JP2009249110A - Sheet discharging device and image forming device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a small-sized sheet discharging device capable of reducing the damage of a rear end of sheets loaded on a loading tray, and an image forming device. <P>SOLUTION: A loading tray 4 is installed in a tilting state. The loading tray 4 is coupled to two endless belts 20 by a joint member 22. The endless belts 20 are belts having recessed and projecting shapes on inner peripheral surfaces, and laid around gear type pulleys 24a, 24b. The pulleys 24a, 24b attached to a driving shaft 26 is driven to rotate by a driving motor which is not shown. Therefore, when the driving motor drives, the loading tray 4 is vertically hoised and lowered. Those endless belts 20 slightly project from a surface of a sidewall 6, and also serve as receiving members for receiving rear ends of sheets loaded on a tilting surface of the loading tray 4. Furthermore, the endless belt 20 is disposed on an inner side than the width size of the minimum sheet loaded on the loading tray 4. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a sheet discharging apparatus that can stack and move up and down and an image forming apparatus including the sheet discharging apparatus.

  Conventionally, as a stacking tray of a sheet discharge device, one capable of stacking a large number of sheets is known. The sheet discharge device can be moved up and down with the sheets stacked. However, if the stacking tray is moved up and down with the sheets stacked, the rear end of the sheet and the receiving member (the member against which the rear end of the sheet stacked on the stacking tray abuts) are rubbed and both are damaged. there were.

  In order to solve this problem, Patent Document 1 describes a sheet discharging device in which a receiving member can be driven or moved up and down in conjunction with the operation of a stacking tray.

JP 2002-308507 A

  However, in the sheet discharging apparatus of Patent Document 1, the raising / lowering driving means for the stacking tray and the driving means for the receiving member are independent of each other. For this reason, there is a problem that the configuration of the sheet discharging apparatus is complicated and becomes large.

  SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Therefore, a main object of the present invention is to provide a small sheet discharge device and an image forming apparatus that can reduce damage at the trailing edge of sheets stacked on a stacking tray.

  According to the first aspect of the present invention, a side wall, a stacking tray for stacking sheets on an inclined surface, a lifting unit for moving the stacking tray up and down, and a surface of the side wall can be moved up and down along the side wall. And a receiving member that protrudes toward the stacking tray and receives the rear end of the sheet stacked on the stacking tray below the inclined surface. The stacking tray is fixed to the receiving member and is moved up and down in conjunction with the receiving member. The sheet discharge device is characterized in that it is configured as described above.

  In the first aspect of the present invention, since the stacking tray is fixed to the receiving member and is moved up and down in conjunction with the receiving member, the receiving member is also moved up and down as the stacking tray on which the sheets are stacked. Thereby, the rear end of the sheet and the receiving member are not rubbed, and both are not likely to be damaged.

  The invention according to claim 2 is an invention subordinate to the invention according to claim 1, wherein the elevating means is an endless belt for elevating that is rotatably mounted between the drive shaft and the driven shaft, and is a receiving member. The sheet discharge device is characterized in that the endless belt for lifting and lowering is an endless belt for receiving portion disposed in parallel with at least the same drive shaft.

  In the invention of claim 2, since the endless belt of the elevating means and the endless belt for receiving portion of the receiving member are arranged in parallel with at least the same drive shaft, it is easy to make the drive sources of both the same and save Space becomes possible.

  The invention according to claim 3 is an invention subordinate to the invention according to claim 1, wherein the receiving member is composed of lifting means.

  In the invention of claim 3, since the raising / lowering means of the stacking tray also serves as the receiving member, the number of parts can be reduced, and space saving can be further achieved. Further, the manufacturing cost of the sheet discharge device can be reduced.

  The invention according to claim 4 is an invention dependent on the invention according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the receiving member has a widthwise end portion of the minimum size of the sheets stacked on the stacking tray. The sheet discharge device is disposed at a position opposite to the sheet discharge device.

  In the invention of claim 4, since the receiving member is disposed on the inner side than the minimum width size of the sheets stacked on the stacking tray, the space can be saved.

  Further, the invention according to claim 5 is an invention dependent on the invention according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the receiving member has a width direction end portion of each size of the sheets stacked on the stacking tray. The sheet discharge device is disposed at a position opposite to the sheet discharge device.

  In the invention of claim 5, since the receiving member is arranged corresponding to each width size of the sheets stacked on the stacking tray, it is possible to stably receive each sheet having a different width size.

  Furthermore, an invention according to claim 6 is an image forming apparatus comprising the sheet discharge device according to any one of claims 1 to 5.

  According to the sixth aspect of the present invention, since the receiving member also moves up and down as the stacking tray on which the sheets are stacked, the rear end of the sheet and the receiving member are not rubbed, and the rear end of the sheet stacked on the stacking tray is not damaged. An image forming apparatus capable of reducing the above is obtained.

  According to the present invention, since the stacking tray is configured to move up and down in conjunction with the receiving member, the trailing edge of the sheet and the receiving member are not rubbed, and the trailing edge of the sheet stacked on the stacking tray is damaged. Can be reduced.

  The above-described object, other objects, features, and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent from the following description of the best mode for carrying out the invention with reference to the drawings.

(First embodiment)
FIG. 1 is an external perspective view showing a sheet discharge apparatus 2 according to the first embodiment mounted on an image forming apparatus main body 1. FIG. 2 is a schematic configuration diagram of the sheet discharge device 2 as viewed from the front. FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing the sheet discharging apparatus 2 with the exterior cover 30 removed. FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing the stacking tray 4 and the receiving member 20.

  An image forming unit (not shown) is provided inside the image forming apparatus main body 1, and a desired image is formed on the sheet by the image forming unit. As the image forming means, a known recording method such as an electrophotographic recording method or an ink jet recording method is adopted. The sheet discharge device 2 is mounted on the side surface of the image forming apparatus main body 1. The sheet on which the desired image is formed is discharged from the discharge unit by the discharge roller of the image forming apparatus main body 1 and sent to the sheet discharge apparatus 2.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the sheet discharging apparatus 2 includes a punch unit PU that forms punch holes in a sheet, and an end binding unit SU that performs stapling processing by aligning end portions of sheet bundles stacked on the processing tray 51. It has.

  The punch unit PU is disposed on the upper portion of the sheet discharge device 2 and includes a punch hole forming device 58, a first discharge roller 70, a second discharge roller 73, and the like. A sheet on which an image is formed in the image forming apparatus main body 1 is fed from a sheet carry-in port 52 provided on the upper right side of the sheet discharge apparatus 2 via a carry-in roller 53, and both punch hole forming processing and stapling processing are performed. When the sheet does not exist, the sheet proceeds upward through the first branch portion 69, is discharged to the outside of the apparatus from the first discharge roller 70, and is stacked on the first sub-tray 71 provided on the upper surface of the apparatus.

  When at least one of punch hole forming processing and stapling processing is performed, the sheet advances leftward in the sheet conveyance path 60 and passes through the punch hole forming device 58. At this time, if punch hole formation is instructed, registration correction is performed by the carry-in roller 53, and then a punch hole is formed at a predetermined position of the sheet. If punch hole formation is not instructed, the punch hole forming apparatus is used as it is. 58 passes through the second branching section 72.

  When the stapling process is not performed, the paper advances upward in the second branching portion 72, is discharged from the apparatus by the second discharge roller 73, and is stacked on the second subtray 74.

  On the other hand, when performing the stapling process, the sheet travels downward in the second branch portion 72 and is conveyed to an end binding unit SU described later. The edge binding unit SU disposed below the punch unit PU includes a processing tray 51, a first loading portion 62 for loading sheets into the processing tray 51, a second loading portion 63, an end binding stapler 55, and the like. . Sheets of a predetermined size (here, A4 size) or less are stacked on the processing tray 51 from the first carry-in unit 62, and sheets larger than the predetermined size are stacked on the processing tray 51 from the second carry-in unit 63.

  The processing tray 51 is provided with a bundle tip alignment hook 59 that can move up and down along the processing tray 51. The bundle leading edge alignment hook 59 stands by at the lower end of the processing tray 51 when the sheets are carried in, and one end in the conveyance direction of the sheets sequentially fed from the loading roller 53 onto the processing tray 51 is supported by the bundle leading edge alignment hook 59. The In the vicinity of the standby position of the bundle front end alignment hook 59, an end binding stapler 55 is provided. The end binding stapler 55 performs a stapling process on a set of sheets whose ends in the conveyance direction are aligned by the bundle front end alignment hook 59. The sheet bundle stacked on the processing tray 51 is aligned by the bundle front end aligning hook 59, moved to the end binding stapler 55, bound at the lower end, and then moved upward along the processing tray 51 again. The paper is discharged to the stacking tray (main tray) 4 through the discharge roller 56.

  The stacking tray 4 is installed in an inclined state so as to be movable up and down along the side wall 6. The stacking tray 4 is connected to two endless belts 20 by a joining member 22. Each of the endless belts 20 is a stepped belt having an uneven inner peripheral surface, and is rotatably spanned between a pulley 24 a attached to the drive shaft 26 and a pulley 24 b attached to the driven shaft 28. The pulley 24a attached to the drive shaft 26 is rotationally driven by a drive motor (not shown). Thereby, when the drive motor is driven, the stacking tray 4 is moved up and down.

  These endless belts 20 slightly protrude from the side wall 6 toward the stacking tray 4 and also serve as receiving members for receiving the rear ends of the sheets stacked on the inclined surface of the stacking tray 4. Further, the endless belt 20 is disposed at a position facing the end portion in the width direction of the minimum size of the sheets stacked on the stacking tray 4. However, the number of endless belts 20 is not limited, and may be one wide endless belt or three or more endless belts.

  Each time a predetermined number of sheets are stacked on the stacking tray 4, the uppermost surface of the sheet is detected by the light emitting diode 16a and the optical sensor 16b shown in FIG. 2, and the stacking tray 4 is lowered by a predetermined amount. At this time, the sheet is regulated by the rear end of the sheet being abutted against the endless belt 20 by the gravity of the sheet obtained from the inclination angle of the stacking tray 4, and alignment in the sheet conveyance direction is performed.

  The sheet discharging apparatus 2 having the above configuration is configured such that when the stacking tray 4 on which the sheets are stacked is lowered, the stacking tray 4 and the endless belt (that is, the receiving member) 20 are moved up and down in conjunction with each other. As the loaded tray 4 is lowered, the endless belt 20 is also lowered. Similarly, when the stacking tray 4 rises, the endless belt 20 also rises as the stacking tray 4 rises. Thereby, the rear end of the sheet and the endless belt 20 are not rubbed, and both are not likely to be damaged.

  Further, since the endless belt 20 is disposed on the inner side of the width size of the minimum sheet stacked on the stacking tray 4, the space-saving sheet discharge device 2 is obtained. In addition, since the endless belt 20 that is a lifting drive unit for the stacking tray 4 also serves as a receiving member for receiving the rear end of the sheets stacked on the stacking tray 4 below the inclined surface, the number of parts can be reduced. , Space saving can be further achieved. Further, the manufacturing cost of the sheet discharge device 2 can be reduced.

  In the sheet discharging apparatus according to the present invention, the endless belt 20 may be disposed at a position facing the widthwise end of each size of the sheets stacked on the stacking tray 4. Thereby, since the endless belt 20 is disposed at an optimum position corresponding to each width size of the sheet, each sheet having a different width size can be stably received.

(Second Embodiment)
FIG. 5 is a perspective view of a main part of the sheet discharging apparatus according to the second embodiment. The lifting endless belt 40 as a lifting means is rotatably spanned between a pulley 44 a attached to the drive shaft 45 and a pulley 44 b attached to the driven shaft 46. Similarly, the receiving portion endless belt 42 as a receiving member is rotatably spanned between a pulley 48 a attached to the drive shaft 45 and a pulley 48 b attached to the driven shaft 46. In other words, the receiving endless belt 42 and the lifting endless belt 40 are arranged in parallel between the same axes.

  The stacking tray 4 is connected to the two receiving endless belts 42 by the joining members 43, and is connected to the two lifting endless belts 40 by the joining members 41. However, the stacking tray 4 only needs to be connected to at least the receiving portion endless belt 42, and is not necessarily connected to the lifting endless belt 40. The pulleys 44a and 48a attached to the drive shaft 45 are rotationally driven by a drive motor (not shown). Thereby, when the drive motor is driven, the stacking tray 4 and the receiving endless belt 42 are moved up and down in conjunction with each other. As a result, the rear end of the sheet and the endless belt for receiving portion 42 are not rubbed, and there is no possibility that both are damaged.

  Further, the endless belt 40 for raising and lowering and the endless belt 42 for receiving part are arranged in parallel with the drive shaft 45 being the same, so that both can be driven by a single drive motor. In comparison, space can be saved.

  In the second embodiment, the liftable endless belt 40 and the receiving endless belt 42 have the same driven shaft 46. However, if at least the drive shaft 45 is the same, the driven shaft 46 needs to be the same. There is no. Therefore, each pulley 44b, 48b may be structured to be attached to an independent driven shaft.

  In addition, this invention is not limited to the said embodiment, A various deformation | transformation is carried out within the range of the summary.

1 is an external perspective view showing a sheet discharge device according to a first embodiment of the present invention. It is the schematic block diagram which looked at the sheet discharge apparatus from the front. It is a perspective view which shows the sheet | seat discharge apparatus which removed the exterior cover. It is a perspective view which shows a stacking tray and a receiving member. It is a principal part perspective view of the sheet discharge apparatus of 2nd Embodiment.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Image forming apparatus main body 2 Sheet discharge apparatus 4 Stack tray 20 Endless belt 24a, 24b Pulley 26 Drive shaft 28 Drive shaft 40 Endless belt for raising / lowering 42 Endless belt for receiving part 44a, 44b, 48a, 48b Pulley 45 Drive shaft 46 Drive shaft

Claims (6)

Side walls,
A stacking tray that can be moved up and down along the side wall and stacks sheets on an inclined surface;
Elevating means for elevating the loading tray;
A receiving member that protrudes toward the stacking tray with respect to the surface of the side wall and receives a rear end of the sheets stacked on the stacking tray below the inclined surface;
The sheet discharging apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the stacking tray is fixed to the receiving member and is moved up and down in conjunction with the receiving member. The elevating means is an endless belt for elevating that is rotatably installed between a drive shaft and a driven shaft,
The sheet discharging apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the receiving member is a receiving portion endless belt arranged in parallel with the endless belt for raising and lowering at least in the same drive shaft.   The sheet discharging apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the receiving member includes the elevating unit.   The said receiving member is arrange | positioned in the position facing the edge part of the width direction of the minimum size of the sheet | seat loaded on the said stacking tray, The Claim 1 characterized by the above-mentioned. Sheet discharge device.   The said receiving member is arrange | positioned in the position facing the width direction edge part of each size of the sheet | seat loaded on the said stacking tray, The Claim 1 characterized by the above-mentioned. Sheet discharge device.   An image forming apparatus comprising the sheet discharge device according to claim 1.

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