JP5716405B2 - Sheet processing device - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a sheet processing apparatus that is provided in a post-processing apparatus or the like of an image forming apparatus and processes a conveyed sheet. More specifically, the present invention relates to a sheet processing apparatus for aligning and stacking a plurality of sheets into a sheet bundle state.

  Conventionally, a post-processing apparatus for performing post-processing on a sheet on which an image is formed by an image forming apparatus has been used. Examples of post-processing include sorting processing, stapling processing, paper folding processing, and punching processing. Among these, when stapling is performed, first, a plurality of sheets to be bound together must be aligned and stacked.

  For this purpose, some conventional sheet processing apparatuses include a paddle member provided with a plurality of blades on a rotating shaft and a stacker having an abutting plate that abuts the end of the sheet. For example, after the image formation is completed, the sheets sent toward the apparatus are sequentially sent to the stacker. Then, the blades of the rotating paddle member are abutted against the abutting plate and sequentially stacked. That is, the sheet is aligned with one end at the position of the abutting plate (see, for example, Patent Document 1). The paddle member of the apparatus of this document can be changed in distance from the stacker according to the number of stacked sheets.

JP 2004-284756 A

  However, in the conventional sheet processing apparatus described above, depending on the state of the sheet, the sheet and the blade may be in surface contact. For example, when the sheet itself has a curled wrinkle, or when the sheet is bent due to a shift in the mounting position, the sheet partially rises. If so, the blades are likely to come into surface contact with the sheet. When the surface contact is made, noise is generated at the time of the contact, which causes a problem that the user feels uncomfortable.

  The present invention has been made to solve the problems of the conventional sheet processing apparatus. That is, an object of the present invention is to provide a sheet processing apparatus that can be used comfortably while suppressing noise during contact regardless of the state of the sheet.

In order to solve this problem, a sheet processing apparatus according to an aspect of the present invention is a sheet processing apparatus that receives and aligns sheets one by one, and includes a stacker that receives sheets placed on an upper surface, and one of the stackers. A paddle member having a plurality of blades, which is disposed above the stacker and conveys the sheet toward the regulation unit by rotation, and a rotation of the paddle member. A paddle holding member for holding the rotation axis of the paddle member, and a paddle holding member for holding the rotating shaft of the paddle member, and having a lower convex surface that does not protrude from the circle of the locus drawn by the rotation of the paddle member when viewed from the axial direction of the shaft member, the lower surface have a biasing member for biasing in a direction to approach the top of the stacker, a shall have protrusions in a direction parallel to the rotation axis elongated are formed on the lower surface.

According to the sheet treatment apparatus of the present invention, the sheet is conveyed by the blades of the paddle member and is placed on the stacker at a position where it is abutted against the restricting portion. The present invention further includes a paddle holding member that holds the rotating shaft of the paddle member. Since this paddle holding member has a lower surface which is a downward convex surface and is urged by the urging member, the lower surface can be brought into contact with the sheet. However, the lower surface is a convex surface that does not protrude from the circle of the locus drawn by the tip of the blade due to the rotation of the paddle member. Therefore, when the blade contacts the sheet, it lifts up or becomes a very light pressure contact. That is, the sheet is pressed by the lower surface to such an extent that the conveyance by the blades is not hindered. Therefore, it is a seat treatment device that can be used comfortably while suppressing noise during contact regardless of the state of the seat. Furthermore, if it is such, the convex part of a lower surface will contact a sheet | seat. That is, the contact area when viewed in the direction parallel to the rotation axis is small. Therefore, even if there is a paddle holding member, there is no obstacle to the alignment operation in the sheet width direction.

A sheet processing apparatus according to another aspect of the present invention for solving this problem is a sheet processing apparatus that receives and aligns sheets one by one, and includes a stacker that receives sheets placed on an upper surface, a stacker A restricting portion provided at one end and against which the end of the sheet is abutted; a paddle member having a plurality of blades which is disposed above the stacker and conveys the sheet toward the restricting portion by rotation; and a paddle member A paddle holding member for holding the rotation axis of the paddle member, and a paddle holding member for holding the rotation shaft of the paddle member, and having a lower surface that is a downward convex surface that does not protrude from the circle of the locus drawn by the rotation of the paddle member as viewed in the axial direction of the rotation shaft the holding member, the lower surface is perforated and a biasing member for biasing in a direction to approach the top of the stacker, place the upstream in the conveying direction of the sheet than the lower surface in the paddle holding member In a shall be formed the distal end surface for guiding a sheet toward the upper surface of the stacker. In this case, the sheet conveyed toward the paddle holding member is guided by the front end surface and guided toward the upper surface of the stacker.

Further, in the present invention, the paddle holding member swings around a rotation axis different from the rotation axis of the paddle member, and the lower surface is a part of a cylindrical surface coaxial with the rotation axis of the paddle member. desirable.
If this is the case, the same pressing force can be obtained regardless of the number of sheets placed on the stacker. Further, even if the angle of the paddle holding member with respect to the sheet changes due to the swing, the contact state between the lower surface and the sheet hardly changes.

Furthermore, in the present invention, it is desirable that the coefficient of friction with respect to the lower sheet is smaller than the coefficient of friction with respect to the blade sheet.
If it is such, even if the lower surface is in contact with the sheet, it is easy to convey the sheet by the blades.

  According to the sheet processing apparatus of the present invention, it is possible to use comfortably by suppressing noise at the time of contact regardless of the state of the sheet.

It is a perspective view which shows a part of sheet processing apparatus of this form. It is a side view of a sheet processing apparatus. It is a perspective view which shows a paddle holding member. It is explanatory drawing which shows the relationship between the external shape of a paddle holding member, and a paddle member. It is a side view of a sheet processing apparatus.

  DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, the best mode for embodying the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the present embodiment, the present invention is applied to a sheet processing apparatus provided in an image forming apparatus or the like for aligning and stacking sheets.

  The sheet processing apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment includes a paddle member 11, a paddle holding member 12, and a stacker 13, as shown in part in FIGS. The sheet processing apparatus 1 is for aligning the conveyed sheets and placing them on the upper surface of the stacker 13. The paddle member 11 has three blades 11a. FIG. 2 is a side view seen from the right front side of FIG. In FIG. 2, the paddle member 11 shows only two tip portions of the blades 11a.

  The sheet is conveyed to the sheet processing apparatus 1 from the upper right in FIG. 1 to the lower left in the drawing above each member shown in the drawing. Then, the conveyed sheet changes its direction as indicated by an arrow S in FIG. 2 and is sent toward the paddle member 11 and the paddle holding member 12. The conveyance so far is performed by the conveyance unit 15 shown on the left side in FIG. 1 and on the back side in FIG. The transport unit 15 is the same as that conventionally used, and detailed description thereof is omitted here.

  Further, the stacker 13 has a wall portion at the right end in FIG. The conveyed sheet enters between the paddle member 11 or the paddle holding member 12 and the stacker 13. And it aligns by the front-end | tip part of a sheet | seat contacting this regulation part 13a. That is, the paddle member 11 is for sending the sheet toward the regulating portion 13a of the stacker 13 by the blades 11a. Note that the sheet processing apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment aligns the sheets on the stacker 13 not only in the transport direction but also in the width direction orthogonal to the transport direction. The configuration and operation for the alignment in the width direction are the same as those in the prior art, and a description thereof is omitted here.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the paddle member 11 is connected to an adjacent paddle holding member 12 by a rotating shaft 21. The rotating shaft 21 is held by the paddle holding member 12. The paddle member 11 is attached to the rotation shaft 21 so as to be rotatable. On the other hand, the paddle holding member 12 is rotatably attached to the support shaft 22. The support shaft 22 is disposed in a plane parallel to the upper surface of the stacker 13. The support shaft 22 is fixedly provided in the machine at a location different from the rotation shaft 21. The rotating shaft 21 is an axis parallel to the support shaft 22.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the paddle member 11 is rotationally driven by a driving member 24 provided on the support shaft 22. The driving force of the driving member 24 is transmitted to the paddle member 11 through the belt 25. By driving the drive member 24, the paddle member 11 rotates in the counterclockwise direction in FIG. 2 (arrow P). That is, the blade 11a moves toward the restricting portion 13a along the upper surface of the stacker 13 at the rotational position on the side in contact with the sheet (lower side in the drawing). The blade 11a is made of a material that is flexible to some extent.

  Since the support shaft 22 and the rotation shaft 21 are located apart from each other as shown in FIG. 1, the paddle member 11 is swung with respect to the support shaft 22 by the paddle holding member 12. The paddle holding member 12 is urged counterclockwise in FIG. 2 around the support shaft 22 by an urging member 29 provided on the support shaft 22. In other words, in the arrangement of this figure, the area around the rotating shaft 21 of the paddle holding member 12 is urged approximately downward toward the upper surface of the stacker 13 (arrow Q).

  The paddle holding member 12 of this embodiment is integrally formed in a shape as shown in FIG. Hereinafter, in the paddle holding member 12, the side attached to the support shaft 22 is referred to as a rear end side, and the side where the rotary shaft 21 is attached is referred to as a front end side. On the rear end side of the paddle holding member 12, a through hole 31 for penetrating the support shaft 22 is formed. Further, a through hole 32 for penetrating and fixing the rotary shaft 21 is formed on the tip side of the paddle holding member 12. Here, the through hole 32 is a D-shaped hole whose edge is partially linear.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the paddle holding member 12 has a shape protruding from the through hole 32 to the outer peripheral side on the tip side. The overhanging portion has a shape of a substantially cylindrical surface (a part in the circumferential direction) having a certain width in the axial direction of the rotating shaft 21. The lower surface 34 faces the upper surface of the stacker 13 when the paddle holding member 12 is attached to the support shaft 22 (see FIGS. 1 and 2). The width of the lower surface 34 in the axial direction is, for example, about half of the width of the blade 11 a of the paddle member 11.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 3, a plurality of ribs 35 are formed on the outer surface of the lower surface 34. The ribs 35 are long convex portions parallel to each other that are long in a direction parallel to the support shaft 22 when the support shaft 22 is attached to the through hole 31. Therefore, when viewed in the direction shown in FIG. 2, the contact portion between the paddle holding member 12 and the upper surface of the stacker 13 is only the apex of the rib 35 and is a very small range. Therefore, even if a sheet is placed on the upper surface of the stacker 13 and the lower surface 34 is pressed against the sheet, the sheet can move relatively easily in a direction parallel to the support shaft 22. That is, the rib 35 does not become an obstacle to alignment in the width direction of the sheet.

  As will be described later, the paddle holding member 12 may be slightly lifted against the urging of the urging member 29. In other words, the paddle holding member 12 may be in a position slightly rotated in the clockwise direction in FIG. In this way, a range including all locations facing the stacker 13 in all possible arrangements of the paddle holding member 12 is the lower surface 34. As shown in FIG. 3, a front end surface 37 on which no rib 35 is formed is formed on the left side in the drawing from the lower surface 34 of the paddle holding member 12.

  Next, the shape when the lower surface 34 and the front end surface 37 are viewed in the axial direction of the rotary shaft 21 will be described. As described above, the axial direction of the rotating shaft 21 is a direction parallel to the upper surface of the stacker 13. The positional relationship between the outer shape of the paddle holding member 12 and the paddle member 11 viewed in the axial direction of the rotating shaft 21 is shown in FIG. In this figure, the internal shape of the paddle holding member 12 is omitted.

  As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the lower surface 34 has a shape that is a part of a cylindrical surface centering on the rotation shaft 21 except for the rib 35. A circle R1 indicated by a two-dot chain line in FIG. 4 is a virtual circle obtained by extending the arc of the lower surface 34. On the other hand, a circle R <b> 2 indicated by a two-dot chain line in FIG. 4 is a virtual circle drawn by the tip of the blade 11 a by the rotation of the paddle member 11. As shown in FIG. 4, the circle R1 and the circle R2 are coaxial circles, and the radius of the circle R1 is slightly smaller than the radius of the circle R2.

  That is, the lower surface 34 is a downward convex surface that does not protrude from the virtual circle R2. With the rotation of the paddle member 11, the tip of the blade 11a draws a circle with a small diameter that is coaxial with the lower surface. The height of the rib is not as great as the difference in diameter between the virtual circle R1 and the circle R2. Therefore, the tip of the blade 11 a protrudes below the paddle holding member 12 at the lower surface 34. Therefore, in this range, the tip end of the blade 11 a comes into contact with the sheet placed on the upper surface of the stacker 13.

  Further, as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the tip end surface 37 of the outer peripheral surface of the paddle holding member 12 also has a shape of a part of a cylindrical surface of a circle different from the circle R1. That is, the tip surface 37 is an arc having a shorter radius than the lower surface 34. That is, there is no portion where the sheet is caught at the tip portion (tip surface 37) of the paddle holding member 12. Therefore, even if the sheet conveyed as shown by the arrow S in FIG. 2 contacts the leading end surface 37, it is smoothly guided toward the stacker 13. In addition, the shape of the front end surface 37 should just be connected smoothly with the lower surface 34, and is not restricted to a cylindrical surface. Moreover, even if it is a cylindrical surface, the center does not need to be the rotating shaft 21.

  The sheet processing apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment drives the driving member 24 in accordance with the conveyance of the sheet. Accordingly, the paddle member 11 rotates counterclockwise in FIG. Further, the paddle holding member 12 is urged counterclockwise by the urging member 29 in the drawing. Therefore, the lower surface 34 of the paddle holding member 12 is urged toward the upper surface of the stacker 13. When one of the blades 11 a comes into contact with the sheet by the rotation of the paddle member 11, the paddle holding member 12 is slightly lifted together with the paddle member 11 against the biasing of the biasing member 29. That is, the paddle holding member 12 is slightly lifted from time to time by the rotation of the paddle member 11. Alternatively, even if the paddle holding member 12 is not lifted, the pressure contact force of the paddle holding member 12 to the sheet is reduced.

  Further, in the sheet processing apparatus 1 of the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 2, the sheet conveyed from the conveying unit 15 is guided by the leading end surface 37 and moves toward the upper surface of the stacker 13. As described above, since the paddle holding member 12 is sometimes lifted or the pressure contact force is reduced, the sheet can enter between the paddle holding member 12 and the stacker 13. The sheet that has entered between the paddle holding member 12 and the stacker 13 is conveyed rightward in FIG. 2 by the blade 11a. As a result, the leading end of the sheet is abutted against the restricting portion 13a.

  The sheet placed on the stacker 13 in this manner is pressed against the upper surface of the stacker 13 by the lower surface 34 of the paddle holding member 12 while the paddle holding member 12 is not lifted. In other words, the sheet is pressed against the stacker 13 by the paddle holding member 12 at a position immediately before contacting the blade 11a, so there is no possibility of contacting the blade 11a in a lifted state. Further, at the same time as the blades 11a are separated from the sheet, the paddle holding member 12 contacts the sheet. When the sheet hits the restricting portion 13a, the paddle member 11 stops rotating. The second and subsequent sheets are also conveyed in the same manner and stacked on the upper surface of the already placed sheet.

  When the number of sheets to be aligned is large, a certain number of sheets are placed on the upper surface of the stacker 13. FIG. 5 shows a state in which a new sheet is received thereon. The paddle holding member 12 is rotated about the support shaft 22 and lifted by the thickness of the sheet that has already been placed. Even in this case, the lower surface 34 is in contact with the uppermost sheet on the stacker 13.

  Since the lower surface 34 has a shape forming a part of a cylindrical surface based on the circle R1 centered on the rotation shaft 21, the protruding length of the blade 11a from the lower surface 34 is not changed. That is, regardless of the thickness of the sheet on the stacker 13, the distance between the newly fed sheet and the paddle member 11 is kept constant. That is, the paddle member 11 is in contact with the sheet only at the tip of the blade 11a. Accordingly, the sheet conveying force by the blades 11a is constant regardless of the thickness of the sheet placed.

  When all of the sheets to be aligned are collected at a position where they are in contact with the restricting portion 13a of the stacker 13, they are then aligned in a direction (width direction) parallel to the restricting portion 13a. Since the rib 35 is formed on the lower surface 34 of the paddle holding member 12, the resistance to movement of the sheet in the width direction is small as described above. Therefore, alignment in the width direction is easy. It is further preferable if the friction coefficient between the lower surface 34 and the sheet is smaller than the friction coefficient between the blade 11a of the paddle member 11 and the sheet. The alignment in the width direction is easier. Thereafter, the sheet is sent to a subsequent process as a matched sheet bundle.

  As described in detail above, according to the sheet processing apparatus 1 of the present embodiment, the paddle holding member 12 is provided adjacent to the paddle member 11, and these are integrally rotated toward the upper surface of the stacker 13. It is energized. Furthermore, the lower surface 34 of the paddle holding member 12 has an arc shape that is coaxial with the tip of the blade 11 a of the paddle member 11 and has a slightly smaller radius. Therefore, while the blade 11a of the paddle member 11 is not in contact with the sheet, the lower surface 34 is in contact with the sheet, so that there is no possibility that the sheet is lifted. Further, the time during which the lower surface 34 is separated from the sheet is constant even if the number of sheets placed is changed. As a result, the sheet processing apparatus can be used comfortably while suppressing noise during contact regardless of the state of the sheet.

In addition, this form is only a mere illustration and does not limit this invention at all. Therefore, the present invention can naturally be improved and modified in various ways without departing from the gist thereof.
For example, in the above embodiment, the paddle member 11 and the paddle holding member 12 are swung around the support shaft 22 by the urging of the urging member 29, and are thereby pressed against the upper surface of the sheet. However, the paddle holding member 12 is not limited to swinging, but can be configured to be pressed against the sheet by linear movement.
Further, for example, in the above embodiment, the paddle member 11 and the paddle holding member 12 are provided adjacent to each other, but they may be arranged at positions slightly apart in the axial direction.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Sheet processing apparatus 11 Paddle member 11a Blade | wing 12 Paddle holding member 13 Stacker 13a Control part 29 Energizing member 34 Lower surface 35 Rib 37 Front end surface

Claims (4)

In sheet processing equipment that accepts and aligns sheets one by one,
A stacker that receives a sheet placed on the top surface;
A regulating portion provided at one end of the stacker and against which the end of the sheet is abutted;
A paddle member having a plurality of blades which is disposed above the stacker and conveys the sheet toward the regulating portion by rotation;
When viewed in the axial direction of the rotation axis of the paddle member, the paddle member has a lower surface that is a downward convex surface that does not protrude from the locus circle drawn by the tip of the blade by rotation of the paddle member, and holds the rotation axis of the paddle member A paddle holding member to
The paddle holding member, have a biasing member to the lower surface is urged in a direction approaching the upper surface of the stacker,
Sheet processing apparatus characterized that you have been protrusions of elongate shape formed in a direction parallel to said rotation axis to said lower surface. In sheet processing equipment that accepts and aligns sheets one by one,
A stacker that receives a sheet placed on the top surface;
A regulating portion provided at one end of the stacker and against which the end of the sheet is abutted;
A paddle member having a plurality of blades which is disposed above the stacker and conveys the sheet toward the regulating portion by rotation;
When viewed in the axial direction of the rotation axis of the paddle member, the paddle member has a lower surface that is a downward convex surface that does not protrude from the locus circle drawn by the tip of the blade by rotation of the paddle member, and holds the rotation axis of the paddle member A paddle holding member to
The paddle holding member, have a biasing member to the lower surface is urged in a direction approaching the upper surface of the stacker,
Wherein the upstream position on the sheet conveying direction than the lower surface in the paddle holding member, a sheet processing apparatus which is characterized that you have distal end face is formed to guide a sheet toward the upper surface of the stacker. In the sheet processing apparatus according to claim 1 or 2 ,
The paddle holding member swings around a rotation axis different from the rotation axis of the paddle member;
The sheet processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the lower surface is a part of a cylindrical surface coaxial with a rotation axis of the paddle member. In the sheet processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3,
The sheet processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a friction coefficient of the lower surface sheet is smaller than a friction coefficient of the blade sheet.

Images