JP2008050162A - Post-processing device and post-processing method - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To enable a post-processing causing no defect even when different types of sheets of paper are post-processed together. <P>SOLUTION: This post-processing device 10 comprises a stapler 120 for performing the post-processing in which multiple sheets of paper including the sheets of paper discharged from an image forming device 200 are bound together, a conveying path 170a for conveying the sheets of paper to the stapler 120, a standby part having a large diameter drum 190 and a pair of conveying rollers 140c, 140d installed in the conveying path 170a and temporarily stand ready the paper, and a control part 11 for controlling the temporary standby operation of the standby part. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a post-processing apparatus for processing a sheet on which an image is formed by an image forming apparatus such as a copying machine, a printer, or a FAX.

  Conventionally, post-processing apparatuses used in combination with image forming apparatuses have been widely used in offices and the like. The post-processing device creates a partial booklet by stapling with a plurality of sheets on which images are formed by the image forming apparatus as a unit (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

  Here, FIG. 4 is a schematic sectional view showing the configuration of the post-processing apparatus.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the post-processing apparatus 100 includes a stapler 120 that, when a predetermined number of sheets discharged from the image forming apparatus 200 and sheets loaded from the inserter 110 are stacked, is stapled into a part of a booklet. .

  In the post-processing apparatus 100, a pair of conveying rollers 140 a to 140 e that are rotated by external power such as a stepping motor are provided between the paper inlet 130 of the paper discharged from the image forming apparatus 200 and the inserter 110 to the stapler 120. First, a carry-in roller is provided, and the paper carried into the post-processing apparatus 100 is guided to the stapler 120 side by the rotation of the pair of carry rollers 140 a to 140 e and stacked on the processing tray 150.

  When the number of sheets corresponding to the booklet is stacked on the processing tray 150, the stapler 120 binds the sheets by stapling and completes the booklet. The completed booklet is carried out from the processing tray 150 onto the carry-out tray 160. In addition, according to the size of the paper to be transported, it is formed by the first transport path 170a (arrow line in the figure) formed by the transport roller pairs 140a, 140b, 140c and 140d, and the transport roller pairs 140a and 140e. A second transport path 170b (arrow line in the figure) is formed.

  In the post-processing device 100 as described above, when processing the paper carried in from the first transport path 170a, the paper on which the image is formed from the image forming device 200 is further processed while the stapler 120 is executing staple driving. In some cases, it is carried into 150. In order to prevent this, the paper carried in during stapling is wound around the large-diameter drum 190 provided in front of the pair of conveyance rollers 140b forming the first conveyance path 170a, and is temporarily kept waiting. At the timing when the paper can be carried into the paper, the large-diameter drum 190 is guided to the conveyance roller pair 140b, and the next conveyed paper is stacked and conveyed to the processing tray 150. When A3 and B4 size paper is handled, the paper is introduced into the processing tray 150 via the second transport path 170b. However, the transport interval is wide and there is sufficient time, and the drum circumference is the length of the paper. Therefore, the operation of winding the paper around the large-diameter drum 190 is not performed.

As a result, the operation of the image forming apparatus 200 and the operation of the post-processing apparatus 100 are synchronized, and it is not necessary to stop the operation of the image forming apparatus 200 during the post-processing, and it is possible to prevent a reduction in booklet productivity.
JP 9-48545 A

  In recent years, with the progress of colorization of image forming apparatuses, cardboard is sometimes used as a cover for creating a more attractive booklet. The cardboard is sometimes carried in from the image forming apparatus 200, but is mainly carried in appropriately from the inserter 110.

  When such a thick paper is post-processed together with the paper on which the image is carried in from the image forming apparatus 200, there are the following problems. That is, when a thick paper is wound around the large-diameter drum 190 described above and waited, the thick paper curls due to the winding.

  For this reason, even after being introduced from the large-diameter drum 190 to the conveying roller pair 140b side, the cardboard moves along the carry-in path 170a while maintaining a waisted state. At this time, thick paper collides with the nips of the transport roller pair 140c, 140d, etc. during transport, causing paper jams, or defects such as poor stacking on the processing tray 150 and further stapling. End up.

  The present invention has been made in view of such a problem, and an object of the present invention is to provide a post-processing apparatus and the like capable of performing post-processing without defects even when post-processing papers of different types together.

In order to achieve the above object, the first aspect of the present invention includes a post-processing execution unit that performs post-processing for collecting a plurality of sheets including sheets discharged from the image forming apparatus,
A transport path for transporting the paper to the post-processing execution unit;
A plurality of standby units provided on the conveyance path for temporarily waiting the paper conveyed to the post-processing execution unit;
And a control unit that controls a temporary standby operation of the standby unit.

Further, according to a second aspect of the present invention, the transport path is configured to carry the plurality of sheets through a plurality of carry-in sources,
The control unit includes a carry-in source detection unit that detects a carry-in source of the plurality of sheets carried into the transport path, and controls the temporary standby operation for each standby unit based on the detection of the carry-in source. The post-processing apparatus of the first aspect of the present invention.

Further, in the third aspect of the present invention, the plurality of standby units are
A first standby unit for temporarily waiting for a first sheet carried in from a first carry-in source that is one of the plurality of carry-in sources, and a second carry-in carried out from a second carry-in source different from the first carry-in source A second standby unit for temporarily waiting the second sheet,
The controller is
After the second standby unit waits for the second sheet, the first standby unit waits for a predetermined number of the first sheets, and the first sheet and the second sheet at a predetermined timing. The post-processing apparatus according to the first aspect of the present invention performs control so as to convey the paper to the post-processing execution unit.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, the first standby unit has a rotating body for winding a predetermined number of sheets,
The control unit controls the first sheet conveyed from the first carry-in source to the predetermined number of sheets, or controls the predetermined number of the first sheets wound around the rotating body. It is the post-processing apparatus of 3rd this invention which performs control sent out to the post-processing execution part side.

  The fifth aspect of the present invention is the post-processing apparatus according to the fourth aspect of the present invention, wherein the first carry-in source is a paper storage unit of the image forming apparatus.

Further, in the sixth aspect of the present invention, the second standby unit has a conveyance roller provided in the conveyance path,
The control unit performs the control to stop the transport roller and fix the second sheet guided to the transport path as the standby operation, or rotate the fixed transport roller to be fixed. It is a post-processing apparatus according to a third aspect of the present invention, which controls to send the second sheet to the post-processing execution unit.

  The seventh aspect of the present invention is the post-processing apparatus according to the fourth aspect of the present invention, wherein the second carry-in source is a carry-in port independent of the image forming apparatus or a stack bypass portion of the image forming apparatus.

An eighth aspect of the present invention is a post-processing method for performing post-processing for collecting a plurality of sheets including sheets discharged from the image forming apparatus,
Before the post-processing, a step of performing control to temporarily wait for the paper transported to the post-processing execution unit at a plurality of locations on a transport path for transporting the paper to the post-processing execution unit. This is a post-processing method.

  According to the present invention as described above, even when different types of paper are post-processed together, there is an effect that post-processing can be performed without any trouble.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
(Embodiment)
FIG. 1 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing the configuration of a post-processing apparatus 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention. In FIG. 1, the same or corresponding parts as those in FIG. .

  As in the conventional example, the post-processing apparatus 10 according to the present embodiment is configured so that a first transport path 170a configured by a pair of transport rollers 140a to 140d and a transport for A3 and B4 sizes are used as a transport path for A4 size paper or less. In the configuration in which the transport rollers 140a and 140e and the second transport path 170b are provided as the paths, the controller 11 is provided that controls the rotation of the transport roller pairs 140c and 140d and the large-diameter drum 190. And The control unit 11 is a means for controlling ON / OFF of the rotation of the conveyance roller pairs 140c and 140d and the introduction and discharge of the sheet to and from the large-diameter drum 190. The control unit 11 controls the rotation of the sheet carried into the first conveyance path 170a. It has a loading source detection unit 11 a that detects the state of the inserter 110, which is a loading source, a paper storage unit (not shown) for continuous feeding in the image forming apparatus 200, and a stack bypass unit (not shown). The carry-in source detection unit 11a detects whether the paper carried into the carry-in port 130 is carried in from any of these carry-in sources, and the control unit 11 performs the above-described control using this detection result.

  Here, FIG. 2 shows a configuration example of the control unit 11. In the control unit 11, the CPU 11 b is a control body that controls ON / OFF of the rotation of the conveyance roller pairs 140 c and 140 d and the introduction and discharge of the paper to and from the large-diameter drum 190. 190, and a state detection unit 11d that acquires detection information such as a state where the paper is nipped, wound, or placed on the processing tray 150, and the CPU 11b performs control based on information of these units. Reference numeral 11c denotes a memory for storing the detected state.

  The control unit 11 detects the stacking state of the processing tray 150 when the post-processing apparatus 10 processes A4 and B5 size paper (US size is letter size), and the booklet 20A is in the stacking state. If the thick paper is carried into the first transport path 170a during the staple driving operation of the stapler 120, the transport is performed when the thick paper comes to a position sandwiched between the pair of transport rollers 140c and 140d. Control is performed to turn off the rotation of the roller pair 140c and 140d.

  As a result, the transport of the cardboard is stopped at the nipping position, and the cardboard is placed in a standby state in the first transport path 170a. A part of the first conveyance path 170a formed by the conveyance roller pairs 140c and 140d is a substantially straight path, and the cardboard fixed at this position is not rolled. Even if the conveying operation is resumed afterwards, there is no alignment failure at the time of stacking in the processing tray 150, and there is no collision with the nip of the conveying roller pair arranged at the position after the standby position. .

  A specific example based on the configuration of the post-processing apparatus 10 and the image forming apparatus 200 is as follows. In other words, when the post-processing apparatus 10 has the inserter 110 mounted thereon, when the thick paper is introduced from the inserter 110 and the image-formed paper is introduced from the paper storage unit of the image forming apparatus 200, the control unit 11 The above-described control of the transport roller pairs 140c and 140d is performed on the thick paper inserted from 110, and the above-described control of the large-diameter drum 190 is performed on the paper loaded from the paper storage unit of the image forming apparatus 200.

  Further, when the post-processing apparatus 10 is not provided with the inserter 110 and the sheet is introduced from the sheet storage unit of the image forming apparatus 200 and the thick paper is introduced from the stack bypass unit, the control unit 11 starts from the stack bypass unit. The above-described control of the transport roller pairs 140c and 140d is performed on the inserted thick paper, and the above-described control of the large-diameter drum 190 is performed on the paper loaded from the paper storage unit. Therefore, the winding of the sheet by the large-diameter drum 190 is executed only for the sheet discharged through the sheet storage unit of the image forming apparatus 200.

  As described above, the post-processing device 10 according to the present embodiment includes two standby units, that is, a standby unit formed by the large-diameter drum 190 and a standby unit formed by the conveyance roller pairs 140c and 140d. By controlling the operation of these standby units according to the carry-in source of the loaded paper, smooth post-processing corresponding to the operation of the image forming apparatus 200 is realized.

  Next, with reference to FIG. 3, the operation of the post-processing apparatus 10 including the standby state under the control of the conveying roller pair 140c and 140d described above will be described, and thereby the post-processing method of the present invention. Will be described. As described above, the following operations are performed on A4 and B5 size paper (US size is letter size).

  A booklet 20A, 20B,... Composed of a plurality of sheets 22 (1)... 22 (n) (n: natural number) including two front and back covers 21a and 21b which are thick papers is continuously created by the image forming apparatus 200 and the post-processing apparatus 10. Consider the case. In this case, the front cover 21a is introduced from the inserter 110, the image forming apparatus further discharges the paper 22 (1)... 22 (n), and the back cover 21b is introduced from the inserter 110, and the first booklet 20A is stapled. While the stapler 120 is executing, the cover 31a of the next booklet 20B is introduced from the inserter 110 to the first transport path 170a. The cover sheets 21a and 21b, which are thick sheets, are examples of the second sheet of the present invention, and the sheets 22 (1)... 22 (n) are examples of the first sheet of the present invention.

  Until the booklet 20A is unloaded from the processing tray 150 to the unloading tray 160, the cover sheet 31a must not be introduced into the processing tray 150. However, the control unit 11 determines that the loading source detection unit 11a has loaded the cover sheet 31a from the inserter 110. When the cover 31a is introduced into the transport roller pair 140c and 140d, the rotation of the transport roller pair 140c and 140d is turned off. As a result, the cover 31a is sandwiched between the transport roller pairs 140c and 140d and stands by in the transport path 170a.

  On the other hand, since the image forming apparatus 200 continues the image forming operation even during the standby operation, the sheets 31 (1), 31 (2),... Constituting the booklet 20B are sequentially discharged and carried into the post-processing apparatus 10. Is done. In the control unit 11, the carry-in source detection unit 11 a detects that the paper after the discharged paper 31 (1) uses the paper storage unit of the image forming apparatus 200 as the carry-in source, and guides it to the large-diameter drum 190. Temporarily wait by winding the drum.

  Until the stapler 120 completes stapling of the booklet 20A, the large-diameter drum 190 continuously winds the papers 31 (1), 31 (2),. In the case of the present embodiment, it is assumed that when the winding of the paper 31 (2) is completed, the staple driving of the booklet 20A is completed, and the booklet 20A is carried out from the processing tray 150.

  When the control unit 11 detects that the booklet 20 </ b> A has been carried out from the processing tray 150, the rotation of the pair of transport rollers 140 c and 140 d is returned to ON, and the cover 31 a is guided to the processing tray 150. Next, the sheets 31 (1) and 31 (2) wound around the large-diameter drum 190 and the sheet 31 (3) coming next from the conveyance path are overlapped and guided to the conveyance roller pair 140b side, and the cover 31a The processing tray 150 is loaded so as to cover the top.

  Thereafter, the control unit 11 performs a normal operation until the last back cover 31b is stacked on the processing tray 150. That is, the large-diameter drum 190 stops, and the carry-in rollers 140a to 140d continuously rotate so as to guide the paper directly to the processing tray 150 without passing through the large-diameter drum 190.

  When the back cover 31b, which is the last sheet of the booklet 20B, is carried in from the inserter 110 and carried into the processing tray 150 following the sheet 31 (n), the control unit 11 causes the booklet 20B further carried in from the inserter 110 to be loaded. The cover of the next booklet is made to wait between the pair of conveying rollers 140c and 140d, and thereafter, the same standby operation as described above is executed.

  As described above, according to the present embodiment, a cardboard standby unit is provided in the first conveyance path 170a by temporarily stopping the rotation of the conveyance roller pair 140c and 140d constituting the first conveyance path 170a. In addition, since the paper is made to stand by at a total of two locations together with the outer drum 190, the post-processing without any trouble is prevented when performing the post-processing in accordance with the paper carry-out of the image forming apparatus 200. Can be realized.

  In the above configuration, the stapler 120 corresponds to the post-processing execution unit of the present invention, and the large-diameter drum 190 corresponds to the rotating body of the present invention, and guides the paper to the large-diameter drum 190 or from the large-diameter drum 190. The internal configuration for guiding the sheet to the pair of transport rollers 140b corresponds to the first standby unit of the present invention, and constitutes the transport path of the present invention together with the first transport path 170a. Further, the conveyance roller pair 140c and 140d corresponds to the conveyance roller of the present invention, and the portion where the sheet is conveyed by the conveyance roller pair 140c and 140d in the conveyance path 170a corresponds to the second standby unit of the present invention. To do. The control unit 11 corresponds to the control unit of the present invention. The carry-in detection unit 11a corresponds to a carry-in detection unit of the present invention, the inserter 110 corresponds to a carry-in port independent of the image forming apparatus, and the paper storage unit of the image forming apparatus 200 corresponds to the paper storage unit of the present invention. The stack bypass unit of the image forming apparatus 200 corresponds to the stack bypass unit of the present invention.

  However, the configuration of the present invention is not limited to the above. For example, in the above description, the second standby unit is formed by sandwiching the paper between both of the transport roller pairs 140c and 140d, but either the transport roller pair 140c or 140d. It is also possible to perform the control of holding only. In the case where only the transport roller pair 140c is sandwiched, the second standby unit can be provided on the upstream side of the transport path 170a. In addition, when only the conveyance roller pair 140d is sandwiched, it can be provided on the downstream side of the conveyance path 170a. Further, by controlling the operation of the conveying roller pair 140b and 140c, the conveying roller pair 140b and 140c may be provided further upstream of the conveying path 170a. In short, the second standby unit of the present invention may be provided at an arbitrary point on the transport path. Thus, it is possible to control according to the time of the staple driving operation of the stapler 120 in the processing tray 150 and the arrangement of the stapler 120, or even when one of the conveyance roller pairs 140c or 140d cannot be stopped. Can be maintained.

  Further, the control unit 11 acquires information from the paper jam detection sensor 12 provided in the vicinity of the conveyance roller pair 140d by the state detection unit 11d, and based on this, the sheet is conveyed to the conveyance roller pair 140c. Control may be performed based on the fact that this is directly detected. Even if the sheets stacked on the processing tray 150 remain, there is an effect of preventing the thick paper from being erroneously guided to the processing tray 150. Note that the information acquired by the carry-in source detection unit 11a may be provided with a detection switch, a sensor, and the like provided in the inserter 110, the sheet storage unit of the image forming apparatus, and the stack bypass unit. Further, the information acquired by the state detection unit 11d may be based on detection of the weight applied to the processing tray 150, or these detection means are known to contact the sheet with the tray surface or bottom surface of the processing tray 150. These sensors, switches, etc. may be used, and details are omitted.

  Further, in the above configuration, the control unit 11 temporarily waits the thick paper carried from the inserter 110 or the stack bypass unit of the image forming apparatus 200 at the standby position by the transport roller pair 140c, 140d, and the paper of the image forming apparatus 200. Although the description has been made assuming that the paper loaded from the storage unit is temporarily held in the large-diameter drum 190, the first standby unit and the second standby unit of the present invention are not limited to this. The large-diameter drum 190 may be used as the second standby unit, and the conveyance roller pairs 140c and 140d may be used as the first standby unit. In short, the standby unit of the present invention is not limited by the specific method of the temporary standby, and the first standby unit and the second standby unit are assigned according to the configuration and use of the post-processing apparatus. It may be. Moreover, it is good also as a structure which provides three or more standby parts.

  Further, in the above configuration, the post-processing device 10 is described as being configured to include a housing that is juxtaposed to the image forming device 200 and that includes the inserter 110 and the carry-out tray 160. The post-processing apparatus may be realized only as an internal mechanism that can be removed from the housing as a unit portion including the large-diameter drum 190, the processing tray 150, the stapler 120, and the conveyance roller pairs 140b to 140e. Further, the second carry-out path 170b that does not have a standby unit may be omitted.

  Further, in the above description, the temporary standby of the sheet as the second sheet of the present invention by the control of the conveying roller pair 140c and 140d is intended for the use of the thick sheet that causes a problem due to being stiff. However, the second paper of the present invention is not limited to thick paper, but is applied to paper such as glossy paper with a coating on the surface, which causes problems in its state by winding. Also good. Further, it may be used for temporarily waiting for sheets exceeding the number of sheets that can be wound by the large-diameter drum 190.

  Further, the post-processing execution unit of the present invention has been described as the stapler 120 that performs stapling. However, the post-processing of the present invention is limited by specific means as long as a plurality of sheets are collected. It is not a thing. In addition to means using a separate member such as a staple or a pin, it may be a means that presses the sheets together to collect them. Further, instead of physically collecting paper, marking, numbers, or the like may be applied to the paper so that a plurality of papers can be identified in a predetermined unit.

The program for controlling the control unit 11 may be realized as firmware that can be written in a RAM or the like. In this case, the conventional post-processing apparatus can be realized as the post-processing apparatus of the present invention by executing the program on the control unit.
Further, one usage form of the program may be an aspect in which the program is recorded on a computer-readable recording medium and operates in cooperation with the computer.

  Further, one usage form of the program may be an aspect in which the program is transmitted through a transmission medium, read by a computer, and operated in cooperation with the computer.

  Further, the recording medium includes a ROM and the like.

  The computer described above is not limited to pure hardware such as a CPU, but may include firmware, an OS, and peripheral devices.

  The present invention has an effect that even if different types of paper are post-processed together, it is possible to perform post-processing without problems, and is useful as a post-processing apparatus used in combination with an image forming apparatus.

It is a schematic sectional drawing which shows the structure of the post-processing apparatus of embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows the structural example of the control part of the post-processing apparatus of embodiment of this invention. It is a figure for demonstrating operation | movement of the post-processing apparatus of embodiment of this invention. It is a schematic sectional drawing which shows the structure of the post-processing apparatus by a prior art.

Explanation of symbols

10 Post-processing equipment
11 Control unit
11a carry-in detection unit
11b CPU
11c memory
11d state detector
12 Paper jam detection sensor
110 Inserter
120 stapler
130 Carriage entrance
140a to 140e Conveying roller pair
150 processing tray
160 Unloading tray
170a First transport path
170b Second transport path
190 Large diameter drum
200 Image forming apparatus
210 Unloading port

Claims (8)

A post-processing execution unit for performing post-processing for collecting a plurality of sheets including sheets discharged from the image forming apparatus;
A transport path for transporting the paper to the post-processing execution unit;
A plurality of standby units provided on the conveyance path for temporarily waiting the paper conveyed to the post-processing execution unit;
A post-processing device comprising: a control unit that controls a temporary standby operation of the standby unit. The transport path is a path through which the plurality of sheets are transported via a plurality of transport sources,
The control unit includes a carry-in source detection unit that detects a carry-in source of the plurality of sheets carried into the transport path, and controls the temporary standby operation for each standby unit based on the detection of the carry-in source. The post-processing apparatus according to claim 1. The plurality of standby units are:
A first standby unit for temporarily waiting for a first sheet carried in from a first carry-in source that is one of the plurality of carry-in sources, and a second carry-in carried out from a second carry-in source different from the first carry-in source A second standby unit for temporarily waiting the second sheet,
The controller is
After the second standby unit waits for the second sheet, the first standby unit waits for a predetermined number of the first sheets, and the first sheet and the second sheet at a predetermined timing. The post-processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein control is performed so that the paper is conveyed to the post-processing execution unit. The first standby unit has a rotating body for winding a predetermined number of sheets,
The control unit controls the first sheet conveyed from the first carry-in source to the predetermined number of sheets, or controls the predetermined number of the first sheets wound around the rotating body. The post-processing device according to claim 3, wherein the post-processing device performs control of sending to the post-processing execution unit.   The post-processing apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the first carry-in source is a paper storage unit of the image forming apparatus. The second standby unit has a conveyance roller provided in the conveyance path,
The control unit performs the control to stop the transport roller and fix the second sheet guided to the transport path as the standby operation, or rotate the fixed transport roller to be fixed. The post-processing apparatus according to claim 3, wherein control is performed to send the second sheet to the post-processing execution unit.   The post-processing apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the second carry-in source is a carry-in port independent of the image forming apparatus or a stack bypass unit of the image forming apparatus. A post-processing method for performing post-processing for collecting a plurality of sheets including sheets discharged from an image forming apparatus,
Before the post-processing, a step of performing control to temporarily wait for the paper transported to the post-processing execution unit at a plurality of locations on a transport path for transporting the paper to the post-processing execution unit. Post-processing method.

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