JP2691711B2 - Sheet material handling device - Google Patents

Description

Description: BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a sheet material handling device that receives a sheet material discharged from an image forming apparatus and discharges the sheet material onto a stacking unit. [Prior Art] Conventionally, this type of sheet material (hereinafter, simply referred to as a sheet) handling device for copy paper, transfer paper, recording paper, etc. in an image recording apparatus main body, for example, a copying machine, a printer or other recording apparatus (hereinafter, The transport speed of the sorter) is usually constant, and was used by mounting it only on an image recording apparatus suitable for the speed. [Problems to be Solved by the Invention] Therefore, when these sorters are mounted on an image recording apparatus having a slow sheet conveying speed, the sheet pulling due to the difference in respective conveying speeds between the sorter and the image recording apparatus. There are drawbacks such as sticking to each other, slipping between the sheet and the conveying roller, noise, and abrasion of the conveying roller. However, if the conveying speed of the sorter is set to a fixed speed equal to the discharging speed of the image recording apparatus in order to prevent such sheet pulling, a loop that is formed when the sheet is received from the image recording apparatus is generated. Since the sheet is conveyed without being solved, there is a problem that the sheet is not conveyed properly, and the kicking of the sheet material to each tray of the sorter is weak, and the rear end of the sheet that has not kicked out is discharged to the sorter. There is a problem that the rollers may damage the tray or the tray may not be loaded properly. In view of the above points, the present invention eliminates a loop that occurs when a sheet material is received from an image recording apparatus, prevents slippage when the sheet material is conveyed, and allows good kicking when discharging the sheet material. The purpose is to provide. [Means for Solving the Problems] In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a stacking unit for stacking sheet materials, and a transport for receiving the sheet materials discharged from the image recording apparatus and discharging them onto the stacking unit. And a detection unit that detects that the trailing edge of the sheet material has come off from the image recording apparatus, and the conveying unit includes the sheet material.
When the sheet material is received from the image recording apparatus, the sheet material is conveyed at a first speed that is higher than the discharging speed of the image recording apparatus, and after the sheet material is received, the sheet material that is suitable for the discharging speed of the image recording apparatus is received. A sheet material handling device, characterized in that the sheet material is conveyed at a speed of 2 and is conveyed at a third speed, which is higher than the second speed, in response to detection of trailing edge loss by the detecting means. Examples Hereinafter, the present invention will be described based on examples. FIG. 1 is a side sectional view of a sorter S and a paper discharge section of a copying machine C showing an embodiment of the present invention. (Configuration) An image recording apparatus an example electrophotographic copying machine C of the body, the conveying speed of the sheet is a relatively slow, sorter S as a sheet material handling apparatus, of the 15-stage tray group ₄₁ to ₁₅ It is mounted on the copying machine C so as to face it. R ₁ / R ₂ is
The sheet 1 discharged by the pair of discharge rollers 1a and 1b by the upper / lower rollers of the copying machine C reaches the carry-in entrance of the sorter S,
The carry-in guide 2 guides the space between the pair of transport rollers 3a and 3b. A sheet receiving port 4 ₄ ′ of the tray 4 _{4 is provided so} as to face the nip of the transport rollers 3 a and 3 b.
3a, the sheet 1 transported from 3b is are configured to be accommodated placed into tray 4 ₄ above. The conveyance speed of the sorter S mounted on the copying machine C in which the conveyance speed of the sheet 1 is relatively low is equal to or slightly higher than that of the copying machine C by electrical control, which will be described later. The speed is increased, and the sheet 1 leaves the restricted area of the discharge rollers 1a and 1b of the copying machine C (that is, a predetermined time after the main body discharge sensor 101 is turned off) and kicks into the bin (tray group) 4. Until it is controlled, it is controlled so as to have a normal transport speed. Further detailed configuration will be described. In Figure 1, 15-stage trays group 4 _1, 4 ₂ ---, 4 ₁₅
Each (4 _n ) has a tray support plate 5 at its side edge.
Mounted on Further, since the tray support plate 5 is attached to the lifting member 6, the tray group 4 can be lifted and lowered.
The 4 _n sheet receiving port can be arbitrarily set at a position facing the conveying rollers 3a and 3b. That is, the lifting member 6
It can be only vertically moved a distance corresponding to a distance from at least the tray 4 ₁ along the column 7 on the tray 4 _15. Then, a chain (or wire or the like) 8 is fixedly mounted on the upper end of the elevating member 6, is deflected by the upper idle sprocket 9 and reaches the sprocket 11 at the shaft end of the lower motor 10, and the other end of the chain 8 is It is fixed to the lower end of the lifting member 6 via a spring B. Therefore, the tray unit 4 ₁ by driving rotation of the motor 10 in the arrow clockwise, 4 _2, ---, 4 ₁₅ integrally rise and lift member 6. On the other hand, FIG. 2 is an enlarged sectional view of the vicinity of the column 7 of the sorter S as seen from above. FIG. 3 is an enlarged view of the elevating member 6 and shows the positioning mechanism. In FIG. 2, a notch plate 13 as a positioning means for each tray 4 _n is provided inside the column 7 so as to move up and down along the groove 12.
Is fixed to the elevating member 6. The notch plate 13 has notches formed at positions corresponding to the intervals between the trays 4 _n , and the position detection sensor 15 having a light emitting element and a light receiving element detects the transmission of the notch and detects the position of each tray 4 _n . Can be set. On the other hand, the lifting member 6 is also formed with a notch 16 as shown in FIG. 3, and a solid line claw (swing member) 17 is in contact with the notch, and the claw 17 shown by a broken line is shown. ′ Indicates a state in which the lifting member 6 is released. The claw 17 rotates about a claw shaft 18 as a rotation support shaft and can be displaced into the states 17 and 17 '. The tray group 4 is moved such that when returning the tray group from the uppermost position or any position to the lowermost position of the initial position, the solenoid 19 is energized, the pawl 17 is held at the position of the broken line 17 ', and the pawl 17 is moved. This is done by disengaging the notch 16 with the notch. It should be noted that the solenoid 19 does not need to be operated at all while the tray is being raised, and the pawl 17 bites into the elevating member 6 by the return spring 20 fixed to the main body of the sorter S. In the example shown in FIG. 3, if there is an overrun of the lifting member 6 of about 5 mm, the return spring 20 causes the pawl 17 to move.
When the motor 10 (Fig. 1) is stopped, the elevator member 6 is lowered by its own weight and the pawl 17 is moved to the notch 16 on the side of the solid line of Fig. 3 when the motor 10 (Fig. 1) is stopped. Since it is pushed at the position, the claw 17 comes into contact with the stopper 21 and is stopped at a predetermined position for positioning. Therefore, the transport roller 3
Lifting member 6 at the position where a, 3b and the tray entrance are aligned
It will be good if the notch 16 is formed. Further, it goes without saying that if the notch 16 is provided in the tray itself, the accuracy will be further improved. (Sorter Operation) Next, the operation of the sorter S will be described. The counterclockwise rotation of the motor 10 initially, the tray unit 4 _1, 4 _2, -
-, 4 ₁₅ is lowered to the bottom, when the tray 4 _one sheet receiving port conveying rollers 3a, that matches the answering position the nip of 3b is detected by the position detection sensor 15, a suitable control The motor 10 is stopped by the circuit, and is held at the lowest predetermined position by the electromagnetic brake (not shown). Alternatively, it is also possible to omit the sensor 15 by rotating the motor 10 for a certain time with an appropriate timer. When the electromagnetic brake is used, in order to prevent the tray group 4 from dropping due to the weight of the tray group 4 when not energized,
A mechanism as shown in FIG. 3 may be adopted. Thus, the sheet 1 is loaded into the tray 4 _1, conveying rollers 3a, when that is accommodated in the tray 4 in ₁ is detected by the sheet detection lever 14 and the sheet detection sensor 22 by 3b, after the trailing end detection of the sheet 1 , Rotate the motor 10 clockwise in the figure to
4 notches of ₂ corresponding to the notch plate 13 is detected at the position sensor 15, the motor 10 at a position corresponding thereto is stopped, and the electromagnetic brake is applied. Then, will wait the tray 4 ₃ ready to accept sheet 1. After that, after the above-described operations are sequentially repeated by the required number of times, the tray group 4 is returned to the lowermost position which is the initial state by the return signal. A spring B connected to the elevating member 6 and the chain 8 absorbs a shock when the tray group 4 moves. The position detection sensor 15 described with reference to FIG.
The claw 17 shown in FIG. 3 is effective for positioning with the electromagnetic brake. That is, when the power is off,
Although there is a drawback that the electromagnetic brake is broken and the tray group 4 falls down, the provision of the claw 17 serves as a stopper, so that the tray group 4 is prevented from falling due to its own weight even when the power is off. (Tray Operation) Next, the operation of the tray will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 4 is a partially cutaway enlarged side view of the tray group showing a state in which each tray 4 _n moves up and down. An elongated hole 24 of the tray is slidably engaged with a support shaft 23 fixed to a support plate 5 that supports each tray 4 _n . At the entrance of each tray 4 _n , an arm lever 26 rotatably attached to a support shaft 25 fixed to the tray is arranged, and the arm lever 26 is fixed to the column 7 a and is a stationary cam plate 27. The abutting roller 28 is rotatably attached to the support shaft 29. Further, a pin 30 is fixedly provided at the other end of the arm lever 26 and rotatably engages with a hole provided in each tray 4 _n . Each tray 4 _n has an inclination as shown in the figure, and the sheet 1 acts so as to slide on the tray entrance side by its own weight. When the tray 4 _n rises, the rollers 28 ascend along the immovable cam plate 27. The cam plate 27 causes the roller 28 to rotate downward about the fulcrum 25,
The upper tray 4 ₈ moves by the pin 30 so that the sheet receiving opening of the lower tray 4 ₄ opens. At this time the tray 4 ₃ moves in the sheet conveyance direction 31, the tray 4 _n is an end surface 32 of the tray inlet side to rotate around the supporting shaft 23 and two transport rollers 3a, 3
Positioned by the specifications of cam plate 27 and 28 so that the distance from b does not change. Then, when the tray 4 ₄ is lowered after the rollers 28 of the arm lever 26 is separated from the cam plate 27 contacts the back cam plate 27a, rotates counterclockwise. Then, the inlet portion of the tray 4 ₄ by the action of the pin 30 provided on the arm lever 26 is further moved downward from descending stroke of the elevating member 6. Since the fulcrum 25 of the arm lever 6 moves integrally with the elevating member 6, the arm lever 6 rolls on the cam plate 27 when moving up.
There rotated clockwise by the abutment, the pin 30 moves by adding trays 4 ₄ to increase in the lift member 6. During descent, similarly, the arm lever 26 by the action of the cam plate 27a back is rotated in the counterclockwise direction, lowering the amount of pin 30 is provided to the tray 4 ₄ In addition to lowering the amount of lift member 6. Tray 4 each tray 4 _n a similar operation of ₄ other than the conveying rollers 3a, by opening the inlet of the opposing tray sequentially 3b, sequentially storing sheets 1 each tray 4 _n. (Sheet Sorting Operation) Next, the sheet sorting operation will be described. The sheet 1 onto which the original image is transferred and whose toner is fixed by a fixing device (not shown) is discharged / conveyed outside the main body by the discharge rollers 1a and 1b of the copying machine C. At this time, the rear end of the sheet 1 is detected by the main body sheet discharge sensor 101 arranged in front of the sheet discharge rollers 1a and 1b, and after receiving the sheet discharge signal from the copying machine C, the sheet 1 is transferred to the copying machine C. After a predetermined time in which the transport rollers 3a and 3b of the sorter S are not restrained, the rotation speed of the transport motor M during driving of the transport rollers 3a and 3b is increased to return the transport speed to the normal speed. Thus, the sheet 1 kicking the tray 4 ₄ at normal transport speed, that is accommodated placed, upon detection by the sheet detection lever 14 and the sheet detection sensor 22, the conveying speed by increasing the rotational speed of the conveying motor M Speed up and copy machine C
It is faster than the transport speed of. This operation is repeated for the number of times of sorting / conveying the sheets 1 to complete the stacking work. (Conveyance Speed Control Method) Next, the conveyance speed control method of the sorter S will be described in detail with reference to FIGS. First, the main body C of the copying machine and the sorter S are controlled by a communication means (not shown) such as serial communication, and the sort (classification) signal from the main body C of the copying machine causes the transport motor M (first (Figure) starts to rotate. FIG. 5 shows a flow chart of this transport speed control operation sequence, and refer to each step 201, 202, 204, 207, 210, 213, 214 thereof. Since the carry motor M is a DC motor, when a constant voltage is applied to the motor M, the rotation speed tends to be high under a low load and, on the contrary, low under a high load. If higher, this property is further enhanced. Therefore, FIG. 6 shows a constant rotation speed control circuit diagram which will be described in detail later, and FIGS. 7 (a) to (c) show the inverter Q ₂ output pulse and the voltage / rotation speed of the motor M in the circuit of FIG. 6, respectively. As shown in the characteristic timing chart, a pulse output having a constant ON time at a constant cycle (Fig. 7 (a)).
Is output from the microcomputer μC, the voltage of the motor M becomes high as shown by the dotted line in FIG. 7 (b) because the current flowing through the motor M is small at low load due to the high impedance power source. , High rotation (for example, about 600 rpm). Further, when the conveyance of the sheet 1 is started, the load becomes high, and the voltage of the motor M in FIG.
The loop of the sheet 1 of FIG. 1 is eliminated, and as shown in FIG.
According to the converted value, 450 rpm). In this way, the DC motor M
The sheet 1 can be reliably received from the copying machine main body C by using the sheet conveying speed difference of the sorter S to control the copying machine main body C. 550 rpm in Figure (c)
Indicates the value of constant rotation speed control in this embodiment. Next, FIGS. 8 (a), (b), and (c) show timing charts of the sensor output signal output and the conveyance motor rotation speed. The main body paper ejection sensor 101 shown in FIG. The sheet discharge signal (a) is received by the sorter S by the signal means (not shown) of the copying machine body C and the sorter S, and the sheet discharge signal (a) is turned off. After a predetermined time (in this embodiment, 0.3 seconds is set as shown in FIG. 8 (c)) after the sheets are completely separated from each other, the motor M is set to obtain a conveying speed for surely storing the sheet in the tray. The constant rotation speed is 550 rpm. This operation flow is shown in steps 201, 202, 204, 207, 208, in FIG.
209,210,213,215. Further, FIG. 9 shows a control operation sequence flowchart by the constant rotation speed control circuit shown in FIG. Although the details will be described later, this constant rotation speed control is performed by the book as shown in FIG. 8C until the time when the discharge of the sorter S is detected by the sorter discharge sensor 22 (FIG. 8B). In the example, it lasts 1.2 seconds. This is because each step 201, 202, 204, 207, 210, 211 in the flow chart of FIG.
212,213,214. Then, when the discharge of the sorter S is completed, the low-torque high-speed rotation of the constant duty control is performed, and the conveyance of the sheet 1 from the copying machine main body C is waited. Further, when a thick and strong paper sheet such as a postcard paper is conveyed, slipping of the conveying rollers 3a and 3b is likely to occur and it is difficult to convey the sheet within a predetermined time.
As shown in, if the paper does not pass the paper ejection sensor 22 after a predetermined time, the servo flag is not reset,
Continue constant speed control. (Constant Rotation Speed Control Method) Next, the constant rotation speed control method will be described.
As is well known, the constant rotation speed control method includes a PLL by detecting the rotation ripple of the motor and detecting the rotation speed by an encoder or the like.
There are (phase-locked loop) control, control using a counter electromotive force of a motor such as an electronic governor, and a control method for stabilizing the rotation speed by compensating for a voltage drop inside the motor. In the case of the present embodiment, the control method as described above is of course sufficient, but FIG. 6 shows an example of a constant rotation speed control circuit using a simpler microcomputer, and FIG. (A) to (c) show respective characteristic timing charts, and FIG. 9 is a flow chart of the constant rotation control operation sequence. In FIGS. 6 and 9, when a pulse (FIG. 7 (a)) is output to the inverter Q ₂ by the microcomputer (hereinafter referred to as “microcomputer”) μC, the transistor Q ₁ is turned on,
24V of the power supply passes through the resistor R ₁ , the transistor Q ₁ , and the coil (inductance) L _1, and then the carrier motor M and the capacitor C ₁
Is energized by the
C ₁ is charged. In addition, the inverter Q ₂
When the pulse of is turned off, the electromotive force of the coil L ₁ is regenerated through the diode D ₁ . In this way, the capacitor
The voltage smoothed by C ₁ and the coil L ₁ is applied to the motor M. The applied voltage is divided by the resistors R ₂ and R ₃ and fed back to the analog / digital converter AD ₀ of the microcomputer μC. This AD conversion value is sampled (step 51 in FIG. 9) and averaged (step 52). This averaging makes it possible to accurately input the voltage applied to the carry motor M. This averaged motor applied voltage is compared with the set value input by the setting volume VR _{1 in} FIG. 6 (step 53 in FIG. 9), and if the motor applied voltage is high,
Reduce the pulse on time (step 54), and
On the contrary, if it is low, the pulse ON time is increased (step 55). In this way, by controlling so that a constant voltage is applied to the motor regardless of the load torque of the carry motor M, it is possible to obtain a constant rotation speed of 550 rpm (FIG. 7). (Effects of this Embodiment) With the above-described configuration / operation, when the sorter S according to this embodiment is mounted on, for example, the copying machine C having a relatively slow sheet transport speed, the sheet transport of the sorter S is controlled by a high impedance power source. When the sheet 1 is driven at a lower torque than the conveyance speed of the main body C of the copying machine and the sheet 1 causes tension between the drive systems of the main body C and the sorter S, the sorter drive system does not reach the conveyance speed of the main body C. Paper discharge rollers 1a, 1b (Fig. 1)
From the time when the sheet is no longer restrained after passing through the sheet, the normal conveyance speed is controlled to prevent noise and abrasion of the conveyance roller due to the tension of the sheet 1 between the sorter S and the copying machine C and to prevent the main body C from being worn. It is possible to remove unnecessary loops of the sheet 1 between the sorter S and the sorter S. Each tray 4 _n
Since the conveying speed when the sheet 1 is kicked out is a normal conveying speed, the sheets 1 can be sorted / stored in each tray 4 _n without impairing the consistency of the sheet 1. In the above embodiments, the example in which the copying machine C is used as the main body has been described, but the sheet handling apparatus according to the principles of the present invention is not limited to this, and is also applicable to other image recording / forming apparatuses and the like. Of course you can. As described above, according to the present invention, when the sheet material is received from the image recording apparatus, the sheet material is conveyed at the first speed higher than the discharging speed of the image recording apparatus to receive the sheet material. After that, the sheet is conveyed at a second speed adapted to the discharging speed of the image recording apparatus, and the second end is detected in response to the trailing edge missing detection by the detection unit.
Since the sheet is conveyed at a third speed that is higher than the above speed, the loop that occurs when the sheet material is received from the image recording device is eliminated, slippage is prevented when the sheet material is conveyed, and good kicking is performed when the sheet material is discharged. You can get out.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a side sectional view of a sheet discharge section of a copying machine in which an embodiment of a sorter according to the present invention is mounted, and FIG. FIG. 4 is an enlarged view of the lifting member positioning mechanism, FIG. 4 is an enlarged side view of a partially broken tray group, and FIG. 5 is a transfer speed control operation sequence flowchart.
The figure is a constant rotation speed control circuit diagram, and the seventh (a) to (c) are
Timing chart of each characteristic of the inverter Q ₂ / motor M,
FIGS. 8A to 8C are timing charts of respective signals,
FIG. 9 is a constant rotation speed control operation sequence flowchart. C: Copier (image recording device, main device) S ... Sorter (sheet material handling device) M ... Conveyor motor 1 ... Sheet material 4 _n ... Each tray 101 ... Main body ejection sensor

Claims (1)

(57) [Claims] Stacking means for stacking the sheet material, conveying means for receiving the sheet material discharged from the image recording apparatus and discharging the sheet material onto the stacking means, and detection for detecting that the trailing edge of the sheet material has come off from the image recording apparatus When the sheet material is received from the image recording apparatus, the conveying means conveys the sheet material at a first speed higher than a discharging speed of the image recording apparatus to receive the sheet material. After that, the sheet is conveyed at a second speed adapted to the discharging speed of the image recording apparatus, and is conveyed at a third speed higher than the second speed in response to the trailing edge missing detection detected by the detecting means. A sheet material handling device.