JP2001048403A - Image forming apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To keep an installation space from being increased and to facilitate jam clearing process by incorporating a stapling part for collecting a designated number of paper sheets after fixed with an image and binding the same with staples in a main body housing. SOLUTION: Paper sheets delivered one by one from a paper cassette 18 or a manual feed paper tray 29 are subjected to transport timing adjustment by a registration roller 30, transported between a photoreceptor drum 26 and a transfer roller 24 to transfer a toner image on the surface of the photoreceptor drum 26, and sent to a fixing device 25 to fix the toner image. When switched to a broken line state, a switching claw 33 on the downstream of the fixing device 25 guides a paper sheet to a stack space 12, and when switched to a solid line state, it guides a paper sheet to a stapling part 16. A stopper 35 of the stapling part 16 joggles the trailing end of a paper sheet, a front drawing member 36 aligns a paper sheet along the stopper 35, and width adjusting members 37, 38 adjust the width of a paper sheet.

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 such as a copying machine or a printer for forming an image by an electrophotographic system, and more particularly, to a staple processing function for stapling a plurality of sheets of paper on which an image is formed. The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus having the same.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, a staple processing apparatus has been marketed in which predetermined sheets of paper on which an image is formed by an image forming apparatus are combined and stapled. As shown in FIG. 17, the conventional stapling apparatus 2 is configured to be attached to the left or right side of the image forming apparatus main body 1. The sheet on which the image is formed in the image forming apparatus main body 1 is
After being reversed in the switchback path 3, the sheet is conveyed into the stapling apparatus 2, where it is stapled and discharged to the discharge tray 4.

[0003]

In the conventional configuration, when a sheet jams in the image forming apparatus main body 1 and the jam of the sheet is released, as shown in FIG. It was necessary to displace so as to separate from the forming apparatus main body 1. However, when the staple processing device 2 is separated from the image forming apparatus main body 1 as shown in FIG. 18, there is a problem that the image forming apparatus main body 1 easily falls down.

In order to solve such a problem, a configuration using a mounting table 5 as shown in FIG. 19 instead of directly mounting the staple processing device 2 on the image forming apparatus main body 1 is also known. However, in the configuration using the mounting table 5, when the height of the image forming apparatus main body 1 is changed, for example, by stacking paper cassettes under the image forming apparatus main body 1, the height of the stapling apparatus 2 must also be changed. . For this reason, it is necessary to make the mounting table 5 a configuration capable of adjusting the height, and there is a problem that it becomes expensive.

Further, when the paper is transported from the image forming apparatus main body 1 to the staple processing apparatus 2, if the paper is reversed and transported by the switchback path 3 as described above, it takes a long time to transport the paper. When stapling is performed by forming an image on a large number of sheets, there is also a problem that the processing speed is slow. Further, FIG.
In both the configuration of FIG. 19 and the configuration of FIG. 19, the staple processing apparatus 2 is connected to the side of the image forming apparatus main body 1, so that there is a problem that the installation area of the entire apparatus becomes large.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made to solve such a problem, and has as its main object to provide an image forming apparatus having a novel configuration having a stapling function.
Another object of the present invention is to provide an image forming apparatus which does not require a large installation space, easily performs a jam processing, and has a staple processing function. Still another object of the present invention is to provide an image forming apparatus which has a stapling function and has a high image forming and stapling speed for a large number of sheets.

[0007]

According to the first aspect of the present invention, there is provided an image forming section for forming a toner image, a transfer section for transferring the formed toner image to a sheet,
A fixing unit for fixing the toner image transferred to the paper,
And an image forming apparatus having a main body housing having a built-in conveyance path for conveying the paper so that the toner image is transferred and fixed, wherein the main body housing includes:
An image forming apparatus having a built-in staple processing unit for stapling predetermined sheets of paper on which an image is fixed together.

In the invention according to a second aspect, the main body housing is provided with a paper receiving tray protruding to one side.
2. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a sheet bundle discharge unit configured to discharge a sheet bundle of predetermined sheets stapled to the sheet receiving tray. According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the main body housing,
A paper stack space is formed at an intermediate portion in the up-down direction, and a paper stack space, into which the paper after the image has been fixed, is discharged in a substantially horizontal direction from the outer surface of the housing and is discharged. 1 is an image forming apparatus.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, the main body housing is provided with a sheet receiving tray projecting to one side.
4. The image forming apparatus according to claim 3, wherein a bundle of predetermined sheets stapled is discharged to the sheet receiving tray, and sheets not stapled are discharged to the sheet stack space. 5. . According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, the main body housing is provided with a paper receiving tray projecting from a side of the housing below the paper stack space, and a stapled sheet bundle of predetermined sheets passes through the paper stack space. The image forming apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the image is discharged to the sheet receiving tray.

According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, the staple processing section is built in a main body housing located above the paper stack space, and feeds the staple-processed paper bundle to the paper stack space. The image forming apparatus according to claim 3, further comprising: The invention according to claim 7 is characterized in that a sheet receiving tray is provided on an upper surface of the main body housing, and a sheet bundle conveying means for sending a stapled sheet bundle to the sheet receiving tray is provided. Item 2. The image forming apparatus according to Item 1.

According to an eighth aspect of the present invention, the stapling unit is provided in association with the sheet stack space, and performs a stapling process on a predetermined sheet bundle stacked in the sheet stack space. Characterized by the fact that
An image forming apparatus according to claim 3. According to a ninth aspect of the present invention, the stapling section includes a tray provided in the back of the sheet stack space for placing a predetermined sheet bundle to be stapled, and after the stapling process, transfers the sheet bundle to the stack space. The image forming apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the image forming apparatus sends the image.

According to the first aspect of the present invention, since the staple processing section is built in the main body housing, the staple processing section is integrated with the main body housing. For this reason, as compared with the conventional configuration in which the staple processing device is externally attached to the main body housing, the installation space of the entire device is reduced. Further, when paper jams in the main body housing, the main body housing may be opened to eliminate the paper jam, and there is no need to remove the stapling section from the main body housing. Therefore, there is no worry that the balance of the main body housing is deteriorated during the jam clearing process, and the body housing is likely to fall down.

Since the staple processing section is built in the main body housing, a transport path for guiding the sheet on which the toner image is fixed to the staple processing section can be freely designed, and the transport efficiency can be improved. Therefore, when an image is formed on a large number of sheets and the stapling process is performed, an apparatus having a high processing speed can be provided. Claim 2
In the configuration described above, the sheet bundle after the processing is discharged to a sheet receiving tray protruding from the main body housing. Since the stapling process is not performed after the sheet is discharged to the sheet receiving tray as in the related art, only one sheet receiving tray is required, and the configuration is simplified.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, the sheet stack space is provided in the main body housing, and the sheets not subjected to the stapling process are discharged into the sheet stack space.
On the other hand, the staple-processed paper is discharged to a paper receiving tray protruding from the main body housing, so that the staple-processed sheet bundle and the non-staple-processed paper are discharged to different discharge units, thereby improving usability. good. In the configuration of the sixth to ninth aspects, the stapled sheet bundle is discharged to the sheet stack space, so that the sheet receiving tray for receiving the sheet bundle protrudes from the main body housing. Therefore, there is no need to provide an empty space around the image forming apparatus,
The installation space for the image forming apparatus may be small.

According to the seventh aspect of the present invention, the stapled sheet bundle is sent to the sheet receiving tray on the upper surface of the main body housing, so that the sheet receiving tray does not protrude from the main body housing, and the whole shape is clear. It can be a forming device. According to the configuration of the eighth aspect, since the stapling process is performed on the sheets stacked in the sheet stack space, there is no need to provide a space for stacking the sheets in the main body housing, and the entire apparatus can be downsized. Can be.

According to the ninth aspect of the present invention, stapling can be performed satisfactorily on small-sized paper and the like, and the staple-processed paper is stored in the paper stack space.

[0017]

Embodiments of the present invention will be specifically described below with reference to the drawings. FIG.
1 is a perspective view illustrating an external configuration of a copying machine 10 as an image forming apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. Referring to FIG. 1, the outer shape of copying machine 10 is partitioned by main body housing 11. A stack space 12 is formed in the main body housing 11 at an intermediate portion in the vertical direction so as to extend substantially inward from the outer surface of the housing. For this reason,
The main body housing 11 has a lower housing 11D, an upper housing 11U, and a connection housing 11C.

A reading mechanism for reading a document is built in the upper housing 11U. An operation panel 13 is provided on the front side of the upper housing 11U. Further, in this embodiment, a document feeder 14 for automatically transporting a document is provided above the upper housing 11U.
Is installed. A paper tray is built in the lower housing 11D, and a transport path for taking out the paper from the paper tray and transporting the paper is built in the lower housing 11D. Further, an image forming unit for forming a toner image and a transfer unit for transferring the formed toner image to a sheet are also incorporated. Further, a fixing unit for fixing the toner image transferred to the sheet is built in a portion connecting the lower housing 11D to the connection housing 11C.

Note that on the left side of the main body housing 11,
A sheet receiving tray 15 from which a stapled sheet bundle to be described later is discharged projects. A feature of the copying machine 10 according to this embodiment is that a staple processing unit 16 for stapling a predetermined number of sheets on which images have been fixed together is stapled in the main body housing 11. By incorporating the staple processing unit 16 in the main body housing 11, the staple processing unit 16 does not protrude much from the main body housing 11, so that the copier 10 with good installation stability can be provided. Further, the external configuration of the copying machine 10 can be made simple.

FIGS. 2A and 2B are views showing a characteristic structure of the copying machine 10 according to one embodiment of the present invention, wherein A is a plan view showing the internal structure, and B is a front view showing the internal structure. FIG. 2B
Referring to, in the main body housing 11 of the copying machine 10,
A document reading mechanism 17 is provided at the uppermost portion. A paper cassette 18 is provided below the main housing 11.
Is provided. The sheets stored in the sheet cassette 18 are sent out one by one by a feeding roller 19.
An openable / closable manual paper feed tray 20 is provided below the left side surface of the main body housing 11, and the sheets set in the manual paper feed tray 20 are also fed out one by one by a feeding roller 21.

The main body housing 11 contains an image forming unit 22, a laser scanning unit 23, a transfer roller 24, and a fixing device 25. The image forming unit 22 includes a photosensitive drum 2 for forming an electrostatic latent image.
6. A main charger 27 for charging the surface of the photosensitive drum 26, and after the surface of the photosensitive drum 26 is exposed by the laser scanning unit 23 to form an electrostatic latent image, the electrostatic latent image is developed with toner. And a cleaner 29 for cleaning the surface of the photosensitive drum 26 after the transfer of the toner image. The conveyance timing of the paper fed out one by one from the paper cassette 18 or the manual paper feed tray 29 is adjusted by the registration roller 30, and is conveyed between the photosensitive drum 26 and the transfer roller 24. As a result, the toner image on the surface of the photosensitive drum 26 is transferred to the paper. The sheet on which the toner image has been transferred is sent to the fixing device 25, where the toner image is fixed.
The fixing device 25 has a heat roller 31 and a pressure roller 32, and heats and presses the sheet with the pair of rollers to fix the toner image.

On the downstream side of the fixing device 25 (downstream as viewed in the paper transport direction, and in FIG.
3 are provided. The switching claw 33 guides the sheet sent from the fixing device 25 to the stack space 12 of the main body housing 11 by being switched to the broken line state. On the other hand, when the switching claw 33 is switched to the solid line state, the paper sent from the fixing device 25 is guided to the staple processing unit 16. The staple processing unit 16 includes a sheet stack tray 34 and a stopper 3 for aligning the trailing edge of the sheet.
5, a forward moving member 36 for aligning the paper along the stopper 35, and a width adjusting member 3 for adjusting the width of the paper
7, 38, a branch lever 39, and a stapler 40 are provided.

FIG. 3 shows the staple processing unit 16 shown in FIG.
It is a figure for explaining operation of. Next, the operation of the staple processing unit 16 will be described with reference to FIGS. When the staple processing unit 16 is not operated, the discharge switching claw 33 is switched so as to guide the sheet on which the image is formed to the stack space 12. The branch lever 39 is in the state shown in FIG. 3A.

In this state, when the setting for performing the stapling process is made by the operation panel 13 (see FIG. 1), the standby state shown in FIG. 3B is established. In the standby state, the branch lever 39 is rotated so that the sheet on which the image is formed can be discharged to the tray 34. The branch lever 39
Is switched so that the sheet is guided to the staple processing unit 16. Then, the sheet P discharged from the fixing device 25 is discharged onto the tray 34 by the discharge roller 51 as shown in FIG. 3C. Paper P
When the sheet is discharged to the tray 34, as shown in FIG.
5 (FIG. 3D).

Further, the width adjusting member 37 built in the back side of the main body housing 11 is operated, and the paper P is moved toward the front side of the main body housing 11. Then, the sheet P is applied to the width adjusting member 38 on the front side, and is positioned at the position where the stapling is possible, which is positioned by the width adjusting member 38.
Is set (FIG. 3E). Each time the sheet P on which an image is formed is discharged, the processing of C, D, and E in FIG. 3 is repeated. Thus, the sheet bundle on the tray 34 is set at a position where stapling is possible (FIG. 3F).

The stapler 40 (not shown in FIG. 3) is operated to staple the paper P in units of the number of sheets input in advance. Thereafter, in order to discharge the stapled sheet bundle P, the stopper 35 is rotated and the branch lever 39 is also rotated. Then, the pressing roller 41 is displaced, cooperating with the discharge roller 51,
The sheet bundle is brought into a transportable state (FIG. 3G). Then, the discharge roller 51 is rotated, and the sheet bundle P is conveyed in a direction opposite to the discharge direction, and is discharged onto the sheet receiving tray 15 (FIGS. 3H and 3I).

In this embodiment, each time a sheet is discharged to the tray 34, the width adjusting member 37 is operated, and the sheet is set at a position where stapling is possible. After the stapling process is performed by the stapler 40, the sheet bundle is returned to the back side by the width adjusting member 38 on the front side. Thereafter, the sheet bundle is discharged. However, FIG.
In A, the stopper 35 may be tilted while the sheet is set at a position on the front side where stapling is possible, so that the sheet bundle can be moved to the left. At this time, the front shifting member 3
6, the sheet bundle may be fed to the left by a desired amount, the sheet bundle may be temporarily stopped, and the stapler 40 may be operated. In this way, a plurality of staple processes can be performed on the sheet bundle.

That is, one stapler 40 is built in the main body housing 11. This stapler 40 is fixedly arranged. On the other hand, the discharged sheet bundle is movable with respect to the stapler 40. By changing the relative position between the stapler 40 and the sheet bundle, a configuration may be adopted in which a single stapler fixedly arranged can staple a plurality of portions of the sheet bundle. FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a characteristic configuration of a copying machine 101 according to another embodiment of the present invention.
A is a plan view showing the internal configuration, and B is a front view showing the internal configuration. A characteristic of the copying machine 101 shown in FIG. 4 is that the sheets stapled by the stapling section 16 are discharged to a stack space 12 formed in the main housing 11.

The staple processing unit 1 of this embodiment
6 is provided with a front paddle 42 and a transfer plate 43. The other configuration is the same as the configuration shown in FIG. 2, and therefore, the same or corresponding portions are denoted by the same reference characters and description thereof will not be repeated. FIG. 5 shows the copying machine 1
FIG. 9 is a diagram for explaining the operation of the staple processing unit 16 at 01. Next, the operation of the staple processing unit 16 will be described with reference to FIGS.

The sheet fed from the fixing device 25 is discharged onto a tray 45 by a discharge roller 44. Tray 4
Reference numeral 5 denotes a tray provided in the stack space 12 (see FIG. 1). When the sheet is discharged onto the tray 45, the front paddle 42 is rotated, the rear end of the discharged sheet is pulled leftward, and the rear end position is aligned with the stopper (FIGS. 5A and 5B). Next, the rear width adjusting member 37 is moved to the front side, and the front side of the sheet is aligned with the front width adjusting member 38. In this embodiment, the front side width adjusting member 38 is fixedly arranged and does not move.

By repeating the operations of B and C in FIG. 5 for a predetermined number of sheets, a desired number of sheets are stacked on the tray 45 (FIG. 5D). The stacked sheets are in a position where they can be stapled by the stapler 40 (see FIG. 4). Then, a stapling process is performed by the stapler 40 (FIG. 5E). Next, the transfer plate 43 is moved rightward, and the sheets on the tray 45 are discharged to the stack tray 46. The stack tray 46, as described above,
The main body housing 1 is provided in the stack space 12.
1, the user can take out the bundle of sheets discharged to the stack tray 46 by reaching out. This embodiment is effective, for example, when an image is formed on JIS standard A4 size paper (non-large size paper).

FIGS. 6A and 6B are diagrams showing a characteristic configuration of a copying machine 102 according to still another embodiment of the present invention, wherein A is a plan view showing the internal configuration, and B is a front view showing the internal configuration. . In the copying machine 102, the same or corresponding parts as those described with reference to FIG. 2 are denoted by the same reference numerals, and description thereof will be omitted. Copier 102
Is characterized in that both stapled and unstapled paper are discharged into the stack space 12,
The sheets discharged to the stack space 12 are stapled, and the stapled sheet bundle is discharged not to the stack space 12 but to the sheet receiving tray 15 provided on the front side surface in the sheet discharge direction. That is.

In FIG. 6, reference numeral 42 denotes a front paddle,
43 is a transfer plate. FIG. 7 shows the copying machine 102 shown in FIG.
FIG. 7 is a diagram for explaining the operation of the staple processing unit 16 of FIG. Next, the operation of the staple processing unit 16 will be described with reference to FIGS. The sheets sent out from the fixing device 25 are discharged one by one by a discharge roller 44 into the tray 4.
5 is discharged. The tray 45 is a tray for receiving discharged sheets formed in the stack space 12.

Each time one sheet is discharged to the tray 45, as shown in FIG. 7B, the front paddle 42 is rotated, and the rear end of the sheet is brought into contact with the stopper and aligned. Then, the width adjusting member 37 provided at the back side of the main body housing 11 is moved to the front side, and the paper is aligned at a position where the stapler 40 can staple the paper (FIG. 7C). 7B and 7C are repeated a predetermined number of times, so that a predetermined number of sheets to be stapled on the tray 45 are aligned at a staplable position. Then, the sheet is stapled by the stapler 40 (FIG. 7).
E).

Next, the transfer plate 43 is operated, and the stapled sheet bundle is sent to the right side on the tray 45,
The sheet is sent out to a sheet receiving tray 15 protruding outside the main body housing 11 (FIGS. 7F and 7G). In this embodiment, the paper that is not stapled is discharged onto the tray 45, and the user takes out the paper. FIG.
It is a figure for explaining the composition which becomes a feature of copier 103 concerning another embodiment of this invention, and A is an internal top view and B is an internal front view.

The configuration of the copying machine 103 shown in FIG. 8 is characterized in that the stapled sheet bundle is discharged onto the tray 45 in the stack space 12 and the tray 4
5 is provided with a staple processing unit 16 above. The stapling section 16 has a transport path 47 for feeding the sheet to be stapled to the right of the main housing 11. The transport path 47 is built in the upper part of the tray 45. The sheets to be stapled are stacked on a tray 48. Around the tray 48, the width adjusting members 37 and 38, the stopper 35, and the front shifting member 49 are provided.
Are provided so that the paper can be stapled.
Positioned at 0. In this embodiment, a part of the stapler 40 is stored in a state of being protruded from the main body housing 11 in relation to the paper size.

The sheet stapled by the stapler 40 is sent by the transfer plate 43 and discharged onto the tray 45 in the stack space 12. FIGS. 9A and 9B are diagrams showing a characteristic configuration of a copying machine 104 according to still another embodiment of the present invention, wherein A is a plan view showing the internal structure, and B is a front view showing the internal structure. FIG. 10 is an illustrative view seen from the right side of the copying machine 104 shown in FIG. The copier 104 shown in FIGS. 9 and 10 is characterized in that the paper discharged to the stack space 12 of the main body housing 11 can be stapled, and the stapled paper is discharged to the near side of the main body housing 11. Is to be done. Thus, the paper receiving tray 15 does not protrude to the left and right sides of the main body housing 11 and the
It is not necessary to provide empty spaces on both the left and right sides of the device 1, and a copier with high space use efficiency can be provided.

In this embodiment, a single stapler 40 is configured to perform stapling processing at a plurality of positions of a sheet bundle. A tray 45 is provided in the stack space 12 of the main body housing 11, and sheets on which images are formed are discharged onto the tray 45 one by one. The ejected sheet is positioned by the front shifting member 36 so that the rear side thereof is along the stopper 35, and the front side of the sheet is moved by the rear side width adjusting member 37 to the front side width adjusting member 3.
8 is positioned.

This is repeated for each sheet to be discharged, so that a predetermined number of sheet bundles is positioned at a position where stapling is possible. Then, the stapler 40 staples the sheet bundle. Next, the front width adjusting member 38 is tilted, and the rear width adjusting member 37 pushes the rear side of the sheet bundle toward the front. Then, when the sheet bundle is shifted to the predetermined position, once the sheet bundle is stopped and the stapler 40 is operated again, stapling can be performed at a plurality of positions of the sheet bundle.

Finally, when the rear width adjusting member is displaced to the forefront, the stapled main body housing 11 is discharged to the paper receiving tray 15 provided on the front side. FIG. 11 is a front view showing the internal structure of a copying machine 105 according to still another embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 12 is a diagram showing a main configuration of FIG.

The configuration of the copying machine 105 shown in FIG.
Is similar to the configuration of the copying machine 10 shown in FIG. The difference is
The paper stapled by the stapling unit 16 is
Instead of being discharged to the left side of the main body housing 11,
The configuration is such that the stapled sheet bundle is inverted and discharged to the tray 45 in the stack space 12. In the copying machine 105, the same or corresponding components as those of the configuration of the copying machine 10 are denoted by the same reference numerals, and description thereof will be omitted.

As shown in FIG. 12, there is provided a paper discharge switching claw 33 for switching whether the paper sent from the fixing device 25 is guided to the tray 45 or the staple processing section 16. The sheet guided to the staple processing unit 16 is discharged onto the tray 34 by the discharge roller 51. Further, a pressing roller 41 for transporting the stapled paper on the tray 34 is provided. Press roller 41
Can swing about a fulcrum 52 and can convey a sheet bundle with a relatively thick sheet bundle between the discharge roller 51 and the discharge roller 51. The stopper 35 positions the rear end of the sheet to be stapled, and rotates in a state indicated by a broken line when the sheet bundle is conveyed. Further, a guide 53 for inverting the sheet bundle by 180 degrees is provided.

FIG. 13 is a diagram for explaining the operation of the copying machine 105 shown in FIGS. 11 and 12. As shown in FIG. 13A, when the stapling process is not performed, the sheets sent out from the fixing device 25 are discharged one by one onto the tray 45 of the stack space 12 via the discharge rollers by the switching claw 33. On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 13B, at the time of stapling, the switching claw 33 is switched, and the sheet advances upward from the fixing device 25 and is discharged onto the tray 34 by the discharge roller 51. And every time the paper is ejected,
The sheet is positioned at a position where stapling is possible by the front shift member 36 and the width adjusting members 37 and 38. When a predetermined number of sheets are stacked, stapling is performed by the stapler 44.

After that, the stopper 35 is tilted down, the pressing roller 41 is displaced, the sheet bundle is sandwiched between the discharge roller and the pressing roller, and the sheet bundle is guided by the guide 53, and the tray in the stack space 12 is moved. It is discharged to 45. If the sheet bundle is thick, it may be difficult for the sheet bundle to pass between the discharge rollers. Therefore, it is preferable that the discharge rollers be formed of rollers whose width can be displaced. FIG. 14 is an internal front view for explaining a characteristic configuration of a printer 106 according to still another embodiment of the present invention, and FIG.
4 is an enlarged view of a main part of FIG. 4, and FIG. 16 is a diagram for explaining the operation. The features of the printer 106 shown in FIGS. 14 to 16 are that the staple processing unit 16 is built in the main body housing 11, and the paper stapled by the staple processing unit 16 is discharged to the upper surface of the main body housing 11. The paper that is not stapled is discharged to a stack space 12 formed inside the main body housing 11.

For this reason, the paper transport path can be switched by the configuration shown in FIG. 14 and 15, reference numeral 33 denotes a paper discharge switching claw, 35 denotes a stopper,
Reference numeral 1 denotes a pressing roller, which has the same configuration as that described with reference to FIGS. As shown in FIG. 16A, when the stapling process is not performed on the sheet on which the image is formed, the sheet is guided to the tray 45 in the stack space 12 by the switching claw 33.

On the other hand, when performing stapling on a sheet on which an image is formed, the switching claw 33 is switched, and the sheet is guided to the tray 34 of the stapling section 16. In this case, the claw 54 is in a state shown by a solid line in FIG. After a predetermined number of sheets are stacked on the tray 34 and stapled, the pressing roller 41 is displaced, and the stapled sheet bundle is sandwiched between the sheet and the discharge roller, and the stopper 35 is rotated. Further, the claw 54 is switched to the state shown by the broken line. By rotating each roller, the staple-processed sheet bundle is discharged to the sheet receiving tray 55 on the upper surface of the main body housing 11.

The present invention is not limited to the embodiment described above, and various changes can be made within the scope described in the claims.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an external configuration of a copying machine 10 as an image forming apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a characteristic configuration of the copying machine 10 according to the embodiment of the present invention, where A is a plan view showing an internal configuration;
B is a front view showing the internal configuration.

FIG. 3 is a diagram for explaining an operation of a staple processing unit 16 shown in FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a copying machine 101 according to another embodiment of the present invention.
FIGS. 2A and 2B are diagrams illustrating a configuration which is a feature of the first embodiment. FIG. 2A is a plan view illustrating an internal configuration, and FIG.

FIG. 5 is a diagram for explaining the operation of the staple processing unit 16 in the copying machine 101.

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a configuration which is a feature of a copying machine 102 according to still another embodiment of the present invention, wherein A is a plan view showing an internal configuration, and B is a front view showing the internal configuration.

7 is a staple processing unit 1 of the copying machine 102 shown in FIG.
6 is a diagram for explaining the operation of FIG.

FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating a characteristic configuration of a copying machine 103 according to still another embodiment of the present invention, where A is a plan view showing the internal configuration, and B is a front view showing the internal configuration.

FIG. 9 is a diagram showing a configuration that is a feature of a copying machine 104 according to still another embodiment of the present invention, where A is a plan view showing the internal configuration, and B is a front view showing the internal configuration.

10 is an illustrative view seen from a right side of the copying machine 104 shown in FIG. 9;

FIG. 11 is a front view illustrating an internal structure of a copying machine 105 according to still another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 12 is a diagram showing a main configuration of FIG. 11;

FIG. 13 is a diagram for explaining the operation of the copying machine 105 shown in FIGS. 11 and 12;

FIG. 14 is an internal front view for explaining a characteristic configuration of a printer 106 according to still another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 15 is an enlarged view of a main part of FIG. 14;

FIG. 16 is a diagram for explaining the operation of the printer 106.

FIG. 17 is a diagram illustrating a connection relationship between a conventional stapling apparatus 2 and an image forming apparatus main body 1;

FIG. 18 is a diagram illustrating a state of the stapling apparatus 2 when the jam processing is used in the image forming apparatus main body 1;

FIG. 19 is a front view showing a state where the staple processing device 2 is mounted on the image forming apparatus main body 1 using the mounting base 5;

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Copier (image forming apparatus) 11 Main body housing 12 Stack space 16 Staple processing unit 22 Image forming unit 23 Laser scanning unit (LSU) 24 Transfer roller 25 Fixing device 33 Discharge switching claw 44 Discharge roller 15, 55 Paper tray

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continuing from the front page (72) Inventor Kazutoshi Kondo 1-2-28 Tamazuki, Chuo-ku, Osaka-shi, Osaka Inside Mita Kogyo Co., Ltd. No. 28 Mita Kogyo Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Keiji Okumura 1-2-28 Tamatsukuri, Chuo-ku, Osaka-shi, Osaka F-term (reference) 2H071 AA31 AA32 AA35 AA37 DA24 EA04 2H072 FB01 GA08 3F054 AA01 AC02 AC05 BA02 DA01 DA12 3F108 GA02 GA04 GB01 HA02 HA32

Claims (9)

[Claims] An image forming section for forming a toner image, a transfer section for transferring the formed toner image to a sheet, a fixing section for fixing the toner image transferred to the sheet, and a transfer of the toner image. And an image forming apparatus having a main body housing in which a conveyance path for conveying a sheet so as to be fixed is provided. In the main body housing, a predetermined number of sheets on which an image is fixed are stapled together by staples. An image forming apparatus incorporating the staple processing unit of (1). 2. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said main body housing includes a sheet receiving tray protruding to one side, and sheet bundle discharging means for discharging a stapled sheet bundle of predetermined sheets to said sheet receiving tray. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein: 3. A paper stack space is formed in the main body housing at an intermediate portion in the vertical direction, and a paper stack space into which the paper after the image is fixed is discharged from the outer surface of the housing in a substantially horizontal direction. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein: 4. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the main body housing is provided with a paper receiving tray protruding to one side, and a bundle of predetermined stapled sheets is discharged to the paper receiving tray, and the non-stapled sheets are The image forming apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the image is discharged to the paper stack space. 5. A sheet receiving tray protruding from a side surface of a housing below a sheet stack space in the main body housing, and a stapled sheet bundle composed of predetermined sheets passes through the sheet stack space to form the sheet stack. The image forming apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the image is discharged to a receiving tray. 6. The staple processing unit is incorporated in a main body housing located above a paper stack space, and is provided with a paper bundle conveying means for feeding a staple-processed paper bundle to the paper stack space. The image forming apparatus according to claim 3, wherein: 7. A sheet receiving tray is provided on an upper surface of the main body housing, and sheet bundle conveying means for sending a stapled sheet bundle to the sheet receiving tray is provided.
The image forming apparatus according to claim 1. 8. The stapling unit is provided in association with the sheet stack space, and performs stapling on a predetermined number of sheets stacked in the sheet stack space. The image forming apparatus according to claim 3. 9. The stapling section is provided at the back of a sheet stack space, and has a tray on which a predetermined sheet bundle to be stapled is placed. After stapling, the stapling section sends the sheet bundle to the stack space. The image forming apparatus according to claim 8, wherein: