JP2007076874A - Paper post-handling device and image forming device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a paper handling device capable of aligning a plurality of conveyance papers securely even if these papers are piled up and achieving high speed operation by improving work efficiency of aligning operation. <P>SOLUTION: This paper post-handling device FR is constituted in such a way that it has a binding processing tray F for performing loading, matching, and binding processing of papers and a conveyance means for leading single number or a plurality of numbers of papers onto the binding processing tray from an inlet part, the binding processing tray F has a stopper 51 for aligning end parts of papers, a rotary member 12 coming into contact with a paper, butting the paper against the stopper 51, and capable of swinging, a release means 52 for releasing a paper, and a protruding member 52a on which an end part of paper released by the release means 52 is abutted, and the aligning operation in the direction of conveyance of a plurality of papers delivered onto the binding processing tray F is performed by the protruding member 52a. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a paper post-processing apparatus that sorts recording paper discharged from an image forming apparatus such as a copying machine, a printer, and a facsimile and performs predetermined post-processing.

When post-processing is performed on a sheet on which an image is recorded by an image forming apparatus such as a copying machine, a printer, or a facsimile, conventionally, each sheet to be discharged to a tray for alignment and binding processing is provided near the tray. The swingable rotating member having elasticity is brought into contact with the paper, and the paper is brought into contact with the stopper to align the conveyance direction.
However, a time for performing the stipple process has to be provided between the parts where the stipple process occurs, which is one of the factors that hinder the improvement of the productivity. For this reason, a mechanism has been proposed in which a plurality of sheets are retained on the sheet conveyance path, and these are simultaneously conveyed to a tray for performing the stipple process, thereby shortening the stipple process time and improving the productivity.

As described above, as a sheet post-processing apparatus having a mechanism for discharging a stack of stacked sheets to a staple tray as described above, in Patent Document 1, for example, a rotating member (hereinafter referred to as a hitting roller) and a discharge belt are used. Discloses a method for aligning sheets of the sheet bundle using a protruding member (hereinafter, referred to as a discharge claw) for discharging the sheets to an external tray.
However, when the hitting roller is brought into contact with the paper, only the final paper existing at the top of the plurality of sheets comes into contact with the hitting roller. For this reason, the paper other than the final paper can receive only the force that is struck in the stopper direction by the hitting roller by the friction between the papers, and cannot obtain a sufficient force. In this case, if the number of staying sheets is only one, rotate the discharge claw in the direction opposite to the paper discharge direction, drop the paper on the stopper, and then tap the paper edge with a tapping roller to stabilize the alignment operation. However, if the number of stays increases and it becomes necessary to align the transport direction of multiple sheets with a roller, the behavior of the sheets will not be stable, and this alignment operation must be performed reliably. There is a problem that is difficult.

Further, when paper is aligned by the hitting roller and the discharge claw as described above, the alignment by the discharge claw is performed after the sheet bundle is hit by the hitting roller and falls on the staple tray. At this time, the sheet bundle settles on the staple tray and is aligned when the sheets are in close contact with each other. In such a state, friction between the sheets is large, and due to this frictional force, alignment by the discharge claw is performed. There was a risk of problems such as insufficient ink and paper breakage.
In addition, when aligning using the hitting roller and the discharge claw in this way, the return force to the stopper does not work even if the paper edge is hit with the discharge claw while the hitting roller is operating. It is not possible to strike the paper simultaneously with these two members. For this reason, since time for each operation | movement is needed, it is difficult to apply to the high-speed processing machine.

JP 2000-211795 A

  Therefore, in view of the above circumstances, the present invention can reliably align these sheets even when a plurality of conveyance sheets stays, and realizes high speed by improving the working efficiency of this aligning operation. It is an object of the present invention to provide a paper processing apparatus that can handle the above.

The features of the present invention, which is a means for solving the above problems, are listed below.
1. The present invention is a paper post-processing device that introduces paper discharged from the image forming apparatus and performs necessary post-processing, and includes a binding processing tray that performs stacking, alignment, and binding processing of paper, and an entrance portion. Conveying means for guiding a single sheet or a plurality of sheets to the binding processing tray, the binding processing tray including a stopper for aligning end portions of the sheets stacked on the binding processing tray, and the binding processing tray A swingable rotating member that comes into contact with the paper stacked on the sheet and abuts the paper against the stopper, discharge means for discharging the paper stacked on the binding processing tray, and paper discharged by the discharge means A projecting member that abuts the end portion, and the alignment operation of the paper discharged to the binding processing tray in the transport direction is performed by the swingable rotating member or the projecting member. That is a sheet post-processing apparatus.
2. The sheet post-processing apparatus of the present invention is: In the invention described in the above, when the plurality of sheets to be conveyed are retained, and the sheet bundle is discharged to the binding processing tray in a state where a plurality of sheets are stacked, the sheet edge alignment operation in the conveyance direction is performed on the discharge unit. It is preferable to perform the operation by moving the provided protruding member in the anti-paper discharge direction and abutting the paper edge against the stopper.
3. The sheet post-processing apparatus of the present invention is: In the invention described above, the rotation of the projecting member in the direction opposite to the paper discharge direction is caused by the natural fall after the rear end of the paper bundle has passed through the final roller for discharging the paper to the staple means. It is preferable to start before the end of the sheet bundle contacts the stopper.
4). The sheet post-processing apparatus of the present invention is: Or 3. In the invention described in any one of the above, it is preferable that the standby position of the protruding member before the reverse rotation of the discharging unit is determined based on the size of the sheet conveyed to the binding processing tray.
5. The sheet post-processing apparatus of the present invention is: Or 4. In the invention according to any one of the above, the movement of the protruding member to the standby position before the reverse rotation of the discharge unit is performed after the sheet bundle is discharged is transported to the binding processing tray. This is preferably performed after the first sheet size is determined.
6). The sheet post-processing apparatus of the present invention is: Or 5. In the invention according to any one of the above, it is preferable that the reverse rotation operation of the discharge unit is performed only when the sheets are conveyed and aligned in a state where a plurality of sheets are stacked.
7). The sheet post-processing apparatus of the present invention is: Or 6. In the invention according to any one of the above, the retracted position of the projecting member after the projecting member provided in the ejecting unit is moved in the anti-paper ejecting direction and the end of the sheet is abutted against the stopper is: It is preferable that the determination is made based on whether or not the sheet can be bound.
8). The sheet post-processing apparatus of the present invention is: Or 7. In the invention according to any one of the above, the retracted position of the projecting member after the projecting member provided in the ejecting unit is moved in the anti-paper ejecting direction and the end of the sheet is abutted against the stopper is: It is preferable that the position is determined by a binding processing position applied to the paper.

9. In addition, the image forming apparatus of the present invention includes an image carrier that carries a latent image, a charging unit that charges the surface of the image carrier, and the charged surface of the image carrier is exposed based on image data. An exposure unit that writes a latent image, a developing unit that supplies toner to the latent image formed on the surface of the image carrier and visualizes the image, and a visible image on the surface of the image carrier is transferred to a transfer target. An image forming apparatus comprising: a transfer unit; Or 8. It is preferable to attach the sheet post-processing apparatus according to any one of the above.

  By the means for solving the above-described problem, the sheet post-processing apparatus of the present invention performs alignment of the sheet conveying direction only by the discharge claw when conveying a plurality of stacked sheets to a tray for alignment and binding processing. As a result, it is possible to perform a stable alignment operation without reducing productivity and without the problem of alignment failure.

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below.
FIG. 1 is an overall configuration diagram of a sheet post-processing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. Here, the following description will be made assuming that the image forming apparatus is attached to the image forming apparatus.
The sheet post-processing apparatus FR is attached to a side portion of an image forming apparatus (not shown), and the sheet discharged from the image forming apparatus is guided to the sheet post-processing apparatus FR through a conveyance path.
The paper passes through a conveyance path A having a punch unit 100 as a punching means, a conveyance path B that leads to the upper tray 201, a conveyance path C that leads to the shift tray 202, a binding processing tray F (hereinafter referred to as alignment and stapling) It is configured to be distributed by two branching claws 15 and 16 for switching the conveyance path so as to convey the sheet in one of three directions to the conveyance path D leading to the processing tray F.).

The sheets that have been aligned and stapled in the processing tray F are distributed to the conveying tray C that leads to the shift tray 202, the processing tray G that is folded, and the like by the branch guide plate 54 and the movable guide 55 that are deflection means. The sheet that is configured and has been folded in the processing tray G is guided to the lower tray 203 through the conveyance path H.
Further, a branching claw 17 is disposed in the conveyance path D, and is held in the state shown in the figure by a low load spring (not shown). After the trailing edge of the sheet passes through this, the conveyance rollers 9, 10 and the staple discharge roller 11 is configured such that at least the transport roller 9 is reversed to guide and stay at the rear end to the paper storage portion E, so that it can be transported superimposed on the next paper.
By repeating this operation, the sheet post-processing apparatus FR of the present invention can carry two or more sheets in a superimposed manner.
In addition, a paper discharge sensor 305 that detects paper is provided in the transport path D, so that the paper transported by the lower transport roller 9 can be detected.

Note that a common conveyance path A upstream of the conveyance path B, the conveyance path C, and the conveyance path D is an inlet sensor 301 that detects a sheet received from the image forming apparatus, and a sheet is carried downstream from the entrance sensor 301. The entrance roller 1, the punch unit 100 as a punching device, the transport roller 2 for guiding the paper from the punch unit 100 to the branch claw 15, and the branch claws 15 and 16 are sequentially arranged. The branch claw 15 and the branch claw 16 are held in the state shown in FIG. 1 by a spring (not shown). By turning on a solenoid (not shown), the branch claw 15 is turned upward and the branch claw 16 is turned downward. By doing so, the paper is distributed to the conveyance path B, the conveyance path C, and the conveyance path D.
Specifically, when the sheet is guided to the conveyance path B, it is sufficient that the branch claw 15 is in the state shown in FIG. 1, and the solenoid is OFF. On the other hand, when the sheet is guided to the conveyance path C, the solenoid is turned on, and the branching claw 15 is rotated upward and the branching claw 16 is rotated downward from the state shown in FIG. When the sheet is guided to the conveyance path D, the branching claw 16 may be in the state shown in FIG. 1, the solenoid is OFF, and the branching claw 15 turns on the solenoid and rotates it upward from the state shown in FIG.

  In the transport path in the direction of the shift tray 202, an upper transport roller 5 for transporting the paper passing through the transport path C from the branching claw 16 to the paper discharge tray 202, and a discharge for detecting the paper transported by the upper transport roller 5. A paper sensor 303, a discharge roller 6 that discharges the paper to the shift tray 202, a moving roller 13 that collects the paper at a predetermined position on the shift tray 202, and the like are arranged. The shift tray 202 is appropriately moved up and down and left and right by a motor such as a tray up / down (up / down) motor and a shift motor (not shown) (see FIG. 7).

  The image forming apparatus provided with the paper processing apparatus FR of the present invention forms a visible image on a recording medium (paper) based on input image information or image information read by a scanner itself. For example, the image information An image processing apparatus that executes predetermined image processing such as converting image data into writable image information, an optical writing apparatus that writes an image on a photoconductor based on the converted writable image information, and an optical writing apparatus The developing device for developing the latent image written on the surface of the photoconductor by toner, the transfer device for transferring the developed visible image (toner image) to a paper as a recording medium, and the paper transferred by the transfer device from the photoconductor A separating device for separating, a fixing device for fixing the toner image transferred on the surface of the paper separated by the separating device, and a remaining on the photosensitive member; And a cleaner for separating the toner, and a static eliminator for neutralizing the potential remaining on the photoreceptor surface, an image forming apparatus of a so-called electrophotographic system. Since the electrophotographic image forming apparatus itself is publicly known, detailed description and illustration are omitted here. In addition to this, any known image forming apparatus such as an ink jet system, an ink ribbon system, and letterpress printing can be used.

Next, the configuration of the processing tray F that performs the staple processing, which is the main component of the present invention, will be described in detail.
FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing a configuration around the jogger fence 53 of the sheet post-processing apparatus of the present invention and an enlarged part thereof. The jogger fence 53 is driven by the jogger motor 158 via the jogger belt 40, and the tapping roller 12 is supported by the tapping solenoid 170 so as to be capable of pendulum movement. A rear end fence 51 as a stopper for abutting the paper side is disposed below the jogger fence 53. The rear end fence 51 may be provided in a state of being divided into a left and right pair as shown in FIG.
The rear end fence 51 is provided at the lower end of the stack tray 54 on which sheets are stacked when aligning the sheets. Further, the jogger fence 53 and the tapping roller as a rotating member are provided on the stack tray 54. 12 is also provided and constitutes a stacking means. Further, behind the stack tray 54, a discharge belt 52 as a discharge means for discharging paper is disposed (see FIG. 1).

In FIG. 3, the sheets guided to the processing tray F by the staple paper discharge roller 11 are sequentially stacked.
At this time, the hitting roller 12 is given a pendulum motion by the hitting SOL 170 about the fulcrum 12a, and intermittently acts on the sheet fed to the processing tray F to hit the sheet against the rear end fence 51. Thereby, the alignment in the vertical direction (vertical direction) of the paper conveyance direction is performed for each paper. The hitting roller 12 rotates counterclockwise.
The jogger fence 53 is driven via a timing belt by a jogger motor 158 capable of forward and reverse rotation, and reciprocates in the paper width direction. Thereby, alignment in the paper width direction (lateral direction) orthogonal to the paper transport direction is performed.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing a configuration around the discharge belt 52 and an enlarged part thereof.
As shown in FIG. 4, the discharge belt HP sensor 311 detects the home position of the discharge claw 52a provided on the discharge belt 52 as a protruding member for discharging the paper to the external tray. The discharge belt HP sensor 311 is turned on / off by the discharge claw 52a.
Two discharge claws 52a are disposed on the outer periphery of the discharge belt 52 so as to face each other, and the sheet bundle accommodated in the processing tray F is moved and conveyed alternately. Further, the discharge claw 52a is rotated on the back side of the discharge belt 52 as necessary, so that the discharge claw 52a on the opposite side of the discharge claw 52a 'on the opposite side is waiting to move the sheet bundle to the external tray. The leading ends in the transport direction of the bundle of sheets stored in the processing tray F can be aligned.

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view showing the structure around the discharge belt 52 in the processing tray F. As shown in FIG.
In FIG. 2, the discharge belt 52 driven by the discharge motor 157 has a discharge belt 52 and its drive pulley 62 arranged at the center of alignment in the paper width direction, and symmetrically with the discharge roller. 56 is fixed. In the paper conveyance processing apparatus FR of the present invention, the peripheral speed of the discharge roller 56 is set to be faster than the peripheral speed of the discharge belt 52.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing the configuration of the peripheral portion of the end-face stitching stapler S1.
The end-face stitching stapler S1 is provided below the rear-end fence 51 located below the jogger fence 53 shown in FIG. 3, and is driven via a timing belt 60 by a forward / reversely-movable stapler moving motor 159 to The paper is moved in the paper width direction to bind a predetermined position of the copy.
A stapler movement HP sensor 312 for detecting the home position of the end-face stitching stapler S1 is provided at one end of the movement range of the end-face stitching stapler S1, and the binding position in the sheet width direction is from the home position. It is controlled by the amount of movement of the end-face stitching stapler S1.
In addition, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the saddle stitching stapler S2 has a distance from the rear end fence 51 to the needle striking position of the saddle stitching stapler S2 that is half the conveyance direction length of the maximum sheet size that can be saddle stitched. The two are arranged so as to be equal to or more than the corresponding distance, and two are arranged symmetrically with respect to the alignment center in the paper width direction, and are fixed to the stay 63.

  The aforementioned end-face stitching stapler S1 is driven by a staple signal from the control means 350 between job breaks, that is, from the last sheet of the sheet bundle to the first sheet of the next sheet bundle, and the binding process is performed. Is called. The sheet bundle subjected to the binding process is immediately sent to the shift paper discharge roller 6 by the discharge belt 52 having the discharge claw 52a, and is discharged to the shift tray 202 set at the receiving position.

Next, the configuration of the control circuit will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 7 is a block diagram showing an outline of the control means 350 in the sheet post-processing apparatus of the present invention. A central processing unit (hereinafter, referred to as a CPU) 360 formed of a microcomputer or the like includes a board that interfaces with the image forming apparatus, a switch board for various switches in the post-processing apparatus FR, and a post-processing apparatus FR. Various signals from a sensor board of various sensors, a ROM that stores various controls and data, and a clock circuit that outputs a clock signal serving as an operation reference are input. The input sensor signal is connected to the interrupt port as necessary. The CPU 360 outputs a signal to a control driver for each stepping motor, a control driver for other motors, or a driver for solenoid control in accordance with the input signal.
The stepping motor control driver includes stepping motors such as a jogger motor 158 for moving the jogger fence 53, a stapler moving motor 159 for moving the end-face stitching stapler S1, and a discharge motor 157 for driving the discharge belt 52. Output a control signal to the motor.
The control driver for the motor other than the stepping motor is a motor other than the stepping motor, such as a tray lifting / lowering motor or shift motor for the shift tray 202, a stapling motor for driving the end-face stitching stapler S1, and a paper storage unit E ( A control signal is output to a transport motor or the like that drives a transport roller 8 that transports the sheet to the prestack transport unit).
Further, the control driver for solenoid switches the switching solenoid for switching the branch claws 15 and 16, the tapping solenoid 170 for driving the tapping roller 12, and the branch for switching the transport path to the paper storage unit E (prestack transport unit) side. A control signal is output to a switching solenoid or the like that performs the switching operation of the claw 17.

  In the configuration described above, the operation when the non-stipple mode in which the stapling is not performed is selected will be described first. Copied paper from the image forming apparatus is received by the entrance roller 1, passes through the transport path C by the transport rollers 2 and 5, and is discharged onto the paper discharge tray 202 by the discharge roller 6. The alignment rollers 13 align the sheets in the vertical direction and are stacked on the discharge tray 202. At this time, the closing roller 13 is decelerated when the paper discharge sensor 303 detects the trailing edge of the paper, and the stacking property is improved. As the copied sheets are sequentially discharged, the discharge tray 202 is lowered by driving a vertical motor (not shown) by time control, and is always kept at an appropriate height. In the sort and stack modes, a shift motor (not shown) is driven by a partition signal output from a control panel (not shown) of the image forming apparatus to shift the discharge tray 202 and sort until the job is completed. Do.

Next, the operation of the processing tray F in the stipple mode will be described. When the stipple mode is selected, as shown in FIG. 3, the jogger fence 53 moves from the home position and waits at a standby position that is 7 mm away from the width of the paper discharged to the processing tray F.
As for the paper size, a signal is sent from the image forming apparatus when the job is started and whenever the paper is ejected from the image forming apparatus. The movement distance is determined by the signal.

The discharge claw 52a also starts to move to the paper receiving position. The standby position for receiving the paper after this movement differs depending on whether or not the paper is a paper size that can be prestacked.
Sheets that can be pre-tacked are limited to a predetermined size or less, and paper larger than the predetermined size cannot be prestacked due to the configuration. For this reason, it is necessary to set the standby position of the discharge claw 52a to a different position depending on whether or not the paper can be prestacked, that is, the paper size.
FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating the operation of the discharge claw 52a when press-stackable paper is transported to the processing tray F, and FIG. 10 is discharge when pre-stackable paper is transported to the processing tray F. It is a figure which shows operation | movement of the nail | claw 52a.
When the paper conveyed to the processing tray F is press stackable paper, as shown in FIG. 9, after the paper size information is determined by the activation signal sent from the image forming apparatus main body PR, (1 ) To the paper receiving position from the HP (home position) position of the discharge claw 52a (see FIG. 9 (2)). Here, the standby position of the discharge claw 52a shown in (2) is a position where the conveyed sheet is retracted to the downstream side by + α from the upper end of the sheet in a state where the conveyed sheet is stacked on the staple processing tray F. For this reason, the standby position of the discharge claw 52a in (2) is different for each sheet.
On the other hand, when the paper conveyed to the processing tray F is non-press stack paper, as shown in FIG. 10, the discharge claw 52a before paper acceptance after the paper size information is confirmed is shown in FIG. It moves to a position further downstream than the position indicated by 2) and waits (see FIG. 10 (2)). As a result, it is possible to accept paper having a size larger than a predetermined size. After the discharge claw 52a is moved to the position indicated by (2), the paper is received (see FIG. 10 (3)). Further, after the discharge claw 52a is moved to the position of the rear end fence 51 (see FIG. 10 (4)), when the paper stacked on the stapling processing tray F receives a stippling signal, the stapling processing is performed. Thereafter, when the paper discharge process is performed without performing the staple process, the discharge claw 52a is rotated as it is to discharge the sheet bundle (see FIG. 10 (5)). After the paper bundle discharge operation is completed, when the next paper information is determined, the discharge claw 52a is moved to the next paper receiving position based on the paper size (see FIG. 10 (6)).

  When the first copy paper enters the transport path in the direction of the processing tray F, it is sent to the paper storage section E (pre-stack transport section) by the branching claw 17 and transported by the transport roller 8 driven by the pre-stack transport motor. Reaches the appropriate position, the prestack transport motor stops and the paper stops. On the other hand, the second copy sheet is fed into the conveyance path D. Then, the transport roller 8 is driven by the prestack transport motor at a position where the leading edge of the first copy paper stacked in the paper storage section E (prestack transport section) is aligned, and then the two sheets are transported simultaneously.

When the paper is conveyed by the staple paper discharge roller 11 and the rear end of the paper passes through the staple paper discharge sensor 305, the jogger fence 53 moves inward by 5 mm from the standby position and stops.
Further, the staple paper discharge sensor 305 detects that when the trailing edge of the paper passes, and the signal is input to the CPU 360 (see FIG. 7). The CPU 360 counts the number of pulses transmitted from the staple conveyance motor 155 (not shown) that drives the staple paper discharge roller 11 from the time of reception of this signal, and conveys the paper staying on the conveyance system path after transmitting a predetermined pulse. The SOL 170 is turned on only when there is not, that is, only when one sheet is conveyed.
The tapping roller 12 performs a pendulum motion by turning on / off the tapping SOL 170. When the tapping roller 12 is on, the tapping roller 12 strikes the paper and returns it to the lower side, and abuts against the rear end fence 51 to align the paper.

(Multiple sheets available)
Further, the sheet post-processing apparatus FR of the present invention, when transporting a plurality of sheets staying on the transport path, performs the aligning operation with only the discharge claw 52a and operates the tapping roller 12 to operate the rear end fence. The operation of abutting on the paper 51 and aligning the paper conveyance direction is not performed.
The timing of aligning the conveyance direction of the sheet bundle by the discharge claw 52a is performed after the sheet bundle passes through the staple paper discharge roller 11 and before dropping to the rear end fence 51.
Conventionally, when transporting a plurality of stacked sheets to a tray that performs alignment and binding processing, the leading edge of the sheet is aligned only by the operation of the tapping roller 12, but this corrects misalignment of the leading edge of the sheet. The problem of misalignment was easy to occur. In particular, as the number of sheets stacked increases, it is difficult to align the deviation. In the sheet processing apparatus FR of the present invention, the timing of hitting the leading edge of the sheet bundle with the discharge claw 52a is performed before the sheet bundle falls on the stopper 51, thereby aligning the sheet conveyance direction with the discharge claw 52a. It can be done only by movement.

More specifically, the staple paper discharge sensor 305 detects this when the trailing edge of the sheet passes, and the signal is input to the CPU 360 (see FIG. 7). The number of pulses transmitted from the transport motor 155 is counted, and after a predetermined pulse, the discharge motor 157 reverses the discharge belt 52 and strikes the leading edge of the sheet bundle conveyed by the back of the discharge claw 52 a to the rear end fence 51. Butt and do paper alignment.
As a result, the working efficiency can be improved as long as the tapping roller 12 is not used. Further, the alignment by the discharge claw 52a exists in the air so that the sheet bundle exists in the air and air is contained between the sheets. Therefore, a stable alignment operation can be realized without causing the problem of alignment failure as in the prior art.
As described above, by providing the two discharge claws 52a on the discharge belt 52, when used for the alignment operation in the paper conveyance direction, the movement to the discharge start position is performed after the operation of pressing the leading edge of the paper is performed. The problem that it takes a long time is eliminated, and the productivity can be further improved.

After the paper is aligned by hitting the edge of the paper with the discharge claw 52a, the standby position of the discharge claw 52a is either a stapling process on the paper or a paper discharge process (paper is sent to the external tray without binding). In the case of performing the stipple process, the position of the binding is recognized and the subsequent movement position of the discharge claw 52a is returned to the paper reception standby position, or Decide whether to move to the rear fence position for discharge.
First, a case will be described in which the paper is received after the paper is aligned by the hitting operation of the discharge claw 52a, and the paper is not transferred to the stipple process.
In FIG. 9, after the discharge claw 52a is moved to the paper receiving position (see (2)), the prestacked paper is discharged to the staple processing tray F. Then, after rotating the discharge claw 52a and hitting the end face of the sheet to perform the alignment operation in the transport direction (see (3)), the discharge claw 52a is moved to the position indicated by (4-1). Thereafter, the sheet is received, and after the sheet having received the staple signal is stacked on the staple processing tray F, the discharge claw 52a is moved to the position of the rear end fence 51 (see (5)). Then, the stapling process is performed on the stacked sheets, and then the discharge claw 52a is moved to perform the sheet bundle discharge operation. After the paper bundle discharge operation is completed, when the next paper information is determined, the discharge claw 52a is moved to the next paper receiving position based on the paper size (see FIG. 9 (7)).

Next, a description will be given of a case where the stapling process is performed after the paper is aligned by the hitting operation of the discharge claw 52a. In this case, the paper alignment is performed in the case of performing one-point binding and in the case of performing two-point binding. The movement position of the discharge claw 52a after performing is different.
In the case of performing one-point binding processing on the paper, the paper end face discharged to the staple processing tray F is hit by the discharge claw 52a to align the conveyance direction (see (3)), and then the discharge claw 52a is moved. At the same time as the movement to the position of the rear end fence 51, the stapler S1 performs the stippling process (see (4-2)). This stippling process operation and the movement to the position of the rear end fence 51 of the discharge claw 52a are performed. After confirming the completion of both operations, a paper discharge operation is performed (see (6)). As described above, the stippling process by the stapler S1 is performed simultaneously with the movement of the discharge claw 52a to the position of the rear end fence 51, whereby the working time can be shortened. The movement of the discharge claw 52a to the position of the rear end fence 51 may be performed after the stipple processing operation is completed.
After the paper bundle discharge operation is completed, when the next paper information is determined, the discharge claw 52a is moved to the next paper receiving position based on the paper size (see FIG. 9 (7)).

On the other hand, when performing the two-point binding process on the paper, as in the case of the single-point binding, the paper end surface discharged to the staple processing tray F in (3) is hit with the discharge claw 52a to align the conveyance direction ( (See (3).) After that, simultaneously with the first stippling process by the stapler S1 or after the stippling process, the discharge claw 52a is moved to the paper receiving position shown in (4-1). The stapler S1 is moved to the second stapling position of the two-point binding in a state where the discharge claw 52a is in a standby state at the position indicated by (4-1).
At this time, if the discharge claw 52a is at the position of the rear end fence 51 indicated by (4-2), the stapler S1 and the discharge claw 52a collide, and the movement of the stapler S1 is inhibited. Since the discharge claw 52a is at the position (4-1), the stapler S1 can be smoothly moved to the second staple position.
The discharge claw 52a is put on standby at the position indicated by (4-1), and after the operation of moving the stipple S1 to the second stipple position is completed, the second place is placed on the sheets stacked on the stipple processing tray F. The discharge claw 52a is moved to the position of the rear end fence 51 simultaneously with the second stipple process (see (5)). After confirming the end of both the stapling process and the movement to the rear end fence 51 position of the discharge claw 52a, the discharge claw 52a is further moved to perform the paper discharge operation (see (6)). The movement to the position of the rear end fence 51 of the discharge claw 52a may be performed after the second stippling operation is completed, or after the movement to the position of the rear end fence 51 of the discharge claw 52a is performed. It is good also as performing the stipple process of the 2nd place.
After the paper bundle discharge operation is completed, when the next paper information is determined, the discharge claw 52a is moved to the next paper receiving position based on the paper size (see FIG. 9 (7)).

  At this time, every time the paper stored in the processing tray F passes the entrance sensor 301 or the staple paper discharge sensor 305, the signal is input to the CPU 360, and the number of sheets is counted. At this time, if the sheets are stored in the sheet storage unit E, the number of sheets is counted each time the sheets are stored in the sheet storage unit E. The number of sheets stored when passing the sensor 305 is added and stored in the CPU 360.

  When the hitting SOL 170 is operated, the hitting SOL 170 is turned off and the discharge claw 52a is operated after a lapse of a predetermined time. When the discharge claw 52a is operated, the jogger fence 53 is moved by the jogger motor 53 158 further moves inward by 2.6 mm, stops once, and the horizontal alignment ends. The jogger fence 53 then moves outward by 7.6 mm, returns to the standby position, and waits for the next sheet. This operation is performed up to the last page. On the final page, it moves again to the inside 7 mm and stops, and prepares for the stapling operation by pressing both ends of the sheet bundle. Thereafter, after a predetermined time, the end surface binding stapler S1 is operated by the staple motor 160, and the binding process is performed.

  FIG. 6 is a perspective view showing the structure of the end-face stitching stapler S1 of the sheet processing apparatus of the present invention. If two or more bindings are designated at this time, after one binding process is completed, the staple movement motor 159 is driven, and the end-face binding stapler S1 is moved to an appropriate position along the rear edge of the sheet. The second stitching process is performed. If the third and subsequent locations are specified, this is repeated.

  When the binding process is completed, the discharge motor 157 is driven, and the discharge belt 52 is driven. At this time, the paper discharge motor is also driven, and the shift paper discharge roller 6 starts to rotate so as to accept the sheet bundle lifted by the discharge claw 52a. At this time, the jogger fence 53 is controlled to be different depending on the paper size and the number of sheets to be bound. For example, when the number of sheets to be bound is less than the set number or smaller than the set size, the trailing edge of the sheet bundle is hooked and conveyed by the discharge claw 52a while the sheet bundle is pressed by the jogger fence 53.

After a predetermined pulse from the detection by the paper presence sensor 310 or the discharge belt HP sensor 311, the jogger fence 53 is retracted 2 mm, and the restraint on the paper by the jogger fence 53 is released. This predetermined pulse is set after the discharge claw 52a comes into contact with the rear end of the paper and passes through the front end of the jogger fence 53.
When the number of sheets to be bound is larger than the set number or larger than the set size, the jogger fence 53 is retracted in advance by 2 mm and discharged. In any case, when the sheet bundle passes through the jogger fence 53, the jogger fence 53 moves further to the outside by 5 mm and returns to the standby position to prepare for the next sheet. It is also possible to adjust the binding force according to the distance of the jogger fence 53 to the paper.

  After the sheet bundle is discharged to the external tray by the discharge claw 52a, the discharge claw 52a must also be moved to receive the next sheet. However, the discharge claw is determined after the first sheet size of the next part is determined. 52a is moved. By controlling in this way, even if the size of the first sheet of the first copy is different from the size of the first sheet of the second set, it can be controlled without any problem.

FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing the paper post-processing process of the paper post-processing apparatus FR of the present invention.
If it is determined by the sensor that there is stagnant paper, it is confirmed that the staple paper discharge sensor 305 is ON and the shift paper discharge sensor 303 is OFF along the flow of FIG. Turns ON, thereby performing a tapping operation and aligning the paper transport direction.
On the other hand, when there is no stagnant paper, it is confirmed that the staple paper discharge sensor 305 is turned on and the shift paper discharge sensor 303 is turned off along the flow of d, and then the tapping roller 12 is turned on. Align the transport direction. Thereafter, in both cases, the jogger fence 53 is moved in both predetermined directions, thereby aligning the paper width direction, and then the stapler operation by the end face sealing stapler F1 and the paper discharge operation by the shift paper discharge roller 6 and the discharge belt 52. The sheet bundle subjected to the binding process is discharged to the external tray.

1 is an overall configuration diagram of a sheet post-processing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. 3 is a cross-sectional view showing a structure around a discharge belt 52 in a processing tray F. FIG. It is a perspective view which expands and shows a part while showing the structure around a jogger fence. It is a perspective view which expands and shows a part while showing the structure around a discharge belt. It is a perspective view which shows the structure of an end surface binding stapler periphery. It is a perspective view which shows the structure of the end surface binding stapler of the paper processing apparatus of this invention. It is a block diagram which shows the outline of the control means in the paper post-processing apparatus of this invention. It is a flowchart which shows the paper post-processing process of the paper post-processing apparatus of this invention. FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating an operation of a discharge claw when press-stackable paper is conveyed to a processing tray F. FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an operation of a discharge claw when pre-stackable paper is conveyed to the processing tray F.

Explanation of symbols

FR Paper Post-Processing Device 100 Punch Unit 305 Stipple Discharge Sensor 301 Entrance Sensor 303 Discharge Sensor 310 Paper Presence Sensor 311 Release Belt HP Sensor 312 Stapler Movement HP Sensor 313 Staple Motor 1 Inlet Roller 6 Shift Discharge Roller 11 Staple Discharge Roller 12 Tapping roller 13 Shifting roller 17 Branch claw 40 Jogger belt 51 Rear end fence 52 Release belt 52a Release claw 53 Jogger fence 54 Stack tray 56 Release roller 60 Timing belt 62 Drive pulley 63 Stay 157 Release motor 158 Jogger motor 159 Stipler movement motor 170 Tapping Solenoi 202 Shift tray E Paper storage (pre-stack transport)
F processing tray S1 end face stitching stapler S2 saddle stitching stapler 350 control means 360 CPU

Claims (9)

In a paper post-processing apparatus that introduces paper discharged from an image forming apparatus and performs necessary post-processing,
The sheet post-processing apparatus includes a binding processing tray for stacking, aligning, and binding sheets,
Conveying means for guiding one or more sheets from the entrance to the binding processing tray;
The binding processing tray includes a stopper for aligning paper edges stacked on the binding processing tray;
A swingable rotating member that contacts the paper loaded on the binding processing tray and abuts the paper against the stopper;
Discharging means for discharging the sheets stacked on the binding processing tray;
A projecting member that abuts against the end of the paper ejected by the ejecting means,
The sheet post-processing device, wherein the alignment operation in the transport direction of the sheets discharged to the binding processing tray is performed by the swingable rotating member or the protruding member. The sheet post-processing apparatus according to claim 1,
The sheet post-processing device retains a plurality of sheets to be transported, and performs a sheet edge aligning operation in a transport direction when discharging the sheet bundle to the binding processing tray in a state where a plurality of sheets are stacked. A sheet post-processing apparatus, wherein the protrusion member provided on the sheet is moved in a direction opposite to the sheet discharge direction and the sheet end is abutted against the stopper. The sheet post-processing apparatus according to claim 1,
The protrusion member rotates in the direction opposite to the paper discharge direction so that the rear end of the paper bundle passes through the final roller for discharging the paper to the stapling means, and the end of the paper bundle is moved by the natural fall. Paper post-processing apparatus, which starts before contacting the stopper In the paper post-processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3,
The paper post-processing apparatus, wherein the standby position of the protruding member before the reverse rotation of the discharge unit is started is determined based on a paper size conveyed to the binding processing tray. In the paper post-processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4,
The movement of the protruding member to the standby position before the reverse rotation of the discharge unit is performed after the sheet bundle is discharged, and the size of the first sheet of the next portion that is conveyed to the binding processing tray is determined. The sheet post-processing apparatus is characterized in that the sheet post-processing apparatus is performed after the recording. In the paper post-processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 5,
The sheet post-processing apparatus is characterized in that the reverse rotation operation of the discharge means is performed only when the sheets are conveyed and aligned in a state in which a plurality of sheets are stacked. The paper post-processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 6,
The retraction position of the protrusion member after moving the protrusion member provided in the discharge unit in the anti-paper discharge direction and abutting the end of the paper against the stopper depends on whether or not the binding process to the paper is possible. A paper post-processing device characterized by being determined. In the paper post-processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 7,
The retracted position of the projecting member after the projecting member provided in the ejecting means is moved in the anti-paper ejecting direction and the end of the paper is abutted against the stopper is a binding processing position applied to the paper. A paper post-processing apparatus characterized by the above-mentioned. An image carrier that carries a latent image; a charging unit that charges the surface of the image carrier; an exposure unit that exposes the charged surface of the image carrier based on image data and writes an electrostatic latent image; and In an image forming apparatus comprising: a developing unit that supplies toner to a latent image formed on a surface of a carrier and visualizes the latent image; and a transfer unit that transfers a visible image on the surface of the image carrier to a transfer target. ,
9. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the sheet post-processing apparatus according to claim 1 is attached to the image forming apparatus.

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