed table 10 of the paper feed device to a printing unit (not shown) by the transport belt 30.

Next, the operation of the above configuration will be described. As shown in FIG. 4, when the length of the sheet 11 is L1 which is shorter than the stiffness of the sheet itself, the sheet guide member 2
The position 2 is set as the contraction position. Then, the sheet 11 is disposed on the upper surface 10 a of the sheet supply table 10 with the front end of the sheet 11 supported by the sheet feeding roller 16 and the rear end of the sheet 11 supported by the inclined surface 25 of the sheet guide member 22. Then, sheet 1
1 is supported only by the paper feed roller 16 and the sheet guide member 22 due to its own stiffness, and the sheet 11 is arranged at an inclination angle A with respect to the upper surface 10 a of the paper feed table 10. When the feed roller 16 rotates, the lowermost sheet 1
1 is conveyed by frictional force, and the lowermost sheet 1
1 is sent out in the sheet conveying direction T and conveyed from the sheet conveying gap. When the sheet 11 is conveyed, the sheet 11 is arranged so as not to come into contact with the upper surface 10a of the sheet feeding table 10, so that conveyance resistance at the start of conveyance is minimized, and the sheet 11 is conveyed reliably. Also, sheet 1
Since 1 is the ideal inclination angle A, the conveyance is performed more smoothly.

As shown in FIG. 5, the length of the sheet 11 is shorter than the stiffness of the sheet itself by an L2 dimension (L2> L
In the case of 1), the position of the sheet guide member 22 is set substantially in the middle between the contracted position and the extended position. And sheet 1
The sheet 1 is disposed on the upper surface 10 a of the sheet supply table 10 with the front end supported by the sheet supply roller 16 and the rear end of the sheet 11 supported by the inclined surface 25 of the sheet guide member 22. Then, the sheet 11 is supported only by the sheet feeding roller 16 and the sheet guide member 22 by its own stiffness, and the sheet 1
1 are arranged at an inclination angle A with respect to the upper surface 10a of the sheet feeding table 10. Therefore, the sheet 11 is reliably conveyed for the same reason as described above.

As shown in FIG. 1B, when the length of the sheet 11 is L3 which is longer than the stiffness of the sheet itself, the position of the sheet guide member 22 is set to the extended position. The front end of the sheet 11 is fed by the feed roller 16, and the rear side of the sheet 11 is
7 in a state of being supported by the outer peripheral surface 27a of the
On the upper surface 10a. Then, the front end of the sheet bends downward due to the weight of the sheet 11 and the upper surface 1
The sheet 11 is supported only by the sheet feeding roller 16 and the outer peripheral surface 27a of the rotating body 27 of the sheet guide member 22 without being in contact with the sheet 11a.
0a is arranged at an inclination angle A. When the paper feed roller 16 rotates, a conveying force acts on the lowermost sheet 11. Here, since the sheet 11 can be conveyed by the rotation of the rotating body 27 without the sheet 11 sliding on the upper surface 10a of the sheet feeding table 10, the frictional force at the start of the sheet conveyance is small. Therefore, since the sheet 11 is reliably conveyed by the conveying force from the paper feed roller 16, the sheet 11
No empty feed occurs. In addition, since the sheet 11 has the ideal inclination angle A, the conveyance can be performed smoothly.

Further, the front end of the sheet 11 is
6, the rear portion of the sheet 11 is disposed on the upper surface 10 a of the sheet feeding table 10 while being supported by the outer peripheral surface 27 a of the rotating body 27 of the sheet guide member 22. There is no need to set the length of the sheet feeding direction T of the sheet feeding table 10 to the length, and the length of the sheet feeding table 10 can be shortened. That is, assuming that the longest sheet length to be used is the L3 dimension, conventionally, as shown in FIG. 9, a paper feed space S1 that is at least longer than the L3 dimension of the sheet length is required. In the embodiment, FIG.
As shown in (B), a sheet feeding space S2 that is sufficiently shorter than the sheet length L3 is sufficient, and the sheet feeding device can be made compact.

Further, in this embodiment, the L1 dimension and the L2 dimension are shown assuming that the length of the sheet 11 is shorter than the stiffness of the sheet itself. By adjusting the position of the sheet guide member 22 to adjust the position of the inclined surface portion 25 that supports the rear end of the sheet 11, the inclination angle of the sheet 11 with respect to the paper feed table 10 can be set to the ideal inclination angle A, so that smooth conveyance is possible. It can be performed.

According to the above-described embodiment, the case where the present invention is applied to a paper feeding device in a printing apparatus has been described. However, the present invention can be applied to all apparatuses which need to convey sheets one by one such as a copying machine. Further, according to the embodiment, the rotating body is 1
Although it is provided at a location, it may be provided at a plurality of locations while being shifted in the sheet conveying direction. Further, according to the above-described embodiment, the guide groove of the guide rail into which the guide pin is inserted is provided in the sheet guide member, but the guide groove may be provided in the sheet supply table main body side. In the above embodiment,
Although the seat front end regulating member is provided integrally with the seat side guide member, it is a matter of course that these may be provided separately.

[0031]

As described above, according to the first aspect of the present invention, the sheet guide member is provided movably in the sheet conveying direction on the sheet feeding table, and the rotating body is provided above the inclined surface of the sheet guide member. When the sheet length is short with respect to the stiffness of the sheet itself, the front end of the sheet is fed by the sheet feed roller and the sheet is By arranging the edges on the upper surface of the sheet feeding table with the edges supported by the inclined surfaces of the sheet guide member, the sheet is supported only by the sheet feeding roller and the sheet guide member, and the sheet length is increased by the strength of the sheet itself. In the case where the sheet is long, the sheet is arranged on the upper surface of the sheet feeding table with the front end of the sheet being supported by the feed roller and the rear portion of the sheet being supported by the outer peripheral surface of the rotating body of the sheet guide member. Sea by weight The front end portion bends downward to support the sheet without contacting the upper surface of the sheet feeding table. When a conveying force is applied to the lowermost sheet by rotation of the sheet feeding roller, the sheet slides on the upper surface of the sheet feeding table. In addition, the sheet is moved by the rotation of the rotating body, the frictional force at the time of moving the sheet can be reduced, and the sheet feeding can be reliably prevented. Furthermore, since the front end of the sheet is supported by the feed roller and the rear portion of the sheet is supported by the outer peripheral surface of the rotating body of the sheet guide member, the sheet is disposed on the upper surface of the sheet feeder, so that the sheet is fed corresponding to a long sheet. There is no need to increase the length of the table in the sheet conveying direction, and the length of the sheet feeding table can be reduced. This allows
The paper feeder can be made compact.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1A is a cross-sectional view of a paper feeder according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 1B is a cross-sectional view showing a state in which sheets of L3 size of the paper feeder are vertically stacked and stacked. is there.

FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view showing a state where a sheet guide member used in the sheet feeding device is in a contracted position.

FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view showing a state where the sheet guide member is in an extended position.

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a state in which sheets of the L1 size of the sheet feeding device are vertically stacked and stacked.

FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view showing a state where sheets of L2 size of the sheet feeding device are placed and stacked vertically.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of a main part showing a state in which envelopes of a conventional paper feeding device are placed and stacked horizontally.

FIG. 7 is a perspective view of an essential part showing a state in which the envelopes of the conventional paper feeder are placed and stacked vertically.

FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view showing a state in which envelopes of the conventional paper feeder are placed and stacked vertically.

FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view showing a state in which the envelopes of the conventional paper feeding device are placed and stacked vertically.

[Explanation of symbols]

 REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 10 paper feed table 10 a upper surface 11 sheet 14 sheet leading end regulating member 16 paper feed roller 22 sheet guide member 25 inclined surface portion 27 rotating body 27 a outer peripheral surface T sheet transport direction

Claims (1)

[Claims] A sheet feeder, a sheet leading end regulating member that regulates a leading end of sheets stacked on the upper surface of the sheet feeder,
A sheet feeding roller provided below the sheet leading end regulating member, and a sheet guide member having an inclined surface portion and provided behind the sheet leading end regulating member in a sheet conveying direction on the sheet feeding table; The sheet placed and stacked on the upper surface of the sheet feeding table is inclined by the sheet leading end regulating member and the sheet guide member so that the rear end side of the sheet in the sheet conveying direction is located above the leading end side. A sheet feeding device that holds and sequentially conveys the sheet from the lowest position by the sheet feeding roller, wherein the sheet guide member is movably provided in a sheet conveying direction on the sheet feeding table; A sheet feeder, characterized in that a rotating body is rotatably provided above the inclined surface portion with its outer peripheral surface protruding from the sheet guide member.