JP2004250211A - Paper feeding device and image processing apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To highly accurately position a paper sheet and easily optimize relative relations with a post-processing system by accurately keeping a distance between guide members restricting paper side edges. <P>SOLUTION: This paper feeding device is provided with a movable paper aligning jogger 117 making positional correction for the paper by restricting the paper side edges, a driving belt 62 for moving the paper aligning jogger 117 in accordance with a paper size, a reference sensor 61 detecting a reference position of the paper aligning jogger 117 in operation, and a positioning projected member 72 provided on a device body making a reference for precedently positioning the paper aligning jogger 117. The positioning projected member 72 is provided on the device body so as to be adjusted in a moving direction of the paper aligning jogger 117. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2004,JPO&NCIPI

Description

[0001]
TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a sheet transport device and an image processing device.
[0002]
[Prior art]
2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, image processing apparatuses such as copiers have been required to improve not only the quality of an image itself but also the quality of an image position with the rapid spread of digitalization and printers. Especially for duplex units, the importance of duplex copying is increasing due to environmental resource issues, etc., but in this duplex copying, the paper transport path is longer than in single-sided copying to reverse the front and back, preventing paper skew. Is difficult to perform, and this causes the copy quality of the front and back sides to differ depending on the paper misalignment. Further, the post-processing system is also required to improve the position accuracy of the punched holes.
[0003]
Therefore, as a countermeasure against skew and lateral registration in the related art, it is general that a sheet is temporarily stored in an intermediate tray in a sheet reversing device and then corrected by a side fence jogger or the like.
[0004]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
In the measures for the skew and the lateral registration described above, it is essential that the interval between the side fence joggers is set with high accuracy. However, the interval between the side fence joggers may be shifted from the target interval due to the accuracy of individual components and assembly. If the gap between the side fences is wider than the paper width, the regulation of the side edges of the paper is insufficient, and the paper ramps up.On the other hand, if the gap is narrow, the paper is sandwiched and transported. Since the resistance increases and the thin paper is conveyed in a bent state, there is a problem that the paper is disturbed.
[0005]
Also, when performing post-processing such as punch holes in a post-processing device connected to the main device, the position of the sheet positioned by the side fence jogger on the main device and the relative position of the punch hole device provided in the post-processing device. If the position is shifted, there is a problem that the position of the hole with respect to the sheet is shifted from the center.
[0006]
In view of the above-mentioned conventional circumstances, the present invention performs high-precision paper positioning by easily maintaining the interval between guide members that regulate the paper side edge, and also facilitates the relative relationship with the post-processing system. It is an object of the present invention to provide a sheet conveying device and an image processing device that can be optimized for the following.
[0007]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a movable guide member for correcting the position of the sheet by regulating a side edge of the sheet, and a moving means for moving the guide member corresponding to the sheet size. And a reference sensor for detecting a reference position during operation of the guide member, and a positioning projection member provided on an apparatus main body serving as a reference when the guide member is pre-positioned. A projection member is provided on the apparatus main body so as to be adjustable in the direction in which the guide member moves.
[0008]
In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a movable guide member for correcting the position of the sheet by regulating a side edge of the sheet, and moving the guide member corresponding to the sheet size. In a sheet transport device including a moving unit, a reference sensor that detects a reference position during operation of the guide member, and a positioning protrusion member provided on an apparatus body serving as a reference when the guide member is pre-positioned, The positioning projection member and a support member that supports the reference sensor are integrally formed.
[0009]
The present invention is effective when the positioning projection member integrated with the support member is provided on the apparatus main body so as to be adjustable in the direction in which the guide member moves.
[0010]
Still further, in order to achieve the above object, an image processing apparatus according to the present invention is provided with the paper transport device according to any one of claims 1 to 3.
[0011]
BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION
Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.
FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing a copying machine which is an example of an image processing apparatus according to the present invention.
In FIG. 1, a copying machine according to the present embodiment includes a sheet feeding unit 1, an image forming unit 20, a reading unit 50, and an automatic document feeder 30 arranged from a lower stage to an upper stage. Is provided.
[0012]
The reading unit 50 is a unit for scanning a document and includes a contact glass 57 on which the document is placed and an optical scanning system. The optical scanning system includes an exposure lamp 51, a first mirror 52, and a second mirror 55. And a third mirror 56, a lens 53, a CCD image sensor 54, and the like. The document image is read by the CCD image sensor 54, converted into an electric signal, and processed.
[0013]
The automatic document feeder 30 is a device for automatically reading a sheet document. A document placed on a document table 31 is fed to a position of a document reading sensor 33 by a feed roller 32. The document passes through the document reading sensor 33 at a constant speed as it is, and at this time, an image on the front side of the document is read by the sensor 33. The read image data is sequentially stored in an image memory after performing image processing (various correction, compression, etc.).
[0014]
The image forming unit 20 forms an image on a photoconductor 21 as an image carrier based on a known electrophotographic process. A writing unit 24 is provided on the photoconductor 21. The writing unit 24 includes a laser output unit 25, an imaging lens 26, and a mirror 27, and the laser light output from the writing unit 24 is irradiated on the photoconductor 21 of the image forming system.
[0015]
The procedure for printing an image formed on the photoconductor 21 is roughly as follows.
The sheets stacked on the first tray 2, the second tray 3, and the third tray 4 of the sheet feeding unit 1 are fed by the first sheet feeding device 5, the second sheet feeding device 6, and the third sheet feeding device 7, respectively. Then, the sheet P is conveyed by the vertical conveying unit 8 to a position where it contacts the photoconductor 21. The image data on the memory is written on the photoconductor 21 by the laser from the writing unit 24, and passes through the developing unit 22 to form a toner image. The toner image on the photoconductor 21 is transferred while the paper is conveyed by the conveyance belt 23 at the same speed as the rotation of the photoconductor 21. Thereafter, the image is fixed by the fixing unit 28, and the image is discharged to the sheet discharge tray 11 by the sheet discharge unit 10.
[0016]
In the copying machine according to the present embodiment, a two-sided conveyance unit 111 is provided between the sheet feeding unit 1 and the image forming unit 20 to enable image formation on both sides. 1 and 2, when images are formed on both sides, the sheets fed from the respective feed trays 2 to 4 and the formed images are discharged by switching the reversing path switching claw 115 shown in FIG. The paper is conveyed to the double-sided entrance conveyance path 113 without being guided to the paper tray 11. The sheet sent into the duplex conveying unit 111 is guided to the reversing unit 112 and temporarily stored in the switchback conveying path 119. The switchback transport path 119 is provided with a paper aligning jogger 117 as a guide member for correcting the lateral registration and skew of the fed paper, and the paper is aligned on both sides by the paper aligning jogger 117. The paper whose both sides have been aligned by the paper alignment jogger 117 is then fed out in the reverse direction (refeeding direction) by the reversing roller 122 serving as a return conveying means, and guided downward by the reversing discharge switching claw 123 to be reversed. Is sent to a double-sided intermediate conveyance path 121 provided below the conveyance path. Then, the sheet is again sent to the vertical conveyance unit 8 by the intermediate conveyance unit 118 and the double-side exit conveyance unit 120 connected to a driving source (motor) (not shown), and after the image is printed on the back surface, the sheet is discharged. Each of the transporting units 118 and 120 is provided with a drive interrupting unit such as an electromagnetic clutch so that one or more sheets are packed in the double-sided intermediate transporting path 121 and can temporarily wait.
[0017]
When the inverted sheet is ejected instead of being imaged on both sides, the sheet switched back by the inverting unit 112 is sent out by the ejected inversion switching claw 123 to the inverted sheet ejection conveyance path 114 without being sent to the duplex intermediate conveyance 121. To return to the paper discharge unit and discharge it out of the main body. The paper discharged from the main body is discharged to either the discharge tray 11 of the main body or the finisher 200 by the discharge destination switching claw 116. The sheets discharged to the finisher 200 pass through a punch unit 204 for punching holes, and are temporarily stacked on a stack tray 201 for stapling. After all the sheets are stored in the stack tray, this sheet bundle is bound by the stapler unit 202 and discharged to the discharge tray 203.
[0018]
Next, the configuration of the switchback transport path 119 provided in the duplex unit 112 and the paper alignment mechanism (position correction) will be described with reference to FIG.
In FIG. 3, a paper aligning jogger 117 is provided so as to be slidable in a direction parallel to the transport direction of the paper P and in a direction perpendicular to the guide rod 70. This is performed by the drive motor 66. Further, a home position sensor 61 for detecting the home position (reference position during operation) of the paper alignment jogger 117 is provided.
[0019]
FIGS. 4 to 6 are perspective views showing a detailed configuration of the paper alignment mechanism. A pair of paper alignment joggers 117 are fixed to the front slider 64 and the rear slider 65 by fastening members 71 such as screws. The drive belt 62 is a timing belt having a large number of teeth formed on an inner peripheral surface thereof, and a sheet aligning jogger 117 is drivingly connected to left and right running sides thereof via front and rear sliders 64 and 65, respectively. Therefore, when the drive belt 62 rotates clockwise in FIG. 3, the paper alignment joggers 117 are guided by the guide rods 70 and move toward each other. When the drive belt 62 rotates counterclockwise, the paper alignment joggers 117 Moved away. The rear slider 65 is formed with teeth that mesh with the drive belt 62, while the front slider 64 is fixed with a fixing member 63 having teeth that mesh with the drive belt 62 with screws 71.
[0020]
The paper alignment jogger 117 is set to be positioned with respect to the duplex unit 111 after assembly, and the positioning is performed using the positioning projection member 72 provided at the center of the switchback transport path 119 shown in FIG. That is, the front and rear sliders 64 and 65 of the sheet aligning jogger 117 are moved toward the ends (points A and B) of the positioning projection member 72 and abutted to position the sheet aligning jogger 117 with respect to the duplex unit 111. . In this case, the rear slider 65 is connected (fixed) to the drive belt 2 at a point C. The drive belt 62 is fixed to the front slider 64 by a fixing member 63 as shown in FIG. The fixing member 63 is provided with a long hole 63a, and the fixing member 63 is slid along the running side of the drive belt 62 to enable fine adjustment at the time of fixing.
[0021]
With this configuration, as shown in FIG. 7, since the drive belt 62 is provided with a constant pitch width, when the both paper aligning joggers 117 are completely fixed, the positions of the front and rear sliders 64 and 65 are fixed to the drive belt 62. This is due to the fact that they are dependent on each other and strict alignment cannot be performed.
[0022]
Next, the operation of the paper alignment jogger 117 will be described.
As shown in FIG. 8A, the duplex unit 111 is provided with a front plate 79 and a rear plate 80 as a housing. The span of the front and rear side plates 79 and 80 is determined by the guide plate 73. In the conventional apparatus, the above-described home position sensor 61 is provided on the front side plate 79, and the positioning projection member 72 for positioning the sheet aligning jogger 117 is provided integrally with the guide plate 73.
[0023]
Here, assuming that the conveyance operation of the sheet having the width D is started, the sheet aligning jogger 117 moves so as to open outward (side plate side), and the filler 117a provided on the left sheet aligning jogger 117 in FIG. It moves to the position indicated by the symbol H until 61 is detected. This position H is the home position of the paper alignment jogger 117 with respect to the duplex unit 111. Next, in order to match the width D of the conveyed sheet, the sheet is moved inward again by E. At this time, the interval D between the paper alignment joggers 117 is the target paper width. However, if the distance L between the home position sensor 61 and the positioning projection member 72 does not come out as intended due to component accuracy, the inclination of the front and rear plates, etc. in the setting of the paper alignment jogger 117, the paper alignment jogger width D is affected. .
[0024]
The target distance between the point A and the point H in the setting of the paper alignment jogger 117 is L. For example, when the actual distance is a distance L ′ smaller than L as shown in FIG. That is, when L> L ′, the target movement amount E from the home position H to the paper width is fixed, so that the paper alignment jogger width D> D ′, and the interval D between the paper alignment joggers 117 is The phenomenon that it becomes narrower than the target occurs. At this time, since the paper alignment jogger 117 moves the same amount symmetrically by the drive belt 62, the interval between the paper alignment joggers 117 is twice as large as the deviation amount δ from the target value of the positioning projection member 72. Occurs as
[0025]
Therefore, in the present invention, as shown in FIG. 9, the positioning protrusion member 72 is provided independently of the guide plate 73 as a housing so that the position can be adjusted. Specifically, a pair of long holes 72a extending parallel to the moving direction of the paper aligning jogger 117 are formed on the positioning projection member 72, and a pin 73a provided on the guide plate 73 is fitted into one long hole 72a, and the other is inserted. The screw 71 is attached to the long hole 72a.
[0026]
With this configuration, if the screw 71 is loosened, the positioning projection member 72 slides in the direction of movement of the sheet aligning jogger 117 with respect to the guide plate 73, thereby enabling position adjustment. Therefore, even if the distance L between the home position sensor 61 and the positioning projection member 72 is displaced due to component accuracy, the inclination of the front and rear side plates, etc., this can be corrected to the correct target distance L. Therefore, the width of the paper alignment jogger 117 can be maintained in an optimum state in accordance with the paper width, and the paper alignment jogger 117 can be prevented from becoming narrower or wider than the paper width.
[0027]
When a stepping motor is used as a drive source of the paper aligning jogger 117, the movement amount can be adjusted at step intervals. However, when the step is coarse with an inexpensive motor or when driving at high speed, Since the gear ratio increases, the amount of movement per position step increases. For this reason, there is a limit to the fine adjustment of the paper alignment jogger width (paper alignment jogger width deviation amount = movement amount per step × 2). Even if the adjustment is performed, the adjustment value may be cleared for some reason. In this regard, in the present invention, a mechanically reliable positional relationship can be ensured.
[0028]
10 and 11 are a perspective view and a sectional explanatory view showing another embodiment of the present invention.
10 and 11, the home position sensor 61 is provided not on the front side plate 79 but on a support member 74, and the support member 74 and the positioning projection member 72 are integrally formed and attached to the guide plate 73.
[0029]
With this configuration, since the distance L which affects the accuracy of the paper alignment jogger width D shown in FIG. 8 is determined by one component, the variation in the distance L with high accuracy for each product is minimized. Can be
[0030]
By the way, in the case of such a configuration, the width of the paper alignment jogger 117 is made to match the target paper width. However, when the paper is conveyed on the basis of the center as in this embodiment, the center of the paper aligned by the paper alignment jogger 117 And the center set by the apparatus may be displaced. That is, the sheets aligned by the sheet aligning jogger 117 may be shifted right or left. As described above, when the paper is shifted to the aligned paper, a difference occurs in the size of the margin of the double-sided image, and a position shift occurs with respect to the punch hole unit 204 of the post-processing system.
[0031]
Therefore, a pair of long holes 74a extending parallel to the moving direction of the paper aligning jogger 117 are formed in the support member 74, and a pin 73a provided on the guide plate 73 is fitted into one long hole 74a, and the other long hole 74a is fitted. The screw 71 is attached to the hole 74a. With such a configuration, the support member 74 can slide in the duplex unit 111, and the position of the entire paper alignment jogger can be finely adjusted. Thereby, the positioning with the punch hole unit of the post-processing system becomes possible, and the accuracy of the punch hole position with respect to the sheet is improved.
[0032]
The same adjustment can be performed by shifting the position of the duplex unit 111 itself in the machine body, but the adjustment amount is restricted by the stroke amount of the connection connector and the like. It is feared that it may cause poor contact. In the method of the present invention, since the adjustment is performed within the unit, the configuration is simpler, and a more reliable positional relationship can be secured.
[0033]
【The invention's effect】
According to the configuration of the first aspect, the positioning protrusion member for the unit of the paper alignment jogger that regulates the side edge of the paper is provided at the center of the inside of the unit, and the positioning protrusion member can be finely adjusted to an arbitrary position. The accuracy of the interval between the joggers for paper alignment during the paper alignment operation can be improved, and the orientation of the paper when the paper is inverted can be maintained optimally. Can be improved in accuracy.
[0034]
According to the configuration of the second aspect, the positioning protrusion member and the support member of the reference sensor that determines the reference position during the operation of the paper alignment jogger are integrally configured, so that the variation in the interval between the paper alignment joggers can be suppressed, Product variations are also minimized.
[0035]
According to the configuration of the third aspect, since the position of the support member can be adjusted, the position of the entire sheet aligning jogger can be finely adjusted in the duplex unit. Accordingly, it is possible to perform alignment with a punch hole unit which is a post-processing system, and it is possible to achieve both suppression of variation in punch holes with respect to paper and improvement in positional accuracy with respect to paper.
[0036]
According to the configuration of the fourth aspect, it is possible to provide an image processing apparatus that can enjoy the above-described effects.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram illustrating an embodiment of an image processing apparatus according to the present invention.
FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram showing a configuration of a duplex unit in the image processing apparatus of FIG. 1;
FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a reversing unit provided in the duplex unit.
FIG. 4 is an exploded perspective view of a sheet aligning jogger provided in the reversing unit.
FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing a driving mechanism of the paper aligning jogger during assembly.
FIG. 6 is a perspective view showing a driving mechanism of the assembled paper alignment jogger.
FIG. 7 is an explanatory cross-sectional view showing a drive mechanism of the paper alignment jogger in an enlarged manner.
FIGS. 8A and 8B are cross-sectional explanatory views showing a problem when positioning the interval of the paper alignment jogger.
FIG. 9 is a perspective view illustrating an embodiment of a sheet conveying device according to the present invention.
FIG. 10 is a perspective view showing another embodiment of the sheet conveying device of the present invention.
FIG. 11 is an explanatory diagram of the paper transport device of FIG. 10;
[Explanation of symbols]
1 Paper Feeding Unit 20 Imaging Unit 61 Home Position Sensor 62 Drive Belt 64, 65 Slider 72 Positioning Protrusion Member 111 Duplex Unit 112 Reversing Unit 117 Paper Alignment Jogger 200 Finisher

Claims (4)

A movable guide member for correcting the position of the sheet by regulating a side edge of the sheet, a moving unit for moving the guide member corresponding to the sheet size, and a reference position during operation of the guide member. In a paper transport device including a reference sensor to be detected and a positioning protrusion member provided on an apparatus body serving as a reference when the guide member is pre-positioned,
The sheet conveying device, wherein the positioning protrusion member is provided on the apparatus main body so as to be adjustable in a direction in which the guide member moves. A movable guide member for correcting the position of the sheet by regulating a side edge of the sheet, a moving unit for moving the guide member corresponding to the sheet size, and a reference position during operation of the guide member. In a paper transport device including a reference sensor to be detected and a positioning protrusion member provided on an apparatus body serving as a reference when the guide member is pre-positioned,
A sheet transport device, wherein the positioning projection member and a support member that supports the reference sensor are integrally formed. 3. The sheet conveyance device according to claim 2, wherein the positioning protrusion member integrated with the support member is provided on the apparatus main body so as to be adjustable in a direction in which the guide member moves. apparatus. An image processing apparatus comprising the sheet conveying device according to claim 1.

Images