JP2006124117A - Image forming apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an image forming apparatus with a paper ejecting part having electric fences which can be manually moved by an operator. <P>SOLUTION: The image forming apparatus 1 comprises an ejected paper tray 8 loading paper sheets P on which images are formed; and the electric fences 10, 11 disposed on the ejected paper tray 8 and moved by moving means 14, 23. In a case where no moving means 14, 23 are operated, the electric fences 10, 11 can be manually moved. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus such as a printing apparatus, a copying apparatus, and a printer, and more particularly to an image forming apparatus including a paper discharge unit having an electrically adjustable electric fence.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, image forming apparatuses such as a printing apparatus and a copying apparatus that pass a sheet through a sheet conveyance path from a sheet feeding unit to a sheet discharging unit and form an image on the sheet in the sheet passing process are known. This image forming apparatus is generally capable of forming images on a wide variety of sizes of paper, and usually has a pair of side fences configured to be able to adjust the distance between them in a paper feed unit to which the paper is supplied. In addition, by adjusting the interval between the side fences according to the paper size, the occurrence of skew to the paper at the time of separation feeding can be prevented. In this image forming apparatus, a paper discharge unit that stores image-formed paper is also known to have a pair of side fences similar to the paper supply unit and an end fence that collides with the front end of the paper. The post-processing is facilitated by improving the alignment of the printed sheets.

  In general, the position of each fence provided in each of the paper feeding unit and the paper discharging unit is adjusted by an operator's manual work, and each fence is adjusted in accordance with a scale provided in the paper feeding unit or the paper discharging unit. Its position is adjusted. For this reason, the position adjustment work is cumbersome and the paper feed unit and the paper discharge unit are separated, so only the fence adjustment of the paper feed unit is performed when changing the paper, and the fence adjustment of the paper discharge unit is forgotten. Therefore, there is a problem that paper alignment is deteriorated. Thus, techniques for automatically adjusting the position of each fence provided in the paper discharge unit are disclosed in, for example, “Patent Document 1” and “Patent Document 2”.

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 10-1254 JP 2001-206617 A

  In each of the above-described technologies, the pair of side fences and end fences provided in the paper discharge unit are moved by the moving means, and after moving, by applying a weak current (phase current) to the moving means, Alternatively, by using a clutch or the like, a configuration is adopted in which the fence does not move even when the discharged paper collides with each fence. With this configuration, it is possible to prevent the paper discharge alignment from deteriorating due to the movement of each fence.

  However, in the above configuration, each fence cannot be moved manually by the operator, and when using an irregular size paper as the paper, it is necessary to move the fence while adjusting the fence on the operation panel. There is a problem that the operation is complicated. Further, when the paper discharge tray is stored in the apparatus main body after the image forming operation is completed, it is necessary to move each fence to the storage position, and this operation is similarly complicated.

  SUMMARY An advantage of some aspects of the invention is that it provides an image forming apparatus including a paper discharge unit having an electric fence that can be manually moved by an operator.

  The invention according to claim 1 is an image forming apparatus including a paper discharge tray on which sheets on which image formation has been performed is stacked, and an electric fence provided on the paper discharge tray and moved by a moving unit. It is characterized in that it can be manually moved when the moving means is not in operation.

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the image forming apparatus according to the first aspect of the present invention, the electric fence can be manually moved in a case other than when the moving means is operated, and the manual movement is performed. It is characterized in that it can be selectively switched to the second mode that makes it impossible.

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided an image forming apparatus comprising: a paper discharge tray for stacking sheets on which image formation has been performed; and an electric fence provided on the paper discharge tray and moved by a moving unit. Is characterized in that it can be moved manually in a case other than during the image forming operation.

  According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the image forming apparatus according to the third aspect of the present invention, in addition to the first aspect that allows the electric fence to be manually moved in a case other than during the image forming operation, the manual movement is not allowed. It is configured to be selectively switchable to the second mode to be enabled.

  According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the image forming apparatus according to any one of the first to fourth aspects, the moving unit further includes a stepping motor, and the manual movement of the electric fence is the stepping motor. It is achieved by stopping the supply of the phase current to.

  According to the present invention, each electric fence can be easily moved manually by turning off the phase current that works to hold each electric fence in its position after the movement of each electric fence or after the image forming operation. It is possible to greatly improve the operability when fine adjustment is performed using an irregular-size sheet or when each electric fence is moved to the storage position after the printing operation is completed.

  FIG. 1 shows a stencil printing apparatus as an image forming apparatus used in an embodiment of the present invention. In FIG. 1, a stencil printing apparatus 1 is mainly composed of an image reading unit 2, a plate making and conveying unit 3, a plate discharging unit 4, a paper feeding unit 5, a printing unit 6, a paper discharging unit 7, and the like.

  The image reading unit 2 disposed on the upper part of the apparatus main body 1a of the stencil printing apparatus 1 includes a light source, a scanning unit, a lens, an image sensor, and the like (not shown). The scanning unit reads an original image and reads the read image. This is a known configuration in which an image is formed by a lens and sent to an image sensor.

  A plate-making transport unit 3 provided on the upper right side of the apparatus main body 1a and below the image reading unit 2 includes a master roll support member (not shown), a thermal head, and a platen roller that rotatably and detachably supports the master roll. It has plate making means, a master conveying roller pair, a master cutting means, etc., and while performing the master by the platen roller and the master conveying roller pair, the thermal head performs the perforated plate making to the master thermoplastic resin film, and the plate is made. After the master is transported and wound on the outer peripheral surface of the plate cylinder 6a described later, the master cutting means is operated to cut the master.

  A plate discharging unit 4 provided on the upper left side of the apparatus main body 1a and below the image reading unit 2 includes a plate discharging conveyance member, a plate discharging box, a compression plate, and the like (not shown), and a plate cylinder 6a described later by the plate discharging conveying member. After the used master is peeled off from the outer peripheral surface and accommodated in the discharge box, the used master is compressed by the compression plate.

  The sheet feeding unit 5 is provided below the image forming apparatus 1 with a first sheet feeding tray 5a, a second sheet feeding tray 5b, a third sheet feeding tray 5c, and a right side of the apparatus body 1a. It has a main body paper feed tray 5d, a registration roller pair 5e, and the like provided below, and feeds paper P from one of the paper feed trays toward the printing unit 6.

  The printing unit 6 disposed substantially at the center of the apparatus main body 1a has a plate cylinder 6a and an impression cylinder 6b that is formed with substantially the same diameter as the plate cylinder 6a and rotates in synchronization with the plate cylinder 6a. The master made by the plate 3 is wound on the plate cylinder 6a, and the paper P fed from the paper supply unit 5 is locked on the pressure drum 6b to bring the plate cylinder 6a and the pressure drum 6b into contact with each other. As a result, the image is transferred to the paper P. The plate cylinder 6a is detachable from the apparatus main body 1a, and an ink supply means (not shown) having an ink roller and a doctor roller is disposed therein.

  The paper discharge unit 7 provided on the lower left side of the apparatus main body 1a mainly includes a peeling claw 7a, a paper discharge conveying member 7b, a paper discharge tray 8, and the like. The peeling claw 7a is fixed to a side plate (not shown) of the apparatus main body 1a, and peels the paper P from the outer peripheral surface of the impression cylinder 6b. The paper discharge conveying member 7b having a driving roller, a driven roller, an endless belt, a suction fan, and the like discharges the paper P peeled from the pressure drum 6b by the peeling claw 7a while sucking the paper P onto the endless belt by the suction force of the suction fan. It is conveyed toward the tray 8.

The paper discharge tray 8 includes a paper discharge tray main body 9, an end fence 10 as an electric fence, a pair of side fences 11, and the like.
The paper discharge tray main body 9 made of a resin plate has a box shape with walls on four sides and opened at the bottom. As shown in FIG. 2, a cutout along the paper discharge direction is provided at the center of the upper plate. Two elongated holes 9b are formed along the direction orthogonal to the paper discharge direction, 9a near the upstream side of the paper discharge direction of the upper plate and to the side of the notch 9a. Rails 12 having attachment portions 12 a and 12 b that can be engaged with the paper discharge tray main body 9 are attached to the notches 9 a at both ends in the longitudinal direction. The upper surface of the rail 12 is the upper surface of the paper discharge tray main body 9. And the same plane.

  The end fence 10 is supported by an end fence support member 13 so that the end fence can be raised and lowered, and the end fence support member 13 is slidably supported by the rail 12. An end fence moving means 14 for moving the end fence 10 is disposed inside the discharge tray main body 9. The end fence moving means 14 is mainly composed of a stepping motor 15, a pinion 16, a gear 17, a plurality of pulleys 18a, 18b, 18c, 18d, 18e, 18f, 18g, an endless belt 19, and the like.

  The stepping motor 15 is attached to the inner surface of the paper discharge tray main body 9, and a pinion 16 is attached to the output shaft thereof. The operation of the stepping motor 15 is controlled by a sheet discharge base control board 35 described later. The gear 17 that meshes with the pinion 16 is attached to the distal end of a support shaft 17 a that is rotatably supported by the discharge tray main body 9. A pulley is provided between the base end of the support shaft 17 a and the gear 17. 18a is attached. Each of the pulleys 18b, 18e, 18f, and 18g is attached to the tip of a spindle that is rotatably supported by the discharge tray main body 9 similarly to the gear 17, and the pulleys 18c and 18d are pulley brackets 20a, It is rotatably supported by the discharge tray main body 9 via 20b. An endless belt 19 is stretched between the pulleys, and the endless belt 19 is connected to the bottom surface of the end fence support member 13 by a connecting member 21. The end fence support member 13 is formed with notches 13a and 13b for avoiding interference with the pulleys 18c and 18d.

  The pair of side fences 11 are supported by a side fence support member 22 so that they can be raised and lowered, and each side fence support member 22 is orthogonal to the paper discharge direction by a rail member (not shown) provided on the paper discharge tray body 9. It is slidably supported in the paper width direction. Inside the discharge tray main body 9, side fence moving means 23 for moving each side fence 11 synchronously is provided. The side fence moving means 23 is mainly composed of a stepping motor 24, a pinion 25, a gear 26, a plurality of pulleys 27a, 27b, 27c, 27d, an endless belt 28, and the like.

  The stepping motor 24 is attached to the inner surface of the paper discharge tray main body 9, and a pinion 25 is attached to its output shaft. The operation of the stepping motor 24 is also controlled by a sheet discharge base control board 35 described later. The gear 26 that meshes with the pinion 25 is attached to the distal end of a support shaft 26 a that is rotatably supported by the discharge tray main body 9, and a pulley is provided between the base end of the support shaft 26 a and the gear 26. 27a is attached. The pulleys 27b and 27c are rotatably supported by the paper discharge tray main body 9 via pulley brackets 29a and 29b, and the pulley 27d has a base end at the tip of a support shaft that is rotatably supported by the paper discharge tray main body 9. It is attached. An endless belt 28 is stretched between the pulleys, and the endless belt 28 is connected to the bottom surface of each side fence support member 22 by a connecting member 30 via a bracket (not shown).

  With the above-described configuration, when the operation command is sent from the paper discharge tray control board 35, when the stepping motor 15 is activated, the end fence 10 is moved along the rail 12 in the same direction as the paper discharge direction, and the stepping motor 24 is activated. Then, the side fences 11 are moved in directions toward or away from each other. In addition, an end fence reference position detection sensor 31 and a side fence reference position detection sensor 32 (both see FIG. 3) for detecting the reference positions of the end fence 10 and the side fences 11 are arranged on the discharge tray main body 9, respectively. It is installed. The sensor 31 is disposed at a position for detecting when the end fence 10 is located on the most downstream side in the paper discharge direction, and the sensor 32 is configured so that both or one of the side fences 11 is at the outermost side in the paper width direction. It arrange | positions in the position which detects this when it locates.

  FIG. 3 shows the control means of the stencil printing apparatus 1. In the figure, the control means 33 comprises a main body control board 34 that controls the operation of the stencil printing apparatus 1 as a whole and a paper discharge tray control board 35 that controls the operation of each stepping motor 15, 24. A main body control board 34 composed of a known microcomputer controls the overall operation of the image forming apparatus 1 based on an input from an operation panel 36 provided on the upper front surface of the apparatus main body 1a. A paper discharge table control board 35 formed of a known microcomputer is electrically connected to the main body control board 34 and controls the operation of the stepping motors 15 and 24 based on commands from the main body control board 34. Detection signals from the sensors 31 and 32 are input to the sheet discharge control board 35.

  Based on the above configuration, a first embodiment using the stencil printing apparatus 1 will be described below. In the first embodiment, the end fence 10 and each side fence 11 are electrically moved in the paper discharge tray 8, and the end fence 10 and each side fence 11 can be manually moved after the movement. Hereinafter, a description will be given with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG.

  When a movement command for the end fence 10 and each side fence 11 (hereinafter sometimes referred to as an electric fence) is output (ST101), this command is sent to the main body control board 34 (ST102). The main body control board 34 that has received the command outputs this command to the paper discharge base control board 35 (ST103), and the paper discharge base control board 35 that has received the command determines whether the output signal is for the end fence 10 or each side. It is determined whether the operation is for the fence 11 (ST104). If the operation command is for the end fence 10, the operation command is sent to the stepping motor 15 and the phase current is turned on for the stepping motor 15 (ST105). When the stepping motor 15 is actuated to move the end fence 10 (ST106), it is determined whether or not it is at a predetermined position (ST107). When the end fence 10 reaches the predetermined position, the operation of the stepping motor 15 is stopped. At the same time, the phase current is turned off (ST108).

  If it is an operation command for each side fence 11 in ST104, the operation command is sent to the stepping motor 24 and the phase current is turned on for the stepping motor 24 (ST109). When the stepping motor 24 is actuated to move each side fence 11 (ST110), it is determined whether or not it is at a predetermined position (ST111). When each side fence 11 reaches a predetermined position, the operation of the stepping motor 24 is stopped. And the phase current is turned off (ST112).

  With the above-described configuration, the phase current applied to the stepping motor 15 after the end fence 10 moves is turned off, and the phase current applied to the stepping motor 24 after each side fence 11 moves off. When each electric fence is moved, each electric fence can be easily moved manually by turning off the phase current that tries to hold it in that position. The operability when the electric fences are moved to the storage position at the time of fine adjustment or after completion of the printing operation can be greatly improved.

  Next, a second embodiment will be described. In the second embodiment, the printing operation is performed after the end fence 10 and each side fence 11 are electrically moved in the paper discharge tray 8, and the end fence 10 and each side fence 11 are manually moved after the printing operation is completed. The configuration is possible. Hereinafter, a description will be given with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG.

  When a movement command to the electric fence is output (ST201), this command is sent to the main body control board 34 (ST202). The main body control board 34 that has received the command outputs this command to the paper discharge table control board 35 (ST203) and starts the printing operation (ST204). Upon receiving the command, the paper discharge tray control board 35 sends an operation command to each of the stepping motors 15 and 24 and turns on the phase current for each of the stepping motors 15 and 24 (ST205 and ST206). After the movement of each electric fence, it is determined whether or not printing is finished (ST207). When printing is finished, the phase current applied to each stepping motor 15 and 24 is turned off (ST208 and ST209). .

  With the above-described configuration, a phase current is applied to the stepping motors 15 and 24 during the printing operation, and the phase current applied to the stepping motors 15 and 24 is turned off after the printing operation is completed. The same operational effects as in the first embodiment can be obtained, and the movement of each electric fence is prohibited by the phase current during the printing operation, so that each electric fence moves when the paper collides during the printing operation. Thus, it is possible to prevent the paper alignment from deteriorating due to the movement of each electric fence during the printing operation, and to perform good paper alignment.

  In each of the above embodiments, the operation panel 36 is provided with a selector switch for selecting whether to apply a phase current to each stepping motor 15, 24 after the movement of each electric fence or after the end of the printing operation. It is good also as a structure which moves each electric fence after selection by. In this configuration, when the configuration is such that the phase current is not applied by the changeover switch, the operation is the same as in each of the above-described embodiments, and in the configuration where the phase current is applied, each electric fence is fixed by the phase current. It becomes the structure similar to the conventional electric fence as it is. By adopting this configuration, when it is not necessary to manually move each electric fence, the fixing by the phase current can be maintained, and the usability can be improved.

  In each of the above embodiments, an example in which a stencil printing apparatus is used as the image forming apparatus has been described. However, the image forming apparatus is not limited to this, and includes a paper discharge unit having an electric fence such as an electrophotographic copying machine or a printer. The present invention can be applied to any image forming apparatus.

1 is a schematic front view of a stencil printing apparatus to which an embodiment of the present invention is applied. It is the schematic explaining the drive mechanism of the electric fence used for one Embodiment of this invention. It is a block diagram of the control means used for one Embodiment of this invention. It is a flowchart explaining the operation control of the electric fence in the 1st Embodiment of this invention. It is a flowchart explaining the operation control of the electric fence in the 2nd Embodiment of this invention.

Explanation of symbols

1 Image forming device (stencil printing device)
8 Output tray 10 Electric fence (end fence)
11 Electric fence (side fence)
14 Moving means (End fence moving means)
23 Moving means (side fence moving means)
P paper

Claims (5)

In an image forming apparatus having a paper discharge tray for stacking sheets on which image formation has been performed, and an electric fence provided on the paper discharge tray and moved by a moving unit,
The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the electric fence is configured to be manually movable except when the moving unit is in operation. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1.
It is configured to be selectively switchable between a first mode that allows manual movement of the electric fence and a second mode that makes manual movement impossible when the moving means is not operating. An image forming apparatus. In an image forming apparatus having a paper discharge tray for stacking sheets on which image formation has been performed, and an electric fence provided on the paper discharge tray and moved by a moving unit,
The image forming apparatus, wherein the electric fence is configured to be manually movable in a case other than an image forming operation. The image forming apparatus according to claim 3.
In a case other than during the image forming operation, the electric fence can be selectively switched between a first mode in which manual movement is possible and a second mode in which manual movement is impossible. An image forming apparatus. The image forming apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4,
The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the moving unit includes a stepping motor, and the manual movement of the electric fence is achieved by stopping the supply of phase current to the stepping motor.

Images