JP3337500B2 - Seat storage device - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a sheet storage device for storing an image-formed sheet discharged from an image output device such as a plotter, a copying machine and a printer.
In particular, the present invention relates to an apparatus for storing large-sized sheets without taking up space.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, as this kind of sheet storage means, for example, the one shown in FIG. 10 is known.
In this arrangement, a spiral guide 1 in which a wire is formed in a spiral shape is disposed in the vicinity of a sheet discharge port 3 of an image output device 2 so that a sheet 5 conveyed by a conveying roller 4 from the sheet discharge port 3 is sequentially moved from the leading end to the spiral guide 1. The sheet 5 is wound into a spiral shape and collected in a tubular shape.

[0003]

However, in the above-mentioned conventional sheet storage means, although large-sized sheets can be collected without taking up space, all the sheets 5 can be collected.
When it is desired to store the sheet 5 in a spread state in order to collect the sheet 5 in a state of being rolled into a cylindrical shape, the operator must extend the sheet 5 with the curl by one sheet each time to remove the curl. And there is a problem that the labor is very troublesome.

[0004]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In view of the above, the present invention allows a large-sized sheet having an image formed thereon discharged from an image output apparatus to be stored without taking up space, and to spread the sheet without curling it. It is an object of the present invention to provide a sheet storage device that can be stored as it is.

That is, a sheet storage device according to the present invention is a sheet storage device which is disposed adjacent to a discharge port of an image output device and sequentially stores sheets discharged from the discharge port. A pair of sheet conveying means which are arranged at a predetermined distance from each other and hold the sheet discharged from the discharge port in the front and rear direction, and the sheet conveying means by making the conveying speed of the pair of sheet conveying means different between the two. Conveying speed control means for forming a sheet in the front-rear direction bending at the intermediate portion of the sheet, and a sheet storage means disposed between the pair of sheet conveying means, for placing the bent sheet in a U-shape; It is characterized by having.

[0006]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Embodiments of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. FIG. 1 shows a sheet storage device 20 according to the present invention.
FIG. 1 shows an embodiment of the present invention.
Numeral 0 is disposed near an image output device such as the plotter 10. Means 11 for supplying A0 size roll paper and means 12 for supplying manually cut paper are arranged in the plotter 10, and any one can be selected by a switching gate 13. When the roll paper is selected, after passing through the image transfer means 14 and the fixing means 15,
The sheet is cut into a predetermined sheet size in the X and Y directions by the cutter unit and discharged from the sheet discharge port 16.

The sheet storage device 20 includes a pair of sheet conveying means 21 disposed near the sheet discharge port 16,
It comprises a tray 23 having a bent shape disposed at a lower position thereof, and a conveying speed control unit 22 for controlling the speed of the sheet conveying unit 21 and the like. Sheet conveying means 21
Is composed of a paper discharge roller 24 disposed so as to face the sheet discharge port 16 of the plotter 10, and an indexer roller 25 disposed on the same plane as the paper discharge roller 24 and separated by a predetermined distance. I have. This paper discharge roller 2
A plurality of index rollers 4 and indexer rollers 25 are arranged at predetermined intervals along the width direction of the sheet discharge port 16, and the lower roller shaft 26 of the indexer roller 25 has a grid shape as shown in FIG. Is rotatably supported at one end thereof. The flapper 27 reaches the paper discharge roller 24 when it is extended horizontally, and the paper discharge roller 2
A sheet conveyance path is formed between the indexer roller 4 and the indexer roller 25, and the horizontal position (home position P1) is always maintained by the tension of the spring 28 as shown in FIG. On the track of the indexer roller 25, a guide plate 31 in which two step portions 29, 30 are set up and down is arranged, and when the indexer roller 25 descends, the rear end of the flapper 27 is connected to these step portions. By riding on 29 and 30, an inclined position P2 inclined downward by about 45 ° and a release position P3 oriented almost directly below are obtained.

The rotation speed of the discharge roller 24 and the indexer roller 25 is controlled by the conveying speed control means 22. In this embodiment, both rollers rotate at the same speed in the sheet conveying direction. It is controlled to rotate in a direction opposite to the sheet conveying direction. Further, as shown in FIG. 4, the indexer roller 25 is configured such that the lower roller shaft 26 is the center of rotation, and
It is possible to tilt forward by an angle α to the side, and slide up and down while maintaining this forward tilting posture. The transport speed control unit 22 is incorporated, for example, in the plotter 10, and includes a paper discharge sensor 38 disposed on the entrance side of the paper discharge roller 24 and an indexer sensor 39 disposed on the entrance side of the indexer roller 25. Based on the detection signal of the end of the sheet from the controller, the start timing and the like of the reverse rotation and vertical movement of the indexer roller 25 are controlled.

On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 1, a tray 23 is disposed below the paper discharge roller 24 and the indexer roller 25 at a position below the paper discharge roller 24 and the indexer roller 25. This tray 23
A substantially inverted U-shaped bent portion 35 whose central portion protrudes greatly.
And a return portion 36, 37 at the lower end on both sides of the bent portion 35.
Is configured as a sheet stacking surface. The above-described indexer roller 25 can be lowered to the vicinity of the return portion 37.

In this embodiment, the sheets placed on the tray 23 are of a large size such as A0 size, and sheets of a size smaller than that are shown in FIG. At the back of the tray 25, they are stacked on a plate-shaped tray 40 that is vertically arranged in a plurality of stages.

Next, the sheet storage device 2 having the above configuration
The case where large-sized sheets are discharged from the plotter 10 and accumulated on the tray 23 using 0 will be described.
First, the indexer roller 25 is set at the same height position as the paper discharge roller 24, and the flapper 27 is returned to the home position P1. Sheet outlet 16 of plotter 10
When an A0 size sheet on which an image is formed is discharged from the printer, a discharge sensor 38 provided in front of the discharge roller 24
As a result, the leading edge of the sheet is detected, and the discharge roller 24 and the indexer roller 25 rotate. The sheet is sent out by the conveying force of the sheet discharging roller 24, guided on the flapper 27, and nipped at the indexer roller 25. When the sheet is further discharged by the conveying force of the sheet discharging roller 24 and the indexer roller 25, and the trailing end of the sheet is detected by the sheet discharging sensor 38, the sheet is counted by the conveying speed control means 22 for a predetermined time, and at least the sheet trailing end is detected. When the unit passes through the paper discharge roller 24, the rotation of the paper discharge roller 24 and the indexer roller 25 is stopped based on a command from the conveyance speed control means 22. At the same time, the indexer roller 25 starts to lower. Indexer roller 2
While 5 moves down to the predetermined position, the rear end of the flapper 27 rides on the first step portion 29 of the guide plate 31 and rotates to the inclined position P2. Then, when the indexer roller 25 is rotated in the opposite direction at this position, the sheet is conveyed in the direction opposite to the previous discharging direction, and the rear end of the sheet is guided by the bent portion 35 of the tray 23 while one of the inclined positions. Guided to the surface. At the same time as the trailing edge of the sheet reaches the return portion 36, the indexer roller 25 descends to the vicinity of the other return portion 37 of the tray 23. At this time, the flapper 27 rides on the second step portion 30 and moves to the release position P3.
Until the sheet guide by the flapper 27 is released. Since the indexer roller 25 is rotating in the reverse direction while descending, the sheet is also placed along the inclined surfaces on both sides of the bent portion 35 during that time, and as the indexer roller 25 further descends, the sheet is placed on the opposite side to the above. It is placed along the slope.

As shown by the imaginary line in FIG. 1, after the indexer roller 25 is lowered to the lowermost position, when the sheet is fed back to the end, the indexer sensor 39 provided on the entrance side of the indexer roller 25 causes the sheet to return. The edge of the sheet is detected, and the rotation of the indexer roller 25 is stopped based on a command from the conveyance speed control means 22, and the sheet rises again to return to the initial position. In this manner, the large-sized sheets are stacked with the central portion in the transport direction being hung over the bent portion 35 of the tray 23 and both sides extending downward along the inclined surface. Note that the folded portions 36 and 37 on both sides of the bent portion 35 effectively prevent the sheets stacked on the tray 23 from sliding down. In this way, the sheets on which images have been discharged from the plotter 10 are discharged onto the tray 23 one after another after performing the same discharging operation as described above.

When the indexer roller 25 is lowered, as shown in FIG. 4, by tilting the indexer roller 25, the sheet end can be forcibly directed downward. In particular, when a stiff sheet or roll sheet is discharged from the plotter 10, it is effective means to force the conveyance direction.

In the above-described embodiment, the indexer roller 25 is rotated in the reverse direction after the trailing edge of the sheet has come out of the paper ejection roller 24. The rotation of the indexer roller 25 is stopped while the rotation of the indexer roller 25 is continued, or the indexer roller 25 is rotated in the reverse direction, and at the same time, the indexer roller 25 is lowered to a predetermined position. Loop on (bending downward)
May be formed. In this case, when the trailing edge of the sheet comes out of the paper discharge roller 24, the latter half of the sheet forming the loop is placed along one inclined surface of the tray 23. In the same manner as in the embodiment, the indexer roller 25 is further lowered while rotating in the reverse direction, and the first half of the sheet is placed on the inclined surface on the opposite side of the tray 23.

FIG. 5 shows a second embodiment of the present invention. In this embodiment, the indexer roller 25 is moved up and down so as to traverse the transport path between the paper discharge roller 24 and the indexer roller 25 in accordance with the sheet transport speed without moving the indexer roller 25 up and down. It is. The rising distance of the tray 23 can be varied depending on the size of the sheet. However, as shown in FIG. 5, it is necessary to raise the tray 23 at least until the front and rear ends of the sheet are placed on the tray 23. Further, in this embodiment, the tray 23 includes a paper discharge roller 24 and an indexer roller 25.
The bent portion 35 passes through the center line S between the two.

Therefore, in this embodiment, the sheet discharged from the plotter 10 is first discharged by the discharge roller 24 and the indexer roller 25 in the same manner as in the above-described embodiment, and the midpoint of the sheet length is set on the center line. When S is reached, the rotation of any of the rollers 24 and 25 is stopped. Next, after forcibly lowering the flapper 27 to the release position P3, the tray 23 is raised to bring the bent portion 35 into contact with the intermediate point of the sheet. By rotating the discharge roller 24 in the same direction as described above and simultaneously rotating the indexer roller 25 in the opposite direction almost simultaneously with contacting the sheet, an inverted U-shaped loop is formed on the sheet, On the other hand, the sheet is placed on the tray 23 in the same manner as described above by further raising the tray 23 simultaneously with the rotation of the roller and guiding the sheet loop along the inclined surfaces on both sides of the bent portion 35. Can be. After the sheets have been placed, the tray 23 is lowered again to the original position to prepare for the next sheet discharge. The speed at which the tray 23 is lifted and the speed at which the discharge rollers 2
By setting the sheet conveying speed of the indexer roller 4 and that of the indexer roller 25 to be the same, the sheet can be placed in a state of being extended long along the inclined surface of the tray 23 without bending.

FIG. 6 shows a third embodiment of the present invention. In this embodiment, another indexer roller 50 is provided in the transport path between the above-described paper discharge roller 24 and indexer roller 25, and a substantially V-shaped portion is provided between the pair of indexer rollers 25 and 50. Shaped tray 5
1 is disposed at a lower position. The pair of indexer rollers 25 and 50 can both descend at the same speed from the steady position shown by the solid line in FIG. 6 to the position shown by the imaginary line, and as shown in FIG. It has a possible structure. In addition to the indexer sensors 52 and 53 provided on the entrance side of each of the indexer rollers 25 and 50, the flapper 27 in this embodiment is different from the previous embodiment only in the home position P1 and the release position P3. Having.

On the other hand, the tray 51 has a substantially V-shaped bent portion 54 at the center portion, and inclined surfaces 55 and 56 extending obliquely upward on both sides thereof. The two inclined surfaces 55 and 56 constitute a sheet stacking surface.

Therefore, a case in which a large-sized sheet is carried out of the plotter 10 by using the sheet storage device in this embodiment will be described. First, as in the previous embodiment, both indexer rollers 25 and 50 are discharged. Roller 2
4, and the flapper 27 is kept at the home position P1. When an A0 size sheet on which an image has been formed is discharged from the sheet discharge port 16 by the discharge roller 24 in the plotter 10, an indexer sensor 52 provided on the entrance side of the indexer roller 50.
As a result, the leading edge of the sheet is detected, and both indexer rollers 25 and 50 rotate. The leading end of the sheet is immediately pinched by the indexer roller 50 on the front side, and is conveyed on the flapper 27 by the conveying force, and then the leading end of the sheet is fed to the indexer roller 25 on the front side. When the center of the sheet length reaches the center between the indexer rollers 25 and 50 after a predetermined time has elapsed from the detection of the front end by the indexer sensor 52, the indexer roller 25 holding the front end of the sheet is moved in the reverse direction. , And at the same time, both indexer rollers 25 and 50 are lowered at the same speed. The flapper 27 rotates during the lowering and is set to the release position P3. The reverse transport speed of the sheet by the indexer roller 25 is equal to the transport speed of the other indexer roller 50, and the lowering speed of the indexer rollers 25 and 50 is also set to the transport speed of the sheet. For this purpose, as shown in FIG.
5 and 50, a substantially downward U-shaped loop is formed, and the indexer rollers 25 and 50 are connected to the tray 51.
When the sheet is lowered to a position near the upper end of the sheet, the lowermost end of the U-shaped loop of the sheet reaches the bent portion 54 of the tray 51, and both sides thereof are guided along the V-shaped inclined surfaces 55 and 56. Therefore, the end of the sheet is indexer roller 2
Almost at the same time as the sheets exit from the trays 5 and 50, the sheets are placed on the tray 51 as they are. When the indexer sensor 53 disposed at the entrance of the indexer roller 25 detects the leading end of the sheet fed backward, both indexer rollers 25 and 50 rise and return to the original position. When lowering the indexer rollers 25, 50, as shown in FIG. 6, by inclining both indexer rollers 25, 50 inward each other,
A downward loop can be forced on the seat.
The reverse rotation control of the indexer rollers 25 and 50 and the control of lowering and raising are performed in the same manner as described above.
2

FIG. 7 shows a fourth embodiment of the present invention. In this embodiment, the tray 51 is moved up and down instead of lowering the indexer rollers 25 and 50. Therefore, in this embodiment, the tray 51 is gradually raised almost simultaneously with the reverse rotation of the indexer roller 25 holding the leading end side of the sheet.
The lowermost end of the downward U-shaped loop formed between both indexer rollers 25 and 50 reaches the bent portion 54 of the tray 51 when 1 reaches the uppermost position shown by the solid line. After the sheets have been placed, the tray 51 is lowered to return to the original position. In this case as well, it is desirable to incline both indexer rollers 25 and 50 inwardly to forcibly create a downward loop in the sheet.

FIG. 8 shows another embodiment of the sheet accommodating means. As shown in FIG. 8 (A), one sheet is stacked over the center of the sheet and accumulated in an inverted U-shape. Bar tray 5
7, or as shown in FIG. 8 (B), a pair of bar-shaped trays 58, 59 may be used, and a sheet may be stretched between them in a U-shape.

FIG. 9 shows a fifth embodiment of the present invention. In the sheet storage apparatus according to this embodiment, a plurality of pickup rollers 61 are arranged in the width direction at a position above the indexer roller 60, and the pickup roller 61 is provided to be vertically movable. Further, in this embodiment, the indexer roller 60 is slidable in the front-rear direction of sheet conveyance, and the pickup roller 61 is slid together therewith. In addition,
The moving speed of the indexer roller 61 is adjusted to be equal to the speed of discharging the sheet from the plotter 10. Further, in this embodiment, a sheet storage means is provided on the side of the sheet conveyance path. This sheet storage means has a plurality of arms 62 arranged along the sheet conveying direction at substantially the same height as the indexer roller 61,
The sheet once discharged onto the indexer roller 60 can be transferred to a predetermined arm 62 one by one.

Therefore, in this embodiment, the image-formed sheet discharged from the plotter 10 is conveyed by the paper discharge roller 24 and wrapped over the indexer roller 60 as in the above-described embodiment. Then, when the central portion of the sheet is discharged to the position of the indexer roller 60, the pickup roller 61 descends and sandwiches the sheet with the indexer roller 60. The discharge roller 24 continues to rotate and discharges the sheet, and at the same time, moves the indexer roller 60 and the pickup roller 61 to the predetermined arm 6.
Slide to position 2. Then, in this state, the end portion of the sheet is discharged from the paper discharge roller 24 and is temporarily supported in an inverted U-shaped state by bridging over the indexer roller 60 as shown in FIG. Next, by rotating the pickup roller 61 to slide the sheet to the side perpendicular to the conveying direction, and passing the sheet over a predetermined arm 62 located in front of the sheet, the sheet is substantially inverted U by the arm 62.
It will be placed in a character shape. By storing the sheets one by one in the plurality of arms 62 in this manner, the organization or management of the sheets becomes easier.

[0024]

As described above, according to the sheet storage device of the present invention, a large printed sheet discharged from an image output device such as a plotter can be collected in a spread state. effective. Further, since the sheet can be collected in a state of being bent in a substantially U-shape, there is an effect that it is not necessary to take up a space for the storage tray.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic explanatory view showing a first embodiment of a sheet storage device according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an enlarged perspective view of an indexer roller and a flapper.

FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram showing each position of a flapper.

FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram showing a state where an indexer roller is inclined.

FIG. 5 is a schematic explanatory view showing a second embodiment of the sheet storage device according to the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a schematic explanatory view showing a third embodiment of the sheet storage device according to the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a schematic explanatory view showing a fourth embodiment of the sheet storage device according to the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a schematic explanatory view showing another embodiment of the sheet storage means.

FIG. 9 is a schematic perspective view showing a fifth embodiment of the sheet storage device according to the present invention.

FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram illustrating an example of a conventional sheet collection device.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Plotter 16 Sheet discharge port 20 Sheet storage device 21 Sheet transport means 22 Transport speed control means 23 Tray (sheet storage means)

Continuation of front page (58) Field surveyed (Int. Cl. ⁷ , DB name) B65H 31/00 G03G 15/00 530

Claims (6)

(57) [Claims] 1. A sheet storage device which is disposed adjacent to a sheet discharge port of an image output device and sequentially stores sheets discharged from the sheet discharge port. A pair of sheet conveying means arranged to hold the sheet discharged from the sheet discharge port in the front and rear direction of conveyance, and the sheet conveyance speed of one sheet conveying means for holding the rear side of the sheet in the sheet conveyance direction, the front side of the sheet in the sheet conveyance direction. A conveying speed control unit that relatively accelerates the sheet conveying speed of the other sheet conveying unit that holds the sheet and bends the sheet in a substantially U-shape in a predetermined direction at a substantially central portion of the sheet conveying unit; And a sheet storage means disposed between the means and for placing the bent sheet while maintaining its U-shape. 2. A sheet conveying means for holding at least a front side in a sheet conveying direction of the pair of sheet conveying means,
2. The sheet conveying device according to claim 1, wherein the sheet conveying device can move up and down along the sheet storage means. 3. A sheet conveying means for holding at least a front side in a sheet conveying direction of the pair of sheet conveying means,
The sheet storage device according to claim 1, wherein the sheet storage device can be tilted in a direction in which the sheet is bent. 4. The sheet storage device according to claim 1, wherein said sheet storage means is vertically movable. 5. A sheet storage device which is disposed adjacent to a sheet discharge port of an image output device and sequentially stacks and stores sheets discharged from the sheet discharge port. A pair of sheet conveying means arranged to hold the front and rear of the sheet discharged from the sheet discharge port in the conveying direction; Conveyance speed control means for relatively bending the sheet in a substantially U-shape in a predetermined direction at a speed relatively higher than the sheet conveyance speed of the other sheet conveyance means to be held; and Means for temporarily supporting the sheet while maintaining its U-shape, and temporarily supporting the sheet, which is installed in a different part from the support means and which has the U-shape, Sheet storage device being characterized in that a sheet storage means for stacking while. 6. A sheet storage device disposed adjacent to a sheet discharge port of an image output device and sequentially stacking and storing sheets discharged from the sheet discharge port. A pair of sheet conveying means arranged to hold a sheet discharged from the sheet discharge port in the conveying direction, and a pair of sheet conveying means arranged vertically movable between the pair of sheet conveying means, and the holding by the sheet conveying means is released. A sheet storage means for pushing up a substantially central portion of the sheet upward and mounting the sheet in a substantially U-shape.