JP5241292B2 - Sheet bundle aligning apparatus, reading apparatus including the same, and image forming apparatus - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a sheet bundle aligning device that aligns end portions of sheet bundles stacked on a sheet bundle stacking table, a reading apparatus including the same, and an image forming apparatus.

  In using the copying machine, the user places a sheet, that is, a bundle of document sheets, on a document tray of the automatic document feeder. When the start button of the copying machine is pressed, each document sheet is automatically fed to the automatic document reader. Each original sheet is copied. If the bundle of document sheets is not aligned on the document tray, each document sheet is fed diagonally. Or feeding stops. The user arranges a bundle of document sheets in advance and then places the bundle of document sheets on the document tray. Further, the trouble of aligning a bundle of original sheets can also be found in a sheet bundle storage for storing a sheet before copying, that is, a bundle of recording sheets. Further, this trouble can be seen in the discharge tray from which the recording sheet after copying is discharged. If the bundle of sheets after copying is not aligned on the discharge tray, the user must bind the bundle of recording sheets and then staple the bundle of recording sheets. If the recording sheet bundle is not aligned on the discharge tray, the post-processing device that automatically post-processes staples and the like will bind the recording sheet bundle in an irregular manner.

  In order to avoid the trouble of aligning a bundle of document sheets as described above, the invention described in Patent Document 1 is proposed. A sheet bundle aligning device described in Patent Document 1 includes a sheet bundle stacking base having an inclined surface on which a bundle of document sheets is placed, and a sheet bundle restricting plate disposed below the inclined direction of the sheet bundle stacking base. . Based on the vibration of the sheet bundle loading table, the bundle of document sheets is aligned on the sheet bundle loading table.

  In order to avoid the trouble of aligning a bundle of document sheets, the invention described in Patent Document 2 is proposed. In the sheet bundle aligning apparatus described in Patent Document 2, air is jetted onto the end face of the bundle of document sheets simultaneously with the vibration of the sheet bundle stacking table. The frictional force is reduced between the original sheets in the bundle of original sheets. The bundle of document sheets is easily aligned.

JP-A-8-2700 JP-A-4-272060

  However, there is a case where the bundle of document sheets is not sufficiently aligned due to the close contact between the document sheets when the sheet bundle stacking platform simply vibrates as in Patent Document 1. Further, when air is ejected to the end face of a bundle of original sheets as in Patent Document 2, facilities such as an air source, a switching valve, and piping are required. There is a concern about an increase in size and cost of the sheet bundle aligning device.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and provides a sheet bundle aligning apparatus that improves the sheet bundle alignability while realizing downsizing and cost reduction, and a reading apparatus and an image forming apparatus including the sheet bundle aligning apparatus. The purpose is to do.

A typical means in the present invention for solving the above problems includes a first stacking member and a second stacking member which are inclined with respect to a horizontal plane and stack a sheet bundle, and the first stacking member and the second stacking member. A sheet bundle stacking table having a support shaft that is connected to bendable, and the sheet bundle stack disposed below the sheet bundle stacking table and receiving an end of the sheet bundle stacked on the sheet bundle stacking table. A sheet bundle restricting member that restricts the position of the sheet bundle, and a vibration unit that vibrates the first stacking member and the second stacking member. The sheet bundle restricting member is vibrated to vibrate the sheet bundle A sheet bundle aligning apparatus for aligning sheet bundles by abutting the end portions of the sheet stack , wherein the first stacking member and the second stacking member are in contact with each other during or before the vibration operation of the sheet bundle stacking table . Bring the surfaces close to each other A concave bending posture in which the surface of the bundle stacking table is formed in a concave shape, and an extending posture in which the surfaces of the first stacking member and the second stacking member are arranged on the same virtual plane and the sheet bundle stacking table is extended. A convex bending posture in which the surfaces of the first stacking member and the second stacking member are moved away from each other and the surface of the sheet bundle stacking base is formed in a convex shape is alternately repeated at least once and stacked on the sheet bundle stacking base. The ends of the sheet bundles are aligned.

  In the present invention, the sheet bundle stacking base is bent during vibration, so that it is possible to improve the sheet bundle alignment while realizing a reduction in size and cost without providing an air ejection mechanism or the like. It becomes.

  Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. An image forming apparatus having an original reading apparatus capable of reading images on both sides of an original sheet is illustrated. Further, a copying machine will be described as an example of the image forming apparatus.

[First Embodiment]
The image forming apparatus according to the first embodiment of the present invention will be described below. 1 is an overall configuration diagram of an image forming apparatus, FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of a document reading apparatus according to a first embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of a feeding unit and a separation unit of the document reading apparatus.

(Image forming device)
First, the overall configuration of the image forming apparatus will be described with reference to FIG. A copying machine main body as an image forming apparatus includes an automatic document reader, that is, an image input unit 200 and an image forming unit, that is, an image output unit 300. The image input unit 200 includes a document feeder, that is, an ADF 80 at the top. The ADF 80 includes a sheet bundle aligning device 100 on which a document sheet bundle S, which is a sheet bundle obtained by stacking a plurality of sheets, is stacked. The image output unit 300 includes a sheet processing apparatus 400 on the side.

  The image output unit 300 includes an upper cassette 800, a lower cassette 802, a manual feed guide 804, and a sheet deck 808 for feeding a recording material, that is, a recording sheet. Each of the upper cassette 800, the lower cassette 802 and the sheet deck 808 constitutes a sheet bundle storage.

  The sheet bundles, that is, the recording sheet bundles P stored in the upper cassette 800 and the lower cassette 802 are separated and fed one by one by feeding rollers 801 and 803 and a separation claw (not shown), respectively, and guided to the registration rollers 806. Similarly, the recording sheets stacked on the manual feed guide 804 are separated and fed one by one by the feeding roller 805 and the separation claw and guided to the registration roller 806.

  The seat deck 808 includes an intermediate plate 808a that moves up and down based on a driving force such as a motor. The recording sheet bundle P stacked on the intermediate plate 808a is separated and supplied by a feeding roller 809 and a separation claw (not shown) and guided to a registration roller 806 via a conveyance roller 810.

  The image output unit 300 includes a photosensitive drum 812. When the image input unit 200 reads an image on one original sheet, a toner image is formed on the photosensitive drum 812 in accordance with the set number of copies. Each time an image is formed on the photosensitive drum 812, recording sheets for the number of copies are fed from any of the cassettes 800 and 802, the guide 804, or the sheet deck 808. The registration roller 806 is aligned with the photosensitive drum 812. The optical system 813, the developing unit 814, the transfer charger 815, and the separation charger 816 provided around the photosensitive drum 812 constitute an image forming unit. The recording sheet is conveyed to such an image forming unit.

  When laser light is irradiated from the optical system 813 onto the uniformly charged surface of the photosensitive drum 812, an electrostatic latent image is formed. A toner image is formed by the developing unit 814 on the photosensitive drum 812 on which the electrostatic latent image is formed. The toner image is transferred to the recording sheet by the transfer charger 815. The recording sheet to which the toner image is transferred is peeled from the photosensitive drum 812 by the separation charger 816. The recording sheet to which the toner image is transferred is conveyed to the fixing device 818 by the conveyance belt 817. The toner image is fixed on the recording sheet by application of heat and pressure.

  When the recording sheet passes through the fixing device 818, the recording sheet is guided to the flapper 820 by the conveyance roller 819. The recording sheet is sent to the intermediate tray 900 by the discharge roller 821 or discharged to the sheet processing apparatus 400.

  The intermediate tray 900 is a tray for re-feeding recording sheets. In double-sided recording in which an image is formed on both sides of a recording sheet and multiple recording in which an image is formed on one side of the recording sheet, the recording sheet once formed with an image is stacked.

  The intermediate tray 900 includes a conveyance roller 901, a conveyance belt 902, a flapper 903, a conveyance belt 904, and a conveyance roller 905. In the case of duplex recording, the recording sheet is guided to the intermediate tray 900 through pass 906, and in the case of multiple recording, the recording sheet is guided to the intermediate tray 900 through pass 907.

  The recording sheets placed on the intermediate tray 900 are separated one by one from below by the action of the auxiliary rollers 909 and 910 and the forward / reverse separating roller pair 911 and are re-fed. The re-fed recording sheet is guided to the image forming unit via the conveyance rollers 913, 914, 915, the conveyance roller 810, and the registration roller 806. After the image formation, the recording sheet is sent to the intermediate tray 900 by the discharge roller 821 or discharged to the sheet processing apparatus 400 as described above.

  On the intermediate tray 900, a recording sheet on which an image is once formed according to the set number of copies is stacked on one original sheet read by the image input unit 200. In the case of double-sided recording, the first sheet, ie, the front side and the second side, ie, the back side, of the original sheet are reversed in the ADF 80, and image information on the back side of the original sheet is read and re-fed from the intermediate tray 900. An image is formed on.

  The image-formed recording sheet discharged from the copying machine main body is discharged to a sheet processing apparatus 400 (also referred to as a finisher). In the non-sort mode, the recording sheet is discharged and stacked on the sample tray 405 by the discharge roller 404 via the buffer roller 401, the flapper 402, and the non-sort mode path 403.

  In the sort mode, the recording sheet is discharged onto the processing tray 409 by the discharge roller 408 via the buffer roller 401, the flapper 406, and the sort mode path 407, and is temporarily stacked. The recording sheet bundle on the processing tray 409 is aligned at both ends in the direction intersecting the sheet conveying direction by an alignment member (not shown). Furthermore, the rear end portion of the recording sheet bundle P is bound by the stapler 410 as necessary. Thereafter, the recording sheet bundle on the processing tray 409 is discharged and stacked on the stack tray 412 by the bundle discharge roller pair 411.

(Original reading device)
Next, the document reading apparatus will be described with reference to FIGS. As described above, the automatic document reader of the copying machine main body, that is, the image input unit 200 and the ADF 80 are provided.

  The ADF 80 is a device for feeding original sheets one by one on a platen 18 as transparent glass. The ADF 80 is configured to be openable and closable with respect to the image input unit 200. When the ADF 80 is closed, the ADF 80 acts to press the document sheet placed on the platen 18.

  The original sheet includes a moving original sheet conveyed by the ADF 80 and a stationary original sheet placed on the platen 18. The image input unit 200 optically reads an image of a moving document sheet or a stationary document sheet, photoelectrically converts it, and inputs it as image information.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the automatic document reading apparatus, that is, the image input unit 200 includes a contact image sensor 24 as a first reading unit that reads an image on one side of a moving document sheet conveyed on the platen 18. The contact image sensor 24 is fixed to a predetermined position (position shown in FIG. 1) on the ADF 80 side, and reads an image on one side of a moving document sheet conveyed on the platen 18.

  In addition, the document reading apparatus includes a second reading unit that reads an image on the other side of the document sheet. The second reading unit includes a movable scanner unit 204 having a lamp 202, a mirror 203, and the like, mirrors 205 and 206, a lens 207, and an image sensor 208. The second reading unit is provided on the image input unit 200 side. The second reading means stops the scanner unit 204 at a predetermined position (solid line position shown in FIG. 1), and reads an image on the other side of the moving document sheet conveyed on the platen 18 on the scanner unit 204. Alternatively, the second reading unit reads an image on the other surface of the stationary document sheet placed on the platen 18 while moving the scanner unit 204 along the platen 18.

  The ADF 80 has a feeding tray 11 on the upper side. The document sheet bundle S on the feeding tray 11 is sequentially fed from the uppermost document sheet by the feeding roller 1. The fed document sheets are separated and fed one by one by the separation conveyance roller 3 and the separation pad 4. When the separately fed document sheet passes over the platen 18 of the image input unit 200, the image is read by one or both of the scanner unit 204 and the contact image sensor 24. The original sheet from which the image has been read is discharged onto the discharge tray 19 by the discharge roller 16.

  As shown in FIG. 3, a document width regulating plate 10 is provided on the feeding tray 11 in order to regulate the width direction of the stacked document sheet bundle S. A sheet stopper 17 is provided on the lower side in the inclination direction of the feeding tray 11. Note that the feeding tray 11, the document width regulating plate 10, and the sheet stopper 17 are a part of a sheet bundle aligning device described later. The feeding roller 1 is rotatable about a shaft 13, is rotated about a shaft 5 by an arm 2, and can be moved up and down with respect to a stacked document sheet bundle S. A swing guide 14 is provided across the feeding roller 1 and the separation / conveying roller 3, and guides the document sheet S 1 from the feeding roller 1 to the separation / conveying roller 3. The swing guide 14 is configured to be swingable about a fulcrum b, and an elastic member 15 such as a mylar is attached to the downstream end.

   As shown in FIG. 2, the separated and fed document sheet S <b> 1 is corrected in skew by the registration roller 21, and is conveyed U-turns by the conveying rollers 22, 23, and 25. Among these, a constant speed is set between the conveyance rollers 23 and 25 around the reading unit where the contact image sensor 24 and the scanner unit 204 are interposed in order to eliminate a difference in conveyance speed of the original sheet S1. The original sheet S1 for which image reading has been completed is discharged onto a discharge tray 19 by a discharge roller 16.

(Sheet bundle aligner)
As shown in FIG. 4A, the sheet bundle aligning apparatus 100 includes a feeding tray 11 as a sheet bundle stacking table on which the document sheet bundle S is stacked, a document width regulating plate 10, and a sheet stopper that is a sheet bundle regulating member. 17 is provided.

  The feeding tray 11 is inclined with respect to the horizontal plane, and is inclined so that the downstream side in the sheet feeding direction is downward. A document sheet bundle S is stacked on the feeding tray 11. There may be a case where only one document sheet S1 is placed on the feeding tray 11.

  The sheet stopper 17 is disposed on the lower side of the feeding tray 11, that is, below the feeding tray 11 in the inclination direction. The sheet stopper 17 receives the end of the document sheet bundle S and regulates the position of the document sheet bundle S. The sheet stopper 17 is configured to be retractable so as not to block the path when the document sheet bundle S is fed.

  A document edge sensor 111 is embedded on the feeding tray 11. The document edge sensor 111 detects the position of the edge of the document sheet bundle S. Accordingly, the document edge sensor 111 detects the alignment state of the document sheet bundle S. For the document edge sensor 111, for example, a transmissive or reflective optical licensor is used.

  If the position of the document edge detected by the document edge sensor 111 is greatly deviated from the user's setting or the specified document size read at the position of the document width regulating plate (not shown), it is determined that the alignment is insufficient. Is done. Note that the document size read by the document edge sensor 111 may be determined to be in a normal alignment state even if it is approximately 2 mm larger than the prescribed document size.

  The feeding tray 11 is divided into two members, a lower partition member 11a serving as a first stacking member and an upper partition member 11b serving as a second stacking member at an intermediate portion thereof. The lower partition member 11a is partitioned on the lower side of the feeding tray 11. The lower partition member 11a receives the lower side of the document sheet bundle S, that is, the lower half. The upper partition member 11b is partitioned on the upper side of the feeding tray 11. The upper partition member 11b receives the upper side of the document sheet bundle S, that is, the upper half. The lower partition member 11a and the upper partition member 11b are connected by a support shaft, that is, a pivot 11c, and are configured to be bent around the pivot 11c. The axis of the pivot 11c is arranged along the feeding direction indicated by the arrow D, that is, the direction orthogonal to the inclination direction of the feeding tray 11. The pivot 11c supports the upper partition member 11b in a swingable manner. Therefore, the upper partition member 11b can swing around the pivot 11c, and the feeding tray 11 can be bent by changing the angle formed by the lower partition member 11a and the upper partition member 11b. As a configuration of the swing drive means for swinging the upper partition member 11b, a configuration in which the link member is operated by driving a motor and the upper partition member 11b is swinged through the link member is conceivable. It is not necessary to limit to.

  When the upper partition member 11b is swung by the swing driving means, the document sheet bundle S is bent on the feeding tray 11. Instead of the upper partition member 11b, the lower partition member 11a may be configured to be swingable about the pivot 11c. Alternatively, both the lower partition member 11a and the upper partition member 11b may be configured to be swingable about the pivot 11c.

  A vibrator 110 as vibration means is attached to the lower surface of the lower partition member 11a. The vibrator 110 can vibrate the lower partition member 11a. At the same time, the vibrator 110 can vibrate the upper partition member 11b via the pivot 11c. Based on the vibration of the vibrator 110, the original sheet bundle S is easily aligned.

  Next, operations of the sheet bundle aligning apparatus 100 will be described with reference to FIGS. As shown in FIG. 4A, the document sheet bundle S is stacked on the feeding tray 11. Since the end portions of the document sheet bundle S are not aligned, when the document end sensor 111 detects the document sheet bundle S, the document sheet bundle S is determined to be in an insufficiently aligned state.

  Prior to the start of the vibration operation by the vibrator 110, the upper partition member 11b swings counterclockwise as indicated by an arrow A by the swing drive means as shown in FIG. The surface of the upper partition member 11b and the surface of the lower partition member 11a are brought close to each other. The surface of the feeding tray 11 takes a concave bending posture that is concave. Based on the shape of the feeding tray 11, the document sheet bundle S is bent. In this state, the vibrator 110 is driven. The lower partition member 11a vibrates in a direction perpendicular to the surface of the lower partition member 11a as indicated by an arrow B. The upper partition member 11b vibrates in the same direction as the lower partition member 11a. The swing of the upper partition member 11b and the vibration of the vibrator 110 may be moved back and forth. Further, the vibration direction of the vibrator 110 may vibrate parallel to the surface of the lower partition member 11a, or the vibration direction may be set arbitrarily. Further, the vibration direction may be a two-dimensional or three-dimensional movement such as a circular movement or an inclined elliptic movement.

  The original sheet bundle S is bent based on the swinging of the upper partition member 11b and the vibration of the vibrator 110. Deviation occurs between the original sheets S1 of the original sheet bundle S, and the close contact is eliminated. Further, the load acting on each original sheet S1 becomes smaller as the original sheet S1 has the upper stacking position. Therefore, due to the load acting on the document sheet bundle S and the stiffness of the document sheet S1 that resists the load, the curvature of the bending becomes smaller as the document sheet S1 on the upper side. Is done. Further, when air enters between the original sheets S1 of the original sheet bundle S based on the vibration of the feeding tray 11, the original sheets S1 become slippery.

  As shown in FIG. 4C, the document sheet S1 of the document sheet bundle S moves downward along the inclination direction, that is, the feeding direction as indicated by an arrow D. When the feeding tray 11 is bent for a predetermined time, the upper partition member 11b swings in the direction indicated by the arrow E around the pivot 11c. The lower partition member 11a and the upper partition member 11b are arranged on the same virtual plane. The feeding tray 11 is extended to assume an extended posture. Thereafter, the vibration operation of the vibrator 110 is stopped. The document edge sensor 111 detects the position of the document edge again, and whether or not the document sheet bundle S is aligned is determined.

  When the normal alignment state is determined, the alignment operation ends. The operation proceeds to the feeding operation of the original sheet S1. If it is determined that the alignment is insufficient, the swinging of the feeding tray 11 and the vibration of the vibrator 110 as shown in FIG. 4B are repeated again until the normal alignment is achieved. The concave bending posture and the extending posture described above may be alternately repeated at least once or more. Further, the feeding tray 11 may be swung during the vibration operation by the vibrator 110.

  Note that the alignment determination by the document edge sensor 111 is performed during the swinging of the feeding tray 11 and the vibrating operation of the vibrator 110. Is done. Further, as shown in FIG. 4B, the feeding operation may be performed while the posture of the feeding tray 11 is maintained.

[Second Embodiment]
The sheet bundle aligning apparatus according to the second embodiment of the present invention is different in that the bending direction of the document sheet bundle S shown in FIG. 4B is set in the opposite direction as shown in FIG. Others are the same as those in the first embodiment, and a description thereof will be omitted.

  As shown in FIG. 5, the upper partition member 11b of the sheet bundle aligning apparatus 100 may swing in the direction of the arrow X about the pivot 11c. In this case, the surfaces of the upper partition member 11b and the lower partition member 11a are kept away from each other, and the feeding tray 11 takes a convex bent posture in which it is formed in a convex shape. At the same time, the document sheet bundle S is bent in a convex shape.

  When the original sheet bundle S is bent into a concave shape as in the first embodiment, a gap is formed in the intermediate portion C of the original sheet bundle S, so that the close contact is eliminated. However, if both end portions F of the document sheet bundle S are bent as in the second embodiment, there is a concern that the degree of adhesion at the intermediate portion C increases due to the stiffness of the document.

  However, the close contact between both ends F of the document sheet bundle S is eliminated due to the stiffness of the document sheet S1. Further, although no gap is formed in the intermediate portion C, since the degree of adhesion due to bending does not increase over the entire area of the document sheet bundle S, the adhesion between the document sheets S1 is easily eliminated.

[Third Embodiment]
In the sheet bundle aligning device according to the third embodiment of the present invention, the concave bending posture (see FIG. 4B) of the feeding tray 11 of the first embodiment and the convex bending of the feeding tray 11 of the second embodiment. The posture (see FIG. 5) is alternately repeated at least once. Other than that, it is the same as the sheet bundle aligning apparatus 100 of the first embodiment and the second embodiment, and the description thereof will be omitted. The original sheet bundle S takes a concave bending posture and a convex bending posture in accordance with such repeated operations. Since gaps are alternately formed in the intermediate portion C and both end portions F and F of the document sheet bundle S, the elimination of the close contact between the document sheets S1 is further promoted.

[Fourth Embodiment]
In the sheet bundle aligning device 101 according to the fourth embodiment of the present invention, the feeding tray 11 is bent in a direction perpendicular to the inclination direction of the feeding tray with respect to the first embodiment.

  FIG. 6 schematically shows a sheet bundle aligning apparatus according to the fourth embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 6, the sheet bundle aligning device 101 is the same as the first embodiment in that the feeding tray 11 assumes a concave bending posture when the lower partition member 11a and the upper partition member 11b approach each other. Therefore, the description of the same configuration, operation, and effect as in the first embodiment is partially omitted.

  The sheet bundle aligning device 101 includes a feeding tray 11, a sheet stopper 17, and a document width regulating plate 10. The feeding tray 11 is divided into a lower partition member 11a and an upper partition member 11b. The lower partition member 11a and the upper partition member 11b are connected by a support shaft, that is, a pivot 11c.

  The lower edge of the lower partition member 11a is horizontally disposed. The side edge portions 11d on both sides of the lower partition member 11a are arranged to be inclined with respect to the horizontal plane. The upper partition member 11b is configured to be swingable with respect to the lower partition member 11a about the pivot 11c.

  The sheet stopper 17 is disposed on the lower edge portion 11e side of the lower partition member 11a. Accordingly, since the lower end S2 of the document sheet bundle S abuts against the sheet stopper 17, the sliding of the document sheet bundle S in the feeding direction H is restricted.

  The document width regulating plate 10 is disposed on one side edge portion 11d side of the lower partition member 11a. The document width restricting plate 10 is disposed along a plane orthogonal to the sheet stopper 17. Accordingly, since one side edge S3 of the document sheet bundle S abuts on the document width regulating plate 10, the sliding of the document sheet bundle S in the orthogonal direction J perpendicular to the feeding direction H is restricted.

  The operation of the sheet bundle aligning apparatus 101 will be described below. The document sheet bundle S is stacked on the feeding tray 11. For example, it is assumed that the document sheet bundle S is determined to be in an insufficiently aligned state based on detection by a document edge sensor (not shown). In this case, the upper partition member 11b swings upward with respect to the lower partition member 11a as indicated by the arrow G about the pivot 11c. The document sheet bundle S is bent on the feeding tray 11.

  A vibrator (not shown) attached to the feeding tray 11 vibrates before and after the upper partition member 11b swings. When the feeding tray 11 vibrates, the original sheet bundle S is aligned. After alignment, the document sheet bundle S is fed in the feeding direction H.

  According to such a sheet bundle aligning device 101, the document sheet bundle S is aligned in the feeding direction H by the sheet stopper 17. At the same time, the document sheet bundle S is aligned in the orthogonal direction J by the bending of the feeding tray 11 and the document width regulating plate 10. Accordingly, the document sheet bundle S is aligned in two directions at a time. Compared to the sheet bundle aligning apparatus 100 of the first embodiment described above, since the original sheet bundle S is aligned in the orthogonal direction J, the user's trouble of aligning the sheet bundle S is reduced.

  In addition, since the end portion of the document that comes into contact with the sheet stopper 17 curves like a cone, the rigidity is high with respect to the force acting in the feeding direction H. Therefore, even if the original sheet bundle S contacts the sheet stopper 17, the original sheet bundle S is not easily buckled or deformed by the contact force. Compared to the case where the document end abutting against the sheet stopper 17 is held in a straight line, the document sheet bundle S is aligned with higher quality.

  In each of the embodiments described above, the case where the sheet bundle aligning apparatuses 100 and 101 are applied to the ADF 80 has been described. However, the sheet bundle aligning devices 100 and 101 of the above-described embodiments are provided in cassettes 800 and 802, a manual feed guide 804, and a sheet deck 808 for feeding a recording material, that is, a recording sheet in the copying machine shown in FIG. Is also applicable.

  Further, in order to perform double-sided recording and multiple recording, it can also be applied to an intermediate tray 900 that is disposed in the image forming apparatus main body and temporarily stacks recording sheets and passes the sheets.

  Further, the present invention can be applied to the processing tray 409, the stack tray 412, and the sample tray 405 of the sheet processing apparatus 400 that is disposed outside the image forming apparatus main body and serves as a discharge unit that discharges sheets.

1 is an overall configuration diagram of an image forming apparatus according to a first embodiment of the present invention. 1 is a cross-sectional view of a document reading device. FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of a feeding unit and a separation unit of the document reading apparatus. FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram illustrating an operation of the sheet bundle aligning device. It is the schematic which shows the sheet | seat bundle aligning apparatus in 2nd Embodiment of this invention. It is the schematic which shows the sheet | seat bundle aligning apparatus in 4th Embodiment of this invention.

Explanation of symbols

10 ... Document width regulating plate
11… Feeding tray (sheet bundle stack)
11a ... lower compartment member
11b ... Upper partition member
11c Pivot (support shaft)
17… Sheet stopper (sheet bundle regulating plate)
80 ... ADF
100 ... Sheet bundle aligner
101 ... Sheet bundle aligning device
110… Vibrator
111… Document edge sensor
200 ... Image input section
300 ... Image output section
400 ... Sheet processing device (post-processing device)
S: Document sheet bundle S1: Document sheet

Claims (7)

A sheet bundle stacking table including a first stacking member and a second stacking member that are inclined with respect to a horizontal plane and stack a sheet bundle; and a support shaft that flexibly connects the first stacking member and the second stacking member;
A sheet bundle restricting member that is disposed below the sheet bundle stacking table in an inclined direction and receives an end of the sheet bundle stacked on the sheet bundle stacking table to restrict the position of the sheet bundle;
Vibration means for vibrating the first stacking member and the second stacking member,
A sheet bundle aligning device that aligns a sheet bundle by abutting an end portion of the sheet bundle against the sheet bundle regulating member by vibrating the sheet bundle stacking table,
A concave bending posture in which the surfaces of the first stacking member and the second stacking member are brought close to each other during the vibration operation of the sheet bundle stacking base or before the vibration operation is started , and the surface of the sheet bundle stacking base is formed into a concave shape, and The surface of the first stacking member and the second stacking member are arranged on the same virtual plane, and the stretching posture of extending the sheet bundle stacking table is alternately repeated at least once and stacked on the sheet bundle stacking table. A sheet bundle aligning apparatus characterized by aligning end portions of the sheet bundle. A sheet bundle stacking table including a first stacking member and a second stacking member that are inclined with respect to a horizontal plane and stack a sheet bundle; and a support shaft that flexibly connects the first stacking member and the second stacking member ;
A sheet bundle restricting member that is disposed below the sheet bundle stacking table in an inclined direction and receives an end of the sheet bundle stacked on the sheet bundle stacking table to restrict the position of the sheet bundle;
Vibration means for vibrating the first stacking member and the second stacking member ,
A sheet bundle aligning device that aligns a sheet bundle by abutting an end portion of the sheet bundle against the sheet bundle regulating member by vibrating the sheet bundle stacking table,
A concave bending posture in which the surfaces of the first stacking member and the second stacking member are brought close to each other during the vibration operation of the sheet bundle stacking base or before the vibration operation is started , and the surface of the sheet bundle stacking base is formed into a concave shape, and A convex bending posture in which the surfaces of the first stacking member and the second stacking member are moved away from each other and the surface of the sheet bundle stacking table is formed in a convex shape is alternately repeated at least once. A sheet bundle aligning device for aligning ends of stacked sheet bundles. In a reading apparatus in which a plurality of originals aligned by a sheet bundle aligning apparatus are fed one by one and read by a reading unit,
Wherein a sheet bundle aligning device, the reading is characterized by including a sheet bundle aligning device according to claim 1乃or claim 2 device. In an image forming apparatus for feeding a plurality of sheets aligned by a sheet bundle aligning apparatus one by one and forming an image by an image forming unit,
An image forming apparatus comprising the sheet bundle aligning apparatus according to claim 1 or 2 as the sheet bundle aligning apparatus. The image forming apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the sheet bundle aligning device is incorporated in a sheet bundle storage that stores the sheet bundle. 5. The image forming apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the sheet bundle aligning device is an intermediate tray that is disposed in the main body of the image forming apparatus and allows a sheet to pass therethrough. The image forming apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the sheet bundle aligning device is a discharge unit that is disposed outside the image forming apparatus main body and discharges the sheet.

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