JP4135595B2 - Post-processing apparatus and image forming apparatus - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a post-processing apparatus having a stacking unit for stacking sheets of images formed and folded in half, and an image forming apparatus including the post-processing apparatus.

  A post-processing apparatus having a bookbinding function that stacks image-formed paper on an appropriate member, drives a metal needle into the stacked paper with staples composed of a needle hitting means and a needle receiving means, and binds the crease portion. Exists.

  In the post-processing apparatus having such a bookbinding function, the finishing of the bundle of sheets (product) after bookbinding (the misalignment of the crease position, the bulge of the crease part, the misalignment of the image position between pages, etc.), and Improvements in bookbinding productivity have been demanded, and the following methods have been proposed as methods for solving these problems.

In other words, a paper support member that accumulates sheets folded in the center (called a middle fold) in a closed state is provided, and the staple receiving means is installed at the front end of the paper support member so that the stapling process can be performed on the paper bundle. This is a method performed in a closed state. According to this method, since the stapling process can be performed with the sheet bundle closed, it is not necessary to perform manual folding after the stapling process, and productivity can be improved. Also, there is a type of punching a file after stapling, which can be performed without shifting the hole position, which is convenient for filing (see, for example, Patent Document 1).
JP 2001-151406 A (page 4-6, FIG. 5)

  However, the method described in Patent Document 1 does not always stack the folded sheets at the same position when stacking the folded sheets on the sheet support member.

  Further, when the sheets are stacked, a gap is generated between the sheets, causing the sheets to shift when the bundle of sheets is lifted upward for stapling, or to cause slippage between the sheets during stapling.

  As described above, when the stapling process is performed by the method described in Patent Document 1, the folds may swell or the image position between pages may be shifted, which may impair the quality of the product.

  Furthermore, when the number of stapled sheets increases, the stapling process becomes difficult due to the influence of the gap between the sheets, and the staples may buckle without penetrating the sheets.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above-described problems. With a simple configuration, when stacking folded sheets, the folds between the sheets are not displaced and the gaps between the sheets are eliminated. Another object of the present invention is to provide a post-processing apparatus having a stacking means for improving the close contact state and an image forming apparatus having the post-processing apparatus.

The object of the present invention can be achieved by the following constitution.
1. Middle folding means for creasing the image-formed paper;
In the post-processing apparatus and a stacking means having a fold support member having an inverted V-shape to the mounting supports valley side of the paper folds attached product,
In a position facing the folding line support member, a pressing means having a pressing member for pressing the sheets stacked on each of stacked sheets to said stacking means,
In the state where the paper stacked on the stacking means is pressed by the pressing means, the needle hitting means for hitting a staple needle on the fold portion of the paper;
Receiving means for receiving the staple needle,
The staple receiving means, below the extension of the top ridge of said stacking means, and the post-processing apparatus according to claim Rukoto provided near the pressing means.
2. The pressing member, the post-processing apparatus according to 1 characterized as having an inverted V-shape facing the top of the inverted V-shape of the fold support member.
3. When the sheets stacked on said stacking means reaches a predetermined number, the staple receiving means is moved in the direction of the punching needle means, to said hitting said staple against the loaded the paper that 1 or post-processing apparatus according to 2.
4). The stacking means includes a crease support member that supports a fold portion of the stacked sheets, and a margin support member that supports the margin of the stacked sheets,
The post-processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the fold support member is formed integrally with the needle receiving means .
5. An image forming apparatus comprising the post-processing device according to any one of items 1 to 4 .

According to the present invention, with a simple configuration, when stacking folded sheets, the stacked sheets are pressed each time they are stacked, so that even when a plurality of sheets are stacked each time, In addition, it is possible to correct the misalignment of the folds and reduce the gap between the sheets to improve the close contact state. It is possible to provide a post-processing apparatus and an image forming apparatus that can reduce the misalignment between the sheets even when the number of sheets increases.
In addition, by providing the needle receiving means in the vicinity of the pressing means, when stapling is performed, the deviation between the sheets is suppressed, the close contact state between the sheets is maintained, and the staple needle is allowed to penetrate without buckling. I can do it.
Furthermore, stapling is performed while pressing the stacked paper with the pressing means, so that the occurrence of crease misalignment between the papers can be suppressed, and a paper bundle with less bulging of the folds can be obtained and the close contact state between the papers can be maintained. However, even if the number of sheets increases, the staple processing can be reliably performed without buckling of the staple needle.

  Hereinafter, an example of a post-processing apparatus and an image forming apparatus including the post-processing apparatus according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 1 is an overall configuration diagram of an image forming apparatus including a post-processing apparatus.

  Here, the image forming apparatus provided with the post-processing device is a configuration with a built-in post-processing device or an externally integrated configuration as shown in the figure and can be controlled from the image forming device. A forming device.

  Note that the post-processing apparatus can be configured to be used alone.

  A is an image forming apparatus, DF is an automatic document feeder, LT is a large capacity feeder, and B is a post-processing apparatus.

The image forming apparatus A includes an image reading unit (image input device) 1, an image processing unit 2,
Image writing unit 3, image forming unit 4, paper feed cassettes 5A, 5B, 5C, manual paper feed tray 5D, first paper feed units 6A, 6B, 6C, 6D, second paper feed unit 6F, fixing device 7, discharge A paper unit 8 and an automatic double-sided copy paper feeding unit (ADU) 8B are provided.

  An automatic document feeder DF is mounted on the upper part of the image forming apparatus A.

  A post-processing apparatus B is integrally connected to the left side of the image forming apparatus A shown in the drawing on the paper discharge unit 8 side.

  A document d placed on the document table of the automatic document feeder DF is conveyed in the direction of the arrow, and an image on one or both sides of the document is read by the optical system of the image reading unit 1 and read by the image sensor CCD.

  The analog signal photoelectrically converted by the image sensor CCD is subjected to analog processing, A / D conversion, shading correction, image compression processing, and the like in the image processing unit 2 and then sent to the image writing unit 3 as an image information signal. .

  The image forming unit 4 is a part where an image is formed using an electrophotographic process, and processing such as charging, exposure, development, transfer, separation, and cleaning is performed on the photosensitive drum 4A. In the exposure processing step, output light of a semiconductor laser (not shown) based on the image information signal is applied to the photosensitive drum 4A to form an electrostatic latent image. Further, in the developing process, a toner image corresponding to the electrostatic latent image is formed.

  When any one of the sheet feeding cassettes 5A to 5C, the manual sheet feeding tray 5D, the large capacity sheet feeding device LT, and the first sheet feeding units 6A to 6E corresponding thereto is selected, the sheet S is transferred to the transfer unit 4B. And the toner image on the photosensitive drum 4A is transferred.

  The sheet S carrying the toner image is fixed by the fixing device 7 and sent from the paper discharge unit 8 to the post-processing device B.

  In the case of double-sided image formation, the sheet S having an image formed on one side is sent to the automatic double-sided copy paper feeding unit 8B by the conveyance path switching plate 8A, and image formation and fixing are performed on the opposite side in the image forming unit 4. It is discharged from the crack discharge unit 8 and sent to the post-processing apparatus B.

  Next, the post-processing apparatus will be described with reference to FIGS.

  2 is a schematic front view of the post-processing apparatus B, and FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram showing a part of the flow of the paper S in the post-processing apparatus.

  In FIG. 2, arrows X, Y, and Z are coordinate axes for expressing directions, X is a horizontal direction, Y is a vertical direction, and Z is a direction perpendicular to the paper surface of FIG. Instead of the direction perpendicular to the paper surface of FIG. 2, the directions are the X direction, the Y direction, and the Z direction, respectively.

  Also, the positive direction of each coordinate is represented by the X direction (right to left direction), the Y direction (down to top direction), and the Z direction (the direction from the back of the page in FIG. 2), and the negative direction is reversed. The X direction, the reverse Y direction, and the reverse Z direction are used.

  First, the outline of the post-processing apparatus B will be described.

  The sheet S on which the image has been formed by the image forming apparatus is subjected to a conveyance path R1 that is discharged as it is without being processed by the conveyance path switching unit G1 at the entrance portion 201 of the post-processing apparatus B. It is conveyed to one of the conveyance paths R2.

  A plurality of sheets S sent to the conveyance path R <b> 2 for performing the folding process and the stapling process are folded in the middle by the folding unit 230, and sent to the sheet binding apparatus 300 by the folding sheet conveying unit 250. It is loaded on the loading means 310 having a V shape.

  Each time the stacked sheets S are stacked, the sheet S is pressed by the pressing unit 330 according to the present invention, and after the number of stacked sheets reaches a predetermined number, the staple driving unit 350 and the staple receiving unit 370 perform the stapling process. Is taken out by the support means 420 of the take-out device 400 and discharged.

  Next, details of the post-processing apparatus B will be described along the flow of the paper S.

  The sheet S discharged from the image forming apparatus A and introduced into the entrance 201 of the post-processing apparatus B is nipped by the entrance roller 202 and is either the transport path R1 above the transport path switching means G1 or the transport path R2 below. It is conveyed to.

  The sheet S branched to the conveyance path R1 by the action of the conveyance path switching means G1 is nipped and conveyed by the conveyance rollers 203 to 207, and either the conveyance path R3 above the conveyance path switching means G2 or the conveyance path R4 below. It is conveyed to the crab

  The sheet S conveyed to the upper conveyance path R3 is discharged by the discharge roller 208 and discharged to a sub discharge tray (top tray) 209 disposed on the upper portion of the post-processing apparatus B.

  The sheet S conveyed to the lower conveyance path R4 is nipped and conveyed by the conveyance rollers 210 to 213, and is sent to another post-processing device or the like by the paper discharge roller 214.

  Next, the sheet conveyed to the conveyance path R2 will be described.

  At the entrance 201, the sheet S conveyed to the conveyance path R2 by the action of the conveyance path switching means G1 is conveyed in the reverse Y direction, and is temporarily stopped and stored at a predetermined position (position P1 shown in the drawing).

  At the position P1, a small number of sheets S are stacked and stored.

  Although the number of stored sheets is three in the present embodiment, the number of stored sheets is not limited to this and can be set as appropriate. Further, the number of stored sheets may be one.

  The three sheets S accommodated at the position P1 are conveyed to the predetermined position P2 via the conveyance path R5 in a superimposed state. Specifically, after being transported in the Z direction by transport rollers 215 and 216, a guide plate (not shown), the transport direction is changed in the X direction, and the transport is temporarily stopped at position P2.

  In the following description, unless otherwise specified, the sheet S is simply referred to as the sheet S instead of the three sheets (or a plurality of sheets).

  The paper S temporarily stopped at the position P2 is conveyed to the middle folding means 230 via the conveyance path R6. Specifically, after being transported in the Y direction by transport rollers 217, 218, guide plates, etc. at a predetermined timing, the transport direction is changed to the reverse Z direction.

  Thereafter, the sheet S whose transport direction has been changed to the reverse Z direction is sent to the center folding means 230 by the transport alignment belt 220.

  Next, the center folding means 230 will be described with reference to FIG.

  In the present embodiment, the long side direction of the paper S is configured to coincide with the conveyance direction of the conveyance alignment belt 220.

  FIG. 3 is a right side view of the post-processing apparatus B of FIG.

  3, arrows X, Y, and Z are the same coordinate axes as in FIG. 2, the X direction is from the front side of the paper surface of FIG. 3, the Y direction is from bottom to top, and the Z direction is from right to left. .

  The middle folding means 230 includes an alignment member 232, middle folding rollers 234 and 235, a middle folding knife 236, and the like.

  The alignment plate 232 is disposed at a position half the length of the long side direction of the sheet S from the contact point between the folding rollers 234 and 235.

  The sheet S deflected in the reverse Z direction is pushed by an alignment claw 221 provided on the conveyance alignment belt 220, and the leading end of the sheet S abuts on the alignment member 232 on a guide plate 251 forming a half-folded sheet conveyance means 250 described later. It is conveyed to.

  Subsequently, the alignment claw 221 moves backward and forward by forward / reverse rotation of the conveyance alignment belt 220, and the trailing edge of the sheet S (three sheets) is pressed to align the width in the conveyance direction.

  After completion of the aligning operation described above, the center folding knife 236 provided below the contact points of the center folding rollers 234 and 235 pushes up the central portion in the long side direction of the sheet S on the guide plate 251 and is opposite to each other in the arrow direction shown in the figure. The sheet S is digged into the rotating folding rollers 234 and 235.

  The creased sheet S is creased at the center in the long side direction by the center folding rollers 234 and 235, and then returned to the guide plate 251 by the reverse rotation of the center folding rollers 234 and 235. It is transported in the X direction by the transport means 250.

  Each operation described above is executed by a control unit (not shown) of the post-processing apparatus B, but each operation may be controlled by a control unit (not shown) of the image forming apparatus A.

  Further, when the paper size is changed, the position of the alignment plate 232, the operation of the conveyance alignment belt 220, and the like are changed according to the paper size by the control means.

  Note that when the sheet S is Z-folded (tri-folded), the roller 237, the folding knife 238, and the like can be used.

  2 and 5, the sheet S with a crease at the center in the long side direction is moved in the X direction by a conveyance claw 252 provided on the conveyance belt of the half-fold sheet conveyance means 250 and a guide plate (not shown). And is fed to the paper binding device 300 in the next process (conveyance path R7).

  The sheet S is sent out from the half-fold sheet conveying means 250. However, since the sheet is folded in the conveying direction, the rigidity of the sheet increases, and a plurality of sheets can be stably delivered to the sheet binding apparatus 300. Reliability and productivity can be improved.

  Next, the sheet binding apparatus 300 having the pressing means 330 according to the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.

  6 is a schematic front view of the sheet binding device, and FIG. 7 is a schematic left side view.

  The sheet binding device 300 supports and stacks creased sheets, a pressing unit 330 that presses the stacked sheets, a stapling unit 350 that strikes staples on the folds of the sheet, and receives the staples. It consists of a needle receiving means 370 and the like.

  In the present embodiment, the needle hitting means 350 and the needle receiving means 370 are provided at two locations, but the number of these can be set as appropriate.

  Since the two striking means, the needle receiving means, and the like have the same configuration, only one place will be described below.

  First, alignment of the sheet width (hereinafter referred to as the short side width) in the direction perpendicular to the folds of the sheets S stacked on the stacking unit 310 described later will be described.

  Reference numerals 304 and 305 denote alignment members that align the short sides of the stacked sheets S.

  The alignment member 304 is disposed at a predetermined position based on the paper size.

Each time the sheets S are stacked, the alignment member 305 is configured to reciprocate in the horizontal direction indicated by the arrow L in FIG.
The two alignment members 304 and 305 are arranged so as to be equal to the short side width of the paper S when the distance between them becomes the smallest, and the position can be changed based on the paper size. .

  PS2 is a detection means composed of a photoelectric sensor, which is disposed in the vicinity of the alignment member 304 and detects the leading edge of the sheet S fed from the half-folded sheet conveyance means 250. This is a standard for starting each operation and a standard for the number of stacked sheets.

  Next, the loading unit 310 and the needle receiving unit 370 will be described.

  The stacking unit 310 includes a crease support member 311, an edge support member 313, and the like.

The crease support member 311 has an inverted V shape, and is held on the side surfaces 371A and 371B of the needle receiving member 371 constituting the needle receiving means 370 so as to be vertically movable, and is always urged upward by a spring 312. Yes. As described above, in the present embodiment, the crease support member 311 is integrally formed in the vicinity of the needle receiving member 371, but may be configured separately. By integrating the crease support member and the needle receiving member, it is possible to improve the accuracy of the apparatus and reduce the number of parts.

  The edge support member 313 is an inverted V-shaped plate member that is the same as the crease support member 311, is fixed to the side plates 301 and 302, and supports the edge of the stacked sheets S.

  The top ridge lines 311A of the four fold support members 311 are on the same straight line, and the straight line and the straight line formed by the folds of the paper S conveyed by the half-fold paper conveyance means 250 are on the same plane as viewed in the vertical direction. For this reason, the crease of the sheet S on the half-fold sheet conveying means 250 is accurately conveyed toward the top ridge line 311A of the fold support member 311.

  The needle receiving means 370 includes a driving member including a needle receiving member 371, a lower holding member 372, and a cam 375 for moving the needle receiving member 371 up and down.

  The needle receiving member 371 has a receiving portion 371C for receiving the staple needle driven out from the needle hitting means 350, and the receiving portion 371C is on a vertical plane including an extension line of the top ridge line 311A and below the extension line. It arrange | positions so that it may be located.

  The lower holding member 372 holds the needle receiving member 371 so as to be movable in the vertical direction.

  The lower holding member 372 is slidably held on the support shafts 373 and 374 and is movable in the horizontal direction. The support shafts 373 and 374 are fixed to side plates 301 and 302 connected to a main body (not shown) of the post-processing apparatus B (see FIG. 2).

  The cam 375 has a predetermined amount of eccentricity, and reciprocally moves the needle receiving member 371 and the crease support member 311 in the vertical direction via a lever 377 swingably supported by a shaft 376 fixed to the lower holding member 372. Let

  When the paper S is stacked on the stacking means 310, the needle receiving member 371 and the crease support member 311 are in the vicinity of the lowest point, and a large space is formed between the stacking means 310 and the needle striking means 350. Can stably transfer from the folded paper conveying means 250 to the stacking means 310.

  Here, the drive member which gives rotation to the cam 375 will be described with reference to FIG.

  FIG. 8 is a schematic plan view seen in the U direction of FIG.

  The cam 375 and the first gear 378 are fixed to a shaft 379, and the shaft 379 is rotatably supported by side plates 372A and 372B constituting the lower holding member 372.

  Reference numeral 380 denotes a second gear that meshes with the first gear 378 and is fixed to the shaft 382 together with the third gear 381. The shaft 382 is rotatably supported by the side plates 301 and 302.

  The third gear 381 is in mesh with a motor gear 383 fixed to the output shaft of the motor 384, and the motor 384 is fixed to the side plate 302.

  The motor 384 is configured by a stepping motor, but may be configured by, for example, a servo motor, a DC motor, or the like.

With the configuration described above, when the number of stacked sheets reaches a predetermined number, the rotation of the motor 384 is transmitted to the cam 375 by each gear, and the crease support member 311 and the needle receiving member 371 are raised via the lever 377, which will be described later. Staple processing is performed by the needle driving means. By moving the needle receiving means in the direction of the needle hitting means, the needle hitting means having a complicated structure and weight can be fixed, so that the apparatus can be simplified and the number of parts can be reduced.

  The motor 384 that drives the cam 375 may be fixed to the lower holding member 372, or the needle receiving member 371 may be moved up and down by other driving means such as a solenoid or an air cylinder instead of the cam 375.

  As shown in the figure, the tooth width of the second gear 380 is formed wide. This is because the needle receiving means 370 reciprocates in the horizontal direction indicated by the arrow K in the figure based on the paper size. This is to respond.

  Next, the horizontal reciprocation mechanism of the needle receiving means 370 described above will be described with reference to FIG.

  FIG. 9 is a schematic plan view seen in the direction of arrow V in FIG.

  A timing belt 390 is stretched around pulleys 391 and 392.

  Reference numerals 393 and 394 denote shafts fixed to the side plates 301 and 302, respectively, and rotatably support the pulleys 391 and 392.

  A motor 395 rotates the pulley 391 via a gear 396 fixed to the motor output shaft and a gear 397 fixed to the pulley 391.

  Reference numerals 398 and 399 denote locking members, one end of which is fixed to the two lower holding members 372 and the other end is fixed to a timing belt 390 that moves in opposite directions as shown in the figure.

  By configuring in this way, the two needle receiving means 370 can move in the direction of the arrow K shown in the drawing, that is, in the opposite directions to each other, and it is possible to respond quickly to the change in the paper size.

  Returning to FIG. 6 and FIG. 7, the pressing means 330 and the needle hitting means 350 according to the present invention will be described.

  First, the needle hitting means 350 is arranged to perform stapling processing (paper binding) with a staple needle on the fold portion of the paper S stacked on the stacking means 310 in cooperation with the needle receiving means 370.

  Reference numeral 351 denotes an upper holding member that holds the needle hitting means 350, is slidably held on the support shafts 352 and 353, and is movable in the horizontal direction in FIG.

  The support shafts 352 and 353 are fixed to the side plates 301 and 302.

  The pressing unit 330 includes a pressing member 331, a lever 356, a driving member including a cam 354, and the like.

  The pressing member 331 is an inverted V-shaped member disposed so as to face the top of the crease support member 311, and is held on the side surfaces 351 </ b> A and 351 </ b> B of the upper holding member 351 that holds the needle hitting means 350 so as to be movable up and down. ing.

In the present embodiment, the pressing member 331 has an inverted V shape that is the same shape (the same angle) as the inverted V shape of the crease support member 311, and when the pressing member 331 is lowered, the inverted V shape of the pressing member 331 is reversed. It is comprised so that a character-shaped part may correspond. By making the holding member into an inverted V shape facing the top of the inverted V-shaped fold support member, the crease misalignment between stacked sheets can be corrected accurately and the gap between the crease portions between the sheets can be reduced. A close contact state can be made.

  In this manner, since the pressing member 331 is in a positional relationship facing the crease support member 311, the pressing member 331 can press the sheets S stacked in the vicinity of the needle receiving member 371. It is possible to prevent the creases between the sheets from being misaligned.

  The inverted V shape of the pressing member 331 and the inverted V shape of the crease support member 311 do not have to be the same shape (the same angle), and the inner angle formed by the inverted V shape of the pressing member 331 is the crease support member 311. You may comprise so that it may be smaller or larger than the internal angle which reverse V shape makes.

  The cam 354 has a predetermined amount of eccentricity, and reciprocates the pressing member 331 in the vertical direction via a lever 356 swingably supported by a shaft 355 fixed to the upper holding member 351.

  The spring 357 biases the pressing member 331 downward.

  Here, the configuration of the drive member that rotates the cam 354 will be described with reference to FIG. 10. As is apparent from the drawing, the configuration for driving the cam 354 is the same as that of the cam 375 (see FIG. 7). Therefore, detailed description shall be omitted.

  FIG. 10 is a schematic plan view seen in the W direction of FIG.

  The rotation of the cam 354 is transmitted from the motor 358 via a plurality of gears, whereby the pressing member 331 moves in the vertical direction via the lever 356. The operation described above is repeated each time the sheets S are stacked on the stacking unit 310, and the sheets S are pressed by the pressing member 331. As a result, the misalignment between the stacked sheets is surely corrected, the gap between the sheets is reduced, and the close contact state between the sheets is improved.

  The change in the position of the needle hitting means 350 accompanying the change in the paper size is performed in the same manner as the change in the position of the needle receiving means 370 shown in FIG.

  Returning to FIG. 6 and FIG. 7, a description will be given of a take-out device 400 that takes out when the stacked sheets S reach a predetermined number (50 sheets in the present embodiment).

  In the following description, the sheet S that has reached a predetermined number is called a sheet bundle Q.

  The take-out device 400 includes a support means 420, a drive means (without reference numerals), and the like.

  The support means 420 includes support members 421 and 422. The support members 421 and 422 are disposed at both ends of the stacked sheets S, and are formed of rod-like members having bent portions whose one ends are bent at a right angle. Has been.

  The other ends of the support members 421 and 422 are supported so as to be rotatable around the shaft 431 and movable in the axial direction.

  As shown in FIG. 6, the support members 421 and 422, when viewed in the left-right direction by the driving means, support positions near or in the vicinity of the fold portions that support the stacked sheet bundle Q, and both ends of the stacked sheets S. It is possible to move between the separated positions away from the section, and to move based on the paper size when the paper size is changed.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 7, the support members 421 and 422 are arranged between the take-out position where the sheet bundle Q is taken out and the delivery position where the sheet bundle Q is received and transferred to the conveyor 500 as viewed in the rotational direction by the driving means. It is configured to swing.

  Based on the above configuration, when the number of stacked sheets S reaches a predetermined number and the stapling process is completed, the support members 421 and 422 rotate from the delivery position to the take-out position, and then from the separation position to the After moving to the support position and supporting the sheet bundle Q, the sheet bundle Q is placed on the receiving conveyor 500 by rotating in the direction opposite to the rotation direction.

  A stacking operation of creased sheets based on the above configuration, a stapling process (sheet binding) operation when a predetermined number of sheets have been reached, and an ejecting operation will be described.

  ST1: Each time the leading edge of the paper S on the folded paper conveying means 250 is detected by the detecting means PS2, the short sides of the paper S are aligned by the alignment members 304 and 305.

  ST2: In parallel with the operation of ST1, the pressing member 331 descends and presses the stacked sheets S every time the sheets S are stacked by the action of the cam 354.

  ST3: When the number of stacked sheets S reaches a predetermined number, the presser member 331 descends and presses the sheet S, and the needle receiving member 371 is raised by the action of the cam 375. A stapling process is performed at the fold of Q.

  ST4: When the stapling process is completed, the needle receiving member 371 descends.

  ST5: When the lowering of the needle receiving member 371 is completed, the supporting members 421 and 422 take out the sheet bundle Q from the stacking means 310 and transfer it onto the receiving conveyor 500.

  The series of operations described above are performed by the control unit provided in the post-processing apparatus, but may be controlled by a control unit provided in the image forming apparatus.

  The sheet bundle Q transferred on the receiving conveyor 500 is conveyed obliquely downward to the left as shown in FIG.

  4 is a left side view of the post-processing apparatus B of FIG.

  In the figure, arrows X, Y, and Z are the same coordinate axes as in FIG. 2, the X direction is from the back to the front of the paper, the Y direction is from bottom to top, and the Z direction is from left to right.

  After the sheet bundle Q on the receiving conveyor 500 is transferred to the conveyor 600, the fore edge of the sheet bundle Q (the end opposite to the fold) is cut by the edge cutting machine 700, and after cutting, the sheet is discharged via the conveyor 800. The paper is discharged to the tray 900.

  As described above, according to the present invention, each time a sheet is stacked, the pressing member moves downward to press the stacked sheet, so that even when there are a plurality of sheets stacked each time, the sheets are stacked. The post-processing device and the force received when the next loaded paper is loaded, and the gap between the paper is corrected so that the misalignment of the folded paper is matched and the gap between the papers is reduced to improve the contact state. The misalignment of the stacked sheets due to vibrations received from other portions is suppressed.

  Further, when the stacked paper is moved upward to perform the stapling process, the paper is held down, so that the paper does not shift due to vibration or the like accompanying the rise.

  Further, since the sheet is pressed during the stapling process, the sheet is not misaligned, and even when the number of sheets is increased, the contact state between the sheets is maintained, so that the staple can be penetrated without buckling. .

  As a result, even if the number of sheets to be stacked increases, a high-quality sheet bundle with little crease in the crease portion and little image misalignment between pages can be obtained, and stapling can be performed reliably. I can do it.

  In this embodiment, the stapling process is performed on the sheet bundle. However, the sheet can be discharged without performing the stapling process.

  The number of stacked sheets and the presence / absence of stapling can be appropriately combined.

1 is an overall configuration diagram of an image forming apparatus including a post-processing device. The schematic front view of a post-processing apparatus. The right view of the post-processing apparatus B of FIG. The left view of the post-processing apparatus B of FIG. FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram showing a part of the flow of paper in the post-processing apparatus. 1 is a schematic front view of a sheet binding device. The schematic left view of a paper binding apparatus. The schematic plan view seen in the U direction of FIG. The schematic plan view seen in the V direction of FIG. FIG. 8 is a schematic plan view seen in the W direction of FIG. 7.

Explanation of symbols

A image forming apparatus B post-processing apparatus 230 center folding means 300 sheet binding apparatus 310 stacking means 311 crease support member 330 pressing means 331 pressing member 350 needle hitting means 370 needle receiving means 371 needle receiving member 400 take-out apparatus 420 support means 421, 422 support 500 member conveyor 700 small edge cutter

Claims (5)

Middle folding means for creasing the image-formed paper;
In the post-processing apparatus and a stacking means having a fold support member having an inverted V-shape to the mounting supports valley side of the paper folds attached product,
A pressing unit that is in a position facing the crease support member and includes a pressing member that presses the stacked sheets each time a sheet is stacked on the stacking unit ;
In the state where the paper stacked on the stacking means is pressed by the pressing means, the needle hitting means for hitting a staple needle on the fold portion of the paper;
Receiving means for receiving the staple needle,
The staple receiving means, below the extension of the top ridge of said stacking means, and the post-processing apparatus according to claim Rukoto provided near the pressing means. The pressing member, the post-processing apparatus according to claim 1, characterized in that it has a reverse V-shape facing the top of the inverted V-shape of the fold support member. When the sheets stacked on said stacking means reaches a predetermined number, the staple receiving means is moved in the direction of the punching needle means and to beat the staples against the loaded the paper The post-processing apparatus according to claim 1 or 2. The stacking means includes a crease support member that supports a fold portion of the stacked sheets, and a margin support member that supports the margin of the stacked sheets,
The post-processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3 , wherein the fold support member is configured integrally with the needle receiving means . An image forming apparatus comprising the post-processing device according to claim 1 .

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