JP2008189436A - Sheet carrying device and image reading device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a technique capable of stably carrying objects to be carried by varying a carrying form in accordance with the rigidity of the objects even with a simple configuration. <P>SOLUTION: Carrying of a document D placed on an ADF document table is started from a carrying start position ST. A second carrying path P12 is branched in the middle of a route from the carrying start position ST to a first carrying path P11. At a branch point DV, a sorting member 2241 comprising a plate-shaped elastic body is protruded to block entry to the carrying path P11. When the rigidity of the document D is high, the document D bends the sorting member 2241 and proceeds to the carrying path P11. When the rigidity of the document D is low, the document D bends itself and is sent to the carrying path P12. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a sheet conveying apparatus that conveys a sheet-like object to be conveyed along a predetermined conveying path and an image reading apparatus having a similar mechanism.

  In an apparatus for conveying a sheet-like object to be conveyed, such as a printer, a scanner, or a copying machine, the method of conveyance varies depending on the type of object to be conveyed, particularly the difference in rigidity. For example, when the object to be transported is thin and soft paper, it can quickly follow a transport path that draws a complex curved surface, whereas if the transport path becomes long, it is bent and easily causes a paper jam. On the other hand, when the object to be conveyed is made of a material that is hard and difficult to bend, it cannot cope with sudden bending. In particular, in a scanner or a copying machine, a document to be conveyed is a document, but such a document may be expensive or cannot be re-prepared. Therefore, the contamination due to the conveyance failure is not allowed, and the material of the original used is not constant, so that it is not easy to appropriately convey all the objects to be conveyed. In order to deal with such a problem, for example, in the technique described in Patent Document 1, rigidity detection is performed in the upstream portion of the conveyance path, and the conveyance speed is changed according to the result, thereby suppressing the occurrence of a paper jam. Yes. Patent Document 2 describes a technique for detecting the rigidity of a paper that can be applied to such a purpose.

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 5-14640 (FIG. 1) JP 2006-267193 A (FIGS. 5 and 6)

  In the prior art described in Patent Document 1, since the rotation speed of the conveyance roller is determined based on the rigidity detection result, it takes time until the conveyance speed is stabilized when the rotation speed is changed. was there. Further, since the rigidity detection and the change of the conveyance speed are performed while conveying the paper, the conveyance speed may fluctuate during the paper conveyance and there is a possibility that the paper cannot be stably conveyed. In both Patent Documents 1 and 2, a sensor for detecting the rigidity of the conveyed object and a control operation based on the detection result are required.

  SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and provides a technique capable of stably transporting a transported object by changing the transport mode according to the rigidity of the transported object, while having a simple configuration. The purpose is to do.

  In order to achieve the above object, the sheet conveying apparatus according to the present invention regulates the moving direction of the sheet to be conveyed, whereby the first conveying path starting from a predetermined conveying start position and the conveying start position A transport path forming member that forms a second transport path that branches off from the first transport path on the downstream side, and feeding that feeds the transported sheet toward a branch point of the first and second transport paths And a first conveying path of the conveyed sheet that is projected on the first conveying path upstream of the branch point in the conveying direction of the conveyed sheet and fed by the feeding means And a sheet guide member for guiding the conveyed sheet toward the second conveyance path, and the sheet guide member is fed by the feeding means. When the pressing force by preparative is a predetermined value or more, it is characterized in that to penetrate the object to be conveyed sheet in the first conveying path by resiliently deformed by the pressing force.

  In the invention configured as described above, the two transport paths are switched by utilizing the fact that the pressing force applied to the sheet guide member by the transported sheet fed from the feeding unit varies depending on the rigidity of the transported sheet. That is, the sheet guide member is configured to be elastically deformed, but the amount of deformation differs depending on the pressing force of the conveyed sheet. In a soft conveyed sheet with low rigidity, the pressing force applied to the sheet guiding member is weak, so that the deformation of the sheet guiding member is small, and the conveyed sheet is guided to the second conveying path by the sheet guiding member. On the other hand, the highly rigid sheet to be conveyed greatly deforms the sheet guide member that prevents entry into the first conveyance path, and as a result, the sheet is guided to the first conveyance path. As described above, in the present invention, by providing a sheet guide member that is elastically deformed at the branch point of the two transport paths, the transport destination is switched according to the rigidity of the transported sheet, and the transported sheet Can be stably conveyed. In other words, in the present invention, the sheet guide member has both the function of detecting the rigidity of the conveyed sheet and the function of distributing the conveyance destination according to the detection result, and these functions are exhibited simultaneously.

  In addition, since the sheet guide member is simply arranged on the conveyance path, no other movable mechanism, control for moving it, and means for detecting the rigidity of the sheet to be conveyed are required. This simplifies and greatly contributes to downsizing and cost reduction of the apparatus. Further, since the structure of the sheet guide member is simple, there are few failures and the reliability of the apparatus can be improved.

  The conveyance path forming member sets the first conveyance path at the branch point so that the first conveyance path substantially coincides with a straight path when the conveyed sheet fed from the feeding unit moves straight. On the other hand, it is desirable to form the second transport path so that the second transport path is in a direction different from the straight path. In this case, if the sheet guide member is not provided, the conveyed sheet goes straight to the first conveying path. Further, it is necessary to bend the route in order to make the sheet to be conveyed go to the second conveyance path.

  By installing the sheet guide member having the above-described configuration on the transport path configured as described above, the transport path according to the rigidity can be more reliably distributed. For the transported sheet with low rigidity, the path can be easily bent toward the second transport path, while for the transported sheet with high rigidity, it can be moved straight to the first transport path. is there.

  More preferably, the second transport path may extend downward from the first transport path. This is because the sheet to be conveyed having low rigidity hangs down, so that it is easy to move to the second conveying path.

  The sheet guide member is a plate-like member that extends in a width direction orthogonal to the conveyance direction of the conveyed sheet and has one of its long sides fixed to the conveyance path forming member. The other side of the long side is preferably formed in a sawtooth shape in which convex portions and concave portions are alternately arranged. In this way, it is possible to adjust the strength of the resistance to the conveyed sheet by the sheet guide member, and it is possible to arbitrarily set the rigidity threshold of the conveyed sheet at which the conveying path is switched. In addition, since each convex portion can be individually deformed, it is also effective for a sheet to be conveyed having warpage and undulation in the width direction orthogonal to the conveyance direction.

  Here, the sheet guide member may be formed of an elastic body, and the sheet guide member includes a plate-like member extending in a width direction orthogonal to the conveyance direction of the conveyed sheet, the plate-like member, and the conveyance. It is good also as a structure which has an elastic body inserted between the path | route formation members. In any configuration, it is possible to achieve an effect of elastically deforming according to the pressing force of the conveyed sheet and switching the conveying path according to the rigidity of the conveyed sheet.

  In order to achieve the above object, the image reading apparatus according to the present invention regulates the moving direction of the original sheet, thereby restricting the first conveyance path starting from a predetermined conveyance start position, and the conveyance start position. A transport path forming member that forms a second transport path that branches off from the first transport path on the downstream side of the first sheet, and feeding that feeds the original sheet toward a branch point of the first and second transport paths And the intrusion of the original sheet, which is projected on the first conveying path upstream of the branch point in the conveying direction of the original sheet, and fed by the feeding means, into the first conveying path A sheet guide member that guides the document sheet toward the second transport path, and a reading unit that reads an image on the surface of the document sheet. By elastically deformed by the original sheet pressing force when the pressing force is greater than a predetermined value by fed by the feeding means, it is characterized in that for entering said document sheet to said first conveying path.

  In the invention configured as described above, it is possible to stably convey the document sheet while switching the conveyance path in accordance with the rigidity of the document sheet, similarly to the above-described sheet conveying apparatus.

  Here, it is desirable that the path length of the second transport path is shorter than the path length of the first transport path. An original sheet having low rigidity is sent to the second conveyance path, and such a sheet is likely to be bent or jammed in the long conveyance path. In this type of image reading apparatus, document breakage is a serious problem. Therefore, the occurrence of such a problem can be suppressed by shortening the path length of the second transport path.

  Further, the reading unit is configured to read a first reading position for reading an image on the surface of the original sheet on the first transport path and an image on the surface of the original sheet on the second transport path. It may be movable between the second reading position. By doing so, reading on each conveyance path can be performed by one reading means, and the apparatus can be reduced in size and cost.

  The first and second transport paths are configured to branch on the downstream side of the transport start position and then merge again on the downstream side, and the reading unit includes the first and the second transport paths. You may make it read the image of the said to-be-conveyed sheet surface on the path | route where the 2nd conveyance path merges. In this way, it is possible to read an image on the original sheet conveyed to any conveyance path without moving the reading unit.

  FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a first embodiment of an image reading apparatus to which the present invention is applied. FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view showing the internal structure of the image reading apparatus shown in FIG. The image reading apparatus 1 includes a scanner main body 10 having a flat bed document table 11 on an upper surface, and an upper cover 20 having an ADF (automatic document feeding) function. The upper cover 20 has an ADF document table 21 for placing a document when the document is read using the ADF function, a paper feed / conveying unit 22 for taking the document inside, and a discharge unit for discharging the captured document. A paper discharge unit 25 and a paper discharge tray 23 are provided.

  As shown in FIG. 2, a head unit 100 is provided in a lower portion of a flat bed document table 11 formed of a transparent glass plate in the scanner body 10. The head unit 100 is movably provided along a guide rail 110 extending in the X direction in FIG. 2, and is moved and positioned in the X direction by a drive mechanism (not shown). A CCD line sensor 101 extending along the Y direction in FIG. 2 is provided inside the head unit 100. The line sensor 101 reads an image while moving relative to a document set on the apparatus by a user. For example, when a document is placed on the flat bed document table 11 by a user, the head unit 100 moves in the X direction, and the line sensor 101 optically reads the density of the document at each position in the Y direction. Image data corresponding to the recorded XY two-dimensional image is created.

  On the other hand, the operation when a document is set on the ADF document table 21 provided on the upper portion of the upper cover 20 will be described in detail later, but only the outline will be described briefly. The documents D set on the ADF document table 21 are taken into the sheet feeding / conveying unit 22 provided at the upper left end of the upper cover 20 one by one by the rotation of the sheet feeding roller 221. Then, the document D passes through one path selected according to the rigidity of the document D out of the two sheet feeding / conveying paths P11 and P12 provided in the sheet feeding / conveying unit 22, and passes through the lower portion of the backup guide member 227. In addition, the paper is further discharged through a paper discharge conveyance path P22 to a paper discharge tray 23 provided at the center of the upper cover 20.

  On the upper surface of the scanner main body 10 facing the backup guide member 227, a reading window 12 made of transparent glass is provided. At this time, the head unit 100 is stopped immediately below the backup member 227, and reads the document D sent out in the X direction by the paper feeding / conveying unit 22 through the reading window 12. In this way, image data corresponding to the XY two-dimensional image recorded on the document D is created.

  FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing an electrical configuration of the image reading apparatus of FIG. The scanner body 10 is provided with a controller 110 that controls the operation of the entire apparatus. The controller 110 temporarily stores a CPU 111 for executing predetermined processing, a ROM 113 for storing control programs executed by the CPU 111, predetermined control parameters, and the like, calculation results in the CPU 111, and other data. RAM 114, image memory 115 for temporarily storing image data corresponding to an image read by line sensor 101, and interface (I / F) 112 for communication with an external device such as a host computer Are provided, and these are connected to each other via an internal bus 119. The interface 112 is connected to an operation unit 116 for receiving an operation input by a user. The upper cover 20 is provided with a motor driver 2243a and a motor 2243b. These functions will be described later.

  FIG. 4 is a diagram showing the structure of the paper feeding / conveying unit and a partially enlarged view thereof. Inside the paper feeding / conveying unit 22, guide members 222a to 222f for guiding the original D taken from the conveyance start position ST by the rotation of the paper feeding roller 221 along the first paper feeding / conveying path P11, and the original conveying Guide members 223a to 223f are provided for guiding the document D along the second paper feed transport path P12 branched from the first transport path P11 on the downstream side of the transport start position ST in the direction Dd. When viewed from the transport start position ST, the first paper feed transport path P11 is configured to be more straightforward than the second paper feed transport path P22, that is, a straight path. On the other hand, the second paper feed transport path P12 is branched so as to protrude downward from the first transport path P11. Therefore, if the sorting member 2241 is not present, the document D is the first paper feed. It is considered that the vehicle proceeds toward the conveyance path P11.

  The first paper feed transport path P11 viewed from the direction orthogonal to the transport direction draws a relatively gentle curve as a whole from the transport start position ST to the reading position SC, whereas The second sheet feeding conveyance path P12 has a large bend especially near the branch point DV and the reading position SC from the first conveyance path. In other words, the curvature at the most bent portion in the curve drawn by the locus of an arbitrary point on the document conveyed on the second paper feed conveyance path P12 is on the document conveyed on the first paper feed conveyance path P11. It is larger than the curvature at the most curved portion in the curve drawn by the locus of an arbitrary point. Therefore, it is not preferable to feed a relatively rigid original such as thick paper into the second paper feed path P12 that requires a large bend. This is because the document may be caught in the conveyance path and cause a conveyance failure, or the document may be bent and damaged.

  On the other hand, since the second paper feed transport path P12 has a shorter path length than the first paper feed transport path P11, the time required for transport is short. This means that the time required for reading one original is short, and more originals can be read in the same time. Accordingly, a document that can withstand large bending because of its low rigidity and softness can be read at a higher speed by being conveyed to the second paper feed conveyance path P12 and being read. Therefore, in this embodiment, the two conveyance paths are selectively used in accordance with the rigidity of the document as follows.

  At the branch point DV of the two conveyance paths, as shown in the partially enlarged view in the upper left of FIG. 4, one end portion 2241a is fixed to the guide member 222a, and the other end portion is at the entrance of the second paper feed conveyance path P12. A thin plate-like sorting member 2241 that protrudes toward the outside is provided. The sorting member 2241 is an elongated plate-like member that is formed of an elastic metal thin plate such as a stainless steel plate or a phosphor bronze plate and extends in the Y direction. It is provided toward the downstream side so as to block the movement of the document D that is heading.

  The function performed by the sorting member 2241 will be described with reference to the enlarged view at the upper left of FIG. The document D transported from the transport start position ST by the rotation of the paper feed roller 221 hits the sorting member 2241 at the branch point DV of the transport path. At this time, if the document D has sufficient rigidity, the sorting member 2241 is elastically bent by the document D, and therefore the document D advances straight toward the first paper feed conveyance path P11 (broken line, arrow D1). direction). On the other hand, if the rigidity of the document D is low, the document D is bent on the contrary and the leading end thereof is guided to the second paper feeding / conveying path P12 (dotted line, arrow D2 direction). As described above, the sorting member 2241 sends the original having a certain degree of rigidity to the first paper feed path P11 by elastically deforming the original, while the original having the rigidity less than that is sent. It has a function of feeding the document into the second sheet feed conveyance path P12 by curving the document, that is, a function of switching the sheet feed conveyance path according to the rigidity of the document. The degree of rigidity of the various originals from which the original is fed to the first paper feed conveyance path P11, that is, the threshold value of the rigidity of the original in the conveyance path switching is a value determined according to the bending stiffness of the sorting member 2241. It is. Therefore, the material, thickness, shape, and the like of the sorting member 2241 may be determined as appropriate so that the various originals to be used are sent to appropriate paths.

  Further, when the rigidity of the document D is further lowered and the leading portion of the document D hangs down due to the action of gravity, the document is sent to the second paper feeding / conveying path P12 regardless of the sorting member 2241. In this sense, it is desirable that the second paper feed transport path P12 is branched downward from the first paper feed transport path P11.

  FIG. 5 is a diagram showing the structure of the sorting member. As described above, the sorting member 2241 is a plate-like member extending in the Y direction, and one end portion 2241a is fixed to the guide member 222a, while the other end portion 2241b is shown in FIGS. 5 (a) and 5 (b). As shown, it is punched in a sawtooth shape. Thus, by processing the other end portion 2241b of the sorting member 2241 into a sawtooth shape that is intermittently cut out, it is possible to adjust the strength of resistance when the document hits, and the rigidity of the document at which the conveyance path is switched. Can be arbitrarily set. In addition, by adopting such a shape, it is possible to correctly select a conveyance path according to the rigidity of a document with a warp in the Y direction. The distribution member 2241 is a metal plate, but may be a resin plate having elasticity similarly. However, a metal plate is preferable from the viewpoint of suppressing wear because it is rubbed against the original and from the viewpoint of removing static electricity from the original.

  Moreover, as shown in FIG.5 (c), it is good also as a shape where the center part in the Y direction was depressed in the distribution member 2241. FIG. As a result, for example, even for a document in which both ends are warped due to the holding pressure of the paper feed roller 221 and effective rigidity is high, the warp is eliminated by bringing the both ends in the width direction into contact with the sorting member, and appropriate sorting is performed. It can be performed.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 5D, the sorting member is not limited to the plate-like elastic body, and is fixed to the guide member 222a via the elastic body 2246 so that the plate-like member itself does not have elasticity. It is also possible to use 2245.

  Returning to FIG. 4, the description of the paper feeding / conveying unit 22 will be continued. In the paper feeding / conveying unit 22, four-roller units 225, 226 are provided so as to straddle the two conveying paths P11, P12. Since the structures of these roller units are the same, here, the structure of one roller unit 225 will be typically described. The quadruple roller unit 225 includes a driving roller 225a that is rotationally driven by a motor 2243b controlled by the CPU 111 via a motor driver 2243a. A free roller 225c is in contact with the surface of the drive roller 225a, and the free roller 225c rotates following the rotation of the drive roller 225a.

  The drive roller 225a is in contact with another roller 225d. Further, a free roller 225e is also in contact with this roller 225d. For these reasons, each of the rollers 225a, 225c, 225d and 225e rotates in the direction indicated by the arrow in FIG. The other four-roller unit 226 has the same structure and is driven to rotate by the same motor 2243b.

  The first paper feed path P11 passes through the nip where the rollers 225a and 225c abut, and the second paper feed path P12 passes through the nip where the rollers 225d and 225e abut. , Each is configured. Here, the outer diameters of the respective rollers are the same, and the peripheral speed at the nip portion between the rollers 225a and 225c is equal to the peripheral speed at the nip portion between the rollers 225d and 225e. Therefore, the document D is transported at the same transport speed V1 regardless of which of the first and second paper feed transport paths is transported.

  In other words, in this embodiment, a document having high rigidity and is difficult to bend is fed to the first paper feed conveyance path P11 having a relatively small curvature, and the amount of bending required for the document is reduced, so that the document is placed in the conveyance path. Prevents poor transport such as being caught by In addition, there is also an effect that the curl remaining on the document after discharging can be reduced. On the other hand, a soft original with low rigidity can be read in a shorter time by being sent to the second paper feed conveyance path P12 having a large curvature but a short path length. In addition, since the path length is short, it is possible to effectively suppress a jam that easily occurs when a soft document is conveyed along a long path.

  The two sheet feeding / conveying paths P11 and P12 merge at the upstream side of the backup guide member 227. Accordingly, the document D passes through the reading position SC at the upper part of the reading window 12 regardless of the route. At this time, the head unit 100 including the line sensor 101 reads the document D.

  On the upper surface of the scanner on the downstream side of the backup guide member 227 and the reading window 12, a protrusion 15 for lifting the leading edge of the document is provided. The leading end of the document D that has passed the reading position SC is lifted by the protrusion 15 and guided to the paper discharge roller 229 by the guide members 228a and 228b that form the paper discharge transport path P22. Then, the sheet discharge roller 229 is rotated to be conveyed through the sheet discharge conveyance path P22 and discharged to the sheet discharge tray 23.

  As described above, in this embodiment, in order to properly use two conveyance paths prepared in accordance with the rigidity of the document, a sorting member made of a plate-like elastic body is installed at a branch point of the conveyance path. The sorting member is provided so as to prevent the original from entering the first paper feed conveyance path and to guide the original to the second paper feed conveyance path. Therefore, when the rigidity of the original has a certain height or more, the original is conveyed to the first paper feed conveyance path. By providing such a sorting member on the transport path, it is possible to switch the transport path appropriately according to the rigidity of the original document with an extremely simple configuration. Further, as in the prior art described in Patent Document 1, there is no need for a movable mechanism for switching, a configuration for detecting the rigidity of a document, and control for them, and the conveyance path is automatically switched. Can do. In this embodiment, by properly using the transport path according to the original, the original can be transported in a mode corresponding to its rigidity, and stable transport can be performed without causing a transport failure.

  In addition, since a single motor is used as a drive source for transporting documents on the two transport paths, the configuration is simple and the apparatus can be reduced in size and cost. Further, since the document conveyance speed, the reading position SC, and the paper discharge conveyance path after reading are common, the operation is distinguished for each conveyance path regardless of which paper conveyance path the document passes through. There is no need, and the reading operation can be performed by the same operation sequence, and the control is simple.

  In addition, by using the elasticity of the distribution member 2241 that is a plate-like elastic body, the conveyance path is distributed, so that even when documents having different rigidity are mixed, it is possible to distribute the conveyance destination for each sheet. is there. This is because the sorting member 2241 is restored to its original shape by its restoring force every time one original passes, and the destination can be selected according to its rigidity if a new original is sent. Because.

  FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a second embodiment of an image reading apparatus to which the present invention is applied. In this embodiment, the document placed on the flat bed document table 11 is wound around a plurality of rollers 241 and 242 and circulated in a predetermined direction with respect to the apparatus of the first embodiment shown in FIG. A transport belt 243 that transports in the X direction, and a paper discharge transport unit 25 that discharges the original transported to the right end of the flat bed document table 11 by the rotation of the transport belt 243 to the paper discharge tray 23 are newly provided. Yes. By providing these configurations, in this embodiment, the document placed on the flat bed document table 11 can be discharged to the discharge tray 23 along the new discharge conveyance path P21. .

  Further, as shown below, the structure of the paper feed / conveyance unit 22a is partially different from the paper feed / conveyance unit 22 of the first embodiment. The structure other than this is basically the same as that of the apparatus of the first embodiment. In the following description, the same components as those of the apparatus of the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals and description thereof is omitted.

  FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating the structure of the sheet feeding / conveying unit according to the second embodiment. In the sheet feeding / conveying unit 22a, a second sorting member 14 is provided instead of the protrusion 15 provided at the rear of the reading position SC in the apparatus of the first embodiment shown in FIG. The second sorting member 14 has the same structure as the sorting member 2241 provided at the branch point DV of the first and second paper feed conveyance paths, and as shown in FIG. The other end of the scanner main body is fixed to the upper surface of the scanner main body, and projects toward the guide member 228b constituting the paper discharge conveyance path P22. Therefore, the behavior of the document conveyed after passing through the reading position SC is similar to the behavior at the branch point DV of the first and second paper feed conveyance paths P11 and P12.

  In other words, when the rigidity of the document is low, the leading portion of the document passes through the reading position SC and is then lifted along the surface of the second sorting member 14 and guided to the paper discharge conveyance path P22. That is, the low-rigidity document is discharged to the discharge tray 23 through the discharge conveyance path P22. On the other hand, the highly rigid document passes through the reading position SC and then advances straight while elastically deforming the second sorting member 14 and is sent to the flat bed document table 11. Then, the document thus sent to the flat bed document table 11 is sent rearward along the paper discharge transport path P 21 by the transport belt 243 and the paper discharge transport unit 25, and is finally discharged to the paper discharge tray 23.

  As described above, in this embodiment, the second distribution member 14 is also provided at the branch point of the conveyance path configured to re-branch after the conveyance path branched by the distribution member 2241 once merges. Similarly, by appropriately providing a sorting member at the branch point of the transport path, it is possible to arbitrarily control the flow of the document without performing a mechanism for switching the transport path and complicated control.

  As described above, in these embodiments, the guide members 222a to 222f and 223a to 223f forming the first and second transport paths P11 and P12 function as the “transport path forming member” of the present invention. . The sheet feeding roller 221 functions as the “feeding unit” of the present invention, while the sorting members 2241 and 14 function as the “sheet guide member” of the present invention.

  In each of the above embodiments, the CCD line sensor 101 functions as the “reading unit” of the present invention, and the document D corresponds to the “conveyed sheet” and the “document sheet” of the present invention.

  The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and various modifications other than those described above can be made without departing from the spirit of the present invention. For example, in the above-described embodiment, the original D passes through the same reading position SC regardless of which of the first and second paper feed transport paths P11 and P12. Regardless, the position of the head unit 100 is made the same. Instead, the stop position of the head unit (line sensor) may be changed according to the selected conveyance path. In this way, for example, even when the respective conveyance paths are configured so that the two conveyance paths once branch and do not merge again, it is possible to read an image with the same head unit.

  Further, in the above embodiment, when reading a document placed on the ADF document table 21, the head unit 100 is arranged immediately below the reading position SC, while the document is sent to the reading position SC, whereby the document D and the line sensor 101 are arranged. Are relatively moved in the X direction to obtain XY two-dimensional image data. Alternatively, the original may be stopped on the flat bed original table 11 and the reading may be performed while moving the head unit 100 in the X direction. Moreover, you may switch these as needed. For example, when the user requests high image quality such as when reading color image data or high-definition image data, the document D is sent to the flatbed document table 11 and read while moving the head unit 100. When the reading speed is important, reading may be performed by fixing the head unit 100 immediately below the reading position SC and discharging the document through the paper discharge conveyance path P22.

  In the above-described embodiment, the two paper feed conveyance paths P11 and P12 are provided. However, the present invention can be applied to a case where there are three or more conveyance paths.

  Furthermore, although the above embodiment is an image reading apparatus that reads a document placed on an ADF document table one by one and reads an image, the application target of the present invention is not limited to such an image reading apparatus. For example, a sheet that conveys a sheet-like object to be conveyed, such as a facsimile communication apparatus that similarly reads a document, or an image forming apparatus that has a function of distributing and outputting sheet-like recording material on which an image is formed to different discharge destinations The present invention can be applied to all conveying apparatuses.

1 is a diagram showing an embodiment of an image reading apparatus to which the present invention is applied. FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view showing an internal structure of the image reading apparatus in FIG. 1. FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing an electrical configuration of the image reading apparatus in FIG. 1. The figure which shows the structure of a paper feeding conveyance unit, and its partial enlarged view. The figure which shows the structure of a distribution member. The figure which shows 2nd Embodiment of the image reading apparatus to which this invention is applied. The figure which shows the structure of the paper feeding conveyance unit of 2nd Embodiment.

Explanation of symbols

  14, 2241 ... sorting member (sheet guide member), 101 ... CCD line sensor (reading means), 221 ... paper feed roller (feeding means), 222a to 222f, 223a to 223f ... guide members (conveyance path forming members), D: Document (sheet to be transported, document sheet), P11, P12: First and second transport paths

Claims (9)

By regulating the movement direction of the conveyed sheet, a first conveyance path starting from a predetermined conveyance start position, and a second conveyance branching off from the first conveyance path on the downstream side of the conveyance start position A transport path forming member that forms each path;
Feeding means for feeding the transported sheet toward the branch point of the first and second transport paths;
Intrusion of the transported sheet, which is provided on the first transport path upstream of the branch point in the transport direction of the transported sheet and is fed by the feeding unit, into the first transport path. A sheet guide member for blocking and guiding the conveyed sheet toward the second conveyance path,
The sheet guide member is elastically deformed by the pressing force when the pressing force by the transported sheet fed by the feeding unit is equal to or greater than a predetermined value, thereby bringing the transported sheet into the first transport path. A sheet conveying apparatus characterized by being allowed to enter.   The conveyance path forming member sets the first conveyance path at the branch point so that the first conveyance path substantially coincides with a straight path when the conveyed sheet fed from the feeding unit moves straight. The sheet conveying apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the second conveying path is formed such that the second conveying path is in a direction different from the straight path.   The sheet guide member is a plate-like member that extends in a width direction orthogonal to the conveyance direction of the conveyed sheet and has one of its long sides fixed to the conveyance path forming member. The sheet conveying apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the other side of the long side is formed in a sawtooth shape in which convex portions and concave portions are alternately arranged.   The sheet conveying apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the sheet guide member is an elastic body.   The sheet guide member includes a plate-like member extending in a width direction orthogonal to the conveyance direction of the conveyed sheet, and an elastic body interposed between the plate-like member and the conveyance path forming member. The sheet conveying apparatus according to any one of 1 to 3. By restricting the moving direction of the document sheet, a first transport path starting from a predetermined transport start position, and a second transport path branching from the first transport path on the downstream side of the transport start position A conveyance path forming member for forming each of
Feeding means for feeding the original sheet toward a branch point of the first and second transport paths;
Projecting on the first transport path upstream of the branch point in the transport direction of the document sheet, and preventing the document sheet fed by the feeding means from entering the first transport path. A sheet guide member for guiding the original sheet toward the second conveyance path;
Reading means for reading an image on the surface of the original sheet,
The sheet guide member is elastically deformed by the pressing force when the pressing force by the document sheet fed by the feeding unit is a predetermined value or more, thereby causing the document sheet to enter the first transport path. An image reading apparatus.   The image reading apparatus according to claim 6, wherein a path length of the second transport path is shorter than a path length of the first transport path.   The reading means has a first reading position for reading an image on the surface of the original sheet on the first conveyance path and a second position for reading an image on the surface of the original sheet on the second conveyance path. The image reading apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the image reading apparatus is movable between the reading position and the reading position. The first and second transport paths are configured to branch again downstream of the transport start position and then merge again on the downstream side,
The image reading apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the reading unit reads an image on the surface of the transported sheet on a path where the first and second transport paths meet.

Images