JP4701688B2 - Shredding device and shredding method - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a shredding processing device for shredding paper to be discarded, and more particularly to a processing device that takes into account reuse of a piece of paper.

  In recent years, as the information society has advanced to a high degree, various image forming apparatuses have become widespread, and the inadvertent diffusion of confidential documents has become a problem. In addition, as opportunities for handling confidential documents increase, awareness of the risk of information leakage has increased. From this background, when discarding a confidential document, it is generally performed to shred the confidential document with a shredder to prevent information leakage and protect privacy.

  Here, as a shredder conventionally used, there is one that cuts waste paper (paper, paper to be shredded) into, for example, strips of about 1 mm × 3 mm. However, in the case of cutting into such strips, the fiber of the paper is cut finely, making it difficult to use it as a raw material for recycled paper. In particular, in recent years, awareness of environmental issues has increased, and in order to effectively use paper resources, paper fragments (chopped products) resulting from shredding are reused, for example, as cushioning materials for packaging products and raw materials for recycled paper. Is required to do.

  In order to respond to such a request, as a conventional technique described in the publication, a plurality of rotary blades are fixed to a pair of rotary shafts extending in the horizontal direction at equal intervals, and the rotary blades fixed to the pair of rotary shafts are respectively biting portions. There is a technique in which the paper is provided so as to overlap each other, and the used paper is torn and shredded at this biting portion (see, for example, Patent Document 1). According to this technique, the used paper is not cut by tearing and chopping the used paper, and the used paper after chopping can be effectively used as a raw material for recycled paper. Patent Document 1 also discloses a technique for separating used paper in order to prevent a large amount of used paper from being fed into the biting portion and becoming overloaded.

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 6-93583 (pages 3 to 4, FIGS. 1 and 5)

As described above, the user's interest in environmental problems in recent years is very high, but the interest has increased to a level of managing the processing status of this used paper, not just reusing the used paper. For example, in government offices and companies enthusiastic about environmental issues, there is a tendency that paper is effectively used and utilized, and management is performed so that paper is not discarded as much as possible. When performing such management, it is preferable to clarify the number of sheets shredded by the used paper processing apparatus.
It is also required to grasp the durability of various members for shredding waste paper. For example, it is very effective to know the number of shreds in grasping the replacement time of consumable parts such as cutter blades and investigating the cause of failure.
Furthermore, for example, for a used paper collection company, it is possible to develop into a new business model by knowing the number of shredded sheets, for example, directly converting the number of processed sheets.

The present invention has been made to solve the technical problems as described above, and an object of the present invention is to acquire time information of a processing device when shredding paper while shredding, and shred It is to grasp the processing amount of paper to be processed.
Another object is to effectively utilize the grasped processing amount for diagnosis of a processing apparatus.

  For this purpose, the shredding processing apparatus to which the present invention is applied shreds the paper put into the feeding section into approximately one sheet by the processing means, and the operating time of this processing means is the operating time monitoring means. Monitor by. Then, by using the operation time monitored by the operation time monitoring unit, the processing amount grasping unit grasps the processing amount of the paper that has been shredded by the processing unit. As the amount of processing, the number of processed sheets is the most preferable. However, as a characteristic of the shredding processing device, grasping the number of processed sheets does not require complete number of pieces of accurate information. It is enough to recognize the number. As the processing amount, in addition to the number of processed sheets, the amount of a bundle of sheets or the number of boxes for packaging can be used.

  Here, this processing means can be characterized in that paper is shredded using a rotary blade, and the operating time monitoring means monitors the operating time of a motor that rotates the rotary blade. In addition, if the processing amount grasping means grasps the processing amount using information on the rotational speed and the rotation circumference of the rotary blade, the processing amount grasping means performs a shredding process after chopping a bundle of fed sheets. This is preferable in that the processing amount such as the number of processed sheets can be easily obtained in the cutting processing apparatus.

  On the other hand, the shredding processing device to which the present invention is applied includes a processing unit that shreds the paper loaded in the loading unit approximately one by one, and a sensor that detects the presence of the paper loaded in the loading unit. A detection time monitoring means for monitoring a detection time by the sensor; a processing amount grasping means for grasping a processing amount of the paper shredded by the processing means using the detection time monitored by the detection time monitoring means; including.

Here, the processing amount grasped by the processing amount grasping means can be characterized in that it is grasped on the basis of the size of the paper loaded in the loading unit. For example, a paper size (for example, A4 or B4) that is considered to be used most frequently in an installed office can be set as this paper size.
In addition, this detection time monitoring means excludes the detection time due to the false detection of the sensor, if the sensor is in a state where the paper has been detected for a certain time or more, and the detection time is effective. It is excellent in that it can grasp the processing amount with higher accuracy.

  From another point of view, the shredding device to which the present invention is applied has a feeding unit capable of feeding a plurality of sheets of paper as a bundle, and conveys the papers fed in bundles from the feeding unit. Conveying means, processing means for shredding paper conveyed by the transport means, monitoring means for monitoring time information required for shredding processing by the processing means, and time information monitored by the monitoring means. Conversion means for converting into information on the number of processed sheets of shredded paper.

Here, the time information monitored by the monitoring means can be characterized in that it is the operating time of the mechanism unit used for shredding processing by the processing means.
In addition, the image forming apparatus may further include a detection unit that detects a sheet fed from the loading unit, and the time information monitored by the monitoring unit is a time detected by the detection unit.
Further, it is characterized by further comprising storage means for storing the processing number information converted by the conversion means in the memory and output means for outputting the processing number information stored in the memory by the storage means. This is preferable in that the information on the number of sheets to be shredded that has not been grasped can be used effectively. Here, this output means can be characterized in that it displays and outputs the processed number information or outputs it via a network.
Further, it is further provided with an information input means for accepting input of information relating to the paper to be processed from the user, and this conversion means performs conversion using the information received by the information input means. It is excellent in that it can acquire information on the number of processed sheets.
In addition, according to the present invention, the apparatus further includes a determination unit that determines the amount of chips in the storage unit that collects chips of the shredded paper using the information on the number of processed paper sheets converted by the conversion unit. This is preferable in that it can appropriately notify the user of the full state of the paper chip.

If the present invention is grasped from the category of the method, the shredding processing method to which the present invention is applied shreds the paper put into the feeding section approximately every one sheet, and time information required for this shredding process is obtained. Monitoring, converting the monitored time information into information on the number of processed sheets of shredded paper, and storing the cumulative number of pieces of shredded processing obtained from the converted number of processed sheets information in a memory. .
Here, the time information to be monitored can be information obtained from a detection time from a sensor that recognizes the presence of a sheet or an operation time of a mechanism unit that performs shredding processing.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to acquire the time information of the processing apparatus when shredding while separating sheets, and to grasp the number of sheets to be shredded. Further, the grasped number of processed sheets can be effectively used for diagnosis of the processing apparatus.

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.
FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram showing an appearance of a used paper processing apparatus (chopping processing apparatus) according to the present embodiment. The used paper processing apparatus shown in FIG. 1 includes an upper surface portion 1 that constitutes the upper portion of the apparatus, and a loading section 11 that is provided on the upper surface portion 1 and into which used waste paper (paper, paper to be shredded) is input. ing. In addition, the used paper processing apparatus performs processing (such as shredding processing) of used paper that has been input into the input unit 11 of the upper surface 1 and temporarily stores processed used paper (hereinafter also referred to as fine fragments or chips). The main body 2 is provided. Further, the upper surface portion 1 of the used paper processing apparatus is provided with an operation display unit 5 for accepting an instruction from the user with respect to a used paper processing operation or the like and displaying notification items to the user regarding used paper processing or the like. Further, the used paper processing apparatus is provided in the opening / closing door 25 that can be opened and closed when discharging the chip accommodated in the main body 2 to the outside of the apparatus, and is accommodated in the main body 2. A window 25a through which the amount of chips can be visually recognized and a caster 26 for enabling movement of the main body 2 are provided. A member 25b that transmits light is fitted in the window 25a.

  FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the inside of the used paper processing apparatus shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 2, the main body 2 of the used paper processing apparatus has a crushing unit 3 for crushing (chopping) so that the used waste paper becomes chips, and chips formed by the crushing unit 3 are made into a lump. And a compression unit 4 for compression. The main body 2 of the used paper processing apparatus includes a duct 21 as a transfer unit that transfers a lump of chips formed by the compression unit 4 and a box (a storage unit that stores the lump of chips transferred by the duct 21 ( Storage section) 22. The main body 2 of the used paper processing apparatus includes a fan 23 for forcibly forming an air flow inside the apparatus, a control unit 6 for controlling operations of the crushing unit 3 and the compression unit 4 (each unit), A main power switch (main switch) 24 is provided for the user to perform an ON / OFF operation of power supply from the outside. In addition, power supply from the outside is performed through a breaker 24a with an inlet.

  The crushing unit 3 includes a first rotating blade 31A that includes a first rotating shaft 31A and a second rotating shaft 31B that are substantially parallel to each other, and includes a plurality of rotating blades 33A attached to the first rotating shaft 31A. 32A and a second rotary blade row 32B composed of a plurality of rotary blades 33B attached to the second rotary shaft 31B. In addition, a pressing member 34 is provided between the adjacent rotary blades 33A in the first rotary blade row 32A, and presses the used paper against the first rotary blade row 32A. Furthermore, it has the crushing motor 36 as a drive source of the 1st rotary blade row 32A and the 2nd rotary blade row 32B. Each of the rotary blades 33A and 33B is formed of, for example, a circular plate-like member, and a plurality of blades extending outward are formed on the peripheral surface thereof.

  Each of the rotary blades 33A and 33B constituting the first rotary blade row 32A and the second rotary blade row 32B is in the axial direction (perpendicular to the paper surface) of the first rotary shaft 31A and the second rotary shaft 31B. It is arrange | positioned at predetermined intervals along. The mutual positional relationship between the first rotary blade row 32A and the second rotary blade row 32B is such that the rotary blade of one rotary blade row is positioned between the adjacent rotary blades of the other rotary blade row. It is supposed to be. That is, the rotary blade 33A of the first rotary blade row 32A and the rotary blade 33B of the second rotary blade row 32B are arranged so as to be staggered with respect to the axial directions of the first rotary shaft 31A and the second rotary shaft 31B. Has been. The mutual positional relationship between the first rotary blade row 32A and the second rotary blade row 32B is such that the rotary blades of one rotary blade row enter between adjacent rotary blades of the other rotary blade row. It has become. The meshing portion 35 that is an overlapping region is formed by the rotating blades 33A and 33B that are alternately arranged and arranged in such a manner.

The crushing motor 36 is controlled by the control unit 6. The driving force generated by the crushing motor 36 is transmitted to the first rotating shaft 31A and the second rotating shaft 31B via a drive transmission system (for example, a driving belt) (not shown). When the driving force is transmitted to the first rotary shaft 31A and the second rotary shaft 31B, the first rotary blade row 32A and the second rotary blade row 32B rotate.
Here, in the present embodiment, the rotation direction of the first rotary blade row 32A and the rotation direction of the second rotary blade row 32B are configured to be opposite to each other. That is, one rotary blade row rotates clockwise and the other rotary blade row rotates counterclockwise. Specifically, during normal operation (during forward rotation), as indicated by the arrow in FIG. 2, the first rotary blade row 32A rotates clockwise, and the second rotary blade row 32B rotates counterclockwise. Rotate. Thereby, the meshing side 35a of the meshing portion 35 is positioned below the position of the rotation shafts 31A and 31B, and the counter meshing side 35b of the meshing portion 35 is positioned above the positions of the rotation shafts 31A and 31B. Further, the crushing motor 36 can be reversed in the forward and reverse directions, and can rotate the first rotary blade row 32A and the second rotary blade row 32B in the direction opposite to the arrow direction in FIG. is there. In that case, the meshing side 35a and the non-meshing side 35b of the meshing portion 35 are in opposite positions. Further, the rotation speed (circumferential speed) of the first rotary blade row 32A and the rotation speed of the second rotary blade row 32B are different from each other. That is, the first rotating blade row 32A located on the used paper input side rotates slowly (low speed), and the second rotating blade row 32B located on the side opposite to the used paper input side rotates fast (high speed). As the speed difference, for example, a double value can be adopted.

A compression unit 4 is provided below the crushing unit 3. The compression unit 4 includes a hopper 41 that receives chips falling from the crushing unit 3, a cylindrical member 42 to which chips received by the hopper 41 are continuously supplied, and a cylindrical member 42 that is rotatable. The screw 43 arranged and a compression motor 44 as a drive source of the screw 43 are provided.
The screw 43 is configured by attaching a helical screw piece 43b to the rotating shaft 43a so as to extend along the axial direction of the rotating shaft 43a supported in the cylindrical member 42. That is, the screw 43 moves in one direction to move (push out) the chips continuously supplied from the hopper 41 into the cylindrical member 42. The lower end portion 42b of the cylindrical member 42 has a diaphragm shape with an aperture diameter narrower than that of the upper end portion 42a. With this drawing shape, the chip can be compressed at the lower end portion 42b into a lump of chips.
The compression motor 44 is controlled by the control unit 6. The driving force generated by the compression motor 44 is transmitted to the screw 43 through a drive transmission system (not shown). The screw 43 rotates in a direction to push the chip downward.
Here, the range in the circumferential direction of the screw piece 43b is set to be 360 degrees or less around the rotation shaft 43a so that the tip can smoothly advance in the cylindrical member 42 by the pressing force of the screw 43. Further, in order to prevent a co-rotation phenomenon in which the lump of the chip rotates in the same manner as the screw 43 rotates and does not move forward, a plurality of small protrusions (not shown) extending in the length direction are formed on the inner surface of the cylindrical member 42. The part is formed over the entire circumference.

Subsequent to the compression unit 4, a duct 21 and a box 22 are provided in the main body 2 of the used paper processing apparatus. The duct 21 is connected to the downstream end 42 c of the cylindrical member 42 of the compression unit 4. In this embodiment, no special drive source for transferring the lump of chips in the duct 21 is provided. That is, the lump of chips in the duct 21 is transferred using the pressing force of the screw 43 of the compression unit 4.
The box 22 is arranged to receive a lump of chips that have been transported through the duct 21 and discharged from the duct 21. The box 22 can be removed from the main body 2 by opening the door 25.

  Various sensors (detection units) are attached to the main body 2 of the used paper processing apparatus. For example, in the main body 2 of the used paper processing apparatus, a paper sensor (paper sensor) 90 that detects that used paper has been input into the input unit 11 and chips that have fallen from the crushing unit 3 are contained in the hopper 41 of the compression unit 4. A hopper full detection sensor 92 for detecting that the vehicle is full is attached. Further, in the main body 2 of the used paper processing apparatus, the box set sensor 94 for detecting that the box 22 is set inside the main body 2 and the chip in the box 22 have reached a position almost full. A near full sensor 96 for detecting the door and a door sensor (door interlock switch) 98 for detecting that the door 25 is closed and locked are attached. The detection results of these various sensors 90, 92, 94, 96, 98 are output to the control unit 6.

Here, when the main power switch 24 of the main body 2 of the used paper processing apparatus is operated from OFF to ON, a predetermined initialization process is started by the control unit 6 that detects the operation. Thereafter, the status of the used paper processing apparatus is managed by the control unit 6, and the status of the used paper processing apparatus is displayed on the operation display unit 5.
The status of the used paper processing apparatus includes an initialization, a stopped state, a standby (standby) state, a (chopping) processing state, a power saving state, an error occurrence state, and a system error state. There is also a maintenance / management state, DIAG. First, when a predetermined initialization process is completed, the used paper processing apparatus is stopped. When a start switch (not shown) is pressed in the stop state, the state shifts to a standby state. When the paper sensor 90 detects that the used paper has been input into the input unit 11, the crushing unit 3 is activated to start processing (shredding processing) of the used paper (auto start), and the processing state is entered. When the waste paper processing is completed, the processing state returns to the standby state (auto stop).

  Further, when a start button (not shown) is kept pressed for a predetermined time in the standby state, the mode shifts to the manual mode. In this manual mode, waste paper processing is continued while a start button (not shown) is pressed. Note that the fan 23 operates as necessary under the control of the control unit 6. Further, when no operation is performed after a predetermined time has passed since the transition to the stop state, the state shifts to the power saving state to save power and waits for a start button (not shown) to be pressed.

  On the other hand, when the door sensor 98 detects that the open / close door 25 is opened in the processing state, an error occurs, and the processing of used paper is immediately stopped. Further, an emergency stop button (push button switch) 51 constituting a part of the operation display unit 5 of the used paper processing apparatus is provided on the upper surface portion 1, and when the emergency stop button 51 is pressed in the processing state, It is forcibly stopped and an error occurs. When the control unit 6 determines that a paper jam has occurred, for example, a predetermined paper jam process such as stopping the crushing motor 36 is executed. Further, near-full and full processing for detecting the amount of fine pieces (debris, chips) accommodated in the box (accommodating unit) 22 and executing system control is performed. Furthermore, the used paper processing apparatus according to the present embodiment is provided with a count function (described later) for counting the cumulative number of pieces of used paper shredded by the used paper separating mechanism.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a used paper separation mechanism applied in the present embodiment. The used paper separating mechanism is realized by the rotary blade 33A of the first rotary blade row 32A shown in FIG. 2 and the pressing member 34 that comes into contact with the rotary blade 33A (first rotary blade row 32A).
As shown in FIG. 3, the pressing member 34 includes a rotating shaft 34 a and a plurality of serrated portions 34 b. The pressing member 34 is configured to be rotatable about a rotation shaft 34a. The serrated portion 34b is formed at a plurality of locations at positions below the pressing member 34 and in contact with the rotary blade 33A (first rotary blade row 32A). This serrated portion 34b applies a stopping force to the tip of the used paper and sequentially conveys the used paper from the side closer to the rotary blade 33A, so that even when a large amount of used paper is inserted at the same time, one by one It makes it possible to separate waste paper (in some cases, for each fixed amount).

Next, specific processing contents of the used paper processing apparatus will be described.
First, when the paper sensor 90 detects that waste paper has been input into the input unit 11 in the standby state, the crushing motor 36 and the compression motor 44 are operated according to instructions from the control unit 6. The used waste paper is pressed against the rotary blade 33A of the first rotary blade row 32A (low speed side) by the pressing member 34 shown in FIG. 3, and is caught on the rotary blade 33A while being separated one by one. For this reason, when the first rotary blade row 32A and the second rotary blade row 32B of the crushing unit 3 rotate, the used paper hooked on the rotary blade 33A of the first rotary blade row 32A becomes the first rotary blade row. While being wound around 32A, it is drawn into the inside one by one. Then, in the meshing part 35, the used paper hooked on the first rotary blade row 32A is peeled off and crushed by the second rotary blade row 32B. The waste paper that has been crushed into fine pieces becomes chips (fine pieces) and falls to the compression unit 4 in the next step (compression step). On the other hand, the large waste paper is crushed again by the meshing portion 35, and the wastepaper that has not been finely crushed still repeats the passage of the meshing portion 35 until it becomes fine. In this manner, the used paper processing apparatus first separates the used used paper one by one and then tears it into a chip by the speed difference between the first rotating blade row 32A and the second rotating blade row 32B. Go (shredding). At this time, almost all the used paper wound around the first rotary blade row 32A is peeled off by the second rotary blade row 32B and moved to the second rotary blade row 32B. For this reason, the rotary blade 33A of the first rotary blade row 32A is always exposed without being filled with waste paper, and the function of the first rotary blade row 32A to hook the waste paper is maintained.

  Chips formed by crushing waste paper by the crushing unit 3 fall into the hopper 41 of the compression unit 4 and enter the cylindrical member 42 from the upper end portion 42 a of the cylindrical member 42. In the cylindrical member 42, the chip is pushed toward the lower end portion 42 b of the cylindrical member 42 by the screw 43 rotating by the driving force of the compression motor 44. On the other hand, since the lower end portion 42 b of the cylindrical member 42 has a diaphragm shape, the chip is prevented from passing through the cylindrical member 42. In this way, the chip is compressed by the pressing force of the screw 43 in the cylindrical member 42, and is eventually pushed out from the cylindrical member 42 as a lump of chips.

The lump of chips formed by the compression unit 4 is transferred through the duct 21 by the pressing force of the screw 43. The downstream end 21 a of the duct 21 is located above the box 22, and the lump of chips is pushed out of the duct 21 and discharged into the box 22.
Chips in the box 22 are opened and opened from the main body 2 together with the box 22 and collected. Note that the recovered chips can be easily recycled because the paper fibers are not cut. In addition, since the collected chip is a waste paper that is irregularly and irregularly crushed, high confidentiality can be maintained.

  Next, a count process for the number of shredding processes, which is a characteristic configuration of this embodiment, will be described. In the conventional waste paper processing equipment, many studies have been made on the shredding function of the used waste paper and the processing for shredded fragments (garbage), but the number of waste paper that has been shredded is ascertained. The technology to do this has not been sufficiently studied, and the main purpose was to cut the waste paper bundled as many as possible together to speed up the shredding process. On the other hand, in the used paper processing apparatus adopted in the present embodiment, the used papers fed into the input unit 11 as a bundle can be handled one by one by a separating mechanism as shown in FIG. It has become possible. By developing such technology, the control unit 6 of the present embodiment grasps the approximate number of waste paper to be shredded, and stores the grasped number (integrated number) in, for example, a memory so that it can be effectively used for various types of management. It is configured to be able to.

  FIG. 4 is a functional block diagram showing count processing for the number of shredding processes executed by the control unit 6. When executing the count processing of the number of shredding processing sheets, the control unit 6 detects the output from the paper sensor 90, and the paper determination to determine the paper from the detection result by the paper sensor output detection unit 61. And a detection time monitoring unit 63 that monitors the detection time of the paper using the confirmation information by the paper determination unit 62. Further, the motor control unit 64 that controls the driving of the crushing motor 36 that is one of the mechanism units based on the output from the paper determining unit 62, and the motor operating time of the crushing motor 36 that is controlled by the motor control unit 64 are monitored. And a motor operating time monitoring unit 65. Furthermore, using the monitoring information from the detection time monitoring unit 63 and / or the monitoring information from the motor operating time monitoring unit 65, an arithmetic processing for calculating (calculating) the number of pieces of waste paper that has been shredded, and an arithmetic result are added. In addition, a calculation unit 66 (execution of paper conversion) that executes integration processing for grasping the total number of processed sheets is provided. In addition, a storage unit 67 is provided that stores the integrated processing number information calculated and integrated by the calculation unit 66 in an NVM (described later). Further, a display control unit 68 that displays the accumulated processing number information stored in the storage unit 67 on the operation display unit 5, and a communication control unit that outputs the accumulated processing number information stored in the storage unit 67 to the outside via the network. 69. Furthermore, a near full sensor output detection unit 71 that detects an output from the near full sensor 96 that detects that the chip in the box 22 has reached a nearly full position and outputs it to the calculation unit 66, and a near full sensor A chip stacking amount calculation unit 72 that acquires information on the number of processed sheets accumulated sequentially from the output from the output detection unit 71 from the calculation unit 66 and calculates the chip stacking amount in the box 22 is provided. For example, the result calculated as full by the chip load amount calculation unit 72 is output to the display control unit 68 and the communication control unit 69, and full display and remote full output are executed.

  Note that these functions in the control unit 6 are realized by, for example, a program-controlled CPU (Central Processing Unit). Further, the control unit 6 is a nonvolatile ROM (Read Only Memory) or a readable / writable RAM (Random Access Memory) as a memory, a nonvolatile memory such as a flash memory that can rewrite data and retain data after the power is turned off. An NVM (Non Volatile Memory) as a memory is provided. The ROM stores a software program for controlling shredding processing operations, waste paper detection, abnormal processing operations, and the like executed by the controller. The RAM stores various information such as various counter values, processing operation time, and motor operation time. The NVM stores various pieces of error information and the like, and information on the cumulative shredding processing number obtained by the CPU.

  FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing the count processing of the number of shredding processes executed by the control unit 6 shown in FIG. The paper sensor output detection unit 61 of the control unit 6 detects that the paper has been input in the vicinity of the input unit 11 of the used paper processing apparatus by turning on the paper sensor 90 (step 101). It waits until the output of the paper sensor 90 is turned on, and after it is turned on, it is judged whether or not the paper has been confirmed by the paper determination unit 62 (step 102). The paper determination unit 62 counts the time during which the paper sensor 90 detects the paper. If the paper detection state continues for a predetermined time or more, the paper determination unit 62 determines that the paper is in the paper and validates the counting as the paper detection time. To do. For example, the sensor output chattering or misdetection between sheets is prevented, for example, after the paper sensor 90 is turned on, and is continuously turned on even if 250 ms elapses. If it is, the paper is confirmed. The time of 250 ms is a time when the crushing motor 36 is turned on (starts driving) after the paper sensor 90 is turned on. If the paper is not confirmed in step 102, the process returns to step 101. When the paper is determined, various times are counted (step 103). For example, the detection time monitoring unit 63 monitors the sensor ON time that has continued from that time, for example, by going back to the time when the paper sensor 90 was first turned ON. The motor operating time monitoring unit 65 monitors the driving time of the crushing motor 36.

  The control unit 6 detects the output from the paper sensor output detection unit 61, and determines whether or not the sensor output has been turned off (step 104). When the sensor output is not OFF, the time count is continued, and when the sensor output is OFF, the detection time monitoring unit 63 acquires the paper detection time when the sensor output is changed from ON to OFF. Is done. In addition, the motor operating time monitoring unit 65 acquires the driving time of the crushing motor 36 until the sensor output is turned off after a predetermined time (for example, 3 seconds) has elapsed after the sensor output is turned off (step 105). Note that the time detected by the detection time monitoring unit 63 may be a continuous time or a plurality of intermittent times. In such a case, the determination of the sensor output OFF in step 104 can be made when the OFF continues for a certain time or longer.

In the calculation unit 66, a sheet conversion calculation process is executed based on the ON time of the sensor output acquired by the detection time monitoring unit 63 and / or the driving time of the crushing motor 36 acquired by the motor operating time monitoring unit 65. (Step 106). For example, when the number of processed sheets is calculated based on the ON time of the sensor output, for example, the number of sheets is calculated by dividing the detected time counted or accumulated by the detection time monitoring unit 63 by the processing time of the used paper processing apparatus. Is done. For example, in a used paper processing apparatus capable of processing 150 sheets / minute, when the total time detected by the detection time monitoring unit 63 is 565 seconds, the converted number of processed sheets is 565/60 × 150. = 1412 sheets.

On the other hand, when the paper conversion calculation process based on the output from the motor operation time monitoring unit 65, which is one of the mechanism units, is performed, the calculation unit 66 first crushes the number counted by the motor operation time monitoring unit 65. The drive time of the motor 36 is acquired. When a time lag is provided between ON / OFF of the paper sensor 90 and activation / stop of the crushing motor 36, the time is deducted. Further, the calculation unit 66 is necessary for calculation such as the rotational speed of the rotary blade 33A (cutter blade) of the first rotary blade row 32A, the circumferential length of the rotary blade 33A (cutter blade), for example, length information in the A4 vertical direction, etc. Necessary information is obtained from ROM or the like. Based on these pieces of information, the number of processed sheets is converted. For example, the peripheral length of the rotary blade 33A (cutter blade) is 392.5 mm, the rotational speed of the rotary blade 33A (cutter blade) is 63.7 rpm, the length of the A4 vertical direction is 297 mm, and the crushing motor 36 operates for 60 minutes. Assuming that
392.5 × 63.7 × 60 ÷ 297 = 5051 sheets.

  After the number of processed sheets is converted in this way, the control unit 6 stores the accumulated number information calculated by the calculating unit 66 in the NVM or the like that is the storage unit 67 (step 107). In the control unit 6, the stored cumulative number information is displayed on the operation display unit 5 by the display control unit 68. In addition, the stored cumulative number information is provided to an external device (such as a PC) by the network via the communication control unit 69 as necessary. In this way, the accumulated number information calculated and stored is displayed or output (step 108), and the process ends.

  The accumulated number information output in this way is displayed on the operation display unit 5 so that the user can know the approximate number of cumulative shredding processes. For example, by operating the operation display unit 5, it is possible to grasp the number of processed sheets within a predetermined period (for example, within one month) in the workplace and use it for paper management at the workplace. In addition, when a service person who performs maintenance of the used paper processing apparatus knows this accumulated number information, it can be used, for example, for exploring the cause of consumable replacement or failure. Further, for example, a contractor who undertakes shredding processing can directly convert the number of processed sheets, which can be useful information in a new market such as shredding business. Furthermore, in the present embodiment, not only the accumulated number information is displayed on the operation display unit 5, but also the communication control unit 69 can output it to an external PC or the like via a network. For example, the cumulative number information can be transferred via an intranet such as Ethernet (trademark of Xerox Corporation) or an external network such as the Internet. As a result, the PC of the workplace manager or the remote management device (for example, PC) can acquire the accumulated number information when necessary, and can smoothly proceed with various operations.

  The accumulated number information acquired in this way can be used in other ways. For example, after the output from the near full sensor 96 is detected by the near full sensor output detection unit 71 shown in FIG. 4, the subsequent processing number is integrated by the calculation unit 66. According to this, in the chip loading amount calculation unit 72, the number of processed sheets after detection by the near full sensor output detection unit 71 can be known from the calculation unit 66, and the actual full time in the box (accommodating unit) 22 can be almost calculated. It becomes possible to recognize correctly.

Further, in the present embodiment, the description has been made on the basis that the waste paper is shredded one by one by the separation mechanism as shown in FIG. 3, but there is a problem even if it is not necessarily conveyed one by one. Absent. For example, even when a plurality of sheets are conveyed by double feeding, some errors may occur in this case, but if the approximate number of processed sheets can be grasped as a whole, the gist of the present embodiment can be satisfied. Further, the waste paper to be shredded is limited to, for example, A4 size longitudinal feed and short feed, and when other waste paper is inserted, the number of processed papers may not be accurately grasped. However, similarly, if the approximate number of processed sheets can be grasped, the gist of the present embodiment can be satisfied, and therefore it is not always necessary to grasp the exact number of sheets. If the exact number of sheets is grasped, it can be dealt with by a measure such as providing a sensor for recognizing the size of the used paper. Note that it is also effective to change the standard value for calculating the total number of sheets according to the size of the paper normally used (for example, B4 size) for each workplace environment.
Further, for example, if the operation display unit 5 shown in FIG. 1 is configured so that the user can input used paper information to be shredded such as the paper size, it is necessary to calculate the number of processed sheets based on the input information. It becomes possible to select the correct data. For example, when the user tries to shred A3 size waste paper, if A3 size information is input, the A3 size feed amount (420 mm) can be used as a reference for calculation.

  In the present embodiment, the processing of counting the number of processed sheets has been described as an example of the shredded processing amount. However, in addition to the number of processed sheets, the number of sheets bundles and the number of converted paper boxes before use are described. It is also possible to output as the number of processing boxes of the box 22 after shredding processing. For example, it is possible to output the number of bundles by outputting 500 sheets of the converted processing number as one bundle, or outputting the number of boxes by setting 2500 sheets as one box. Further, if the design value of the full state of the box 22 is 1500 sheets, for example, the number of processing boxes may be output with 1500 sheets as a unit. Further, the obtained number of processed sheets can be converted into paper weight and output.

It is a schematic block diagram which shows the external appearance of the used paper processing apparatus which concerns on this Embodiment. It is a block diagram which shows the inside of the used paper processing apparatus shown in FIG. It is the figure which showed the separation mechanism of the used paper applied in this Embodiment. It is a functional block diagram which shows the count process of the number of shredding processes performed by a control part. It is the flowchart which showed the count process of the shredding process number of sheets performed in a control part.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Upper surface part, 2 ... Main-body part, 3 ... Crushing unit, 5 ... Operation display part, 6 ... Control part, 11 ... Input part, 22 ... Box (accommodating part), 31A ... 1st rotating shaft, 32A ... 1st 1 rotary blade row, 33A ... rotary blade, 34 ... pressing member, 36 ... crushing motor, 61 ... paper sensor output detection unit, 62 ... paper determination unit, 63 ... detection time monitoring unit, 65 ... motor operating time monitoring unit, 66 ... (paper conversion) calculation unit, 67 ... storage unit, 68 ... display control unit, 69 ... communication control unit, 71 ... near full sensor output detection unit, 72 ... chip load amount calculation unit, 90 ... paper sensor

Claims (8)

Processing means for shredding the paper put into the feeding section approximately every one sheet;
A sensor for detecting the presence of the paper loaded in the loading unit;
Detection time monitoring means for monitoring the detection time by the sensor;
A shredding processing apparatus comprising: a processing amount grasping unit that grasps a processing amount of the paper shredded by the processing unit using the detection time monitored by the detection time monitoring unit. The detection time monitoring means is an effective detection time when a sheet is detected by the sensor for a certain time or more,
2. The shredding processing device according to claim 1, wherein the processing amount grasped by the processing amount grasping means is grasped based on a size of a sheet put into the feeding unit. A loading unit capable of loading multiple sheets of paper as a bundle;
Detecting means for detecting the paper loaded from the loading unit;
A conveying means for conveying the sheet of paper that has been charged in a bundle from the input unit;
Processing means for shredding the paper conveyed by the conveying means;
Monitoring means for monitoring time information required for the shredding processing by the processing means;
The time information which is monitored by the monitoring unit, seen including a conversion means for converting the processed number information of shredded treated paper,
The shredding device characterized in that the time information monitored by the monitoring means is a time detected by the detection means . A storage means for storing the processed sheets information converted by said converting means into the memory,
4. The shredding processing device according to claim 3 , further comprising output means for outputting the processing number information stored in the memory by the storage means. 5. The shredding processing device according to claim 4 , wherein the output means performs display output of the processing number information or output via a network. An information input means for receiving input of information on a sheet to be processed from a user;
4. The shredding device according to claim 3 , wherein the conversion means converts the information received by the information input means. By using the process number information of the paper that has been converted by said conversion means, according to claim 3, characterized in that further comprising a determination means for determining chip amount in the container for collecting the chips shredded paper Shredding equipment. Shred the paper that has been thrown into the loading section into approximately one sheet,
Monitor time information required for the shredding process,
The monitored time information is converted into information on the number of processed sheets of the shredded paper,
A shredding method for storing, in a memory, cumulative number information of the shredding process obtained from the converted processing number information ,
The shredding processing method , wherein the time information to be monitored is information obtained from a detection time from a sensor that recognizes the presence of a sheet .

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