JP4004844B2 - Automatic document feeder - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to an automatic document feeder in an image forming apparatus such as a copying machine or a facsimile.
[0002]
[Prior art]
2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, in an image forming apparatus such as a copying machine or a facsimile, there are various types of document feeders that convey a scanned document. For example, there is a separation belt in which a set original is called by a calling roller or the like, and is arranged on the downstream side in the conveyance direction, and a device that separates and conveys the original by a reverse roller.
[0003]
This is a system in which an original document separated into one sheet is conveyed onto a contact glass and read by scanning the main body scanner, and a loss occurs in the time for the scanner carriage to return to the reading start position. For this reason, the CPM (number of copies to be ejected per minute) is lower than when only the print function is used, and it is provided outside the main unit to eject documents on the glass in order of pages. There is a problem in that it is not possible to save space because the document must be discharged to the outer tray.
[0004]
Therefore, a method (sheet through method) is considered in which the scanner carriage is fixed and the document is moved thereon. In this method, the distance between the read originals is reduced to the maximum, so that the speed equivalent to that of the print function can be secured, and the discharged originals can be stacked on a discharge tray provided below the original table. In addition, it is not necessary to provide a separate tray outside, and space can be saved.
[0005]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
However, since the paper discharge tray is provided below the original table, there is a problem that it is difficult to take out the original stacked on the paper discharge tray. In addition, if an attempt is made to satisfy the alignment accuracy of the discharged document, the apparatus becomes large. In order to improve the alignment accuracy, it is most efficient to improve the alignment accuracy by inclining the discharge tray and discharging it while returning it to the wall on the discharge port side of the document, In this case, a space for inserting and removing the hand is required, and the inclination angle of the paper discharge tray is limited.
[0006]
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to provide an automatic document feeder that has good alignment accuracy and can be miniaturized by changing the inclination angle of a paper discharge tray.
[0007]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
The invention according to claim 1 is disposed below the document storage unit, a document storage unit that stores a plurality of documents, a transport unit that transports the document stored in the document storage unit to a predetermined image reading position, and In an automatic document feeder provided with a document discharge unit that discharges a document after image reading, the document discharge unit includes a receiving unit that contacts the end of the discharged document and aligns the ends of the document. A discharge tray provided, a first inclination angle change tray provided to the discharge tray so that an inclination angle can be changed, and a position spaced from the first inclination angle change tray with respect to the receiving portion, And a second inclination angle changing tray provided on the paper discharge tray so that the inclination angle can be changed, and the document discharge section further includes a counting means for counting the number of discharged documents. The second tilt angle changing tray is configured to move the first tilt angle. Receiving the document protruding from the corner change tray, an automatic document feeder, characterized in that to change the inclination angle of the first inclined angle change trays and a second tilt angle changing trays in accordance with the count value of said counting means .
[0008]
According to the first aspect of the present invention, the document separated from the plurality of document bundles stored in the document storage unit is transported to the image reading position by the transport unit, and image formation is performed. The document on which image formation has been completed is transported and discharged to a document discharge unit disposed below the document storage means.
[0009]
The document discharged to the discharge tray of the document discharge unit slides down to the receiving portion (end fence) along the slopes of the first inclination angle changing tray and the second inclination angle changing tray, and the leading edge of the document is dropped. Aligned. Since the first inclination angle changing tray and the second inclination angle changing tray can be freely set in inclination angle, it is possible to significantly improve the stackability of the discharged document after reading. The first inclination angle change trays and a second tilt angle changing tray, depending on the number of sheets or the size of the original of the stacked document to the paper discharge tray, the inclination angle can be changed, the paper discharge Optimal alignment accuracy according to the state of the original can be obtained. That is, since the inclination angles of the first inclination angle changing tray and the second inclination angle changing tray can be changed according to the number of discharged documents, the inclinations of the first inclination angle changing tray and the second inclination angle changing tray are inclined. The angle does not become too large, and the discharged document cannot climb up the inclination of the tray so that a stack failure does not occur. In addition, it is not necessary to provide a separate paper discharge tray outside the apparatus, space saving can be achieved, and the apparatus can be miniaturized. In addition, by providing the second inclination angle change tray in the paper discharge direction of the paper discharge tray, it is possible to reliably hold the document protruding from the first inclination angle change tray even in the case of a large-size document.
[0010]
According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the automatic document feeder according to the first aspect of the present invention, the originals stacked on the first inclination angle change tray and the second inclination angle change tray are placed on the original discharge portion. A detection means for detecting the uppermost surface is provided, and each time a document is detected by the detection means, the inclination angles of the first inclination angle change tray and the second inclination angle change tray become gentle by a predetermined amount. And
[0011]
The invention described in claim 2 has the same effect as that of the invention described in claim 1, and detects the uppermost surface of the document loaded on the first inclination angle changing tray and the second inclination angle changing tray. Since the control according to the detection can be performed, the measurement can be directly performed without the control by the count number when the thicknesses of the originals are different, so that more accurate control can be performed.
[0012]
According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the automatic document feeder according to the first or second aspect, the first inclination angle changing tray and the second inclination angle changing tray detect whether or not they are at predetermined positions. Position detecting means is provided, and when the position detecting means detects that the first inclination angle changing tray and the second inclination angle changing tray are at predetermined positions, driving of the conveying means is stopped .
[0013]
The invention described in claim 3 has the same effect as that of the invention described in claim 1 or 2, and the first inclination angle change tray and the second inclination angle change tray are, for example, predetermined when the document is passed. When returning to the home position as the position, the driving of the conveying means is stopped, so that the stacking property can be prevented from being impaired.
[0022]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.
[0023]
1A and 1B are diagrams showing the movable plate of the first paper discharge tray in FIG. 2, wherein FIG. 1A is a left side view and FIG. 1B is a front sectional view of FIG. 2 is a view showing a state where the first discharge tray is positioned at the lowermost position, FIG. 3 is a view showing a state where the first discharge tray is raised, and FIG. 4 is a view showing the end of the first discharge tray. FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a state in which a transmissive sensor is provided, FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a state in which a filler is provided in a document discharge section, FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a second embodiment, and FIG. FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing the operation of FIG. 9, and FIG. 9 is a sectional view schematically showing the whole automatic document feeder of the present invention.
[0024]
The automatic document feeder 200 includes a document setting unit A for setting a document bundle P, a separation sheet feeding unit B for separating and feeding documents one by one from the set document bundle P, and a fed document. The registration unit C that pulls out and conveys the document after alignment, the turn unit D that turns the conveyed document and conveys the document surface toward the reading side (downward), and the surface of the document A reading conveyance unit E for reading an image by a document reading device (not shown) located below the reading glass, a first switchback unit F for inverting the front and back of the document after reading, and a first switch An intermediate transport unit G for returning the document switched back by the back unit F back to the registration unit C, and a second switchback for waiting the temporary document after reading the back side of the document from the turn unit D by the reading transport unit E again. H, 2 Reverse paper discharge tray I for discharging the document from the switchback H to the outside of the apparatus, stack unit J for stacking and holding the document after reading, driving units 101 to 107 for driving these conveying operations, and a series of operations And a controller 100 for controlling the above.
[0025]
The document setting section A includes a document table 2 on which a document bundle P is set and a movable document table 3, and the width direction of the set document bundle P is regulated from both sides by side guides. The document set is detected by the document set filler 4 and the document set sensor 5, and a detection signal is transmitted to the control unit. On the table surface of the document table 2, document length detection sensors 30 and 31 for detecting the length of the document in the conveyance direction are provided.
[0026]
In the present embodiment, the document length detection sensors 30 and 31 are reflective sensors. However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, an actuator type sensor that can detect even one document is used. Also good. Further, it is desirable that the document length detection sensors 30 and 31 are arranged so that at least whether the document size is vertical or horizontal can be determined.
[0027]
The movable document table 3 can be moved up and down in the ab direction shown in the figure by a bottom plate raising motor 105 (not shown). When the document set filler 4 and the document set sensor 5 detect that the document has been set, the bottom plate raising motor 105 is driven to move the movable document table 3 upward about the fulcrum, and the uppermost surface of the document bundle P is moved. The pickup roller 7 is contacted.
[0028]
Further, the pickup roller 7 is moved in the cd direction shown in the figure by a pickup motor 101 (not shown), and moves with the vertical movement of the movable document table 3. In the vicinity of the pickup roller 7, a rising detection sensor 8 capable of detecting the vertical position of the movable document table 3 is provided.
[0029]
When the print key is pressed, a document feed signal is transmitted to the ADF controller 100, and the pickup roller 7 picks up the document on the document table 2 by rotating the roller by the forward rotation of the sheet feed motor 102.
[0030]
The paper feeding belt 9 is driven to rotate in the direction opposite to the paper feeding direction by the forward rotation of the paper feeding motor 102, and separates the uppermost original from the original bundle P and the other originals and only the uppermost original. Is configured to feed. The reverse roller 10 is in contact with the paper feed belt 9 at a predetermined pressure. When in direct contact with the paper feed belt 9 or in contact with one original, the reverse roller 10 rotates in the clockwise direction as the paper feed belt 9 rotates, and the extra roller 10 rotates. It works to push back the original and prevents double feeding.
[0031]
The original is separated by the reverse roller 10 and further conveyed by the paper feed belt 9, passes through the abutting sensor 11, and is conveyed to the pull-out roller 12. The leading edge of the document is detected by the bump sensor 11 and is conveyed from the bump sensor 11 by a predetermined distance. Then, the paper feed motor 102 stops while the leading edge of the document is pressed against the pull-out roller 12 with a predetermined amount of bending, and the drive of the paper feed belt 9 stops. The leading edge of the document enters the nip portion of the pull-out roller 12, and the leading edge is aligned (skew correction).
[0032]
The pull-out roller 12 has a skew correction function as described above, and conveys the original to the turn roller 14 after separation, and is driven by the reverse rotation of the paper feed motor 102. At this time, the pull-out roller 12 and the turn roller 14 are driven, but the pickup roller 7 and the paper feed belt 9 are stopped.
[0033]
A document width sensor 13 is provided between the pull-out roller 12 and the turn roller 14, and detects the size in the width direction orthogonal to the document transport direction. When the document is conveyed from the registration unit C to the turn unit D by driving the pull-out roller 12 and the turn roller 14, the document conveyance speed at the registration unit C is set to be higher than the conveyance speed at the reading conveyance unit E. Therefore, the processing time is shortened. When the leading edge of the document is detected by the reading entrance sensor 15, the document feeding speed starts to be the same as the reading feeding speed, and at the same time, the reading motor 103 is driven to drive the reading inlet roller 16, the reading roller 19, And the reading exit roller 21 is driven.
[0034]
In the case of single-sided document reading, the lower reversing switching claw 23 and the double-sided switching claw 41 are at positions indicated by solid lines in the drawing, and the document that has passed through the reading conveyance unit E is conveyed to the paper discharge tray J. At this time, when the leading edge of the document is detected by the paper discharge sensor 22, the paper discharge motor 104 is driven to rotate forward to rotate the paper discharge roller 28 counterclockwise. Further, by detecting the trailing edge of the document by the paper discharge sensor 22 and decelerating the paper discharge motor 104 immediately before the document comes out of the nip portion of the paper discharge roller 28, the document suddenly jumps out to the document paper discharge unit 29. I am trying not to.
[0035]
Next, the first paper discharge tray 51 provided in the document discharge unit 29, which is a feature of the present embodiment, will be described. The first discharge tray 51 constituting the first tilt angle changing tray of the present invention is provided with a rotating shaft 61 and a movable plate 53 as the center of rotation on the lower end side. When the movable plate 53 is raised or lowered, the movable plate 53 rotates in the vertical direction with the rotation shaft 61 as a fulcrum. The movable plate 53 is provided with a drive roller 55 and a support shaft 59 at a position sandwiching the upper and lower sides on the lower end side, and an L-shape screwed to the center of the drive roller 55 at a position in contact with the drive roller 55. A member 57 is provided. The driving roller 55 is rotated by driving of the discharge tray raising motor 108.
[0036]
When a drive source (stepping motor) (not shown) is driven in the normal direction, the drive roller 55 is rotated in the direction of the arrow, and the vertical portion of the L-shaped member 57 is pressed in the left direction in the figure. Then, when the horizontal portion of the L-shaped member 57 pushes the movable plate 53 downward, the movable plate 53 rotates upward with the support shaft 59 as a fulcrum, thereby raising the first paper discharge tray 51. . On the contrary, when the drive source is driven in the reverse direction, the drive roller 55 is rotated in the direction opposite to the arrow direction, and the movable plate 53 is rotated downward to lower the first paper discharge tray 51.
[0037]
The vertical movement of the first paper discharge tray 51 uses the number of steps of the stepping motor. That is, when the motor is moved one step by the reduction ratio of the gear connected to the motor, the amount of movement of the first paper discharge tray 51 can be calculated. For example, if the feed amount per pulse is 0.5 mm, the first discharge tray 51 is raised by about 100 mm by inputting 200 pulses to the motor.
[0038]
The original discharged to the first paper discharge tray 51 slides down on the tray due to the inclined surface, and a receiver constituting a part of the paper discharge tray 75 continuing from right below the paper discharge roller 28 is omitted. It will be stacked on the part (end fence ) . When all the document bundles P set on the document table 2 are read and the discharge is completed, the first discharge tray 51 is lowered so that the user can easily take out the document. Note that a solenoid may be used as a drive source for the vertical movement of the first paper discharge tray 51.
[0039]
As shown in FIG. 4, the transmission sensor 63 on the end portion of the first paper discharge tray 51 is provided, when the transmissive sensor 63 by the first sheet discharge tray 51 is blocked, the home position or first The paper discharge tray 51 is configured to descend to the lowest point. During standbys other than the copying operation, the first paper discharge tray 51 stands by at this home position.
[0040]
Further, a counting unit 109 for counting the number of discharged document sheets is provided in the apparatus. When a predetermined number of documents are discharged by the counting unit 109, the first discharge tray 51 is set. I try to lower it. Specifically, when the copy operation starts, the first paper discharge tray 51 rises to a preset uppermost position. Then, the originals are stacked, the number of discharged sheets is counted, and the stepping motor is controlled so that the first discharge tray 51 is lowered by 2 mm every time, for example, 10 sheets are discharged.
[0041]
In this way, by controlling the inclination angle of the first discharge tray 51 according to the number of discharged sheets, even when the number of discharged documents increases, it is possible to prevent the document edge from being displaced due to the weight of the document. Stable stackability can be obtained.
[0042]
In the apparatus, a filler member 65 which is a paper discharge tray paper surface detection sensor hanging from the switchback path for reversing the document toward the first paper discharge tray 51 is provided. By providing the filler member 65, the inclination angle of the first paper discharge tray 51 is kept constant, and a stable stacking property can be obtained. Specifically, the upper end portion of the filler member 65 has a fan shape, and the uppermost surface of the first paper discharge tray 51 can be detected by detecting the upper end portion with two transmissive sensors (not shown). It has become.
[0043]
That is, when the filler member 65 and the first paper discharge tray 51 are not in contact with each other, the transmission type sensor is in a detection state. Here, once the rising point is detected, the first discharge tray 51 is lowered to the sensor non-detection point, whereby the inclination angle of the first discharge tray 51 can be made constant at all times.
[0044]
Also, if the document or constant first discharge tray 51 are stacked is no problem in paper feeding, the driving source for vertically moving the first paper discharge tray 51 is not endure weight There is a risk that it will not drive properly. Therefore, the controller 100 counts the number of discharged documents, and when the number exceeds 100, for example, the feeding of the next document is stopped.
[0045]
Further, although the thickness of the original document varies depending on the type of paper, when the thickness is larger than the normal thickness, there is a possibility that the drive source cannot endure with a number smaller than the above number. Therefore, the copy operation is controlled by detecting the filler member 65 described above as another detection method. That is, when the filler member 65 detects the uppermost surface of the document, that is, when it is detected that the first paper discharge tray 51 is lowered to the lower limit, the paper feeding is stopped.
[0046]
Next, the operation of the first paper discharge tray 51 will be described based on the flowchart of FIG. When a document is placed on the document table 2 in step S1 and paper feeding is started, the first paper discharge tray 51 is raised to a predetermined position with the rotation shaft 61 as a fulcrum in step S2. In step S <b> 3, the originals that have been read are sequentially discharged onto the paper discharge tray 75 of the document discharge unit 29. Then, the document slides down along the slope of the first discharge tray 51 abuts against the end fence of the paper discharge tray 75 end of the document discharge portion 29 the ends are aligned with. The number of document sheets provided in the apparatus and discharged by the counting means 109 is counted. When a predetermined number or more of documents are discharged in step S4, the first discharge tray 51 is lowered to a lowered position set in advance according to the number of sheets. In step S7, when it is detected by the transmission type sensor 63 that the first paper discharge tray 51 is lowered to the lowest position and returned to the home position, the step is ended. If the transmission sensor 63 determines in step S7 that the first paper discharge tray 51 has not been lowered to the lowest position, it is determined in step S8 whether or not the job has been completed. If it is determined that the job is finished, the first paper discharge tray 51 returns to the home position as it is, and the step is finished. If it is determined in step S8 that the job has not ended, the process returns to step S3 and the above operation is repeated again.
[0047]
In the second embodiment, a second paper discharge tray (auxiliary tray) 71 is provided separately from the first paper discharge tray 51 in the paper discharge direction of the document discharge unit 29. The second discharge tray 71 constituting the second tilt angle changing tray of the present invention has the same configuration as the first discharge tray 51. By providing the auxiliary tray in the paper discharge direction of the paper discharge tray, it is possible to securely hold the original even in the case of a large-size original. Further, since the operation of the second paper discharge tray 71 can be driven independently of the paper discharge tray, good stackability can be maintained according to the size of the document. A filler member for detecting the upper surface position of the document may be provided at the upper position of the second paper discharge tray 71.
[0048]
The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and various modifications can be made without departing from the scope of the invention. For example, the above-described first paper discharge tray 51 temporarily raises the discharged original document on a slope, and then slides down the slope to place the end of the document at a receiving portion that constitutes a part of the paper discharge tray 75. However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the discharged document may be discharged obliquely downward along the discharge direction. In this case, a receiving portion is provided at the leading end of the paper discharge tray so that the ends of the originals are aligned.
[0049]
【The invention's effect】
According to the first aspect of the present invention, the document discharged to the discharge tray of the document discharge section is a receiving portion (end fence) along the slopes of the first inclination angle change tray and the second inclination angle change tray. ) And the leading edge of the document is aligned. Since the first inclination angle changing tray and the second inclination angle changing tray can be freely set in inclination angle, it is possible to significantly improve the stackability of the discharged document after reading. The first inclination angle change trays and a second tilt angle changing tray, depending on the number of sheets or the size of the original of the stacked document to the paper discharge tray, the inclination angle can be changed, the paper discharge Optimal alignment accuracy according to the state of the original can be obtained. That is, since the inclination angles of the first inclination angle changing tray and the second inclination angle changing tray can be changed according to the number of discharged documents, the inclinations of the first inclination angle changing tray and the second inclination angle changing tray are inclined. The angle does not become too large, and the discharged document cannot climb up the inclination of the tray so that a stack failure does not occur. In addition, it is not necessary to provide a separate paper discharge tray outside the apparatus, space saving can be achieved, and the apparatus can be miniaturized. In addition, by providing the second inclination angle change tray in the paper discharge direction of the paper discharge tray, it is possible to reliably hold the document protruding from the first inclination angle change tray even in the case of a large-size document.
[0050]
According to the second aspect of the present invention, the same effect as the first aspect of the invention can be obtained, and the uppermost surface of the document loaded on the first inclination angle changing tray and the second inclination angle changing tray can be detected. Since the control according to the detection can be performed, the measurement can be directly performed without the control by the count number when the thicknesses of the originals are different, so that more accurate control can be performed.
[0051]
In the invention described in claim 3, the same effect as that of the invention described in claim 1 or 2 is obtained, and the first inclination angle changing tray and the second inclination angle changing tray are, for example, predetermined when the document is passed. When returning to the home position as the position, the driving of the conveying means is stopped, so that the stacking property can be prevented from being impaired.
[Brief description of the drawings]
1A and 1B are diagrams showing a movable plate of a first paper discharge tray in FIG. 2, wherein FIG. 1A is a left side view, and FIG. 1B is a front sectional view of FIG.
FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a state where a first paper discharge tray is positioned at the lowermost part.
FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a state where a first paper discharge tray is raised.
FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating a state in which a transmissive sensor is provided at an end portion of a first paper discharge tray.
FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating a state in which a filler is provided in a document discharge unit.
FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a second embodiment.
FIG. 7 is a control block diagram of the automatic document feeder according to the present invention.
FIG. 8 is a flowchart illustrating the operation of FIG. 9;
FIG. 9 is a sectional view schematically showing the entire automatic document feeder of the present invention.
[Explanation of symbols]
29 Document discharge unit 51 First discharge tray (first tilt angle changing tray)
63 Transmission type sensor (position detection means)
65 Filler member (detection means)
71 Second discharge tray / auxiliary tray (second tilt angle changing tray)
75 Paper discharge tray 200 Automatic document feeder A Document set unit (document storage means)

Claims (3)

Document storage means for storing a plurality of documents;
Conveying means for conveying the document stored in the document storing means to a predetermined image reading position;
In an automatic document feeder provided with a document discharge section that is disposed below the document storage means and discharges a document after image reading,
A paper discharge tray having a receiving portion that contacts the edge of the discharged document and aligns the edge of the document;
A first inclination angle changing tray provided on the discharge tray so that the inclination angle can be changed;
A second inclination angle changing tray provided at a position spaced from the first inclination angle changing tray with respect to the receiving portion, and the inclination angle of the discharge tray being changeable ;
The document discharge section further includes a counting unit that counts the number of discharged documents.
The second inclination angle changing tray receives a document protruding from the first inclination angle changing tray ,
An automatic document feeder, wherein the inclination angle of the first inclination angle changing tray and the second inclination angle changing tray is changed according to the count value of the counting means . The document discharge unit includes detection means for detecting the uppermost surface of the documents stacked on the first inclination angle change tray and the second inclination angle change tray.
Automatic document according to claim 1, wherein each time to detect the document by detecting means, the inclination angle of the first inclined angle change trays and a second tilt angle changing tray, characterized in that the less steep by a predetermined amount Conveying device. A position detecting means for detecting whether or not the first tilt angle changing tray and the second tilt angle changing tray are at a predetermined position;
When the first inclination angle changes tray and a second tilt angle changing tray by said position detecting means detects that the predetermined position, according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that stops the driving of the conveying means Automatic document feeder.

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