JP2007062871A - Punching device, sheet processing device and image forming device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a punching device capable of preventing damages of paper sheets, facilitating the conveyance control, and enhancing the processing workability of punch scraps formed during the punching work in light of a problem in the punching work to be executed during a bookbinding work. <P>SOLUTION: The punching device punches paper sheets to be conveyed and conveys the paper sheets, and has conveying passages capable of selecting a direction of conveying the paper sheets to a punching work unit and a direction of discharging the paper sheets as they are without performing the punching work for the paper sheet conveying direction. A punching and conveying passage A for performing the punching work out of the conveying passages is substantially formed in a U-shape, a lowest part thereof is substantially horizontal, and a punching means 8 for performing the punching work is arranged on the lowest part. The distance on the paper sheet carry-in side with respect to the punching means 8 is set to be not less than the maximum value of the conveyance length of the paper sheets preceded by the punching means. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a punching processing apparatus, a sheet processing apparatus, and an image forming apparatus, and more particularly, performs punching processing of paper when post-processing such as binding processing is performed on paper such as paper subjected to image forming processing. It is related with the mechanism for doing.

In an image forming apparatus such as a copying machine, a printer, a facsimile machine, or a printing machine, an image output can be obtained by transferring a visible image such as a toner image carried on a latent image carrier onto a recording sheet such as paper. It is like that.
Separately from the case where the recording sheets are sequentially discharged from the image forming apparatus onto the discharge tray, after performing punching for filing, post-processing such as stamping or adding information, and sorting for each sheet group There is a case where it is conveyed toward the processing apparatus.

The post-processing apparatus is often used by being connected to a recording sheet discharge position of the image forming apparatus. The recording sheet carried into the post-processing apparatus is bound after being subjected to, for example, punching processing for filing. It is discharged after subsequent processing such as processing. One of the reasons why the punching process is performed in advance is that when the binding process or the like is executed as a subsequent process, it is difficult to punch the staples used in the binding operation.
For this reason, it is known to connect a post-processing device capable of performing the above-described post-processing work to a paper discharge position in the image forming apparatus.

  As a configuration for punching, a transport path for paper discharged from the image forming apparatus is formed in a vertical transport path capable of reversing and feeding the paper, and a punching device is provided in the transport path to project in the horizontal direction. There is a configuration in which a perforating operation is performed on a sheet by a perforating member to be performed (for example, Patent Document 1).

  On the other hand, the paper subjected to the punching process is subjected to a process of correcting the skew of the paper and aligning the end portion of the punching position so that the target papers are punched at the same position. As a configuration for this purpose, the leading edge of the paper carried into the post-processing apparatus is temporarily stopped in front of the punching position as being in a state where it abuts against a regulating member such as a roller, and abuts against the regulating member. (For example, patent document 2).

JP 2003-63731 A JP-A-6-56334

  The paper carried into the perforation unit stops once when it hits the registration roller. Even in this state, the discharge roller on the image forming apparatus side continues to rotate, and as a result, the leading edge hits the registration roller. This tends to increase the amount of deflection of the paper that is being printed. In particular, when the paper discharge speed is high as the speed of the image forming apparatus is increased, the amount of deflection is further increased because the leading edge is stopped. For this reason, when the amount of bending becomes large, there is a risk that the sheet will be bent and deformed, so-called folding or wrinkling.

  As described above, the sheet to be discharged from the image forming apparatus is selected to be post-processed or not discharged as it is. For this reason, once the paper discharged from the image forming apparatus is stopped at the perforation unit, the conveyance interval with the subsequent paper is shortened. When the transport interval between the papers is shortened, the paper ejected later collides with the paper being punched with respect to the paper being punched once stopped, and the posture caused by the unevenness or the thrust of the paper being punched is changed. There is a risk of change.

  In order to prevent such collision between sheets, it is possible to increase the moving speed of the sheet after perforation and deliver it to a finisher equipped with a sheet discharge unit. However, in this finisher, it is necessary to adopt a receiving posture for two types of speeds, that is, the transport speed from the image forming apparatus and the moving speed from the punching section, and there is a possibility that the transport control becomes complicated.

  On the other hand, as disclosed in Patent Document 1, when the punching device is arranged along the paper conveyance path, a problem may occur in processing of punch scraps generated during punching due to the arrangement. That is, although punch scraps fall according to gravity, punch scraps may scatter in the horizontal direction in the configuration in which the punching member protrudes in the horizontal direction. For this reason, the accommodating part which receives punch waste requires the structure which receives the punch waste scattered in the horizontal direction, the installation space becomes large, and there exists a possibility of causing the enlargement of a punching processing apparatus.

  SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to prevent damage to paper and to control conveyance in view of problems in the above-described conventional punching processing apparatus, a sheet processing apparatus using the same, and an image forming apparatus. It is another object of the present invention to provide a perforation processing apparatus, a sheet processing apparatus, and an image forming apparatus having a configuration capable of simplifying the above and further improving the workability of processing punch scrap generated during perforation.

  The invention according to claim 1 is a punching processing apparatus for punching a transported sheet and transporting the sheet, and does not perform a punching operation in a direction in which the sheet is transported toward the punching working unit. In the above-mentioned transport path, the perforation transport path for perforating work is formed in a substantially U shape, and the lowermost part is substantially horizontal. In the lowermost part, a punching means for performing the above-described drilling operation is arranged.

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the punching processing apparatus according to the first aspect, posture forcing means for correcting the posture of the paper is disposed on the paper carry-in side with respect to the punching means in the transport path. The distance on the paper carry-in side to the correction means is set to be equal to or greater than the maximum size length among the lengths in the transport direction of the paper that can be punched by the punching means.

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the punching processing apparatus according to the first or second aspect, a position where the vertical conveyance of the paper is switched to horizontal conveyance on the sheet carry-in side in the conveyance path is caused by the shape restoring force of the paper. A radius of curvature is set that allows the sheet to be pressed in one direction.

  According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the perforation processing apparatus according to any one of the first to third aspects, when the paper is perforated, the perforation is performed with respect to the paper conveyance speed on the paper carry-in side in the conveyance path. The transport speed on the carry-out side of the paper to be transported later is temporarily increased and transported in conformity with the transport speed of the discharge-side transport means when reaching the transport path when the paper is ejected without performing the punching operation. It is characterized by.

  According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the perforation processing apparatus according to any one of the first to fourth aspects, a substantially horizontal conveyance path is provided at a lowermost part of the conveyance path where the perforation means is disposed. It is characterized in that a punching waste container is provided opposite to the punching means.

  According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, in the punching processing apparatus according to any one of the first to fifth aspects, the transport path is configured to transport a sheet discharged while the transport distance at the lowermost position does not perform the punching operation. It is characterized in that it is larger than the distance between the positions branched from the path to the paper carry-in side and the paper carry-out side.

  The invention described in claim 7 is characterized in that the punching processing apparatus according to one of claims 1 to 6 is used for a sheet processing apparatus.

  The invention described in claim 8 is characterized in that the sheet processing apparatus described in claim 7 is used in an image forming apparatus.

  According to the first aspect of the present invention, the conveying path in which the punching means is arranged is formed in a substantially U shape, and the punching means is provided at the lowermost part thereof. Therefore, in the extension of the conveying path in the horizontal direction, In addition, since the conveyance path can be extended in the vertical direction, it is possible to prevent the conveyance interval between the sheets from being shortened while preventing the installation space from being increased as much as the conveyance path extension in the horizontal direction is unnecessary. As a result, it is possible to prevent a collision between sheets that occurs when the conveyance interval is shortened. In addition, since the space for forming the deflection of the loaded paper can be provided without expanding in the horizontal direction, the installation space necessary for the configuration for preventing the collision between the papers can be reduced. Thereby, for example, the installation space when arranged adjacent to the image processing apparatus can be reduced with respect to the length of the carry-in conveyance path.

  According to the second aspect of the present invention, the distance on the paper carry-in side to the posture correcting means arranged in the punching processing apparatus is the maximum size in the transport direction length of the paper that can be punched by the punching means. Since the length is set to be longer than the length, the sheet can be conveyed toward the punching means without being affected by the speed of the sheet feeding member provided on the apparatus side other than the punching processing apparatus. In other words, the leading edge of the paper can be brought into contact with the posture forcing means in a state where the paper is completely removed from the paper feeding member provided in the device that discharges the paper toward the punching processing device. Even when the paper is discharged at a high speed by the feeding member, the amount of bending does not increase on the carry-in side, and it is possible to prevent damage to the paper caused by the increase in the amount of bending.

  According to the third aspect of the present invention, as the form of the position at which the transport direction is switched in the horizontal direction at the lowermost part, a radius of curvature is set that can be brazed so that one side of the paper is pressed in a predetermined direction by the paper shape restoring force. Therefore, the distance between the punching means when facing the punching means is made constant. This prevents, for example, the sheet from being pressed against the die of the punch and die members used for the punching means so that the sheet does not float, and the punching force is effectively prevented from shifting during punching. Can act.

  According to the fourth aspect of the present invention, by increasing the conveyance speed of the paper after punching and transporting it toward the transport path when the paper is ejected without performing the punching operation, on the side of receiving the paper after punching Therefore, the speed of the sheet on the receiving side of the sheet can be simplified because both the sheet to be punched and the sheet discharged without being punched are set to one speed.

  According to the fifth aspect of the present invention, the perforated waste accommodating portion that opposes the perforating means across the transport path is disposed at the lowermost portion of the transport path, so that the perforated waste that naturally falls even when scattered is received. In addition, it is possible to prevent an increase in the size of the device because it is not necessary to install space that is conscious of drilling debris that scatters in a substantially horizontal direction, but only a space that assumes that only drilling debris that falls naturally will occur. In addition, it is not necessary to provide a dust guide structure on the punching means side, and the configuration can be simplified.

  According to the sixth aspect of the present invention, the transport distance at the lowest position is made larger than the distance between the positions branched from the transport path of the paper discharged without performing the punching operation to the paper carry-in side and the paper carry-out side. Then, since it is in the shape of an Erlenmeyer flask, the radius of curvature recited in claim 3 can be increased, and furthermore, the distance from the discharge unit on the discharge side to the posture forcing unit can be increased, It is possible to stabilize the behavior of the sheet facing the punching means and improve the punching workability.

  According to the seventh and eighth aspects of the present invention, it is possible to prevent an increase in the amount of bending of the sheet, to prevent the sheet from being damaged, to simplify the conveyance control, and to improve the handling property of the punching waste.

  The best mode for carrying out the present invention will be described below with reference to the illustrated embodiments.

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram for explaining a configuration of a perforation processing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. In the following description, paper is replaced with paper.
In the figure, a punching processing apparatus 100 is disposed adjacent to the vicinity of a paper discharge port provided with a main body paper discharge roller 1 which is a discharge means of an image forming apparatus PR located on the paper discharge side. Is provided with a transport path A (hereinafter referred to as a perforated transport path) A formed in a substantially U-shape.
In the perforation conveyance path A, the carry-in side branched from the discharge conveyance path B used when the paper discharged from the main body discharge roller 1 is discharged without being punched and the carry-out side joining after the perforation are in the vertical direction. The lowermost part is extended in a substantially horizontal direction.

  The carry-out side of the perforation conveyance path A and the discharge conveyance path B joining therewith communicate with a sheet receiving port (not shown) of the finisher FN connected to a position corresponding to the downstream side in the sheet movement direction. The finisher FN is a device that performs post-processing such as binding processing and sorting, and includes a paper discharge tray FN1 that is discharged after the post-processing and without being post-processed.

  On the carry-in side of the perforation conveyance path A, the switching claw 3 is arranged at the branching position with the entrance roller 2 and the discharge conveyance path B, and the vertical conveyance rollers 4, 5, 6 are arranged along the carry-in side, respectively. Further, a registration roller 7 is disposed in the vicinity of the entrance of the lowermost portion as a posture correcting means for making skew correction and leading edge alignment by abutting the front end of the paper. 8 is arranged.

  On the other hand, a post-punch conveying roller 9 is arranged in the vicinity of the punch unit 8 at the lowermost portion in the perforation / discharge path A, and the vertical conveying rollers 10, 11, 12 and the unloading side are provided on the unloading side continuous to the lowermost portion. A discharge roller 13 is disposed at each outlet.

The perforation conveyance path A is formed in a substantially U-shape so that the carry-in side and the carry-out side are in the form of a vertical conveyance path, and the conveyance direction switching position at the lowermost part where the carry-in side and the carry-out side are continuous is the sheet. As shown in FIG. 7, the shape restoring force causes a curvature radius that can be brazed in a close-contact direction by warping toward the punch lower guide plate 29 and the punch lower guide plate 43 provided in the punch unit 8. Set up and configured.
By using such a radius of curvature, it is possible to prevent the paper that has reached the punch unit 8 from being lifted by being pressed against the lower guide plate, so that when the punch penetrates the paper, It is possible to prevent the behavior such as shifting from becoming unstable, and to effectively perform the shearing force in the punch unit 8 so that the drilling operation can be performed satisfactorily.

  Further, the carry-in side in the perforation conveyance path A is a main body discharge corresponding to a paper feeding member included in the image forming apparatus PR corresponding to a device on the side where paper is introduced toward the perforation processing device 100 by a device other than the perforation processing device 100. The conveyance distance from the paper roller 1 to the registration roller 7 is set to be longer than the maximum size in the size of the paper to be punched. For this reason, the sheet that has entered the carry-in side moves on the carry-in side in a state where the rear end of the sheet has come out of the main body discharge roller 1. As a result, the paper whose leading edge has reached the registration roller 7 is not affected by the speed from the main body discharge roller 1, so that the amount of bending when the leading edge is abutted by the registration roller 7 and temporarily stopped is increased. In addition, the sheet is prevented from being bent or wrinkled due to an increase in the amount of bending.

  Further, as shown by reference numerals L1 and L2 in FIG. 1, the perforation transport path A is a transport path for paper that is discharged without performing perforation work, that is, from the discharge transport path B to the paper carry-in side. It is larger than the distance between the positions branched to the paper carry-out side, and has a so-called Erlenmeyer flask shape. Accordingly, the radius of curvature of the switching position between the carry-in side and the lowermost portion can be increased, and the distance from the main body discharge roller 1 to the registration roller 7 can be increased, so that the behavior of the sheet facing the punch unit 8 is increased. In other words, it is possible to set the deflection amount without being affected by the speed from the main body discharge roller 1 by increasing the moving distance of the sheet that has slipped out of the main body discharge roller 1. The skew and the tip alignment corrected by the deflection amount can be stably performed. Moreover, since the length of the conveyance path on the carry-in side becomes longer, it is not necessary to increase the space in the horizontal direction so that stable skew correction and leading edge alignment can be achieved without increasing the installation space for the perforation processing apparatus 100. It becomes possible.

  On the other hand, in the lowermost part of the punching conveyance path A, a hopper 46 capable of accommodating punching debris generated when punching is performed by the punch unit 8 at a position facing the punch unit 8 across the conveyance path, so-called punch scraps 45. Is arranged. The hopper 46 is provided at a position where the punch waste 45 when the punch unit 8 is punched is naturally dropped. For example, when the punch unit is provided in the vertical conveyance path, the position where the punch scatters due to the punching may not be known. For this reason, it is not necessary to increase the range for receiving the waste, and it is possible to provide a waste capture area using the horizontal installation space of the perforation processing apparatus. It is not necessary to make the induction structure special.

In this embodiment, the sheet conveyance speed in the perforation conveyance path A is controlled.
That is, when the paper to be punched reaches the registration roller 7 and starts to be fed out, the speed is higher than the linear speed of the main body discharge roller 1 and the paper reaches the discharge conveyance path B. Is transported at a speed corresponding to the transport speed of the main body discharge roller 1. As a result, by increasing the speed, a transport interval for avoiding a collision with the following paper is gained, and when reaching the discharge transport path B, it corresponds to the transport speed when transported without performing the punching operation. Thus, the receiving speed at the finisher FN located on the downstream side of the punching processing apparatus 100 is the same for both the paper discharged directly from the image forming apparatus PR and the paper discharged via the punching processing apparatus 100. In this way, the reception control on the finisher FN side can be made uniform.

In this embodiment, a control unit 200 shown in FIG. 19 is used for such transport control.
In FIG. 19, a control unit 200 is a part that executes a sequence process for collectively controlling image formation and bookbinding. As a configuration related to the present embodiment, there are an inlet sensor S1 and a lateral registration sensor on the input side. S2 and a paper discharge sensor S3 are connected, and on the output side, vertical conveying rollers 4 to 6 and 10 to 12, and a driving unit 201 of a registration roller 7 and a punch unit 8 are connected (in FIG. 19, the driving is collectively performed). Part).

  In the control unit 200, the contents shown in FIG.

  FIG. 17 is a flowchart for explaining the operation of the control unit 200. In FIG. 17, data initialization and initialization of each device are executed when an apparatus related to bookbinding including the image forming apparatus PR is started. A job command is determined from an operation panel (not shown) (ST1 to ST3).

When a job command is input, the entrance roller 2 is driven (ST4), and the vertical transport rollers 4, 5, 6 are driven at the linear speed of the main body discharge roller 1 on the image forming apparatus PR side (ST5).
The paper carry-in status by the entrance sensor S1 is discriminated (ST6), and if it is carried in, it is discriminated whether or not the leading edge of the sheet has reached the registration roller 7 (ST7). When the leading edge of the sheet reaches the registration roller 7, a predetermined amount of rotation is performed on the entrance roller 2 and the vertical conveying rollers 4, 5, 6 on the basis of the time point, thereby setting a predetermined amount of bending. (ST8). In this case, the amount of deflection is determined by the amount of progress when a stepping motor is used as a driving source for each roller, and by using an encoder for other motors.

  When a predetermined amount of deflection is set, the vertical conveying rollers 4, 5, 6 stop (ST9), and then the vertical conveying rollers 4, 5, 6 and the registration roller 7 are driven at a high linear velocity (see FIG. ST10, 11). As a result, the paper whose skew correction and leading edge alignment have been completed by the registration roller 7 move at a speed higher than the receiving speed on the carry-in side, so that the conveyance interval with the subsequent paper is not shortened. .

  On the other hand, the sheet moving at a high linear velocity is determined to pass through the lateral registration sensor S2 positioned in front of the punch unit 8 (ST12). At this time, the post-punch conveying roller 9 and the unloading side vertical conveying rollers 10, 11 are detected. , 12 are driven at a high linear velocity (ST13, 14).

  The punch unit 8 is moved to correct the punching position in accordance with the result of the determination of the lateral shift by the lateral registration sensor S2 (ST16), and when the trailing edge of the paper reaches the punching position ( ST17), the post-punch conveying roller 9 and the carry-out vertical conveying rollers 10, 11, 12 are stopped (ST18, 19), and the punching process is executed. Here, the edge alignment and skew correction are performed by the registration roller 7 so that the punching is performed on the paper without the punching position being different between the papers (ST20).

  When the punching process is completed, the post-punch conveying roller 9 and the carry-out vertical conveying rollers 10, 11, and 12 are driven at a high linear velocity (ST21 and 22), respectively, and the paper discharge roller 13 is also driven at a high linear velocity ( ST23).

  On the other hand, it is determined whether or not a sheet that moves at high speed on the carry-out side is detected by the paper discharge sensor S3 (ST24). If detected, the vertical conveyance rollers 10, 11, 12 and the paper discharge roller 13 on the carry-out side are the main body. The linear speed of the paper discharge roller 1, in other words, the drive speed is switched to the receiving speed (ST25, 26). As a result, the sheet is discharged to the finisher FN side from the punching conveyance path A on the 100 side of the punching success at the same speed as the sheet discharged without performing the punching operation.

  Thereafter, when the paper discharge sensor S3 is switched off, the remaining of the in-machine paper is detected, and if the result is that no in-machine (in-machine) paper remains, the transport control in the punching device 100 ends (ST27). , 28).

FIG. 18 is a flowchart showing the contents of the lateral registration detection process (ST15) and punch movement process (ST16) in FIG. 17. In FIG. 18, the lateral registration detection process is performed as shown in FIG. In this embodiment, a CCD line sensor is used as the lateral registration sensor S2.
In the CCD line sensor, the CCD is arranged so as to cover the range from the minimum width size to the maximum width size, and the side end surface of the paper can be detected. Naturally, detection is possible even when these sheets are laterally displaced, and detection up to ± 7.5 mm at maximum is possible. Next, the punch unit 8 is slid in the direction orthogonal to the conveyance direction, the difference between the position of the side end surface detected by the lateral registration sensor S2 and the position ideally conveyed. The punch unit 8 stands by at a position that is moved to the front side (or the back side) with respect to the transfer center position by an assumed maximum lateral registration amount (set to 7.5 mm). If the punch unit 8 has been transported in a state where there is no punch, the punch unit 8 slides 7.5 mm to perforate. When the sheet is transported in a state shifted by 2 mm toward the front side, the hole is pierced by 5.5 mm sliding. The sliding movement of the punch unit 8 is preferably completed immediately before the sheet stops at a predetermined punching location. Even if the paper is stopped, if the punch unit 8 is in the sliding movement, the punch unit cannot be punched and the productivity is lowered, and the sliding movement is completed too long before the paper stops. As a result, the detection by the lateral registration sensor S2 is made too early, and the lateral registration detection accuracy may deteriorate.

In FIG. 18, the lateral registration amount is determined from the output from the CCD sensor (ST30), and the movement amount of the punch unit 8 is calculated accordingly (ST31).
On the other hand, in the punch movement process, the punch unit 8 is moved based on the movement amount determined in step ST31 (ST40).

Next, the outline of the configuration of the punch unit 8 used in this embodiment will be described together with the operation thereof as follows.
In this embodiment, the punch unit 8 can move in a direction perpendicular to the sheet conveyance direction, that is, a so-called sheet width direction, in accordance with the result of the lateral registration.

  The punch unit 8 is a member that can move along the longitudinal direction of the stay 33 used as a support portion fixed to the non-moving portion of the punching processing apparatus 100. For this reason, the punch unit 8 is shown in FIG. As shown in 15 and 16, it is inserted into a stay 33 having a cross-sectional structure with an upward channel shape and mounted on a base 32 having rollers 35 in the vicinity of four corners in the longitudinal direction. In addition, guide pins 34 are provided upright in the vicinity of both ends in the longitudinal direction of the stay 33, and when the fitting portion formed on the base 32 is fitted, the base 32 moves when the inside of the stay 33 moves. It is designed not to skew.

  In the punch unit 8, the base 32 moves in the stay 33 along the longitudinal direction thereof, that is, the direction perpendicular to the transport direction of the paper, thereby adjusting the shift in the paper width direction, so-called lateral registration to adjust the paper. A punch hole can be formed at a predetermined position regardless of the deviation.

  When fixing the punch unit 8 mounted on the base 32, as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, a pair of docking pins 30 fixed to a pin bracket 31 provided on the base 32 side, and this The side where the docking pin 30 is provided and the fastening part provided on the bracket located on the opposite side in the longitudinal direction are used, and the integral fixing when the punch unit 8 is mounted on the base part 32 is fitted. It is designed to be a simple operation of joining and fastening. 3 shows a state in which an upper punch guide plate 42 and a lower punch guide plate 43 equipped with a lateral registration sensor S2 (reference numeral 41 is used in FIG. 3), and FIG. 4 shows that these members are removed. The installation state of the punch unit 8 and the stay 33 is shown respectively.

On the other hand, the stay 33 is equipped with a punch driving source in the punch unit 8 which is provided in a non-moving portion of the punching processing apparatus 100 and is a punching means and a driving source for adjusting the lateral registration.
5 and 6 are diagrams showing the installation configuration of the drive source with respect to the punch unit 8. The drive source is one end in the longitudinal direction of the stay 33, in this embodiment, the end facing the front side in the insertion direction of the punch unit 8. The servo motor 21 and the stepping motor 39 that are attached to the bracket provided in the above are used.
The servo motor 21 and the stepping motor 39 are both controlled by the control unit 200 shown in FIG. 19. Of these motors, the servo motor 21 drives the punch blade of the punch unit 8. The stepping motor 39 is used for adjusting the lateral registration of the punch unit 8, in other words, as a drive source for the slide mechanism.

  The servo motor 21 is supported by a motor bracket 23 having a vertical surface provided at the end of the stay 33, and the stepping motor 39 is a downward channel-shaped motor bracket provided at the end of the stay 33. It is supported on a horizontal surface 33a.

  In FIG. 5, a motor gear 21 a is attached to the output shaft of the servo motor 21, and a ratchet gear 17 attached to the shaft end of the rotating shaft 24 supported by the motor bracket 23 is provided on the motor gear 21 a. Yes.

  Although the ratchet gear 17 will be described in detail later, a ratchet cam member 15 is integrated on the surface facing the punch unit 8, and the cam member 15 is loaded on the rotary shaft 24. 19 is biased toward the punch unit 8 side. The cam member 15 can be engaged with the ratchet cam member 17 attached to the end of the rotary shaft on the punch unit 8 side by a biasing force using the spring 19 when the relative phase coincides with the rotational phase. It has become.

On the other hand, in FIG. 5, a stepping motor 39 used as a drive source for adjusting the lateral registration of the punch unit 8 has a pulley 39a attached to its output shaft, and this pulley 39a has a horizontal surface of the motor bracket 33a. A timing belt 38 is wound around a plurality of pulleys 39b provided.
The timing belt 39 is provided with a fixed plate 37 at one of the extended portions thereof, that is, at an extended portion parallel to the moving direction of the punch unit 8, and the fixed plate 37 has one base portion 32 of the punch unit 8. The parts are integrated. As a result, the base portion 32 can reciprocate in conjunction with the movement of the timing belt 38, and the amount of lateral registration can be adjusted by adjusting the amount of movement in this direction. A swing lever 39c is integrated with one of the pulleys around which the timing belt 39 is wound, and tension is applied to the timing belt 39 by the bias of a spring 39d applied to the swing lever 39c. It is supposed to be.

  In FIG. 6, the rotation phase of the servo motor 21 is detected by an encoder 21b attached to the output shaft of the motor and an encoder sensor 22 disposed in the vicinity thereof. As shown in FIG. Is output.

  In addition, the stepping motor 39 is provided with a light shielding plate 32a provided on the fixing plate 37 fixed to the base 32 side and a photo provided on the motor bracket 33a side at the expected position when the punch unit 8 is mounted. When it is determined by the control unit 200 that the punch unit 8 has reached the intended position from the home sensor 40 because it is determined based on the correspondence with the home sensor 40 in which the sensor is used. Is moved based on the lateral registration adjustment amount based on the position.

  FIG. 8 shows a state in which the punch unit 8 is mounted on the base portion 32 and inserted on the stay 33 and the intended position detection by the home sensor 40 is completed. In this state, when the amount of lateral displacement when the sheet passes the lateral registration sensor S2 is determined, the punch unit 8 moves in a direction perpendicular to the sheet conveying direction in accordance with the driving of the stepping motor 39. Horizontal resist adjustment is performed.

On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 8, the rotary shaft 20 is inserted through the casing of the punch unit 8, and an eccentric cam 25 is integrated with the rotary shaft 20 as shown in FIG. .
As shown in FIG. 12, the eccentric cam 25 is in contact with the upper surface of the bracket 26 that is integrated with the punch blade 27, and as shown in FIGS. A sheet positioned between the upper guide plate 28 and the punch lower guide plate 29 is punched.

In the present embodiment, a configuration for determining an expected position of the punch blade 27, that is, a position where punching of a sheet can be started, in other words, a state where protrusion toward the sheet is started, that is, a state where punching can be started. Is used.
In this configuration, a detection disk indicated by reference numeral 16 in FIG. 8 and a home position sensor 18 arranged on the stay 33 side in the vicinity of the detection disk 16 are used.
FIG. 11 and FIG. 13 are diagrams showing a state in which the detection disk 16 and the home position sensor 18 are opposed to each other. The detection disk 16 is integrated with the shaft end of the rotary shaft 20 inserted into the punch unit 8. It is a member having a cap-shaped cross-sectional structure, and a notch 16a is formed in a part of the peripheral edge, that is, a part in the circumferential direction.
The home position sensor 18 is an optical sensor arranged in a state where the periphery of the detection disk 16 is sandwiched, and detects the position of the notch 16a based on the difference in the light shielding state between the notch 16a and the non-notch. It has become.

In the detection disk 16, the position shown in FIG. 13, that is, the state in which the notch portion 16 a is positioned below and corresponds to the home position sensor 18 is detected as the home position of the punch blade 27. The target position is the center of the notch of the detection disk 16 by the home sensor 18 (when the notch angle is φ °, the position is (φ / 2) °).
The notch 16a has different punching times and punching speeds depending on the thickness, temperature environment, voltage, and the like of the paper. Therefore, the home position at the time of all punching is not the above-mentioned position. The punch blade 27 is prevented from projecting from the punch upper guide plate 28 if it is in the notch (φ ° range) 16a.
If the detection disk 16 stops beyond the notch 16a, the tip of the punch blade 27 protrudes from the punch upper guide plate 28, so that when the next sheet is carried in, the tip is moved. The punch blade 27 may collide with or come into contact with the punch blade 27, resulting in a scratch or a jam. In order to prevent such a situation from occurring, it is necessary to define the intended position of the punch, that is, the home position where punching can be started.

  The home position sensor 18 that detects the notch portion 16a stops the stepping motor 39 by reaching the notch portion 16a again after the stepping motor 39 makes one rotation, but starts to reach the notch portion 16a during the rotation process. The pulse from the point in time until the point at which the notch 16a is no longer opposed is output to the control unit 200.

  In the control unit 200, the pulses output from the encoder sensor 22 (see FIG. 6) are counted from the time when the home position sensor 18 starts detecting the notch 16a, and the notch 16a is again cut by the home position sensor 18. The stepping motor 39 is stopped at the time when the number of pulses that is half of the number of pulses counted in advance coincides with the time when the detection of the notch 16a is started. Thereby, a rotational phase corresponding to a half position (φ / 2) of the angle φ ° of the notch portion 16a is obtained, and this state is a state in which drilling can be started without causing the punch blade 27 to protrude from the upper punch guide plate 28. It is set as an initial state corresponding to.

  The time when the home position sensor 18 detects the notch 16 a of the detection disk 16 is the time when it is detected that the punch unit 8 is mounted on the stay 33. That is, when the punch unit 8 is mounted on the stay 33, the light shielding plate 32a (see FIG. 6) included in the base 32 is detected by the home sensor 40 (see FIG. 6), and is thus positioned at the intended position. Therefore, the home position of the punch blade 27 is detected based on the input of the detection signal from the home sensor 40.

  In this embodiment, when the home position of the punch blade 27 is detected, the servo motor 21 is rotationally driven at a speed equal to or lower than the speed at the time of drilling, and the notch 16a of the detection disk 16 is detected during the one rotation. However, if the notch 16a is not detected, reverse rotation is set. This is for determining whether or not the sheet remains without being preceded by the punch unit 8. That is, when a thick sheet that is difficult for the punch blade 27 to pass through remains in the punch unit 8, even if the detection disk 16 is rotated forward, the punch blade 27 remains in contact with the sheet. For this reason, there may be a case where the rotation does not make one rotation, which makes it impossible to detect the notch 16a. Therefore, in this embodiment, power is supplied to the servomotor 21 based on the time required for one rotation, and when the cutout portion 16a is not detected within that time, the rotation is switched to the reverse rotation, and the cutout portion 16a can be detected during the reverse rotation. In this case, it is determined that the sheet remains in the punch unit 8. Accordingly, it is possible to detect the remaining sheet without providing the punch unit 8 with a configuration for detecting the remaining sheet.

On the other hand, in FIG. 13, a ratchet cam portion 15 is coaxially provided and integrated with the detection disk 16, and a ratchet gear 17 on the servo motor 21 side opposite thereto is shown in FIG. In addition, a ratchet cam portion 17a is coaxially integrated.
As shown in FIGS. 10 and 13, the cam portions 15 and 17a have a half-shaped relative shape in the circumferential direction, and the meshing surfaces 15a and 17a1 abut against each other when the relative shapes coincide with each other in the rotational phase. Can be engaged to transmit the driving force. For this reason, when the relative shapes do not coincide with each other in the rotational phase, both cam portions are in a state of being ridden. However, when the punch unit 8 is loaded on the stay 33, the rotational speed of the servo motor 21 is set at the time of punching. When the relative shapes of the cams coincide with each other when the notch 16a of the detection disk 16 is detected with the speed set to be lower than the speed, the end surfaces 15a and 17a1 of both cam portions are biased by the spring 19 loaded on the rotating shaft 24. The two are engaged with each other, and the driving force can be transmitted between them.
FIG. 14 is a front view showing a state in which both cam portions 15 and 17 are engaged with each other. In FIG. 14, the cams have a gap enough to obtain an angle γ ° between one of their circumferential end faces. Due to the presence of this gap, the cam portion on the side that has been ridden easily falls toward the cam portion on the side that is not ridden so that the meshing can be performed smoothly. Accordingly, the rotation of the ratchet gear 17 is transmitted to the eccentric cam 20 for driving the detection disk 16 and the punch blade 27 via the cam portion 17a and the cam portion 15 meshing with the cam portion 17a.

In the present embodiment having the above-described configuration, even when a sheet such as a sheet discharged from the image forming apparatus PR is selected to be punched, even if the sheet is conveyed at high speed on the image forming apparatus PR side. When the transfer claw 3 is introduced into the carry-in side of the perforation carrying path A, the carrying path on the carry-in side can be advanced without being affected by the speed of the main body discharge roller 1 by setting the carry-on side carry distance. Even when the roller 7 is temporarily stopped, an increase in the amount of bending can be prevented. Therefore, it is possible to suppress the folding and wrinkling of the paper that occurs when the amount of deflection increases.
Further, the sheet fed by the registration roller 7 is once increased in speed so that the conveyance interval that causes a collision with the subsequent sheet is not shortened. In addition, when transported toward the finisher FN, the transport speed once increased is set to the transport speed when transported directly from the image forming apparatus PR toward the finisher FN, so that the finisher FN side Therefore, it is not necessary to switch the conveyance speed control on the finisher FN side.

It is a schematic diagram for demonstrating the structure of the conveyance path in the punching processing apparatus by this invention Example. It is a schematic diagram for demonstrating the structure used for the horizontal registration detection performed with the punching processing apparatus by a present Example. It is an external view of the punch unit used for the perforation processing apparatus by a present Example. FIG. 4 is an external view showing the punch unit shown in FIG. 3 excluding a guide portion. It is a perspective view which shows the drive part used for the horizontal registration movement in the punch unit shown in FIG. 3, and the expected position detection structure in this movement. It is a perspective view which shows the state which looked at the structure shown in FIG. 5 from the opposite side of the direction shown in FIG. It is a schematic diagram for demonstrating the discharge structure of the punching waste in the punch unit shown in FIG. FIG. 4 is a front view of the punch unit shown in FIG. 3 as viewed from the sheet conveyance direction. It is a figure for demonstrating the state at the time of the punching in the punch unit shown in FIG. It is a perspective view which shows the structure by the side of the main body of the drive mechanism in the punch unit shown in FIG. It is a perspective view which shows the structure by the side of the movement of the drive mechanism in the punch unit shown in FIG. FIG. 4 is a schematic front view showing a relationship between a cam for driving a punch blade and a bracket in the punch unit shown in FIG. 3 as seen from the sheet conveying direction. It is a perspective view which shows the home position setting mechanism of the punch blade in the punch unit shown in FIG. It is a figure which shows the principle structure for the initialization operation | movement with the drive mechanism with which the punch unit shown in FIG. 3 is equipped. It is a perspective view for demonstrating the attachment or detachment structure of the punch unit shown in FIG. It is a perspective view which shows the state seen from the viewpoint on the opposite side to a viewpoint which shows FIG. 15 in order to demonstrate the attachment / detachment structure shown in FIG. It is a flowchart for demonstrating the operation procedure of the punching processing apparatus by this invention Example. It is a flowchart for demonstrating some details of the processes shown in FIG. It is a block diagram for demonstrating the structure of the control part used for the punching processing apparatus by this invention Example.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Main body discharge roller 2 Entrance roller 3 Switching claw 4-6 The conveyance roller located in the carrying-in side of a piercing conveyance path 7 Registration roller 8 Punch unit 9 Post-punch conveyance roller 10-12 The conveyance roller located in the unloading side of a piercing conveyance path DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 13 Paper discharge roller 100 Perforation processing apparatus 200 Control part A Perforation conveyance path B Discharge conveyance path PR Image forming apparatus FN Finisher S1 Entrance sensor S2 Horizontal registration sensor S3 Paper discharge sensor

Claims (8)

A perforation processing device for perforating conveyed paper and transporting the paper,
A transport path capable of selecting a transport direction of the paper toward the punching work section and a direction of discharging without performing the punching work;
Among the transport paths, the perforation transport path for the perforating work is formed in a substantially U shape, the lowermost part thereof is substantially horizontal, and the punching means for performing the perforating work is disposed in the lowermost part. A perforation processing apparatus characterized by being provided. The perforation processing apparatus according to claim 1,
At the paper carry-in side with respect to the punching means in the transport path, posture forcing means for correcting the posture of the paper is arranged, and the distance on the paper carry-in side to the posture correcting means can be punched by the punching means. A perforation processing apparatus, characterized in that the length is set to be equal to or greater than the maximum length among the lengths in the transport direction of a simple sheet. The perforation processing apparatus according to claim 1 or 2,
A radius of curvature is set at a position where the vertical conveyance of the paper is switched from the vertical conveyance to the horizontal conveyance on the sheet carry-in side in the conveyance path so that the paper can be pressed in one direction by the shape restoring force of the paper. The perforation processing apparatus characterized by the above-mentioned. The perforation processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3,
When the paper is punched, the transport speed on the carry-out side of the paper transported after punching is temporarily increased with respect to the paper transport speed on the paper carry-in side in the transport path, and the paper is discharged without performing the punching work. A perforation processing apparatus for conveying in conformity with the conveying speed by the conveying means on the discharge side when reaching the conveying path at the time of discharge. The perforation processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4,
A punching process is provided at the lowermost part of the transporting path in which the punching means is arranged, and is provided with an accommodating portion for punching scraps facing the punching means across the transport path in a substantially horizontal direction. apparatus. The perforation processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 5,
In the transport path, the transport distance in the lowermost part is made larger than a distance between positions branched from the transport path of the paper discharged without performing the punching operation to the paper carry-in side and the paper carry-out side. A perforation processing device.   A sheet processing apparatus using the punching processing apparatus according to claim 1.   An image forming apparatus using the sheet processing apparatus according to claim 7.

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