JP3413153B2 - Paper sheet transport method and apparatus - 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 conveying method and apparatus.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, a postal machine or a home delivery service has been used as a paper sheet conveying method and device suitable for a postal machine that sorts and processes postcards and envelopes, and a home delivery service organization that sorts and processes sealed documents. At service organizations, etc., read the destination information such as the barcode and postal code attached to the postcards and sealed documents (hereinafter, these postcards and sealed documents are collectively referred to as "paper sheets"), and read from the destination information. A paper sheet sorting machine that automatically sorts and processes paper sheets has been put into practical use. In such a paper sheet sorting machine, space saving, small-group work, low cost, high speed, etc. are required.

Among the above requirements, in order to realize high speed,
How to align and convey a wide variety of paper sheets having different sizes and the like is important in determining the conveyance performance. For example, if the lower end surface of the paper sheet in the separation / feed unit is not properly aligned, it will be obliquely separated and skew will be generated, and the downstream reading unit will be unreadable and rejected. There is a case in which the paper is conveyed without being separated from the paper, and is detected as an abnormal conveyance by the paper sheet sorting unit and rejected. In this case, the sorting process needs to be performed again or the worker must separately process the process, which is wasteful. Therefore, in order to reduce this rejection, it is important to perform sufficient alignment before the separation operation in the separation supply unit.

On the other hand, in order to realize the work for a small number of people and the cost reduction, it is important to automate the work as much as possible, that is, to automate the machine.

[0005]

However, in such a conventional paper sheet sorting machine, most of the work for transporting the paper sheets to the separating and feeding section relies on manpower.
Therefore, a large number of full-time workers must be assigned, and improvement has been desired.

The present invention has been made to solve such a problem, and its purpose is to prevent a paper sheet from being double fed without being separated from a succeeding paper sheet. Separation,
(EN) Provided are a paper sheet conveying method and apparatus suitable for automating the conveyance of paper sheets, which ensures mechanical and forced transfer.

[0007]

According to a method of conveying paper sheets of the present invention, a plurality of sheets are bundled and stored in a stock portion in a standing position, and feed pins are provided at substantially equal intervals in a traveling direction. Automatically transfer to the alignment transfer unit with the transfer conveyor,
Immediately before the aligning / conveying unit, the bundle of paper sheets is placed on a belt for subdivision and moved forward and backward with an amplitude set arbitrarily and ejected while subdividing, and a predetermined thickness between the feed pins. The paper sheet is dropped and supplied, and at the time of discharging, the rotating eccentric roller is brought into contact with the upper part of the front surface of the paper sheet to guide the paper sheet in the discharging direction. According to this, the paper sheets stored in a bundle in the stock section are automatically sent to the aligning and conveying section, and the aligning and conveying section automatically divides the paper sheets into appropriate thickness amounts. Since it is supplied between the feed pins of the transfer conveyor, it is possible to automate the work of feeding from the stock section to the alignment transport section and the task of feeding the sheets into the alignment transport section in appropriate thickness amounts. Become. Furthermore, when ejecting the subdivided paper sheets from the stock section and dropping them on the transfer conveyor,
The rotating eccentric roller is brought into contact with the upper part of the front surface of the sheet, and the rotation of the roller assists the sheet to be discharged, so that the sheet can be smoothly discharged.

Further, in the paper sheet conveying apparatus of the present invention, the stock portion in which the paper sheets are bundled and stored in an upright position, the paper sheet in the stock portion, and the feed pin are approximately equal in the traveling direction. Automatically conveys to the aligning / conveying unit having a transfer conveyor provided at intervals, and immediately before the aligning / conveying unit, the bundle of paper sheets is divided and discharged while being subdivided, and between the feed pins. Split supply means for dropping and supplying the paper sheets by a predetermined thickness, and a rotating roller portion that contacts the upper part of the front surface of the paper sheets at the discharge position of the divided paper sheets and guides the paper sheets in the discharge direction. The front surface of the paper sheet on the peripheral surface of the roller portion.
An eccentric roller that comes into contact with the upper surface is provided . According to this configuration, the paper sheets bundled and stored in the stock section are automatically sent to the aligning and conveying section, and the aligning and conveying section automatically divides the paper sheets into appropriate thickness amounts and automatically. Since it is supplied between the feed pins of the transfer conveyor, it is possible to automate the work of feeding from the stock section to the alignment transport section and the task of feeding the sheets into the alignment transport section in appropriate thickness amounts. Becomes Further, when ejecting the small-sized paper sheets from the stock section and dropping them on the transfer conveyor, the rotating eccentric roller is brought into contact with the upper part of the front surface of the paper sheet, and the rotation of the rollers causes the rotation of the rollers. Since it helps the discharge of paper sheets, it can be discharged smoothly.

[0009]

[0010]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is an external perspective view showing an overall configuration of a paper sheet conveying method and apparatus shown as an embodiment of the present invention. In FIG. 1, the paper sheet transporting method and apparatus are roughly composed of a paper sheet supply unit 1, a paper sheet sorting unit 2, a transfer carriage 3, and the like.

The paper supply unit 1 is provided with the paper 10 to be sorted.
(See FIGS. 16 to 22) are put together in a standing posture by the operator's hand, and the paper sheet 10 is conveyed to the paper sheet feeding position 4 (see FIG. 2), and the paper sheet feeding position is set. The sheet separating / supplying device 5 provided in the sheet 4 separates the sheets one by one and feeds them toward a reading unit (not shown). Further, the reading unit reads the destination information such as the bar code or the postal code attached to the fed paper sheet 10,
The destination information is sent to the computer.

In the present embodiment, the paper sheet sorting section 2 is formed in three stages in the vertical direction. In each of the paper sheet sorting units 2a, a sorting stacking unit 2a for temporarily storing the paper sheets 10 sorted and sorted by the destination information.
However, a plurality (10 in this embodiment) are provided side by side in a line. Although not shown, the paper sheet sorting unit 2 stores the paper sheets 1 in the paper sheet sorting unit 2 according to the destination information read by the reading unit.
A sorting unit is provided for sorting 0 to the determined sorting stacking unit 2a.

The transfer cart 3 receives and stores the paper sheet 10 discharged from the sorting and stacking unit 2a of the paper sheet sorting unit 2, and carries the paper sheet 10 to the paper sheet supply unit 1 again. Corresponding to the sheet stacking storage section 2a of the sheet sorting section 2, the sheet relay storage section 3a is provided in upper and lower three stages, two rows in each stage.

The paper sheet supply section 1 is the most relevant part of the present invention. The structure will be further described. FIG. 2 is an overall perspective view showing the internal structure of the paper sheet feeding unit 1 together with the transfer carriage 3, and FIGS. 3 to 5 are side views seen from the direction of arrow F in FIG. FIG. 6 and FIG. 6 are layout diagrams of essential parts showing the internal structure by removing some members such as the front panel of the paper sheet feeder 1 shown in FIG. 2 and 3 and 6
Are shown in a state when they are in the same mode, and FIGS. 4 and 5 are shown in a state when they are in a mode different from FIGS. 2 and 3, respectively. 2 to 6, the paper sheet feeding unit 1
Is mainly composed of three parts: a transfer part 11, a stock part 12, and a leveling / conveying part 13. These parts are arranged from the sheet feeding position 4 side to the leveling / conveying part 13, the stocking part 12,
The transfer units 11 are arranged side by side in a line. Paper sheets are bundled and stored in the stock unit 12 in a standing position, and the bundle of paper sheets is subdivided and supplied to the alignment transport unit 13. The alignment transport unit 13 has a transport conveyor 85 in which feed pins for transporting paper sheets are provided at substantially equal intervals in the traveling direction. Further, at the connecting portion between the stocking section 12 and the aligning and conveying section 13, the bundle of paper sheets is divided into small portions and discharged just before the aligning and conveying section 13, and a predetermined thickness is provided between the feed pins. A divisional supply member is provided for dropping and feeding the sheets, and the divisional supply member comes into contact with the upper front surface of the sheet at the ejection position of the subdivided sheet to rotate the sheet in the ejection direction. A roller is provided. Further, the transfer section 11 and the stock section 12 are installed on the lifting table 14A of the same lifter 14, and their positions are switched to three positions of upper, middle, and lower by the vertical movement of the lifting table 14A. It is possible.

7 and 8 show the lifter 14 and the transfer unit 1.
1 is a perspective view showing the configuration of the stock portion 12 and the stock portion 12, and FIG. 8 is a side view seen from the transfer portion side. 7 and 8, the configuration of the lifter 14, the transfer section 11, and the stock section 12 will be further described.
At one end of the lifting table 14A, the lifting table 14A
It is attached so that it protrudes outward from one end of the. In addition, the paper sheet relay storage 3a of the transfer cart 3 approaches the tip in the protruding direction. The transfer portion 11 is formed by press-forming a plate-shaped iron plate, and includes a bottom plate portion 15a and a pair of front and rear guide wall portions 15b, 15 bent upward from the bottom plate portion 15a at a substantially right angle.
b is integrally formed, and is formed as a guide member having a substantially U-shaped cross section in which both left and right side surfaces and an upper surface are opened. The transfer unit 11 is provided so as to be continuously inclined downward in the protruding direction and is inclined by about 25 degrees. That is, the bottom plate portion 15 a of the transfer portion 11 is formed as an inclined surface that gradually rises as it advances toward the stock portion 12, and the other end side is arranged inside the stock portion 12.

The lifting table 14A is formed as a rectangular flat table.
The stock section 12 is incorporated in the. Therefore, the lifting table 14A is an incomplete table,
A plurality of elongated holes or the like for the stock portion 12 are vertically provided so as to penetrate therethrough.

A lifter 14 having a lifting table 14A
Is a frame 16, a pair of left and right guide shafts 17 supported by the frame 16 and extending in the up-down direction and standing upright, a drive ball screw 18 arranged between the pair of left and right guide shafts 17, A lifter motor 19 for rotating the driving ball screw 18 that can be driven to rotate in two directions, forward and backward, and a lifting table vibration imparting means 20 for vertically vibrating the lifting table 14A.
Etc. An elevating table 14A is attached to the guide shaft 17 so as to be slidable in the vertical direction, and an L-shaped member 1 screwed to the elevating table 14A via a vibration-absorbing rubber material 115 to a driving ball screw 18.
16 horizontal projecting portions 116a are arranged. Then, when the lifter motor 19 is rotated, the drive ball screw 18 is rotated, the lifting table 14A is screw-fed to the drive ball screw 18, and is guided by the guide shaft 17, depending on the rotation direction of the lifter motor 19. , Move up or down. Furthermore, the movement of the lifting table 14A is performed by moving the bottom plate portion 15a of the transfer unit 11.
Can be stopped at a position where the front end of the sheet tray coincides with the floor surface line of the paper sheet relay storage section 3a in the transfer carriage 3, and in the present embodiment, it can be set to the floor line of the lower sheet paper relay storage section 3a. The matching lower position (see FIGS. 2 and 3), the middle position (see FIG. 5) that matches the floor line of the middle-level sheet storage unit 3a, and the floor of the upper-level sheet storage unit 3a Each can be stopped at the upper position (see FIG. 4) that coincides with the surface line. Further, the home position is when the lower position is the same as the floor line of the lower sheet relay storage unit 3a, and at this home position, the paper sheet 10 is in the stock unit 1.
It is transferred from 2 to the alignment transport unit 13.

Further, the vibration applying means 20 for the lifting table
As shown in detail in FIG. 8, has a cylinder 21 fixed to the frame 16 and a rotating member 23 attached to the frame 16 so as to be vertically rotatable about a pivot 22 as a fulcrum. , One end of the rotating member 23 and the cylinder 21
The leading end of the rod 21a that moves forward and backward is linked to each other via a pivot 24. Further, the other end of the rotating member 23 is extended below the lifting table 14A,
When the lifting table 14A is located at the lower position,
When the rotating member 23 is rotated in the up-down direction and the other end side is directed upward, the other end side pushes up the lower surface of the elevating table 14A, and when the other end side is subsequently lowered, the elevating table 14A.
Also has a structure in which it is possible to repeatedly apply vertical vibrations to the elevating table 14A by repeating this operation. The lifting table 14
The roller 2 is provided on the other end side of the rotating member 23 that comes into contact with the lower surface of A.
5, the rotating member 23 contacts the lower surface of the elevating table 14A via the roller 25.

The stock portion 12 arranged together with the transfer portion 11 on the elevating table 14A is shown in FIG. 9 to FIG. 10 in addition to FIG. 2 to FIG. The second
The transfer means 12 includes a backing plate means 26, a backing plate driving means 27, a front contact plate means 28, a front contact plate tip arrival detection sensor means 29, a first transfer belt means 32, a second transfer belt means 33, a pusher 34, and the like. It is composed of. Also,
On the front and rear surfaces of the lifting table 14A, paper sheets 1
A guide plate 35 is arranged along the 0 transport path. The guide plate 35 serves as a guide when the paper sheet 10 is conveyed toward the aligning / conveying unit 13, and in order to reduce the frictional force generated when the paper sheet 10 is brought into contact with the paper sheet 10, the guide plate 35 is provided on the inner surface. Is provided with three bar members 35a (see FIG. 7) extending along the conveyance path, which are vertically scattered.

The elevating table 14A has guide holes 36a, 36 for front contact plates extending along the conveying path of the paper sheet 10.
and b are provided so as to penetrate vertically. Further, as shown in FIG. 9, the front contact plate guide groove 37 and the rear contact plate guide groove 38 are provided on the lift table 14A, as shown in FIG.
It is formed in a slender shape along the 0 transport path.

As shown in FIG. 11, the front contact plate means 28 is provided with a slide plate 39 which is attached by sliding a part of the front contact plate guide groove 37 into the front contact plate guide groove 37. From the center of the slide plate 39 to the guide hole 3
A column 4 extending through 6b to the lower side of the lifting table 14A
0 and a front contact plate 41 attached to the column 40 so as to be slidable in the vertical direction, and the front contact plate 41 can be vertically slid by a pull-out cylinder 42. The pull-out cylinder 42 is usually the front cover plate 4
1 is slid upward, and is held at a protruding position where the front plate portion 41a of the front contact plate 41 passes through the guide holes 36a and 36b and largely protrudes upward from the upper surface of the elevating table 14A. . When the pull-out cylinder 42 operates to move the slide plate 39 downward, the front end of the front plate portion 41a of the slide plate 39 moves up and down the lift table 14.
It is moved to the return position below the lower surface of A. Then, the front contact plate means 28 is guided by the guide groove 37 for the front contact plate with which the slide plate 39 is engaged, from the home position closest to the transfer section 11 side to the closest alignment transfer section 13 side. It is possible to slide continuously to the end position.

Furthermore, a constant load leaf spring 43 for tensioning (hereinafter referred to as "constant load leaf spring 43") is provided on one surface of the support column 40.
The front end of the front contact plate is detected by the front end plate arrival detection sensor means 29, and a front end arrival confirmation detection plate 29a is attached. Constant load leaf spring 43
Is a coil spring, and the main body portion 43a is fixed to the lower surface of the lifting table 14A. When the front contact plate 41 is moved from the home position toward the end position, the constant load leaf spring 4 wound around the body portion 43a.
While pulling out 3, a constant load is applied to move, and the return force of the constant load leaf spring 43 returns to the home position from the end position. A front contact plate return limit stopper 45 is attached to the lower surface of the lifting table 14A corresponding to the support column 40 of the front contact plate means 28, and the support column 40 is brought into contact with the front contact plate return limit stopper 45. The position is the home position above. Further, on the lower surface side of the elevating table 14A, when the front backing plate 41 reaches the end position, the front backing plate 41 is held so that the front backing plate 41 is not temporarily returned to the home position. When the front contact plate 41 reaches the end position, the front contact plate front end arrival detection sensor means 29 for detecting the front end arrival confirmation detection plate 29a on the front contact plate means 28 is attached. The front backing plate return prevention cylinder 46 has a rod 46 outside the passage of the front backing plate means 28 before the front backing plate 41 reaches the end position.
When a is retracted and reaches the end position, it is advanced into the passage to prevent the front contact plate means 28 from returning to the home position side by the spring force of the constant load plate spring 43.

As shown in FIG. 12, the rear push plate means 26 has a slide plate 47 which is slidably engaged in the rear guide plate guide groove 38 and mounted on the elevating table 14A. It is composed of a pair of front and rear push plates 48 mounted on the slide plate 47, a push plate detector 49, etc., and is arranged between the front contact plate 41 and the transfer section 11.

More specifically, the backing plate 48 is formed by press-molding a metal plate material having a spring property, and the inclined surface portion 4 is formed.
8a and a rear contact surface portion 48b, which is bent straight downward from the tip of the inclined surface portion 48a, are integrally provided.
Then, the base end side of the inclined surface portion 48 is mounted on the slide plate 47 via the bracket 50 so as to be vertically rotatable. A winding spring 51 is mounted between the bracket 50 and the slide plate 47.
The back-pressing plate 48 is always urged to rotate upward by the spring force, and is rotated upward until the upper surface of the rear-pressing plate 48 contacts the lower surface of the stopper 52 attached to the bracket 50. In addition, the backing plate 48 is provided on the lower surface of the stopper 52.
In the state where the upper surface of is contacted, the inclined surface portion 48b is inclined so as to gradually become higher as it goes to the front contact plate 41 side,
The rear contact surface portion 48b is substantially perpendicular to the lifting table 14A and faces the front plate portion 41a. Further, as will be described later, the paper sheet 10 sent from the transfer section 11 side is inclined toward the front plate section 41a at the inclined surface section 48b.
When passing over, the backing plate 4 with the weight of the paper sheet 10
The tip side of 8 is lowered, the inclination gradient of the inclined surface portion 48b is reduced to facilitate passage of the paper sheet 10, and when the passage is completed, the reaction force of the winding spring 51 returns to the home position again. .

The first transfer belt means 32 is stretched between the pulleys 53a and 53b, respectively, and is stretched from the right end to the left end of the lifting table 14A in FIG. It has endless belts 54 arranged in parallel. Each belt 54 is
It is connected to a slide plate 47 to which a backing plate 48 is attached, and rotates in conjunction with the movement of the slide plate 47 moved by a motor 56. It should be noted that, on the lifting table 14A, a rear push plate return detection sensor means 30a for detecting the rear push plate detector 49 when the slide plate 47 reaches the home position, and for the rear push plate when the slide plate 47 reaches the tip position. Rear push plate front end detection sensor means 30b for detecting the detector 49 is provided.

The power transmission mechanism 55 is composed of a drive system 55a and a non-drive system 55b. The drive system 55a includes the motor 56 and a pulley 57 fixedly attached to the output shaft of the motor 56. On the other hand, the driven system 55
As shown in FIG. 13, b is a shaft 5 rotatably supported by a bearing 58 attached to the lifting table 14A.
9 and a pulley 60 and a pulley 61 attached to the shaft 59 thereof. Further, the pulley 60 is frictionally connected to the shaft 59 via a winding spring 62,
When a force larger than the frictional force is applied between the pulley 60 and the shaft 59, the structure between the pulley 60 and the shaft 59 idles. The pulley 60 has
A pulley 57 on the drive system 55a side is power-coupled via a belt 64. That is, when the motor 56 is rotated and the pulley 57 is rotated, the pulley 60 rotates by receiving the power of the motor 56 via the pulley 57 and the belt 61.
Further, from the pulley 57 through the winding spring 62, the shaft 5
It has a structure in which 9 rotates. In addition, the shaft 59
A rotary plate 63a of an encoder 63 is attached to the so as to be integrally rotatable. The encoder 63 has a sensor (not shown) that detects the slit 63b on the rotary plate 63a and outputs a signal, and the encoder 63 itself has a well-known structure. On the other hand, the pulley 61 is used for the lifting table 14
The upper surface of A is attached to the shaft 59 so as to be integrally rotatable. An endless belt 67 is stretched around the pulley 61 and the pulley 66 on the upper surface side of the lifting table 14. The pulley 66 is rotatably attached to a position on the upper surface side of the elevating table 14A and on the end position side via a pivot shaft 65. Also, the endless belt 6
A part of 7 is fixed to the slide plate 47 of the backing plate means 26. Therefore, the rotation of the motor 56 causes the shaft 5
When the pulley 61 rotates integrally with 9, the endless belt 67 and the pulley 66 rotate together with the pulley 61. Further, when the endless belt 67 rotates, the slide plate 47 coupled to the endless belt 67 moves from the home position position to the end position and from the end position to the home position position according to the rotation direction of the endless belt 67. . Further, when the slide plate 47 moves, the belt 5 connected to the slide plate 47 is moved.
4 rotates together with the slide plate 47.

As shown in detail in FIG. 14, the second transfer belt means 33 is provided at the end portion of the elevating table 14A adjacent to the aligning and conveying section 13, and the second transfer belt means 32 is provided. Adjacent to each of the belts 54, each is a first
The transfer belt means 32 has three belts 69 extending in front of the transfer belt means 32 (on the side of the aligning and conveying section 13). These three belts 69 are stretched around the outsides of a pulley 71 rotatably attached to the shaft 70 and a pulley 73 rotatably attached to the shaft 72. Further, the shaft 70 is connected to a motor 74 (see FIG. 6) that is different from the drive source (motor 56) of the first transfer belt means 33 and can rotate in the forward and reverse directions. Rotate to. That is,
The rotation of the shaft 70 causes the belt 69 to rotate in two directions. The belt 54 of the first transfer belt means 32
Is horizontally arranged on the upper surface of the elevating table 14A, while the belt 69 is provided so as to be gradually inclined as it goes from the first belt means 32 side to the aligning and conveying section 13 side.

The pusher 34, as shown in detail in FIG. 14, is conveyed at the end of the lifting table 14A, above the second transfer belt means 33, and in the standing position. A rod 78 is provided at a position where it can come into contact with the upper part of the front surface of the paper sheet 10 so as to cross the passage of the paper sheet 10. A plurality of eccentric rollers 75 are fixed to the outer periphery of the rod 78 so as to be integrally rotatable, and are rotated by a motor 76 attached to the elevating table 14A.

Next, the structure of the alignment transport unit 13 will be described.
In FIG. 23, the paper sheet separating / feeding device 5 for separating and feeding the paper sheets 10 one by one, and the paper sheet 10 fed from the paper sheet separating / feeding device 5 are directed to the paper sheet sorting unit 2. 24 is an external view of the aligning / conveying unit 13 and FIG. Note that, as shown in FIG. 23, the paper sheet separating and feeding apparatus 5 separates the paper sheets 10 sent by the aligning and conveying section 13 in an upright state into sheet-by-sheet conveying apparatuses. A sheet length is a transmissive optical sensor for detecting the length of the sheet 10 sent from the separating / supplying device 5 to the sheet conveying device 6 and having a separating / supplying belt 7 fed out toward 6. The measurement sensor 9 is provided along the path along which the paper sheet 10 is conveyed.

The aligning and conveying section 13 is provided adjacent to the stock section 12, and as shown in FIG. The positioning unit 81, the floor-side positioning unit 82, the second rear-end reference positioning unit 83, the subdivision mechanism 84, and the like. Further, there is a height difference between the alignment transport unit 13 and the stock unit 12, and the stock unit 12 is higher than the alignment transport unit 13. Therefore, stock section 1
The paper sheet 10 sent to the alignment transport unit 13 through the second transport belt means 33 of No. 2 is configured to drop from the stock unit 12 toward the alignment transport unit 13 in a separated state. Has been done. Further, the aligning / conveying unit 1 is provided between the stock unit 12 and a position adjacent to the paper sheet separating / supplying device 5.
The paper sheet 10 sent to the inside of 3 is supplied to the paper sheet separating / supplying device 5
The transfer conveyor 85 is provided for feeding toward.

More specifically, as shown in FIG. 23, the orienting / conveying unit 13 is provided with guide plates 86a and 86b along both sides of the conveying path of the paper sheet 10, and the guide plates are provided. The first rear end reference alignment unit 81, the floor side alignment unit 82, the second rear end reference alignment unit 83, the subdivision mechanism 84, and the transfer conveyor 85 are provided between the units 86a and 86b.

Three first rear end reference aligning means 81 are rotatably arranged between the guide plates 86a and 86b so that each of them extends in the conveying direction of the paper sheet 10. With the rollers 81a, as shown in FIG. 26, each roller 81a receives the rotational driving force of the motor 87 via the power transmission mechanism 87a, and always rotates in one direction. The roller 81a rotates in the direction in which the paper sheet 10 that is sequentially discharged from the stock unit 12 one by one and falls is the roller 8a.
An arrow 88 in FIG. 25 can give a force to move the sheet 10 toward the guide plate 86a when the sheet 10 is placed on the sheet 1a.
It is the direction shown by. Therefore, the paper sheets 10 which are sequentially dropped from the stock unit 12 onto the rollers 81a and are sequentially sent to the paper feeding position 4 side by the transfer conveyor 85 described later, when the rollers 81a fall.
Is sent to the side of the guide plate 86a serving as a reference surface, and the end surface of the paper sheet 10 (feeding rear end side) is aligned with the guide plate 86a.

The floor-side aligning means 82 applies vibration from the lower surface side to the paper sheet 10 conveyed toward the paper sheet separating / supplying device 5 by the transfer conveyor 85, and guide plates 86a and 86b. A contact mechanism 89 and two rolling shafts 90 are sequentially arranged between the contact mechanism 89 and the guide plate 86a. The contact mechanism 89, as shown in FIGS. 27 and 28,
The belt 91 has a belt 91 extending along the conveyance direction of the paper sheet 10. The belt 91 is the frame 92 of the alignment transport unit 13.
The plate 93 is fixed to the arms 93a and 93b of the plate 93, and the chain belt 94 and the roller 95 are disposed below the belt 91. The chain belt 94 has three sprockets 96a, 96.
It is stretched around the outer sides of b and 96c, and is arranged substantially parallel to the lower surface of the belt 91 between the sprockets 96b and 96c. In addition, among the three sprockets 96a, 96b, 96c, the sprocket 9
6a is attached to the output shaft 97a of the motor 97 so as to be integrally rotatable. Therefore, when the motor 97 is rotated, the sprocket 96a rotates, and the chain belt 94 and the sprockets 96b and 96c also rotate in conjunction with this. The roller 95 is attached to the outer surface of the chain belt 94 via the bracket 95a, and when the chain belt 94 rotates, the roller 95 moves integrally with the belt 91.
When passing below, the belt 91 comes into contact with the lower surface of the belt 91 and violently pushes up the belt 91, and the upward movement violently vibrates on the upper surface of the belt 91. Also, the roller 9
A plurality of 5 are provided on the chain belt 94, and the rotation of the chain belt 94 causes the rollers 95 to come into contact with each other one after another to generate vibration.

The shaft 90 is formed in a substantially flat shape by cutting a part of its peripheral surface to form a flat surface 90a. The flat shaft 90 is rotated by the rotational force of the motor 99 via the power transmission mechanism 98, and the shaft 9 is rotated.
The shaft 9 is attached to the paper sheet 10 that moves while making contact with 0.
Vibration is applied vertically from the 0 side. Therefore, in this floor side aligning means 82, the vertical vibration applied to the paper sheet 10 from the contact mechanism 89 and the paper sheet 10 from the shaft 90.
The vertical vibrations applied to the paper sheets are different from each other, and the paper sheets 10 sent by the transfer belt 85 are aligned while applying complex vibrations to improve the alignment efficiency.

The second trailing edge reference alignment means 83 is used for the paper sheet 1.
Cone type roller 100 extending along the 0 transport path
And an endless aligning belt 101 that makes surface contact with the lower surface of the paper sheet 10 that is mounted so as to cover the outer sides of the two rotary shafts 101a that are arranged parallel to the rollers 100. There is. Of these, the roller 100 is
It rotates by receiving the rotational force of the motor 103 via the power transmission mechanism 102. On the other hand, the alignment belt 101 applies the rotational force of the motor 103 via the power transmission mechanism 102 to the rotating body 101.
When "a" receives and rotates, it rotates around the outside of the rotating body 101a in conjunction with the rotating body 101a. Further, the rotation direction thereof is the same as that of the roller 81a of the first rear end reference aligning unit 81, and the paper sheet 10 is conveyed while being abutted on the roller 100 and the rotating body 101. On the other hand, it is a direction in which a force that moves toward the guide plate 86a is applied, that is, a direction that intersects the conveyance direction of the paper sheet 10 at a right angle. Then, the paper sheet 10 is conveyed toward the paper sheet feeding position 4 by the transfer conveyor 85, and the second
When passing over the trailing edge reference aligning means 83, the paper sheet 10 passes with the lower surface of the roller 100 and the aligning belt 101 in surface contact. Further, at that time, the paper sheet 10 is moved to the guide plate 86a side as a positioning member by a large frictional force due to the surface contact with the alignment belt 101, and the feeding rear end side is brought into contact with and positioned with respect to the guide plate 86a. Since they are aligned, it is possible to align them reliably in a short time.
Therefore, the paper sheet 10 sent by the transfer belt 85 while being in surface contact with the rollers 100 and the alignment belt 101, in addition to the alignment by the first rear end reference alignment means 81, Even in this position, the operation of sending the guide plate 86a to the side of the guide plate 86a is given again, and the end face (feeding rear end) is moved to the guide plate 86a.
It has a structure that can be adjusted according to. Further, here, since the belt surface of the aligning belt is brought into surface contact with the lower surface of the paper sheet 10 to give a force to move the paper sheet 10 to the guide plate 86a side, a large force is applied to the paper sheet 10 to the guide plate 86 side. Can be moved with.

The subdivision mechanism 84 has a cone-shaped rotating body 104 having spiral grooves engraved on the outer periphery thereof.
The motor 106 receives the rotational force of the motor 106 and rotates. Then, the subdivision mechanism 84, when the paper sheet 10 is sent and rides on the rotating body 104 that rotates, separates the paper sheets in the spiral groove thereof, and the paper sheet separating and feeding device 5 side The separation supply belt 7 is controlled so that the sheets are supplied one by one. That is, here, the paper sheets 10 that have been conveyed in an overlapping manner are put into a spiral groove and divided into small pieces, and a gap is provided between the paper sheets, so that the overlapping degree becomes loose, and the paper sheet supply belt 7 follows the succeeding paper sheets. It is possible to prevent the leaf 10 from being pressed, and to smoothly feed out the leaf 10 at the leaf separating / feeding position 4.

As shown in FIG. 29, the transfer conveyor 85 has a plurality of arm units 10 which are stretched between two chain belts 105 arranged on both sides of two transfer paths.
Have six. Each arm unit 106 is arranged on the chain belt 105 at equal intervals, and both ends of the rod 106a are attached to the chain belt 105, and four feed units fixedly attached to the rod 106a. It has a pin 106b. Each of the feed pins 106b is rotatably attached, and the paper sheet 10 is moved to the guide plate 86a side by the first rear end reference alignment unit 81 and the second rear end reference alignment unit 83. At some times, the feed pin 106b also rotates freely to assist the movement of the paper sheet 10. The chain belt 105 is composed of a plurality of sprocket gears 111a to 111a.
It is rotatably mounted via 1e. Further, outside the chain belt 105, the end portion adjacent to the sheet separating / feeding device 5 (the side where the feed pin 106b goes down) and the end portion adjacent to the stock portion 12 (the feed pin 106).
On the side where b is rising, the arm unit 106
Cam means 107, 108 for controlling the posture of the robot are disposed. Furthermore, the sprocket gears 111a to 11
In 1e, the sprocket gear 111e is a drive gear, and the sprocket gear 111e receives and rotates the rotation of the motor 109 via the power transmission mechanism 110, and the rotation of the sprocket gear 111e rotates the chain belt 105.

As shown in FIG. 31, the cam means 107 approaches the sheet separating / supplying position 4, and when the arm unit 106 goes around from the sheet separating / supplying position 4 to the lower side of the transfer conveyor 85. , So that the feed pin 106b of the arm unit 106 moves downward while remaining parallel to the separation / supply belt 7 as much as possible, and the arm unit 106 gradually falls rearward with respect to the chain belt 105. The operation of the unit 106 is controlled, and at the sheet separating / supplying position 4, the unit 106 is controlled to move downward in parallel to the sheet 10. On the other hand, when the cam means 108 is moved from the lower side to the upper side of the transfer conveyor 85, as shown in FIG. 31, the arm unit 106 is placed in a lying state before reaching the upper side. In addition, the operation of the arm unit 106 is controlled so that the feed pin 106b projects substantially vertically when it is moved upward. Then, between the arm units 106 in the traveling direction of the transfer conveyor 85, the paper sheets 10 dropped from the stock unit 12 are sequentially stored, and the chain belt 105 travels toward the paper sheet separating and supplying position 4. Be transferred. When the paper sheet 10 is transferred, the first trailing edge reference aligning means 81, the floor side aligning means 82, and the second trailing edge reference aligning means 8 are transferred.
3. The sheet is conveyed to the sheet separating / supplying position 4 by sequentially passing over the subdivision mechanism 84, and at the sheet separating / supplying position 4, the sheets are separated one by one by the separating / supplying belt 7, and the sheet conveying device. It is sent toward 6.

FIG. 32 is a block diagram showing the control system of the paper sheet feeding unit 1 according to the present embodiment. Items denoted by the same reference numerals as those shown in FIGS. 1 to 31 correspond to each other. It is a means of doing. Explaining the parts that are not described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 31, the system control unit (C
The PU) 200 is a part that controls the entire sheet supply unit 1, and the storage unit 201 is a part in which a program and the like for the system control unit 200 to process operations according to a predetermined procedure are incorporated. The operation panel portion 204 is a portion provided with various operation buttons and the like, and is provided with a lifter switch button 203, a start button 204, and the like.

Next, the operation of the paper sheet conveying method and apparatus thus constructed will be described. First, a plurality of paper sheets 10 are placed on the transfer carriage 3 in a state of being bundled together, and are manually carried to the transfer section 11. Here, the paper sheets 10 placed on the transfer carriage 3 are those that have not been sorted once, or those that have already been sorted several times. Further, the transfer cart 3 has a paper sheet 10
Are carried on any one of the upper, middle and lower three stages (including all cases) of the paper sheet relay storage section 3a.

The transfer carriage 3 places the paper sheet 10 and transfers the transfer section 1
When the sheet is transported to 1, the operator selects the paper sheet relay storage unit 3a to be subjected to the sorting processing, and adjusts the vertical position of the lifting table 14A according to the selected paper sheet relay storage unit 3a. The lifter switch button 203 on the section 202 is used for selection. The lifter switch buttons 203 here include a switch button for the upper stage, a switch button for the middle stage, and a switch button for the home position (for the lower stage), and the system control unit 200 causes the lifter to switch depending on the selected switch button. The drive motor 19 is drive-controlled. In this case, if the lifter switch button for the upper stage corresponding to the upper sheet relay storage unit 3a is selected, the lifter motor 19 is driven and the transfer unit 11 is moved to the upper sheet relay storage unit. The elevating table 14A is raised to a position corresponding to the portion 3a (see FIG. 5). When the switch button for the middle stage corresponding to the middle-level sheet relay storing part 3a is selected, the lifter motor 19 is driven and the transfer part 11 corresponds to the middle-level sheet relay storing part 3a. The lifting table 14A is raised to the position (see FIG. 4). If the switch button for the home position (not shown) is pressed while the lifting table 14A is moved to the upper or middle position, the system control unit 20
0 drives the lifter motor 19 to move the lifting table 1
Return 4A to the lower position. This lower position is the home position, and the transfer unit 11 is the lower sheet relay storage unit 3
It corresponds to a (see FIGS. 2, 3 and 6). In any case, when the lifting table 14A has finished moving, the positions of the bottom surface of the sheet relay storage section 3a and the bottom plate section 15a of the transfer section 11 protruding toward the transfer carriage 3 are at the same height. Placed in position. Therefore, when the transfer carriage 3 is brought close to the transfer section 11 with the lifting table 14A positioned at each stage, the bottom surface of the paper sheet relay storage section 3a on which the paper sheet 10 to be sorted is placed. Is the bottom plate part 1 of the transfer part 11.
Matches 5a. In this state of coincidence, the paper sheets in the paper sheet relay storage section 3a are kept as a bundle and the lifting table 1
When pushed to the 4A side, the paper sheet 10 can be moved to the transfer section 11 side and changed.

After the paper sheets 10 in the paper sheet relay storage section 3a are transferred to the transfer section 11 side in this manner, the stock section 12 is manually moved while sliding on the bottom plate section 15a.
Move towards. At this time, since the transfer section 11 is inclined so as to rise toward the stock section 12, the lower ends of the paper sheets 10 are closely packed and aligned adjacent to each other when sliding on the bottom plate section 15. That is, as shown in the principle view in FIG. 15, when the paper sheet 10 is placed on the flat surface 77 and slid, the adjacent sheets of paper sheet 10 are not clogged so much, but in the direction of going up the inclined surface 78. When it is slid, a braking force due to friction works well on the lower end of the paper sheet 10, and the adjacent sheets are closely packed and aligned.

Then, the paper sheet 10 carried to the end of the transfer section 11 while sliding on the bottom plate section 15a is transferred as it is into the stock section 12 and placed on the backing plate 48. Then, the backing plate 48 is lowered by the weight of the paper sheet 10, and the paper sheet 10 can be moved toward the front plate portion 41 a of the front contact plate 41. When the paper sheet 10 is conveyed in an amount (thickness amount) larger than the distance between the rear push plate 48 in the home position and the front plate portion 41a, the push plate 4 is pushed.
While keeping 8 in that position, only the front contact plate 41 is moved to the side of the aligning and conveying section 13 while pulling out the constant load leaf spring 43. When the transfer of the predetermined paper sheets 10 is completed, the front side is pressed by the front plate portion 41a, and the rear side is pressed by the back pushing plate 48.
The state is held down with. 16 and 17 show this state. When the transfer of the paper sheet 10 to the stock unit 1 is completed in this way, the stock unit start button 204 of the operation panel unit 202 is then pressed.

When the stock section start button 204 is pressed, the cylinder 21 of the lifting table vibration imparting means 20 is driven at a constant cycle, and the backing plate 48 is also driven.
The motor 56 for driving is driven in the forward direction. Cylinder 21
Is driven at a constant cycle, the rotating member 23 pushes up the lower surface of the lifting table 14A every time the driving is performed,
By this push-up, vertical vibration is applied to the entire lifting table 14A to vibrate the sheet 10 and the lifting table 14A is vibrated.
The lower surface of the paper sheet 10 on A is aligned and aligned.

On the other hand, when the motor 56 is driven in the forward direction, the rotation of the motor 56 is transmitted to the shaft 59 via the power transmission mechanism 55, and the shaft 59 rotates. When the shaft 59 rotates, the endless belt 67 rotates via the pulley 61, and the slide plate 47 of the rear pushing plate means 26 fixed to the endless belt 59 is guided by the rear contact plate guide groove 38 and the alignment conveying unit. The movement is started toward the 13 side (end position side), and the paper sheet 10 is pushed from the rear side to the front plate portion 41a side with the movement. Then, the front contact plate 41 is also pushed through the paper sheet 10, and the constant load leaf spring 4
While pulling out 3, the paper sheet 10 and the backing plate 48 start moving toward the end position side. When the backing plate 48 is moved, the belt 54 connected to the backing plate 48 rotates in synchronization with the direction in which the sheet 10 is conveyed, and the sheet 10 is placed on the belt 54. It is moved toward the end position side in the closed state.

Further, when the paper sheet 10 is transferred to the end position of the stock section 12 as shown in FIGS. 18 and 19, as shown in FIGS. 20 to 22, the front surface of the frontmost paper sheet 10 is shown. The upper portion is brought into contact with the rod 74 of the pusher 34 via the eccentric roller 75, and the front end arrival confirmation detection plate 29a is attached to the front contact plate front end detection sensor means 29.
Detected by. When the tip arrival confirmation detection plate 29a is detected, the front contact plate return prevention cylinder 46 is driven,
The rod 46a advances into the passage of the front contact plate means 28 and prevents the front contact plate means 28 from returning to the home position side by the spring force of the constant load plate spring 43. At the same time, the motor 56 is stopped and the movement of the backing plate 48 is also stopped. Then, in the system control unit 200, from the number of pulse signals obtained from the encoder 63 until this stop, the front plate unit 4
The amount (thickness) of the paper sheets arranged between 1a and the backing plate 48 is calculated. Subsequently, based on this calculation result, the thickness amount of the paper sheet 10 to be subdivided and supplied between the feed pins 106b of the transfer conveyor 85 on the side of the aligning and conveying unit 13 should be an appropriate amount between the feed pins 106b. Perform subdivision processing. In addition, immediately before the paper sheet 10 reaches the end position,
It is sent out from the belt 54 of the first transfer belt means 32 onto the belt 69 of the second transfer belt means 33. Belt 69
Is provided so as to gradually rise as it moves toward the orienting and transporting section 13, so that the transfer section 11 will be described with reference to FIG.
In the same manner as described in the description of the conveyance by the above, the lower ends of the paper sheets 10 are closely packed and aligned with each other when advancing along the belt 69. 20 to 22 show the state at this time.

Here, from the stock section 12 to the alignment transport section 1
The operation when the paper sheet 10 is divided into three and dividedly supplied will be described. First, based on the number of pulse signals obtained by the encoder 63, the paper arranged between the front plate portion 41a and the rear pushing plate 48 is detected. The bundle amount (thickness) T1 of the leaves 10 is calculated, and the optimum thickness amount Ts (usually 7
5 mm), T1 is divided by Ts, and when the number of cracks is N and the remaining number is α, the paper sheet 10
The number between the feed pins 106b for supplying is N, and the fraction α is further divided by N to be evenly divided and distributed among the other feed pins 106b. The reason is that, for example, when the number of fractions is small, such as “5”, and when a small amount of the paper sheet 10 is accommodated in one feed pin 106b and is sent, a large gap is formed between the feed pins 106b, and the paper sheet is formed. This is to prevent the class 10 from falling down and being sent to the paper sheet supply position 4 without being aligned. Therefore, in this way, by subdividing the paper sheets 10 among the feed pins 106 and distributing them, it is possible to make all the N sheets into proper amounts of paper sheets. And
When the thickness of the paper sheet 10 between the feed pins 106b is thus determined, the transfer speed of the transfer conveyor 85 and the supply speed of the paper sheet 10 from the stock unit 12 are synchronized,
A substantially equal amount of paper sheets 10 are sequentially stored between the N feed pins 106b. Here, the belt 69 of the second transfer belt means 33 for subdivision repeats forward and backward movements,
The paper sheets 10 are sent to the alignment transport unit 13 side while being separated from each other. That is, the second transfer belt means 33 repeats the operation of feeding back the paper sheets 10 by Ts + 1 (fractional distribution) and then retracting once, and again sending the paper sheets Ts + 1 minutes, so that the paper sheets 75 are stocked. The parts 12 can be sequentially transferred between the feed pins 106b of the aligning and conveying part 13. In addition, when a bundle of paper sheets is delivered to the aligning / conveying unit 13 side in small portions, the paper sheets 10
The pusher 34 rotating integrally with the eccentric roller 75 abuts on the front upper part of the sheet via the eccentric roller 75, and pushes the sheet 10 toward the conveyor 85 by the rotation of the pusher 34. As a result, the small pieces 10 are not only free fall, but also are smoothly dropped on the conveyer conveyor 85 with the force of the pusher 34 being applied to the feed pin 1.
It is stored between 06b. Since the eccentric roller 75 is brought into contact with the paper sheet 10 here, the magnitude of the force applied from the pusher 34 to the paper sheet 10 can be changed in accordance with the rotation of the eccentric roller 75. Therefore, the rotational force of the pusher 34 can be more effectively applied to the paper sheet 10.

Further, when all the paper sheets 10 on the belt 69 are sent out to the aligning and conveying section 13 side in this manner, the backing plate 48 reaches the end position, and the backing plate detector 49 causes the backing plate tip end. It is detected by the inspection arrival detection sensor means 30b. Then, the motor 68 of the second transfer belt means 33 is
Then, the driving of the motor 76 of the pusher 34 and the cylinder 21 of the lifting table vibration imparting means 20 are stopped, and the rod 46a of the front contact plate return prevention cylinder 46 is retracted to the outside of the passage of the front contact means 28 to act as a stopper. To release. At the same time, the extraction cylinder 42 is driven to raise and return the front contact plate 41 to the initial state. Subsequently, the motor 56 for the backing plate rotates in the opposite direction, the backing plate 48 moves toward the home position together with the slide plate 47, and the front contact plate 41 is pulled by the constant load plate spring 43 together with the slide plate 39. Move toward the home position at a constant speed. Then, when the backing plate 48 is moved and returned to the home position, the backing plate detector 49
Is detected by the backing plate return detection sensor means 30a,
The motor 56 stops. When the front contact plate 41 returns to the home position, the support column 40 comes into contact with the front contact plate return limit stopper 45 and stops at the home position. With this, the operation for one cycle of the transfer section 11 and the stock section 12 is completed, and the same operation is repeated thereafter.

On the other hand, when the paper sheet 10 is dropped from the stock section 12 between the feed pin 106b of the transfer conveyor 85 in the aligning and conveying section 13, the paper sheet 10 is first moved.
By contacting the roller 81a of the trailing edge reference aligning means 81, the paper sheet 10 is sent to the guide plate 86a side and the trailing edge is aligned. Subsequently, when passing through the floor side aligning means 82, vertical vibrations are applied to the paper sheet 10 to align the lower surfaces and align, and when passing through the second rear end reference aligning means 83 again. The paper sheet 10 is moved to the guide plate 86a side, the rear end is aligned, and further passed through the subdivision mechanism 84, whereby front and rear separation is performed. In this way, the paper sheet 10 that has been sent to the paper sheet separating and supplying position while being aligned and separated on the feeding-side rear end and the lower surface is sent out by the separation and supply belt 7. Further, the paper sheet 10 sent out by the separating and feeding belt 7 is detected by the paper sheet thickness sensor 8 arranged in the paper sheet conveying device 6 and the thickness of the paper sheet 10 is also the same. The length of the paper sheet 10 is detected by the paper sheet length measuring sensor 9 arranged in the paper conveying device 6.

When the length of the paper sheet 10 is detected by the paper sheet length measuring sensor 9, the type of the paper sheet (for example, a leaflet and a seal) is inferred from the length. Whether the type information and the thickness information obtained by the thickness measurement sensor 9 are valid is collated. In the system control unit 200, based on the thickness information from the thickness measurement sensor 9, the optimum speed for the transfer conveyor 85 by the aligning and conveying unit 13 of the paper sheet 10 to continuously feed the paper sheet toward the paper sheet feeding position 4. And calculate feedback control. Here, for example, a paper sheet 1 having a large thickness
When 0 is fed by the separating and feeding belt 7 and when the thin paper sheet 10 is fed, the succeeding paper sheet 10 and the contact surface of the separating and feeding belt 7 at the paper sheet feeding position 4. The gap between them is different. That is, among the paper sheets being transferred, there are paper sheets of any thickness, including thick ones and thin ones. Therefore, the transfer conveyor 8 that feeds the thickness of the fed paper sheets to the separating and supplying unit
Control of transfer speed of 5 is required. If the transfer conveyor 85 sends the paper sheet 10 at a constant speed without looking at the thickness information,
In order to prevent over-pressing, the feeding speed of the thinnest paper sheet 10 must be unified. Then, when a thick paper sheet is fed, a wasteful time is generated for feeding for several seconds thereafter. Therefore, in the present embodiment, in order to speed up the processing capacity of the machine, the thickness of the paper sheet immediately after being fed out is detected, and the thickness information is reflected in the control of the transfer conveyor 85. There is.

However, with this method, when the thickness measuring sensor 8 erroneously measures that a thin paper sheet is actually thick, it tries to fill a large gap that does not actually exist.
The transfer conveyor 85 is operated at a large speed to press the paper sheets against the separating / supplying section with a large force, which causes double feeding. Therefore, in the structure of the present embodiment, the type is inferred from the length of the sheet obtained from the sheet length measuring sensor 9 immediately after being fed out, and the validity of the type information and the thickness information is collated. If, for example, the thickness information of a postcard, which is always a thin paper sheet, has a large value, it is determined that it is actually thin, and the erroneously measured thickness information is invalidated, and the value set in advance in the postcard (for example, 0.2 mm) is set. Since the thickness information is reflected in the control of the rewriting transfer conveyor 85, the sorting ability of the machine can be improved.

Therefore, in the paper sheet supply unit 1 according to the present embodiment, the paper sheets 10 stored in the stock unit 12 in a bundle in a standing position are provided with the feed pins 106b at substantially equal intervals in the traveling direction. The second transfer belt means 33 for automatically transporting the bundle of paper sheets 10 immediately before the aligning and transporting section 13 having the transporting conveyor 85 provided therein.
And pushes it forward and backward to eject it in small portions, drop it by a predetermined thickness between the feed pins 106b, and feed it. At the time of ejection, the pusher rotating integrally with the eccentric roller 75 on the upper front surface of the paper sheet 10. Since 34 (rotating roller) abuts via the eccentric roller 75 and pushes the sheet 10 toward the conveyer conveyor 85 by the rotation of the pusher 34, the divided sheet 10 is divided.
Not only does it fall freely, but it is smoothly discharged with the force of the pusher 34 applied, dropped on the conveyor 85, and stored between the feed pins 106b.
Further, since the eccentric roller 75 is brought into contact with the paper sheet 10, it is possible to change the magnitude of the force applied from the pusher 34 to the paper sheet 10 as the eccentric roller 75 rotates. The rotating force of the pusher 34 can be more effectively applied to the leaves 10.

[0053]

As described above, according to the present invention, the operation of feeding the paper sheets bundled and stored in the stock unit from the stock unit to the alignment transport unit and the paper sheets to the alignment transport unit are carried out. The work can be automated by subdividing the supply into appropriate thicknesses. Furthermore, when ejecting the subdivided paper sheets from the stock section and dropping them on the transfer conveyor, the rotating rollers are brought into contact with the upper front part of the paper sheets,
The rotation of the roller assists the discharge of the paper sheets, so that the paper sheets can be smoothly discharged. Further, since the eccentric roller is rotated together with the roller to abut against the upper front surface of the paper sheet, it is possible to change the force for assisting the paper sheet to be discharged, so that the paper sheet can be discharged more smoothly. It is possible to provide a paper sheet transporting device having an excellent effect of being able to perform.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an overall configuration of a sheet conveying method and apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an overall perspective view showing an internal structure of a paper sheet supply unit according to the present embodiment together with a transfer carriage.

FIG. 3 is a side view showing the internal structure of the paper sheet supply unit according to the present embodiment together with a transfer carriage.

FIG. 4 is a side view showing an internal structure of the paper sheet supply unit according to the present embodiment together with a transfer carriage.

FIG. 5 is a side view showing an internal structure of the paper sheet supply unit according to the present embodiment together with a transfer carriage.

FIG. 6 is a side view showing the internal structure of the paper sheet supply unit according to the present embodiment together with a transfer carriage.

FIG. 7 is a perspective view showing the internal structure of the lifter according to the present embodiment.

FIG. 8 is a side view of the lifter according to the present embodiment.

FIG. 9 is a perspective view showing a main part structure on a lifting table according to the present embodiment.

FIG. 10 is a perspective view showing a main part structure on the lifting table according to the present embodiment.

FIG. 11 is a perspective view showing a main structure of a front contact plate means in the present embodiment.

FIG. 12 is a perspective view showing a main part structure of a backing plate means in the present embodiment.

FIG. 13 is a perspective view showing a main part structure on the lifting table according to the present embodiment.

FIG. 14 is a perspective view showing a main part structure on a lifting table according to the present embodiment.

FIG. 15 is an explanatory diagram of the principle of the alignment method according to the present embodiment.

FIG. 16 is a perspective view showing a main part structure on a lifting table according to the present embodiment.

FIG. 17 is a perspective view showing a main part structure on the lifting table according to the present embodiment.

FIG. 18 is a perspective view showing a main part structure on a lifting table according to the present embodiment.

FIG. 19 is a perspective view showing a main part structure on a lifting table according to the present embodiment.

FIG. 20 is a perspective view showing a main part structure on a lifting table according to the present embodiment.

FIG. 21 is a perspective view showing a main part structure on the lifting table according to the present embodiment.

FIG. 22 is a side view showing the main structure of the lifting table according to the present embodiment.

FIG. 23 is a top view of the alignment transport unit according to the present embodiment.

FIG. 24 is a perspective view of the alignment transport unit according to the present embodiment.

FIG. 25 is a perspective view showing the main structure of the orienting / conveying unit according to the present embodiment.

FIG. 26 is a perspective view showing the main structure of the orienting / conveying unit according to the present embodiment.

FIG. 27 is a perspective view showing the main structure of the orienting / conveying unit according to the present embodiment.

FIG. 28 is a side view showing the main structure of the orienting / conveying unit according to the present embodiment.

FIG. 29 is a perspective view showing the main structure of the orienting / conveying unit according to the present embodiment.

FIG. 30 is a perspective view showing the main structure of the orienting / conveying unit according to the present embodiment.

FIG. 31 is a side view showing the main structure of the orienting / conveying unit according to the present embodiment.

FIG. 32 is a circuit configuration block diagram of the entire paper sheet feeding unit in the present embodiment.

FIG. 33 is a perspective view showing a main part structure of a lifter according to the present embodiment.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 Paper supply department 2 Paper sheet sorting section 3 Transfer cart 4 Paper sheet feeding position 5 Paper sheet separation and supply device 6 Paper transporting device 7 Separate supply belt 9 Paper sheet length measuring sensor 10 Paper sheets 11 Transfer Section 12 Stock Department 13 Positioning and transport section 14 lifters 14A lifting table 15a Bottom plate part 15b Guide wall 17 Guide shaft 18 Ball screw for drive 19 Lifter motor 20 Vibration imparting means for lifting table 26 Backing plate means 27 Backing plate drive means 28 Front contact plate means 29 Front contact plate tip arrival detection sensor means 29a Detection plate for confirming arrival at the tip 30a Backing plate return detection sensor means 30b Rear-end push plate tip arrival detection sensor means 31 Front contact limit detection means 32 first transfer belt means 33 Second Transfer Belt Means 34 pusher 37 Front guide plate guide groove 38 Guide groove for rear contact plate 39 Slide plate 41 Front support plate 42 Drawing cylinder 43 Constant load leaf spring for tension 45 Front contact plate return limit stopper 46 Front contact plate return prevention cylinder 48 backing plate 63 encoder 63a rotating plate 63b slit 81 First rear end reference alignment means 81a roller 82 Floor Positioning Means 83 Second Rear End Reference Alignment Means 84 Subdivision mechanism 85 Transfer conveyor 89 Contact mechanism 105 chain belt 106 arm unit 107 cam means 108 cam means 200 System control unit 201 storage 202 Operation panel section 203 Switch button for lifter 204 Start button for stock section

─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of the front page (72) Yuichi Niiyama 4-3-1 Tsunashima-higashi, Kohoku-ku, Yokohama-shi, Kanagawa Matsushita Communication Industrial Co., Ltd. (72) Nobuo Shibata Tsunashima-east, Kohoku-ku, Yokohama-shi, Kanagawa 3-3-1 Matsushita Communication Industrial Co., Ltd. (56) Reference JP-A-50-7623 (JP, A) JP-A-2-28429 (JP, A) (58) Fields investigated (Int.Cl. ⁷⁾ , DB name) B65H 33/18 B65H 1/02

Claims (2)

(57) [Claims] 1. A transfer conveyor having a plurality of sheets bundled in a standing position in a stock position and provided with feed pins for conveying the sheets at substantially equal intervals in the traveling direction. Automatically conveys to the aligning and conveying section, and immediately before the aligning and conveying section, the bundle of paper sheets is placed on a belt for subdividing and is advanced and retracted at an arbitrarily set cycle and amplitude and ejected while subdividing. The sheet is fed while being dropped by a predetermined thickness between the feed pins, and the eccentric roller that is rotating is brought into contact with the upper portion of the front surface of the sheet at the time of the sheet ejection so that the sheet is guided in the sheet ejection direction. A method for conveying paper sheets, which is characterized in that 2. A stock unit for storing paper sheets in a standing position in a bundle and feed pins for transporting the paper sheets in the stock unit are provided at substantially equal intervals in the traveling direction. Automatically conveys to the aligning / conveying unit having the transfer conveyor, and immediately before the aligning / conveying unit, the bundle of paper sheets is divided and discharged while being subdivided to have a predetermined thickness between the feed pins. A divisional feeding means for dropping and feeding the paper sheets and a roller portion that rotates in contact with the upper part of the front surface of the paper sheets at the ejection position of the subdivided paper sheets to guide the paper sheets in the ejection direction are provided. /> provided, on the circumferential surface of the roller portion, to abut the upper front of the paper sheet
A sheet conveying apparatus characterized by having an eccentric roller
Place