JP4265763B2 - Sheet aligner - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a sheet aligning apparatus.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, an image reading apparatus provided in a copying machine, a fax machine or the like includes a sheet feeding apparatus for feeding a sheet to an image reading unit. As an example of such a sheet feeding apparatus, a sheet is used. There is an ADF (automatic document feeder) that feeds a document to a document reading unit.

  In such an ADF (automatic document feeder), when reading a document, the user needs to set the document on the document table with the front end of the document aligned.

  However, when setting the document with the leading edges aligned in this way, if the document bundle contains documents of different sizes, all the documents may not be set with the leading edges aligned. Causes problems such as the occurrence of a jam when the originals are separated and conveyed one by one, or the order of feeding and discharging is different. In addition, when the original is written with magnetic ink characters such as MICR, if the alignment is poor, the relative positional relationship between the reading unit and the magnetic ink characters cannot be kept good, and accurate reading can be performed. There was a problem of being unable to do so.

  Therefore, in order to prevent such a problem, the user needs to perform document alignment while checking the document size in the document bundle. However, this document alignment is troublesome and the user may forget.

  By the way, conventionally, in banks, for example, an aligning device is installed that stacks check bundles as an example of sheets and aligns and aligns check bundles by vibrating the check bundle. (For example, refer to Patent Document 1).

  FIG. 9 and FIG. 10 show a schematic configuration of such an aligning device. In FIG. 9 and FIG. 10, 20 is an apparatus main body incorporating vibration means (not shown), 23 is a mounting table on which the check bundle 13 is mounted, 22 Is a connecting rod having one end directly connected to the vibration means of the apparatus main body 20 and the other end connected to the mounting table 23, and 21 is an operation switch. Then, after the check bundle 13 is placed on the placing table 23, when the switch 21 is pressed, the vibration means of the apparatus main body 20 vibrates the placing table 23 via the connecting rod 22.

  Here, when the mounting table 23 vibrates in this way, each check 13a of the check bundle 13 is constituted by the wall surface of the mounting table 23, and the alignment surface 24 that aligns the side end surfaces of the check bundle 13 and the bottom surface of the mounting table 23. The check bundle 13 is continuously abutted against the aligning surface 25 that aligns the bottom surfaces of the check bundle 13. As a result, the check bundle 13 is aligned with the aligning surfaces 24 and 25.

  Thereby, even when the check bundle 13 including the checks 13a having different sizes is placed on the placing table 23, the respective checks 13a can be well aligned with reference to the alignment surfaces 24 and 25. Further, an air layer can be created between the checks during the check alignment, and the check 13 can be rolled.

  For this reason, if the aligning device having the same configuration as the aligning device is mounted on the sheet feeding device as the sheet aligning device, it is possible to surely align the document as a sheet. The troublesome paper alignment is eliminated and the productivity can be greatly improved. In addition, as a result of the investigation, there is no sheet feeding apparatus provided with such a sheet aligning apparatus, and therefore there is no prior art document.

JP-A-3-223044

  By the way, in the sheet feeding apparatus provided with such a conventional sheet aligning device, when the bundle of documents is aligned, excessive vibration may cause document feeding failure or failure of the sheet feeding mechanism.

  For this reason, the sheet feeding apparatus must be configured to maintain sufficient rigidity and prevent the influence of the vibration operation. However, such a configuration causes problems such as an increase in size and cost of the sheet feeding apparatus.

  SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to provide a sheet aligning device that can reliably align sheets (bundles) without increasing the size and cost of the device.

The present invention provides a sheet placement table for placing a sheet bundle in a standing state, and a pressing unit that is pressed against the sheet bundle from a sheet surface side in a state in which the sheet bundle is held so as to hold the sheet bundle in a standing state. An abutting portion with which the leading end of the sheet bundle abuts, an alignment means that moves the sheet bundle to the abutting portion while vibrating the sheet bundle in the vertical direction at least at two locations on the sheet mounting table, and for operating the alignment means An operation switch, and the pressing means is in a pressing position according to the amount of originals placed before the operation switch is operated, and when the operation switch is operated, the alignment means starts an alignment operation, and the alignment means During the alignment operation, the pressing means moves from the pressing position to weaken the pressing force to the sheet bundle .

  In the invention, it is preferable that the aligning means includes a vibrating member that vibrates the sheet bundle by repeatedly lifting at least two portions of the bottom of the sheet bundle.

According to the present invention, the vibration member is a rotating body that rotates in the direction of the abutting member while appearing and retracting on the surface of the sheet mounting table, and a height of a portion protruding on the surface of the sheet mounting table according to a rotation angle. Changes.

  According to the present invention, when the sheet bundle is not aligned, the aligning means stops at a position retracted from the sheet placing table or a position partially protruding from the sheet placing table.

The present invention also provides a sheet placement table for placing the sheet bundle in an upright state, and a pressure that is pressed against the sheet bundle from the sheet surface side in the state in which the sheet bundle is held up so as to hold the sheet bundle in the upright state. Means, an abutting portion where the leading end of the sheet bundle abuts, an alignment means for moving the sheet bundle to the abutting portion while vibrating the sheet bundle in the vertical direction on the sheet mounting table, and a sheet aligned by the aligning means A sheet feeding unit that feeds from the mounting table; and a shutter member that blocks the document conveyance path, and the pressing unit weakens the pressing force to the sheet bundle during the alignment operation of the alignment unit, the shutter member, the sheet feeding sheet feeding direction downstream side by means, in the document transport path so that the sheet end of the sheet placed on the sheet placing table collides Death freely provided, during the feeding operation by the sheet feeding means is moved to a position which does not interfere with the movement of the sheet, said during the alignment operation abuts against the sheet moved by said aligning means to project said document conveying path it is characterized in preventing the movement of the sheet feeding direction of the sheet.

  The present invention is characterized by comprising a setting unit for setting at least one of the operation time of the aligning means, the number of times the sheet bundle is vibrated, and the amplitude in the vertical direction of the sheet bundle.

  Further, the present invention provides a detection unit that detects the amount of the sheet placed on the sheet placement table, an operation time of the alignment unit according to the detection amount by the detection unit, the number of times the sheet bundle is vibrated, And a switching unit that switches at least one of the amplitudes in the vertical direction of the sheet bundle.

In addition, the present invention is characterized in that an instruction unit is provided for instructing whether or not to execute a mode in which the document feeding operation is not performed after the alignment operation by the alignment unit is completed.

Further, the invention is characterized in that a separation unit for separating the sheets fed by the sheet feeding means one by one is provided.

As described above, according to the present invention, after placing a sheet bundle in a standing state on the sheet placing table, the sheet bundle is vibrated in at least two locations on the sheet placing table and moved in the sheet feeding direction. Thus, by aligning the bottom surface and side edges of the sheet with the abutting portion, the sheets can be aligned without increasing the size and cost of the apparatus. Further, in the case where a shutter member that can freely move in and out is provided in the document conveyance path, the document can be prevented from entering the separation conveyance unit during the alignment operation by projecting the shutter member.

  The best mode for carrying out the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the drawings. However, the dimensions, materials, shapes, relative arrangements, and the like of the components described in this embodiment are not intended to limit the scope of the present invention only to those unless otherwise specified. Absent.

  FIG. 1 is a top view of a document conveying apparatus which is an example of a sheet feeding apparatus according to the first embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a side sectional view thereof.

  1 and 2, reference numeral 1 denotes a document conveying device provided in an image reading device (not shown), and 2 denotes a sheet placing table for placing a document bundle 13 as an example of a sheet in a standing state, that is, a standing posture. The document placing table 2 is provided with a pressing plate 3 that is a pressing unit that holds the document bundle 13 in a standing posture and presses the document bundle 13 against the alignment wall 2A so as not to be separated. .

  Here, on the document placing table 2, as many documents 13 a as possible can be placed in the document placing table 2 to feed as many documents 13 a as possible in one document feeding operation. There are various usage situations such as processing an extremely small amount of documents 13a compared to the document placement capacity of the table 2.

  For this reason, the pressing plate 3 is urged in the direction of the alignment wall 2A of the document placing table 2 by a biasing means (not shown) and the document 13a is placed on the document placing table 2 so as to flexibly cope with these situations. When the document is placed, it can move within the range from the solid line position of FIG. 1 to the position of the two-dot chain line in accordance with the amount of the document 13a to be placed. The pressing plate 3 moves from a position where the original 13a is pressed by a moving means (not shown) to a position indicated by a two-dot chain line when an original alignment operation described later is started.

  Reference numeral 5 denotes a sheet feeding roller which is a sheet feeding means for feeding the document 13a placed on the document placing table 2, and 51 and 52 separate the documents 13a fed by the sheet feeding roller 5 one by one and These are a feed roller and a retard roller that constitute a separating and conveying unit that conveys the image to the illustrated image reading unit. Here, as shown in FIG. 1, the paper feed roller 5 is arranged in a state in which a part protrudes from the alignment wall 2A, and is supported so as to be movable up and down as shown in FIG.

  Reference numeral 2B denotes a document abutting portion on which the document bundle 13 abuts during document alignment operation described later. Reference numeral 4 denotes a shutter provided so as to be able to appear and retract in a document conveyance path between the paper feed roller 5 and the separation conveyance unit. 4, when aligning the original bundle 13 as will be described later, the leading end of the original bundle 13 indicated by a two-dot chain line from the position indicated by the solid line below the original placement surface 2C of the original placement table 2 as shown in FIG. It protrudes to the position where it hits.

  When projecting, the shutter 4 is configured to form substantially the same surface as the document abutting portion 2B with respect to the document bundle 13. By projecting the shutter 4 in this way, the document 13a is prevented from entering the separating / conveying section during the alignment operation.

  When the document 4 is fed out after the alignment operation is completed, the shutter 4 is moved from the protruding position indicated by a two-dot chain line in FIG. 2 from the conveyance path indicated by a solid line that does not prevent the feeding of the document 13a. It moves to a position below the placement surface 2C.

  Reference numerals 6a and 6b denote rotating bodies that are alignment means that rotate in the document feeding direction in order to align the document edges. When the rotating bodies 6a and 6b rotate, a part of the rotating bodies protrudes from the document placement surface 2C. In this way, by rotating while partially protruding from the document placement surface 2C, the document bundle 13 placed on the document placement surface 2C can be lifted and then dropped, and the document bundle 13 can be dropped. Is moved to the document abutting portion 2B side, and the tip can be abutted against the abutting portion 2B.

  Then, the document bundle 13 is lifted by the rotating bodies 6a and 6b in this way and then dropped, and the document bundle 13 is abutted against the document abutting portion 2B. In other words, the document bundle 13 is rotated by the rotating bodies 6a and 6b. The leading and bottom surfaces of the original bundle 13 can be made uniform by vibrating in the vertical direction continuously for a predetermined time and moving in the original feeding direction and abutting against the original abutting portion 2B.

  Reference numerals 10a and 10b denote shafts of the two rotating bodies 6a and 6b, and reference numerals 8 and 9 denote pulleys fixed to the shafts 10a and 10b. The two pulleys 8 and 9 are connected via a belt 11. . The pulleys 8 and 9 and the belt 11 transmit the rotation of one of the rotating bodies 6a and 6b rotated by a gear train (not shown) to the other rotating body.

  7 is a light-emitting / receiving sensor, 12a and 12b are protrusions formed on one pulley 9, and these protrusions 12a and 12b rotate as one pulley 9 rotates, and one pulley 9 rotates halfway. Each time the light-emitting / receiving sensor 7 is shielded from light.

  Here, if the protrusions 12a and 12b that rotate together with the one pulley 9 block the light path of the light-emitting / receiving sensor 7 at a constant rotation cycle, the control unit shown in FIG. Based on the electrical signal from the sensor 7, the rotational positions of the rotating bodies 6a and 6b are detected.

  When the document conveying device 1 is in a standby state, the rotating bodies 6a and 6b do not protrude from the document placement surface 2C as shown in FIG. 2, but are stationary at a standby position retracted below the document placement surface 2C. Yes. At this time, the protrusions 12a and 12b block the optical path of the light-emitting / receiving sensor 7, so that the control device determines that the rotating bodies 6a and 6b are in the standby position.

3 is a control block diagram of the document feeder 1. In FIG. 3, reference numeral 100 denotes an operation unit, 110 denotes a control unit (CPU) that controls the document feeder, and 120 includes a light-emitting / receiving sensor 7. Sensors 130 are motors for driving various movable members such as the pressing plate 3 , the shutter 4, and a paper feed roller 5 described later.

  By the way, when the operation switch of the operation unit 100 is pressed, the document conveying apparatus 1 having such a configuration first performs document edge alignment operation, and thereafter, aligns a plurality of document sheets 13a aligned one by one. The paper is separated and fed to an image reading unit (not shown).

  Next, a document aligning operation and a document feeding operation of the document conveying apparatus 1 will be described.

  When the user places a plurality of documents 13a on the document table 2 and presses the operation switch of the operation unit 100, the pressing plate 3 first reduces the pressing force on the document bundle 13, that is, the rotating bodies 6a and 6b. 1 is retracted from the position indicated by the two-dot chain line in FIG. Further, the shutter 4 protrudes to a position indicated by a solid line in FIG. 1 so as to block the conveyance path of the document 13a.

  The pressing plate 3 is thus retracted and the rotating bodies 6a and 6b start to rotate via the gear train (not shown), the two pulleys 8 and 9 and the belt 11, and thus the rotating bodies 6a and 6b rotate. Then, as shown in FIG. 4, the curved four corners 60 to 63, which are a part of the rotating bodies 6 a and 6 b, sequentially protrude from the document placement surface 2 </ b> C to push up the bottom surface of the document bundle 13 and then retract.

  Here, for example, when the first corner portion 60 protrudes from the document table 2 and the point that contacts the document bundle 13 is P0, the rotating bodies 6a and 6b rotate and contact the document bundle 13 at the point P0. The document bundle 13 is lifted in the vertical direction with respect to the document placing table 2 following the rotation of the rotating bodies 6 a and 6 b, and the horizontal direction is caused by the frictional force between the rotating bodies 6 a and 6 b and the document bundle 13. It is conveyed to the downstream side of the conveyance path which is the document feeding direction. After that, when the rotators 6a and 6b are retracted to the lower surface from the document placement surface 2C, the document bundle 13 falls to the document placement surface 2C due to gravity and is moved to the downstream side of the conveyance path.

  Next, when the second corner 61 located upstream in the rotation direction of the first corner 60 is brought into contact with the original bundle 13 at the point P1 with the rotation of the rotating bodies 6a and 6b, the same as in the case of the first corner 60. The document bundle 13 is lifted from the document placement surface 2C following the rotation direction of the rotators 6a and 6b. When the rotators 6a and 6b are retracted from the document placement table 2, the document bundle 13 reaches the document placement surface 2C. It will fall and it will be in the state moved to the conveyance path downstream.

  As described above, as the rotating bodies 6a and 6b rotate, the original bundle 13 moves downstream in the conveyance path until the end of the original comes into contact with the original abutting portion 2B.

  By the way, when the original bundle 13 reaches the original abutting portion 2B and the shutter 4 by the rotating bodies 6a and 6b in this way, for example, an original with a small inner size of the original bundle 13 reaches the original abutting portion 2B and the shutter 4. May not have. However, even in such a case, the original having a small size is gradually conveyed toward the downstream of the conveyance path toward the original abutting portion 2B and the shutter 4 by the above-described operation.

  Note that the document already hitting the document abutting portion 2B and the shutter 4 is lifted upward with respect to the document placement surface 2C by the operation of the rotating bodies 6a and 6b while being blocked by the document abutting portion 2B and the shutter 4. Then repeat the behavior of falling again.

  The document bundle 13 is sufficiently aligned with the document placement surface 2C by repeating the vibration operation of lifting and dropping the document bundle 13 in this manner, and the suction generated between the documents. The force is removed to create an air layer between each document. As a result, a separation operation is performed, and due to the effect of this separation operation, the subsequent separation / conveying operation of the original 13a can be performed smoothly. Further, since the document bundle 13 continuously abuts against the document abutting portion 2B and the shutter 4, even when documents of a plurality of sizes are mixed, the leading ends of the respective documents can be aligned.

  By the way, thereafter, the rotating bodies 6a and 6b rotate for a period of time during which all the originals 13a can be sufficiently aligned with respect to the original abutting portion 2B, the shutter 4, and the original placement surface 2C, and the above operation is performed for a predetermined time. When repeated, the rotating bodies 6a and 6b are controlled by the control unit 110 so as to stop at the standby position detected by the light-emitting / receiving sensor 7 described above.

  For example, the control unit 110 counts the number of times the light path of the reflective sensor 7 is blocked by the protrusions 12a and 12b of one pulley 9, and when the count value reaches a predetermined value, the rotating bodies 6a and 6b. , And the shutter 4 is retracted from the document table 2 to the solid line position shown in FIG. Thereby, the document edge aligning operation is completed. At this time, the rotators 6a and 6b stop at a position retracted from the document placing surface 2C as shown in FIG.

  Next, when the document edge aligning operation is completed, the document bundle 13 is sent out by the paper feed roller 5 as described above, and thereafter, the documents are separated one by one by the feed roller 51 and the retard roller 52 and conveyed. . Then, after all the originals are conveyed from the original placing table 2, all the operations are finished.

  As described above, after placing the original bundle 13 on the original placing table 2, the rotary bodies 6a and 6b continuously vibrate up and down for a predetermined time and move in the sheet feeding direction to abut the original. By abutting against the section 2B and the shutter 4, it is possible to align the edges of the original bundle 13 with a simple configuration, and it is possible to reduce the size, weight, and space of the original conveying device (sheet feeding device). In addition, the apparatus can be configured at low cost without causing an increase in cost.

  By the way, in the description so far, the state where the two rotating bodies 6a and 6b are retracted from the document placing table 2 is set to the standby state, but a part (corner portion) of the rotating bodies 6a and 6b as shown in FIG. ) May protrude from the document table 2 as a standby state. In this configuration, when one rotating body 6b is in the standby state shown in the figure, the protrusion 12 is provided on one rotating body 6b so as to block the optical path of the light-emitting / receiving sensor 7. Yes.

  In this standby state, the two rotating bodies 6a and 6b are not retracted from the document placing table 2 as described above, but the two rotating bodies 6a and 6b protrude from the document placing table 2 by the same height. Thus, even when the original placement surface 2C has irregularities, the original bundle 13 can be maintained in a posture that does not affect the subsequent feeding operation. Further, the document bundle 13 can be maintained in a more appropriate state by finely adjusting the protruding amount.

  In order to maintain a posture that does not affect the feeding operation, the two rotating bodies 6a and 6b are not protruded by the same height but, for example, when the document placement surface 2C is inclined. Alternatively, the document bundle 13 may be held in an inclined state with respect to the document placement surface 2C, with the state where the two rotating bodies 6a and 6b have different heights as a standby state.

  Further, in the above description, the case where the document bundle 13 is moved in the feeding direction while vibrating in the vertical direction by the two rotating bodies 6a and 6b serving as the alignment means has been described. However, the bottom surface and the side edges of the sheet bundle 13 can be aligned if the document bundle 13 is moved in the feeding direction while vibrating in the vertical direction at least at two locations.

  On the other hand, in the description so far, the case where the rotating bodies 6a and 6b having the square cross section with four corners are used as the aligning means for repeatedly projecting and retracting from the document placing surface 2C has been described. The shape of the rotating body 6 is not limited to this, and may be an eccentric cylindrical shape as shown in FIG. 6 (a) or a cam shape as shown in FIG. 6 (b). . By setting the rotating body 6 to such a shape, it is possible to finely set the appropriate height position and inclination direction of the document bundle described above.

  Further, the aligning means is not limited to the rotating bodies 6a and 6b as described above, and as shown in FIG. 7A, the cam member 6A and the shape of the cam member 6A project and retract from the document placement surface 2C. And the cam member 6A and the shape of the cam member 6A are inclined with respect to the document placing surface 2C and repeatedly protrude and retract as shown in FIG. 7B. The thing of the structure provided with 6 C of vibration members may be sufficient.

  In FIG. 7A, the vibration member 6B is inclined so that the document bundle 13 is directed in the direction of the shutter 4 indicated by the arrow by making the phase of the cam member 6A different. In the state, it moves up and down.

  Then, by causing the vibration members 6B and 6C to move up and down by the cam member 6A in this way, the operation of aligning the edges of the document bundle 13 can be performed satisfactorily with gentle vibration. Such a configuration is particularly effective when the original is thin and weak.

  By the way, the operation time of the document edge alignment, the number of times the rotating members 6a and 6b and the vibrating members 6B and 6C are projected and retracted (the number of times the document bundle 13 is vibrated) and the speed, the amplitude of the document bundle 13 in the vertical direction, etc. If the user appropriately sets at least one of the conditions according to the state of the stack of documents 13, the paper quality, and the like, it is possible to perform document edge alignment more efficiently.

  Further, if the loading amount of the document bundle 13 is detected by a sensor or the like and the operation condition is automatically set according to the detected amount, the user can set an appropriate operation condition according to the loading amount of the document bundle 13. The complexity of selecting appropriately can be eliminated, and it can greatly contribute to the improvement of the operability of the apparatus.

  FIG. 8 is a control block diagram of the sheet feeding apparatus according to the second embodiment of the present invention in which operation conditions are automatically set according to the stack amount of the original bundle 13. In the figure, reference numeral 14 indicates that the user appropriately sets operation conditions suitable for the document alignment operation time, the number of protrusions and retractions of the rotating body and the vibration member, the speed, the amount of the document 13a, the paper quality, and the like. The operation condition setting unit 16 includes an operation condition storage unit 16 for storing an operation condition appropriately set by the user, 15 is a CPU, and 17 is a matching unit including the rotating bodies 6a and 6b described with reference to FIGS. .

  Here, the CPU 15 holds the setting information set by the operation condition setting unit 14 in the operation condition storage unit 16 and, at the time of performing the document alignment operation, the stored operation condition as an electric signal to the matching unit 17. This is transmitted to perform the document alignment operation (alignment operation). Note that the operation condition once set in this way is stored in the operation condition storage unit 16, so that it is possible to save the trouble of resetting the setting by calling the stored setting contents thereafter.

  On the other hand, in the figure, reference numeral 18 denotes a document stacking amount detecting unit which is a detecting unit for detecting the stacking amount of the document 13a placed on the document mounting table 2, and the CPU 15 serving as a switching unit responds to the detected amount. At least one of the above operating conditions is switched.

  The document stacking amount detection unit 18 is configured to detect the stacking amount of the document 13a by detecting the holding position of the pressing plate 3 as shown in FIG. 1, for example. The document stacking amount is determined based on an electrical signal corresponding to the position.

  With this configuration, that is, the CPU 15 automatically sets at least one of the above operating conditions according to the stacking amount of the documents 13a, so that the user can set the document according to the document loading amount. The complexity of selecting an appropriate operating condition as appropriate can be eliminated, and the operability of the apparatus is greatly improved.

  By the way, the operation setting for automatically performing the document alignment operation and the document feeding operation in order has been described so far. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the document feeding operation is performed when the user does not desire the document alignment operation. The operation condition setting unit 14 may be stored in the operation condition storage unit 16 via the CPU 15 so that only the document alignment operation can be performed, and can be appropriately selected.

  By making it possible to select the execution of the alignment operation in this manner, the document feeding operation can be performed immediately when it is not necessary to align the documents, for example, when documents of the same size are placed. Further, when the user wants to sufficiently align the edges in advance for storing or transporting the original bundle, only the alignment operation can be performed, which increases efficiency.

FIG. 3 is a top view of the document conveying device according to the first embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 3 is a side sectional view of the document conveying device. FIG. 3 is a control block diagram of the document conveying device. FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram of a rotating body provided in the document conveying device. The figure which shows the other example of the stop state of a rotary body. The figure which showed the example of the shape of a rotary body. The figure which showed the other structure of the alignment means. FIG. 6 is a control block diagram of an original conveying apparatus according to a second embodiment of the present invention. The perspective view of the conventional aligning device. The cross-sectional view of the conventional alignment apparatus.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Document conveying apparatus 2 Document mounting base 2A Alignment wall 2B Document abutting part 2C Document placing surface 3 Press plate 4 Shutter 5 Paper feed rollers 6a and 6b Rotating body 6A Cam member 7 Light emitting / receiving sensor 13 Document bundle 13a Document 14 Operation Condition setting unit 15 CPU
16 Operating condition storage unit 17 Alignment unit 18 Document stacking amount detection unit 51 Feed roller 52 Retard roller 100 Operation unit 110 Control unit (CPU)

Claims (10)

A sheet placing table for placing the sheet bundle in a standing state;
A pressing means that is pressed against the sheet bundle from the sheet surface side in a state where the sheet bundle is raised so as to hold the sheet bundle in a standing state ;
An abutting portion where the tip of the sheet bundle abuts,
An alignment unit that moves the sheet bundle to the abutting portion while vibrating the sheet bundle in the vertical direction at least at two locations on the sheet mounting table;
An operation switch for operating the alignment means ,
Before the operation switch is operated, the pressing means is in a pressing position corresponding to the document placement amount. When the operation switch is operated, the alignment means starts an alignment operation. During the alignment operation of the alignment means, the pressing means The means moves from the pressing position to weaken the pressing force on the sheet bundle .   2. The sheet aligning apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the aligning unit includes a vibrating member that vibrates the sheet bundle by repeatedly lifting at least two places at the bottom of the sheet bundle.   The vibration member is a rotating body that rotates in the direction of the abutting member while appearing on the surface of the sheet mounting table, and a height of a portion protruding on the surface of the sheet mounting table changes according to a rotation angle. 3. A sheet aligning apparatus according to claim 2, wherein   2. The sheet aligning apparatus according to claim 1, wherein when the sheet bundle is not aligned, the aligning unit stops at a position retracted from the sheet placing table or a part protruding from the sheet placing table. A sheet placing table for placing the sheet bundle in a standing state;
A pressing means that is pressed against the sheet bundle from the sheet surface side in a state where the sheet bundle is raised so as to hold the sheet bundle in a standing state;
An abutting portion where the tip of the sheet bundle abuts,
An alignment means for moving the sheet bundle to the abutting portion while vibrating the sheet bundle in the vertical direction on the sheet mounting table;
Sheet feeding means for feeding the sheets aligned by the alignment means from the sheet mounting table;
A shutter member that blocks the document conveyance path,
The pressing means weakens the pressing force to the sheet bundle during the alignment operation of the alignment means, and the shutter member is mounted on the sheet mounting table on the downstream side in the sheet feeding direction by the sheet feeding means. The sheet is placed in the document transport path so that the sheet edge of the placed sheet abuts, and moves to a position that does not hinder the movement of the sheet during the feeding operation by the sheet feeding unit , and during the alignment operation, features and to Resid over preparative alignment device that projects the document conveying path abuts against the sheet moved by said aligning means to prevent the movement of the sheet feeding direction of the sheet.   2. The sheet aligning apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a setting unit that sets at least one of an operation time of the aligning unit, a number of times the sheet bundle is vibrated, and an amplitude in the vertical direction of the sheet bundle. A detecting unit for detecting the amount of the sheet placed on the sheet placing table;
A switching unit that switches at least one of the operation time of the alignment unit, the number of times the sheet bundle is vibrated, and the amplitude in the vertical direction of the sheet bundle according to the detection amount by the detection unit;
The sheet aligning apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising: 6. The sheet aligning apparatus according to claim 5, further comprising an instruction unit that instructs whether or not to execute a mode in which the original feeding operation is not performed after the alignment operation by the aligning unit is completed. 6. The sheet aligning apparatus according to claim 5, further comprising a separation unit that separates the sheets fed by the sheet feeding unit one by one. 10. A sheet feeding apparatus comprising: the sheet aligning apparatus according to claim 1; and a sheet feeding unit that feeds sheets aligned by the sheet aligning apparatus.

Images