JP2005132635A - Sheet post-processing device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a sheet post-processing device, binding two or more portions of the sheet edge with one stapler, simple in constitution, and improving the binding accuracy. <P>SOLUTION: This sheet post-processing device includes: a sheet placing part for placing two or more sheets 01 where an image is formed with a gradient; a reference fence 03 for aligning two or more sheets taking the leading edge of the sheet 01 as a reference in the sheet placing part; a staple means 02 for binding the leading edges of the two or more aligned sheets 01; and a staple means moving means 06 for moving the staple means 02 toward the edges of the sheets 01. In the device, in aligning the two or more sheets 01 in the sheet placing part, the reference fence 03 is disposed so that the two or more sheets 01 are aligned with the binding position of the staple means 02. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2005,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a sheet post-processing apparatus used in an image forming apparatus such as an electrophotographic copying machine or a printer, and more particularly to a sheet post-processing apparatus that performs a stapling process for binding a plurality of sheets on which an image is formed. is there.

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 4-148993 JP-A-3-221491

Conventionally, as a sheet post-processing apparatus used in an image forming apparatus such as an electrophotographic copying machine or a printer, those disclosed in, for example, Japanese Patent Laid-Open Nos. 4-148993 and 3-221491 are disclosed. It has already been proposed. The sheet post-processing devices disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open Nos. 4-148993 and 3-221491 can basically move the stapler to bind a plurality of portions of the sheet by one stapler. It is configured.
As shown in FIGS. 11 and 12, the post-processing apparatus in the image forming apparatus according to Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. Hei 4-148993 is aligned by bringing the edges of the sheet 100 into contact with a plurality of reference fences fixedly arranged. After that, the stapler 102 is moved in a direction perpendicular to the edge of the sheet 100 and in a direction parallel to the edge of the sheet 100 to bind a plurality of portions of the sheet 100. Then, the sheet 100 bound by the stapler 102 is discharged in the direction opposite to the stapler 102 as shown in FIGS. 13 and 14.

  Further, as shown in FIGS. 15 and 16, the stapler positioning device according to the above-mentioned Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. Hei 3-221491 has a direction in which the stapler 102 is orthogonal to the edge of the sheet 100 after aligning the edge of the sheet 100 and It is configured to move in a direction parallel to the edge of the sheet 100 and to bind a plurality of portions of the sheet 100. Then, as shown in FIG. 17, the sheet 100 bound by the stapler 102 is retracted in a direction perpendicular to the edge of the sheet 100 and is discharged below the stapler 102.

  However, the conventional technique has the following problems. That is, in the post-processing apparatus in the image forming apparatus according to Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 4-148993, as shown in FIGS. 11 and 12, a plurality of reference fences 101 for aligning the edges of the sheet 100 are fixedly arranged. Therefore, the reference fence 101 becomes an obstacle in binding the edges of the sheets 100 aligned by the plurality of reference fences 101. Therefore, it is necessary for the stapler 102 to move in a direction orthogonal to the edge of the sheet 100 and in a direction parallel to the edge of the sheet 100 while avoiding the reference fence 101, and the movement operation of the stapler 102 becomes complicated and is bound. There are problems that the accuracy is lowered and the configuration of the moving mechanism is complicated and the cost is increased. Further, in the case of the post-processing apparatus in the image forming apparatus, there is a problem that when the stapler 102 is moved, the stapler 102 may interfere with the bundle of sheets 100 and cause misregistration.

  Further, in the case of the stapler positioning device according to the above-mentioned Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 3-221491, as shown in FIGS. 15 and 16, the stapler 102 is parallel to the direction orthogonal to the edge of the sheet 100 and parallel to the edge of the sheet 100. Therefore, there is a problem that the configuration of the apparatus is complicated and the binding accuracy is lowered.

  As described above, the sheet post-processing apparatus according to the above-mentioned proposal is stapling compared to the apparatus that performs stapling processing on the side of the sheet 100 aligned with the reference fence 101 or the like, compared with the apparatus that performs stapling processing on the side without the reference fence. Although the accuracy of the ring is improved, in such a case, it is necessary to move the stapler 102 in a direction orthogonal to the edge of the sheet 100 and in a direction parallel to the edge of the sheet 100, which complicates the configuration of the apparatus and binds. The problem of reduced accuracy inevitably occurs.

  Accordingly, the present invention has been made to solve the above-described problems of the prior art, and an object of the present invention is to bind a plurality of locations on the sheet edge with a single stapler. Is to provide a sheet post-processing apparatus capable of improving the binding accuracy.

That is, the sheet post-processing apparatus described in claim 1 of the present invention includes, as shown in FIG. 1, a sheet placement section for placing a plurality of sheets 01 on which images are formed, and the sheet placement section. A reference fence 03 for aligning a plurality of sheets with the leading edge of the sheet 01 as a reference at the placement portion, a stapling means 02 for binding the leading edges of the aligned sheets 01, and the stapling means 02 to the sheet 01 A sheet post-processing apparatus having the staple means moving means 06 moved along the leading edge,
When aligning a plurality of sheets 01 on the sheet placement section, the reference fence 03 is arranged so as to align the plurality of sheets 01 at the binding position of the stapling means 02. It is a post-processing device.

  Further, in the sheet post-processing apparatus according to claim 2 of the present invention, the stapling means has a stapling portion that supports a fixed portion and a movable portion for stapling, and the stapling portion is the staple. 2. The sheet post-processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the sheet post-processing apparatus is configured to linearly move from one end side of the sheet leading edge to the other end side along the sheet leading edge by means moving means.

  Furthermore, in the sheet post-processing apparatus according to claim 3 of the present invention, the stapling fixed portion and the movable portion are arranged so that the stapling portion moves while the staple portion is moved by the staple means moving means. 2. The sheet post-processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a positional relationship in which the corner portion of the sheet is bound obliquely with respect to the leading end portion and a positional relationship in which a position other than the corner portion of the sheet is bound are taken. It is.

In the present invention, when aligning a plurality of sheets on the sheet placing portion, the reference fence is arranged so as to align the plurality of sheets at the binding position of the stapling means, and the sheet placing is performed by the reference fence. After aligning a plurality of sheets on the part, the sheets are bound by the stapling means.
Therefore, the sheet post-processing apparatus can provide a sheet post-processing apparatus that has a simple configuration and can improve binding accuracy.

  The present invention has the above-described configuration and operation. A single stapler can bind a plurality of portions of the sheet edge, the configuration of the apparatus is simple, and the binding accuracy can be improved. A processing device can be provided.

  Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 2 shows an image forming apparatus to which a sheet post-processing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention can be applied.
In the figure, reference numeral 1 denotes an image input unit that reads an image of a document (not shown) using an ADF (Auto Document Feeder) or receives a series of image information from a host computer or the like. Image information is output to the laser scanning unit 2. The laser scanning unit 2 irradiates laser light on the photosensitive drum 3 uniformly charged in advance by the primary charger 4 based on image information at two exposure positions according to the image forming mode. An electrostatic latent image is formed. The electrostatic latent image formed on the photosensitive drum 3 is developed with different color toners by one or both of the developing unit 5 and the developing unit 6 as necessary. Further, the toner image developed on the photosensitive drum 3 is fed from the sheet storage unit 9 of the sheet feeding unit 10 and is transferred onto the recording sheet S fed by the registration roll 11 at a predetermined timing. Is transcribed by. The recording paper S to which the toner image has been transferred is conveyed to the fixing device 13 by the conveying belt 12, and the toner image is fixed on the recording paper S by heat and pressure by the fixing device 13. The recording sheet S on which the toner image has been fixed passes through the discharge path 16 and is discharged as it is by the discharge roll 15 according to the image forming mode, or is directly discharged from the apparatus by the sheet reversing mechanism 14. Then, the paper is discharged from the discharge roll 15 to the outside of the apparatus in a state where the transport direction and the front and back sides are reversed as necessary, or to the image forming portion of the photosensitive drum 3 again via the duplex / multiple recording passage 26. The two-sided or multiple recording is performed.

  Incidentally, the toner remaining on the surface of the photosensitive drum 3 after the image forming process is removed by the cleaning device 8 is prepared for the next image forming process.

  FIG. 3 shows a sheet reversing mechanism of the image forming apparatus.

  In FIG. 3, reference numeral 14 denotes a sheet reversing mechanism provided in the discharge portion of the image forming apparatus. Is formed in a linear shape obliquely upward, and below the discharge passage 16 is an inlet passage 17 extending obliquely downward from the upstream side of the discharge passage 16 in the conveyance direction of the recording paper S, and The delivery passage 18 extending obliquely downward from the downstream side of the discharge passage 16 in the conveyance direction of the recording paper S is disposed so as to form a substantially triangular shape. A switching member 27 for switching the recording paper S discharged from the fixing device 13 between the discharge passage 16 side and the feed passage 17 side is disposed at the inlet portions of the discharge passage 16 and the feed passage 17 so as to be tiltable. ing.

  Further, a tri-roll 19 constituting a part of the paper reversing device 14 is disposed between the feeding passage 17 and the sending passage 18 of the paper reversing device 14. The tri-roll 19 has a nip portion between the first driven roll 19A and the driving roll 19B located in the feeding passage 17, and a nip portion between the driving roll 19B and the driven roll 19C located in the feeding passage 18. The driven roll 19A, the drive roll 19B, and the driven roll 19C are arranged in a state where they are in pressure contact with each other.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 3, the reversing passage 25 is connected to the lower end of the joining portion located at the lower ends of the feeding passage 17 and the sending passage 18 in an inclined state. Are formed so that a drawing portion 25A extending downward in the vertical direction and a double-sided / multiple recording passage 26 are branched. A switching member 20 for switching the conveyance direction of the recording paper S is disposed at a branch portion between the drawing portion 25A and the duplex / multiple recording path 26. A Mylar sheet or the like is disposed at the lower end of the switching member 20. A shield plate 31 made of a synthetic resin film is projected downward. The switching member 20 is disposed so that the shield plate 31 is in the position shown in the drawing in a normal state. A forward / reverse roll 21 and a pinch roll 22 for transporting the recording paper S are disposed at the upper end of the drawing section 25A so as to be in pressure contact with each other. The pinch roll 22 can be released from the pressure contact state with the forward / reverse rotation roll 21 by a solenoid 24 via a link 23.

  In FIG. 3, reference numeral 23 </ b> A denotes a fulcrum of the link 23, 24 </ b> A denotes an operating rod of the solenoid 24, and 29 denotes a detection unit of the recording paper detection sensor 28.

  In the paper reversing mechanism 14 configured as described above, the paper reversing operation is performed as follows.

  In the single-sided copy normal discharge mode in the image forming apparatus, the drive motor for driving the drive roll 19B of the tri-roll 19 of the sheet reversing mechanism 14 is stopped, and is arranged at the entrance of the discharge passage 16 as shown in FIG. The recording sheet S fixed by the fixing device 13 in a state where the provided switching member 27 is lowered is passed over the switching member 27 via the discharge passage 16 and is directly discharged from the discharge roll 15 to the outside of the apparatus. Discharged.

  In the single-sided copy reversal discharge mode in the image forming apparatus, the drive motor that drives the drive roll 19B of the triroll 19 of the paper reversing mechanism 14 is driven, and the driven roll 19A, the drive roll 19B, and the driven roll 19C of the triroll 19 are driven. Driven by rotation. As shown in FIG. 3, the switching member 27 disposed in the discharge passage 16 is pulled upward by a solenoid (not shown) and switched from the discharge passage 16 side to the inflow passage 17 side. Then, the recording sheet S fixed by the fixing device 13 is transported to the feeding path 17 with the transport direction being switched by the switching member 27, and the driven roll 19 </ b> A and the driving roll 19 </ b> B located in the feeding path 17. Is guided to the forward / reverse roll 22 in the forward rotation state via the reverse passage 25 by the driving force of the drive roll 19B. As a result, the recording paper S is fed by the forward / reverse roll 22 in the forward rotation state. As a result, the recording sheet S is once guided into the reversing passage 25, but the upper end portion of the recording sheet S is located above the lower end portion of the shield plate 31 of the switching member 20.

  The recording paper S once guided into the reverse passage 25 by the forward / reverse roll 22 is positioned above the lower end of the shield plate 31 of the switching member 20, so that the forward / reverse roll 22 is rotated in reverse. Then, the sheet is conveyed again to the reversing passage 25, guided to the nip portion constituted by the driving roll 19B and the driven roll 19C disposed in the delivery passage 18 through the reversing passage 25, and discharged by the conveying force of the driving roll 19B. It is conveyed to the roll 15.

  Further, in the double-sided copying mode in the image forming apparatus, the driving motor for driving the driving roll 19B of the tri-roll 19 of the paper reversing mechanism 14 is driven, and the driven roll 19A and the driving roll 19B of the tri-roll 19 are driven. Further, as shown in FIG. 3, the switching member 27 disposed in the discharge passage 16 is pulled upward by a solenoid (not shown) and switched from the discharge passage 16 side to the inflow passage 17 side. The operation up to the forward / reverse roll 22 in the forward rotation state is the same as that in the single-sided copy reverse discharge mode. When the reversal timing of the recording sheet S is delayed from the single-sided copy reversal discharge mode, the upper end portion of the recording sheet S is the lower end portion of the switching member 20 disposed at the branch portion between the reversing passage 25 and the duplex / multiple recording passage 26. The switching member 20 is switched to the double-sided / multiple recording path 26 side by its own weight. Therefore, the recording sheet S conveyed again by the reversible forward / reverse roll 22 is conveyed via the switching member 20 to the duplex / multiple recording path 26 with the surface on which the toner image is formed facing up. . This recording sheet S is conveyed again to the image forming section with the surface on which the toner image is formed facing down through the double-side / multi-recording passage 26 formed so as to be bent and folded. A toner image is formed on the back surface of the toner. The subsequent operation is the same as in the single-sided copy normal discharge mode, and the recording paper S on which the toner images are formed on both sides passes through the fixing device 13 and then passes through the discharge path 16 to the outside of the apparatus by the discharge roll 15. Discharged.

  If necessary, in the single-side multiplex recording mode, the recording sheet S on which the toner image is formed on one side is not conveyed to the drawing portion 25A of the reversing passage 25 by switching the switching member 20. Via the reversing path 25 and the duplex / multiple recording path 26, the toner image on the surface of the recording sheet S is conveyed again to the image forming unit so that the surface on which the toner image is formed is positioned on the photosensitive drum 3 side. The image is multiplex-transferred and discharged in the same manner as in the single-sided copy normal discharge mode.

  FIG. 4 shows a sheet post-processing apparatus used in combination with the image forming apparatus.

  In the figure, reference numeral 40 denotes a main body of the sheet post-processing apparatus, and the sheet post-processing apparatus main body 40 is disposed so as to face the paper discharge unit of the image forming apparatus. At the upper end of the side surface of the sheet post-processing apparatus main body 40, a sheet introduction port 42 into which a sheet 41 such as a recording sheet S discharged from the sheet discharge unit of the image forming apparatus is introduced is opened. Inside the opening 42, a second conveyance roll 46 that sequentially conveys the sheet 41 conveyed via the guide members 43 and 44 that guide the sheet 41 onto the sheet placement member 45 is disposed. As shown in FIG. 5, the sheet placement member 45 is attached to the inside of the sheet post-processing apparatus main body 40 in an inclined state, and one end edge of the sheet 41 is attached to the front end portion of the sheet placement member 45. A reference fence 47 for aligning the two is rotatably attached. And the sheet | seat 41 conveyed by the said 2nd conveyance roll 46 is mounted on the sheet | seat mounting member 45 attached in the inclined state, and the Y direction is shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 4, the X direction moves according to the inclination of the sheet placing member 45 by its own weight and the paddle 96, and stops in a state where the edge of the sheet 41 is in contact with the reference fence 47. As a result, the sheets 41 sequentially conveyed by the second conveyance roll 46 are sequentially stacked on the sheet placement member 45 with one end edge thereof aligned with the reference fence 47. The tip 47a of the reference fence 47 is folded to the near side in order to reliably prevent the sheet 41 laminated on the sheet placement member 45 from dropping off.

  By the way, the reference fence 47 can be retracted by rotating downward. As shown in FIG. 5, the reference fence 47 is attached to a rotating shaft 48, and the rotating shaft 48 is freely rotatable via a bearing 50 on a support plate 49 erected on the sheet placement member 45. Is pivotally supported. An L-shaped plate 52 having a shaft portion 51 is screwed to one end of the rotating shaft 48 to rotate the reference fence 47. Further, as shown in FIG. 6, the shaft portion 51 of the L-shaped plate 52 is loosely inserted into a U-shaped groove portion 54 provided in the rotating member 53, and this rotating member 53 is a drive motor. A gear portion 57 that meshes with a gear 56 that is rotationally driven by 55 is provided. And the said reference fence 47 rotates the rotation member 53 by rotationally driving the drive motor 55, and via the shaft part 51 loosely inserted in the U-shaped groove part 54 of this rotation member 53, For example, it can be rotated downward over an angle of, for example, 100 degrees.

  The sheet placement member 45 is provided with an injection roll 58 for discharging a set of a plurality of sheets 41 placed on the sheet placement member 45 and subjected to the stapling process by a driving means (not shown). Two are arranged along the width direction so as to be rotatable.

  Further, above the injection roll 58, the sheet 41 laminated with the injection roll 58 is held in a sandwiched state, and after the stapling process is completed, the sheet 41 is placed outside the sheet post-processing apparatus main body 40. A pinch roll 60 is disposed on a discharge tray 59 provided. As shown in FIG. 4, the pinch roll 60 is rotatably attached to a distal end portion of an attachment plate 61 made of a leaf spring, and the attachment plate 61 is attached so as to be rotatable around a rotation shaft 62. It has been. As shown in FIG. 7, an arm member 63 for rotating the mounting plate 61 is attached to one end of the rotating shaft 62, and the arm member 63 is rotationally driven by a drive motor 64. And the eccentric roller 66 attached to the position eccentric with respect to the rotating shaft 65 of the said drive motor 64 contact | abuts. Further, a slit plate 68 provided with a slit 67 over a predetermined angle is attached to the rotation shaft 65 of the drive motor 64, and the slit 67 of the slit plate 68 is arranged at a position opposed to 180 degrees. The two sensors 69 and 70 are detected. When the drive motor 64 is rotationally driven, the mounting plate 61 causes the eccentric roller 66 that is rotationally driven by the drive motor 64 to push down the arm member 63 and rotate the rotary shaft 62 to which the arm member 63 is attached. Thus, the pinch roll 60 sandwiches the sheet 41 together with the inject roll 58. At this time, the moving amount and moving timing of the pinch roll 60 are controlled by the slit plate 68 and the sensors 69 and 70.

  A stapler 71 is mounted inside the sheet post-processing apparatus main body 40. The stapler 71 is attached to the plurality of sheets 41 that are placed on the sheet placing member 45 and whose edges are aligned with the reference fence 47. The part 72 is arranged to be movable in parallel along the edge of the sheet 41 by the moving mechanism 73.

  As shown in FIG. 8, the moving mechanism 73 of the stapler portion 72 includes a guide rail 74 that guides the stapler portion 72 in parallel along the edge of the seat 41. The guide rail 74 is an A4 size. The sheet 41 includes a straight line portion 74a corresponding to the length in the longitudinal direction, and inclined portions 74b and 74c that are connected to the both ends of the straight line portion so as to be inclined at 45 degrees. The guide rail 74 travels in a state in which two guide rollers 75 and 76 provided on the upper end portion of the stapler portion 72 along the moving direction are fitted. For this reason, the trajectory of movement of the stapler 72 is defined by the shape of the guide rail 74. 4 and 8, the guide rail 74 is screwed in a state of being fitted in a recess 78 provided in the guide plate 77, and the guide plate 77 is shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 8, guide rollers 79, 79 are attached to the upper end portion of the stapler portion 72 in a direction orthogonal to the moving direction of the stapler portion 72, two on one side and one on the opposite side. 80 is going to run. As a result, the position of the stapler portion 72 in the direction orthogonal to the moving direction is regulated by the two guide rollers 75 and 76 that travel in the guide rail 74, and the position in the vertical direction travels on the guide plate 77. It is configured to move in a state regulated by the three guide rollers 79, 79, 80, and the plane on which the stapler unit 72 moves is the same as the sheet 41 placed on the sheet placing member 45. The plane is formed.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 4, the guide plate 77 to which the guide rail 74 is attached is a bushing as shown in FIG. 9 by an attachment substrate 81 fixedly arranged in an inclined state on the sheet post-processing apparatus main body 40. Screws 83 are fixed at a plurality of locations so as to maintain a constant interval via 82. Further, five driven pulleys 85 for rotatably supporting a drive belt 84 for moving the stapler section 72 are attached to the mounting board 81 so as to be rotatable. As shown in FIG. 8, the drive belt 84 is wound around five driven pulleys 85, and a part 84 a thereof is connected and fixed to the stapler portion 72. Of the five driven pulleys 85, the central driven pulley 85a is supported so as to be movable in a direction perpendicular to the moving direction of the stapler 72, and a constant tension is always applied to the drive belt 84 by a spring (not shown). Energized to grant.

  Further, among the five driven pulleys 85, the driven pulley 85b at one end is provided with a driving force transmission belt 88 between the driven pulley 87 and a driving pulley 87 that is rotationally driven by a driving motor 86, as shown in FIG. Is hung around. The drive belt 84 can be reciprocated by an arbitrary amount in an arbitrary direction by rotationally driving the drive motor 86, and moves the stapler section 72 connected to the drive belt 64. is there. The driven pulley 85 and the drive belt 84 are disposed between the guide plate 77 and the mounting substrate 81.

  As shown in FIGS. 4 and 8, the stapler unit 72 driven by the drive belt 84 includes a reference member provided on the sheet post-processing apparatus main body 40 side with a position detection member 89 attached to the stapler unit 72. The reference position is detected by detection by the position sensor 90, and the movement position is controlled by controlling the amount of rotation of the drive motor 86 that drives the drive belt 84 thereafter.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 4, the stapler 71 rotates around the fulcrum so as to abut on the fixed portion 91 fixed to the stapler portion 72 and the fixed portion 91. A movable part that protrudes the staples of the stapler housed inside, penetrates the plurality of stacked sheets 41, and folds the tip ends of the needles so as to face each other by the die of the fixed part 91; It is composed of The movable portion 92 of the stapler 71 is rotatable through a plurality of gears 94 that are rotationally driven by a drive motor 93 so as to contact the fixed portion 91 with a fulcrum as a center. Further, the stapler 71 moves so that the fixed portion 91 and the movable portion 92 face each other via the edge portion of the seat 41 after the reference fence 47 is retracted. At that time, as shown in FIG. 4, the stapler 71 is attached to the guide rail 74 and the guide plate 77 so that the fixing portion 91 of the stapler 71 and the surface of the seat 41 are parallel to each other.

  In the above configuration, in the sheet post-processing apparatus according to this embodiment, it is possible to bind a plurality of portions of the sheet edge with a single stapler as follows, and the configuration of the apparatus is simple. The binding accuracy can be improved.

  That is, in the image forming apparatus to which the sheet post-processing apparatus is combined, as shown in FIG. 2, a document image (not shown) is read by the image input unit 1 using an ADF (Auto Document Feeder) or a series of images from a host computer or the like. When information is input, a toner image is formed on the photosensitive drum 3 based on the image information output from the image input unit 1. The toner image formed on the photosensitive drum 3 is transferred by the transfer roll 7 onto the recording paper S that is fed from the paper storage unit 9 of the paper feed unit 10 and conveyed at a predetermined timing by the registration roll 11. The The recording paper S on which the toner image has been transferred is fixed by the fixing device 13 with heat and pressure. Then, the sheet 41 made of the recording paper S or the like to which the toner image is transferred is discharged from the image forming apparatus with the paper reversing mechanism 14 shown in FIG. The sheet is sent to a sheet post-processing apparatus disposed so as to be continuous with the sheet discharge unit of the forming apparatus.

  In the sheet post-processing apparatus, as shown in FIG. 4, the sheet 41 discharged from the image forming apparatus is introduced from the introduction port 42 of the sheet post-processing apparatus main body 40 by the transport roll 43. The sheet 41 introduced into the sheet post-processing apparatus main body 40 is conveyed onto the sheet placement member 45 by the second conveyance roll 46 via the sheet conveyance path 44 and is inclined by its own weight. The sheet is placed on the sheet placing member 45 in a state where the edge is in contact with the reference fence 47. Thereafter, the sheets 41 continuously introduced into the sheet post-processing apparatus main body 40 are sequentially stacked and placed on the sheet placing member 45 in a state where the edge of the sheet 41 is in contact with the reference fence 47. The

  Next, as shown in FIGS. 4 and 7, by rotating the drive motor 64, the attachment plate 61 to which the pinch roll 60 is attached is rotated, and a plurality of sheets in which the pinch rolls 60 are laminated. A predetermined number of sheets 41 placed in a state of being stacked on the sheet placement member 45 are sandwiched between the pinch roll 60 and the injection roll 58 by being pressed against the injection roll 58 via 41.

  Thereafter, as shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, by rotating the drive motor 55, the reference fence 47 is rotated downward, and the reference fence 47 is retracted from the moving path of the stapler 71. In this state, as shown in FIGS. 4, 8, and 10, the drive motor 86 that moves the stapler 72 is driven to move the drive belt 84, thereby moving the stapler 72 to a predetermined position. . At that time, when the corner portion of the sheet 41 is bound obliquely, the stapler portion 72 is stopped at the position shown in FIG. 8 and the stapler 71 performs a stapling process.

  Further, in order to apply the stapling process to another position of the sheet 41, the drive motor 86 is rotationally driven to move the stapler portion 72 as shown in FIG. A ring process is implemented.

  As described above, in the sheet post-processing apparatus according to the above-described embodiment, the predetermined number of sheets 41 are stacked by the pinch roll 60 and the injection roll 58 while the sheets 41 are aligned on the sheet placement member 45. After being clamped, the reference fes 47 is rotated and retracted, and the stapler unit 72 is moved to a predetermined position by the moving mechanism 73 to perform the stapling process. There is no movement such as moving the stapler while avoiding the fence or moving the stapler in the direction perpendicular to the moving direction of the stapler after the reference fence is retracted, so that the apparatus can be simplified and the binding accuracy can be improved. Further, since a bundle of a predetermined number of sheets 4 is aligned within the opening of the stapler 71, no misregistration occurs when the stapler is moved in the vertical direction as in the conventional machine.

FIGS. 1A, 1B and 1C are schematic views respectively showing the principle of the sheet post-processing apparatus according to the present invention. FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing an embodiment of an image forming apparatus to which the sheet post-processing apparatus according to the present invention can be applied. FIG. 3 is a configuration diagram illustrating a sheet reversing mechanism of the image forming apparatus. FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing an embodiment of the sheet post-processing apparatus according to the present invention. FIG. 5 is a rear view showing the sheet placing member and the reference fence. FIG. 6 is a configuration diagram illustrating a drive unit of the reference fence. FIG. 7 is a configuration diagram illustrating a drive unit of the pinch roll. FIG. 8 is a plan view showing a stapler moving mechanism. FIGS. 9A and 9B are cross-sectional views of main parts of FIG. FIG. 10 is a side view showing a drive unit of the drive belt. FIG. 11 is a block diagram showing a conventional sheet post-processing apparatus. FIG. 12 is an explanatory view showing the operation of a conventional sheet post-processing apparatus. FIG. 13 is an explanatory view showing the operation of a conventional sheet post-processing apparatus. FIG. 14 is an explanatory view showing the operation of a conventional sheet post-processing apparatus. FIG. 15 is a block diagram showing another conventional sheet post-processing apparatus. FIG. 16 is an explanatory view showing the operation of a conventional sheet post-processing apparatus. FIG. 17 is an explanatory view showing the operation of a conventional sheet post-processing apparatus.

Explanation of symbols

01 sheet, 02 stapling means, 03 reference fence, 04 sheet holding means, 05 retracting means, 06 moving means.

Claims (3)

A sheet placement portion for placing a plurality of sheets on which an image is formed, a reference fence for aligning the plurality of sheets with reference to the leading edge of the sheet in the sheet placement portion, and a plurality of aligned pieces A sheet post-processing apparatus comprising: a stapling unit that binds a leading edge of a sheet; and the stapling unit moving unit that moves the stapling unit along the leading edge of the sheet,
The sheet post-processing apparatus, wherein when aligning a plurality of sheets on the sheet placing portion, the reference fence is disposed so as to align the plurality of sheets at a binding position of the stapling means. The stapling means has a stapling portion that supports a fixed portion and a movable portion for stapling,
2. The sheet according to claim 1, wherein the staple unit moves linearly from one end side of the sheet leading edge to the other end side through the center along the sheet leading edge by the staple moving means. Post-processing device. While the stapling portion is moved by the stapling means moving means, the fixed portion and the movable portion for stapling are in a positional relationship in which the corner portion of the sheet is bound obliquely with respect to the leading end portion of the sheet, and the sheet The sheet post-processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the sheet post-processing apparatus has a positional relationship of binding other positions than the corners of the sheet.

Images