JP2010269921A - Paper discharge device, paper transfer device, paper post-processing device, and image forming apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a paper discharge device by which stiffness imparted to paper discharged is easily adjusted to various conditions. <P>SOLUTION: A collar 402 with a plurality of grooves 402a-402c is disposed in a drive roller 40a of a paper discharge roller 40. When no stiffness is imparted to the paper P, a ring body 403 is fit into the groove 402a closer to a drive roller body 401 which is the innermost in the collar 402. When stiffness is imparted to the paper P, the ring body 403 is fit into the groove 402b at the midportion of the collar 402 or the groove 402c on the outermost side in the collar 402. The ring body 403 existing in the groove 402b or the groove 402c allows the paper P to curve at an angle θ1 or an angle θ2 and subjected to stiffness imparting action to generate rigidity. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2011,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a paper discharge device configured to bend the paper by curving the paper when the paper is discharged by a pair of rollers, a paper transport device provided with the paper discharge device, and a paper The present invention relates to a post-processing apparatus and an image forming apparatus.

  Currently, the functions of a paper processing apparatus that performs various processing on paper are multi-functional, and a wide variety of correspondence is required for various paper such as thick paper, thin paper, and special paper. In particular, with thin paper sheets, the rigidity of the paper is low when the paper is discharged, and the paper may be crushed and round the paper. As a result, the trailing edge of the paper remains in the paper discharge unit, causing a stacking defect in the paper discharge tray, such as being pushed out by the next paper.

  In order to cope with this, a technique has been considered in which paper is stiffened by devising the shape of the paper discharge roller and discharged to a paper discharge tray.

  Normally, the paper is stiffened by bending the paper in a direction perpendicular to the transport direction. However, depending on the thickness of the paper to be discharged and the image on the surface of the paper, there may be a trace of the bending caused by the stiffening, which may deteriorate the image quality.

  As a countermeasure against this, the degree of bending that occurs in the paper in order to apply the stiffness is relaxed so that the deterioration of the image quality can be prevented. For example, the paper discharge roller nip can be separated, or the paper discharge roller pressure can be set to separate the paper discharge roller nip when hard paper is discharged using the hardness of the paper itself. In addition, there is already known a technique for preventing the sticking by causing the protruding portion provided on the surface of the paper discharge roller to be pressed by the hard paper to be dented.

  Currently, there is a mainstream stiffness application technique in which a hook-shaped protrusion is provided at the end of the paper discharge roller, and the paper is bent so that the paper is bent when the paper passes through the flange.

  However, the paper shape of the paper discharge roller up to now has not been expected to transport special paper that has been required in recent years, especially coated paper that has been coated on the paper surface, or thick paper. .

  For this reason, it does not have a stiffening structure that matches the paper quality of the various types of paper, and when the paper passes through the bowl-shaped portion, the paper is bent at the edge portion of the paper discharge roller and the bowl-shaped portion when the paper is bent. There was a problem that a linear trace was generated by crushing.

  Further, the paper includes a relatively thin paper, a paper in which the gap direction is perpendicular to the conveyance direction, and a paper having a thick paper and a gap direction in parallel to the conveyance direction. The latter paper does not require strong stiffness, but since the protrusion of the ridge-shaped portion is constant, unnecessary stiffness is also applied to the latter paper.

  In addition, even if the paper is not stiff, the image may have a crease mark. Depending on the quality required by the user, the crease cannot be adjusted or the crease mark cannot be adjusted. There was a problem.

  Various techniques have been proposed to deal with the problem. For example, in Patent Document 1, for the purpose of imparting and releasing a stiffness-imparting function, a roller main body provided with a concave portion in the circumferential direction of the outer peripheral portion, and a ring-shaped elasticity capable of reversing the inner peripheral surface and the outer peripheral surface. On one circumferential surface of the material, an elastic ring provided with a convex portion that fits into the concave portion of the roller body when the inner circumferential surface is formed constitutes a stiffness roller, and the convex portion of the elastic ring becomes the outer circumferential surface. A technique is disclosed in which the outer diameter is changed by switching between two states, a mounting state and a mounting state in which the convex portion of the elastic ring becomes the inner peripheral surface and fits into the concave portion of the roller body.

  In Patent Document 2, for the purpose of preventing the thick paper to be discharged from being damaged, one of the pair of paper discharge rollers provided with a protrusion that gives stiffness to the paper is provided on the roller circumference. A technique is disclosed in which when a roller is moved and a thick sheet is conveyed (discharged), one of the rollers having a protrusion for sticking is separated from the nip of the pair of paper discharge rollers, making it difficult to perform the sticking.

  In Patent Document 3, for the purpose of preventing the thick paper to be ejected from being damaged, one of the paper ejection roller pairs is provided with a protrusion on the roller circumference that gives stiffness to the paper. A technique is disclosed in which a roller is configured such that the protrusion is detachable, and a paper that does not need to be subjected to a sticking mark is removed by removing the sticking protrusion.

  Further, Patent Document 3 discloses a structure in which the inside of the protrusion is hollow and a member that fills the hollow portion is detachable, and the paper that does not want to have a sticky mark is removed by removing the member filling the hollow portion. A technique is disclosed in which the sticking protrusion is allowed to escape and the sticking is reduced as much as possible.

  However, in the prior art, the technique described in Patent Document 1 can give and release the stiffness-imparting function, but it is necessary to position the uneven portion when the elastic ring is attached, and the stiffness roller position with respect to the paper There is a problem of optimization.

  Further, in the techniques described in Patent Documents 2 and 3, it is possible to prevent the occurrence of a stiffening mark by releasing a stiffening protruding part that stiffens the paper, but the paper quality of the paper, the image forming state, etc. In response to this, the problem that the adjustment of the stiffening of the paper and the adjustment of the sticking trace cannot be solved.

  The object of the present invention is to solve the problems of the prior art and to easily adjust the stiffness, and to adjust the stiffness and the trace of the stiffness according to the quality of the paper to be discharged. It is an object of the present invention to provide a paper discharge device that can be used, and a paper transport device, a paper post-processing device, and an image forming device in which the paper discharge device is installed.

  In order to achieve the above object, a paper discharge device according to the present invention is a paper discharge device that discharges paper with a pair of rollers in contact with the peripheral surface. A protruding member is provided on a part of at least one roller peripheral surface. A paper discharge device for bending the paper by curving the paper according to a positional relationship between a nip position of the pair of rollers and a contact position of the protruding member with respect to the paper. The protruding amount of the roller outward or the position of the protruding member in the direction orthogonal to the paper discharge direction can be adjusted.

  With this configuration, the protruding member of the roller that applies stiffness to the paper is adjusted to the amount of protrusion to the outside of the roller or the position in the direction orthogonal to the paper discharge direction in accordance with the paper quality and state of the paper. be able to.

  The sheet conveying device, the sheet post-processing device, and the image forming apparatus according to the present invention are characterized in that the sheet discharging device according to the present invention is installed in the discharging unit, and the reliability of discharging in each device can be improved. .

  The paper discharge device according to the present invention adjusts the protrusion amount of the roller to the protruding member of the roller that applies the stiffness to the paper in accordance with the quality and state of the paper, or the discharge direction with respect to the discharge direction. By adjusting the position in the orthogonal direction, it is possible to easily adjust the stiffness of the paper, so it is possible to eliminate the stiffness of the paper to be ejected and the stiffness of the paper to be ejected. It is possible to avoid a trouble in paper discharge and perform good paper discharge.

  In addition, the sheet conveying apparatus, the sheet post-processing apparatus, and the image forming apparatus according to the present invention can perform excellent sheet discharge by installing the sheet discharge apparatus in the sheet discharge unit, and the reliability of sheet discharge in each apparatus. Can be increased.

Schematic configuration diagram of the entire sheet post-processing apparatus for explaining an embodiment of the present invention 1 is a front view showing a configuration of a first embodiment of a paper discharge device of the present invention. The figure which shows the drive roller in Embodiment 1. The perspective view which shows the ring body used for Embodiment 1. FIG. (A)-(c) is explanatory drawing of the example of a ring body fitting to the drive roller in Embodiment 1. FIG. (A)-(c) is explanatory drawing about the protrusion amount by the ring body of the drive roller in Embodiment 1, and the sticking with respect to a paper (A)-(c) is a figure which shows the modification of the collar part of the drive roller in Embodiment 1. FIG. (A), (b) is a front view which shows the structure of Embodiment 2 in the paper discharge apparatus of this invention. The front view which shows the modification of the drive roller in Embodiment 2. The front view which shows the modification of the drive roller in Embodiment 2. (A), (b) is a front view for demonstrating the operation | movement of Embodiment 2. FIG. The front view which shows the modification of the ring body in Embodiment 2. FIG. 5 is a front view showing a configuration of a paper discharge roller according to a third embodiment of the paper discharge device of the present invention. (A), (b) is a front view for demonstrating operation | movement of Embodiment 3. FIG. (A)-(d) is explanatory drawing in the case of using the conveyance rubber | gum in Embodiment 3 as a protrusion member. The figure which shows the modification of the conveyance rubber | gum in Embodiment 3. Explanatory drawing of the usage example of the modification of the conveyance rubber shown in FIG. The figure which shows the other modification of the conveyance rubber | gum in Embodiment 3. (A)-(d) is explanatory drawing in the case of using a ring-shaped member as a protrusion member in Embodiment 3. FIG.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of an entire sheet post-processing apparatus for explaining an embodiment of the present invention. The sheet post-processing apparatus 1 includes an image processing apparatus such as a copying machine, a printer, and a facsimile apparatus, and an image forming apparatus 2. It is attached to the side part.

  An outline of the configuration and operation of the main part of the sheet post-processing apparatus 1 will be described. In FIG. 1, a sheet-like sheet S is sent from a sheet discharge path A of the image forming apparatus 2 to a conveyance path B of the sheet post-processing apparatus 1, and the sheet S is divided into a branch claw 3 a and a branch claw 3 b on the conveyance path B. And are discharged from the upper discharge tray path C or the straight discharge tray path D or guided to the lower transport path E. In the lower transport path E, the paper is discharged to the processing tray 8 by the transport rollers 4, 5, 6 and the staple paper discharge roller 7.

  In the processing tray 8, the sheets S sequentially discharged from the lower conveyance path E by the staple paper discharge roller 7 are aligned. The same operation is repeated for a plurality of discharged sheets S until just before stapling.

  After a plurality of paper sheets S are temporarily aligned on the processing tray 8, the leading edge of the paper bundle S is sandwiched between the pressure roller 9 and the pressure roller 10 and guided to the processing tray section F by the movable guide 11. The paper is conveyed downstream by the discharge claw 12 and the pressure roller 9 so as to pass through the route.

  Thereafter, the sheet bundle S is carried by the discharge claw 12 until the trailing edge of the sheet bundle passes through the pressure roller 9, and further conveyed downward by the upper bundle conveying roller 14 and the lower bundle conveying roller 15. At that time, the stop position of the movable rear end fence 13 is different depending on the size of the sheet bundle S in the transport direction, and is waiting.

  When the leading end of the sheet bundle S comes into contact with the waiting movable rear end fence 13 and is stacked, the pressure under the bundle conveying roller 15 is released, and the trailing end tapping claw 16 hits the rear end of the sheet bundle S. As a result, the sheet bundle S may be misaligned before the sheet bundle S temporarily aligned on the processing tray 8 is stacked on the movable rear end fence 13. Therefore, it is necessary to perform final alignment with the rear edge tapping claw 16).

  Immediately after the alignment, the sheet bundle S is finally aligned in the width direction by the saddle stitching upper jogger fence 17a and the saddle stitching lower jogger fence 17b. The saddle stitching process is performed.

  Here, the movable rear end fence 13 is positioned by pulse control from the movable rear end fence HP sensor 19a, and the rear end hitting claw 16 is positioned by pulse control from the rear end hitting claw HP sensor 19b.

  The saddle-stitched sheet bundle S is carried upward along with the movement of the movable rear end fence 13 while the pressurization of the lower bundle conveying roller 15 is released.

  Thereafter, the vicinity of the staple portion where the sheet bundle S is bound is pushed by the folding plate 20 in a substantially right angle direction and guided to the nip of the pair of folding rollers 21 facing each other. The sheet bundle S is pressurized and conveyed by the pre-rotating folding roller 21 so that the center of the sheet bundle S is folded.

  Further, the sheet S is distributed by the branching claw 3a and the branching claw 3b in the transport path B, and is installed from the upper paper discharge tray path C or the straight paper discharge tray path D to the path ends of the paths C and D, respectively. The discharged paper discharge rollers 30 and 40 discharge the paper to the upper discharge tray 31 and the side discharge tray 41.

  FIG. 2 is a front view showing the configuration of the first embodiment of the discharge roller in the sheet post-processing apparatus.

  In the following description, the configuration and the like of the discharge roller 40 of the one side discharge tray 41 between the upper discharge tray 31 and the side discharge tray 41 will be described. The same applies to the paper discharge roller 30 of the paper tray 31.

  In FIG. 2, the paper discharge roller 40 is composed of a pair of a drive roller 40a and a driven roller 40b. In FIG. 2, a pair is arranged on each of the left and right sides, and the drive rollers 40a extend in a direction perpendicular to the paper transport direction. Both driven rollers 40b are supported by a shaft 42 and are supported by a driven shaft 43 extending in a direction perpendicular to the paper transport direction.

  The width of the driving roller 40a is wider than that of the driven roller 40b. The driven roller 40b receives a biasing force from a biasing means (not shown) and comes into contact with the driving roller 40a so that the peripheral surfaces of both rollers 40a and 40b are in contact with each other. is doing.

  The conveyed sheet-like paper is nipped by the nip N between the driving roller 40a and the driven roller 40b, and is discharged to the paper discharge tray 41 shown in FIG. 1 by both rollers 40a and 40b rotating in the circumferential direction. .

  The drive roller 40a is composed of a drive roller main body 401 and a flange 402 for applying stiffness to the paper as shown in an enlarged perspective view shown in FIG. 3A and a side view shown in FIG. An endless belt-like ring body 403 made of an elastic body as shown in the perspective view of FIG.

  The flange portion 402 is provided with a plurality of grooves 402a, 402b, and 402c having different depths (three are shown in this example, but the number of grooves is not limited), and the ring body 403 has a groove. It fits in any one of 402a, 402b, 402c. Since the ring body 403 is an endless belt of an elastic body, the plurality of grooves 402a, 402b, and 402c can be moved and fitted into any of the grooves by bending and expanding the diameter.

  As shown in FIG. 3B, the depth relationship of the grooves 402a, 402b, and 402c is groove 402a <groove 402b = groove 402c in this example. However, the size relationship of the grooves is not limited to this, and is set as appropriate depending on the quality of the paper used.

  FIGS. 5A to 5C are explanatory views of examples of fitting the ring body to the groove of the drive roller.

  FIG. 5A shows a state in which the ring body 403 is fitted in the groove 402 a formed on the drive roller main body 401 side which is the innermost side in the flange portion 402. The depth of the groove 402a is the same as the cross-sectional diameter of the ring body 403. Therefore, the magnitude relationship between the outer diameter X1 of the drive roller body 401 and the outer diameter X2 of the ring body 403 is X1 = X2.

  FIG. 5B shows a state in which the ring body 403 is fitted in the groove 402 b at the center of the flange 402. The magnitude relationship between the outer diameter X1 of the drive roller body 401 and the outer diameter X3 of the ring body 403 is X1 <X3.

  FIG. 5C shows a state in which the ring body 403 is fitted in the outermost groove 402 c of the flange portion 402. The magnitude relationship between the outer diameter X1 of the drive roller body 401 and the outer diameter X4 of the ring body 403 is X1 <X4.

  In this example, since the relationship between the grooves 402b and 402c is set equal, the magnitude relationship between the outer diameter X3 and the outer diameter X4 is X3 = X4.

  The adjustment of the protrusion amount of the ring body 403 as the protrusion member in the flange portion 402 in the direction orthogonal to the paper conveyance direction can be easily adjusted by elastically deforming the ring body 403 and moving the grooves 402a to 402c. it can. For this reason, it is not necessary to remove the paper discharge roller 40 from the installation portion, and the ring body 403 is fitted to the drive roller 40a in any case, so that it is not lost.

  FIGS. 6A to 6C are explanatory diagrams of the protrusion amount by the ring body of the drive roller and the stiffening to the paper in the first embodiment having the above-described configuration.

  FIG. 6A shows a state where the ring body 403 is fitted in the groove 402a on the side of the drive roller body 401, which is the innermost side of the flange 402, as shown in FIG. A state in which the paper P is sandwiched by the driven roller 40b is shown.

  In the state shown in FIG. 6A, as described with reference to FIG. 5, the outer diameter of the drive roller body 401 and the outer diameter of the ring body 403 are equal, so the paper P is not applied.

  As shown in FIG. 5B, FIG. 6B shows a state where the ring P 403 is fitted in the groove 402b in the central portion of the collar 402, and the paper P is driven by the driving roller 40a and the driven roller 40b. The state which is pinching is shown.

  In the state shown in FIG. 6B, as described with reference to FIG. 5, the relationship between the outer diameter X1 of the drive roller body 401 and the outer diameter X3 of the ring body 403 is X1 <X3. P bends at an angle θ1 and receives a stiffness action that generates rigidity.

  FIG. 6C shows a state in which the ring 403 is fitted in the outermost groove 402c of the flange 402, as shown in FIG. 5C, and the paper is driven by the driving roller 40a and the driven roller 40b. A state in which P is held is shown.

  In the state shown in FIG. 6C, as described in FIG. 5, the relationship between the outer diameter X1 of the drive roller main body 401 and the outer diameter X3 of the ring body 403 is X1 <X4. P bends at an angle θ1 and receives a stiffness action that generates rigidity.

  As described with reference to FIG. 5, the relationship between the angles θ1 and θ2 is that the outer diameter of the ring body 403 is X3 = X4. Therefore, the axial distance between the driven roller 40b and the groove 402b and the driven From the axial distance between the roller 40b and the groove 402c, it is obvious that θ1> θ2.

  Therefore, the stiffening action in FIG. 6 (b) is weaker than the stiffening action in FIG. 6 (c). Therefore, by appropriately selecting the states shown in FIGS. 6A to 6C, it is possible to adjust the effect of applying the stiffness to the paper P.

  7A and 7B are diagrams showing a modification of the collar portion of the drive roller in the first embodiment, where FIG. 7A is a front view of the drive roller, FIG. 7B is a front view of the drive roller viewed from different angles, and FIG. ) Is a side view of the drive roller shown in FIG.

  In FIG. 7, a flat portion 402d having the same height as the bottom of each of the grooves 402a, 402b, and 402c is formed on a ridge line portion that divides the grooves 402a, 402b, and 402c of the flange portion 402 in the driving roller 40a. In this example, the flat portion 402d is installed at a position that forms 90 degrees on the circumferential surface of the roller.

  In this way, by installing the flat portion 402d and eliminating the ridge line separating the grooves in one-half of the roller circumference, the movement of the ring body 403 between the grooves becomes easier. However, since the ring body 403 is made of an elastic body, as long as a ridge line of about one half of the circumference of the roller remains, there is no occurrence of displacement during driving of the drive roller 40a.

  FIG. 8 is a front view showing the configuration of the second embodiment of the discharge roller in the sheet post-processing apparatus.

  In FIG. 8, the paper discharge roller 40 is composed of a pair of a drive roller 40a and a driven roller 40b. In FIG. 8, a pair is arranged on the left and right sides, and the drive rollers 40a extend in a direction perpendicular to the paper transport direction. Both driven rollers 40b are supported by a shaft 42 and are supported by a driven shaft 43 extending in a direction perpendicular to the paper transport direction.

  The drive roller 40a includes a drive roller main body 401 and a collar portion 412 provided on both sides of the drive roller main body 401 for applying stiffness to the paper. The collar portion 412 includes the same as in the first embodiment. 4, an elastic endless belt-shaped ring body 403 which is a protruding member shown in FIG. 4 is fitted.

  Each of the flange portions 412 is provided with a plurality of grooves 412a and 412b having different depths (in the present example, two are shown, but the number of grooves is not limited), and the ring body 403 has a groove 402a. , 402b. Since the ring body 403 is an endless belt made of an elastic body, the grooves 412a and 412b can be moved by bending and expanding the diameter. As in the first embodiment, the ring body 403 has different protrusion amounts depending on the grooves 412a and 412b to be fitted.

  In this example, with respect to the position protruding from the nip N between the driving roller 40a and the driven roller 40b, as shown in FIG. 8A, when the ring body 403 is fitted into the outer groove 412b, the ring apex is It is set so as to protrude about 1 mm from the sheet conveying surface to the sheet conveying surface side (hereinafter referred to as ring position A).

  As for the position where the ring apex is lowered below the nip N, as shown in FIG. 8B, when the ring body 403 is fitted into the inner groove 412a, the ring apex is about 0.3 mm from the sheet conveying surface. Then, the position is set so as to be lowered from the sheet conveying surface (hereinafter referred to as ring position B).

  Further, as shown in FIG. 9, the ring body 403 may be fitted only in the grooves 412 a and 412 b of the one flange portion 412.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 10, three or four grooves of the flange portion 412 may be formed in order to change the protruding amount of the ring body 403. In FIG. 10, the example which installed the groove | channel in three places (412a, 412b, 412c) in one collar part 412 is shown.

  In the state of the ring position A shown in FIG. 8A, if the paper with low rigidity (mainly a thin paper sheet) is transported, the edge of the paper is lifted, and the paper is sufficiently bent and curved. Thus, the paper is conveyed in a state in which the paper is stiffened.

  For this reason, it is possible to prevent such a problem that the paper is curled or the paper is discharged at the trailing edge of the paper, and the paper is poorly stacked due to the next paper.

  In addition, when a special paper (a cardboard sheet or a coated sheet with a coating applied on the surface of the sheet) is conveyed in the state of the ring position A, the paper is lifted by the end of the ring, and when the paper is bent, The sheet is difficult to bend due to the rigidity, and when the sheet passes through the ring body 403 and the edge portion of the driven roller 40b, a so-called streak-shaped trace called a corrosion is generated.

  In such a case, the sheet is conveyed in the state of the ring position B shown in FIG. As a result, the sheet becomes flat in the roller conveyance portion, and the occurrence of the streak-like marks can be prevented.

  However, some coated papers are coated on thin paper, and although they are stronger than ordinary thin paper, they are generally less rigid (large size Y with a basis weight of 60 g or less). Eye coat sheet).

  Since such a sheet is a coated sheet, streak marks are easily noticeable. On the other hand, if the sheet is set at the ring position B to be in a flat state, there may be a problem in paper discharge performance.

  In such a case, as shown in FIG. 9, two ring bodies 403 are provided separately from the drive roller main body 401, which is a conveyance nip forming portion that generates a conveyance force in the roller, so that the conveyance force is improved. To do. As the ring body 403, a rubber material having a high expansion / contraction rate may be used.

  In the modification of the second embodiment shown in FIG. 11, at least one of the flange portions 412 (in this example, the inner flange portion 412) provided on both sides of the drive roller main body 401 in the drive roller 40a is replaced with the drive roller 40a. It is formed as a separate member so as to be movable with respect to the drive roller body 401 so that the distance from the drive roller body 401 can be set arbitrarily. As a specific moving distance, it is effective to move within a range of about 3 mm.

  By moving the ring body 403 to the optimum position by the collar portion 412, the sheet refraction angle formed by the nip N between the driving roller 40 a and the driven roller 40 b and the ring apex position of the ring body 403 is set with respect to the ring position A. And a gentle angle. As a result, it is possible to improve the stackability of paper discharge while preventing the generation of streak marks.

  As for paper stiffness, it works in a disadvantageous direction compared to the ring position A, but the state of the ring position A is a state for dealing with a sheet having extremely low rigidity such as ultra-thin paper or printing paper. Even if the sheet is coated, there is no problem with the stacking property of the discharged paper even if the ring position A is not applied.

  Regarding the control of the movement position, first, the operator sets the paper type and thickness of the paper on the operator panel (for example, sets a coated sheet and sets it to be a thin paper sheet), and this setting. In response, the control unit in the apparatus outputs an output signal for moving the collar 412 having the ring body 403 to a drive unit (not shown). Also, a message for setting by the operator is displayed on the operator panel. And according to the said setting, the fixing member (not shown) of one collar part 412 is removed, and as shown to Fig.11 (a), a pair of collar part 412 is moved to a movement position. If the set distance of the moving position is subdivided, more detailed setting is possible.

  Further, when a sheet with low rigidity such as an ultra-thin sheet is set, the collar portion 412 is moved to the position shown in FIG.

  As an example, FIG. 11 shows a configuration in which the flange 412 on the inner side (conveyance center side) of the drive roller main body 401 is movable. This is because the paper can be securely attached nearer the conveyance center.

  In this way, when the collar part 412 is moved inward, as shown in FIG. 11, it is possible to apply the stiffness at the conveyance center part by moving a pair of inner facing collar parts 412 to the center in the conveyance direction. become.

  Further, if there is no restriction on the layout, the flange 412 on the outer side of the drive roller body 401 may be moved. Further, if more emphasis is attached, the flanges on both sides of the drive roller body 401 412 may be movable.

  Regarding the movement position fixing of the collar part 412, it is conceivable that fixing is performed by a fixing member such as a snap fit member that can be easily removed, and a plurality of mounting positions of the fixing member are set.

  When the driven roller 40b is a hard member such as resin and the driving roller 40a is a soft member such as rubber, the driving roller 40a is crushed by the driven roller 40b, and a step is formed at the edge of the driven roller 40b. In view of this, it is feared that streak marks are generated on the sheet. Therefore, the roller width of the driving roller 40a is preferably narrower than the roller width of the driven roller 40b.

  In addition, when the stiffness is not good, it is possible to improve the stiffness by providing the protrusion shape 403a on the paper contact surface of the ring body 403 as shown in the perspective view of the driving roller shown in FIG. become.

  FIG. 13 is a front view illustrating a configuration of a sheet discharge roller according to a third embodiment of the sheet post-processing apparatus.

  In FIG. 13, the paper discharge roller 40 is composed of a pair of a driving roller 40a and a driven roller 40b. In FIG. 13, a pair is arranged on the left and right, and both the driving rollers 40a extend in a direction perpendicular to the sheet conveying direction. Both driven rollers 40b are pivotally supported by a drive shaft 42 and extend in a direction orthogonal to the paper transport direction.

  FIG. 14 is a cross-sectional view of the drive roller according to the third embodiment. The drive roller 40a includes an annular protrusion 421a on the outer periphery, an inclined surface 421b formed on the inner side of the annular protrusion 421a, and a male screw protruding on the inner center. A screw member 421 provided with a portion 421c, a roller member 422 provided with a female screw portion 422a into which the male screw portion 421c of the screw member 421 is screwed into an inner central portion, a conveyance rubber 423 attached to the outer periphery of the roller member 422, Consists of.

  The drive roller 40a is supported by a drive shaft 42, the drive roller 40a and the drive shaft 42 rotate together, the screw member 421 rotates freely with respect to the drive shaft 42, and the roller member 422 is a male screw portion 421c. And the female screw portion 422a are screwed together.

  Therefore, when the screw member 421 is rotated, the annular protrusion 421a of the screw member 421 moves in the thrust direction of the drive shaft 42 from the state of FIG. 14A to the state of FIG.

  Therefore, as shown in FIG. 13, when the paper P is transported by the paper discharge roller 40, the nip position between the driving roller 40a and the driven roller 40b and the protruding member for paper stiffness of the driving roller 40a shown in FIG. Since the contact position of the annular protrusion 421a of the screw member 421 with respect to the paper P is different, the paper P is curved in a direction orthogonal to the transport direction and the paper P is stiff. With this stiffness, the paper P discharged from the paper discharge roller 40 is less likely to buckle and is discharged to the tray while maintaining a straight posture.

  Next, a configuration example of the drive roller according to the third embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. In the following description, members corresponding to those already described are denoted by the same reference numerals, and detailed description thereof is omitted.

  15A is a front sectional view of the driving roller, FIG. 15B is a front sectional view of the driving roller, FIG. 15C is a front sectional view when the protruding amount is increased in the driving roller, and FIG. It is a front view at the time of enlarging quantity.

  In the configuration example shown in FIGS. 15A and 15B, the conveyance rubber 423 attached to the outer periphery of the roller member 422 is extended until it abuts against the annular protrusion 421 a of the screw member 421. In the present configuration example, the inclined surface 421b formed inside the annular protrusion 421a in the configuration example of FIG. 14 is not provided.

  Accordingly, as shown in FIGS. 15C and 15D, when the screw member 421 is rotated, the conveyance rubber 423 sandwiched between the annular protrusion 421 a of the screw member 421 and the roller member 422 is outside. The protrusion 423a becomes a protruding member portion for sticking that protrudes in a direction orthogonal to the sheet conveying direction.

  Depending on the amount of rotation of the screw member 421, the protrusion amount of the protrusion 423a can be adjusted, and the hardness of the protrusion 423a can be changed. That is, when the protrusion amount of the protrusion 423a is increased, the protrusion 423a has a semicircular cross-sectional shape, so that the hardness of the protrusion 423a increases and the stiffness of the paper increases. On the other hand, when the protrusion amount of the protrusion 423a is reduced, the cross-sectional shape of the protrusion 423a becomes a gentle bulge shape, so that the force to apply the paper to the paper can be weakened.

  16A and 16B are diagrams showing a modification of the configuration of FIG. 15, where FIG. 16A is a front view of the driving roller, FIG. 16B is a front view when the protrusion amount is increased in the driving roller, and FIG. It is a side view at the time of enlarging protrusion amount in FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 16, by inserting at least one slit 423s on the circumference of the conveyance rubber 423 and rotating the screw member 421 into the roller member 422, the slit 423s of the conveyance rubber 423 is obtained. The part that protrudes at is spread outward while becoming uneven.

  As a result, as shown in FIG. 17A, the rear end of the paper P that has come out of the nip of the paper discharge roller 40 is scraped out more in the discharge direction by the convex concave portion protruding by the slit 423s, or FIG. Can be scraped off onto the sheet discharge tray 41 as shown in FIG.

  For this reason, when there is an upward curl at the rear end of the paper, or at the moment when a paper without a stiffness passes through the nip of the paper discharge roller 40, the paper discharge roller 40 is not squeezed and the paper rear end is bent (seat). Even if it bends), the trailing edge of the sheet can be scraped out, so that it can be reliably discharged.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 18, by forming the annular elastic member 424 of the protruding portion for sticking that protrudes to the outside of the roller by the rotation of the screw member 421 with a member having a higher friction coefficient than the conveyance rubber 423, Even without providing the slit 423s as described above, the member 424 can scrape or scrape off the paper in the same manner as described above.

  18A is a front view of the drive roller, FIG. 18B is a front view when the protrusion amount is increased in the drive roller, and FIG. 18C is a side view when the protrusion amount is increased in the drive roller. is there.

  FIGS. 19A and 19B are diagrams showing another configuration example of the driving roller according to the third embodiment. FIG. 19A is a front sectional view of the driving roller, FIG. 19B is a front view of the driving roller, and FIG. Front sectional drawing when enlarged, (d) is a front view when the amount of protrusion is increased in the drive roller.

  As shown in FIGS. 19A and 19B, a ring-shaped body 425 of a ring-shaped elastic member is sandwiched between the annular protrusion 421 a of the screw member 421 and the roller member 422. With this configuration, when the screw member 421 is rotated and screwed into the roller member 422, the ring-shaped body 425 is pushed outward as shown in FIGS. Projects outward from the circumference. The projecting ring-shaped body 425 becomes a projecting member for paper stiffness.

  Then, as shown in FIGS. 19C and 19D, when the paper is to be stiffened, the ring member 425 is moved outward by rotating the screw member 421 so as to be screwed into the roller member 422. When it is desired to prevent the occurrence of a crease mark on the paper by projecting to the edge, the screw member 421 is rotated away from the roller member 422 as shown in FIGS. 19 (a) and 19 (b). By doing so, it is possible to eliminate stiffness by placing the ring-shaped body 425 at the same position as the circumferential surface of the conveying rubber 423 or inside.

  Therefore, the amount of protrusion of the ring-shaped body 425 can be adjusted by adjusting the amount of screwing / rotating of the screw member 421, and the amount of paper can be adjusted. At the same time, it is also possible to adjust the strength of the stiff mark on the paper surface. Thereby, according to the quality which a user calculates | requires, a firmness and a firmness trace can be finely adjusted.

  The sheet discharge apparatus according to the present embodiment includes a sheet post-processing apparatus that performs post-processing on a sheet-shaped sheet, an image processing apparatus that reads an image from a document, and an image formation that forms an image on a sheet-shaped sheet. It can be installed in an apparatus or a sheet conveying apparatus that conveys sheet-like paper to a predetermined position.

  The paper discharge device according to the present invention is applied to a sheet post-processing device, an image processing device, an image forming device, a sheet conveying device, and the like that handle sheet-like paper.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Sheet post-processing apparatus 2 Image forming apparatus 30 and 40 Paper discharge roller 31 and 41 Paper discharge tray 40a Drive roller 40b Drive roller 401 Drive roller main body 402 and 412 Gutter parts 402a to 402c, 412a to 412c Groove 402d Flat part 403 Ring body 403a Projection shape 421 Screw member 421a Annular projection 421b Inclined surface 421c Male thread 422 Roller member 422a Female thread 423 Conveying rubber 423s Slit 424 Annular elastic member 425 Ring-shaped body

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 10-250893 JP 2005-67786 A JP 2001-48392 A

Claims (28)

In a paper discharge device that discharges paper with a pair of rollers that contact the peripheral surface,
Protruding members are provided on a part of at least one roller peripheral surface, and the sheet is bent by bending the sheet according to the positional relationship between the nip position of the pair of rollers and the contact position of the protruding member with respect to the sheet. A paper discharge device to be attached,
A paper discharge device characterized in that the protruding amount of the protruding member to the outside of the roller or the position of the protruding member in a direction perpendicular to the discharge direction can be adjusted.   Forming the projecting member by an elastic ring-like member fitted in a groove provided on the peripheral surface of the roller, and providing a plurality of the grooves and fitting the ring-like member in any one of the grooves; The paper discharge device according to claim 1.   3. The paper discharge apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the protruding member is a ring-shaped body having a protrusion formed on a peripheral portion.   The paper discharge device according to claim 1, wherein the protruding member is a ring-shaped body having a circular cross-sectional shape.   The paper discharge device according to claim 1, wherein the protruding member has a hollow cross-sectional shape.   3. The paper discharge apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the protruding member and the roller are made of the same material.   3. The paper discharge device according to claim 1, wherein the protruding member is made of a material having a smaller coefficient of friction than the roller.   3. The paper discharge apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the protruding member is made of a material having a hardness lower than that of the roller.   The paper discharge device according to claim 1, wherein the depth of the plurality of grooves is changed so that the protruding amount of the protruding member can be adjusted.   The paper discharge device according to claim 1, wherein the protruding members having different hardnesses are fitted into the plurality of grooves.   The paper discharge apparatus according to claim 1, 2, 9, or 10, wherein the groove is provided inside the roller.   12. The sheet discharge according to claim 1, wherein a contact surface of another roller that contacts the roller provided with the groove is narrower than a contact surface of the roller provided with the groove. apparatus.   13. The paper discharge device according to claim 1, wherein a protruding amount of the protruding member on a side in contact with another roller in the roller provided with the groove is set small.   14. The sheet discharge device according to claim 1, wherein a flat portion having the same height as a bottom portion of the groove is formed in a part of a ridge line portion of the adjacent groove. .   15. The paper discharge apparatus according to claim 14, wherein the flat portions are formed at four locations each forming 90 degrees on the roller peripheral surface.   The paper discharge device according to claim 1, wherein the protruding members are provided on both sides of the roller.   The paper discharge device according to any one of claims 1 to 13, wherein the roller is constituted by a pair of roller bodies capable of contacting and separating, and each of the roller bodies is provided with the projecting member.   18. The paper discharge device according to claim 1, wherein, in the pair of roller bodies, one roller body and the other roller body can be moved to a plurality of positions. .   The paper discharge device according to claim 17 or 18, wherein a moving position of the roller body is set according to a paper quality to be discharged.   The paper discharge device according to claim 17 or 18, wherein the moving position of the roller body is set according to a paper thickness to be discharged.   The roller is composed of a pair of roller bodies movable in a direction orthogonal to the paper discharge direction, and an annular protrusion is formed on the outer peripheral side of one of the roller bodies to form the protruding member. Item 2. A paper discharge device according to Item 1.   The roller is composed of a pair of roller bodies movable in a direction perpendicular to the paper discharge direction, and an elastic ring-shaped body is fitted between the roller bodies to form the projecting member. 2. The paper discharge device according to claim 1, wherein the roller is compressed by the two roller bodies so that the peripheral portion of the protruding member protrudes outward of the roller.   The paper discharge device according to claim 21 or 22, wherein the roller is configured by screwing one roller body into and out of the other roller body.   23. The paper discharge apparatus according to claim 21, wherein a concave portion is formed on at least a part of the peripheral surface of the protruding member.   25. The paper discharge apparatus according to claim 21, wherein the protruding member is made of a material having a large friction coefficient.   26. A paper transporting device for transporting a paper to a predetermined position and then discharging the paper to a discharge unit, wherein the paper discharge device according to any one of claims 1 to 25 is installed in the discharge unit. Conveying device.   26. A sheet post-processing apparatus that receives a sheet, performs post-processing, and then discharges the sheet to a discharge unit, wherein the discharge unit includes the sheet discharge device according to any one of claims 1 to 25. Paper post-processing device.   An image forming apparatus that discharges a sheet to a discharge unit after performing image forming processing on the sheet, wherein the discharge unit includes the sheet discharge device according to any one of claims 1 to 25. An image forming apparatus.

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