JP2001348153A - Paper after-processing device, paper carrier device and image forming device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To perform quick work for after-processing while inhibiting a device from being large sized. SOLUTION: This paper after-processing device using a stable tray 71 having an after-processing position and a short size alignment position at an incoming paper side comprises paper size determination means for determining that the size of paper coming into the staple tray 71 is long or short, a rear end plate 72 and side restricting plate 73 for aligning the paper, short size paper transfer means (the rear end plate 72) for transferring the paper at the short size alignment position to the after-processing position, and after-processing control means for controlling the alignment means, the short size paper transfer means and the after-processing means so that after-processing is given to the long size paper after aligned at the after-processing position while after-processing is given to the short size paper after aligned at the short size alignment position and transferred to the after-processing. position.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a sheet post-processing apparatus provided in a digital multifunction peripheral or an image forming apparatus, for example, for performing post-processing such as stapling on a sheet to which an image has been added.
For example, the present invention relates to a sheet conveying device provided in the sheet post-processing apparatus and an image forming apparatus including the sheet post-processing apparatus.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, for example, a copying machine as an image forming apparatus performs a stapling process as post-processing on a sheet on which an image is printed, as disclosed in, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2-144370. Some include a paper post-processing device to be applied.

In the above prior art, the sheet post-processing apparatus is installed on the side of the image forming apparatus on the sheet discharge side. The paper discharge port of the image forming apparatus and the paper post-processing device are connected by a paper transport path, and the printed paper is taken into an alignment tray in the paper post-processing apparatus via the transport path. As shown in FIG. 3 (processing tray 77) of the above publication, the alignment tray is arranged in an inclined state with the discharge direction facing upward. The paper on the alignment tray is aligned here, further stapled, and then discharged to the paper stack unit.

In the above-mentioned sheet post-processing apparatus, the sheets input to the aligning tray are collected and aligned in a state of straddling the miniaturized aligning tray and the sheet stacking section. The part on the alignment tray side is pushed out from the above straddling part of the bundle to the sheet stacking part to complete the post-processing.

[0005]

In order to reduce the size of the sheet post-processing device provided on the side of the image forming apparatus, the following configuration is generally considered. For example, as shown in FIG. 43A, in the sheet post-processing apparatus 301, the inclination of the alignment tray 302 is made closer to vertical. However, in such a configuration, although the length of the sheet post-processing apparatus 301 in the sheet conveying direction is shorter, the height is higher than that of the image forming apparatus 303. Conversely, the alignment tray 30
When the inclination of 2 is made closer to the horizontal direction, the sheet post-processing apparatus 301 can be reduced in height, but the length in the sheet transport direction becomes longer.

As described above, in any of the above-described configurations, the size of the apparatus becomes large in any case. In particular, when large-size sheets can be processed, the length of the alignment tray 302 becomes remarkable. Therefore, the sheet post-processing device 301
Contrary to the recent miniaturization of image forming apparatuses, the size of the image forming apparatus cannot be installed without a dedicated table or an additional paper cassette mechanism. This requires a large occupied space.

On the other hand, in the configuration disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2-144370, the tray of the paper stack portion is used to assist the function of the miniaturized alignment tray. This avoids the problem of increasing the size of the paper post-processing device.

However, in the configuration described in the above publication, since the sheet during the aligning operation is exposed outside the machine, the operator may touch the sheet without waiting for the end of the job (the aligning operation or the stapling process). In addition, troubles such as paper jam, stapling failure, alignment failure, and the like are likely to occur due to external factors such as inadvertent removal of a sheet for which a job has been completed.

In order to solve the above problem, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 10-1
No. 77282 discloses a configuration in which a sheet post-processing device is provided between a document reading unit and an image forming unit. With this configuration, the paper during the alignment operation is not exposed outside the machine, and thus the above problem does not occur.

However, in the above-described conventional configuration, a long-size sheet (a sheet having a long length in the sheet conveyance direction) and a short-size sheet (a sheet having a short length in the sheet conveyance direction) are placed in the same sheet post-processing position. , And are aligned at this position. For this reason, for example, when processing a plurality of short-size sheets constituting a part of a document, it takes a long time until the alignment is completed, which results in a problem that the processing speed is reduced.

In order to solve such a problem, for example, in order to shorten the conveyance distance to the post-processing position (alignment position) of the short-size paper, a short-size paper and a short-size paper are used. If the respective sheet post-processing devices are provided in the vertical position, the processing speed increases, but the overall height of the sheet post-processing device increases, which leads to an increase in the size of the device including the sheet post-processing device. become.

Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a sheet post-processing apparatus capable of increasing the processing speed while suppressing an increase in the size of the apparatus.

[0013]

In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, a paper post-processing apparatus according to the present invention has a paper post-processing means for performing post-processing on paper input to a paper stacking section. In the apparatus, the paper stacking unit has a post-processing position for performing post-processing on the paper and a short size alignment position set on the side of entering the paper stacking unit for aligning short-sized paper. A sheet size discriminating unit for discriminating whether the size of the sheet entering the sheet stacking unit in the transport direction is a long size or a short size; an aligning unit for aligning the sheet entered the sheet stacking unit; A short-size sheet transfer means for transferring the sheet at the alignment position to the post-processing position; and, when the long-size sheet enters the sheet stacking section, after the alignment of the sheet at the post-processing position, the post-processing is performed. Is performed while the short paper When you Nyukami in the paper stacking unit,
The aligning means, the short-size sheet transferring means, and the post-processing are performed such that the sheets are aligned at the short-size aligning position, and after the aligned sheets are transferred to the post-processing position, post-processing is performed. And a post-processing control means for controlling the processing means.

According to the above arrangement, the sheet stacking section aligns the short-size sheet set at the post-processing position for performing the post-processing on the sheet and the sheet entering side into the sheet stacking section. It has a short size alignment position.

The paper size determining means determines whether the size of the paper entering the paper stacking section in the transport direction is long or short. Then, when the long-size paper enters the paper stacking section, the post-processing control means performs the post-processing by the post-processing means after performing the alignment of the paper at the post-processing position, and the short-size paper. When the paper enters the paper stacking section, the paper is aligned at the short size alignment position,
After the aligned sheets are transferred to the post-processing position, the aligning means, the short-size sheet transferring means and the post-processing means are controlled so that the post-processing by the post-processing means is performed.

As described above, in the present paper post-processing apparatus, the long-size paper and the short-size paper are not uniformly aligned at the post-processing position where post-processing such as stapling is performed. The paper is aligned at the post-processing position, while the short-sized paper is aligned at the short-size alignment position set on the paper entry side to the paper stacking unit. Therefore, while suppressing an increase in the size of the device,
Processing speed can be increased.

That is, the length of the paper stacking section for stacking the received paper is set in accordance with the size of the long-size paper. In this state, for example, a stapler as a post-processing unit is provided at, for example, a front end position (a front end position in a sheet feeding direction) of the sheet stacking unit, and the short size sheet is also aligned at the post-processing position by the stapler. In this case, the moving distance of each short-sized sheet fed to the sheet stacking section to the alignment position becomes longer, and as a result, the processing speed in the sheet post-processing device becomes slower.

On the other hand, when the alignment position of the short-sized paper is set on the side of entering the paper stacking section, the moving distance to the alignment position of each short-sized paper entered into the paper stacking section is The processing time can be shortened by aligning and accumulating the short size sheets at this position, and then moving the bundle of sheets together to the post-processing position. Thus, in the sheet post-processing apparatus, the long size sheet and the short size sheet can be aligned at different positions and optimum positions in the sheet stacking section, and the processing speed can be increased.

Further, the paper post-processing apparatus of the present invention has a paper size determining means for determining whether the size of the paper entering the paper stacking section in the transport direction is a long size or a short size, and the paper entering the paper stacking section. When the paper is aligned and the paper is of a long size, the paper is aligned at a post-processing position where the paper can be subjected to post-processing, while when the paper is of a short size. And a post-processing means for performing post-processing on the paper aligned by the aligning means, wherein the aligning means aligns the paper at the short size alignment position set on the paper input side to the paper stacking section. It is characterized by.

According to the above construction, the paper size determining means determines whether the size of the paper entering the paper stacking section in the transport direction is a long size or a short size, and the aligning means determines the size of the paper entering the paper stacking section. In this alignment, when the paper is of a long size, the paper is aligned at a post-processing position where the paper can be subjected to post-processing, while the paper is of a short size. In some cases, the sheets are aligned at the short size alignment position set on the side of the sheet stacking unit.
The post-processing means performs post-processing on the sheets aligned by the alignment means.

As described above, in the sheet post-processing apparatus, the long-size paper and the short-size paper are not uniformly aligned at the post-processing position where post-processing such as stapling is performed. The paper is aligned at the post-processing position, while the short-sized paper is aligned at the short-size alignment position set on the paper entry side to the paper stacking unit. Therefore, while suppressing an increase in the size of the device,
Processing speed can be increased.

That is, the length of the paper stacking section for stacking the received paper is set in accordance with the size of the long size paper. In this state, for example, a stapler as a post-processing unit is provided at, for example, a front end position (a front end position in a sheet feeding direction) of the sheet stacking unit, and the short size sheet is also aligned at the post-processing position by the stapler. In this case, the moving distance of each short-sized sheet fed to the sheet stacking section to the alignment position becomes longer, and as a result, the processing speed in the sheet post-processing device becomes slower.

On the other hand, when the alignment position of the short size paper is set on the side of the paper stacking section, the moving distance to the alignment position of each short size paper entering the paper stacking section is The processing time can be shortened by aligning and accumulating the short size sheets at this position, and then moving the bundle of sheets together to the post-processing position. Thus, in the sheet post-processing apparatus, the long size sheet and the short size sheet can be aligned at different positions and optimum positions in the sheet stacking section, and the processing speed can be increased.

The above-described sheet post-processing apparatus may be configured such that a non-post-processing conveyance path for guiding a sheet not subjected to post-processing to a discharge tray is provided to be branched from the path to the sheet stacking section. Good.

According to the above configuration, by providing the non-post-processing conveyance path, when the present paper post-processing apparatus is provided in, for example, an image forming apparatus, special paper that does not perform post-processing such as postcards and OHPs can be used. Thus, the paper can be discharged through the paper post-processing device. Therefore, the convenience and versatility of the sheet post-processing device can be improved.

When the aligning means performs the aligning operation at the short-size aligning position, each time a sheet enters the sheet stacking section, the aligning means sets the transport direction of the sheet based on the rear end side in the transport direction of the sheet. It is good also as a structure provided with the movable alignment member which aligns by pushing a front end part back.

According to the above configuration, when the aligning operation is performed at the short size aligning position, the movable aligning member sets the reference to the rear end side in the sheet conveying direction each time the sheet enters the sheet stacking section. The paper is aligned (preliminary alignment) by pushing the front end in the transport direction of the paper backward.

As described above, the alignment (preliminary alignment) is performed by the movable alignment member for each of the short-sized papers that have been inserted, thereby improving the alignment of the papers, and performing post-processing such as stapling. Can be done properly.

That is, in the case where alignment is performed by the movable alignment member after a large number of sheets are stacked on the sheet stacking unit, alignment becomes difficult due to static electricity of the sheets, and the sheets are easily damaged such as bent corners. Become. With the above configuration, such a problem can be solved.

In the above-mentioned sheet post-processing apparatus, the aligning means, when performing the aligning operation at the post-processing position, refers to the front end of the sheet in the sheet conveying direction each time a sheet enters the sheet stacking section. Alternatively, a configuration may be provided in which a movable alignment member that aligns by pushing the rear end of the sheet in the transport direction forward is provided.

According to the above configuration, when the aligning operation is performed at the post-processing position, the movable aligning member sets the reference to the front end side in the sheet conveying direction each time the sheet enters the sheet stacking section. The alignment is performed by pushing the rear end of the sheet in the transport direction forward.

As described above, by performing alignment by the movable alignment member for each of the input short-size sheets, the alignment of the sheets is improved, and the subsequent post-processing such as stapling is appropriately performed. Can be.

That is, in the case where alignment is performed by the movable alignment member after a large number of sheets are stacked on the sheet stacking unit, the alignment becomes difficult due to static electricity of the sheets, and the sheets are easily damaged such as bent corners. Become. With the above configuration, such a problem can be solved.

When post-processing is performed, for example, when stapling is performed, and when one sheet of paper to be stapled is completed, the alignment of the set of sheets is completed. Post-processing can be started almost simultaneously with the completion of the input of a plurality of sheets to be performed, and the processing speed can be increased.

The above-mentioned sheet post-processing apparatus may be configured such that the home position of the movable alignment member is set at a position on the sheet input side of the sheet stacking section.

As described above, if the home position of the movable alignment member is set at the position on the paper entering side of the paper stacking section,
Regardless of the size of long-size paper or short-size paper, the movable alignment member moves quickly from the home position to a position for alignment operation corresponding to each paper, regardless of whether the paper is fed into the paper stacking section. Can be moved to

For example, when a short-size sheet is fed, the movable alignment member moves to a central position of the sheet stacking section corresponding to the alignment of the short-size sheet. At this time, the moving direction of the movable alignment member and the paper entering direction are the same,
Even if the movement of the movable alignment member and the paper insertion are performed substantially simultaneously, collision between them can be avoided.

On the other hand, when the home position of the movable alignment member is set to, for example, the center position of the paper stacking section corresponding to the alignment of the short size paper, when the long size paper is inserted. Then, the movable alignment member moves to the paper input side position. At this time, the moving direction of the movable alignment member is opposite to the paper entering direction. Therefore, if the movement of the movable alignment member and the paper insertion are performed at the same time, the two may collide and damage the paper. For this reason, it is necessary to wait until the movement of the movable alignment member is almost completed before the paper is input, and the processing speed is reduced.

In the above-mentioned sheet post-processing apparatus, the aligning means may include a movable aligning member which moves in the front-rear direction of the sheet transport direction, and the movable aligning member may also serve as the short-size sheet transferring means.

According to the above arrangement, the aligning means includes the movable alignment member that moves in the front-rear direction in the paper transport direction, and the movable alignment member also functions as the short-size paper transfer means.
There is no need to provide the short-size sheet transfer means as an independent means, and the configuration can be simplified.

The above-described sheet post-processing apparatus may be configured such that short-sized sheets can be stacked at the short-size matching position while short-sized sheets are arranged at the post-processing position.

According to the above configuration, the next short-size sheet can be accumulated at the short-size matching position while the short-size sheet is arranged at the post-processing position. Immediately after the aligned short-size sheet bundle is transferred to the post-processing position, the accumulation of the next short-size sheet at the short-size alignment position can be started. This enables quick processing.

The above-mentioned sheet post-processing device includes a sheet discharge tray,
The paper processing apparatus further includes a paper discharge unit that discharges the paper processed by the post-processing unit to the paper discharge tray, and a paper discharge transfer unit that transports the paper at the post-processing position to a position where the paper can be discharged by the paper discharge unit. In addition, the alignment unit may include a movable alignment member that moves in the front-rear direction of the sheet conveyance direction, and the movable alignment member may also function as the paper discharge transfer unit.

According to the above arrangement, the aligning means includes the movable aligning member which moves in the front-rear direction in the sheet conveying direction, and the movable aligning member is moved to a position where the sheet at the post-processing position can be discharged by the discharging means. Since the sheet is also used as the sheet discharging and transferring means for transferring, there is no need to provide the sheet discharging and transferring means as an independent means, and the configuration can be simplified.

In the above-mentioned sheet post-processing apparatus, the movable aligning member is formed in a plate shape, and the aligning means includes a movable aligning member holding means for holding the movable aligning member in a rising state and a falling state. It may be.

According to the above arrangement, the movable alignment member is set in the upright state when aligning the paper and when transporting the paper, so that these operations are performed, and when returning to the home position and passing below the paper in the paper stacking section. These operations can be performed appropriately by setting the device in a collapsed state.

That is, the aligning operation of the movable aligning member at the short size aligning position, particularly for the short size paper, the movement of the movable aligning member from the short size aligning position to the post-processing position, and the rearward shifting from the short size aligning position. The transfer operation of the aligned short-sized sheet bundle to the processing position, the discharging operation of the post-processed sheet bundle from the post-processing position to the discharge tray, and the returning operation of the movable alignment member itself to the home position are smoothly performed. be able to.

In the above-mentioned sheet post-processing apparatus, the movable alignment member holding means meshes with the first screw gear whose axial direction is the sheet conveyance direction, and meshes with the first screw gear.
An axial direction orthogonal to the paper transport direction, a second screw gear having the movable alignment member connected to the shaft, and a first screw gear movable in the paper transport direction, and the first screw gear; It may be configured to include a shaft member fitted in a state where the rotation of the shaft member is prevented, and a driving unit for rotating the shaft member.

According to the above construction, the shaft member is rotated by the driving means, and the first screw gear is rotated by the rotation of the shaft member, and the second screw gear meshing with the first screw gear is rotated. The movable aligning member connected to the shaft of the second screw gear rotates, that is, the movable aligning member is in a falling state or a rising state.

Therefore, the movable aligning member can be arranged in the falling state and the rising state by the rotation of the shaft member, and the driving means for rotating the shaft member, ie, arranging the movable aligning member in both the above-mentioned states. Drive source) can be arranged at a position remote from the movable alignment member. This allows
The degree of freedom in designing a mechanism for driving the movable alignment member can be increased.

In the above-described paper post-processing apparatus, the first screw gear is formed of a bevel gear having a helix angle of 45 degrees, and the second screw gear is formed of a second bevel gear.
The screw gear described above may be constituted by a gear in which pins are arranged at the same pitch as the teeth of the bevel gear.

According to the above arrangement, the movable alignment member and the second
And the screw gear can be integrally formed by injection molding, and the manufacturing is facilitated.

The above-mentioned sheet post-processing apparatus is provided with a movable aligning member driving unit for moving the movable aligning member in the front-rear direction of the sheet conveying direction, wherein the aligning unit is configured to move the movable aligning member via an elastic member. It may be configured to be connected to the member driving means.

According to the above configuration, the movable alignment member is driven by the movable alignment member driving means and moves in the front-rear direction in the sheet transport direction. Thus, the movable alignment member is driven by the movable alignment member driving unit, and can transfer the short size sheet bundle aligned at the short size alignment position to the post-processing position. At this time, the movable alignment member positions the sheet bundle at the post-processing position by abutting the sheet bundle against, for example, a stopper for positioning, and aligns the sheet bundle in the sheet transport direction. In addition, the movable alignment member aligns the long size sheet at the post-processing position by, for example, contacting the long size sheet with a stopper for positioning.

The transfer, alignment,
In alignment with long-size sheets, since the movable alignment member is connected to the movable alignment member driving means via the elastic member, no excessive pressing force acts on the sheet even if the sheet size varies. Accordingly, it is possible to prevent a situation in which an excessive pressing force acts on the sheet from the movable alignment member and damages the sheet end when the sheets are aligned.

In the above-described sheet post-processing apparatus, the sheet size determining means may determine whether the sheet is a long size or a short size based on information indicating a sheet size input from an external device.

According to the above arrangement, the paper size discriminating means is used for the operation section of the image forming apparatus when a print request is made to the image forming apparatus having the paper post-processing apparatus. Input for specifying the paper size,
Alternatively, the determination is performed based on paper size information used from a terminal device connected to the image forming apparatus on the network. Therefore, it is possible to easily determine the length of the incoming paper without making a mistake.

In the above-described sheet post-processing apparatus, the sheet size determining means determines whether the sheet is a long size or a short size based on the length of the sheet stacking section and the input length information of the sheet in the sheet transport direction. May be determined.

According to the above arrangement, the paper size determining means determines whether the paper is the long size or the short size based on the length of the paper stacking section and the input length information of the paper in the paper transport direction. I do. For example, the paper size determining means
If the length of the paper in the paper transport direction exceeds 1/2 of the length of the paper stacking portion in the paper transport direction, it is determined to be a long size, and if it is 1/2 or less, it is determined to be a short size.

The input of the sheet length information is input from the sheet size detecting means provided in the sheet transport path, or to the operation unit of the image forming apparatus provided with the sheet post-processing apparatus. At the time of a print request, or an input at the time of a print request from a terminal device such as a computer or a facsimile to which the image forming apparatus is connected.

By performing such a discrimination operation, the alignment operation using the short size alignment position for the short size set in the paper stacking section and the alignment position for the long size, ie, the paper post-processing position, is effective. And the matching operation can be performed quickly, and the processing speed can be further increased.

The above-mentioned sheet post-processing apparatus regulates the sheet discharging means for discharging the sheet processed by the post-processing means from the post-processing position, and the front end position of the sheet disposed in the post-processing position in the conveying direction. Restricting member that can be moved to a restricting position where the paper is ejected from the post-processing position by the discharging unit, and a restricting position that moves the restricting member between the front end restricting position and the retracted position. A paper positioning unit having a member driving unit may be provided.

According to the above arrangement, the sheet positioning means includes the regulating member and the regulating member driving section, and when the regulating member is disposed at the regulating position by the regulating member driving section, the sheet positioning means at the post-processing position. The bundle can be positioned, and when the regulating member is disposed at the retracted position by the regulating member driving section, the sheet bundle can be discharged from the post-processing position by the sheet discharging means. Thus, the sheet can be positioned at the post-processing position, and the post-processed sheet bundle can be reliably discharged.

The sheet post-processing apparatus according to the present invention is provided at a sheet stacking section for stacking the input sheets and at a front end position of a post-processing position where the sheet can be subjected to post-processing in the sheet stacking section. A restricting position for restricting and positioning the front end position of the sheet in the sheet conveying direction, and a retracting position for allowing the sheet to be ejected from the post-processing position, the position being inclined forward from the restricting position in the sheet conveying direction. A paper positioning means having a movable regulating member, a regulating member driving portion for moving the regulating member between the regulating position and the retracted position, and aligning the paper entering the paper accumulating portion; And a post-processing unit that performs post-processing on the paper that has been aligned by the aligning unit while being pressed against the regulating member.

According to the above arrangement, the aligning unit aligns the sheets that have entered the sheet stacking unit, and arranges the aligned sheets at the post-processing position while pressing the aligned sheets against the regulating member at the regulating position.
The sheet positioning means arranges the regulating member at the above-mentioned regulating position when regulating the front end position of the sheet in the conveying direction. When the post-processing is performed on the sheet by the post-processing unit in this state, the sheet positioning unit disposes the regulating member to the retracted position by lowering the regulating member from the regulating position to the front side in the sheet conveying direction. As a result, the paper can be discharged from the post-processing position.

Therefore, the sheet can be positioned by the regulating member at the post-processing position, and the regulating member can be easily moved to the retracted position where the positioning state is released. Also,
The movement of the regulating member from the regulating position to the retracted position is performed by lowering the regulating member from the regulating position to the front side in the paper transport direction. Therefore, when a pressing force (side pressure) is applied from the paper to the regulating member. Can be easily and appropriately performed.

Further, the regulating member moves from the regulating position to the retreat position where the sheet can be discharged from the post-processing position by falling forward in the sheet transport direction. This eliminates the need for a space for the evacuation position below the paper stacking unit, which is required when the regulating member is moved downward and disposed at the evacuation position, and makes the paper post-processing apparatus thinner, that is, downsized. Can be.

A sheet post-processing apparatus according to the present invention is a sheet post-processing apparatus comprising a post-processing means for performing post-processing on a sheet input to a sheet collecting section, wherein the sheet collecting section performs post-processing on the sheet. A post-processing position, and a short-size alignment position for aligning short-size sheets, which is set on the paper-entry side of the paper stacking section, in the transport direction of the paper entering the paper stacking section. Paper size determining means for determining whether the size is a long size or a short size; aligning means for aligning the paper fed to the paper stacking unit; and short size paper for transferring the paper at the short size matching position to the post-processing position A transporting means, a regulating position provided at the front end position of the post-processing position, for regulating and positioning the front end position in the sheet conveying direction, and a position falling forward from the regulated position in the sheet conveying direction; The paper from the Regulating member movable to an evacuation position, and a paper positioning means having a regulating member driving portion for moving the regulating member between the regulating position and the evacuation position; Then, after the paper is aligned at the post-processing position, the post-processing is performed. On the other hand, when the short-sized paper enters the paper stacking section, the paper alignment is performed at the short-size alignment position. The post-processing control means for controlling the aligning means, the short-size paper transferring means and the post-processing means so that the post-processing is performed after the paper after the alignment is transferred to the post-processing position. It is characterized by having.

According to the above configuration, as described above, the present paper post-processing apparatus uniformly aligns long-size paper and short-size paper at the post-processing position where post-processing such as stapling is performed. Instead, long-size paper is aligned at the post-processing position, while short-size paper is aligned at the short-size alignment position set on the paper entry side to the paper stacking unit. Therefore, the processing speed can be increased while suppressing an increase in the size of the apparatus.

Further, the sheet can be positioned by the regulating member at the post-processing position, and the regulating member can be easily moved to the retracted position where the positioning state is released. In addition, since the movement of the regulating member from the regulating position to the retreat position is performed by lowering the regulating member from the regulating position to the front side in the sheet conveying direction, a pressing force (side pressure) is applied from the paper to the regulating member. Can be easily and appropriately performed.

Further, the regulating member moves from the regulating position to the retreat position where the paper can be discharged from the post-processing position by falling forward in the paper transport direction. This eliminates the need for a space for the evacuation position below the paper stacking unit, which is required when the regulating member is moved downward and disposed at the evacuation position, and makes the paper post-processing apparatus thinner, that is, downsized. Can be.

A sheet post-processing apparatus according to the present invention is a sheet post-processing apparatus having a sheet stacking section for stacking sheets that have been inserted and alignment means for aligning the sheets that have entered the sheet stacking section. The aligning means includes a movable alignment member that presses an edge of the sheet to perform alignment, and a plurality of types of scooping surfaces that scoop the edge of the paper are formed below the movable alignment member. It is characterized by.

According to the above arrangement, since the aligning means is formed with a plurality of types of scooping surfaces for scooping the edge of the sheet under the movable alignment member for performing the alignment by pushing the edge of the sheet. The sheet on the sheet stacking section is scooped up by the scooping surface, and the sheet can be easily and appropriately aligned without damaging the sheet. In addition, since a plurality of types of scooping surfaces are provided, when a sheet is deformed such as a curl, a scooping operation can be performed in response to the deformation.

In the above-described sheet post-processing apparatus, the scooping surface is formed of an inclined surface inclined in a direction opposite to the alignment direction, and the plurality of types of scooping surfaces are set so that the angles of the inclined surfaces are different from each other. It may be configured.

According to the above configuration, the paper on the paper stacking section can be easily and appropriately scooped and aligned without being damaged by the plurality of types of scooping surfaces having different angles of the inclined surface.

In the above-described sheet post-processing apparatus, the movable alignment member is movable in a sheet width direction orthogonal to a sheet conveying direction in the sheet stacking section.
A plurality of recesses extending in the moving direction of the movable alignment member and arranged in the paper transport direction are formed, and the plurality of types of scooping surfaces are at least first inclined surfaces that move in the recesses along with the alignment operation. And a second inclined surface which moves on a concave portion side wall portion formed between adjacent concave portions with the aligning operation and has a larger rising angle than the first inclined surface. And each of the second inclined surfaces,
Each may be arranged at the same position in the alignment direction, and the second inclined surface may be arranged at a position rearward of the first inclined surface in the alignment direction.

According to the above configuration, a sheet that has been deformed such as a curl is fed into the sheet stacking section, and for example, the convex portion of the curled sheet may enter the concave section of the sheet stacking section. Also, this sheet portion can be scooped up on the first inclined surface. Further, a portion located on the side wall of the concave portion at the side end of the sheet can be scooped up by the second inclined surface.

Further, since the second inclined surface moving on the side wall of the concave portion is disposed rearward in the alignment direction with respect to the first inclined surface moving on the inside of the concave portion, the second inclined surface is located on the side wall portion of the concave portion. The side edge of the sheet to be processed is
Is not caught between the lower end portion of the inclined surface of the main body. For this reason, it is possible to easily and appropriately align a sheet that has been deformed such as a curl.

In the above-described sheet post-processing apparatus, the movable alignment member may be configured to perform alignment by pressing a side end of the sheet, which is a portion parallel to the direction in which the sheet enters the sheet stacking section.

The above-mentioned movable alignment member has a configuration suitable for alignment in the paper width direction. By using the movable alignment member for such alignment operation, good alignment can be achieved.

In the above-mentioned sheet post-processing apparatus, the movable alignment member is provided with a driving force from a driving source at least two times in a direction orthogonal to the sheet entering direction via a belt and a pulley.
It is good also as composition added to a place.

According to the above configuration, since the movable alignment member moves by applying a driving force to at least two points in a direction orthogonal to the paper entering direction, the movable alignment member can move with high accuracy while maintaining parallelism. It is.

In the above-mentioned paper post-processing apparatus, the pulleys are provided coaxially and form a pair fitted with each other. Elastic members are provided at fitting portions of these pulleys, and both pulleys are provided with the elastic members. A configuration may be provided in which the driving force is transmitted through a member.

According to the above configuration, since the driving force from the driving source is transmitted to the movable alignment member via the elastic member provided on the pulley, variations in the size of the paper to be aligned,
Variations in assembly in the drive mechanism of the movable alignment member can be absorbed by the elastic member. Therefore, it is possible to apply a substantially constant pressure to the paper to perform alignment, thereby preventing damage to the paper and achieving good alignment.

A sheet post-processing apparatus according to the present invention is a sheet post-processing apparatus comprising a post-processing means for performing post-processing on a sheet input to a sheet collecting section, wherein the sheet collecting section performs post-processing on the sheet. A post-processing position, and a short-size alignment position for aligning short-size sheets, which is set on the paper-entry side of the paper stacking section, in the transport direction of the paper entering the paper stacking section. A sheet size discriminating unit for discriminating whether the size is a long size or a short size; and a movable aligning member for performing alignment by pressing an edge of the sheet. The edge of the sheet is scooped below the movable aligning member. A plurality of types of scooping surfaces formed, aligning means for aligning the paper entering the paper stacking section, short-size paper transporting means for transporting the paper at the short-size alignment position to the post-processing position, and long-size paper Enters the paper stacking section. Then, after the paper is aligned at the post-processing position, the post-processing is performed. On the other hand, when the short-sized paper enters the paper stacking section, the paper alignment is performed at the short-size alignment position. The post-processing control means for controlling the aligning means, the short-size paper transferring means and the post-processing means so that the post-processing is performed after the paper after the alignment is transferred to the post-processing position. A configuration may be provided.

According to the above configuration, as described above, the present paper post-processing apparatus uniformly aligns long-size paper and short-size paper at the post-processing position where post-processing such as stapling is performed. Instead, long-size paper is aligned at the post-processing position, while short-size paper is aligned at the short-size alignment position set on the paper entry side to the paper stacking unit. Therefore, the processing speed can be increased while suppressing an increase in the size of the apparatus.

The aligning means includes a plurality of types of scooping surfaces for scooping the edge of the sheet formed under the movable alignment member for performing the alignment by pushing the edge of the sheet. The sheet on the stacking section can be scooped up and easily and properly aligned without damaging the sheet. In addition, since a plurality of types of scooping surfaces are provided, when a sheet is deformed such as a curl, a scooping operation can be performed in response to the deformation.

The paper transport device of the present invention is provided at an upper position of the paper transport path, and is configured to contact the upper surface of the paper and move the paper in the transport direction. And a movable guide member that is provided at a lower position in contact with the lower surface of the paper transport path and reciprocates on the paper transport path.

According to the above construction, the upper conveying means contacts the upper surface of the paper and moves the paper in the conveying direction, and the movable guide member holds the lower surface of the paper while moving the paper in the conveying direction. , The sheet can be conveyed by these upper conveying means and the movable conveying member. Since the movable transport member can be formed of a thin plate such as a flat plate, the paper transport device has a simple configuration, and the thickness in the height direction is thin. Therefore, it is possible to reduce the size of the sheet post-processing apparatus, the image forming apparatus, and the like provided with the apparatus.

In the above-described paper transport apparatus, the upper transport means may be constituted by a plurality of transport rollers provided in the paper transport direction.

According to the above configuration, a general transport roller can be used as the upper transport means, so that the paper transport device can be easily configured.

The sheet post-processing apparatus according to the present invention is provided with a sheet stacking section for stacking incoming sheets, and a sheet stacking section provided at the end of the sheet stacking section in the sheet transport direction. And a post-processing means for performing post-processing on the paper, and the paper transport device is provided at a position above the paper stacking section, and when the post-processing is not performed by the post-processing means, the movable guide member is configured to The movable guide member moves to the middle position of the upper conveying means with the movement of the paper and stops when the post-processing means performs post-processing while moving to the vicinity of the terminal end of the upper conveying means. And feeding the sheet to the position of the post-processing means on the sheet stacking section.

According to the above arrangement, when post-processing is not performed on the sheet by the post-processing means, the movable guide member moves to near the end of the upper conveying means with the movement of the sheet. Therefore, the paper can be discharged from the post-processing device without disposing the paper at the position of the post-processing means on the paper stacking unit.

On the other hand, when post-processing is performed on the sheet by the post-processing means, the movable guide member moves to the middle position of the upper conveying means with the movement of the sheet and stops, and the sheet is post-processed on the sheet stacking unit. Send out to the position of the means. In this case, the paper is sent out to the position of the post-processing means, that is, the post-processing position, by the upper conveying means while the lower surface is supported by the movable guide member which stops at the middle position of the upper conveying means.

Thus, in the sheet post-processing apparatus, the upper conveying means and the movable guide member can be used as both a conveying path when not performing post-processing on the sheet and a conveying path when performing post-processing on the sheet. Can be. Therefore, the sheet post-processing apparatus does not require a dedicated conveyance path when post-processing is not performed on the sheet, and the apparatus can be downsized.

The sheet post-processing apparatus of the present invention is provided at a sheet stacking section for stacking the sheets that have been input, and at a front end position of a post-processing position at which the sheets can be subjected to post-processing in the sheet stacking section. A restricting position for restricting and positioning the front end position of the sheet in the sheet conveying direction, and a retracting position for allowing the sheet to be ejected from the post-processing position, the position being inclined forward from the restricting position in the sheet conveying direction. A paper positioning means having a movable regulating member, a regulating member driving portion for moving the regulating member between the regulating position and the retracted position, and aligning the paper entering the paper accumulating portion; Aligning means arranged at the post-processing position in a state where the sheet is pressed against the regulating member, post-processing means for performing post-processing on the sheet aligned by the aligning means, and sheet conveying in a state of extending in the sheet conveying direction. Road An upper conveying means for moving the paper in the conveying direction by contacting the upper surface of the paper, and an upper conveying means opposed to the upper conveying means and being located on the lower side in contact with the lower surface of the paper, reciprocating in the paper conveying path; The paper feeding device is provided with a movable guide member that moves and is provided at a position above the paper stacking section.

According to the above configuration, the sheet can be positioned by the regulating member at the post-processing position, and the regulating member can be easily moved to the retracted position where the positioning state is released. In addition, since the movement of the regulating member from the regulating position to the retreat position is performed by lowering the regulating member from the regulating position to the front side in the sheet conveying direction, a pressing force (side pressure) is applied from the paper to the regulating member. Can be easily and appropriately performed.

Further, the regulating member moves from the regulating position to the retreat position where the sheet can be discharged from the post-processing position by falling forward in the sheet conveying direction. This eliminates the need for a space for the evacuation position below the paper stacking unit, which is required when the regulating member is moved downward and disposed at the evacuation position, and makes the paper post-processing apparatus thinner, that is, downsized. Can be.

Also, it is possible that the upper conveying means contacts the upper surface of the paper and moves the paper in the transport direction, and the movable guide member moves in the transport direction with the movement of the paper while holding the lower surface of the paper. Therefore, the paper can be conveyed by these upper conveying means and the movable conveying member. Since the movable transport member can be formed of a thin plate such as a flat plate, the paper transport device has a simple configuration, and the thickness in the height direction is thin. Therefore, it is possible to reduce the size of the sheet post-processing apparatus, the image forming apparatus, and the like provided with the apparatus.

An image forming apparatus according to the present invention includes any one of the above-described sheet post-processing apparatuses. Therefore, the processing speed when performing post-processing on paper can be increased, and the size of the apparatus can be reduced.

An image forming apparatus according to the present invention comprises: a document image reading means for reading an image of a document placed on a document placing table;
An image forming unit that forms an image on a sheet based on an image read by the document image reading unit; and a paper discharge accommodating unit that accommodates a sheet on which an image has been formed by the image forming unit. Any one of the above-described sheet post-processing devices is provided between the image reading unit, the image forming unit, and the sheet storage unit.

Therefore, it is possible to increase the processing speed when performing post-processing on a sheet, and to increase the height between the document image reading means, the image forming means, and the paper discharge accommodating means provided with the sheet post-processing device. And the size of the device can be reduced.

[0103]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS [Embodiment 1] An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS.
As shown in FIG. 2, the image forming apparatus has an image forming apparatus main body 1 and a sheet stacking section 2. The image forming apparatus main body 1 has a document reading section (document image reading Means) 3, a sheet post-processing device 4, a main body tray 5 (sheet discharge accommodating means), an image forming section (image forming means) 6, and a sheet feeding section 7.

As shown in FIG. 3, the document reading section 3 has a document table 11 made of transparent glass or the like on the upper surface, and a scanner optical system 12 below the document table 11. The scanner optical system 12 includes an exposure light source 13, a plurality of reflecting mirrors 14, an imaging lens 15, and a CCD 16.

The exposure light source 13 irradiates the original placed on the original placing table 11 with light. The reflected light from the original is transmitted by a reflecting mirror 14 through an imaging lens 15 to the CCD 1.
It is led to 6.

As shown in FIG. 3, the image forming section 6 has a photosensitive member 17 which is formed in a drum shape and rotates in the direction of an arrow. In the direction of the arrow around the photoreceptor 17,
Developing device 18, transfer charger 19, cleaning device (not shown), static eliminator 20, main charger 21, and laser scanning unit (hereinafter referred to as LSU 22)
22.

The document image data read by the CCD 16 is supplied to the LSU 22 after image processing. The LSU 22 irradiates the document image data as laser light onto the surface of the photoconductor 17 to form an electrostatic latent image.
The developing device 18 develops the electrostatic latent image into a visible image using toner. The transfer charger 19 develops the photoconductor 1
The toner image formed on the surface of the sheet 7 is transferred to the sheet P. The cleaning device removes residual toner on the surface of the photoconductor 17. The charge removing device 20 removes residual charges on the surface of the photoconductor 17. The main charger 21 charges the photoconductor 17 to a predetermined potential.

The paper supply section 7 has a paper cassette 31 containing paper P. At the leading end position of the paper cassette 31 in the paper output direction, an intake roller 32 for outputting the paper P and a paper separation roller 33 are provided.
The sheet separating roller 33 includes a roller that rotates in one direction and a roller that rotates in the reverse direction, and prevents double feeding of the sheet P. Note that, instead of this configuration, a configuration including a roller and a friction sheet member may be used.

As the sheet transport path, the sheet supply section 7 is provided with a cassette side sheet exit path 34. In the case where the sheet P flows from the upstream side to the downstream side in the sheet transport path, the sheet separating roller 33 is provided at an upstream end of the cassette side sheet output path 34. The image forming unit 6 includes a manual paper feed path 35 and a main transport path 3 as a paper transport path.
6, a reverse transport path 37 and a paper discharge transport path 38 are provided,
The sheet post-processing device 4 is provided with a post-processing conveyance path 39.

At the upstream end of the manual paper feed path 35, a paper separating roller 40 is provided, and at this position, a manual paper feed tray 41 and a call-in roller 42 are provided.

The cassette-side paper output path 34 and the manual paper feed path 35
And one end of the reversing conveyance path 37 are joined and connected to the upstream end of the main conveyance path 36. The main transport path 36 extends upward, merges with the other end of the reverse transport path 37 near the downstream end, and further branches downstream into a paper discharge transport path 38 and a post-processing transport path 39. I have.

A registration roller 43 is provided at an upstream end of the main transport path 36, and a pre-registration detection switch (not shown) for detecting passage of a sheet is provided at an upstream position of the registration roller 43. I have. In the image forming apparatus, the registration roller 43 performs alignment between the toner image on the photoconductor 17 and the paper P based on the detection signal of the pre-registration detection switch.

The transfer charger 19 in the main transport path 36
A fixing device 44 for heating and pressing the toner image on the sheet P is provided at a downstream position of the fixing device 44. This fixing device 44
Has a pair of fixing rollers and a fixing paper detection switch (not shown) for detecting the passage of a sheet through the fixing rollers.

At the downstream end of the paper discharge conveyance path 38, the paper P
A paper discharge roller 45 for discharging the paper to the main body tray 5 is provided.
The discharge roller 45 is located upstream of the discharge roller 45.
Is provided with a paper discharge detection switch (not shown) for detecting the passage of the paper in the.

Further, the paper discharge conveyance path 38 and the post-processing conveyance path 39
A switching gate 46 for switching the traveling direction of the sheet P to any one of these directions is provided at the branching point.

The post-processing conveyance path 39 guides the sheet P to the sheet post-processing device 4, as shown in FIG. A plurality of transport rollers 47 are provided at an intermediate position of the post-processing transport path 39, and a paper discharge roller 48 is provided at a downstream end. In addition, at the position on the upstream side of the paper discharge roller 48,
A paper detection switch 49 for detecting paper input to the paper post-processing device 4 is provided. This paper detection switch 49 is
It consists of a mechanical switch or an optical sensor.

The sheet post-processing device 4 has an escape conveyance path (non-post-processing conveyance path) 51 which is a non-post-processing conveyance path at an upper position on the downstream side of the paper discharge roller 48, and has a rear position at a lower position. It has a processing unit 52. Further, a switching gate 53 for switching the traveling direction of the sheet P to any one of them is provided at a branch position between the escape transport path 51 and the post-processing section 52.

The escape transport path 51 is used to discharge a sheet of paper P, such as special paper or small-size paper, for which stapling is prohibited, or to discharge a large amount of paper P not to be stapled. This escape transport path 5
When 1 is selected, the switching gate 53 is switched to the state b shown by the two-dot chain line.

On the other hand, the post-processing section 52 is used for performing post-processing, that is, stapling, and sorting sheets P by offsetting the tray. When the post-processing section 52 is selected, the switching gate 53 is switched to the state a indicated by the solid line.

A first discharge path 54 and a second discharge path 55 of the sheet stack section 2 are connected to the downstream end of the escape conveyance path 51, and the sheet stack section 2 is connected to the downstream end of the post-processing section 52. Are connected. First discharge path 5
4 and a branch portion to the second discharge path 55, a switching gate 57 for switching the traveling direction of the paper P to one of these directions.
Is provided. The sheet P is guided to the first discharge path 54 when the switching gate 57 is in the state a indicated by the solid line, and is guided to the second discharge path 55 when the switch gate 57 is in the state b indicated by the two-dot chain line.

The first discharge path 54 has a transport roller 58 for transferring the paper P to a first paper stack tray (paper discharge tray) 5.
Discharge to 9. The second discharge path 55 has a paper discharge roller (paper discharge means) 60 and discharges the paper P to a second paper stack tray (paper discharge tray) 61.

The first sheet stack tray 59 is adapted to output a small amount of paper (discharge of paper P) including special paper conveyed from the escape conveyance path 51 and small-size paper.

The second paper stack tray 61 has a large output capacity (paper P) conveyed from the escape conveyance path 51.
Discharge) and output of a sheet bundle that has been aligned and stapled by the post-processing unit 52. The second sheet stack tray 61 is capable of elevating and lowering, and its upper surface (the upper surface of the sheet when sheets are stacked) is discharged by an upper limit sensor (not shown) that detects the position of the tray. The distance from the roller 60 is kept constant. Thereby, the second sheet stack tray 61 maintains a high sheet discharge stacking function, and enables a large capacity stacking. The second sheet stack tray 61 has an offset function for sorting the discharged sheet bundle by a predetermined number of copies by horizontal reciprocating movement in a direction orthogonal to the sheet discharging direction.

Here, discharge to the first paper stack tray 59 is selected, and stapling processing and offset processing on the stack tray, that is, sorting processing of the discharged paper bundle by offset movement of the second paper stack tray 61 are selected. If not, the sheet P is discharged to the first sheet stack tray 59.

Further, even if the stapling process or the offset process is selected, the first sheet P of the size corresponding to the prohibition of the discharge to the second sheet stack tray 61 or the prohibition of the stapling process is used. The sheet is discharged to the stack tray 59.

In both cases described above, for the sheet P, the switching gate 53 is switched to the state b and the switching gate 57 is switched.
Is switched to the state a, and is discharged to the first sheet stack tray 59 via the escape conveyance path 51.

Further, even if the discharge to the first sheet stack tray 59 is selected, information indicating that a large amount of sheets P exceeding the allowable stacking amount of the first sheet stack tray 59 is discharged is shown in FIG. Image forming apparatus controller 161 shown
Is sent to the sheet post-processing device control section 171 shown in FIG. 18, the tray of the discharge destination is automatically switched to the main body tray 5 or the second sheet stack tray 61, or the job is not started. Then, the cancellation is performed.

In these cases, for example, the display tray (not shown) of the operation unit in the image forming apparatus main body 1 indicates to the operator that the discharge tray has been changed (including the discharge destination tray) and It is notified that output is not possible.

When the stapling process is not selected and the discharge to the second paper stack tray 61 or the offset process is selected, the paper P is discharged to the second paper stack tray 61 via the escape conveyance path 51. In this case, the switching gate 53 and the switching gate 57 are in the state b
Is switched to.

Each of the switching gates 53 of the sheet post-processing device 4,
The paper size used for controlling the paper tray 57 is detected by detecting the paper size in the paper cassette 31 and
The information of paper size detection in step 1 is utilized.

In the manual feed tray 41, there are some paper trays in which irregular-size paper is fed and the paper size is not detected. In such a case, the length information of the paper P is obtained and the paper size is determined based on the ON time at the time of paper transport such as the pre-registration detection switch (paper size detection means). In this case, there are sheets having the same length but different widths. For example, A5 vertical feed and A4 horizontal feed are used. In response to this, taking into account the switching time of the switching gate 53, the paper detection switch 49 is provided at a position separated by a necessary distance from the length and movement distance of the paper so that the difference between the A5 width and the A4 width can be detected. Distribute. That is, the paper detection switch 49 is arranged so as not to detect the A5 width but to detect the A4 width, and this is also used as the width reading means.

If a similar configuration is provided in front of the switching gate 46, it is possible to select a sheet which is not permitted to enter the sheet post-processing device 4 at this position, and discharge the sheet to the main body tray 5. .

Escape transport path 51 of paper post-processing device 4
Is composed of general rubber rollers, and has a plurality of transport rollers 62 arranged in the transport direction of the paper P. These transport rollers 62 are arranged at a pitch shorter than the length in the transport direction of the minimum size paper P set to be capable of being discharged to the first paper stack tray 59 and the second paper stack tray 61. Escape transport path 51
Is composed of a roller pair in which rollers are pressed against the transport roller 62, an upper paper guide 63 and a lower paper guide 64. The lower paper guide 64 also functions as an upper paper guide in the post-processing unit 52.

In the post-processing section 52, a staple tray (sheet stacking section) 71 is disposed substantially horizontally. As shown in FIG. 1, the staple tray 71 has a rear end plate (movable aligning member, aligning means, short-size sheet transferring means, sheet discharging transferring means) 72, a side regulating plate (aligning means) 73, and a leading end stopper ( A regulating member, paper positioning means) 74 and a stapler (post-processing means) 75 are provided.

The rear end plate 72 is movable in the front-rear direction of the sheet conveying direction. As shown in FIG. Is pressed against the leading end stopper 74 to align the position of the sheet P in the front-rear direction. The alignment position of the long size paper P is a post-processing position,
That is, the stapling position.

Further, as shown in FIG. 1, the rear end plate 72 pushes the front end of the sheet P, which has been placed on the staple tray 71, against the short-sized sheet P, thereby causing the sheet P to be attached to the rear wall 77 of the staple tray 71. By pressing, alignment of the sheet P in the front-rear direction (preliminary alignment) is performed. The preliminary alignment position of the short-sized paper P is a short-sized alignment position.

Further, as shown in FIG. 23, the rear end plate 72 pushes the rear end of the pre-aligned sheet bundle and presses it against the front end stopper 74 for alignment.
The sheet bundle is discharged to the second sheet stack tray 61 side. In order to enable this operation, the rear end plate 72 can be held in a state in which the sheet P falls down in the transport direction and a state in which the sheet P rises. Further, in the above-described discharging operation, the rear end plate 72 moves the front end of the sheet bundle to a position where the sheet discharging roller 60 can discharge the sheet bundle (the position where the front end of the sheet bundle is sandwiched by the sheet discharging roller 60). To push it out.

Here, in the sheet post-processing device 4,
The length of the paper P in the transport direction (paper length) is determined by the staple tray 7
The determination is made based on whether or not the length from the front end surface of the rear wall portion 77 to the front end stopper 74 in Step 1 is exceeded. The paper length can be identified by inputting to the operation unit of the image forming apparatus main body 1 at the time of a print request, that is, designating the paper size to be used, for example, detecting the paper size by the pre-registration detection switch, or detecting the paper size. This is performed based on a print request from a terminal device such as a computer or a facsimile to which the unit 1 is connected.

The side regulating plate 73 is provided for the staple tray 7.
1 is provided on one end side in the paper width direction orthogonal to the paper transport direction. The staple tray 71 is formed with a paper-side end regulating portion 76 that rises upward, facing the side regulating plate 73 and opposite to the one end.
The side regulating plate 73 is movable in the sheet width direction orthogonal to the sheet conveying direction, and presses the side end of the sheet P entered on the staple tray 71 and presses the sheet P against the sheet side end regulating section 76, and The position of P in the paper width direction is aligned.

The tip stopper 74 is provided for the staple tray 7.
1 is provided at the front end side in the sheet conveyance direction, and regulates and positions the alignment position of the sheets on the staple tray 71, that is, the front end position of the sheets to be stapled. The leading end stopper 74 is movable to a regulation position shown in FIG. 11 and a retracted position retreated downward from the upper surface of the staple tray 71.

As shown in FIG. 4, the rear end plate 72 has a plate shape extending in the sheet width direction orthogonal to the sheet conveyance direction. At the upper end of the rear end plate 72, the rear end of the sheet P protrudes forward in the sheet conveying direction, engages with the rear end of the curled sheet P, and prevents the rear end of the sheet P from rising further. A portion 72a is formed.

The rear end plate 72 includes a rear end plate driving mechanism (movable alignment member holding means, movable alignment member driving means) 81 shown in FIG.
Driven by The rear end plate driving mechanism 81 includes a rear end plate 72.
The base member 82, the slide member 83, the first helical gear (first screw gear) 84, the second helical gear (second screw gear) 85, and a pressurized spring (elastic member) as moving parts that move together with it. 86 is provided. Further, as a driving unit for moving the moving unit, a stepping motor 87, a first belt 88, a second belt 89, a first pulley 90, a second pulley 90,
A pulley 91 and a third pulley 92 are provided. Further, as a drive unit for rotating the rear end plate 72, a solenoid (drive means) 93, a solenoid arm 94, a connection arm 95, a shaft arm 96, a square shaft (shaft) 97, and a return spring 99 are provided. In addition, an origin sensor 98 is provided.

The second belt 89 includes the staple tray 71
On the lower surface side, a second pulley 91 and a third pulley 92 are provided, and are arranged in the sheet transport direction. The base member 82 is connected to the second belt 89.

The second pulley 91 is disposed at a rear position in the sheet transport direction, and the third pulley 92 is disposed at a front position. The first pulley 90 and the second pulley 91 are provided on the same shaft and rotate integrally. The first pulley 90 is connected to a rotation shaft of the stepping motor 87 by a first belt 88. Therefore, the rotation of the stepping motor 87 causes the base member 82 to move in the front-rear direction in the sheet conveyance direction.

A square shaft 97 is arranged in the sheet transport direction in the space between the forward path and the return path of the second belt 89 facing each other. The rear end of the square shaft 97 is connected to a solenoid 93 via a shaft arm 96, a connection arm 95, and a solenoid arm 94. Accordingly, driven by the solenoid 93, the square shaft 97 rotates around its axis.

A first helical gear 84 is fitted to the square shaft 97 so as to be movable in the sheet conveying direction and to rotate integrally with the square shaft 97. The second bevel gear 85 meshes with the first bevel gear 84. Second bevel gear 8
Reference numeral 5 designates a paper width direction orthogonal to the paper conveyance direction as an axial direction, and is rotatably attached to the slide member 83 by its shaft 85a. A rear end plate 72 extending in the sheet width direction is fixed to the shaft 85a.

The slide member 83 is provided on the base member 82, and is movably provided in the sheet transport direction with respect to the base member 82 via a pressurizing spring 86. Therefore, the rotation of the stepping motor 87 causes the rear end plate 72 to move in the front-rear direction in the sheet conveyance direction.
The movable amount of the slide member 83 with respect to the base member 82 is determined by the length of the elongated hole 83b formed in the slide member 83.
Are restricted by a structure in which a pin 82a provided on the base member 82 is inserted.

In the rear end plate driving mechanism 81, the moving section including the rear end plate 72 moves rearward in the paper transport direction by the stepping motor 87 rotating clockwise. At this time, when the detection piece 83a provided at the rear end of the slide member 83 is detected by the origin sensor 98,
The rear end plate 72 has reached the home position,
The stepping motor 87 is stopped.

On the other hand, by rotating the stepping motor 87 counterclockwise by an arbitrary number of pulses, the rear end plate 72 can be moved to an arbitrary position corresponding to the number of pulses. As described above, the rear end plate 72 is connected to the stepping motor 8.
7 can be moved to a predetermined position by clockwise and counterclockwise rotation according to the predetermined number of pulses.

The rear end plate 72, that is, the slide member 83, usually moves integrally with the base member 82 by the compression repulsive force of the pressurizing spring 86. However, in the final alignment operation by the rear end plate 72, the paper P may be pushed more than necessary due to variations in the paper size (normally, about ± 1 mm between lots). The above-mentioned final alignment operation is an operation of aligning the long-sized paper and the short-sized paper by pressing the paper P against the leading end stopper 74, that is, the alignment operation shown in FIGS. 19 and 23. In this case, if the paper P is larger than the specified size, the paper P may be damaged by a strong pushing force of the rear end plate 72.

In order to avoid such a situation in the final aligning operation, when an excessive pushing force is applied to the sheet P, as shown in FIG. The plate 72 is stopped. With such a pressing force adjusting mechanism, the paper P can always be aligned with an appropriate pressing force, and the paper P is not damaged.

When a similar pushing force adjusting mechanism is provided in the preliminary aligning operation for short-sized paper, ie, the aligning operation shown in FIG. 1, the pushing force of the rear end plate 72 against the pushing operation in both the front and rear directions is increased. An adjustment mechanism is required, which has little effect on the complexity of the structure. That is, the variation of about 2 mm after the preliminary alignment can be appropriately adjusted by the final alignment, and can be reduced to a level having no practical problem.

When the solenoid 93 is turned on to perform the retreating operation, the solenoid arm 94 rotates to pull the connecting arm 95, and the shaft arm 96, that is, the square shaft 9
7 rotates 90 degrees. Thereby, the first helical gear 84 and the second helical gear 85 rotate 90 degrees, and the rear end plate 72 falls down as shown in FIG. The tilt angle in this case can be appropriately set by adjusting the rotation angle of the square shaft 97 or the like. This operation is possible even when the moving part of the rear end plate driving mechanism 81 including the rear end plate 72 is moving.

On the other hand, when the solenoid 93 is turned off,
Return spring 99 connected to solenoid arm 94
, The square shaft 97 reversely rotates to the original position. As a result, the rear end plate 72 is raised.

In the moving portion of the rear end plate driving mechanism 81, the second bevel gear 85 is the second bevel gear 8 shown in FIG.
It is also possible to use 5 '. This second bevel gear 8
5 'forms a gear by pin arrangement. In such a configuration, the second helical gear 85 'and the rear end plate 72 can be integrally formed by, for example, injection molding, and the manufacture is easy.

That is, in the injection molding of the second helical gear 85 shown in FIG. 4, when extracting the product from the mold, a method of extracting the product while rotating the product from the mold can be considered. Therefore, when the second helical gear 85 and the rear end plate 72 are integrally formed, the above-mentioned extraction cannot be performed, and the two cannot be integrally formed. On the other hand, in the second bevel gear 85 'in which the bevel gear has a pin arrangement, it is not necessary to remove the product by rotation, and the two can be integrally formed by injection molding.

The side regulating plate 73 is driven by the side regulating plate driving section 101 shown in FIG. That is, the side regulating plate 73 is driven by the side regulating plate driving unit 101 to perform an operation of moving to the alignment position and an operation of moving back to the retreat position. The side regulating plate 73 has a substantially L-shape, is provided on the upper surface side of the staple tray 71, and has a side regulating plate driving unit 10.
1 is provided on the lower surface side of the staple tray 71.

The side regulating plate drive section 101 includes a motor (drive source) 102, one reduction belt 103, one connection belt 104, two drive belts 105, one reduction pulley 106, and two connection A pulley 107, two drive pulleys 108, and two driven pulleys 109 are provided.

A two-stage pulley 11 consisting of a deceleration pulley 106 and one connecting pulley 107 and one driving pulley 108
0 is provided coaxially. This three pulley group 11
In the position on the paper transport direction side (paper length direction side) with respect to the first pulley 107 and the driving pulley 10
8 is provided, and one driven pulley 109 is provided at a position on the paper width direction side. Further, one driven pulley 109 is provided at a position on the paper width direction side with respect to the two-stage pulley 112.
The connection pulley 107 and the drive pulley 108 of the two-stage pulleys 110 and 112 are fitted with each other and rotate integrally.

The speed reduction belt 103 is bridged between the rotation shaft of the motor 102 and the speed reduction pulley 106. The connecting belt 104 is connected to both connecting pulleys 1 of the two-stage pulleys 110 and 112.
07 and is arranged in the paper transport direction. The two drive belts 105 are laid on a drive pulley 108 and a driven pulley 109, respectively, and extend in the sheet width direction in parallel with each other.

At two places on the lower surface of the side regulating plate 73, connecting portions 73a for connecting to the drive belt 105 are formed in a hanging manner.
The drive belts 105 and the connecting portion 73a are connected by these connecting portions 73a. The staple tray 71 has elongated holes 71a extending in the sheet width direction corresponding to the respective connecting portions 73a so that the connecting portions 73a, that is, the side regulating plates 73 can be moved.

In the above-described side regulating plate driving section 101, the driving force of the motor 102 is transmitted to the reduction pulley 106 via the reduction belt 103. Then, from the deceleration pulley 106, a driving pulley 108, a driving belt 105,
And to the side regulating plate 73 via the connecting portion 73a, the connecting pulley 107, the connecting belt 104,
Connection pulley 107, drive pulley 108, drive belt 10
5, transmitted to the side regulating plate 73 via the connecting pulley 107 and the connecting portion 73a.

As described above, the side regulating plates 73 are formed by the two drive belts 1 respectively connected to the side regulating plates 73.
Since it is driven by the driving mechanism 05, the parallel movement can be performed with high accuracy.

In the group of three pulleys 111, the two-stage pulley 110 and the reduction pulley 106 are fitted by the structure shown in FIG. That is, two claw portions 107a projecting downward are formed on the lower surface of the connecting pulley 107 in the two-stage pulley 110, and two groove portions for inserting the claw portions 107a are formed in the reduction pulley 106. 106a
Are formed. The length of these grooves 106a is longer than the length of the claw 107a in the circumferential direction of the connecting pulley 107. Thereby, the two-stage pulley 110
It is fitted to the deceleration pulley 106 with a predetermined range of freedom in the rotation direction, that is, a predetermined play amount. The play amount is determined by the length of the groove portion 106a on the shorter side.

A pressurizing spring 113, which is a coil-shaped compression spring, is provided in the groove 106a on the longer side of the reduction pulley 106. Therefore, the driving force of the deceleration pulley 106 is transmitted to the two-stage pulley 110 via the pressurizing spring 113. With such a configuration, it is possible to suppress a situation in which the paper-side end is damaged when the paper-side end is aligned by the side regulating plate 73.

That is, when aligning the side edge of the sheet P with the side regulating plate 73, the sheet P is sandwiched between the side regulating plate 73 and the sheet side edge regulating portion 76, for example, as shown in FIG. Matched by state. At this time, since the pressurizing spring 113 is provided between the deceleration pulley 106 and the two-stage pulley 110, the side regulating plate 73
The paper P is pressed against the side end of the paper P by the spring force of the pressurizing spring 113.

Here, the size of the paper P is a lot (usually 5
Since there is a cutting variation of about ± 1 mm between the (00 sheets), the alignment position of the side regulating plate 73 (the amount of advance for alignment) needs to be set according to the sheet P of the lot whose cutting size is small. For this reason, the paper P of the lot whose cutting size is large is usually excessively tightened, and the paper P may be damaged.

Thus, as described above, the pressurized spring 1
If the driving force is transmitted from the deceleration pulley 106 to the two-stage pulley 110 via the thirteen, the pressurizing spring 113 is compressed as shown in FIG. Absorb extra strokes. Therefore, the paper P can be aligned with an appropriate pressure due to the repulsive force of the pressurizing spring 113. When the side regulating plate 73 retreats and separates from the sheet P, the pressurizing spring 113, that is, the two-stage pulley 1
The positional relationship (fitting state) of 10 returns to the state of FIG.

The tip stopper 74 is shown in FIGS.
Are driven by a leading end stopper drive section (regulation member drive section, sheet positioning means) 131 shown in FIG. That is, the leading end stopper 74 is driven by the leading end stopper driving section 131 to advance to the restriction position indicated by the solid line in FIG. 10 and to retreat to the retreat position indicated by the two-dot chain line.

The tip stopper 74 has a flat plate shape, and has a plurality of regulating portions 74a at the top. This restriction part 74a
Is a portion that protrudes from the upper surface of the staple tray 71 when regulating the position of the front end of the sheet P, that is, when positioning the front end of the sheet P. Although the tip stopper 74 has four regulating portions 74a in the configuration of FIG. 11, it has two regulating portions 74a in the configuration of FIG. 1. However, the number of the regulating portions 74a is as follows. What is necessary is just to set suitably from the relationship between the front end position regulation function of the paper P, the frictional force between the paper and the regulation part 74a, etc.

The tip stopper driving section 131 has a solenoid 132, an arm member 133, and a tension spring 134. The arm member 133 is rotatable about a shaft portion 133a, and a solenoid connecting portion 133b extending downward from the position of the shaft portion 133a and a shaft portion 133a.
Stopper connecting portion 133c extending long in the lateral direction from the position
And

The rod 132a of the solenoid 132 is connected to the solenoid connecting portion 133b.
One end of a tension spring 134 is connected to the tip of 33c. The other end of the tension spring 134 is connected to a fixing member (not shown). In addition, a long hole 133d is formed near the tip of the stopper connecting portion 133c,
An engagement shaft portion 74b extending from the distal end stopper 74 is inserted into the elongated hole 133d. The tip stopper 74 is
It is movable in the up and down direction, that is, the advance direction to the regulation position and the evacuation direction to the evacuation position.

In the above configuration, when the solenoid 132 performs the retreating operation of the rod 132a, the arm member 133 rotates clockwise about the shaft portion 133a. This allows
The distal end stopper 74 connected to the arm member 133 via the elongated hole 133d and the engagement shaft portion 74b moves downward, and moves to the retreat position where the regulating portion 74a is retracted downward from the upper surface of the staple tray 71.

On the other hand, the solenoid 132 is
Is released, the arm member 133 is pulled by the tension spring 134 and rotates counterclockwise about the shaft portion 133a. As a result, the distal end stopper 74 is pushed up by the arm member 133, and moves to the regulating position where the regulating portion 74a projects to the upper surface of the staple tray 71.

Although the structures of the tip stopper 74 and the tip stopper driving section 131 are very simple, they have the following problems. That is, it is difficult to smoothly move the tip stopper 74 up and down while keeping the upper surface of the staple tray 71 parallel. In the retreating operation of the leading end stopper 74 in a state where the lateral pressure is applied from the sheet bundle, a large pulling force is required. For this reason, it is difficult to obtain a stable function, and adjustment work is often required in mass production. Further, a space for storing the tip stopper 74 at the retracted position is required below the tip stopper 74,
The miniaturization of the entire device is greatly restricted.

Therefore, in the sheet post-processing device 4, the above-described leading end stopper 74 and leading end stopper driving section 131 are provided.
Instead, as shown in FIG. 13, a configuration may be provided that includes a leading end stopper (a regulating member, a sheet positioning unit) 141 and a leading end stopper driving unit (a regulating member driving unit, a sheet positioning unit) 142. This configuration is similar to that of the tip stopper 141.
In addition to securing the holding force against the large lateral pressure from the sheet bundle required in the above, the distal stopper 141 can be moved to the retracted position with a small operating force even in a state where the lateral pressure is applied. In the lower position,
This eliminates the need for a large storage space for the retracted position, and allows the entire apparatus to be downsized.

The tip stopper 141 is rotatable about a shaft 141b between a regulation position indicated by a solid line in FIG. 14 and a retracted position indicated by a two-dot chain line. The rotation range is approximately 90 degrees. The shaft portion 141b is provided with, for example, a plurality of regulating portions 141a having a rectangular plate shape.

In the regulating position, the regulating portion 141a of the leading end stopper 141 rises at 90 degrees with respect to the upper surface of the staple tray 71. In this state, the position of the front end of the sheet P is regulated by the regulating section 141a, that is, the position of the front end is positioned at the stapling position.

In the retracted position, the leading end stopper 141 is in a state of falling in the sheet conveying direction in which the regulating portion 141a is substantially parallel to the upper surface of the staple tray 71 and retracts from the upper surface of the staple tray 71. In this state,
The regulation of the position of the front end of the sheet P by the regulation section 141a is released, and the sheet P can be discharged in the sheet transport direction.

The tip stopper drive section 142 has a solenoid 143, an arm member 144, a return spring 145, and a stopper arm 146 provided on the shaft 141b of the tip stopper 141. The arm member 144 corresponds to FIG.
As shown in FIG. 5 and FIG. 16, a solenoid connecting portion 144b rotatable about the shaft portion 144a and extending shortly upward from the position of the shaft portion 144a, and a stopper connecting portion extending long in the lateral direction from the position of the shaft portion 144a A portion 144c.

The rod 143a of the solenoid 143 is connected to the solenoid connecting portion 144b.
As shown in FIG. 13, one end of a return spring 145 is connected to a. The other end of the return spring 145 is connected to a fixing member (not shown). The stopper arm 146 has an elongated hole 146a formed therein.
a, the stopper connecting portion 14 of the arm member 144;
An engagement shaft 144d extending from the tip of 4c is inserted.

In the above configuration, when the solenoid 143 has released the retreating operation of the rod 143a (the OFF state of the solenoid 143), the rod 143a is pulled by the return spring 145 and advances. As a result, FIG.
As shown in FIGS. 3 to 15, the stopper connecting portion 144c of the arm member 144 is substantially horizontal,
The first restricting portion 141a is in a raised state. As a result, the tip stopper 141 is disposed at the regulation position. In addition,
In the distal end stopper drive section 142, this restricting position is the home position of the distal end stopper 141.

On the other hand, the solenoid 143 is connected to the rod 143a.
Is performed (the solenoid 143 is in the ON state),
As shown in FIG. 16, the arm member 144 is
(See FIG. 16). As a result, the distal end stopper 141 connected to the arm member 144 via the stopper arm 146 rotates approximately 90 degrees counterclockwise, and the regulating portion 141a of the distal end stopper 141 is rotated.
Is in a falling state, and as a result, the distal end stopper 141 is disposed at the retracted position. In this state, the sheet bundle disposed at the stapling position can be discharged to the second sheet stack tray 61.

In the retracted position, the restricting portion 141a is, as shown in FIG.
7 comes into contact with a cushioning material 148 such as a sponge. Note that the cushioning material 148 may be provided on the back surface (the surface not facing the paper P) of the regulating portion 141a.

The image forming apparatus main body 1 has an image forming apparatus control section 161 shown in FIG. The image forming apparatus control unit 161 includes a microcomputer,
3, the document reading unit 3, the paper feeding unit 7, the image forming unit 6, the sheet post-processing device 4, the sheet stacking unit 2, the sheet conveying unit 162 including each sheet conveying path and the sheet stacking unit 2, and FIG. Information writing unit 16 including the LSU 22
3. Control the operation of the fixing device 44 and the like.

Further, the sheet post-processing device 4 includes a sheet post-processing device control section (sheet size discriminating means, post-processing control means) 171 shown in FIG. The sheet post-processing device control unit 171 includes a CPU 172, a ROM 173, and a RAM.
174 is provided. The sheet post-processing device controller 171 includes a sheet length detector 17
5, an origin sensor 98, a stepping motor 87 for moving the rear end plate 72 back and forth in the paper transport direction, a solenoid 93 for driving the rear end plate 72 between a falling state and a rising state,
A sheet transport unit 176, the side regulating plate driving unit 101,
The above-mentioned tip stopper driving section 131 and stapler 75
Etc. are connected.

The paper transport section 176 includes components for transporting the paper in the paper post-processing device 4, such as the switching gates 53 and 57 and the escape transport path 51 shown in FIG. The paper length detection unit 175 is configured by, for example, the above-described pre-registration detection switch when it is actually detected without being based on the input information, and is configured to have the length (size) of the paper P entering the post-processing unit 52 in the transport direction. ) Is detected.

[0188] The sheet post-processing device control section 171 is provided in the ROM 1
The operation of each unit connected to the sheet post-processing device control unit 171 is controlled based on the program stored in the unit 73 and the detection results of the sheet length detection unit 175, the sheet detection switch 49, and the like.

In the above configuration, the toner image formed on the photosensitive member 17 in the image forming section 6 shown in FIG.
For example, after being transferred to the sheet P supplied from the sheet cassette 31 by the transfer charger 19, the sheet is fixed to the sheet P by the fixing device 44.

The sheet P is stapled (post-processing).
When the sorting is performed by the offset of the tray, or when a large amount of paper is discharged, the switching gate 46 shown in FIG. The state is switched to state a.
As a result, the paper P is transferred from the main transport path 36 to the post-processing transport path 3.
It is led to 9.

Next, if the above-mentioned sheet P is a sheet for which stapling of special paper or the like is prohibited or if stapling is not performed, the switching gate 53 is turned off. b. Thereby, the paper P is guided to the escape transport path 51.

Thereafter, the sheet P is guided to the switching gate 57 switched to the state a and discharged to the first sheet stack tray 59. For example, a large amount of sheet P is switched to the switching gate 57 switched to the state b. Guided to 57,
The sheet is discharged to the second sheet stack tray 61.

On the other hand, the switching gate 53
Is switched to the state a when stapling is performed, and when the sheets are further sorted by the offset of the tray. As a result, the paper P enters the post-processing unit 52 and is accumulated on the staple tray 71 shown in FIG. At this time, the tip stopper 74 has been raised to the regulation position shown in FIG. Also, a sheet P to be input to the post-processing unit 52
Is a long size or a short size, is detected in advance by the sheet length detection unit 175, and is transmitted to the sheet post-processing device control unit 171. Alternatively, the information is input to the sheet post-processing device control unit 171 as input information other than the input information obtained by the above detection.

Here, when the sheet P to be input to the post-processing section 52 is of a long size (for example, A3 vertical feed), the rear end plate 72
As shown in FIG. 19, is disposed beforehand at a retracted position set at or near the position of the rear wall portion 77. And
Each time the sheet P enters the staple tray 71, the rear end plate 72 advances from the retracted position to an alignment position corresponding to the sheet size, and pushes the rear end of the sheet P to move the leading end of the sheet P. By pressing against the leading end stopper 74, the paper P is aligned in the paper transport direction. Similarly, each time the paper P enters, the side regulating plate 73 advances from the retracted position to an alignment position corresponding to the paper size, and pushes one side edge of the paper P to push the other side edge of the paper P. Is pressed against the sheet side end regulating portion 76 to align the sheet P in the width direction orthogonal to the sheet conveying direction.

The rear end plate 72 and the side regulating plate 73 perform the above-described alignment operation almost simultaneously, and after the alignment operation, are retracted to the respective retracted positions for receiving the next sheet P. Note that, when the above-described alignment operation is performed a plurality of times for one sheet of paper P, it is possible to reduce misalignment between the papers P and to perform more excellent alignment.

Thereafter, when the alignment operation of the last sheet P is completed, the stapling process is performed by the stapler 75 with the sheet bundle positioned by the rear end plate 72 and the side regulating plate 73.

When the stapling process is completed, the leading end stopper 74 retreats to the retreat position, and the stapled sheet bundle is pushed out by the rear end plate 72 to a position where the sheet can be discharged by the discharge roller 60 shown in FIG. The paper is discharged onto the second paper stack tray 61 by the paper discharge rollers 60.

As described above, when the job (alignment, stapling, and discharge to the tray) for one sheet bundle is completed, the rear end plate 72 and the side regulating plate 73 are ready for the next job. Then, while moving to the respective retracted position or the home position, the distal end stopper 74 returns to the advanced position.

On the other hand, even when the paper P entering the post-processing section 52 is of a short size (for example, A4 landscape feed), each of the entered papers P is placed on the front end stopper 74 in the same manner as the case of the long size. If the parts are brought into contact with each other to perform the alignment, the following problem occurs. That is, when the second sheet of paper P is pushed out by the rear end plate 72 to be brought out of contact with the front end stopper 74, the front end of the second sheet P first comes into contact with the front end stopper 74. It is easy to collide with the trailing end of the first sheet P that is in contact with it, and it is difficult to smoothly overlap the second sheet P on the first sheet and align it. As a result, the collision portion of the sheet P may be damaged, or the page order may be reversed between the first sheet and the second sheet.

Therefore, in the sheet post-processing device 4,
When the paper P to be input to the post-processing unit 52 is a short size, the processing is performed as follows.

That is, as shown in FIG. 1, the rear end plate 72 is caused to stand by in advance at a position near the center of the staple tray 71 in the sheet conveying direction (hereinafter, referred to as a short size corresponding standby position). Each time the sheet P enters the staple tray 71, the rear end plate 72 retreats from the above-described short size corresponding standby position to an alignment position corresponding to the sheet size, and the sheet P
Of the sheet P is pressed against the rear wall 77, thereby aligning the sheet P in the sheet transport direction. Similarly, each time the paper P enters, the side regulating plate 73 advances from the retracted position to an alignment position corresponding to the paper size, and pushes one side edge of the paper P to push the other side edge of the paper P. Is pressed against the sheet side edge regulating portion 76 to align the sheet P in the width direction orthogonal to the sheet conveying direction (preliminary alignment operation).

The rear end plate 72 and the side regulating plate 73 perform the above-described aligning operation almost simultaneously, and after the aligning operation, the rear end plate 72 is retracted to the short size corresponding standby position for receiving the next sheet P. Then, the side regulating plate 73 retreats to the retreat position. It should be noted that, even in this preliminary alignment operation, if the operation is performed a plurality of times for one sheet of paper P, the deviation between the papers P is reduced, and more excellent alignment is possible.

As shown in FIG. 21, the preliminary alignment operation is performed based on the detection of the passage of the rear end of the sheet by a sheet detection switch 49 (sheet input sensor) provided in front of the sheet discharge roller 48. The processing is performed by timer control in the processing device control unit 171.

Thereafter, in the case of outputting a bundle of sheets of a plurality of copies, when the preliminary alignment up to one sheet before the last sheet P of the first copy is completed, as shown in FIGS. 23, after entering the final sheet P, after it has fallen (operation in FIG. 23), it passes under the pre-aligned sheet P and moves to the home position in the rear wall 77 (operation). . Then, at this position, a rising state occurs (operation), and the apparatus stands by until the entry of the last sheet P of the first copy is completed.

Thereafter, the rear end plate 72 advances until the leading edge of the first sheet of paper abuts on the leading edge stopper 74 when the entry of the final sheet P into the staple tray 71 is completed (operation). ). At this time, at the same time, the side regulating plate 73 advances from the retracted position to the alignment position corresponding to the sheet size, and pushes one side end of the sheet bundle to move the other side end of the sheet bundle to the sheet side end regulating section 76. By pressing against
The sheet bundle is aligned in the width direction orthogonal to the sheet transport direction (final alignment operation). If this final alignment operation is also performed a plurality of times, it is possible to reduce the deviation between the sheets of paper P and to achieve better alignment.

When the final aligning operation is completed, the stapling process is performed by the stapler 75 with the sheet bundle positioned by the rear end plate 72 and the side regulating plate 73.

When this stapling process is completed, the leading end stopper 74 is retracted to the retracted position (operation), and the rear end plate 72 is moved.
As a result, the stapled sheet bundle is pushed out to a position where the sheet can be ejected by the sheet ejection roller 60, and is ejected onto the second sheet stack tray 61 by the sheet ejection roller 60 (operation).

When the job (preliminary alignment, final alignment, stapling, and discharge to the tray) for the first set of sheets is completed as described above, the rear end plate 72 and the side regulating plate 73 In preparation for the job of the second copy, the rear end plate 72 moves to the standby position corresponding to the short size, and the side regulating plate 7 is moved.
3 moves to the retreat position, and the front end stopper 74 returns to the advanced position.

In the processing for the short size sheet, as shown in FIG. 24, even during the final alignment operation or the stapling operation on the first sheet bundle, the first copy of the second copy is processed.
The second sheet P of the second copy can be again subjected to the preliminary alignment operation while the second sheet P can be inserted into the staple tray 71. Therefore,
By performing the stapling process, the loss time in the image forming operation in the image forming apparatus main body 1 can be minimized or zero.

Next, the above-described series of operations of the sheet post-processing device 4 will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG.

First, while the image forming apparatus main unit 1 is on standby,
A print request (print request) by an input using the operation unit (for example, an operation panel) or a print request from a computer or a terminal device such as a facsimile to which the image forming apparatus main body 1 is connected (S1).

At this time, in accordance with the printing request, information as to whether or not post-processing (staple processing) is necessary and whether the size of the paper P used for printing is a long size or a short size is displayed as an image. The information is input to the forming apparatus main unit 1, and the information is transmitted from the image forming apparatus control unit 161 of the image forming apparatus main unit 1 to the sheet post-processing apparatus control unit 171 of the sheet post-processing apparatus 4 (S2).

In the sheet post-processing device 4, when the size of the sheet P to be inserted is determined based on the input information (S10).
3) It is determined whether the paper P is a long size or a short size (S4). The paper size is determined by
As described above, the determination is made based on whether or not the length of the sheet P in the transport direction (sheet length) exceeds 1/2 of the length from the front end surface of the rear wall portion 77 to the leading end stopper 74 of the staple tray 71. .

As a result of the determination in S4, if the paper P to be inserted is of a long size and the stapling process is selected, the rear end plate 72 is arranged at the home position. Further, the side regulating plate 73 is arranged at the retreat position, and the front end stopper 74 is arranged at the advanced position (S5).

Thereafter, printing processing is started in the image forming apparatus main body 1. That is, a print request for one sheet is received and the print is performed (S6). The paper P after the printing process is completed
The paper is discharged from the paper discharge roller 48 onto the staple tray 71 via the post-processing conveyance path 39.

In the sheet post-processing device 4, when one sheet of paper P enters (S7), the entered paper P is moved in the sheet transport direction by the rear end plate 72 and the front end stopper 74 at the stapling position. In addition to the alignment, the alignment is performed in the sheet width direction by the side regulating plate 73 and the sheet side end regulating portion 76 (S
8). The moving distance of the rear end plate 72 and the side regulating plate 73 at this time is set based on the previously determined paper size.

When the alignment of one sheet of paper P is completed as described above, it is determined whether or not printing of one job has been completed, that is, whether or not the insertion of the paper P of the first copy has been completed. Do (S
9). This determination is made based on transmission information from the image forming apparatus main body 1. If the result of determination in S9 is that the insertion of the paper P of the first copy has not been completed, the processing of S5 to S9 is repeated.

On the other hand, in S9, if the insertion of the sheet P of the first copy is completed, the stapling is performed by the stapler 75 in a state where the sheet bundle is positioned by the alignment (S10).

When the stapling process is completed, the leading end stopper 74 is retracted to the retracted position, and the sheet bundle is pushed out by the trailing end plate 72 to a position where the leading end of the sheet bundle is sandwiched by the sheet discharging rollers 60. As a result, the sheet bundle is discharged
And is discharged to the second sheet stack tray 61 (S11).

When the processing for the first set of sheets is completed in this way, it is determined whether or not there is a next print job, that is, there is a sheet P for the second set (next set). It is determined whether or not (S12). If the result of this determination is that there is no paper P for the second copy (next copy), the process returns to the standby state, and if there is paper for the second copy (next copy), , S
4 and the subsequent processing is repeated. The determination in S12 is made based on the transmission information from the image forming apparatus main body 1 that has determined whether or not all the print requests have been completed.

If the result of determination in S4 is that the paper P to be inserted is of a short size and that stapling is selected, the rear end plate 72 is moved to the center of the staple tray 71 in the paper transport direction. It is arranged at a nearby position, that is, a standby position corresponding to the short size. Further, the side regulating plate 73 is arranged at the retreat position, and the front end stopper 74 is arranged at the advanced position (S13).

Thereafter, printing processing is started in the image forming apparatus main body 1. That is, a print request for one sheet is received and the print is performed (S14). Printed paper P
Is discharged from the paper discharge roller 48 onto the staple tray 71 via the post-processing conveyance path 39.

In the sheet post-processing device 4, when one sheet of paper P enters (S15), the entered paper P is moved to the rear end plate 72 and the rear wall 77 of the staple tray 71 at the short size matching position. And the side regulating plate 73 and the sheet-side end regulating portion 7 of the staple tray 71.
6 aligns in the paper width direction. That is, preliminary alignment is performed on the paper P (S16).

When the alignment (preliminary alignment) of one sheet of paper P is completed as described above, it is determined whether printing of one job has been completed, that is, whether the insertion of the paper P of the first copy has been completed. It is determined whether or not it is (S17). This determination is made based on transmission information from the image forming apparatus main body 1. If the result of determination in S17 is that the insertion of the paper P of the first copy has not been completed,
13 to S17 are repeated.

On the other hand, in S17, the sheet P of the first copy
Is completed, the rear end plate 72 first moves from the front end position of the sheet bundle to the home position. At this time,
The rear end plate 72 is in a state of falling in the sheet conveyance direction, and after passing under the sheet bundle, reaches a home position and becomes a rising state. Thus, the rear end plate 72 can be moved to the home position without colliding with the pre-aligned sheet bundle and disturbing the alignment. Next, the rear end plate 7
No. 2 pushes the trailing end of the sheet bundle to feed the sheet bundle forward until the leading end thereof contacts the leading end stopper 74. Thereby, the sheet bundle is arranged at the stapling position (S1).
8).

When the sheet bundle is placed at the stapling position, the sheet bundle is finally aligned by the rear end plate 72 and the front end stopper 74, and by the side regulating plate 73 and the sheet side end regulating portion 76. The stapling process is performed by the stapler 75 (S19).

Upon completion of the stapling process, the flow advances to step S11 to perform the following processes. That is, the leading end stopper 74 is retracted to the retracted position, and the sheet bundle is discharged to the second sheet stack tray 61 by the rear end plate 72 (S11). afterwards,
If there is no paper P of the second copy (next copy) (S1
2) While returning to the standby state, if there is a sheet P of the second copy (the next copy), the process returns to S4 and repeats the subsequent processing.

In the above operation, the long size paper P
Are aligned at the stapling position, so that after the alignment of one sheet bundle is completed, stapling can be performed at that position. That is, there is no need to move from the alignment position to the stapling position. This enables quick processing.

The short-size paper P is aligned at a short-size alignment position set on the paper entry side on the staple tray 71, and is then transferred collectively to the stapling process as a sheet bundle. Therefore, as compared with the case where each of the short-sized papers P entering the staple tray 71 is aligned at the staple processing position, the processing until the short-sized paper P is arranged at the staple processing position as the aligned paper bundle is performed. Can be shortened, and similarly, quick processing can be performed.

[Embodiment 2] Another embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS. The sheet post-processing apparatus 4 of the present embodiment has a post-processing unit 201 shown in FIG. The post-processing unit 201 includes the tip stopper 141 in place of the tip stopper 74, and a side regulating plate (alignment unit) 202 in place of the side regulating plate 73. Further, instead of the staple tray 71, a staple tray (paper stacking unit) 203 having a structure corresponding to the side regulating plate 202 is provided. The side regulating plate 202
Is driven by the side regulating plate driving unit 101 shown in FIG.

Although the illustration of the rear end plate 72, the stapler 75, and the rear wall 77 shown in FIG. 1 is omitted in FIG. The alignment operation with the short size sheet, the stapling process, and the subsequent discharging process are the same as those described above.

As shown in FIG. 26, the staple tray 203 has a plurality of recesses 203a formed in the movement range of the side regulating plate 202. Each recess 203a extends in the width direction of the sheet entering the staple tray 203, and has a groove shape.

The wall between adjacent recesses 203a, that is, the recess side wall 203b supports the bottom surface of the sheet P moving on the recess side wall 203b, and prevents the sheet P from entering the recess 203a. . As shown in FIG. 27, the outer surface of the recessed side wall 203b has a gentle slope to prevent the paper P from being caught.

[0234] The side regulating plate 202 is shown in Figs.
FIG. 28 (a plan view of the side regulating plate 202), FIG.
(A-A line cross-sectional view in FIG. 28) and FIG.
(B) As shown in FIG. 28 (a cross-sectional view taken along line BB), a plurality of inclined surfaces, that is, a first inclined surface (scooping surface) 202a and a second inclined surface (scooping surface) 202b are provided at a lower portion.
And a matching operation unit 202c at the top, and the first and second inclined surfaces 202a and 202b and the matching operation unit 2
The horizontal portion 202d is provided between the horizontal portion 202c and the horizontal portion 202d.

The first inclined surface 202a extends obliquely downward from the upper surface position of the staple tray 203, and
3a. The first inclined surface 202a is inclined with respect to the vertical direction in a state in which the first inclined surface 202a is inclined in a direction opposite to the alignment direction so as to scoop up a side end of the sheet P disposed on the concave portion 203a. . The angle of inclination of the first inclined surface 202a with respect to the horizontal direction, that is, the rising angle is set in a range of, for example, 20 to 25 degrees.

Similarly, the second inclined surface 202b extends obliquely downward from the upper surface of the staple tray 203, and is located on the recess side wall portion 203b between the adjacent first inclined surfaces 202a. This second inclined surface 202b
Is so as to be able to scoop up the side end of the paper P arranged on the concave side wall 203b with respect to the vertical direction.
It is inclined in a state of falling in a direction opposite to the alignment direction. The rising angle of the second inclined surface 202b is larger than the rising angle of the first inclined surface 202a, for example, 23.
The angle is set in the range of -28 degrees.

Then, on the side regulating plate 202, the sheet P
A first inclined surface 202a or a second inclined surface 202b is provided over a front surface of a portion that can be brought into contact with the side end of the first inclined surface 202a.

The aligning section 202c rises substantially vertically, and comes into contact with the side end of the sheet P that has entered the staple tray 203 as the side regulating plate 202 moves.
This is a portion where the paper P is aligned in the width direction.

In the above configuration, when the printed paper P enters the staple tray 203 from the image forming apparatus main body 1, the shortage of the paper P depends on whether it is long or short as described above. Matching is performed at the size matching position or the long size matching position, that is, at the stapling processing position.
In this alignment, the transport direction (length direction) of the paper P is
The sheet P is aligned by the rear end plate 72, and the sheet P is aligned by the side regulating plate 202 in the width direction. The alignment at the side regulating plate 202 is performed as follows.

When the side regulating plate 202 moves in the alignment direction (the direction of the sheet side edge regulating portion 76) after the sheet P has been entered on the staple tray 203, the side edge of the sheet P is firstly shifted to the first inclined surface. It is scooped up by 202a. When the side regulating plate 202 further advances from this state, the paper P
Moves upward along the first inclined surface 202a,
The portion between the adjacent first inclined surfaces 202a of the paper P is the second
It is scooped up by the inclined surface 202b.

Thereafter, the side edge of the paper P is
d, and after moving on this surface, the aligning unit 202c
Abut. Then, the sheet is pushed in the direction of the sheet side end regulating section 76 by the aligning operation section 202c, and is aligned in the sheet width direction.

In the above alignment process, the second inclined surface 2
02b is located at a position retracted from the first inclined surface 202a in the alignment direction, so that the side end of the sheet P is
It is possible to prevent a situation in which the lower end portion 02b and the upper end portion of the concave side wall portion 203b are caught between the lower end portion 02b and the upper end portion of the concave side wall portion 203b, resulting in an alignment failure.

In the side regulating plate 202, as described above, the first and second inclined surfaces 202 of the side regulating plate 202
The a, 202b and the horizontal portion 202d enter the lower surface side of the paper P at the time of alignment, and exit from the lower surface side of the paper P at the time of retreat after alignment for each paper P, thereby performing alignment.

Here, the paper P entering the staple tray 203 undergoes curling after passing through the fixing operation of the fixing device 44. That is, the surface of the pair of rollers of the fixing device 44 that is in contact with the heating roller is concave, while the surface that is in contact with the pressure roller is convex. Further, when the paper P passes through each transport roller, a small curl occurs according to, for example, the pitch of the rollers. Therefore, the staple tray 20
The sheet P entered into the sheet No. 3 has a large curl generated after passing through the fixing device 44 and has a small curl generated after passing through each transport roller.

If the downwardly protruding portion of the side edge of the sheet P due to curling fits into the concave portion 203a, this portion is easily formed by the first inclined surface 202a extending into the concave portion 203a. Can be scooped up. Further, when a downwardly protruding portion due to a small curl at the side end portion of the sheet P is located on the concave side wall portion 203b, this portion is easily scooped up by the second inclined surface 202b. Therefore, even if the paper P is curled, the widthwise alignment of the paper P can be easily and appropriately performed.

In the sheet post-processing apparatus 4, the side regulating plate 205 shown in FIG. 30 or the side regulating plate 20 shown in FIG.
6 may be provided.

[0247] The side regulating plate 205 is
2, the first inclined surface 205a, the second inclined surface 205b, the matching operation unit 205c corresponding to the first inclined surface 202a, the second inclined surface 202b, the matching operation unit 202c, and the horizontal unit 202d.
It has a horizontal portion 205d. In the side regulating plate 205, the width of the second inclined surface 205b is narrow, and the width of the first inclined surface 205b is small.
The end on the side of the second inclined surface 205b in FIG. 2A has a shape that is inclined in accordance with the inclination of the recess side wall 203b.

The side regulating plate 206 is provided on the first inclined surface 206.
a, a second inclined surface 206b, an alignment operation section 206c, and a horizontal section 206d. Alignment operation section 206c, horizontal section 2
06d is an alignment operation portion 202c of the side regulating plate 202,
Although it has the same shape as the horizontal portion 202d, the first inclined surface 206a and the second inclined surface 206b are the first inclined surface 202a,
It has a shape different from the second inclined surface 202b. That is, in the side regulating plate 206, the first and second inclined surfaces 2
06a and 206b correspond to the shape of the concave portion 203c having a shallow V-shaped valley shape (the shape of the concave side wall portion 203d having a low mountain-shaped repetitive structure), and are provided at the distal end of the second inclined surface 206b having a large rising angle. The first inclined surface 206a having a small rising angle and a short length is formed.

For example, the above-mentioned side regulating plates 202, 20
First and second inclined surfaces 202a and 202 at 5, 205
02b, 205a and 205b, 206a and 206b are
It is also possible to attach an elastic film such as a PET sheet having these shapes to the side regulating plates 202, 205, 205.

Incidentally, Japanese Utility Model Laid-Open Publication No. 59-88048 discloses a sheet guide mechanism having a pair of guide members, for example, as shown in FIG. In that configuration, FIG.
As shown in FIG. 5, an inclined portion 2 for scooping the sheet P is provided at two positions at the tip end of each of the guide members 211, the guide members 211 having a L-shape and facing each other.
12 are provided.

In the above configuration, the inclined portion 212 is of a single type. Therefore, when the paper P is aligned by this configuration, if the paper P has a deformation such as curl, the paper P cannot be properly aligned.

Further, in the above configuration, the inclined portion 212 is provided only in the concave groove portion 213 perpendicular to the transport direction of the paper P, and in the portion other than the groove portion 213, the scooping function of the paper P is considered. Therefore, it is impossible to prevent the paper P from catching on the guide member 211.

Therefore, in the above-described conventional configuration, the breakage, misalignment, and jam of the sheet P, and staple processing failure caused by these are easily caused.

[Embodiment 3] Still another embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS. The sheet post-processing device 4 of the present embodiment includes a post-processing unit 221 shown in FIG. The post-processing unit 221 includes a guide movable transport unit 222 at a position above the staple tray 71. As shown in FIGS. 34 and 35, the guide movable transport section 222 includes an upper transport roller section (upper transport means) 223 and a movable guide member 224.

The one-sided conveying roller portion 223 is located on the staple tray 71 from a position downstream of the sheet discharging roller 48.
The staple tray 71 extends to near the end position. Further, as shown in FIG. 35, the one-sided conveying roller portion 223 includes an upper guide member 225 and the upper guide member 225.
And a number of conveying rollers 226 provided at the positions
For example, the transport rollers 226 are driven by a belt 227 laid on them, and rotate in one direction.

The movable guide member 224 has a length capable of facing at least two adjacent transport rollers 226.
Driven by the movable guide member drive unit 228 (see FIG. 36), the one-sided conveying roller unit 223 can reciprocate from the input side end to the vicinity of the discharge side end.

Below the transport roller 226 at the most downstream side in the one-side transport roller section 223, there is provided an elevating roller 229 which serves as an escape transport roller and is a driven roller. The elevating roller 229 is a roller elevating drive unit 2
31 (see FIG. 36),
6 and the transport roller 226
, And can move downward to a paper holding position where it comes into contact with the paper P on the staple tray 71.

The elevating roller 229 is located immediately upstream of the stapler 75 when it is arranged at the above-described paper holding position. When the lifting roller 229 is disposed at the paper holding position, the paper P on the staple tray 71 is sandwiched between the staple tray 71 and the elastic member (not shown) by the elastic member (not shown) to urge the paper P to be fixed. Have been. In this case, the urging force is set to such an extent that the sheet P can be conveyed when the sheet is conveyed by the conveying roller 226 or the rear end plate 72 in a state where the elevating roller 229 is disposed at the sheet pressing position. Have been.

A paper pressing member 230 is provided at a position upstream of the escape transport roller 229. The paper pressing member 230 is a pressing member driving unit 2
32 (see FIG. 37), a sheet pressing position where the sheet P is moved down to press the sheet P on the staple tray 71;
It is possible to ascend and descend to a retracted position where it is raised and separated from above the staple tray 71.

The post-processing section 221 includes a rear end plate 72 and a side regulating plate 73 similarly to the post-processing sections 52 and 201 described above.
Alternatively, an alignment operation with the side regulating plate 202 or the like is performed.

The sheet post-processing apparatus 4 has a sheet post-processing apparatus control section 171 shown in FIG. The sheet post-processing device control unit 171 is connected to a movable guide member drive unit 228, a roller lifting drive unit 231 and a pressing member drive unit 232 in addition to the units shown in FIG. These driving units 228, 231, and 232 can be easily configured by a known technique.

In the above configuration, a print request (print request) by input using the operation unit of the image forming apparatus main body 1 or a terminal request such as a computer or a facsimile to which the image forming apparatus main body 1 is connected. When a print request is issued, an image is printed by the image forming apparatus main body 1. As shown in FIG. 37A, the paper P on which the image has been printed passes through the paper discharge rollers 48 and enters the guide movable transport unit 222 of the post-processing unit 221.

When the stapling process is selected in accordance with the above-mentioned print request, the sheet entering the guide movable transport unit 222 is placed on one side as shown in FIGS. 37 (b) and 37 (c). The sheet is conveyed in the sheet discharging direction while being sandwiched between the rotating conveyance roller 226 of the conveyance roller section 223 and the movable guide member 224. At this time, the movable guide member 224
Moves in the sheet discharging direction along with the movement of the sheet P while holding the front part of the sheet P. In addition, the movable guide member 224
Is always opposed to one or more transport rollers 226, so that the paper P can be transported stably.

Next, as shown in FIG. 38A, the movable guide member 224 stops when it reaches a predetermined halfway stop position. In this state, the paper P is sent forward by the rotation of the transport roller 226 as shown in FIG. 38B, and the front portion has its own weight and the waist (hardness) of the paper P.
As a result, the staple tray 71 descends.

Thereafter, as shown in FIG. 38C, the sheet P stops when the leading end reaches the leading end stopper 141. Further, the elevating roller 229 moves down on the sheet, that is, to the sheet pressing position, whereby the sheet P is fixed at the stapling position.

Here, the elevating roller 22 which is a driven roller
9 is located at the paper holding position, the urging force of the elevating roller 229 is adjusted, and the elevating roller 229 is a driven roller and is rotatable. Can move the paper P. Therefore, by using the elevating roller 229, it is possible to align the paper P in the paper transport direction and discharge the paper while suppressing the movement of the paper P, that is, the displacement. On the other hand, when the sheet P is fixed by a member that simply presses the sheet P, such as the sheet pressing member 230, further alignment of the sheet P becomes impossible.

Thereafter, the movable guide member 224 returns to the home position (the position close to the paper discharge roller 48 shown in FIG. 37A), and prepares for the next paper P to be inserted. With the retreat of the movable guide member 224 at this time, as shown in FIG. 39, the rear portion of the sheet P falls from the movable guide member 224, and all the portions of the sheet P are arranged on the staple tray 71. Further, the elevating roller 229 rises and returns to the escape conveyance position, and the paper pressing member 230 moves down to the paper pressing position instead of the elevating roller 229, and the paper P is fixed by the paper pressing member 230.

By repeating the above processing,
As shown in FIG. 40A, when the sheet bundle (the sheet bundle of the first copy) by printing one job is arranged at the staple processing position of the staple tray 71, the stapling by the stapler 75 is performed.

Thereafter, as shown in FIG. 40 (b), the sheet pressing member 230 moves up to the retracted position, and the leading end stopper 141 falls in the sheet conveying direction. As a result, the sheet bundle can be discharged, and the sheet bundle is discharged by the rear end plate 72 as shown in FIG. The sheet bundle is discharged onto the second sheet stack tray 61 by the discharge rollers 60.

On the other hand, when the stapling process is not selected, the paper entering the guide movable transport section 222 is
7 (b) and after the operation of FIG. 37 (c), the movable guide member 224 does not stop at the halfway stop position shown in FIG. 38 (a). Move to the paper discharge position. As a result, the front portion of the sheet P does not drop onto the staple tray 71, and
26, and is discharged from the staple tray 71 by these rollers.

Thereafter, the sheet P is guided by the switching gate 57 and is discharged to the first sheet stack tray 59 or the discharge roller 60. In addition, the movable guide member 224 includes
It returns to the home position in preparation for the next paper P.

As described above, in the sheet post-processing apparatus 4,
A transport section when the guide movable transport section 222 performs stapling, and a transport section when not performing stapling,
That is, it can also serve as the above-described escape conveyance path 51. As a result, the escape conveyance path 51 becomes unnecessary, and the height of the apparatus is reduced, and the apparatus can be reduced in size. Further, the number of parts is reduced, and the cost can be reduced.

In the above-mentioned post-processing section 221,
The length of the staple tray 71 is set so that the sheet P of the maximum size that can be processed by the post-processing unit 221 can be completely loaded. Therefore, alignment and accumulation of the sheets P on the staple tray 71 are easy, and stapling can be performed accurately.

On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 41, the length of the staple tray 71 may be set, for example, shorter than the length of the maximum size sheet P that can be processed by the post-processing unit 221. In this case, the sheet P sequentially conveyed to the staple processing position is held on the staple tray 71 in a state where only the front portion is pressed by the elevating roller 229 or the sheet pressing member 230. The rear portion of the sheet P is held, for example, on the lower wall 4a of the sheet post-processing device 4.

The above configuration focuses on the point that the portion of the staple tray 71 necessary for the post-processing section 221 is only the portion for holding the front portion of the sheet P to be stapled. With such a configuration, the size and cost of the post-processing unit 221 can be further reduced.

In the above-described paper post-processing apparatus 4, the paper
However, when the escape conveyance path 51 is further provided as a conveyance unit dedicated to the paper P not subjected to stapling, the escape conveyance path 51 shown in FIG. Paper ejection roller unit 24 shown
1 may be provided. The paper discharge roller unit 241 is also applicable to the paper post-processing device 4 shown in FIG. In this case, the paper discharge roller section 241 replaces the paper discharge roller 48 and the switching gate 53.

The paper discharge roller section 241 is composed of first to third rollers 241a to 241c arranged vertically. The first roller 241a at the intermediate portion is composed of, for example, a driving roller. The upper second roller 241b is, for example, a driven roller, and sends out the sheet P to the escape transport path 51 together with the first roller 241a rotating clockwise as shown in FIG. Also, the lower third
The roller 241c is, for example, a driven roller, and
As shown in (c), the sheet P is sent to the post-processing unit 221 together with the first roller 241a rotating counterclockwise.

In the above-described paper discharge roller section 241, only a drive mechanism that drives the first roller 241a may be used, as compared with the case where the paper discharge roller 48 and the switching gate 53 shown in FIG. 2 are provided. Therefore, the drive mechanism can be simplified. Also, the first to third rollers 241a to 241
Since c is provided in a line in the vertical direction, the occupied space in the paper transport direction can be reduced.

[0279] The sheet size discriminating means includes a sheet size detecting means for detecting the size of the sheet entering the sheet accumulating section, and detects the length of the sheet accumulating section in the sheet conveying direction and the sheet size detecting means. The configuration may be such that it is determined whether the sheet is a long size or a short size based on the length of the sheet that has been set.

According to the above arrangement, the paper size determining means determines whether the incoming paper is a long size or a short size based on the detection result of the paper size by the paper size detecting means. At this time, the paper size determining means determines this determination.
This is performed based on the length of the paper stacking section in the paper transport direction and the length of the paper detected by the paper size detecting means. For example, the paper size determining means determines that the length of the paper in the paper transport direction exceeds 1/2 of the length of the paper stacking section in the paper transport direction as the long size.
Judge as the following and short size.

By performing such a discriminating operation, the aligning operation using the short-size aligning position set in the sheet stacking section and the long-size aligning position, that is, the sheet post-processing position is effective. And the matching operation can be performed quickly, and the processing speed can be further increased.

[0282]

As described above, the sheet post-processing apparatus according to the present invention is a sheet post-processing apparatus provided with post-processing means for performing post-processing on a sheet input to a sheet collecting section. A post-processing position for performing post-processing on the sheet, and a short-size alignment position for aligning the short-size sheet set on the side of input to the sheet stacking section. Paper size determining means for determining whether the size of the paper to be transported in the transport direction is a long size or a short size; aligning means for aligning the paper input to the paper stacking unit; and post-processing the paper at the short size matching position The short-size sheet transfer means for transferring the sheet to the position, and when the long-size sheet enters the sheet stacking section, after the paper is aligned at the post-processing position, post-processing is performed, while the short-size sheet is transferred. When paper enters the paper stack The aligning means, the short-size paper transporting means, and the post-processing are performed such that the paper is aligned at the short-size alignment position, and after the aligned paper is transferred to the post-processing position, post-processing is performed. And a post-processing control means for controlling the post-processing means.

In the present paper post-processing apparatus, long-size paper and short-size paper are not uniformly aligned at a post-processing position where post-processing such as stapling is performed. While alignment is performed at the position, short-sized paper is aligned at a short-size alignment position set on the paper entry side to the paper stacking unit. Therefore, the processing speed can be increased while suppressing an increase in the size of the apparatus.

That is, the length of the sheet stacking section for stacking the received sheets is set in accordance with the size of the long-size sheet. In this state, for example, a stapler as a post-processing unit is provided at, for example, a front end position (a front end position in a sheet feeding direction) of the sheet stacking unit, and the short size sheet is also aligned at the post-processing position by the stapler. In this case, the moving distance of each short-sized sheet fed to the sheet stacking section to the alignment position becomes longer, and as a result, the processing speed in the sheet post-processing device becomes slower.

On the other hand, if the alignment position of the short size paper is set on the side of entering the paper stacking unit, the moving distance to the alignment position of each short size paper entering the paper accumulation unit is The processing time can be shortened by aligning and accumulating the short size sheets at this position, and then moving the bundle of sheets together to the post-processing position. Thus, in the sheet post-processing apparatus, the long size sheet and the short size sheet can be aligned at different positions and optimum positions in the sheet stacking section, and the processing speed can be increased.

Further, the paper post-processing apparatus of the present invention has a paper size determining means for determining whether the size of the paper entering the paper stacking section in the transport direction is a long size or a short size, and the paper entering the paper stacking section. When the paper is aligned and the paper is of a long size, the paper is aligned at a post-processing position where the paper can be subjected to post-processing, while when the paper is of a short size. And a post-processing means for performing post-processing on the paper aligned by the aligning means at a short size alignment position set on the paper input side to the paper stacking unit. It is.

As described above, in the sheet post-processing apparatus, the long-size paper and the short-size paper are not uniformly aligned at the post-processing position where post-processing such as stapling is performed. The paper is aligned at the post-processing position, while the short-sized paper is aligned at the short-size alignment position set on the paper entry side to the paper stacking unit. Therefore, while suppressing an increase in the size of the device,
Processing speed can be increased.

That is, the length of the paper stacking section for stacking the received paper is set in accordance with the size of the long-size paper. In this state, for example, a stapler as a post-processing unit is provided at, for example, a front end position (a front end position in a sheet feeding direction) of the sheet stacking unit, and the short size sheet is also aligned at the post-processing position by the stapler. In this case, the moving distance of each short-sized sheet fed to the sheet stacking section to the alignment position becomes longer, and as a result, the processing speed in the sheet post-processing device becomes slower.

On the other hand, when the alignment position of the short size paper is set on the side of entering the paper stacking unit, the moving distance to the alignment position of each short size paper entering the paper accumulation unit is The processing time can be shortened by aligning and accumulating the short size sheets at this position, and then moving the bundle of sheets together to the post-processing position. Thus, in the sheet post-processing apparatus, the long size sheet and the short size sheet can be aligned at different positions and optimum positions in the sheet stacking section, and the processing speed can be increased.

The above-described sheet post-processing apparatus may be configured such that a non-post-processing conveyance path for guiding a sheet not subjected to post-processing to a discharge tray is provided to be branched from the path to the sheet stacking section. Good.

According to the above arrangement, by providing the non-post-processing conveyance path, when the present paper post-processing apparatus is provided in, for example, an image forming apparatus, special paper that does not perform post-processing such as postcards and OHPs can be used. Thus, the paper can be discharged through the paper post-processing device. Therefore, the convenience and versatility of the sheet post-processing device can be improved.

When the aligning means performs the aligning operation at the short size aligning position, each time a sheet enters the sheet stacking section, the aligning means sets the sheet in the sheet conveying direction with reference to the rear end in the sheet conveying direction. It is good also as a structure provided with the movable alignment member which aligns by pushing a front end part back.

According to the above arrangement, each movable short-sized sheet is aligned by the movable alignment member (preliminary alignment).
Is performed, the consistency of the sheet is improved, and the post-processing such as the subsequent stapling can be appropriately performed.

That is, in the case where alignment is performed by the movable alignment member after a large number of sheets are stacked on the sheet stacking unit, the alignment becomes difficult due to static electricity of the sheets, and the sheets are easily damaged such as bent corners. Become. With the above configuration, such a problem can be solved.

In the above sheet post-processing apparatus, the aligning means, when performing the aligning operation at the post-processing position, uses the front end side in the sheet conveying direction as a reference every time a sheet enters the sheet stacking section. Alternatively, a configuration may be provided in which a movable alignment member that aligns by pushing the rear end of the sheet in the transport direction forward is provided.

According to the above arrangement, the alignment of each of the short-sized paper sheets is performed by the movable alignment member, so that the alignment of the paper sheets is improved. Can be done.

That is, in the case where alignment is performed by the movable alignment member after a large number of sheets are stacked on the sheet stacking unit, alignment becomes difficult due to static electricity of the sheets, and the sheets are easily damaged such as corner breaks. Become. With the above configuration, such a problem can be solved.

When post-processing, for example, stapling, is completed when one set of sheets to be stapled is completed, alignment of the set of sheets is completed. Post-processing can be started almost simultaneously with the completion of the input of a plurality of sheets to be performed, and the processing speed can be increased.

The above-mentioned sheet post-processing apparatus may be configured such that the home position of the movable alignment member is set at the sheet input side position of the sheet stacking section.

As described above, if the home position of the movable alignment member is set to the position on the paper entering side of the paper stacking section,
Regardless of the size of long-size paper or short-size paper, the movable alignment member moves quickly from the home position to a position for alignment operation corresponding to each paper, regardless of whether the paper is fed into the paper stacking section. Can be moved to

For example, when a short size sheet is input, the movable alignment member moves to the center side of the sheet stacking section corresponding to the alignment of the short size sheet. At this time, the moving direction of the movable alignment member and the paper entering direction are the same,
Even if the movement of the movable alignment member and the paper insertion are performed substantially simultaneously, collision between them can be avoided.

On the other hand, if the home position of the movable alignment member is set to, for example, the center side of the paper stacking section corresponding to the alignment of the short size paper, when the long size paper is inserted. Then, the movable alignment member moves to the paper input side position. At this time, the moving direction of the movable alignment member is opposite to the paper entering direction. Therefore, if the movement of the movable alignment member and the paper insertion are performed at the same time, the two may collide and damage the paper. For this reason, it is necessary to wait until the movement of the movable alignment member is almost completed before the paper is input, and the processing speed is reduced.

The above-mentioned sheet post-processing apparatus may be configured such that the aligning means includes a movable aligning member which moves in the front-rear direction in the sheet conveying direction, and the movable aligning member also serves as the short-size sheet transferring means.

According to the above arrangement, since the aligning means includes the movable alignment member which moves in the front-rear direction in the paper transport direction, and the movable alignment member also serves as the short-size paper transfer means.
There is no need to provide the short-size sheet transfer means as an independent means, and the configuration can be simplified.

The above-described sheet post-processing apparatus may be configured such that short-sized sheets can be stacked at the short-size matching position while short-sized sheets are arranged at the post-processing position.

According to the above configuration, the next short-size sheet can be accumulated at the short-size matching position while the short-size sheet is arranged at the post-processing position. Immediately after the aligned short-size sheet bundle is transferred to the post-processing position, the accumulation of the next short-size sheet at the short-size alignment position can be started. This enables quick processing.

The above-mentioned paper post-processing device comprises a paper discharge tray,
The paper processing apparatus further includes a paper discharge unit that discharges the paper processed by the post-processing unit to the paper discharge tray, and a paper discharge transfer unit that transports the paper at the post-processing position to a position where the paper can be discharged by the paper discharge unit. In addition, the alignment unit may include a movable alignment member that moves in the front-rear direction of the sheet conveyance direction, and the movable alignment member may also function as the paper discharge transfer unit.

According to the above arrangement, the aligning means includes the movable aligning member which moves in the front-rear direction in the sheet conveying direction, and the movable aligning member is moved to a position where the paper at the post-processing position can be discharged by the discharging means. Since the sheet is also used as the sheet discharging and transferring means for transferring, there is no need to provide the sheet discharging and transferring means as an independent means, and the configuration can be simplified.

In the above-described paper post-processing apparatus, the movable aligning member is formed in a plate shape, and the aligning means includes movable aligning member holding means for holding the movable aligning member in a rising state and a falling state. It may be.

According to the above arrangement, the movable aligning member is set in a raised state at the time of aligning the paper and at the time of transporting the paper, so that these operations are performed, and when returning to the home position and passing under the paper in the paper stacking section. These operations can be performed appropriately by setting the device in a collapsed state.

In other words, the aligning operation of the movable aligning member at the short size aligning position, particularly for the short size paper, the movement of the movable aligning member itself from the short size aligning position to the post-processing position, and the rearward shifting from the short size aligning position. The transfer operation of the aligned short-sized sheet bundle to the processing position, the discharging operation of the post-processed sheet bundle from the post-processing position to the discharge tray, and the returning operation of the movable alignment member itself to the home position are smoothly performed. be able to.

[0312] In the above sheet post-processing apparatus, the movable alignment member holding means engages with the first screw gear whose axial direction is the sheet conveyance direction, and meshes with the first screw gear.
An axial direction orthogonal to the paper transport direction, a second screw gear having the movable alignment member connected to the shaft, and a first screw gear movable in the paper transport direction, and the first screw gear; It may be configured to include a shaft member fitted in a state where the rotation of the shaft member is prevented, and a driving unit for rotating the shaft member.

According to the above configuration, the shaft member is rotated by the driving means, and the first screw gear is rotated by the rotation of the shaft member, and the second screw gear meshing with the first screw gear is rotated. The movable aligning member connected to the shaft of the second screw gear rotates, that is, the movable aligning member is in a falling state or a rising state.

Therefore, the movable aligning member can be arranged in the falling state and the rising state by the rotation of the shaft member, and the driving means for rotating the shaft member, ie, arranging the movable aligning member in both of the above states. Drive source) can be arranged at a position remote from the movable alignment member. This allows
The degree of freedom in designing a mechanism for driving the movable alignment member can be increased.

In the above-described paper post-processing apparatus, the first screw gear is formed of a bevel gear having a helix angle of 45 degrees, and the second screw gear is formed of a second bevel gear.
The screw gear described above may be constituted by a gear in which pins are arranged at the same pitch as the teeth of the bevel gear.

According to the above arrangement, the movable alignment member and the second
And the screw gear can be integrally formed by injection molding, and the manufacturing is facilitated.

[0317] The sheet post-processing apparatus described above is provided with a movable aligning member driving means for moving the movable aligning member in the front-rear direction in the sheet conveying direction, wherein the aligning means moves the movable aligning member via an elastic member. It may be configured to be connected to the member driving means.

According to the above arrangement, the movable alignment member is driven by the movable alignment member driving means and moves in the front-rear direction in the sheet transport direction. Thus, the movable alignment member is driven by the movable alignment member driving unit, and can transfer the short size sheet bundle aligned at the short size alignment position to the post-processing position. At this time, the movable alignment member positions the sheet bundle at the post-processing position by abutting the sheet bundle against, for example, a stopper for positioning, and aligns the sheet bundle in the sheet transport direction. In addition, the movable alignment member aligns the long size sheet at the post-processing position by, for example, contacting the long size sheet with a stopper for positioning.

The transfer, alignment,
In alignment with long-size sheets, since the movable alignment member is connected to the movable alignment member driving means via the elastic member, no excessive pressing force acts on the sheet even if the sheet size varies. Accordingly, it is possible to prevent a situation in which an excessive pressing force acts on the sheet from the movable alignment member and damages the sheet end when the sheets are aligned.

[0320] In the above-described paper post-processing apparatus, the paper size determination means may determine whether the paper is a long size or a short size based on information indicating a paper size input from an external device.

According to the above arrangement, the paper size discriminating means is used for the operation unit of the image forming apparatus when a print request is made to the image forming apparatus having the paper post-processing apparatus. Input for specifying the paper size,
Alternatively, the determination is performed based on paper size information used from a terminal device connected to the image forming apparatus on the network. Therefore, it is possible to easily determine the length of the incoming paper without making a mistake.

In the above-described paper post-processing apparatus, the paper size determining means determines whether the paper is a long size or a short size based on the length of the paper stacking section and the input length information in the paper transport direction. May be determined.

According to the above arrangement, the paper size determining means determines whether the paper is the long size or the short size based on the length of the paper stacking section and the input paper length information in the paper transport direction. I do. For example, the paper size determining means
If the length of the paper in the paper transport direction exceeds 1/2 of the length of the paper stacking portion in the paper transport direction, it is determined to be a long size, and if it is 1/2 or less, it is determined to be a short size.

The input of the sheet length information is input from the sheet size detecting means provided in the sheet conveying path, or to the operation unit of the image forming apparatus provided with the present sheet post-processing apparatus. At the time of a print request, or an input at the time of a print request from a terminal device such as a computer or a facsimile to which the image forming apparatus is connected.

By performing such a discriminating operation, the aligning operation using the short-size aligning position set in the sheet stacking section and the long-size aligning position, that is, the sheet post-processing position is effective. And the matching operation can be performed quickly, and the processing speed can be further increased.

The above-mentioned sheet post-processing apparatus regulates the sheet discharging means for discharging the sheet processed by the post-processing means from the post-processing position, and the front end position of the sheet disposed at the post-processing position in the transport direction. Restricting member that can be moved to a restricting position where the paper is ejected from the post-processing position by the discharging unit, and a restricting position that moves the restricting member between the front end restricting position and the retracted position. A paper positioning unit having a member driving unit may be provided.

According to the above arrangement, the sheet positioning means includes the regulating member and the regulating member driving section, and when the regulating member is disposed at the regulating position by the regulating member driving section, the sheet positioning means at the post-processing position. The bundle can be positioned, and when the regulating member is disposed at the retracted position by the regulating member driving section, the sheet bundle can be discharged from the post-processing position by the sheet discharging means. Thus, the sheet can be positioned at the post-processing position, and the post-processed sheet bundle can be reliably discharged.

The sheet post-processing apparatus of the present invention is provided at a sheet stacking section for stacking the input sheets and at a front end position of a post-processing position where the sheet can be subjected to post-processing in the sheet stacking section. A restricting position for restricting and positioning the front end position of the sheet in the sheet conveying direction, and a retracting position for allowing the sheet to be ejected from the post-processing position, the position being inclined forward from the restricting position in the sheet conveying direction. A paper positioning means having a movable regulating member, a regulating member driving portion for moving the regulating member between the regulating position and the retracted position, and aligning the paper entering the paper accumulating portion; And a post-processing means for performing post-processing on the paper sheet aligned by the aligning means while being pressed against the regulating member.

According to the above arrangement, the aligning means aligns the sheets that have entered the sheet stacking section, and arranges the aligned sheets at the post-processing position while pressing the aligned sheets against the regulating member at the regulating position.
The sheet positioning means arranges the regulating member at the above-mentioned regulating position when regulating the front end position of the sheet in the conveying direction. When the post-processing is performed on the sheet by the post-processing unit in this state, the sheet positioning unit disposes the regulating member to the retracted position by lowering the regulating member from the regulating position to the front side in the sheet conveying direction. As a result, the paper can be discharged from the post-processing position.

Therefore, the paper can be positioned by the regulating member at the post-processing position, and the regulating member can be easily moved to the retracted position where the positioning state is released. Also,
The movement of the regulating member from the regulating position to the retracted position is performed by lowering the regulating member from the regulating position to the front side in the paper transport direction. Therefore, when a pressing force (side pressure) is applied from the paper to the regulating member. Can be easily and appropriately performed.

Further, the regulating member moves from the regulating position to the retracted position where the paper can be discharged from the post-processing position by falling forward in the paper transport direction. This eliminates the need for a space for the evacuation position below the paper stacking unit, which is required when the regulating member is moved downward and disposed at the evacuation position, and makes the paper post-processing apparatus thinner, that is, downsized. Can be.

The sheet post-processing apparatus according to the present invention is a sheet post-processing apparatus comprising a post-processing means for performing post-processing on a sheet input to a sheet collecting section, wherein the sheet collecting section performs post-processing on the sheet. A post-processing position, and a short-size alignment position for aligning short-size sheets, which is set on the paper-entry side of the paper stacking section, in the transport direction of the paper entering the paper stacking section. Paper size determining means for determining whether the size is a long size or a short size; aligning means for aligning the paper fed to the paper stacking unit; and short size paper for transferring the paper at the short size matching position to the post-processing position A transporting means, a regulating position provided at the front end position of the post-processing position, for regulating and positioning the front end position in the sheet conveying direction, and a position falling forward from the regulated position in the sheet conveying direction; The paper from the Regulating member movable to an evacuation position, and a paper positioning means having a regulating member driving portion for moving the regulating member between the regulating position and the evacuation position; Then, after the paper is aligned at the post-processing position, the post-processing is performed. On the other hand, when the short-sized paper enters the paper stacking section, the paper alignment is performed at the short-size alignment position. The post-processing control means for controlling the aligning means, the short-size paper transferring means and the post-processing means so that the post-processing is performed after the paper after the alignment is transferred to the post-processing position. It is characterized by having.

According to the above configuration, as described above, the present paper post-processing apparatus uniformly aligns long-size paper and short-size paper at the post-processing position where post-processing such as stapling is performed. Instead, long-size paper is aligned at the post-processing position, while short-size paper is aligned at the short-size alignment position set on the paper entry side to the paper stacking unit. Therefore, the processing speed can be increased while suppressing an increase in the size of the apparatus.

Further, the sheet can be positioned by the regulating member at the post-processing position, and the regulating member can be easily moved to the retracted position where the positioning state is released. In addition, since the movement of the regulating member from the regulating position to the retreat position is performed by lowering the regulating member from the regulating position to the front side in the sheet conveying direction, a pressing force (side pressure) is applied from the paper to the regulating member. Can be easily and appropriately performed.

The regulating member moves from the regulating position to the retreat position where the paper can be discharged from the post-processing position by falling forward in the paper transport direction. This eliminates the need for a space for the evacuation position below the paper stacking unit, which is required when the regulating member is moved downward and disposed at the evacuation position, and makes the paper post-processing apparatus thinner, that is, downsized. Can be.

The sheet post-processing apparatus according to the present invention is a sheet post-processing apparatus comprising a sheet stacking section for stacking sheets that have been input, and alignment means for aligning the sheets input to the sheet stacking section. Wherein the aligning means has a movable alignment member for performing alignment by pressing an edge of the sheet, and a plurality of types of scooping surfaces for scooping the edge of the sheet are formed below the movable alignment member. It is.

According to the above arrangement, the aligning means is provided with a plurality of types of scooping surfaces for scooping the edge of the sheet at the lower portion of the movable alignment member for pushing the edge of the sheet to perform alignment. The sheet on the sheet stacking section is scooped up by the scooping surface, and the sheet can be easily and appropriately aligned without damaging the sheet. In addition, since a plurality of types of scooping surfaces are provided, when a sheet is deformed such as a curl, a scooping operation can be performed in response to the deformation.

In the above-described sheet post-processing apparatus, the scooping surface is formed of an inclined surface inclined in a direction opposite to the alignment direction, and the plurality of types of scooping surfaces are set so that the angles of the inclined surfaces are different from each other. It may be configured.

According to the above arrangement, the paper on the paper stacking section can be easily and appropriately picked up and aligned without being damaged by the plurality of types of scooping surfaces having different angles of the inclined surface.

In the above-described sheet post-processing apparatus, the movable alignment member is movable in a sheet width direction orthogonal to a sheet conveying direction in the sheet stacking section.
A plurality of recesses extending in the moving direction of the movable alignment member and arranged in the paper transport direction are formed, and the plurality of types of scooping surfaces are at least first inclined surfaces that move in the recesses along with the alignment operation. And a second inclined surface which moves on a concave portion side wall portion formed between adjacent concave portions with the aligning operation and has a larger rising angle than the first inclined surface. And each of the second inclined surfaces,
Each may be arranged at the same position in the alignment direction, and the second inclined surface may be arranged at a position rearward of the first inclined surface in the alignment direction.

According to the above arrangement, a sheet that has been deformed, such as curl, enters the sheet stacking section, and, for example, the convex portion of the curled sheet may enter the concave section of the sheet stacking section. Also, this sheet portion can be scooped up on the first inclined surface. Further, a portion located on the side wall of the concave portion at the side end of the sheet can be scooped up by the second inclined surface.

Further, since the second inclined surface moving on the side wall of the concave portion is disposed at a rear position in the alignment direction with respect to the first inclined surface moving inside the concave portion, the second inclined surface is located on the side wall portion of the concave portion. The side edge of the sheet to be processed is
Is not caught between the lower end portion of the inclined surface of the main body. For this reason, it is possible to easily and appropriately align a sheet that has been deformed such as a curl.

In the above-described sheet post-processing apparatus, the movable alignment member may be configured to perform alignment by pressing a side end of the sheet, which is a portion parallel to the direction in which the sheet enters the sheet stacking section.

The movable alignment member is suitable for alignment in the paper width direction. By using the movable alignment member for such an alignment operation, good alignment can be achieved.

[0345] In the above-described paper post-processing apparatus, the movable aligning member is provided with a driving force from a driving source at least two times in a direction orthogonal to the paper entering direction via a belt and a pulley.
It is good also as composition added to a place.

According to the above arrangement, since the movable alignment member moves by applying a driving force to at least two points in the direction perpendicular to the paper entering direction, the movable alignment member can move with high accuracy while maintaining parallelism. It is.

In the above-mentioned paper post-processing apparatus, the pulleys are provided coaxially and form a pair fitted with each other. Elastic members are provided at fitting portions of these pulleys, and both pulleys are provided with the elastic members. A configuration may be provided in which the driving force is transmitted through a member.

According to the above configuration, since the driving force from the driving source is transmitted to the movable alignment member via the elastic member provided on the pulley, variation in the size of the paper to be aligned,
Variations in assembly in the drive mechanism of the movable alignment member can be absorbed by the elastic member. Therefore, it is possible to apply a substantially constant pressure to the paper to perform alignment, thereby preventing damage to the paper and achieving good alignment.

The sheet post-processing apparatus according to the present invention is a sheet post-processing apparatus provided with a post-processing means for performing post-processing on a sheet input to a sheet collecting section, wherein the sheet collecting section performs post-processing on the sheet. A post-processing position, and a short-size alignment position for aligning short-size sheets, which is set on the paper-entry side of the paper stacking section, in the transport direction of the paper entering the paper stacking section. It has a paper size discriminating means for discriminating whether the size is a long size or a short size, and a movable alignment member for pressing and aligning the edge of the paper, and the edge of the paper is scooped below the movable alignment member. A plurality of types of scooping surfaces are formed, aligning means for aligning the paper fed to the paper stacking section, short-size paper transport means for transporting the paper at the short-size alignment position to the post-processing position, and long-size paper. Enters the paper stacking section. Then, after the paper is aligned at the post-processing position, the post-processing is performed. On the other hand, when the short-sized paper enters the paper stacking section, the paper alignment is performed at the short-size alignment position. The post-processing control means for controlling the aligning means, the short-size paper transferring means and the post-processing means so that the post-processing is performed after the paper after the alignment is transferred to the post-processing position. A configuration may be provided.

According to the above configuration, as described above, the present paper post-processing apparatus uniformly aligns long-size paper and short-size paper at the post-processing position where post-processing such as stapling is performed. Instead, long-size paper is aligned at the post-processing position, while short-size paper is aligned at the short-size alignment position set on the paper entry side to the paper stacking unit. Therefore, the processing speed can be increased while suppressing an increase in the size of the apparatus.

The aligning means is provided with a plurality of types of scooping surfaces for scooping the edge of the sheet under the movable alignment member for performing the alignment by pushing the edge of the sheet. The sheet on the stacking section can be scooped up and easily and properly aligned without damaging the sheet. In addition, since a plurality of types of scooping surfaces are provided, when a sheet is deformed such as a curl, a scooping operation can be performed in response to the deformation.

The paper transport device of the present invention is provided at an upper position of the paper transport path, and is configured to contact the upper surface of the paper and move the paper in the transport direction. And a movable guide member that is provided at a lower position in contact with the lower surface of the sheet and that reciprocates along the paper transport path.

According to the above arrangement, the upper conveying means contacts the upper surface of the paper and moves the paper in the conveying direction, and the movable guide member holds the lower surface of the paper while moving the paper in the conveying direction. , The sheet can be conveyed by these upper conveying means and the movable conveying member. Since the movable transport member can be formed of a thin plate such as a flat plate, the paper transport device has a simple configuration, and the thickness in the height direction is thin. Therefore, it is possible to reduce the size of the sheet post-processing apparatus, the image forming apparatus, and the like provided with the apparatus.

[0354] In the above-mentioned paper conveying apparatus, the upper conveying means may be constituted by a plurality of conveying rollers provided in the paper conveying direction.

According to the above configuration, a general transport roller can be used as the upper transport means, so that the paper transport apparatus can be easily configured.

The sheet post-processing apparatus according to the present invention is provided with a sheet stacking section for stacking incoming sheets, and a sheet stacking section provided at the end of the sheet stacking section in the sheet transport direction. And a post-processing means for performing post-processing on the paper, and the paper transport device is provided at a position above the paper stacking section, and when the post-processing is not performed by the post-processing means, the movable guide member is configured to The movable guide member moves to the middle position of the upper conveying means with the movement of the paper and stops when the post-processing means performs post-processing while moving to the vicinity of the terminal end of the upper conveying means. , And feeds the sheet to the position of the post-processing means on the sheet stacking unit.

According to the above arrangement, when post-processing is not performed on the sheet by the post-processing means, the movable guide member moves to near the end of the upper conveying means with the movement of the sheet. Therefore, the paper can be discharged from the post-processing device without disposing the paper at the position of the post-processing means on the paper stacking unit.

On the other hand, when post-processing is performed on the sheet by the post-processing means, the movable guide member moves to the middle position of the upper transport means as the sheet moves and stops, and the sheet is post-processed on the sheet stacking unit. Send out to the position of the means. In this case, the paper is sent out to the position of the post-processing means, that is, the post-processing position, by the upper conveying means while the lower surface is supported by the movable guide member which stops at the middle position of the upper conveying means.

Thus, in the sheet post-processing apparatus, the upper conveying means and the movable guide member can be used as both a conveying path when not performing post-processing on the sheet and a conveying path when performing post-processing on the sheet. Can be. Therefore, the sheet post-processing apparatus does not require a dedicated conveyance path when post-processing is not performed on the sheet, and the apparatus can be downsized.

The sheet post-processing apparatus of the present invention is provided at a sheet stacking section for stacking incoming sheets and at a front end position of a post-processing position in the sheet stacking section where post-processing can be performed on sheets. A restricting position for restricting and positioning the front end position of the sheet in the sheet conveying direction, and a retracting position for allowing the sheet to be ejected from the post-processing position, the position being inclined forward from the restricting position in the sheet conveying direction. A paper positioning means having a movable regulating member, a regulating member driving portion for moving the regulating member between the regulating position and the retracted position, and aligning the paper entering the paper accumulating portion; Aligning means arranged at the post-processing position in a state where the sheet is pressed against the regulating member, post-processing means for performing post-processing on the sheet aligned by the aligning means, and sheet conveying in a state of extending in the sheet conveying direction. Road An upper conveying means for moving the paper in the conveying direction by contacting the upper surface of the paper, and an upper conveying means opposed to the upper conveying means and being located on the lower side in contact with the lower surface of the paper, reciprocating in the paper conveying path; The paper feeding device is provided with a movable guide member that moves and is provided at a position above the paper stacking section.

According to the above configuration, the sheet can be positioned by the regulating member at the post-processing position, and the regulating member can be easily moved to the retracted position where the positioning state is released. In addition, since the movement of the regulating member from the regulating position to the retreat position is performed by lowering the regulating member from the regulating position to the front side in the sheet conveying direction, a pressing force (side pressure) is applied from the paper to the regulating member. Can be easily and appropriately performed.

The restricting member moves from the restricting position to the retreat position where the paper can be discharged from the post-processing position by falling forward in the paper transport direction. This eliminates the need for a space for the evacuation position below the paper stacking unit, which is required when the regulating member is moved downward and disposed at the evacuation position, and makes the paper post-processing apparatus thinner, that is, downsized. Can be.

Also, the upper conveying means may contact the upper surface of the sheet to move the sheet in the conveying direction, and the movable guide member may move in the conveying direction as the sheet moves while holding the lower surface of the sheet. Therefore, the paper can be conveyed by these upper conveying means and the movable conveying member. Since the movable transport member can be formed of a thin plate such as a flat plate, the paper transport device has a simple configuration, and the thickness in the height direction is thin. Therefore, it is possible to reduce the size of the sheet post-processing apparatus, the image forming apparatus, and the like provided with the apparatus.

[0364] The image forming apparatus of the present invention is provided with any one of the above-mentioned sheet post-processing devices. Therefore,
The processing speed when performing post-processing on paper can be increased, and the size of the apparatus can be reduced.

An image forming apparatus according to the present invention comprises: a document image reading means for reading an image of a document placed on a document placing table;
An image forming unit that forms an image on a sheet based on an image read by the document image reading unit; and a paper discharge accommodating unit that accommodates a sheet on which an image has been formed by the image forming unit. Any one of the above-described sheet post-processing devices is provided between the image reading unit, the image forming unit, and the sheet storage unit.

Therefore, it is possible to increase the processing speed in the case where post-processing is performed on the sheet, and to provide a height between the document image reading means and the image forming means and the sheet discharge accommodating means provided with the sheet post-processing device. And the size of the device can be reduced.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view illustrating a schematic configuration of a post-processing unit in a sheet post-processing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a schematic overall configuration diagram of an image forming apparatus including the sheet post-processing apparatus shown in FIG.

FIG. 3 is an overall configuration diagram showing the image forming apparatus main body shown in FIG. 2 in further detail;

FIG. 4 is a perspective view illustrating a configuration of a driving mechanism of a rear end plate illustrated in FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing an operation of alleviating paper damage in a moving portion of the rear end plate driving mechanism shown in FIG. 4;

FIG. 6 is a perspective view showing an operation of setting the rear end plate in the rear end plate driving mechanism shown in FIG.

FIG. 7 is a perspective view showing a configuration of a moving unit in a rear end plate driving mechanism provided with a second helical gear different from the second helical gear shown in FIG. 4;

FIG. 8 is a perspective view showing a driving mechanism of a side regulating plate shown in FIG. 1;

9 is an exploded perspective view showing a fitting structure of a two-stage pulley and a reduction pulley in the three pulley group shown in FIG.

10 is a perspective view showing a state in which a compression spring is compressed by a claw portion of a connection pulley in the reduction pulley shown in FIG. 9;

FIG. 11 is a perspective view showing a driving mechanism of a distal end stopper shown in FIG. 1;

12 is a front view illustrating an operation of driving the distal end stopper to a restriction position and a retracted position in the distal end stopper driving mechanism illustrated in FIG. 11;

FIG. 13 is a perspective view showing another example of the distal end stopper and the distal end stopper driving mechanism shown in FIG. 11;

14 is a side view of the distal end stopper and the distal end stopper driving mechanism shown in FIG.

FIG. 15 is a side view showing a state in which the distal end stopper is arranged at a regulating position by the distal end stopper driving mechanism shown in FIG. 14;

16 is a side view showing a state in which the distal end stopper is disposed at a retracted position by the distal end stopper driving mechanism shown in FIG.

17 is a block diagram illustrating an image forming apparatus control unit included in the image forming apparatus main unit illustrated in FIG. 2;

FIG. 18 is a block diagram illustrating a sheet post-processing device control unit included in the sheet post-processing device illustrated in FIG. 1;

FIG. 19 is a perspective view illustrating an alignment operation for a long-size sheet in the post-processing unit illustrated in FIG. 1;

FIG. 20 is a perspective view illustrating a problem that occurs when the short processing sheet is aligned at the post-processing position in the post-processing unit illustrated in FIG. 1;

FIG. 21 is a perspective view showing a preliminary alignment operation for a first short-size sheet in the post-processing unit shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 22 is a perspective view showing the operation of the post-processing unit shown in FIG. 1 at the end of the pre-alignment operation for the first set of short-size sheets.

FIG. 23 is a perspective view showing the operation of the sheet post-processing apparatus centering on the rear end plate after the end of the pre-alignment operation shown in FIG. 22;

24 is a perspective view showing a state where the first sheet of the second set enters the staple tray during the final alignment operation of the sheet bundle of the first set shown in FIG. 23;

FIG. 25 is a flowchart illustrating an operation of the sheet post-processing apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 26 is a schematic perspective view illustrating a configuration of a post-processing unit provided in a sheet post-processing apparatus according to another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 27 is an enlarged view of a main part of the side regulating plate shown in FIG. 26;

FIG. 28 is a plan view of the side regulating plate shown in FIG. 26;

29A is a sectional view taken along line AA in FIG. 28, and FIG. 29B is a sectional view taken along line BB in FIG. 28.

FIG. 30 is an enlarged view of a main part showing another example of the side regulating plate shown in FIG. 27.

FIG. 31 is an enlarged view of a main part showing still another example of the side regulating plate shown in FIG. 27.

FIG. 32 is a perspective view showing a conventional example corresponding to the configuration shown in FIG. 26;

FIG. 33 is a schematic overall configuration diagram of an image forming apparatus including a sheet post-processing apparatus according to still another embodiment of the invention.

34 is a schematic front view of the post-processing unit shown in FIG.

FIG. 35 is a perspective view of the guide movable transport unit shown in FIG. 34.

36 is a block diagram illustrating a sheet post-processing device control unit included in the sheet post-processing device illustrated in FIG. 33.

FIG. 37 (a) is an explanatory view showing an initial state of sheet conveyance by the post-processing unit shown in FIG. 34, and FIG. 37 (b).
FIG. 37 is an explanatory view showing a state where the sheet is further transported from the state of FIG. 37 (a), and FIG. 37 (c) is a state where the movable guide member has moved in the sheet discharging direction from the state of FIG. 37 (b). FIG.

38 (a) is an explanatory view showing a state in which the movable guide member has reached a predetermined halfway stop position from the state of FIG. 37 (c), and FIG. 38 (b) is a view in which the movable guide member is halfway stopped. FIG. 38C is an explanatory diagram illustrating a state in which the sheet is conveyed when stopped at the position, and FIG. 38C is an explanatory diagram illustrating a state in which the leading end of the sheet has reached the leading end stopper.

FIG. 39 is an explanatory diagram showing a state in which the movable guide member has retreated in the home position direction after the state of FIG. 38C, and the entire sheet has been placed on the staple tray.

FIG. 40 (a) is a view similar to FIG. 37 (a) to FIG. 38;
FIG. 40B is an explanatory diagram showing a state in which the sheet bundle of one job is accumulated on the staple tray by the operation of (c).
FIG. 40C is an explanatory diagram illustrating a state in which the sheet bundle is discharged from the staple tray, and FIG. 40C is an explanatory diagram illustrating a state in which the sheet bundle is discharged from the staple tray.

FIG. 41 is a schematic front view showing another example of the post-processing unit shown in FIG. 34;

42 (a) shows a paper output roller provided in a paper input section to the post-processing section shown in FIG. 2 and a paper output roller section instead of a switching gate, and FIG. FIG. 42B is an explanatory diagram illustrating an initial state of an operation of discharging the discharged sheet to the escape conveyance path. FIG. 42B is an explanatory diagram illustrating a state in which the sheet is discharged to the escape conveyance path by the discharge roller unit.
FIG. 4C is an explanatory diagram illustrating a state in which a sheet is discharged to a post-processing unit by a discharge roller unit.

FIG. 43A is a schematic front view showing a conventionally conceivable sheet post-processing apparatus provided on a side surface of an image forming apparatus, and FIG. It is a schematic front view showing the example of.

[Explanation of symbols]

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Image forming apparatus main body part 3 Document reading part (document image reading means) 5 Main body tray (paper discharge accommodating means) 6 Image forming part (image forming means) 7 Paper feeding part 51 Escape conveyance path (non-post-processing conveyance path) 59 First sheet stack tray (discharge tray) 60 Discharge roller (discharge means) 61 Second sheet stack tray (discharge tray) 71 Staple tray (sheet accumulating unit) 72 Rear end plate (movable alignment member, alignment means, Short size paper transfer means, paper discharge transfer means) 73 Side regulation plate (alignment means) 74 Leading end stopper (regulation member, paper positioning means) 75 Stapler (post-processing means) 81 Rear end plate drive mechanism (movable alignment member holding means, Movable alignment member driving means) 84 First bevel gear (first screw gear) 85 Second bevel gear (second screw gear) 88 Pressurizing spring (elastic member) 93 Noid (drive means) 97 Square shaft (shaft) 101 Side regulating plate drive 102 Motor (drive source) 113 Pressurizing spring (elastic member) 131 Lead stopper drive (regulator drive, paper positioning means) 141 Lead stopper (Regulation member, paper positioning means) 142 Leading end stopper drive section (regulation member drive section, paper positioning means) 171 Paper post-processing device control section (paper size discrimination means, post-processing control means) 201 Post-processing section 202 Side regulation plate ( Aligning means) 202a First inclined surface (rake-up surface) 202b Second inclined surface (rake-up surface) 202c Alignment operation unit 203 Staple tray (paper stacking unit) 203a Depressed portion 203b Depressed side wall portion 221 Post-processing portion 222 Guide movable transport portion 223 Upper transport roller section (upper transport means) 224 Movable guide member 225 Upper guide member 226 Conveying roller 228 Movable guide member drive unit 229 Elevating roller 230 Paper holding member

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on the front page (72) Inventor Toshio Urakawa 22-22 Nagaikecho, Abeno-ku, Osaka-shi, Osaka Inside Sharp Corporation (72) Inventor Yasumasa Morimoto 22-22 Nagaikecho, Abeno-ku, Osaka-shi, Osaka (72) Inventor Motoaki Okitsu 22-22 Nagaikecho, Abeno-ku, Osaka-shi, Osaka Sharp Corporation (72) Inventor Takashi Makiura 22-22 Nagaikecho, Abeno-ku, Osaka-shi, Osaka Sharp Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Hideki Goto 22-22, Nagaike-cho, Abeno-ku, Osaka-shi, Osaka Inside Sharp Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Hiroshi Mukai 22-22, Nagaike-cho, Abeno-ku, Osaka-shi, Osaka Sharp Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Suehiro Ueda 22-22, Nagaikecho, Abeno-ku, Osaka-shi, Osaka Inside Sharp Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Seiichi Kizu Nagaike, Abeno-ku, Osaka-shi, Osaka 22-22 Inside Sharp Corporation (72) Koji Iwai Inventor 22-22 Nagaokacho, Abeno-ku, Osaka-shi, Osaka Prefecture Inside (72) Yoshitaka Matsumoto 22-22 Nagaikecho, Abeno-ku, Osaka-shi, Osaka (72) Shotaro Okamoto, Inventor 22-22, Nagaike-cho, Abeno-ku, Osaka-shi, Osaka Prefecture Sharp Corporation (72) Junji Ogura 22-22, Nagaike-cho, Abeno-ku, Osaka-shi, Osaka Sharp shares Within the company (72) Inventor Manabu Ito 22-22, Nagaike-cho, Abeno-ku, Osaka-shi, Osaka Inside Sharp Corporation (72) Inventor Norihide Momose 22-22, Nagaike-cho, Abeno-ku, Osaka-shi, Osaka Sharp Corporation ( 72) Inventor: Atsushi Saito, 22-22 Nagaikecho, Abeno-ku, Osaka-shi, Osaka Inside Sharp Corporation (72) Inventor Satoshi Kono 22-22, Nagaikecho, Abeno-ku, Osaka-shi, Osaka Sharp Corporation (72) Inventor ▲ Yoshi ▼ Hideo Kawa 22--22 Nagaikecho, Abeno-ku, Osaka-shi, Osaka In-house (72) Inventor Shinichiro Hiraoka 22-22 Nagaike-cho, Abeno-ku, Osaka-shi, Osaka Inside (72) Inventor Kimihide Tsukamoto 22-22 Nagaike-cho, Abeno-ku, Osaka-shi, Osaka F-term (in-house) Reference) 3F054 AA01 AC02 BA04 BE03 BE04 BG02 BG04 BH02 BH13 BH14 CA04 DA01 3F108 GA02 GB01 HA02 HA39 HA46

Claims (31)

[Claims] 1. A sheet post-processing apparatus comprising a post-processing means for performing post-processing on a sheet input to a sheet stacking section, wherein the sheet stacking section performs a post-processing position for performing post-processing on the sheet; It has a short size alignment position for aligning short size paper set on the paper input side to the paper stacking unit, and the size in the transport direction of the paper entering the paper stacking unit is long or short. Paper size discriminating means for discriminating whether or not the sheet has entered the sheet stacking section; aligning means for adjusting the sheet at the short size matching position; When the paper enters the paper stacking section, the paper is aligned at the post-processing position and post-processing is performed. On the other hand, when the short-sized paper enters the paper stacking section, the short Paper alignment at alignment position It is carried out,
Post-processing control means for controlling the aligning means, the short-size paper transferring means, and the post-processing means so that post-processing is performed after the aligned paper is transferred to the post-processing position. A sheet post-processing device characterized by the above-mentioned. 2. A sheet size discriminating means for discriminating whether a size of a sheet entering a sheet accumulating section in a conveying direction is a long size or a short size, and aligning the sheet entering the sheet accumulating section. To
When the paper is of a long size, the paper is aligned at a post-processing position where the paper can be subjected to post-processing,
When the sheet is of a short size, an aligning means for aligning the sheet at a short-size aligning position set on the sheet input side to the sheet stacking section, and performing post-processing on the sheet aligned by the aligning means A sheet post-processing apparatus, comprising: a post-processing unit. 3. A non-post-processing conveyance path for guiding a sheet that is not subjected to post-processing to a discharge tray is provided to be branched from a path to the sheet stacking section. 3. The paper post-processing device according to 2. 4. The aligning means, when performing an aligning operation at the short-size aligning position, every time a sheet enters the sheet stacking unit, based on a rear end side of the sheet in the sheet conveying direction as a reference. The sheet post-processing device according to claim 1, further comprising a movable alignment member that aligns by pushing a front end portion in a conveyance direction backward. 5. The aligning means, when performing an aligning operation at the post-processing position, every time a sheet enters the sheet stacking section.
3. The sheet post-processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a movable alignment member that aligns the sheet by pressing a rear end of the sheet in the transport direction forward with reference to a front end side of the sheet in the transport direction. . 6. The sheet post-processing apparatus according to claim 4, wherein a home position of the movable alignment member is set to a position on a sheet input side of the sheet stacking section. 7. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said aligning means includes a movable aligning member which moves in the front-rear direction of the sheet conveying direction, and said movable aligning member also serves as said short-size sheet transferring means. Paper post-processing device. 8. The sheet post-processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the short-size sheets can be stacked at the short-size matching position while the short-size sheets are arranged at the post-processing position. 9. A paper discharge tray, a paper discharge means for discharging paper processed by the post-processing means to the paper discharge tray, and a paper discharge position at which the paper at the post-processing position can be discharged by the paper discharge means. And a discharging unit for transferring the sheet, and the aligning unit includes a movable alignment member that moves in the front-rear direction of the sheet conveying direction, and the movable alignment member also functions as the sheet discharging and transferring unit. The sheet post-processing device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein 10. The movable alignment member is formed in a plate shape, and the alignment means includes a movable alignment member holding means for holding the movable alignment member in a rising state and a falling state. 10. The sheet post-processing apparatus according to any one of items 4 to 7, or any one of items 9. 11. A first screw gear having an axial direction corresponding to a sheet conveyance direction, said movable alignment member holding means comprising:
A second screw gear in which the axial direction is orthogonal to the paper transport direction, the second screw gear having the movable alignment member connected to the shaft, and a first screw gear movable in the paper transport direction, and 11. The sheet post-processing apparatus according to claim 10, further comprising a shaft member fitted in a state where the rotation of the first screw gear is prevented, and a driving unit for rotating the shaft member. 12. The first screw gear comprises a bevel gear having a helix angle of 45 degrees, and the second screw gear comprises a gear having pins arranged at the same pitch as the teeth of the bevel gear. The sheet post-processing apparatus according to claim 11, wherein: 13. The aligning means includes a movable aligning member driving means for moving the movable aligning member in the front-rear direction of the sheet conveying direction, and the movable aligning member is connected to the movable aligning member driving means via an elastic member. The sheet post-processing apparatus according to any one of claims 4 to 7, wherein: 14. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said paper size determining means determines whether the paper is a long size or a short size based on information indicating a paper size input from an external device. Paper post-processing device. 15. The paper size determining means determines whether the paper is a long size or a short size based on the length of the paper stacking section and the input length information in the paper transport direction. The sheet post-processing apparatus according to claim 1 or 2, wherein 16. A sheet discharging means for discharging a sheet processed by the post-processing means from the post-processing position, a regulating position for regulating and positioning a front end position in the transport direction of the sheet disposed at the post-processing position. A sheet having a regulating member movable to a retreat position enabling the sheet ejecting operation by the ejecting means from a post-processing position, and a regulating member drive unit for moving the regulating member to a front end regulating position and a retreat position. 2. The positioning device according to claim 1, further comprising: positioning means.
Or the sheet post-processing device according to 2. 17. A sheet stacking section for stacking incoming sheets, and a front end position of a post-processing position in the sheet stacking section where a sheet can be subjected to post-processing, and a front end position in the sheet conveying direction. A restricting member that is movable to a restricting position for restricting and positioning and a retracting position that is a position that is tilted forward from the restricting position to the front side in the sheet conveying direction and that enables discharge of the sheet from the post-processing position, and The paper positioning means having a regulating member drive unit for moving the regulating member between the regulating position and the retreat position is aligned with the paper entering the paper stacking unit, and the aligned paper is pressed against the regulating member at the regulating position. A sheet post-processing apparatus comprising: an aligning unit that is arranged at the post-processing position in a state; and a post-processing unit that performs post-processing on the sheet aligned by the aligning unit. 18. A paper post-processing device comprising a post-processing means for performing post-processing on a sheet that has entered a paper stacking unit, wherein the paper stacking unit performs a post-processing position for performing post-processing on the sheet; It has a short size alignment position for aligning short size paper set on the paper input side to the paper stacking unit, and the size in the transport direction of the paper entering the paper stacking unit is long or short. Paper size discriminating means for discriminating whether or not, paper aligning means for aligning the paper fed to the paper stacking section, short-sized paper transporting means for transporting the paper at the short-sized alignment position to the post-processing position, and a post-processing position A restriction position is provided at the front end position of the paper and regulates and positions the front end position in the paper transport direction, and a position that is tilted forward from the restriction position in the paper transport direction, so that the paper can be discharged from the post-processing position. Withdrawal position A sheet positioning means having a regulating member which can move the regulating member between the regulating position and the retreat position; and a post-processing when the long size sheet enters the sheet accumulating section. After the paper is aligned at the position, post-processing is performed, and when a short-sized paper enters the paper stacking unit, the paper is aligned at the short-size alignment position,
Post-processing control means for controlling the aligning means, the short-size paper transferring means, and the post-processing means so that post-processing is performed after the aligned paper is transferred to the post-processing position. A sheet post-processing device characterized by the above-mentioned. 19. A sheet post-processing apparatus comprising: a sheet stacking section for stacking sheets that have been inserted, and a matching unit that aligns the sheets that have been stacked in the sheet stacking unit. And a movable alignment member for performing alignment by pressing an edge of the paper, and a plurality of types of scooping surfaces for scooping the edge of the paper are formed below the movable alignment member. apparatus. 20. The scooping surface is formed of an inclined surface inclined in a direction opposite to the alignment direction, and the plurality of kinds of scooping surfaces are set so that the angles of the inclined surfaces are different from each other. Item 20. A sheet post-processing device according to Item 19. 21. The movable aligning member is movable in a sheet width direction orthogonal to a sheet transport direction in a sheet stacking section, and extends in the sheet stacking section in a moving direction of the movable alignment member, and is provided with a sheet transport section. A plurality of recesses arranged in a direction are formed, and the plurality of types of scooping surfaces are formed at least between a first inclined surface moving in the recesses with the aligning operation and adjacent recesses with the aligning operation. Moving on the side wall portion of the recessed portion, the second inclined surface having a larger rising angle than the first inclined surface, and each of the first inclined surfaces and each of the second inclined surfaces are respectively 21. The sheet post-processing apparatus according to claim 20, wherein the sheet is disposed at the same position in the alignment direction, and the second inclined surface is disposed at a position rearward of the first inclined surface in the alignment direction. 22. The paper sheet as claimed in claim 19, wherein the movable alignment member performs alignment by pressing a side end of the sheet, which is a part parallel to the sheet feeding direction of the sheet into the sheet stacking section. Processing equipment. 23. The movable aligning member, wherein a driving force from a driving source is applied via a belt and a pulley to at least two points in a direction orthogonal to a sheet entering direction. Item 20. A sheet post-processing device according to Item 19. 24. The pulley is provided coaxially and in a pair fitted with each other. An elastic member is provided at a fitting portion of these pulleys, and both pulleys are driven by the driving force via the elastic member. 24. The sheet post-processing apparatus according to claim 23, wherein the sheet post-processing apparatus is provided so as to transmit the information. 25. A sheet post-processing apparatus comprising a post-processing means for performing post-processing on a sheet input to a sheet collecting section, wherein the sheet collecting section performs a post-processing position for performing post-processing on the sheet; It has a short size alignment position for aligning short size paper set on the paper input side to the paper stacking unit, and the size in the transport direction of the paper entering the paper stacking unit is long or short. Paper size discriminating means for discriminating whether or not, and a movable alignment member for pressing the edge of the paper to perform alignment,
A plurality of types of scooping surfaces for scooping up the edge of the sheet are formed at a lower portion of the movable alignment member, and an aligning unit that aligns the sheet that has entered the sheet stacking unit; A short-size sheet transfer means for transferring the sheet to the processing position; and when the long-size sheet enters the sheet stacking section, after the paper is aligned at the post-processing position, post-processing is performed. When the sheet of the paper enters the sheet stacking section, the sheet is aligned at the short size alignment position,
Post-processing control means for controlling the aligning means, the short-size paper transferring means, and the post-processing means so that post-processing is performed after the aligned paper is transferred to the post-processing position. A sheet post-processing device characterized by the above-mentioned. 26. An upper conveying means which is provided at an upper position of a paper conveying path so as to extend in the paper conveying direction, and which contacts the upper surface of the paper and moves the paper in the conveying direction. A movable guide member provided at a lower position in contact with the lower surface of the sheet and reciprocating in a sheet transport path. 27. The sheet conveying apparatus according to claim 26, wherein said upper conveying means comprises a plurality of conveying rollers provided in a sheet conveying direction. 28. A sheet stacking section for stacking sheets that have been received, and a post-processing section provided at the end of the sheet stacking section in the sheet conveying direction and performing post-processing on the sheets stacked in the sheet stacking section. And a sheet conveying device according to claim 26, at a position above the sheet stacking unit, and when the post-processing unit does not perform post-processing, the movable guide member moves with the movement of the sheet. While moving to the vicinity of the terminal end of the upper conveying means, when performing the post-processing by the post-processing means, the movable guide member moves to the middle position of the upper conveying means with the movement of the paper and stops, and the paper is stopped. A sheet post-processing apparatus for feeding a sheet to a position of the post-processing means on a stacking unit. 29. A sheet stacking section for stacking incoming sheets, and a front end position of a post-processing position in the sheet stacking section where a sheet can be subjected to post-processing, and a front end position in the sheet conveying direction. A restricting member that is movable to a restricting position for restricting and positioning and a retracting position that is a position that is tilted forward from the restricting position to the front side in the sheet conveying direction and that enables discharge of the sheet from the post-processing position, and The paper positioning means having a regulating member drive unit for moving the regulating member between the regulating position and the retreat position is aligned with the paper entering the paper stacking unit, and the aligned paper is pressed against the regulating member at the regulating position. Aligning means arranged at the post-processing position in the state, post-processing means for performing post-processing on the paper aligned by the aligning means, and positioned above the paper transport path in a state extending in the paper transport direction; Paper An upper conveying means for moving the paper in the conveying direction by contacting the upper surface, and a movable guide member which is opposed to the upper conveying means and is located on the lower side in contact with the lower surface of the paper and reciprocates along the paper conveying path. And a sheet conveying device provided at a position above the sheet stacking section. 30. An image forming apparatus comprising the sheet post-processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 25, 28, and 29. 31. Document image reading means for reading an image of a document placed on a document mounting table, image forming means for forming an image on a sheet based on the image read by the document image reading means, 30. A paper discharge accommodating means for accommodating a sheet on which an image has been formed by said image forming means, and between said document image reading means and said image forming means and paper discharge accommodating means. An image forming apparatus comprising the sheet post-processing device according to any one of the preceding claims.