JP3086664B2 - Seat storage device - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention has a tray for sequentially stacking and storing image-recorded sheets discharged from an image forming apparatus main body such as a copying machine, a printer, a facsimile machine, and the like. The present invention relates to a sheet storage device having a pair of alignment members that engage with opposite side edges of a sheet and at least one of them reciprocates.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Generally, in a sheet storage device installed on a discharge portion side of an image forming apparatus, particularly a sheet storage device mounted on a copying machine, one stack tray is mounted next to the image forming apparatus main body. Sheets on which images have been recorded (hereinafter simply referred to as "sheets") are discharged from the sheet discharging means and sequentially stacked and stored on the leverage stack tray, and are also stacked vertically at predetermined intervals. 2. Description of the Related Art There is a known binar tray having a sorter function of mounting a plurality of bin trays on the side of an image forming apparatus main body and stacking and storing sheets in a state where sheets are sorted while moving each bin tray or sheet discharging means up and down.

Further, such a sheet storage device has a function of aligning a sheet bundle stacked on a stack tray or each bin tray after a sheet is stacked or after stacking, and a function of stapling or punching each aligned sheet bundle. A device having a sheet post-processing function for performing a punching process or the like is known.

In the case where a plurality of bin trays are mounted, if the sorting function is not performed, among the bin trays, the bin tray having the maximum loading capacity, that is, the one having the maximum depth in the height direction (normally). In many cases, sheets are stacked and stored in an apparatus having a top bin tray.

[0005] Further, the above-mentioned alignment of the sheet bundle is known to be performed by an alignment rod which reciprocates in a direction orthogonal to the sheet discharging direction. At this time, in the case where one alignment rod is provided on one side wall of the bin tray, this one alignment rod is used as a movable alignment member, the other side wall of the bin tray is used as a fixed alignment member, and the alignment rod is used as a bin tray. Are provided on both side walls and reciprocate synchronously so as to approach / separate from each other. Both alignment rods are alignment members, and each time the sheet is discharged, it reciprocates one time and the sheet reciprocates. Align the bundle.

[0006]

In the sheet storage apparatus constructed as described above, the sheet bundle is reciprocated one time each time a sheet is ejected to align the sheet bundle. Depending on the number of sheets, the alignment may be insufficient and there is a problem that reliability is low.

The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and has as its object to provide a sheet storage device capable of improving the reliability of sheet alignment.

[0008]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a tray for sequentially stacking and storing sheets from a sheet discharging means, and a pair of opposite side edges of the sheets on the tray. A sheet storage device having a pair of alignment members, at least one of which reciprocates, a recognition unit for recognizing at least one loading condition selected from a loading amount, a size, and a material of the sheets on the tray; A driving means for changing the speed and / or the number of times of the alignment member engaging with the side edge of the sheet according to a signal from the recognizing means is provided.

[0009]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Next, an embodiment of a sheet storage device according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings as applied to a copying machine.

In FIG. 1, reference numeral 1 denotes a copying machine as an image forming apparatus, 2 denotes a discharge terminal of the copying machine 1, and 3 denotes a sheet storage device provided on the discharge terminal 2 side of the copying machine 1.

The sheet storage device 3 includes a discharge section 4 continuous with the discharge end section 2, a tray 5 including a plurality of bin trays 5 a to 5 j in which sheets on which images from the discharge section 4 are sequentially stacked are stored. A pair of left and right rod-shaped lead cams 6 each having a spiral groove 6a formed on the outer periphery (see FIG. 2), and bin trays 5a to 5a to
A drive unit 7 for rotating a bar-shaped lead cam 6 to move the vertical bin 5j in a vertical direction;
a tray storage space regulating plate 8, which is located immediately above a and moves upward at a lower speed than the bin tray 5a and moves downward at a higher speed than the bin tray 5a, and an aligning unit which aligns a sheet bundle stacked and stored on the bin trays 5a to 5j. 9 and a stapler section 10 (see FIG. 3) for stapling the aligned sheet bundle according to the mode.

A discharge member 4 is a pair of upper and lower guide members 4 whose facing distance becomes narrower toward the leading end in the sheet discharge direction.
a and 4b, and a driving roller 4c and a driven roller 4d located at the end of the guide members 4a and 4b. The sheet discharge by the drive roller 4c and the driven roller 4d jointly is performed by varying the rotation speed of the drive roller 4c by the control circuit 11, which will be described later.

The bin trays 5a to 5j are vertically overlapped at a predetermined interval, and pins 5k, 5k engaging with the spiral groove 6a protrude from both side walls thereof. Also, in each of the bin trays 5a to 5j, the pins 5k, 5k,... Are guided by the spiral groove 6a to move up and down with the rotation of the rod-shaped lead cam 6, and the predetermined interval is variable. Further, each of the bin trays 5a to 5j has a slit 5m extending along the sheet discharging direction, an opening 5n for aligning the sheet bundle by the aligning section 9, a concave portion 5p for picking up the sheet bundle, and a sheet. Pins 5q, 5q that engage with guide grooves (not shown) such as guide rails provided in the storage device 3 are integrally formed.

In the rod-shaped lead cam 6, the spiral groove 6a located substantially at the center thereof has the largest groove interval, and the upper and lower portions are narrower than that (the information portion is slightly wider). Therefore, when discharged from the discharge unit 4 to any one of the bin trays 5a to 5j, the interval is set to be wider than that of the other bin trays 5a to 5j.

The drive unit 7 includes a bin drive motor 7a provided on one side wall 3b of the sheet storage device 3, gears 7b and 7b meshing with the bar-shaped lead cam 6, and a rotating shaft 7c connecting the gears 7b and 7b. A power transmission mechanism 7d including a pulley and a belt for transmitting the force of the drive motor 7a to rotate the rotation shaft 7c is provided.

As shown in FIG. 4, the tray storage space regulating plate 8 is a flexible plate member disposed between one side wall 3a and the other side wall 3b of the sheet storage device 3, and is disposed forward in the sheet discharging direction. Pins 8a projecting from both side edges,
8a is engaged with the spiral groove 6a. And the spiral groove 6a
When the bin trays 5a to 5j rise with the rotation of the bar-shaped lead cam 6 due to the difference in the lead pitch of each part along the axial direction of, the bin trays 5a to 5j move upward at a lower speed than the top bin tray 5a. When it descends, it descends at a higher speed than the top bin tray 5a. Further, the tray storage space regulating member 8 is formed with a slit 8b that vertically matches the slit 5m and an opening 8c that vertically matches a part of the opening 5n. Further, pins 8d, 8d that engage with a guide groove (not shown) are projected from both rear edge portions in the sheet discharging direction similarly to the above-described pin 5q.

As shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, the matching section 9
One alignment rod 9a vertically penetrating through the openings 5n and 8c (the opening 8c is omitted in FIG. 5), and alignment is performed such that the alignment rod 9a is reciprocated one time in the lateral direction of the sheet (the direction intersecting the discharge direction). Endless belt 9b with one end of rod 9a fixed
An alignment motor 9c for rotating the endless belt 9b in both forward and reverse directions; a guide rail 9d for supporting and guiding the upper end of the alignment rod 9a; and a guide bar 9e for supporting and guiding the lower end of the alignment rod 9a. And
In this embodiment, one matching rod 9a and the side walls of the bin trays 5a to 5j located on the side opposite to the side on which the matching rod 9a is installed constitute the matching member. The same components as those described above may be installed facing each other and synchronized so as to approach and move away from each other.

The matching rod 9a is driven by a matching motor 9c controlled by a control circuit 11, which will be described later.
Each time one sheet is discharged from the discharge port 4e to any of the bin trays 5a to 5j by the joint of the driven roller 4d and the driven roller 4d, the sheet is moved toward the side wall 3a to perform lateral alignment.

The stapler section 10 includes a stapler 10a and a sheet pulling device 10b. The sheet bundle after the final processing is gripped by the sheet pulling device 10b, drawn to the staple position of the stapler 10a, stapled by the stapler 10a, and then returned to the original bin trays 5a-5 by the sheet pulling device 10b.
back to j.

On the other hand, the sheet storage device 3 includes various sensors S1 to S9 (FIG. 7) for detecting the state in a series of operations from sheet discharge (discharge) to picking up the stacked sheets by the operator. Reference).

S1 is located at an intermediate portion of the guide members 4a and 4b, and is an entrance sensor as sheet detection means for detecting that a sheet has been conveyed and passed between the guide members 4a and 4b, and S2 is a bin tray. S3 is a home position (Hp) sensor that detects the position of the uppermost bin tray 5a based on the position of the tray storage space regulating member 8, and S4 is an abnormality detector that detects the height position and bin interval of the bins 5a to 5j. A sensor, S5 is a take-out sensor for detecting whether an operator has taken out the stacked sheets, and S6 is a tray-on-sheet presence / absence sensor for detecting whether sheets are present on the bin trays 5a to 5j.
S7 is a sheet height detection sensor that detects the height of the sheets stacked and stored on the bin trays 5a to 5j in stages.
S8 is a sheet size detection sensor for detecting the size of the sheet on each bin tray 5a to 5j, and S9 is
This is a sheet type detection sensor that detects the type of sheet on a to 5j.

These various sensors S1 to S9 are
It is controlled by a control circuit 11 having a ROM 11a and a RAM 11b. The control circuit 11 is also connected to the copying machine 1 via the interface 12.

The one-rotation sensor S2 includes a photo interrupter 6b provided below the rod-shaped lead cam 6, and a light-shielding plate 6c coaxial with the rod-shaped lead cam 6, and the position of the light-shielding plate 6c which rotates with the rotation of the rod-shaped lead cam 6. Are detected by the photo interrupter 6b, the bin trays 5a to 5
The height position of j and the bin interval are detected.

The Hp sensor S3 and the abnormality detection sensor S4 are connected from one side of the tray storage space regulating member 8 to the machine frame side wall 3a.
A light-shielding projection 8e for detecting a home position, a light-shielding projection 8f for detecting an abnormality, and photointerrupters 3c and 3d provided on the side wall 3a side are provided.

The take-out sensor S5 has an arm 13 that rotates about a shaft 13a.
When sheets are not stacked and stored on the bin trays 5a to 5j, they face the slits 5m and 8b, and when sheets are stacked and stored on the bin trays 5a to 5j, the bin trays 5a to 5j in the stacked and stored state The uppermost bin trays 5a to 5j (usually, the uppermost bin tray 5a) are brought into contact with the upper surface of the uppermost sheet stacked and stored, and the stacking of the sheets and the movement of the bin trays 5a to 5j turn the shaft 13a around the fulcrum. Move to change the angle.
When the sheets loaded on the bin trays 5a to 5j are taken out by the operator, the slit 5
m, 8b, the angle becomes constant at the home position, thereby recognizing that the sheet after image recording has been taken out by the operator, for example, driving the bin drive motor 7a to move the bin trays 5a to 5j to the home position. And return. The take-out sensor S5 may detect the height of the sheets stacked and stored on the bin trays 5a to 5j based on the angle information based on the position information of the bin trays 5a to 5j from the one-rotation sensor S2.

The on-tray sheet presence / absence sensor S6 is provided with the bin trays 5a to 5j and the tray storage space restricting member 8 so that the absence of sheets from all the bin trays 5a to 5j can be detected in common with the sensor S5. The light transmitting element 14 and the light receiving element 15 are disposed opposite to each other at a position where the moving range is seen from the outside in the up-down direction.

The sheet height detecting sensor S7 is arranged adjacent to the bin trays 5a to 5j in the discharged state, for example, at a position where the height of the sheets stacked and stored is detected stepwise. And a light receiving element 16 facing the light emitting element 19.
The sheet height detection sensor S7 may be configured such that the above-described entrance sensor S1 has a counting function, and the control circuit 11 calculates the height of the sheet bundle based on the counted number.

The sheet size detection sensor S8 is not shown as a structure, but, for example, a detection hole corresponding to the corner of the sheet is provided in each of the bin trays 5a to 5j at a position corresponding to each sheet size. A device that detects the size of a sheet on each of the bin trays 5a to 5j with the light emitting element and the light receiving element facing each other in the vertical direction, or the same as a sheet size detection switch provided on the copier 1 ). The sheet size information detected by the copying machine 1 may be taken by the control circuit 11 via the interface 12.

The sheet type detection sensor S9 is not shown as a structure, but, for example, is provided with an exposure hole at an appropriate position opposing each of the guide members 4a and 4b, and a detection light beam passes through the exposure hole. Provided with an optical sensor,
A type that detects the type of sheet based on the amount of light detected when the sheet is guided between the guide members 4a and 4b, or a sheet such as high-quality copy paper or reproduced copy paper set by the operator by the copying machine 1 side. It is conceivable that an output signal of the type described above is taken by the control circuit 11 through the interface 12.

In the above configuration, the copying machine 1 is a non-sort mode in which one or a plurality of types of originals are copied, and sheets on which images are recorded are stored in the uppermost bin tray 5a (not limited to the uppermost bin). A sort mode in which a plurality of types (a plurality of sets) of a plurality of types of originals are copied and sheets of which images have been recorded are stacked and stored in bin trays 5a to 5j corresponding to the number of types, and a plurality of images are recorded on each bin tray 5a to 5j. It has an operation mode such as a staple mode for closing a subsequent sheet.

In the present invention, since the control is substantially the same in the non-sort mode and the sort mode, the sheets shown in FIG. 1, that is, the sheets on which the image is recorded are stacked and stored only in the bin tray 5f. In general, the uppermost bin tray 5a is used when a large number of originals are copied and stacked and stored. Further, the stapling mode is a mode performed after the control of the present invention, and therefore, the description of the operation of the stapler unit 10 is omitted.

When the sheet on which the image is recorded by the copying machine 1 is conveyed from the discharge end portion 2 to between the guide members 4a and 4b, the entrance sensor S1 is turned on and the driving roller 4c is turned on.
The sheet is discharged from the discharge port 4e onto the bin tray 5f by the cooperation of the drive roller 4c and the driven roller 4d with the rotation of the sheet.

When the discharge of the sheet is completed, the entrance sensor S1
Is turned off, and the matching motor 9 is
c is driven, the alignment bar 9a reciprocates one time, and the bin tray 5f
The upper sheet is aligned so as to be brought to the opposite wall surface side of the bin tray 5f, and thereafter, each time a sheet is discharged, the alignment rod 9a reciprocates one time to sequentially perform alignment.

Then, for example, the sheet height detection sensor S
7, when the predetermined height is detected, based on the detection result, the reciprocating movement of the alignment rod 9a is performed a plurality of times only at the time of detection,
The number of times of alignment such as making the reciprocating movement of the alignment rod 9a twice after the detection is varied. Further, the speed of the matching rod 9a is changed instead of the number of times, or both the speed and the number of times are changed.

Similarly, for example, in the case of a size (size longer in the discharge direction) larger than a preset reference size (for example, A5 portrait), the sheet size detection sensor S
8, the matching rod 9 of the reference size
Variable control is performed such as increasing the number of times (a) or reducing the speed (depending on the setting of the reference size) with respect to the number and speed of a, or increasing the speed (decreasing the speed depending on the setting of the reference size).

Further, similar control is performed based on the detection result of the sheet type detection sensor S9. It is needless to say that the detection results from the sensors S7, S8, and S9 can be combined and variably controlled by setting relative conditions. Further, by adjusting the height of the sheet height detection sensor S7 according to the detection results of the sensors S8 and S9 (or changing the number of counts in the case of counting by the entrance sensor S1), the matching suitable for the type of the sheet is achieved. It is also possible. In addition, the speed of the alignment rod 9a is made different from the forward speed and the backward speed in accordance with the detection results of the sensors S7, S8, S9. Is prevented, and more reliable matching can be achieved.

[0037]

As described above, in the sheet storage device of the present invention, the recognition means for recognizing at least one loading condition selected from the loading amount, size and material of the sheets on the tray, By providing the driving means for changing the speed and / or the number of the aligning members engaging with the side edges of the sheet according to the signal from the recognizing means, the reliability of the sheet alignment can be improved.

[0038]

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a longitudinal sectional view of a sheet storage device according to the present invention, showing the sheet storage device.

FIG. 2 is a plan sectional view of the sheet storage device.

FIG. 3 is a plan sectional view showing another position of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a plan view of a tray storage space regulating member.

FIG. 5 is a front view of the matching unit.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view showing the appearance of the sheet storage device.

FIG. 7 is a block diagram of a control circuit.

[Explanation of symbols]

 3 Sheet storage device 5 Tray 9 Alignment section 9a Alignment rod

Continuation of the front page (58) Field surveyed (Int.Cl. ⁷ , DB name) B65H 39/11 B65H 31/38

Claims (4)

(57) [Claims] 1. A tray for sequentially loading and storing sheets from a sheet discharging means, and at least one of the trays is located on both sides of the sheet on the tray opposite to each other and reciprocates with respect to the sheet. An aligning member that engages with the opposite side edges; a driving unit that drives the aligning member; a setting unit that sets a reference stacking amount of sheets on the tray; and a sheet on the tray. A sheet storage device comprising: a reference load amount detecting means for detecting that the reference load amount has been reached; and a detecting means for detecting the size and / or material of a sheet on the tray. To change the setting of the reference loading amount by the setting means based on a signal from the controller, and to change the speed and / or the number of times of the alignment member with respect to the sheet by a detection signal from the reference loading amount detecting means. Drive A sheet storage device provided with control means for controlling the means. 2. The sheet storage device according to claim 1, wherein said reference load amount detecting means detects a reference load amount by detecting a height of a sheet on said tray. 3. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said loading amount detecting means is provided with a sheet on said tray.
The sheet storage device according to claim 1, wherein the reference stacking amount is detected by detecting the number of sheets. 4. The sheet storage device according to claim 1, wherein said control means makes the forward speed and the return speed of said alignment member different from each other based on a detection signal of said reference load amount detecting means. apparatus.