JP4574286B2 - Image forming apparatus - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus, and more particularly to an image forming apparatus capable of performing both image formation by a stencil printing method and image formation by an ink jet recording method.

  After a plate cylinder composed of a porous support cylinder and a master having a laminate structure in which a porous support is bonded to a thermoplastic resin film, the surface of the thermoplastic resin film of the master is heated and perforated by a thermal head. Wrapped around the plate cylinder, an appropriate amount of ink is supplied to the inner peripheral surface of the plate cylinder by ink supply means provided inside the plate cylinder, and the paper is pressed against the outer peripheral surface of the plate cylinder by pressing means such as a press roller or an impression cylinder. Thus, there is known a digital thermal stencil printing apparatus that performs printing by transferring ink oozed from a plate cylinder opening part and a master punching part onto a sheet. Such a stencil printing apparatus is mainly used when a large number of tens or more of the same image is required. This is because the cost per printed material is low and high-speed printing is possible, so that a large number of printed materials can be obtained in a short time.

  However, stencil printing always requires a plate (master) for printing, so if you want to print a small amount of one or several sheets, or if you want to print only a few different images for each of several tens of identical images. Cannot handle when you want to print. In addition, when printing corresponding to a plurality of originals and making them into a booklet, a collation operation is required after the printing operation, and an image like a copying apparatus capable of repeatedly outputting different original images in page order. There is a problem that it cannot respond to formation.

  Therefore, an image forming apparatus using a plateless image forming method such as an electrophotographic method or an ink jet method is more suitable for forming a small amount of various images. An image forming apparatus using a stencil printing method is more suitable. As described above, since the image forming apparatus has advantages and disadvantages according to the required image, it is necessary for the user who performs image formation to use them separately. However, if each type of image forming apparatus is held, the cost and installation are different. Since each space is doubled, it is usually necessary to use only an image forming apparatus corresponding to image formation that is frequently used. Therefore, an image forming apparatus including a stencil printing unit and an ink jet printing unit is described in, for example, “Patent Document 1” and “Patent Document 2”.

However, in the image forming apparatus provided with the above-described ink jet printing unit, the ink is separated from the image forming operation in order to prevent nozzle clogging due to ink drying caused by leaving the recording head unused for a predetermined time. It is necessary to periodically perform an operation called idle discharge in which the nozzle is discharged from the nozzle. The ink discharged from the nozzles by this empty discharge is stored in a dedicated waste ink tank as waste ink. This waste ink tank is normally disposed in the lower part of the apparatus main body, and is configured so that it cannot be handled by the user. For this reason, a warning is issued when the waste ink tank is full, requiring replacement of the apparatus or maintenance and inspection by the manufacturer.

Further, the above-described idle ejection is periodically performed during image formation, and during the operation, the recording head moves to an idle ejection position different from the image formation position for idle ejection. There is also a problem that the time required for idle ejection is increased and the overall image forming time is increased.

In order to solve the above-described problems, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2003-228561 discloses a technique for performing idle ejection when a recording head having a nozzle faces a sheet on which image formation is performed. . According to this technology, a waste ink tank is not required for performing idle ejection on a sheet, thereby improving maintenance, and further, it is possible to prevent an increase in image formation time because idle ejection is performed at an image forming position.

JP 2002-137514 A JP 2003-334993 A JP-A-6-15815

  However, the technique disclosed in “Patent Document 3” has a problem in that unnecessary characters and patterns formed at the time of empty ejection are mixed in a sheet on which a necessary image is formed. This greatly impairs the image forming quality, and becomes a very serious problem in an important document or an image formed product that requires an aesthetic sense.

  Further, in each of the above-described techniques, idle ejection is periodically performed every predetermined time or every predetermined number of images formed. For this reason, when obtaining an image that requires a high level of image quality, characters and lines may be cut or faint, although in a small amount, and in this case, the image will be defective.

  The present invention solves the above-described problems, and can provide an image provided with an inkjet printing section that can improve maintainability without affecting the required image-formed product and can prevent the image formation time from being prolonged. An object of the present invention is to provide a forming apparatus and an image forming apparatus including an ink jet printing unit capable of preventing the occurrence of image defects.

Image first aspect of the present invention, a jet printing unit and the stencil printing unit having a printing head, an image forming apparatus that forms an stencil printing images and / or ink jet printed image to the paper, on which image formation has been made An interleaf mode for inserting interleaving paper on which image formation is not performed between formed papers, and ink is supplied from the recording head to the interleaving paper regardless of the inkjet print image when the interleaving mode is selected. It is characterized by performing an empty discharge.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the image forming apparatus according to the first aspect, the slip sheet is inserted between the image-formed sheets every time the image-formed sheets reach a predetermined number. To do.

According to a third aspect of the invention, in the image forming apparatus according to claim 1, further wherein the interleaf sheet is being inserted between the image-formed sheet after the image forming operation start, every predetermined time in the ink jet printing unit It is characterized by.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, the image forming apparatus according to any one of the first to third aspects further includes a slip sheet insertion command means for arbitrarily inserting the slip sheet during an image forming operation. And

Paper invention of claim 5, wherein, in the image forming apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4, further comprising a sheet sorting means for sorting the paper, the paper sorting means for the idle discharge is performed Is shifted to distinguish it from other paper .

  According to the present invention, idle ejection is performed on a printing sheet that is not counted as an image-formed sheet, thereby reducing the use of a waste ink tank and performing idle ejection without affecting the required image formation. As a result, the maintainability can be further improved, and the image forming time can be prevented from being prolonged by not performing the idle ejection within the image forming time. In addition, by performing idle ejection at an arbitrary timing according to the image confirmed by the slip sheet insertion command means, it is possible to prevent a large amount of paper loss due to image defects, and idle ejection has been performed by the paper sorting means. By distinguishing the paper from other papers stacked on the paper discharge tray, it is possible to easily distinguish the paper on which image formation has not been performed, thereby improving work efficiency.

  FIG. 1 shows an image forming apparatus employing the first embodiment of the present invention. In FIG. 1, an image forming apparatus 1 includes a paper feeding unit 3 that feeds paper 2, a stencil printing unit 4 that performs stencil printing on the paper 2 fed from the paper feeding unit 3, and an inkjet image on the paper 2. An ink jet printing unit 5 for forming the paper, a paper discharge unit 6 for discharging the image-formed paper 2 to the outside of the apparatus, and the like.

  The paper feed unit 3 includes a paper feed tray 10 on which a large number of papers 2 are stacked, a paper feed roller 11 that feeds the paper 2 on the paper feed tray 10 from the uppermost one by one, and a paper feed roller 11. A registration roller pair 12 and the like are provided that temporarily stops the fed paper 2 and then feeds the paper 2 toward the stencil printing unit 4 at a predetermined timing.

  A plate making unit 7 is disposed on the upper right side of the stencil printing unit 4. The plate making section 7 cuts a master accommodating section 14 that accommodates a master 13 wound in a roll shape, a thermal head 15 and a platen roller 16 that are disposed downstream of the master accommodating section 14 in the master transport direction, and the master 13. A master cutting means 17, a master conveying roller pair 18 for nipping and conveying the master, and the like. The plate making unit 7 forms a perforated plate making image on the master 13, and then conveys the plate making master 19 toward the stencil printing unit 4.

  The stencil printing unit 4 is provided so as to be able to contact with and separate from a plate cylinder 20 made of a porous cylinder that winds the master-making master 19 made by the plate-making unit 7 on the outer peripheral surface, and the outer peripheral surface of the plate cylinder 20. A press roller 22; a peeling claw 23 for peeling the paper 2 from the outer peripheral surface of the plate cylinder 20; a belt transporting section 25 for transporting the peeled paper 2 while sucking it onto the belt surface by a suction fan 24; . An ink supply means 9 having an ink roller 21 and a doctor roller 8 is disposed inside the plate cylinder 20. The stencil printing unit 4 supplies the paper 2 fed from the paper feeding unit 3 to the pre-printed master 19 wound on the outer peripheral surface of the plate cylinder 20 by the press roller 22, thereby supplying from the ink supply unit 9. The ink thus transferred is transferred to the paper 2 to form a stencil image on the paper 2. On the upper left side of the plate cylinder 20, a plate removal device (not shown) that peels and discards the used master 19 from the outer peripheral surface of the plate cylinder 20 is disposed.

  The ink jet printing unit 5 includes an ink jet recording head 26 disposed above the transport path of the paper 2, a pair of paper transport rollers 27 and 29 disposed on the upstream and downstream sides in the paper transport direction of the ink jet recording head 26, and the paper to be transported. 2, a lower guide plate 31 for guiding 2, a paper detection sensor 32 for detecting the leading end of the paper 2 in the transport direction and setting a start reference for inkjet printing on the paper 2. Each pair of paper transport rollers 27 and 29 transports the paper 2 at a predetermined inkjet printing speed. The conveyance speed at this time is set to be equal to or higher than the discharge conveyance speed of the stencil printing unit 4.

  In each pair of paper transport rollers 27 and 29, the roller positioned above the paper transport path is in direct contact with the stencil image formed on the paper 2, so that the peripheral surface is finely protected to prevent stains due to undried ink. It is desirable to use those having unevenness. Specifically, it is effective to attach a film or the like in which fine ceramic abrasive grains or fine glass beads are scattered on the circumferential surface of the roller.

  The ink jet recording head 26 is configured to be movable in a paper width direction orthogonal to the paper transport direction by a moving mechanism 36. As shown in FIG. 2, a holding portion 71 that is guided by a guide rail 70 provided on a frame 75 and is movable in the paper width direction, which is the left-right direction in the figure, is integrally provided on the upper portion of the inkjet recording head 26. It has been. A lead screw 73 is screwed into the ink jet recording head 26, and when the lead screw 73 is rotationally driven by a stepping motor 72 provided on the frame 75, the ink jet recording head 26 is moved in the paper width direction. . The position of the inkjet recording head 26 is detected by a home position sensor 74 provided on the guide rail 70 and detecting the initial position of the inkjet recording head 26 and the number of steps of the stepping motor 72. In the drawing, reference numeral 76 denotes a removable ink container, reference numeral 77 denotes an ink delivery pump, reference numeral 78 denotes an ink transport pipe, and reference numeral H denotes the ink jet recording head 26 in the paper width direction. The image formable length is shown.

  The moving mechanism 36 described above moves and adjusts the position of the inkjet print image formed on the paper 2 in the paper width direction. The position of the inkjet print image formed on the sheet 2 in the sheet conveyance direction is adjusted and moved according to the operation timing of the inkjet recording head 26. The ink jet recording head 26 receives image data sent from a personal computer 45 (see FIG. 5) connected to the image forming apparatus 1 or a variable data recording memory 48 (see FIG. 5) provided inside the image forming apparatus 1. Based on this, image formation is performed. Further, the stencil printing unit 4 moves and adjusts the position of the stencil printing image formed on the paper 2, that is, the position of the paper 2 with respect to the plate making image of the master-making master 19 wound on the outer peripheral surface of the plate cylinder 20. A moving mechanism (not shown) is provided. As the moving mechanism (not shown), for example, the same moving mechanisms 80 and 280 disclosed in JP-A-9-104159 can be used.

  In FIG. 3, the image formable length in the paper width direction of the inkjet recording head 26 is H, and the plate making length in the paper width direction of the stencil printing unit 4 is K. Usually, the plate making length K is set to about 290 mm in order to enable A3 size stencil printing. However, if the image formable length H is the same as this, the inkjet recording head 26 becomes very expensive. Therefore, in this embodiment, in order to make the inkjet recording head 26 inexpensive, the image formable length H is set to about 60 to 100 mm. In this image forming apparatus 1, the part where the ink jet recording head 26 wants to form an image is a part of the entire image such as the addressed part or the serial number part. is there. 3, reference numeral 28 indicates a stencil print image formed on the paper 2, and reference numeral 30 indicates an ink jet print image formed on the paper 2.

  A paper discharge unit 6 is disposed on the downstream side of the inkjet printing unit 5 in the paper conveyance direction. The paper discharge unit 6 is transported by the belt transport unit 34 and the belt transport unit 34 that transport the paper 2 on which the image is formed in the stencil printing unit 4 and / or the ink jet printing unit 5 while sucking the paper 2 on the belt surface by the suction fan 33. And a paper discharge tray 35 on which the image-formed paper 2 is stacked.

  An image reading unit 40 is disposed above the stencil printing unit 4. The image reading unit 40 has a known configuration including a movable scanning unit 41 that reads an image on the document 42, an image sensor 43 such as a CCD to which image data scanned by the scanning unit 41 is input, and the like.

  FIG. 4 shows an operation panel of the image forming apparatus 1. In the figure, the operation panel 50 is disposed on the upper front surface of the apparatus main body of the image forming apparatus 1. The operation panel 50 includes a plate making start key 51, a print start key 52, a trial printing key 53, a stop key 54, a ten key 55, a clear key 56, a display device 57 including a 7-segment LED, a display device 58 including an LCD, and four directions. A key 59, a print switching key 60, and the like are provided. Various numerical values are entered in the display device 57, and the display device 58 has a hierarchical structure and displays various information. The four-way key 59 has an up key 59a, a down key 59b, a left key 59c, and a right key 59d, and is used for various settings. The print switching key 60 is a select switch, and image formation by the image forming apparatus 1 is performed for image formation by only the stencil printing unit 4, image formation by only the ink jet printing unit 5, image formation by the stencil printing unit 4 and the ink jet printing unit 5. Selectively switch to either.

  FIG. 5 is a control block diagram of the image forming apparatus 1. The image forming apparatus 1 shown in the present embodiment includes an image processing device 37 inside the apparatus main body, and common image data read by the image reading unit 40 and image-formed by the stencil printing unit 4 is the image processing device 37. After the predetermined image processing is performed in the common image data processing device 38, the image data is sent to the thermal head drive control device 44 via the image forming unit selection means 39 in the image processing device 37, and based on this data. Then, each heating element of the thermal head 15 selectively generates heat, and the master 13 is punched.

  On the other hand, the variable image data sent from the personal computer 45 and subjected to image formation in the inkjet printing unit 5 is subjected to predetermined image processing by the variable image data processing device 46 and then passed through the image forming unit selection means 39. Based on this data, the ink jet recording head 26 selectively ejects ink to form an image based on this data. Alternatively, the variable image data sent from the variable data recording memory 48 in which necessary image data is recorded in advance is sent to the ink jet head driving device 47 via the image forming unit selecting means 39, and the ink jet is based on this data. The recording head 26 selectively ejects ink to form an image. The operation of the ink jet recording head 26 with respect to the conveyed paper 2 is controlled by a recording head positioning drive control device 49.

  Based on the above-described configuration, the operation of forming a stencil print image and an inkjet print image on the paper 2 using the image forming apparatus 1 in the first embodiment will be described below. The operator switches the print switching key 60 on the operation panel 50 to the “inkjet + stencil” position, sets the document 42 in the image reading unit 40, and presses the plate making start key 51. When the plate making start key 51 is pressed, the scanning unit 41 scans the image of the document 42 and sends this data to the image sensor 43, and a plate discharging device (not shown) is activated to be used from the outer peripheral surface of the plate cylinder 20. The master-making master 19 is peeled off. After completion of the plate removal operation, the plate cylinder 20 rotates to a predetermined plate supply standby position and stops, and a clamper (not shown) provided on the outer peripheral surface is opened to enter a plate supply standby state.

  When the plate cylinder 20 enters a plate feed standby state, the platen roller 16 and the master transport roller pair 18 are operated to send out the master 13. The sent master 13 is punched and made based on the image data sent to the image sensor 43 when passing through the thermal head 15. The master 13, which has been subjected to plate making and becomes a plate-made master 19, is clamped by a clamper of the plate cylinder 20, and then the plate cylinder 20 is driven to rotate at the same peripheral speed as the conveying speed of the master 13. It is wound on the outer peripheral surface. When the master 13 for one plate is conveyed, the master cutting means 17 is actuated to cut the master 13 and the winding operation is completed.

  After the winding operation is completed, the paper feed roller 11 is operated to feed one sheet 2 from the paper feed tray 10, and the plate cylinder 20 is rotated at a low speed. The fed paper 2 is temporarily stopped by the registration roller pair 12 and then fed between the plate cylinder 20 and the press roller 22 at a predetermined timing. Then, the press roller 22 is swung at a predetermined timing, and the paper 2 is brought into pressure contact with the plate-making master 19 wound on the outer peripheral surface of the plate cylinder 20. The ink supplied to the inner peripheral surface of the plate cylinder 20 by the ink roller 21 by this pressure contact is transferred to the paper 2 through the opening portion of the plate cylinder 20 and the perforated portion of the master 19 and the so-called printing operation is performed. Done. The sheet 2 used at the time of the plate-making operation is peeled off from the master 19 on the plate cylinder 20 by the peeling claw 23, and then sent to the belt conveying unit 25 and further conveyed downstream.

  The sheet 2 sent by the belt conveying unit 25 is further conveyed by the sheet conveying roller pair 27, and when the leading end is detected by the sheet detection sensor 32, the ink jet recording head 26 is activated, and an ink jet print image is formed on the sheet 2. Is done. The ink-jet print image formed at this time is stored in advance in the variable data recording memory 48, unlike the image data sent from the personal computer 45 or the variable data recording memory 48 as in normal image formation. It is an image based on image data for idle ejection. The idle ejection image data is data for ejecting old ink accumulated in the nozzles of the inkjet recording head 26. When the idle ejection image data is sent, the inkjet head driving device 47 performs inkjet recording. The ink jet recording head 26 is driven so that ink is ejected from all nozzles provided in the recording head 26. As the operation of the ink jet recording head 26 at this time, there are total ejection for ejecting ink from all nozzles at once and partial ejection for ejecting ink from all nozzles by performing ejection from some nozzles a plurality of times. is there. At the time of forming the image data for empty ejection, a solid image, a character image, a graphic image, or the like is formed on the paper 2. The format of this image is stored in advance in the variable data recording memory 48.

  After being used for the printing operation in the stencil printing unit 4, the paper 2 on which an image for idle ejection is formed in the ink jet printing unit 5 is conveyed further downstream by the paper conveying roller pair 29, and the belt conveying unit 34. Is discharged onto the discharge tray 35.

  After the plate printing operation in the stencil printing unit 4 and the idle ejection operation in the ink jet printing unit 5 are completed, when the test printing key 53 is pressed by the operator, the paper feed roller 11 is actuated and one sheet is fed from the paper feed tray 10. Sheet 2 is fed, and the plate cylinder 20 is rotationally driven at a rotational peripheral speed corresponding to the set printing speed. The fed paper 2 is timed by the registration roller pair 12 and then sent between the plate cylinder 20 and the press roller 22, and the stencil printing image is transferred by the press roller 22 swinging. . Thereafter, the sheet 2 is conveyed by the belt conveying unit 25 and the sheet conveying roller pair 27, and when the leading end is detected by the sheet detection sensor 32, the inkjet is performed based on the image data sent from the personal computer 45 or the variable data recording memory 48. The recording head 26 operates and an ink jet print image is formed on the upper surface thereof. The sheet 2 on which the stencil printing image and the inkjet printing image are formed is further conveyed by the sheet conveying roller pair 29 and the belt conveying unit 34 and is discharged onto the sheet discharge tray 35.

  After the position or density of each image is confirmed by the above-described test printing operation, when the print start key 52 is pressed after the number of images formed on the display device 57 is set by the operator, the paper feed roller 11 is activated. Then, the paper 2 is continuously fed from the paper feed tray 10 and the plate cylinder 20 is rotationally driven at a rotational peripheral speed corresponding to the set printing speed, and the image forming operation is performed in the same manner as in the trial printing operation. Is done. When the set number of image forming sheets is consumed, the operation of the image forming apparatus 1 is stopped, and the image forming apparatus 1 again enters the image forming standby state.

  According to the above-described configuration, by performing idle ejection on a printing sheet that is not counted as an image-formed sheet, it is possible to perform idle ejection without using a waste ink tank and without affecting the required image formation. As a result, the maintainability can be further improved, and the image forming time can be prevented from being prolonged by not performing the idle ejection within the image forming time.

  FIG. 6 shows an operation panel 61 used in the second embodiment of the present invention. Compared with the first embodiment described above, the second embodiment uses an operation panel 61 instead of the operation panel 50, and the image forming apparatus 1 does not perform idle ejection during the plate-making operation. 1 is different only in that it has a slip sheet mode for inserting slip sheets on which image formation is not performed during the image forming operation, and the other configurations are the same.

  On the operation panel 61, a slip sheet mode key 62 for setting a slip sheet mode for inserting a slip sheet as a mark between the image formed sheets is provided. Each time the slip mode key 62 is pressed, the setting and the release are selectively repeated, and in the setting state, the LED 62a disposed in the vicinity thereof lights up. At the time of setting the slip sheet mode, the pressing operation of pressing the sheet 2 against the outer peripheral surface of the plate cylinder 20 by the press roller 22 and the sheet 2 by the ink jet recording head 26 every set number of time or every predetermined time after the start of the image forming operation. The image forming operation is skipped, and the sheet 2 is discharged onto the discharge tray 35 in a blank state where no image is formed.

  The operation when forming a stencil print image and an inkjet print image on the paper 2 using the image forming apparatus 1 in the second embodiment will be described below. The operator switches the print switching key 60 on the operation panel 61 to the “inkjet + stencil” position, sets the document 42 in the image reading unit 40, and presses the plate making start key 51. When the plate making start key 51 is pressed, the plate making operation and the winding operation are performed as in the first embodiment, and the plate making master 19 is wound on the outer peripheral surface of the plate cylinder 20.

  After the winding operation is completed, the paper feed roller 11 is operated, and the plate cylinder 20 is rotationally driven at a low speed, and the plate mounting operation is performed as in the first embodiment. However, in the printing operation in the second embodiment, the idle ejection operation and the image forming operation in the inkjet printing unit 5 are not performed, and only the printing image is formed on the paper 2 in the stencil printing unit 4. The sheet 2 on which the plate image is formed is discharged onto the paper discharge tray 35, and the plate forming operation is completed, and the image forming apparatus 1 enters an image formation standby state.

  After the image forming apparatus 1 enters the image formation standby state, when the test printing key 53 is pressed by the operator, a test printing operation is performed as in the first embodiment, and a stencil printing image and an ink jet printing image are formed. The sheet 2 thus discharged is discharged onto the discharge tray 35.

  After the position or density of each image is confirmed by the above-described test printing operation, when the print start key 52 is pressed after the number of formed images is set on the display device 57 by the operator, the same as in the trial printing operation. Then, an image forming operation is performed. In this image forming operation, if the operator presses the slip sheet mode key 62 before pressing the print start key 52, the LED 62a is turned on to set the slip sheet mode. In the slip sheet mode, as described above, the pressing operation of the sheet 2 to the outer peripheral surface of the plate cylinder 20 by the press roller 22 every predetermined number of sheets or every predetermined time after the start of the image forming operation, and inkjet recording The image forming operation on the paper 2 by the head 26 is skipped, and the paper 2 is discharged onto the paper discharge tray 35 in a blank state where no image is formed. The timing for inserting the slip sheet is set by a setting key (not shown) provided on the operation panel 61 or in the display device 58.

  In the above-described slip sheet mode, the image forming apparatus 1 inserts slip sheets on which image formation is not performed between the sheet 2 on which image formation has been performed in accordance with the set timing. At the time of inserting the slip sheet, the sheets 2 stacked on the sheet feeding tray 10 are conveyed to the registration roller pair 12 by the sheet feeding roller 11, and the plate cylinder 20, the press roller 22, and the like at a predetermined timing by the registration roller pair 12. Sent to during. During this feeding, the press roller 22 does not swing, and the paper 2 conveyed by the rotational force of the registration roller pair 12 passes between the plate cylinder 20 and the press roller 22 and is sent to the belt conveyance unit 25. Thereafter, the sheet 2 is further conveyed by the sheet conveying roller pair 27, and when the leading end thereof is detected by the sheet detection sensor 32, the ink jet recording head 26 is activated, and the sheet 2 is used for idle ejection as in the first embodiment. An ink jet print image based on the image data is formed. The sheet 2 on which an image for idle ejection is formed in the inkjet printing unit 5 is conveyed further downstream by the sheet conveying roller pair 29 and is discharged onto the sheet discharge tray 35 via the belt conveying unit 34.

  Thereafter, the normal image forming operation and the slip sheet inserting operation described above are repeated, and when the set number of image forming sheets is consumed, the operation of the image forming apparatus 1 is stopped, and the image forming apparatus 1 is again in the image forming standby state. It becomes.

  According to the above-described configuration, by performing idle ejection on slip sheets that are not counted as image-formed paper, it is possible to reduce the use of the waste ink tank and perform idle ejection without affecting the required image formation. As a result, the maintainability can be further improved, and the image forming time can be prevented from being prolonged by not performing the idle ejection within the image forming time.

  In the second embodiment, the case where the printing switching key 60 is switched to the “inkjet + stencil” position to form a stencil printing image and an inkjet printing image on the paper 2 has been described. The present invention may be applied to the case where only the inkjet print image is formed on the paper 2 by switching to the position "." In the second embodiment, the ink jet printing unit 5 does not form an image on the paper 2 that has been subjected to printing by the stencil printing unit 4, but the ink jet unit for the paper 2 that has been subjected to printing. 5 may be configured to perform idle ejection.

  FIG. 7 shows an operation panel 63 used in the third embodiment of the present invention. The third embodiment is different from the second embodiment described above only in that an operation panel 63 is used instead of the operation panel 61, and the other configurations are the same. On the operation panel 63, a slip sheet insertion key 64 is provided as a slip sheet insertion command means for inserting slip sheets at an arbitrary timing during the image forming operation.

  Hereinafter, an operation when a stencil print image and an inkjet print image are formed on the paper 2 using the image forming apparatus 1 in the third embodiment will be described. The operator switches the print switching key 60 on the operation panel 63 to the “inkjet + stencil” position, sets the document 42 on the image reading unit 40, and presses the plate making start key 51. When the plate making start key 51 is pressed, the plate removing operation and the winding operation are performed as in the first and second embodiments, and the plate making master 19 is wound on the outer peripheral surface of the plate cylinder 20. After the completion of the winding operation, the printing operation is performed in the same manner as in the second embodiment, and the image forming apparatus 1 enters the image forming standby state.

  When the operator presses the print start key 52 after setting the number of images to be formed and the slip sheet mode after the trial printing is performed, an image forming operation is performed as in the second embodiment. During the image formation, the slip sheet is inserted at a predetermined timing. When the operator confirms the image, the ink-jet print image may be cut or blurred. In this case, it is conceivable that ink has accumulated in the nozzles of the ink jet recording head 26, and in this case, an idle ejection operation is required. In such a case, the operator inserts the slip sheet insertion key 64, and when the slip sheet insertion key 64 is pressed, the image forming apparatus 1 interrupts the image forming operation and inserts the slip sheet regardless of a predetermined timing. Do. At this time, the inkjet printing unit 5 performs idle ejection.

  According to the above-described configuration, it is possible to obtain the same operational effects as in the second embodiment, and it is possible to perform idle ejection at an arbitrary timing according to the confirmed image, and a large amount of damaged paper due to image defects. Occurrence can be prevented.

  In the third embodiment, the slip sheet is inserted at an arbitrary timing during the slip sheet mode of the image forming apparatus 1. However, the slip sheet is not limited to the slip sheet mode and can be inserted at an arbitrary timing. Also good. In the third embodiment, a case where a stencil print image and an ink jet print image are formed on the paper 2 is shown. However, only the ink jet print image is displayed on the paper 2 by switching the print switching key 60 to the “inkjet” position. The present invention may be applied to the case of forming.

  FIG. 8 shows an image forming apparatus employing the fourth embodiment of the present invention. This image forming apparatus 1 is different from the image forming apparatus 1 shown in the first to third embodiments described above only in that it has a sheet sorting unit 65, and other configurations are the same.

  A paper sorting unit 65 configured in the same manner as the paper discharge sorting device 25 disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 11-263517 is disposed below the belt conveyance unit 34 and to the right of the paper discharge tray 35. . The paper sorting unit 65 rotates a pickup 66 provided to be reciprocally movable in the same direction as the paper transport direction, a holder 67 that supports the pickup 66, a screw shaft 68 into which the holder 67 is screwed, and a screw shaft 68. A lifting means 69 for raising and lowering the holder 67, a contact piece 79 attached to the tip of the pickup 66 and contacting the paper on the paper discharge tray 35, and the like are provided. Is brought into contact with the uppermost sheet 2 on the sheet discharge tray 35, and the pickup 66 is moved in a direction opposite to the sheet conveying direction by a driving means (not shown) from this state, and is indicated by reference numeral Sa in FIG. As shown in the figure, only the uppermost sheet 2 is shifted from the other sheets stacked on the discharge tray 35 and is already stacked on the discharge tray 35. Is configured to distinguish between sheet 2 shifted the paper 2 to be stacked on the discharge tray 35 by Papers 2 and then is.

  According to the fourth embodiment, the paper 2 on which blank ejection was performed at the time of printing in the first embodiment and the paper 2 as a slip sheet on which blank ejection was performed in the second and third embodiments are used. By shifting by the sheet sorting means 65 and distinguishing the shifted sheet 2 from the other sheets 2 stacked on the discharge tray 35, the sheet 2 on which image formation is not performed can be easily distinguished. Work efficiency can be improved.

1 is a schematic front view of an image forming apparatus employing a first embodiment of the present invention. It is the schematic of the inkjet printing part used for the 1st thru | or 4th embodiment of this invention. It is a figure for demonstrating the image range of the stencil printing part and inkjet printing part in the 1st thru | or 4th embodiment of this invention. It is the schematic of the operation panel used for the 1st Embodiment of this invention. It is a control block diagram of the image forming apparatus used in the first to fourth embodiments of the present invention. It is the schematic of the operation panel used for the 2nd Embodiment of this invention. It is the schematic of the operation panel used for the 3rd Embodiment of this invention. It is a schematic front view of the image forming apparatus which employ | adopted the 4th Embodiment of this invention.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Image forming apparatus 2 Paper 4 Stencil printing part 5 Inkjet printing part 19 Master-made master 20 Plate cylinder 26 Recording head (inkjet recording head)
28 Stencil printing image 30 Inkjet printing image 64 Interleaf insert command means (interleaf insert key)
65 Paper sorting means

Claims (5)

In an image forming apparatus that includes an inkjet printing unit having a recording head and a stencil printing unit, and forms a stencil printing image and / or an inkjet printing image on paper,
It has a slip sheet mode for inserting a slip sheet that is not image-formed between image-formed papers that have been image-formed. When the slip sheet mode is selected, the slip sheet is independent of the inkjet print image. An image forming apparatus that performs idle ejection for ejecting ink from the recording head. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1.
The interleaf sheet is inserted between the image-formed sheets every time the image-formed sheets reach a predetermined number . The image forming apparatus according to claim 1 .
The image forming apparatus, wherein the slip sheet is inserted between the image-formed sheets every predetermined time after the image forming operation in the ink jet printing unit is started . The image forming apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3 ,
An image forming apparatus comprising slip sheet insertion command means for arbitrarily inserting the slip sheet during an image forming operation . The image forming apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4,
An image forming apparatus , comprising: a sheet sorting unit that sorts sheets, wherein the sheet sorting unit shifts the sheet on which the idle ejection has been performed to distinguish it from other sheets .

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