JP4302681B2 - Paper processing device - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a sheet processing apparatus that performs skew correction and punch processing on sheets discharged from an image forming apparatus such as an MFP (Multi Function Peripherals), which is a digital multifunction peripheral, a copying machine, or a printer.

  In image forming apparatuses such as MFPs, copiers, and printers, post-processing is performed on the paper discharge unit of the main body of the image forming apparatus in order to sort sheets after image formation or to perform post-processing such as stapling and punching. Devices are provided adjacent to each other.

  In such a post-processing apparatus, the paper discharged from the image forming apparatus may be skewed (hereinafter referred to as skew) with respect to the conveyance direction. As a result, there will be a hindrance when filing. For this reason, the skew correction means is provided to correct the skew of the paper and perform the punching process.

  For example, Patent Document 1 discloses an example in which a punch unit is provided for an image-formed paper that is conveyed, and the skew is corrected by abutting the paper against a nipper of an inlet roller provided on the upstream side of the punch unit. Are listed. However, in the example of Patent Document 1, there is a possibility that when the paper skew is corrected, the paper is caught between nippers of the entrance roller and the skew correction cannot be performed well.

Further, Patent Document 2 discloses an example in which a registration member (registration roller) is disposed on the downstream side of the punching unit, and the leading edge of the sheet is brought into contact with the registration member by the conveying force of the sheet discharge roller of the image forming apparatus main body to correct the skew. Are listed. However, in the example of Patent Document 2, since the conveyance force of the discharge roller of the image forming apparatus main body is used, accuracy is required in setting the positions of the image forming apparatus main body and the post-processing apparatus, and the mechanical configuration of the post-processing apparatus. There is a problem of being restricted.
JP 2002-274699 A JP 2002-193493 A

  In the above-described conventional image forming apparatus, skew correction is performed on a sheet discharged from the image forming apparatus using a nipper of an entrance roller. However, there is a possibility that the skew cannot be corrected well. Further, when the skew feeding is performed using the conveying force of the sheet discharge roller of the image forming apparatus main body, there is a problem that the mechanical configuration of the post-processing apparatus is limited, and further improvement is required.

 The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object thereof is to provide a paper processing apparatus capable of performing skew correction and accurate punch processing.

 The present invention is a paper processing apparatus that performs perforation processing on a paper that has been carried in and carries it out, and includes first and second transport rollers arranged sequentially from the upstream side to the downstream side of the paper transport path. A paper conveyance unit that conveys the paper from the upstream side to the downstream side; and a perforation blade that is provided between the first and second conveyance rollers and for perforating the paper. A punch unit capable of projecting with respect to the paper transport path; and controlling the punch unit according to the transport state of the paper, and the punching blade before the start end of the transported paper reaches the punch unit And a first mode in which the leading edge of the paper is brought into contact with the punching blade to correct the skew, and after the skew correction, the punching blade is once withdrawn from the paper transporting path. downstream Characterized by comprising a; and a control unit for operating the punch unit in a second mode for performing perforation processing on the sheet by projecting conveyed the cutting head again by a predetermined distance.

 Further, the present invention is a paper processing apparatus that performs perforation processing on a paper that has been carried in and carries it out, and the first and second transport rollers are sequentially arranged from the upstream side to the downstream side of the paper transport path. A paper conveyance unit that conveys the paper from the upstream side to the downstream side; and a perforation blade that is provided between the first and second conveyance rollers and performs perforation processing on the paper. A punch unit capable of projecting a blade with respect to the paper conveyance path; and controlling the punch unit and the first and second conveyance rollers to define a conveyance path for the paper carried in via the first conveyance roller. A skew correction mode in which the punching blade of the punch unit protrudes from the paper transport path so as to be blocked, the leading end of the transported paper is abutted against the punching blade, and skew is corrected, and the punching blade is transported by the paper Move away from the road The skew-corrected paper is conveyed downstream, the paper conveyance is stopped before the trailing edge of the paper passes through the punch unit, and the punching blade of the punch unit is protruded again so as to be near the trailing edge of the paper. And a control unit that operates the punch unit in a punching mode for performing a punching process.

 According to the present invention, when paper is transported from upstream to downstream, the skew is corrected by abutting the paper being transported against the punching blade of the punch unit, so that there is no need for a dedicated skew correction component and the configuration is simplified. can do.

  Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 1 is a block diagram schematically showing the overall configuration of an image forming apparatus provided with a paper processing apparatus of the present invention, and FIG.

  FIG. 1 shows an example of an MFP (Multi Function Peripherals) as an image forming apparatus. In FIG. 1, an image forming apparatus 10 includes a scanner unit 11, an automatic document feeder (ADF) 12, and an operation unit 13 in the upper part, a printer unit 14 in the central part, and a paper feeding part 15 in the lower part. is doing. In the image forming apparatus 10, a finisher 20 that performs post-processing such as punching and stapling is disposed adjacently.

  The printer unit 14 is, for example, a tandem color laser printer. In general, the laser beam from the laser 141 is reflected by a polygon mirror, and the surface of the photoconductor 142 is scanned and exposed to create an electrostatic latent image. Then, a toner image is formed and transferred onto a sheet of paper, and a charging device 143, a developing device 144, a transfer device 145, and the like are disposed around the photosensitive drum 142. The developing device 144 is supplied with toner from a toner cartridge. When performing color printing processing, for example, toner cartridges of four colors of cyan, magenta, yellow, and black are arranged in a line, and a photosensitive drum and an optical unit are provided for each color.

  The paper supply unit 15 is provided with a plurality of paper supply cassettes for storing various sizes of paper. From these paper supply cassettes, the paper P is sent to the transport belt 16 to form an image. ing. The paper P on which the image is formed is discharged through the paper discharge unit 17 and conveyed to the finisher 20.

  The finisher 20 performs post-processing such as stapling and punching and discharges the paper to either one of the paper discharge trays 21 and 22. The paper discharge trays 21 and 22 are lifted and lowered by the paper discharge tray driving unit, and the paper is discharged to one of the trays.

 The finisher 20 is provided with a sheet processing apparatus 30 which is a characteristic part of the present invention. The sheet processing apparatus 30 includes a punch unit 40 that performs a punching process on the sheet P conveyed from the image forming apparatus 10 and a skew correction unit 50 that corrects a skew of the sheet before the punching process.

 FIG. 2 shows a specific configuration of the sheet processing apparatus 30. In FIG. 2, reference numeral 40 denotes a punch unit, which includes a punching blade 41, an eccentric cam 42 for driving the punching blade 41 in the vertical direction in the figure, a punch motor 43 for rotationally driving the eccentric cam 42, and a punch die 44. It is configured. The punch die 44 is composed of an upper die 441 and a lower die 442, and the paper P is conveyed between the dies 441 and 442. The direction of the punch die 44 (perpendicular to the conveyance direction of the paper P). The punching process is performed by reciprocating the perforating blade 41 in the direction in which the punching is performed.

 On the other hand, first and second transport rollers 51 and 52 are arranged on the paper carry-in side and the carry-out side of the punch unit 40, and carry the paper from the upstream side to the downstream side. These transport rollers 51 and 52 are rotationally driven by transport motors 53 and 54.

 The first transport roller 51 is composed of upper and lower roller pairs 511 and 512, and is rotated by a transport motor 53 to transport the paper P so as to be sandwiched between the roller pairs. Similarly, the second transport roller 52 is composed of upper and lower roller pairs 521 and 522, and is rotationally driven by the transport motor 54 to transport the paper P so as to be sandwiched between the roller pairs.

 Further, the first conveying roller 51 can change the joining state of the roller pair 511, 512 by the load controller 55, and has a registration roller function in which the roller pair 511, 512 is in strong contact and a slip roller function in which the roller pair 511 is in light contact. When the paper is conveyed, it is a registration roller, and when skew correction (described later) is a slip roller.

 A sensor 56 is arranged between the carry-in side of the punch unit 40 and the first carry roller 51 so as to detect the carry-in / carrying state of the paper P. In the embodiment of the present invention, the paper P is conveyed in the direction of the arrow X in an inverted state (a state where the front surface is a lower side of the drawing). Various examples of the inside-out mechanism can be considered.

 FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing a control system of the image forming apparatus 10 and the sheet processing apparatus 30 of the present invention. In FIG. 3, reference numeral 61 denotes a control unit, which is composed of a microprocessor including a CPU. Reference numeral 62 denotes a motor drive circuit for driving the punch motor 43, and reference numerals 63 and 64 denote motor drive circuits for driving the transport motors 53 and 54. The control unit 61 controls the load controller 55 and receives the detection result from the sensor 56.

 A control unit 65 controls the image forming apparatus 10 and includes a microprocessor including a CPU. The control unit 61 and the control unit 65 transmit information to each other, and the image forming operation and the finisher 20 are controlled. The operation is coordinated. Various instructions from the user are input to the control unit 65 via the operation unit 13, and the operations of the printer 14, the paper feeding unit 15, and the like are controlled according to the instructions, and the paper P on which the image is formed is sent to the finisher 20. Transport.

 Next, the operation of the sheet processing apparatus 30 according to the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. First, FIG. 4A shows a state in which the paper P is carried in via the image forming apparatus 10. In the initial state of carry-in, the first and second transport rollers 51 are rotated by the transport motors 53 and 54, and the paper P is transported in the arrow X direction from upstream to downstream. Further, the punching blade 41 of the punch unit 40 is in an upward retreat position away from the punch die 44.

 When the paper P is carried in and the sensor 58 detects that the leading end of the paper P has passed the first transport roller 51, the punch motor 43 rotates and the eccentric cam 42 rotates as shown in FIG. Then, the perforating blade 41 is lowered in the direction of the punch die 44. As a result, the punching blade 41 protrudes so as to block the paper conveyance path. The first conveying roller 51 is controlled by the load controller 55 so that the pair of rollers 511 and 512 are in light contact with each other, and functions as a slip roller. As a result, the first transport roller 51 transports the paper P downstream with a weaker force than before, and abuts the starting end portion of the paper P against the protruding punching blade 41.

 That is, the pair of rollers 511 and 512 press the paper P against the punching blade 41 while being in light contact with the paper P. Therefore, when the paper P is skewed, the skew is corrected.

 Next, as shown in FIG. 4C, the eccentric cam 42 of the punch unit 40 is rotated by the punch motor 43 in a state where the skew is corrected, and the punching blade 41 is lifted and retracted from the paper transport path. At the same time, the first transport roller 51 is controlled by the load controller 55 so as to function as a registration roller, and the skew-corrected paper P is transported in the arrow X direction by the rotation of the motor 53.

 When the sensor 56 detects that the sheet P has been conveyed by a predetermined distance and the end portion in the conveyance direction has passed the first conveyance roller 51, the conveyance motor 54 stops rotating as shown in FIG. Then, the second conveying roller 52 also stops rotating. When the second transport roller 52 stops rotating, the eccentric cam 42 of the punch unit 40 is rotated by the punch motor 43, and the punching blade 41 projects again into the paper transport path, and the paper P is punched.

 When the punching process is completed, as shown in FIG. 4E, the eccentric cam 42 is rotated by the punch motor 43, the punching blade 41 is raised, and the first and second transport rollers 51 and 52 are transported by the transport motors 53 and 54, respectively. Rotate and the paper is carried out. Thereafter, the operations of FIGS. 4A to 4E are repeated, and the sheets P are sequentially punched one by one and discharged to the discharge trays 21 and 22.

 The sensor 56 detects that the paper P has been carried in and the start end portion has been carried in via the first transport roller 51 and that the end portion of the paper P has passed the position of the sensor 56, and notifies the control unit 61. The controller 61 controls the motor drive circuits 62, 63, 64 and the load controller 55 based on the detection result of the sensor 56.

 FIG. 5 is a plan view for explaining skew correction and punching. FIG. 5A shows a state in which the paper P passes through the first conveying roller 51 and hits the punching blade 41. At this time, since the first transport roller 51 functions as a slip roller, when the paper P is skewed as indicated by a solid line, the first transport roller 51 is kept lightly pressed by the rotation of the first transport roller 51. The skew is corrected. After the skew is corrected, the sheet is conveyed by the first conveyance roller 51 and the second conveyance roller 52, and when the terminal portion p0 of the paper P passes through the first conveyance roller 51, the sensor 56 detects it and conveys it. Is stopped, and the punching unit 40 performs punching processing as shown in (b), so that the paper P is carried out with perforations H at regular positions.

 The punching position by the punching process is set, for example, at a predetermined distance L1 (for example, 12 mm) from the conveyance direction end portion p0 of the paper P. When the interval from the sheet end portion p0 to the punching position is L1, the control unit 61 is a position where the interval between the punching blade 41 and the sheet end portion p0 is L1 before the sheet end portion passes through the punch unit 40. Control is performed so that the conveyance of the paper is temporarily stopped and the punching process is performed.

 Thus, in the paper processing apparatus 30 of the present invention, the paper P is transported from the upstream to the downstream, and when the paper P is carried in, it is detected and the punching blade 41 of the punch unit 40 is projected, and the first The skew can be corrected by causing the transport roller 51 to function as a slip roller and abutting the starting end portion of the paper P against the punching blade 41 of the punch unit 40. In addition, since the punching blade 41 is used for skew correction, no other parts are required, and the first and second transport rollers 51 and 52 can all be configured in the finisher 20, so that the mechanism design is facilitated and the configuration is simplified. Can be simplified. That is, since the punch unit 40 uses the punching blade 41 in the skew correction mode and the mode for performing the punching process, unnecessary parts are not required.

  As described above, according to the image forming apparatus and the paper processing apparatus of the present invention, skew correction and accurate punching can be performed. The present invention is not limited to the above description, and various modifications can be made without departing from the scope of the claims.

1 is a configuration diagram schematically illustrating the overall structure of an image forming apparatus using a paper processing apparatus of the present invention. The block diagram explaining the structure of one Embodiment of the paper processing apparatus of this invention. FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating a control system of the sheet processing apparatus according to the embodiment. FIG. 6 is an operation explanatory diagram illustrating an operation of the sheet processing apparatus according to the embodiment. FIG. 6 is a plan view for explaining the skew correction operation of the sheet processing apparatus according to the embodiment.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Image forming apparatus 11 ... Scanner part 12 ... Automatic document feeder 13 ... Operation part 14 ... Printer part 15 ... Paper feed part 16 ... Conveyor belt 17 ... Paper discharge part 20 ... Finishers 21, 22 ... Paper discharge tray 30 ... Paper Processing device 40 ... Punch unit 41 ... Punching blade 42 ... Eccentric cam 43 ... Punch motor 44 ... Punch die 50 ... Skew correction unit 51 ... First transport roller 52 ... Second transport roller 53, 54 ... Transport motor 55 ... Load controller 56 ... Sensor 61, 65 ... Control unit 62, 63, 64 ... Motor drive circuit

Claims (8)

A paper processing apparatus for carrying out a punching process on a paper that has been carried in and carrying it out,
A paper transport unit that includes first and second transport rollers arranged sequentially from the upstream side to the downstream side of the paper transport path, and transports the paper from the upstream side to the downstream side;
A punch unit provided between the first and second conveying rollers, having a perforating blade for perforating the paper, and allowing the perforating blade to protrude from the paper conveying path;
The punch unit is controlled according to the conveyance state of the paper, and the perforating blade is protruded from the paper conveyance path before the leading edge of the conveyed paper reaches the punch unit. A first mode in which the skew is corrected by abutting against the punching blade; and after the skew correction, the punching blade is once withdrawn from the paper transport path, the paper is transported downstream by a predetermined distance, and the punching blade is protruded again. A paper processing apparatus comprising: a control unit that operates the punch unit in a second mode for punching the paper.  The control unit retracts the punching blade once after skew correction and transports the paper downstream, stops the transport before the end of the paper passes through the punch unit, and projects the punching blade again. 2. The paper processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the punch unit is controlled so as to perform perforation processing in the vicinity of the end portion of the paper.  The first conveying roller includes a pair of rollers, and conveys the paper with the pair of rollers sandwiched therebetween, and lightly contacts the first state in which the pair of rollers strongly contact and function as a registration roller. Thus, the second state can be switched to the second state functioning as a slip roller, and the sheet is switched to the first state at the time of paper conveyance, and the second state is switched at the time of skew correction. The sheet processing apparatus according to claim 1. A paper processing apparatus for carrying out a punching process on a paper that has been carried in and carrying it out,
A paper transport unit that includes first and second transport rollers arranged sequentially from the upstream side to the downstream side of the paper transport path, and transports the paper from the upstream side to the downstream side;
A punch unit provided between the first and second conveying rollers, having a perforating blade for perforating the paper, and allowing the perforating blade to protrude from the paper conveying path;
The punch unit and the first and second transport rollers are controlled, and the punching blade of the punch unit is moved with respect to the paper transport path so as to block the transport path of the paper carried in via the first transport roller. A skew correction mode for correcting the skew by causing the leading end of the paper to be conveyed to abut against the punching blade, and transporting the skew-corrected paper downstream by retracting the punching blade from the paper transporting path; The punch unit is operated in a punching mode in which the conveyance of the paper is stopped before the end portion of the paper passes through the punch unit, and the punching blade of the punch unit is protruded again to perform a punching process in the vicinity of the end portion of the paper. A sheet processing apparatus comprising: a control unit that operates.  5. The control unit according to claim 4, wherein the control unit detects the position of the sheet on the transport path and controls the rotation state of the first and second transport rollers and the protrusion of the punching blade of the punch unit. Paper processing equipment.  In order to detect the position of the sheet on the transport path, a sensor is provided on the downstream side close to the first transport roller, and the control unit is configured so that the starting end of the sheet is transported through the first transport roller. 6. The sheet processing apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the punching blade of the punch unit is operated in a skew correction mode upon detecting the above.  7. The control unit according to claim 6, wherein the control unit detects that the skew-corrected sheet is conveyed and the end portion thereof has passed the sensor position, and operates the punching blade in the punching mode. Paper processing device.  When the interval from the sheet end to the punching position is L1, the control unit sets the interval between the punching blade and the sheet end to L1 before the sheet end passes through the punch unit. 5. The paper processing apparatus according to claim 4, wherein control is performed so that the paper conveyance is temporarily stopped at the position and the punching process is performed.

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