JP2006124172A - Sheet post-processing apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a sheet post-processing apparatus having a standby tray for maintaining a stable posture of paper sheets. <P>SOLUTION: An upper stopper 10f is arranged on a standby tray 10 to maintain the stable posture of paper sheets P on the standby tray 10. The upper stopper 10f may be engaged with a side wall part or an inner wall part in a sheet post-processing apparatus body. The upper stopper 10f is slidable in the paper sheet conveying direction so as to be adaptable to a plurality of kinds of paper sheets P. Since tips of the paper sheets P are also arranged by the upper stopper 10f, the longitudinal alignment property of the paper sheets on the standby tray is considerably enhanced together with the hanging of the rear end side of the paper sheets. The upper stopper is not limited to a slidable type, but a rotary type upper stopper 10g may be acceptable. The upper stopper 10g is attached to, for example, the side wall part or the inner wall part in the sheet post-processing apparatus body according to the size of the paper sheets. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a paper post-processing apparatus that performs post-processing of paper discharged from an image forming apparatus such as a copying machine, a printer, or a multifunction peripheral.

In recent years, in an image forming apparatus, in order to perform post-processing of paper such as sorting or stapling of paper after image formation, the paper post-processing device is adjacent to the paper discharge unit of the image forming apparatus main body. There is something to provide. In such a paper post-processing apparatus, the post-processing of the subsequent paper is performed after the post-processing of the preceding paper is completed. In order to make the subsequent sheet discharged from the image forming apparatus main body stand by in this way, there is a conventional apparatus that provides a retracting path such as a standby tray in the middle of a path reaching a staple, for example (see, for example, Patent Document 1).
JP 2002-362825 A

  However, if the posture of the paper on the standby tray is poor, the paper cannot be fed to the processing tray or the processing cannot be performed, and it has been difficult to achieve good alignment with the conventional standby tray.

  SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a sheet post-processing apparatus including a standby tray that can maintain a stable posture of sheets.

  According to an embodiment of the present invention, the standby tray that waits for paper discharged from the image forming apparatus, the paper that is disposed below the standby tray, and that is dropped and supplied from the standby tray, and the standby tray are used. A processing tray for stacking the sheets discharged from the image forming apparatus without processing, a processing mechanism for performing post-processing on the sheets stacked on the processing tray, and a post-processing end after the post-processing discharged from the processing tray A paper post-processing device is provided, comprising: a paper discharge tray on which the paper is stacked; and a stopper that restricts a position of a leading end portion in a conveyance direction of the paper discharged to the standby tray.

  According to another embodiment of the present invention, there is provided a paper post-processing apparatus, wherein the stopper is formed to be slidable in the paper transport direction according to the paper size.

  According to another embodiment of the present invention, there is provided a paper post-processing apparatus, wherein the stopper is formed to be rotatable according to the paper size.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to obtain a paper post-processing apparatus including a standby tray that can maintain a stable posture of paper and that has excellent paper alignment.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In the drawings, the same portions are denoted by the same reference numerals, and redundant description is omitted. FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a main part of a paper post-processing apparatus 7 according to an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a top view of the main part of the paper post-processing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a schematic configuration diagram showing a sheet post-processing device 7 disposed adjacent to an image forming apparatus 5 such as a printer.

  The sheet post-processing device 7 basically includes a standby tray 10, a processing tray 12, a stapler 14, a first discharge tray 16, and a second discharge tray 18.

  A sheet P formed by an image forming apparatus 5 such as a copying machine and discharged from a pair of paper discharge rollers 6 is received by a pair of entrance rollers 22 and supplied to a pair of paper feed rollers 24 for supply. It is sent from the paper roller 24 to the standby tray 10. The entrance roller 22 is driven by an entrance roller motor 26. A paper path ceiling 36 for guiding the paper P to the paper feed roller 24 is provided between the entrance roller 22 and the standby tray 10. The entrance roller 22 includes an upper entrance roller 22a and a lower entrance roller 22b. The paper feed roller 24 also includes an upper paper feed roller and a lower paper feed roller.

  Below the standby tray 10 is disposed a processing tray 12 on which the sheets P dropped from the standby tray 10 are stacked.

  The processing tray 12 aligns and supports the stacked paper P while the paper P is stapled by the stapler 14 which is a processing mechanism that performs post-processing.

  As shown in FIG. 7, when a predetermined number of sheets are accumulated in the standby tray 10, the standby tray motors 10 open the standby tray components 10a and 10b, and the paper P is dropped onto the processing tray 12 by its own weight. This operation is called active drop.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the stapler 14 is positioned by the staple driving unit 49, and the staple processing is controlled. The processing tray 12 has a pair of upper and lower upper alignment rollers 38a and a lower vertical alignment roller 38b shown in FIG. 5 for aligning a plurality of sheets P dropped and supplied from the standby tray 10 in the vertical direction as the conveying direction. The vertical and vertical alignment rollers 38 a and 38 b also serve as a bundle conveying roller that sandwiches the sheet bundle T after the stapling process and picks it up from the stapler 14. The upper vertical alignment roller 38a is driven by a vertical alignment upper roller motor 40, and the lower vertical alignment roller 38b is driven by a vertical alignment lower roller motor 42.

  A rotatable paddle for aligning the uppermost sheet P placed on the processing tray 12 in the vertical direction is located at the position where the trailing edge of the sheet P drops when the sheet P is dropped and supplied to the processing tray 12. 44 is arranged. As shown in FIG. 6, the paddle 44 aligns the receiving portion 44 a of the paper P that is dropped and supplied onto the processing tray 12, the punching portion 44 b that scrapes off the paper P on the processing tray 12, and the paper P on the processing tray 12. It has a feed portion 44 c and is driven by a paddle motor 46. The paddle 44 is made of a rubber material and has elasticity.

  A stopper 45 is provided at the end of the processing tray 12 on the side of the stapler 14 to abut the rear end of the paper P and regulate the rear end position. Near the center of the processing tray 12, there is a conveying belt 50 that carries the sheet bundle T that has been stapled and taken out of the stapler 14 by the vertical alignment rollers 38a and 38b to the first or second discharge trays 16 and 18. Provided. A feed claw 50 a that hooks the rear end of the sheet bundle T is attached to the transport belt 50.

  The standby tray 10 can supply the paper P to the processing tray 12 while being transported in the direction of the first or second paper discharge tray 16 or 18. The conveyance of the paper P in the direction of the paper discharge trays 16 and 18 is performed by bringing the standby tray roller 28 that aligns the paper P into contact with the paper P on the standby tray 10. The standby tray roller 28 is controlled to move up and down by a standby tray roller drive source 30 and is driven to rotate by a standby tray roller motor 32.

  The standby tray 10 is arranged to have an inclination angle θ1 in order to support the paper P in a state where the front end of the paper P is higher than the rear end. The first or second paper discharge tray 16 or 18 is lifted or lowered by the paper discharge tray driving unit 52 to select either one. The first or second paper discharge trays 16 and 18 are raised and lowered to substantially the same height as the standby tray 10 or the processing tray 12 when the paper P is stacked to improve the consistency of the paper P to be discharged. The first or second paper discharge trays 16 and 18 are arranged at an inclination angle θ2 to support the paper P in a state where the leading edge of the paper P is higher than the trailing edge.

  As shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, the standby tray 10 includes a pair of tray members 10 a and 10 b formed so as to protrude from the wall surface, and receives a sheet while sliding to the width of the sheet P, and both sides of the sheet P. Support. The tray members 10a and 10b are provided with standby stoppers 10c and 10d for regulating the rear end of the paper P.

  If the posture of the paper P on the standby tray 10 is bad, the paper P cannot be sent to the processing tray 12 or the processing cannot be performed.

  Therefore, in order to maintain a stable posture of the paper P on the standby tray 10, an upper stopper 10f is provided in the vicinity of the standby tray 10 as shown in FIG. The upper stopper 10f may be engaged with, for example, a side wall portion or an inner wall portion in the post-processing apparatus main body. The upper stopper 10f is slidable in the paper transport direction so that it can handle a plurality of types of paper P. Since the leading edge of the paper P is also aligned by the upper stopper 10f, the vertical alignment of the paper on the standby tray is remarkably improved in combination with the trailing edge of the paper being lowered.

  The upper stopper is not limited to the slide type shown in FIG. 12, and may be a rotary upper stopper 10g as shown in FIG. The upper stopper 10g is attached to, for example, a side wall portion or an inner wall portion in the main body of the post-processing apparatus according to a paper size such as an A4 paper stopper or a B5 paper stopper.

  These upper stoppers 10f and 10g can be manufactured, for example, by coating a soft synthetic resin sheet or a soft synthetic resin so as not to damage the edge of the paper P during alignment.

  The tray members 10a and 10b may be rotatable upward and downward with a joint portion with the standby tray 10 as a fulcrum. In order to place the paper P on the standby tray 10 in an aligned manner, when placing the lower curled paper P, the tray members 10a and 10b rotate upward, and when placing the upper curled paper P, the tray member 10a and 10b are rotated downward.

  The standby tray 10 is slid by the standby tray motor 34. During the period from the standby tray 10 to the processing tray 12, when the paper P on the standby tray 10 is dropped and supplied to the processing tray 12, the paper P is prevented from being disturbed in the lateral direction perpendicular to the transport direction. Lateral alignment plates 47a and 47b shown in FIG. 9 are provided. The lateral alignment plates 47a and 47b are formed to be slidable so as to be adjusted to the width of the paper P by the lateral alignment motor 48.

  Next, the operation will be described. When an image is formed by the image forming apparatus 5 and the paper P is supplied from the paper discharge roller 6, the paper post-processing device 7 performs the post-processing when the paper P is post-processed or not. Different operations are performed depending on whether the process is being executed or the post-processing is finished.

  When the post-processing is not performed, for example, the first paper discharge tray 16 is slid to the position indicated by the dotted line in FIG. 3, and the paper P discharged from the standby tray 10 can be stacked with good consistency. When no post-processing is performed, the paper P conveyed from the entrance roller 22 to the paper feed roller 24 through the paper path ceiling 36 is fed to the standby tray 10 by the paper feed roller 24. Next, the paper P is transported by the standby tray roller 28 that is lowered onto the standby tray 10 and rotated in the direction of the arrow f, and is discharged onto the first paper discharge tray 16.

  In this way, the sheets are sequentially stacked on the first paper discharge tray 16. At this time, the first paper discharge tray 16 is arranged so that the inclination angle is θ2, and the front end of the paper is higher than the rear end, so that, for example, the paper P has a mountain as shown by the dotted line in FIG. Even if the paper is discharged onto the first paper discharge tray 16 in a curled state, the paper P placed on the first paper discharge tray 16 is pushed out by contact with the leading edge of the subsequent paper P. It will not be. That is, the discharged paper P is sequentially placed on the first paper discharge tray 16 without being out of order. Even if the preceding paper P is pushed by the succeeding paper P and is slightly misaligned, the paper P falls due to its own weight on the first paper discharge tray 16 because of the inclination angle θ2. Thus, the rear ends are aligned and stacked, and the paper P discharge processing is completed.

  Next, a case where a stapling process, which is a post-process, is performed and there is no sheet P on which a stapling process is being executed prior to the processing tray 20 will be described. At this time, the standby tray 10 slides and moves the tray members 10a and 10b to the positions indicated by the dotted lines in FIG. The horizontal alignment plates 47a and 47b are arranged so that the width between the horizontal alignment plates 47a and 47b is substantially the same as the width of the paper P in order to align the horizontal direction of the paper P dropped from the paper feed roller 24. Thereby, the paper P fed by the paper feed roller 24 is dropped and supplied directly onto the processing tray 12 without being interrupted by the standby tray 10.

  At the time of dropping, the upper vertical alignment roller 38a is retracted upward, and the receiving portion 44a of the paddle 44 receives the rear end of the paper P. Both sides of the paper P fall while contacting the horizontal alignment plates 47a and 47b, and are aligned in the horizontal direction. Next, the paddle 44 rotates in the direction of the arrow o, the trailing edge of the paper P is dropped from the receiving portion 44a, and is knocked onto the processing tray 12 by the knocking portion 44b. Further, the paddle 44 feeds the paper P in the direction of the arrow q by the feeding portion 44c, and the rear end of the paper P is brought into contact with the stopper 45 to complete the vertical alignment of the paper P. The vertical alignment of the paper P on the processing tray 12 may be performed by the upper vertical alignment roller 38a by moving the upper vertical alignment roller 38a up and down each time.

  In this way, the image-formed sheets P are stacked directly on the processing tray 12 from the sheet feed roller 24 while sequentially aligning in the horizontal and vertical directions. When the number of sheets P reaches a predetermined number, the stapler 14 staples the sheets P on the processing tray 12 at a desired position to form a bundle of sheets T. Thereafter, the upper vertical alignment roller 38a is lowered onto the sheet bundle, and the sheet bundle T is sandwiched between the upper vertical alignment roller 38a rotating in the direction of arrow r and the lower vertical alignment roller 38b rotating in the direction of arrow s. The bundle is conveyed in the direction of the paper discharge tray 16. When the rear end of the sheet bundle T passes through the vertical and vertical alignment rollers 38 a and 38 b, the sheet bundle T is caught on the feeding claw 50 a of the conveyance belt 50 rotated in the direction of the arrow t and bundled on the first paper discharge tray 16.

  At this time, the first paper discharge tray 16 is slid from the position indicated by the dotted line to the position indicated by the solid line in FIG. Further, the first discharge tray 16 is arranged so that the inclination angle is θ2, and the leading end of the sheet is higher than the trailing end, so that the first discharge tray 16 is bundled on the first discharge tray 16 in advance. The paper P is not pushed out by contact with the tip of the subsequent paper bundle T. Even if the preceding sheet bundle T is slightly misaligned by the succeeding sheet P, the sheet bundle T falls by its own weight on the first paper discharge tray 16 because of the inclination angle θ2. The stapling process of the paper P stacked in a state where the rear ends are aligned is completed.

  Next, a case where a stapling process, which is a post-process, is performed and the sheet P on which the stapling process is being executed remains on the processing tray 20 will be described. At this time, in the standby tray 10, the tray members 10 a and 10 b slide from the position indicated by the dotted line in FIG. 11 in the direction opposite to the arrow m direction or the direction opposite to the arrow n direction, respectively. The paper P can be supported at the position shown. The standby tray roller 28 is retracted above the standby tray 10 so as not to interfere with the paper P. The paper P discharged from the image forming apparatus 5 and supplied by the paper supply roller 24 is temporarily placed on the standby tray 10 in order to wait for the processing tray 12 to become empty.

  The paper P placed on the standby tray 10 descends on the standby tray 10 and is sent in the standby stoppers 10c and 10d directions by the standby tray roller 28 rotated in the direction opposite to the arrow f direction. Abutting against the stoppers 10c and 10d, vertical alignment is performed. Further, since the standby tray 10 is arranged so that the inclination angle is θ1, and the leading edge of the sheet is higher than the trailing edge, the sheet P is vertically contacted by the dead weight with the waiting stoppers 10c and 10d by its own weight. Align.

  Further, since the standby tray 10 is arranged so that the inclination angle is θ1, even if the paper P is supplied from the paper supply roller 24 and is fed onto the standby tray 10 in a curled state, for example, Thus, the paper P placed on the standby tray 10 is not pushed out by contact with the leading edge of the subsequent paper P. That is, the supplied paper P is sequentially placed on the standby tray 10 without being out of order. Even if the preceding paper P is pushed by the succeeding paper P and is slightly misaligned, there is an inclination angle θ1, so that the paper P reaches the position where the trailing edge comes into contact with the standby stoppers 10c and 10d by its own weight. It is dropped and loaded in alignment with the rear end aligned on the standby tray 10.

  During this time, when the preceding paper P on the processing tray 12 is discharged to the first paper discharge tray 16 side and the processing tray 12 becomes empty, the standby tray 10 positions the tray members 10a and 10b as indicated by solid lines in FIG. 11 to the position indicated by the dotted line in FIG. 11 through the position indicated by the one-dot chain line in FIG. 11, respectively, in the direction of arrow m or arrow n. As a result, for example, two sheets of paper P waiting on the standby tray 10 reach the position indicated by the one-dot chain line in FIG. 11 on the processing tray 12 from between the tray members 10a and 10b. Drop supplied. At this time, the interval between the lateral alignment plates 47a and 47b is arranged to be substantially the same width as the paper P. Accordingly, the sheet P dropped from the standby tray 10 is regulated in the lateral direction by being regulated by the lateral alignment plates 47a and 47b on both sides.

  The lower sheet P of the two sheets P dropped on the processing tray 12 is sent in the direction of the arrow q by the lower vertical alignment roller 38b rotated in the direction opposite to the direction of the arrow s, and the rear end of the sheet P is stopped by the stopper. 45, the vertical alignment of the paper P is completed. The upper sheet P of the two sheets P dropped on the processing tray 12 is sent in the direction of the arrow q by the upper vertical alignment roller 38a rotated in the direction opposite to the direction of the arrow r, and the trailing end of the sheet P is stopped at the stopper 45. The vertical alignment of the paper P is completed, and then the upper vertical alignment roller 38a is retracted upward.

  The third and subsequent sheets P ejected from the image forming apparatus 5 are directly dropped onto the processing tray 12 from between the tray members 10a and 10b without waiting on the standby tray 10. Thereafter, the third and subsequent sheets P are sequentially aligned on the sheet P loaded on the processing tray 12 by the paddle 44 first.

  When the number of sheets P stacked on the processing tray 12 reaches a predetermined number, the stapler 14 performs a stapling process to form a sheet bundle T. Thereafter, the sheet bundle T is conveyed in the direction of the first sheet discharge tray 16 by the vertical and vertical alignment rollers 38a and 38b, and the rear end of the sheet bundle T is hooked on the feed claw 50a of the conveyance belt 50. Bundled up, the stapling process for the paper P is completed.

  In the present embodiment configured as described above, when stapling is performed after image formation and the preceding stapling on the processing tray 12 has not been completed, the stapling processing is performed above the processing tray 12. A standby tray 10 is provided to wait for the subsequent paper P. Then, after waiting for the processing tray 12 to become empty, the paper P waiting in the standby tray 10 is dropped and supplied to the treatment tray 16. Accordingly, the substantial conveyance path from the standby tray 10 to the processing tray 12 in the paper post-processing device 7 can be shortened, and the paper post-processing device can be downsized.

  Further, by providing the standby tray 10 with the inclination angle θ1, it is possible to align the paper P on the standby tray 10 by its own weight, and there is no possibility that the paper P previously placed is pushed out by the subsequent paper P. Thus, the consistency of the paper P on the standby tray 10 can be improved, jamming of the paper P can be prevented, and further, the order of placement of the paper on the standby tray 10 can be prevented. Similarly, by providing the first or second paper discharge trays 16 and 18 with an inclination angle θ2, the paper P or the paper bundle placed prior to the first or second paper discharge trays 16 or 18 is provided. There is no fear that T will be pushed out by the subsequent paper P or the paper bundle T, the consistency of the paper P on the first or second paper discharge trays 16 and 18 can be improved, and jamming of the paper P can be prevented. Alternatively, it is possible to prevent the placement order of the paper P or the paper bundle T on the second paper discharge trays 16 and 18.

  The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various modifications are possible within the scope of the invention described in the claims, and these are also included in the scope of the present invention. Needless to say.

  In the present invention, stapling is described as the post-processing performed on the sheets stacked on the processing tray. However, this post-processing is not limited to the case where stapling is performed, and there is no problem even in post-processing such as performing hole punching (punching) processing on a sheet. In this case, there is no problem even if the sheets stacked on the processing tray are not a plurality of sheets but a single sheet. Further, it goes without saying that the present invention is effective even for an aftertreatment apparatus having such an aftertreatment mechanism.

It is a perspective view which shows the principal part of the paper post-processing apparatus which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention. It is a top view which shows the principal part of the paper post-processing apparatus which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention. It is a schematic block diagram which shows the paper post-processing apparatus which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention. 1 is a perspective view showing a stapler of a paper post-processing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. It is a perspective view which shows the vertical alignment roller which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention. It is explanatory drawing which shows the paddle which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention. It is a schematic perspective view which shows the standby tray and processing tray which concern on one Embodiment of this invention. It is a top view which shows the standby tray and processing tray which concern on one Embodiment of this invention. It is a schematic perspective view which shows the horizontal alignment board and conveyance belt which concern on one Embodiment of this invention. It is explanatory drawing which shows the state by which the paper on the standby tray or paper discharge tray which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention is extruded. It is explanatory drawing which shows the movement of the standby tray which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention. It is explanatory drawing which shows the upper stopper which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention. It is explanatory drawing which shows the upper stopper which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 5 ... Image forming apparatus, 7 ... Paper post-processing apparatus, 10 ... Standby tray, 10a, 10b ... Tray member, 10c, 10d ... Standby stopper, 10f, 10g ... Upper stopper, 12 ... Processing tray, 14 ... Stapler, 16 ... First discharge tray, 18 ... second discharge tray, 22 ... entrance roller, 22a ... upper entrance roller, 22b ... lower entrance roller, 24 ... feed roller, 26 ... entrance roller motor, 28 ... standby tray roller 30 ... Standby tray roller drive source, 32 ... Standby tray roller motor, 34 ... Standby tray motor, 36 ... Paper path ceiling, 38a ... Upper vertical alignment roller, 38b ... Lower vertical alignment roller, 40 ... Vertical alignment upper roller motor, 42 ... Vertical alignment lower roller motor, 44 ... Paddle, 45 ... Stopper, 46 ... Paddle motor, 47 ... Horizontal alignment plate, 48 ... Horizontal alignment motor, 49 ... Staple drive unit, 50 ... Conveyor belt, 50a ... Feeding claw.

Claims (6)

A standby tray for waiting for paper discharged from the image forming apparatus;
A processing tray that is disposed below the standby tray and that stacks the paper that is dropped from the standby tray and / or the paper that is discharged from the image forming apparatus without passing through the standby tray;
A processing mechanism for performing post-processing on the sheets stacked on the processing tray;
A paper discharge tray for stacking the paper after completion of post-processing discharged from the processing tray;
A sheet post-processing apparatus, comprising: a stopper for restricting a position of a leading end portion of the sheet discharged in the standby tray in a conveyance direction.   The sheet post-processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the stopper is engaged with the standby tray.   2. The paper post-processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the stopper is engaged with an inner wall portion / side wall portion of the paper post-processing apparatus main body.   The paper post-processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the stopper is formed to be slidable in a paper transport direction according to the paper size.   The sheet post-processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the stopper is formed to be rotatable.   6. The paper post-processing apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the stopper is engaged with an inner wall portion / side wall portion of a paper post-processing apparatus main body according to the paper size.

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