JP2778263B2 - Intermediate tray device for automatic duplex copying machine - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus such as an automatic two-sided copying machine, which is disposed in a middle portion of a sheet conveying path and temporarily stores a single-sided copy sheet.
More particularly, the present invention relates to an apparatus for driving a side guide and an end guide by a guide member driving device to position a sheet in a tray by two guide members. .

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In an image forming apparatus, such as a copying machine or a printer, for making a copy using an electrophotographic process, an image is written on both sides of a sheet in addition to making a normal copy. To make a two-sided copy. As described above, in an image forming apparatus capable of making a double-sided copy, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open
As shown in 249874 and the like, an intermediate tray device is disposed inside the device. Then, an apparatus having a mechanism for temporarily storing the sheet created as the single-sided copy sheet in the intermediate tray device and sending out the single-sided copy sheet from the intermediate tray device toward the copying section for copying on the back surface is used. I have.

In an automatic duplex copying machine as described above,
When storing single-sided copy paper in the intermediate tray device,
Means are used to precisely regulate the position of the sheet and perform the feeding operation so that the leading end of the sheet is accurately positioned in the sheet feeding section to prevent double feed and misfeed. ing. In the intermediate tray device, as a means for positioning the paper, for example, as shown in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 63-196458, two guide members for pressing the rear side of the paper feed side and one side are used. It is known to use In the intermediate tray device shown in the conventional example, as shown in FIG. 6, a paper feeding device 5 composed of a plurality of roller devices is arranged in a paper feeding section from the intermediate tray device 1 and stored in a tray. An end guide 15 corresponding to the rear portion on the sending side and a side guide 16 corresponding to the side portion are arranged for the sheet to be fed.

In the intermediate tray device shown in FIG.
The end guide 15 and the side guide 16 are configured to be driven by a guide member drive device 20 driven by one motor 21 via drive wires w1 and w2. Further, the wire includes a plurality of pulleys p1 to p3.
, The corresponding guide members are driven. Then, each time a sheet is inserted into the tray, the drive motor is driven in the forward and reverse directions, and the two guide members are reciprocated in the directions of the arrows X and Y to perform an operation of pressing the sheet toward the sending side. I have to.

As shown in FIG. 7, a guide member driving device 20 as a guide driving member disposed in the intermediate tray device 1 includes a lower pulley member 30 and an upper gear The member 35 is arranged.
Driving claw members 26 to 28 protruding from the upper and lower surfaces of the driving gear member 25 are engaged with projection members provided on the lower pulley member 30 and the upper gear member 35, respectively. By driving in the forward and reverse directions, both members are rotated. The guide member is reciprocated between a home position of each member and a position where the guide member is pressed against the sheet by using a wire wound around a pulley provided on the two members, thereby effecting the positioning of the sheet. To do.

In the guide member driving device 20, two pulleys are rotated by using one motor 21. However, a driving claw member 28 has a protrusion member 31 with respect to the lower pulley member 30. At the stop position, a stud 44 provided on the bottom support plate 43 is provided.
Engages with the projection member 31 and stops in a state in which the projection member is retracted to the inoperative position. The claw members 26 and 27 provided on the drive gear member 25 are engaged with the projection members 38 and 39 of the upper gear member 35, respectively, but these members are provided on the tray bottom plate 40. Stud 4
At the position where the first and second engagements are made, the operation of driving the members is stopped. That is, the operation of driving the claw member is performed in a state where the claw member 27 provided on the drive gear member 25 is engaged with the distal end portion of the projection member 39 of the upper gear member 35, as shown in FIG. The upper gear member 35 is rotated in the direction of the arrow.

[0007] Then, the projecting member 39 in the driving state is provided.
On the other hand, at the end of the rotation of the upper gear member, as shown in FIG.
Is pressed outward. Therefore, when the projection member 39 deviates from the movement trajectory of the claw member, the claw member passes without being pressed against the upper gear member, and the driving of the upper gear member 35 ends. When the drive gear member 25 is driven in the opposite direction, the pawl member 26 exerts a pressing action on the projection member 38, and the upper gear member is moved to a position where the projection member 38 is locked on the stud 41. 35 will be reversed.

By using the guide member driving device 20 as described above, the drive gear member 25 is driven in the normal and reverse directions by using one motor, so that the lower pulley member 30 and the upper gear member 35 Is used to drive the end guide 15 and the side guide 16 via wires. Therefore, each time a sheet is stored in the intermediate tray device, the motor 21 is driven in the forward and reverse directions so that the leading end and one side of the sheet are directed toward the regulating wall inside the tray. Pressing can accurately position the sheet.

Further, since the guide member driving device is configured to drive two guide members using one motor, the space occupied by the device can be reduced, and As compared with a mechanism that drives each of the end guide and the side guide using two motors, there are many advantages such as simplification of the power supply means.

[0010]

However, in the conventional guide member driving device as described above, the projecting member as the driving means for the end guide and the side guide of the intermediate tray device is formed of a plastic plate member. Therefore, when the projection member is moved to the non-operation position by the stud, due to the elasticity of the projection member,
A force that moves in the return direction acts. Then, due to the elasticity of the protruding member, when the guide member is stopped, a problem that the guide member returns naturally due to the force to move in the return direction occurs, and the positioning operation on the paper is incorrectly performed. May be.

The effect of the return action of the guide member is particularly large for the end guide, and if the positioning of the sheet with respect to the trailing end portion on the sending side is not performed accurately, the sheet is not affected. When the leading end of the sheet feeding side is not accurately positioned with respect to the sheet feeding roller device, double feed, misfeed, or the like is likely to occur. And
If accurate feeding from the intermediate tray device is not performed,
In particular, in a document circulation type automatic duplex copying machine (RDH), there is a great problem that an accurate copy cannot be made.

[0012]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to make it possible to accurately perform the sheet positioning operation in the conventional intermediate tray device as described above. The purpose of the present invention is to provide a means for preventing the guide member from returning.

[0013]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION According to the present invention, a side guide and an end guide are arranged at the side and the rear in the sheet feeding direction with respect to the tray of the intermediate tray device. Positioning is performed on the single-sided copy sheet accommodated on the upper side using the two guide members,
In order to drive the side guide and the end guide, a single-sided copy sheet is sent out by a paper feeder toward the back side copy, and a drive gear member driven in a forward and reverse direction by a motor to drive the side guide and the end guide. Arranging a lower pulley member and an upper gear member as driven members above and below, and engaging a driven projection member provided on the driven member with a claw member provided on the driving gear member, The present invention relates to a device using a guide driving device configured to drive an end guide and a side guide, respectively.

In the present invention, a means for performing a braking action is provided for the end guide driven by the upper gear member, and when the end guide is stopped, the end guide is moved extra by the elasticity of the projection of the upper gear member. It is configured to prevent such a situation. Further, in the present invention, the member for performing the braking action is provided on the transmission gear, or a means for locking and holding the end guide is arranged at a home position of the end guide, and the end guide is Means may be provided to prevent extra movement due to the elasticity of the protrusion of the upper gear member when stopped.

By providing the means for performing the braking action as described above, in the guide member driving device of the present invention, it is possible to particularly suppress the repulsive action of the projecting member provided on the upper gear member, and The leading end of the delivery side can be favorably positioned. Further, since only a member having a relatively simple configuration is used as the brake member, it is possible to easily equip the conventional intermediate tray device without complicating the configuration of the device.

[0016]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An intermediate tray device of an automatic duplex copying machine according to the present invention will be described with reference to the illustrated example. The intermediate tray device 1 of the present invention shown in FIG. 1 has an end guide 15 for arranging a sheet storage unit and a discharge unit on one side of the tray 2 and pressing the rear end of the sheet on the other side of the tray 2. Is provided.
A feeding path 3 having a roller device 4 is provided to supply the sheet to the tray 2, and the single-sided copy sheet discharged from the fixing device is fed toward the tray 2 via the feeding path 3. I do. Further, an unloading path 9 is arranged corresponding to a lower portion of the loading path 3, paper is sent out by a sheet feeding device 5 arranged at a sending section of the tray 2, and an image is transferred by a transport roller device 8 provided in the unloading path 9. A single-sided copy sheet is sent out toward a sheet path of the forming apparatus.

The sheet feeder is composed of a bottom roller 6 disposed close to the leading end of the tray 2 on the sheet feed side, and a sheet sorter 7. The sheet sorter 7 includes a drive roller 7a and a sorter. And the bottom roller 6
Is sent out toward the carry-out path 9 in a state where the sheet is sent out by the separating device 7. In the present invention, a weight holding member 10 provided with a weight roller 11 is disposed at a position corresponding to the bottom roller 6 with respect to the tray 2, and the sheet is pressed toward the bottom roller 6 by the weight roller 11. Means to do so. The weight holding member 10 is provided with a weight roller 11 and a tie bar 12 for disks disposed on both sides of the tray, and the apparatus is rotated once each time a sheet is stored in the tray. The leading edge of the paper is wrung with a tie bar so that the paper is deposited on the already stored paper.

Further, in the intermediate tray device 1, in order to separate sheets corresponding to a group of originals from single-sided copy sheets sequentially deposited on the tray 2,
A set separator 13 is provided. The set separator 13 is, when the information of the separation of the paper group is output from the control device by a driving mechanism (not shown),
It is moved over the final one-sided copy sheet and acts to separate the next group of sheets. When the group of sheets stored in the intermediate tray device is sent out, the set separator 13 is used by the control device to count the number of sheets stored and the number of sheets sent out so as to detect the double feeding state. Is also used.

In addition to the members described above, in the intermediate tray device 1 of the present invention, a guide similar to that shown in FIG. A member is provided. In the illustrated example, only the end guide 15 is shown as the guide member,
Side guides are arranged on the side of the tray 2 as in the case of the conventional example. In order to drive the guide members, a guide member drive device 20 driven by one motor 21 is provided, and the guide member drive devices 20 are driven in the normal and reverse directions, thereby pressing each guide member against the sheet. Reciprocate in the direction of

The end guide 15 shown in FIG.
The upper gear member 35 disposed above the guide member driving device 20 is driven via a transmission gear 50, and the driving system is configured as shown in FIG. In the example shown in FIG. 2, the gear 22 provided on the drive shaft of the motor 21 is made up of three disk members as shown in FIG. The drive gear 22 meshes with the teeth provided at the upper and lower gears, and drives the upper and lower lower pulley members 30 and the upper gear member 35 via the drive gear member 25.

The lower pulley member 30 is provided with a wire groove 32 in the same manner as in the conventional example, and the wire is wound around the groove 32 to drive the side guide. A mechanism for driving the rack bar 17 via the transmission gear 50 is provided. The rack bar 17 is connected to the end guide 15 and drives the end guide without using a wire, and performs an operation of reciprocating the end guide 15 in the sheet feeding direction. However, in the intermediate tray device of the automatic duplex copying machine according to the present invention, as described above, since the device having the same mechanism as the conventional device is used as the guide member driving device 20, for example, the upper gear member The problem that the protrusion member retracted from the driven position by the stud when the 35 is stopped exerts a force to return the upper gear member in the reverse rotation direction due to its elasticity remains as it is.

In order to solve the above-mentioned problem, according to the present invention, as shown in FIG.
And means for imparting a braking action to the gear 50 by the leaf spring 51 are provided. In the embodiment of the present invention shown in FIG. 3, the leaf spring 51 is disposed between the tray bottom plate 40 and the gear 5 by selecting the strength of the leaf spring 51 arbitrarily.
Although the braking action for zero can be adjusted, since the braking action only opposes the reaction force of the projection member, the leaf spring can be configured with a relatively weak force.

In the present invention, as shown in FIG. 3, in addition to providing the brake means for the transmission gear 50, as shown in FIG. 4, the end guide 15 is fixed and held at the home position. Means can also be provided. In the example shown in FIG.
Sensor 56 and magnet 5
When the sensor detects the end guide 15, electricity is supplied to the magnet 55 so that the end guide 15 is fixedly held by the magnetic force. Then, when the end guide is driven again, the control signal is used to turn off the current to the magnet so that the end guide can be freely moved.

Therefore, as described above, when the means for holding the end guide at the stop position is used, the end guide is kept at the predetermined position even when the driving mechanism as shown in the embodiment of the present invention is not used. At the time of re-driving, the starting position of the driving can be set accurately. In the case where a means for holding the above-described guide member at a fixed position is provided, when a reset action for adjusting a phase shift of the motor or the like is performed during a time when the end guide is stopped, The positioning operation by the driving device with respect to the guide member can be performed accurately.

In another embodiment of the present invention shown in FIG. 5, when the stud acts on the projecting member, the stud is locked to the projecting member, so that there is no returning action due to the elasticity of the projecting member. In this case, the case is shown. The example shown in FIG. 5 shows the relationship between the protruding member 39 and the stud 42. A recess 60 is formed in the protruding member 39, and the stud 42 is The guide member is stopped in the state of entering.

Therefore, when the guide member is stopped and the stud is moved by the elasticity of the protruding member, the stud is locked in the concave portion 60. It becomes a state of strongly pressing from the side. Then, a force for moving the guide member in the opposite direction is not generated by the projection member. In the example shown in FIG. 5, when the guide member is driven in the opposite direction even when the projection member is locked on the stud, the stud is easily detached from the recess of the projection member. There is no problem in driving the device.

In the above-described intermediate tray device of the automatic double-sided copying machine of the present invention, 2
Although the above-described problem does not occur in a device that drives two guide members by using two motors, the intermediate tray device of the present invention is intended for mourning using a guide member drive device with one motor. In order to do so, it is required to use the stopping means of the guide member as described above. Further, as for the brake means or the locking means provided for the guide member driving device, a device having another configuration can be applied as long as the device performs the same operation as that shown in the embodiment. It is. Note that the intermediate tray device of the present invention can be applied to an apparatus that performs multiplex copying as well as double-sided copying.

[0028]

The intermediate tray device of the automatic duplex copying machine according to the present invention uses the means having the above-described configuration, and therefore uses only a relatively simple member. Can be easily mounted on a conventional intermediate tray device without complicating the present invention. Further, in the device of the present invention, when a means for performing a braking action is provided, and when a locking means for a guide member is provided, in particular, it is possible to suppress the repulsive action of the projection member provided on the upper gear member. Yes, with the guide member,
The leading end of the sheet on the sheet sending side can be favorably positioned. Therefore, by providing the paper alignment mechanism of the present invention, the positioning operation can be performed accurately on the paper accommodated in the tray, thereby preventing the paper sent from the tray from being double-fed. I can do it.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a side view showing a configuration of an intermediate tray device of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a drive mechanism for an end guide according to the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a side view when a brake member is provided for the transmission gear.

FIG. 4 is an explanatory view in a case where a fixing means for a guide member is provided.

FIG. 5 is an explanatory view in the case where a mechanism for locking a stud to a projection member is provided.

FIG. 6 shows a guide member in a conventional intermediate tray device;
FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram illustrating a configuration of the driving mechanism.

FIG. 7 is a perspective view showing a configuration of a conventional guide member driving device.

FIG. 8 is an explanatory diagram of a driving state of an upper gear member in the device shown in FIG. 7;

FIG. 9 is an explanatory diagram of a state in which the protruding member is moved to a non-driving position by a stud.

[Signs in the figure]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Intermediate tray device 2 Tray 10 Weight holding member 15 End guide 20 Guide member drive device 25 Drive gear member 30 Lower pulley member 35 Upper gear member

Claims (3)

(57) [Claims] 1. A side guide and an end guide are arranged on a side and a rear of a tray of an intermediate tray device in a sheet feeding direction, and a single-sided copy sheet accommodated on the tray of the intermediate tray device is provided. The two-sided guide member is used for positioning, and the single-sided copy sheet is fed by a paper feeder toward the backside copy, and a motor is used to drive the side guide and the end guide. A driven projection member provided on the driven member by arranging two driven members, an upper gear member and a lower pulley member, above and below a driving gear member driven in the forward and reverse directions. A guide member driving device configured to engage the claw member provided on the drive gear member to drive the end guide and the side guide, respectively, wherein the upper gear member Means for performing a braking action on the end guide driven by the motor, and preventing the end guide from being excessively moved by the elasticity of the projection of the upper gear member when the end guide is stopped. Intermediate tray device for double-sided copying machines. 2. The intermediate tray device of an automatic duplex copying machine according to claim 1, wherein the member that performs the braking action is provided for a transmission gear. 3. A means for locking and holding the end guide at a home position of the end guide, wherein when the end guide is stopped, the end guide is moved extra by the elasticity of the projection of the upper gear member. 2. An intermediate tray device for an automatic duplex copying machine according to claim 1, wherein the intermediate tray device prevents the occurrence of the intermediate tray.