JP2582564B2 - Statka for stimulable phosphor sheet - Google Patents

Description

Description: FIELD OF THE INVENTION The present invention is provided in a transport path of a sheet transport unit that transports a stimulable phosphor sheet in a radiation image information reading apparatus, and temporarily stores a plurality of sheets. The present invention relates to a stimulable phosphor sheet stacker capable of discharging stored sheets one by one, and more particularly, to a stimulable phosphor sheet stacker capable of suppressing an increase in the size of the apparatus due to the provision of the stacker. Things.

(Prior art) Radiation (X-ray, α-ray, β-ray, γ-ray,
(Electron beam, ultraviolet rays, etc.), a part of this radiation energy is accumulated in the phosphor, and when this phosphor is irradiated with excitation light such as visible light, the phosphor is stimulated according to the accumulated energy. It is known to emit light, and a phosphor exhibiting such properties is called a stimulable phosphor (stimulable phosphor).

Using this stimulable phosphor, radiation image information of a subject such as a human body is temporarily recorded in a sheet-like stimulable phosphor, and this stimulable phosphor sheet (hereinafter simply referred to as a sheet) is irradiated with laser light or the like. Scanning with excitation light to produce stimulated emission light,
An image signal is obtained by photoelectrically reading the obtained stimulated emission light, and a radiation image of the subject is output as a visible image to a recording material such as a photographic photosensitive material or a CRT based on the image signal as a visible image. A system has already been proposed by the applicant. (Japanese Patent Laid-Open Nos. 55-12429 and 56-11395)
Nos. 55-163472, 56-104645, and 55-116340. The stimulable phosphor sheet in the above system stores and records radiation image information and temporarily holds the recorded image information until it is read by the excitation light scanning. After completion, it is desirable to erase the image information remaining on the sheet and reuse the sheet.

Therefore, based on the above request, together with the radiation image information reading apparatus including only the reading unit that reads the image information recorded on the sheet, the reading unit and the image information remaining on the sheet are erased. An apparatus including an erasing unit has also been proposed.

In the above-mentioned radiation image information reading apparatus, a cassette containing the stimulable phosphor sheet which has been captured by the external photographing device is loaded in the cassette holding unit, the stimulable phosphor sheet is taken out of the cassette, and the sheet is taken out. In many cases, the sheet is transferred to the reading unit by the sheet conveying unit. In addition, a stacker for temporarily storing a plurality of sheets, discharging the sheets one by one, and transferring the sheets to the sheet conveying means is provided in a conveyance path between the cassette holding unit and the reading unit. That is, reading of image information in the reading unit takes a relatively long time. Therefore, if the above-described stacker is provided, a plurality of photographing operations can be performed while one sheet is being read in the reading unit. A completed sheet can be stored in the apparatus, and the inconvenience of waiting for a long time in the cassette holding unit with the photographed sheet stored in the cassette can be avoided. Further, even if a failure or the like occurs in the reading unit and the reading unit becomes unusable, if the stacker is provided, it is not necessary to immediately stop photographing with the external photographing device. It is also possible to continue driving.

On the other hand, in the apparatus provided with the reading unit and the erasing unit as described above, the sheet whose erasing is completed in the erasing unit is taken out of the reading device and is in a state where image information can be recorded again. Become. These erased sheets are once accumulated in an accumulation tray in the reading apparatus, and the entire tray on which the sheets are accumulated is often taken out of the apparatus. The sheets stacked in the stacking tray need to be stored in the cassette as described above when a new photographing is performed, and thus it is necessary to load the sheets one by one into the cassette before photographing. For this reason, it takes a lot of time until the cassette in which the photographable state is stored again and the photographing is performed, so that there is a problem that the sheet cannot be efficiently circulated and reused. In addition, this loading is performed by a dedicated loader or a manual operation. However, if a dedicated loader is used, the cost of the entire system is increased. Since the sheet is directly touched with the hand, there is a disadvantage that the sheet is not preferable in handling. Therefore, it is conceivable to circulate the sheet in the reading device, take out the photographed sheet from the cassette, perform reading and erasing, and then carry the sheet back into the cassette and store it again. In the apparatus, while one sheet is read and erased, and then stored in the cassette again, the sheet occupies the apparatus, and during this processing, the next sheet must be processed. However, the time loss is large and the processing capacity of the apparatus is significantly reduced. Therefore, in a reading apparatus provided with an erasing unit, a stacker capable of temporarily storing sheets and taking out any one of the stored sheets is provided in a sheet conveying unit downstream of the erasing unit. It would be very convenient if you could.

Therefore, the present applicant can arrange the sheet between a sheet supply unit such as a cassette holding unit and a reading unit, or between an erasing unit and a cassette holding unit, and classify the size of stored sheets, We have already proposed a stacker that allows preferential removal of specific sheets. (Japanese Patent Application No. 61-16074) As shown in FIG.
The tray unit 310 includes a plurality of trays 311 that are provided in a transport path of 350 and are capable of storing sheets one by one. The tray units 310 are provided with carry-in rollers 321 and 322 provided above. And, so that any tray 311 is adjacent to the unloading rotors 331, 332 provided below,
A unit moving means (not shown) can move in a direction indicated by an arrow between a position indicated by a solid line and a position indicated by a dashed line. Further, when the sheet is carried into the tray 311, the inclination of the tray for receiving the sheet is changed so as to increase the interval between the adjacent trays.
Further, when the sheet 1 is carried out, the tray 311 containing the sheet to be discharged is moved onto the carry-out rollers 331 and 332, and then the bottom plate 313 of the tray is opened, the sheet is dropped, and the sheet is delivered to the carry-out roller below. The sheet is handed over. If such a stacker is used, sheets can be carried into an arbitrary tray one by one, and any of the sheets in the tray unit can be carried out. Therefore, a specific sheet is taken out and processed preferentially. Can do it. In addition, sheets can be stored in a tray for each size, and sheets of a required size can be taken out. Further, the stacker can be arranged between the sheet feeding section and the reading section and between the erasing section and the cassette holding section.

(Problems to be Solved by the Invention) However, in the above-mentioned stacker, in order to facilitate loading and unloading of sheets and to stably hold the sheets, each tray is held in an inclined state. And the moving range of the tray unit 310 is the seventh range as described above.
Assuming that the position is between the position indicated by the solid line and the position indicated by the alternate long and short dash line, the width in the stacker moving direction required to move the stacker is the position P ₁ and the position P ₂ shown in FIG.
Is determined by For this reason, in order to provide this stacker, it is necessary to leave a relatively large space with respect to the width of the stacker itself, and there is a disadvantage that the entire apparatus becomes large. In order to reduce the moving space of the stacker, it is conceivable to raise the sheet storing means such as a tray so that the sheet storing space is as upright as possible. However, when the storage space is erected, the impact of the sheet that has left the sheet loading means dropping onto the bottom plate increases, and the bottom plate is usually pressed by a simple spring toward the closed position in order to simplify the opening and closing mechanism. When the sheet is loaded, the bottom plate is opened when the sheet is carried in. If the sheet has a large impact, the bottom plate is likely to open.

Accordingly, the present invention provides a stacker for a stimulable phosphor sheet which can make the entire stacker compact by making the sheet accommodating space substantially upright in the vertical direction, and which does not cause inconvenience such as the bottom plate being opened due to the drop impact of the sheet. It is intended to provide.

(Means for Solving the Problems) A stacker for a stimulable phosphor sheet according to the present invention is provided with a plurality of partitions that are arranged substantially in parallel with each other at regular intervals to allow the sheet to enter, and that stand upright in a substantially vertical direction. And a first position provided at a lower end portion of the partition plate for stopping the sheet by receiving a lower end of the sheet which is urged by a spring and enters between the partition plates, and the spring is provided by an opening means. A stacker main body provided with a bottom plate that can be rotated downward from the first position against the urging force of the above and that can take a second position for dropping the sheet by its own weight, provided above the stacker main body, Carrying-in means for carrying the sheet conveyed by the carrying means into the stacker main body; carrying-out means provided below the stacker main body and receiving the sheet falling under its own weight and passing it to the sheet conveying means A movement for moving the stacker body relative to the loading means and the unloading means so that any partition plate in the stacker body can be positioned below the loading means and above the unloading means; Means, and a stopper disposed at least under the bottom plate for receiving the lower end of the sheet carried in by the carrying-in means at the time of carrying in the sheet, and preventing the bottom plate from rotating from the first position. It is characterized by the following.

It should be noted that the plurality of partition plates are substantially upright in the vertical direction,
This means that each partition plate is upright so that the stacker body can stand upright without tilting as a whole, and the partition plate has a slight taper or unevenness within the range that maintains this state. May be formed. Further, the stacker according to the present invention is not limited to the above-mentioned structure in which the carry-in means and the carry-out means are fixed, and the stacker main body side is moved with respect to these means. You may.

(Operation) In the stacker, since the partition plate stands upright in the substantially vertical direction, the entire stacker main body does not tilt obliquely. Even when the stacker main body is moved to select a sheet storage position, the stacker is disposed. It is possible to suppress an increase in the size of the reading device. Further, since the stopper is provided below the bottom plate that receives the lower end of the sheet to be conveyed, there is no inconvenience that the bottom plate is opened by a drop impact of the sheet conveyed from a substantially vertical direction.

(Example) Hereinafter, an example of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a schematic side view showing an outline of a radiation image information reading apparatus provided with a stimulable phosphor sheet stacker according to an embodiment of the present invention.

The illustrated apparatus includes a cassette holding unit 10 for detachably holding a cassette 2 capable of storing a stimulable phosphor sheet (hereinafter simply referred to as a sheet) 1 and a reading unit 20 for reading image information stored and recorded on the sheet. And an erasing section 30 for erasing image information remaining on the sheet after the reading is completed.
The cassette 2 photographed in the cassette holding unit 10
To be loaded. The cassette 2 has a light shielding property to prevent the sheet from being exposed to external light when recording (photographing) image information by irradiating the sheet with radiation. Is loaded in the apparatus in a direction perpendicular to the plane of the drawing. The cassette 2 has a lid 2a that can be freely opened and closed. The lid 2a is closed when the cassette 2 is loaded into the cassette holding unit. However, when the cassette 2 is loaded, it is opened as shown in FIG. The sheet 1 is exposed.
When the cassette 2 is opened, the suction disk 12 enters the cassette 2 and moves in the direction of arrow B to take out the stimulable phosphor sheet from the cassette 2. The sheet 1 is
The cassette 2 is held so that the front surface on which the stimulable phosphor layer is formed faces downward.

The illustrated reading apparatus receives the sheet 1 taken out of the cassette 2 as described above, and conveys the sheet 1 to the reading unit 20 and the erasing unit 30 in this order. The sheet conveying unit 50 includes an endless belt, a roller, a guide plate, and the like. is provided, the sheet 1 taken out by the conveying roller 12 is transmitted to the arrow a ₁ direction by the sheet conveying means 50.

Of the sheet conveying means 50, conveyed to the conveying path between the cassette holding section 10 and the reading section 20, a first stacker 100 is provided according to the present embodiment, the arrow A ₁ direction, as described above The sheet is temporarily stored in the stacker 100 before being sent to the reading unit 20. Hereinafter, the structure of the stacker 100 will be described in detail with reference to FIGS.

As shown in FIG. 2, the stacker 100 according to the present embodiment includes a plurality of partition plates 111 substantially parallel to each other.
The sheets 1 can be accommodated one by one in a sheet accommodating portion 112 provided as a space formed between the partition plates 111. The stacker 100 has the partition plate 111 and is a body-shaped stacker main body 110 that can be moved integrally, carry-in rollers 121 and 122 serving as carry-in means for carrying the sheet 1 into the stacker main body 110, and a stacker main body 110. Sheet 1 discharged from
The unloading rollers 131 and 132, which are unloading means for receiving and transferring the sheet to the sheet infeeding means 50, and the stacker main body so that all the storage units 112 can be adjacent to the unloading rollers 121 and 122 and the unloading rollers 131 and 132. It comprises a moving means 140 for moving in the direction of arrow C, and a stopper 160 to be described later. The stacker main body 110 is movable in the direction of arrow C within the range shown by the dashed line in FIG.

On the side of the stacker main body 110, a screw rod 142 extending in the moving direction of the stacker main body 110, a main body supporting portion 143 that protrudes laterally from the side surface of the stacker main body 110, and is fitted to the screw rod 142, and is supported by the screw rod. Gear 1
44, a gear unit 146 connected to the gear 144 via a belt 145, and a drive unit unit 141 including a pulse motor 147 for rotating the gear 146 in both forward and reverse directions are provided.
By the motor 147 of the driving unit 141, the gears 146, 1
When the screw rod 142 is rotated through 44, a force for reciprocating in the direction indicated by arrow C is applied to the stacker body 110. Four wheels 101 are attached to the side of the stacker body 110, and the stacker body 1
Under the control of the drive unit 141, these wheels 101 are mounted on a substrate 148 provided below the stacker main body 110.
Is moved in the direction of arrow C. In the present embodiment, the drive unit 141 and the substrate 1
The moving means 140 is constituted by 48. The board 148 is provided on both sides of the stacker main body 110 with guide members 148a and 148a that protrude upward along the moving direction of the stacker main body.
8b, and the wheel 101 has both ends 102 of its shaft.
Has a spherical shape, and the wheel 101 is configured to rotate while abutting both end portions 102 of the shaft with the guide members 148a and 148b. Therefore, if the distance between the guide members 148a and 148b is properly set in advance in accordance with the length of the axle, the stacker body 110 may be distorted during traveling and the stop position may be incorrect, or the traveling may become unstable. Does not occur.

Above the stacker body 110, the carry-in rollers 121, 122
Is provided. The carry-in rollers 121 and 122 feed the sheet 1 conveyed by the sheet conveying means 50 to the stacker main body 110.
Any device can be used as long as it can be carried into the device. Even if the device is integrated with the sheet conveying means 50 as shown in this embodiment (see FIG. 1), it is completely independent of the sheet conveying means. It may be.

When the stacker main body 110 moves in the direction of arrow C, the sheet storage section 122 located below the carry-in rollers 121, 122 is replaced, and the carry-in rollers 121, 122 are positioned below the carry-in rollers 121, 122. The sheet 1 is carried into the storage section 122. Next, the structure of the stacker main body 110 will be described with reference to FIG. 3, FIG. 4, and FIG.

FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view of the stacker main body 110.
The partition plate 111 has a rear surface 111a with a vertical surface and a front surface 111b.
Gradually protrudes forward downward, for example, the inclination is 1 /
The partition plate 111 has a tapered surface having an extremely small inclination of about 100. The partition plate 111 is held by being supported on both sides by a sheet width shift plate 117. That is, the sheet width approaching plate 117 is formed with grooves 117A for inserting a plurality of partitioning plates 111 at regular intervals on the inner side surface 117a, and each partitioning plate 111 is integrally fixed by inserting both ends thereof into the groove 117A. Will be retained. Further, the sheet width approaching plate 117 is a tapered surface that gradually projects inward as its inner side surface 117a goes downward, so as to regulate the position in the width direction of the sheet carried into the sheet storage portion 112. It has become.
Further, a bottom plate 113 is attached to a lower end of each partition plate 111, respectively. The bottom plate 113 is separated from the partition plate 11 by a spring 118.
1, and can assume a first position in which the lower end of the entering sheet 1 is received and stopped in the sheet accommodating portion 112 by the urging force of the spring 118, and is turned downward from the first position. It can take a second position where the sheet moves to drop the sheet under its own weight. That is, as shown in FIG. 5, a protrusion 113a is formed at a side end of the bottom plate 113,
In the vicinity of the unloading rollers 131 and 132, a projection 151a is provided, and an arrow D is provided by a driving means 152 such as a rotary solenoid.
A lever 151 is provided as an opening means of the bottom plate 113 which is turned in the direction. The projection 151a of the lever 151 is engaged with the projection 113a, and the bottom plate is turned by the lever 151 turning in the direction of arrow D. Arrow D 'while extending spring 118 with 113
To move to the second position. As shown in FIG. 4, the sheet accommodating portion 112 is formed by a front surface 111b of the partition plate 111, a bottom plate 113, and a back surface 111a of the adjacent partition plate 111 facing the front surface 111b.

As described above, when the sheet 1 is carried into the stacker main body by the carry-in rollers 121 and 122, the sheet 1 is moved along the tapered surface 111b and the sheet width shifting plate.
The sheet enters the sheet accommodating section 112 while being shifted by 117. In addition, as shown in FIG.
And the back surface 111a is partially recessed alternately with respect to the tapered surface and the vertical surface described above, and if the unevenness is provided on the front and back surfaces of the partition plate in this way, the sheet adheres to these front and back surfaces It can move smoothly without doing. Further, the partition plate 111 in the present embodiment is formed of aluminum, and a sliding member 114 such as a polypropylene skin squeezing is adhered on the convex portions of the front surface 111b and the back surface 111a, so that the sheet is improved in sliding, and It is more preferable in preventing scratches. The sheet storage section 112
The gap is narrower toward the lower side, and the lower end portion is substantially equal to the thickness of one sheet. The sheet 1 carried in by the carry-in rollers 121 and 122 falls by its own weight when its upper end leaves the carry-in rollers 121 and 122,
The bottom plate 113 receives the lower end of the falling sheet 1 and stops inside the sheet storage unit 112. In addition, on the bottom plate 113, a cushioning material 11 such as a sponge for softening an impact when the sheet 1 falls.
5 is affixed, and a sliding member 114 such as a squeezed polypropylene skin is affixed on the cushioning material 115 in order to smoothly carry out the sheet 1 described later. The stacker main body 110 is capable of storing a plurality of sizes of sheets, and is inserted into the sheet storage portion 112 when a relatively small-sized sheet is carried in.
Has a width-shifting member 116 for reducing the effective width. That is, the size of the sheet 1 taken out of the cassette 2 is detected by a sensor or the like, and when the size of the detected sheet is small, the width shifting member 116 is inserted into the sheet storage unit from above. Width adjustment member 116 is one side 1
16a has a tapered surface that protrudes inward as it goes downward, and the small-sized sheet to be carried in is shifted by the inner side surface 117a of the sheet width shifting plate 117 and the side surface 116a of the width shifting member 116. While being guided into the sheet storage unit 112. It is needless to say that the width-adjusting member 116 may be provided in accordance with the type of sheet stored in the stacker body.

By the way, when the sheet 1 is dropped into the sheet accommodating section 112 by its own weight and hits the bottom plate 113 when the sheet 1 is carried into the sheet accommodating section 112 as described above, the partition plate 111 is substantially upright as a whole. A large force is applied to the bottom plate 113 in a direction to open the bottom plate. As described above, since the bottom plate 113 is only urged to the first position by the spring 118, it is conceivable that the bottom plate 113 is opened downward by an impact due to the fall of the sheet, and the carried sheet is dropped. Therefore, the stacker of the present embodiment is provided with a stopper 160 below the bottom plate moved to the sheet carry-in position facing the carry-in rollers 121 and 122 via the sheet storage section as shown in FIG. 113 is prevented from opening. In the present embodiment, the carry-in rollers 121 and 122 and the carry-out rollers 131 and 132 are respectively arranged close to the sheet accommodating portions 112 adjacent to each other, and the carry-in position and the carry-out position of the sheet are shifted by one sheet containing portion. Therefore, the stopper 160 does not prevent the sheet from being carried out, and the stopper 113 is fixed on the substrate 148 at a position facing the carry-in rollers 121 and 122.

By providing the stopper 160 in this manner, even if the sheet 1 falls and collides with the bottom plate 113 and the bottom plate 113 is about to rotate downward, the bottom plate abuts against the stopper 160 and is prevented from rotating. The sheet 1 can reliably stay in the sheet accommodating section 112 that has been carried in. The stopper may be any stopper as long as it can prevent the rotation of the bottom plate, and may be an ordinary stopper having a large rigidity or a damper capable of absorbing an impact due to a drop of the sheet. Good.

The loading of the sheets 1 taken out of the cassette 2 into the stacker main body 110 is performed as described above. The sheets 1 accommodated in the stacker main body 110 are taken out one by one as appropriate and passed to the sheet conveying means 50. Are sent to the reading unit 20. The removal of the sheet 1 from the stacker main body 110 is performed in the sheet storage section 112 adjacent to the sheet storage section at the above-described sheet carry-in position. First, the cassette main body 110 is moved so that the sheet storage section storing the sheet 1 to be taken out is disposed at the above-described unloading position, and then the bottom plate 113 is moved to the second position by the lever 151 described above. It is turned. The unloading rollers 131 and 132 are provided below the bottom plate 113 at the unloading position. As shown in FIGS. 2 and 4, the stacker main body 110 and the unloading rollers 131 and 132 of the substrate 148 are separated from each other. A slit 148c that allows the sheet discharged from the stacker main body 110 to pass therethrough is formed in a portion located therebetween. Bottom plate
The sheet 1 that has fallen under its own weight due to the opening of the sheet 113 as indicated by the broken line in FIG. 4 is gripped at the lower end by the discharge rollers 131 and 132, and the discharge rollers 131 and 132 are
To the nearby sheet carrying means 50.

As described above, with the use of the stacker 100 of this embodiment, the sheets 1 taken out of the cassette 2 are stored in the sheet storage portions 112 in the stacker main body 110, and the stored sheets 1 are required regardless of the storage order. Can be taken out in any order according to If a sheet is to be sent to the reading unit with the highest priority and the sheet is to be processed, immediately after the sheet is carried into the sheet container by the carry-in roller, the sheet is carried out of the sheet container by the carry-out roller. Can also. Also, if the size of the sheet carried in for each sheet storage unit is determined in advance, or if the size of the sheet carried in each sheet storage unit is stored, a sheet having a desired size can be stored as needed. Can be taken out and sent to the reading unit. Furthermore, in the stacker, the partition plates in the stacker main body are arranged substantially upright, and the entire stacker main body stands up without being inclined obliquely. Since the stopper is provided below the bottom plate at the carry-in position, there is no inconvenience that the bottom plate is opened due to the fall of the carried sheet.

Sheet 1 discharged from stacker 100 as described above
, Said by out roller 131 and 132 is passed to the sheet discharge unit 50 as shown in FIG. 1, the sheet 1 is conveyed into the reading unit 20 is conveyed in the arrow A ₂ direction by the sheet discharge means.

The reading unit 20 scans the sheet 1 on which image information is stored and recorded with excitation light 21 such as a laser beam, and emits stimulated emission light emitted from the sheet 1 by the scanning by photoelectric reading means 22 such as a photomultiplier. This is to obtain an electric image signal for outputting a visible image by photoelectrically reading. In the figure, 23 is an excitation light source, 24 is an optical deflector such as a galvanometer mirror, 26
Is used to guide the photostimulated light emitted from the sheet 1 to the light guide 22a of the photoelectric reading means (the light guide 22a serves to guide the photostimulated light to the photodetector 22b such as a photomultiplier while totally reflecting the photostimulated light). This is a reflection mirror that reflects light toward the camera.

The sheet 1 is transported to the reading unit 20 is conveyed in the arrow A ₃ direction by the sheet conveying means 50, sheet entirely by the excitation light 21 is deflected in the conveying direction and substantially vertically two-dimensionally scanned by stimulated emission Light is generated, and the stimulated emission light is detected by the photodetector 22b via the light guide 22a to read image information.

In the reading of the radiation image information, prior to the reading (main reading) for obtaining the image signal for outputting the visible image described above, the pre-reading for reading the outline of the radiation image information previously stored and recorded on the sheet 1 is performed. There is known a method in which a reading condition or the like for performing the above-described main reading is determined based on image information obtained by the pre-reading, and the main reading is performed in accordance with the reading conditions.

As a method of performing such pre-reading, for example, the sheet 1 is scanned by using excitation light having an energy lower than that of the excitation light used in the main reading, and the stimulated emission light emitted by this scanning is similarly read by photoelectric reading means. (See, for example, JP-A-58-67240).

The reading unit according to the present invention may be a part that performs both the main reading and the pre-reading in addition to the part that performs only the main reading. For example the sheet 1 carried by the arrow A ₃ first be conveyed in a direction prefetching, followed seat by the switch back arrow A ₄
And backhaul direction, back to the reading start position, it is sufficient to perform the real reading and conveyed again in the arrow A ₃ direction. The optical members arranged in the reading section are not limited to those described above. For example, as optical reading means, Japanese Patent Application No. 62-16666
A long photomultiplier may be arranged along a main scanning line as described in No. 6 to detect light.

The reading of the image information by the reading unit 20 takes a relatively long time, but in the illustrated apparatus, since the stacker 100 is provided as described above, the reading is performed on one sheet. In the meantime, the sheets 1 that have been photographed can be sequentially stored in the stacker 100,
Processing of the sheet 1 can be performed very efficiently.

The sheet 1 for which the reading of the image information has been completed in the reading section 20 as described above is moved by the sheet conveying means 50 to the arrows A ₅ and A _6.
And is conveyed toward the erasing unit 30.

The erasing section 30 is for erasing the radiation image information remaining on the sheet 1 after the reading is completed (discharging the radiation energy remaining in the stimulable phosphor).
That is, part of the radiation image information stored and recorded on the sheet 1 still remains on the sheet after being read, and the erasing of the remaining image information is performed by the erasing unit in order to reuse the sheet 1.
Done at 30. The erasing method in the erasing section 30 may be any method. The erasing unit 30 in the present embodiment includes an erasing light source such as a fluorescent lamp, a tungsten lamp, a sodium lamp, a xenon lamp, and an iodine lamp.
31 is provided with a plurality, the sheet 1 is the release of the residual radiation energy on the sheet exposed to light by the erasing light source 31 thereof while being conveyed in the arrow A ₇ direction is performed.

The sheet 1 erased by the erasing section 30 is indicated by an arrow.
After being transported to the A ₈ direction, it is further conveyed in the arrow A _9, A _10. When the arrow A sheet 1 is transported in the ₁₀ direction reaches the position indicated by the broken line in the figure, the sheet 1 is arrow by switchback
A It is sent back in the ₁₁ direction. Reverse feeding sheets 1 is carried into the second stacker 200 is further provided on the arrow A ₁₂ conveying direction is conveyed in the direction. The second stacker 200 has the same structure as the first stacker 100 described above, and the stacker main body 210 in which the sheet storage portion 212 is formed by the plurality of partition plates 211 moves in the direction of arrow E. , And the sheet 1 is accommodated in any one of the sheet accommodation sections 212. Also, above the stacker main body 210, carry-in rollers 211 and 222 as a means for carrying in the sheet 1 are provided, and below the stacker main body 210, carry-out rollers 231 and 232 as a means for carrying out the sheet 1 are provided. . Furthermore, the loading and unloading of the sheets into and out of the stacker main body 210 are performed on the sheet storage units 212 adjacent to each other,
A stopper 260 is provided below the bottom plate 213 at the sheet loading position.
Is provided. The carry-out rollers 231 and 232 receive the sheet carried out of the stacker main body 210, and transfer the sheet to the empty cassette 2 loaded in the cassette holding unit 10.
The sheet is passed to a sheet conveying means 50 for carrying a sheet into the apparatus. In addition,
A plurality of sheets are already stored in the second stacker 200 before the sheet 1 is carried in. That is, unloading of the sheet from the second stacker 200 is performed by the first stacker 100.
Is performed by the same mechanism as in the case of
You can select any sheet in and carry it out,
The unloading of the sheet is performed by selecting a sheet suitable for the cassette loaded in the cassette holding unit 10 from the sheets stored in the stacker 200 and immediately after the sheet is taken out from the cassette 2 as described above. Done. By providing such a stacker 200, the cassette 2 containing the photographed sheets is loaded into the cassette holding unit 10,
A new sheet can be carried into an empty cassette within a short time after the sheet is taken out, and the cassette 2 into which the sheet has been carried is immediately taken out of the cassette holding unit 10 and carried to an external photographing device. Can be used for shooting. Even when the size of the sheet held in the cassette 2 differs for each cassette, various sheets are stored in the stacker 200 in advance, and the stacker is set in accordance with the size of the cassette loaded in the cassette holding unit. Since it is sufficient to select and carry out the sheet from 200, the sheet can be efficiently circulated and reused regardless of the size of the sheet. In order to store various sheets in the stacker 200 in advance, the sheets may be collected in the stacker 200 without taking out the sheets from the stacker 200 for a while after the use of the apparatus. Alternatively, before the start of use of the apparatus, unused sheets of various sizes may be stored in the stacker in advance. In order to take out a sheet of a desired size from the stacker 200 according to the cassette loaded in the cassette holding unit 10, the size of each sheet stored in each sheet storage unit 212 of the stacker 200 is stored. It is necessary to have control means for controlling the operation of selecting and taking out a sheet of a desired size according to the cassette loaded in the cassette holding unit 10, and the apparatus of the present embodiment requires the above A control unit 60 for performing control is provided. The control unit 60 simultaneously controls the storage, loading, and unloading of sheets in the first stacker 100.

The sheet discharged from the second stacker 200 as described above is conveyed in the arrow A ₁₃ direction by the sheet conveying means 50,
The sheet 1 sent to the cassette holding unit 10 and carried into the cassette 2 in the cassette holding unit 10
May have been stored in the stacker 200 before being loaded into the cassette holding unit 10, and the elapsed time since the erasing was performed by the erasing unit 30 may be long. The provided auxiliary erasing unit 70 receives light irradiation from the erasing light source 71. That is, the stimulable phosphor sheet 1 emits radiation emitted from a radiation isotope such as ²²⁶ Ra or ⁴⁰ K mixed in a trace amount into the stimulable phosphor after a lapse of a predetermined time even after the erasing is performed. Radiation energy is accumulated by environmental radiation such as cosmic rays and X-rays from other X-ray sources, and this radiation energy may become noise for the next captured image. In order to prevent the generation of this noise, the sheet 1
Is passed through the auxiliary erasing section 70, and erasing (so-called secondary erasing) is performed on the sheet 1 to release radiation energy accumulated on the sheet during a standby time in the stacker 200. Sheet 1 that has passed through the auxiliary eraser 70
Is conveyed to a further arrow A ₁₄ direction by the sheet conveying means 50, it is loaded into the cassette 2 by suction cup 12 described above.

As described above, if the stacker according to the present embodiment is arranged between the erasing unit and the cassette holding unit in the reading device having the erasing unit, the cassette holding unit holds sheets of various sizes in the cassette holding unit. Also, the sheet can be immediately carried into the empty cassette without waiting the cassette in the cassette holding section until the sheet taken out of the cassette returns to the cassette again, so that the sheet can be efficiently circulated and reused. Can be made.

Note that the loading and unloading of sheets in the stacker of the above embodiment are performed at positions shifted from each other by one sheet storage unit, but the loading and unloading positions are separated by at least two sheet storage units. Alternatively, loading and unloading may be performed at the same position. That is, as shown in FIG. 6, the carry-in rollers 121 ', 122' and the carry-out rollers 131 ', 132' may be arranged so as to simultaneously approach the same sheet accommodating section 112 '. In this case, if the stopper 160 'is fixed at a position facing the carry-in rollers 121' and 122 ', the bottom plate 113' is prevented from rotating when the sheet is carried out. What is necessary is just to arrange | position at the position which opposes the rollers 121 'and 122'. Instead of moving the cassette body as described above, the selection of the sheet accommodating section for loading and unloading sheets may be performed by fixing the cassette body and moving the loading means and the unloading means. In that case, the stopper may be movable integrally with the loading means,
It may be movable independently.

Further, the configuration of the other parts of the cassette according to the present invention is not limited to the one shown in the above embodiment. For example, the surface of the partition plate does not necessarily need to be a tapered surface if there is no problem in carrying in the sheet, and a member for supporting each partition plate from the side and integrating it and a member for shifting the width of the sheet are provided. They may be provided separately. Further, the sliding material, the cushioning material, the sliding member, and the irregularities on the front and back surfaces of the partition plate can be omitted depending on various conditions such as the material and structure of the partition plate.

(Effects of the Invention) As described above in detail, according to the stimulable phosphor sheet stacker of the present invention, the loading and unloading of sheets into and out of each sheet storage section is performed in an arbitrary order, and processing such as reading and erasing is performed. This can be performed preferentially for a specific sheet, and a stacker can be provided between the erasing unit and the cassette holding unit.

At the same time, the stacker of the present invention raises the partition plate in a substantially vertical direction and makes the sheet storage section substantially upright, so that even when the stacker body is moved to select the sheet storage section, the movement space of the stacker can be reduced. The size of the reading device provided with the stacker can be suppressed. Further, even if the impact due to the drop of the sheet increases at the time of loading the sheet because the sheet storage section is upright,
By providing the stopper below the bottom plate, the bottom plate is prevented from opening due to a drop impact, and the sheet can be reliably held in the sheet storage portion.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic side view showing a radiation image information reading apparatus provided with a stimulable phosphor sheet stacker according to an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing an outline of the stacker, and FIG. FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of the main body, FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing a mechanism for taking out a sheet from the stacker main body, FIG. 6 is a schematic cross-sectional view of a stacker according to another embodiment of the present invention, FIG. FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing an outline of a conventional stacker. DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Storable phosphor sheet, 2 ... Cassette 10 ... Cassette holding part, 20 ... Reading part 30 ... Erasing part, 50 ... Sheet conveying means, 100, 200 ... Stacker 110,210 ... Stacker body 111,211 … Partition plates 112,212… Sheet storage section 113… Bottom plate, 118… Springs 121,122,221,222… Load-in rollers 131,132,231,232… Load-out rollers 140… Movement means, 151… Lever 160… Stopper

Claims (3)

(57) [Claims] 1. A radiographic image information reading apparatus for reading radiographic image information stored and recorded on a stimulable phosphor sheet, provided in a conveying path of a sheet conveying means for conveying the sheet, wherein a plurality of the sheets are provided. Can be accommodated,
A stacker for a stimulable phosphor sheet capable of discharging stored sheets one by one, comprising a plurality of partition plates which are arranged substantially in parallel with each other at a predetermined interval to allow the sheet to enter, and which are arranged substantially vertically. And a first position provided at a lower end portion of the partition plate for receiving the lower end of the sheet which is urged by a spring and enters between the partition plates and stops the sheet, and the opening means sets the first position of the spring. A stacker main body having a bottom plate that can be rotated downward from the first position against the urging force and that can take a second position to drop the sheet by its own weight, the stacker body being provided above the stacker main body, Carrying-in means for carrying the sheet conveyed by the carrying means into the stacker main body, provided below the stacker main body and receiving the sheet falling under its own weight; Delivering and unloading means, relative to the loading means and the unloading means, such that the stacker main body can be positioned below the loading means and above the unloading means between any partition plates in the stacker body. Moving means for moving the sheet, and at least when the sheet is carried in, is disposed below the bottom plate that receives the lower end of the sheet carried by the carrying means, and prevents the bottom plate from rotating from the first position. A stacker for a stimulable phosphor sheet, comprising a stopper. 2. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said moving means moves said stacker main body with respect to said carrying-in means and said carrying-out means fixed at a predetermined position.
Item 7. A stacker for a stimulable phosphor sheet according to Item 7. 3. A stacker for a stimulable phosphor sheet according to claim 1, wherein said bottom plate is provided with a cushioning material on a surface thereof.