JP5799652B2 - Paper processing apparatus and image forming system - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a paper processing apparatus that performs predetermined processing on a sheet-like recording medium (referred to as “paper” in the present specification) such as paper, transfer paper, printing paper, and OHP sheet that has been carried in, and The present invention relates to an image forming system including a sheet processing apparatus and an image forming apparatus such as a copying machine, a printer, a facsimile machine, or a digital multifunction peripheral.

  As an example of a sheet processing apparatus, for example, a technique described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2009-256028 is known. This technology maintains the retracted posture of the paper trailing edge guide during ejection, facilitates paper ejection by the paper trailing edge guide, and avoids problems related to ejection. Paper is ejected by a pair of paper ejection rollers. When this is done, the protruding portion of the paper trailing edge guide is kept pushed up by the paper. At this time, since the side edge of the paper trailing edge guide is in a position retracted from the path of paper conveyance, the paper conveyance is not hindered by the paper trailing edge guide, and when the paper is discharged from the paper discharge roller pair, Each paper trailing edge guide returns, its lower edge protrudes from the nip of the paper discharge roller pair to the paper stacking side, and the paper conveyance direction rear edge fed from the paper discharge roller pair is the side edge of the paper rear edge guide This prevents the reverse flow in the direction of the discharge roller pair. That is, in Patent Document 1, the paper trailing edge guide is moved to the retracted position by the paper when the staple is discharged, and the paper trailing edge guide returns and guides the trailing edge when the paper trailing edge comes out.

  However, in the technique described in Patent Document 1, the paper rear end guide requires a space for the front end portion to retreat, and the height of the machine for securing the space is required. Further, since the sheet is used for evacuation, there is a concern about damage to the sheet or problems due to the pushing down of the leading end of the sheet.

  Therefore, the problem to be solved by the present invention is to eliminate the need for a space for the guide to retreat and to cause damage to the paper.

In order to solve the above-described problems, the present invention provides a paper discharge unit that discharges paper, a stacking unit that stacks the discharged paper, and an alignment that aligns edges of the paper stacked on the stacking unit. Means, conveying means for conveying the discharged paper to the aligning means side, and a guide means that is movably provided to a first position and a second position below the first position and guides the paper. when, wherein the guide means, a sheet to be discharged paper by said paper discharge means when in the first position guides the sheet discharge direction, in conjunction with the proximity operation to the paper side of said conveying means A paper processing apparatus that moves to the second position and guides the paper conveyed by the conveying means to the alignment means when the second position is reached. The conveying means includes a hitting roller, Supporting the hitting roller and swinging supported on the spindle And a drive mechanism that swings and drives the hitting roller arm, and the guide means is supported by a fulcrum provided on the downstream side in the sheet conveying direction, swings in conjunction with the hitting roller arm, and The conveyance guide plate includes a conveyance guide plate in which a position close to the sheet is regulated by the second position by a stopper provided in a tapping roller arm, and the conveyance roller is driven in the process of being driven by the driving mechanism. After the plate is positioned at the second position, the plate is further lowered and contacts the upper surface of the sheet .

According to the present invention, there is no need for a space for the guide means to evacuate, and the paper can be prevented from being damaged.

1 is a diagram illustrating an outline of a system configuration of an image forming system according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a plan view of the sheet processing apparatus illustrated in FIG. 1. FIG. 2 is a front view illustrating a schematic configuration of the sheet processing apparatus illustrated in FIG. 1. 6 is a flowchart showing a paper discharge processing procedure in a shift mode (straight paper discharge). It is a flowchart which shows the process sequence at the time of a staple mode. FIG. 9 is an operation explanatory diagram illustrating an operation in a staple mode, showing a state in which a sheet is received from an entrance guide plate. FIG. 9 is an operation explanatory diagram illustrating an operation in a staple mode, and illustrates a state in which a sheet is moved downstream by a hitting roller. FIG. 10 is an operation explanatory diagram showing an operation in a staple mode, and shows a state in which a trailing end of a sheet is abutted against a rear end reference fence by a return roller and an alignment operation is performed in a conveyance direction. FIG. 9 is an operation explanatory diagram showing an operation in a staple mode, and shows a state when a sheet bundle is discharged onto a paper discharge tray. FIG. 9 is an operation explanatory diagram showing an operation in a staple mode, and shows a state when the trailing end of a bundle of sheets discharged onto a discharge tray is pressed. It is a figure which shows the structure and operation | movement of a unit provided with a hitting roller and a conveyance guide plate, and shows the detail of the state of FIG. It is a figure which shows the structure and operation | movement of a unit provided with the hitting roller and the conveyance guide plate, and shows the state where the second lever of the guide plate hits the stopper and the lowered position of the conveyance guide plate is regulated. It is a figure which shows the structure and operation | movement of a unit provided with a hitting roller and a conveyance guide plate, and shows the detail of the state of FIG. It is a block diagram which shows the control structure of the system which concerns on embodiment of this invention.

  In the present invention, an upper conveyance guide plate between the staple discharge roller and the discharge roller is provided so as to be able to move up and down. During normal conveyance of a sheet, the conveyance guide plate is in a raised position and functions as a sheet conveyance guide. When aligning the tray, the conveyance guide plate is lowered to the guide position, and functions as a guide for the trailing edge of the paper so that the trailing edge of the paper switched back at that position does not go toward the staple discharge roller. Features.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In the following description, equivalent parts are denoted by the same reference numerals, and overlapping descriptions are omitted as appropriate.

1. Overall Configuration FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an outline of a system configuration of an image forming system according to an embodiment of the present invention. In FIG. 1, the image forming system according to the present embodiment includes an image forming apparatus 100, a sheet processing apparatus 200, and an image reading apparatus 300.

  The image forming apparatus 100 is an indirect transfer type tandem color image forming apparatus. In the figure, an image forming unit 110 having a four-color image forming station 111 disposed substantially in the center thereof is adjacent to the lower side of the image forming unit 110. The optical writing unit 113 provided below, the paper feeding unit 120 provided below the image forming unit 110, and the paper feeding conveyance for conveying the paper picked up by the paper feeding unit 120 to the secondary transfer unit 140 and the fixing unit 150. A path (vertical conveyance path) 130, a paper discharge path 160 for conveying the paper on which the image is fixed to the paper processing apparatus 200, and double-sided conveyance for reversing the paper on which an image is formed on one side and forming an image on the other side A path 170 is provided.

  The image forming unit 110 includes a photosensitive drum for each color of YMCK of the image forming station 111, and a charging unit, a developing unit, a primary transfer unit, a cleaning unit, and a charge eliminating unit arranged along the outer periphery of the photosensitive drum. And an intermediate transfer belt 112 for intermediate transfer of an image formed on the photosensitive drum by a primary transfer unit, and an optical writing unit 113 for writing an image for each color on the photosensitive drum. The optical writing unit 113 is disposed below the image forming station 111, and the intermediate transfer belt 112 is disposed above the image forming station 111. The intermediate transfer belt 112 is rotatably supported by a plurality of support rollers, and one of the support rollers 114 is opposed to the secondary transfer roller 115 via the intermediate transfer belt 112 in the secondary transfer unit 140, and the intermediate transfer belt 112. The upper image can be secondarily transferred to the paper. The image forming process of the indirect transfer tandem color image forming apparatus is well known and is not directly related to the gist of the present invention, and thus detailed description thereof is omitted.

  The paper feeding unit 120 includes a paper feeding tray 121, a pickup roller 122, and a paper feeding / conveying roller 123, and feeds the paper picked up from the paper feeding tray 121 upward along the vertical conveying path 130. The fed sheet is transferred with an image by the secondary transfer unit 140 and sent to the fixing unit 150. The fixing unit 150 includes a fixing roller and a pressure roller, and heat and pressure are applied in a process in which the paper passes through the nip between the two, and the toner is fixed to the paper.

  A paper discharge conveyance path 160 and a double-sided conveyance path 170 are provided downstream of the fixing unit 150, both of which are branched in two directions by a branching claw 161 and conveyed to the paper processing apparatus 200 side, and a double-sided conveyance path 170. The transport path is selected according to the case where the transport path is transported. A branch conveyance roller 162 is provided in the immediate vicinity of the branch claw 161 on the upstream side in the sheet conveyance direction, and applies a conveyance force to the sheet.

  The sheet processing apparatus 200 is disposed inside the image forming apparatus 100 or mounted on a paper discharge tray (housing tray) 180 of the image forming apparatus 100 and is used for a predetermined image formed sheet conveyed from the image forming apparatus 100. And is stacked on the discharge tray 206 located on the most downstream side, which will be described in detail later. When the image reading apparatus 300 is provided as shown in FIG. 1, the sheet processing apparatus 200 is between the image forming apparatus 100 and the image reading apparatus 300, and is an upper surface of the casing of the image forming apparatus 100. The paper discharge tray 180 formed in the above-described manner is attached to a portion (inside the body) that was originally a space portion on the so-called housing tray. Thereby, space can be used effectively and space saving can be promoted.

  The image reading device 300 is a known device that optically scans an original set on a contact glass and reads an image on the original surface. Since the configuration and function of the image reading apparatus 300 itself are known and are not directly related to the gist of the present invention, detailed description thereof is omitted.

  The image forming apparatus 100 configured generally as described above generates image data used for writing based on original data read from the image reading apparatus 300 or print data transferred from an external PC or the like, and the image data Based on the data, optical writing is performed from the optical writing unit 113 to each photosensitive drum, and the images formed for each color at each image forming station 111 are sequentially transferred to the intermediate transfer belt 112, A color image in which four color images are superimposed on each other is formed. On the other hand, paper is fed from the paper feed tray 121 according to the image formation. The sheet is temporarily stopped at a registration roller position (not shown) immediately before the intermediate transfer unit 140, sent in time with the leading edge of the image on the intermediate transfer belt 112, secondarily transferred by the intermediate transfer unit 140, and sent to the fixing unit 150. It is sent.

  In the case of single-sided printing or after double-sided printing of double-sided printing, the paper on which the image is fixed by the fixing unit 150 is conveyed to the paper discharge path 160 side by the switching operation of the branching claw 161. It is conveyed to the double-sided conveyance path 170 side. The sheet transported to the duplex transport path 170 is reversed, sent to the last intermediate transfer unit 140, an image is formed on the other surface, and then returned to the paper discharge path 160 side. The paper transported to the paper discharge path 160 is transported to the paper processing device 200 and is subjected to predetermined paper processing by the paper processing device 200 or discharged to the paper discharge tray 206 without any processing.

2. 2. Paper Processing Device FIG. 2 is a plan view of the paper processing device 200, and FIG. 3 is a front view showing a schematic configuration. Both have shown the basic composition applied to this embodiment.
In FIG. 2, the sheet processing apparatus 200 includes an inlet roller pair 202, a rear end reference fence 212, jogger fences 213 and 214 on the rear side and front side, stapler 215, staple discharge roller 203, tapping roller from the upstream side in the sheet conveyance direction. 210, a paper discharge roller 205, a paper discharge driven roller 205a, a paper trailing edge press 208, a paper discharge tray movable portion 207, and a paper discharge tray 206.

  As can be seen from FIG. 3, the sheet processing apparatus 200 also includes an inlet guide plate 201, a staple tray 209, a rear end return roller 211, and a paper discharge opening / closing guide plate 204.

  That is, an entrance guide plate 201 that receives paper from the paper discharge conveyance path of the image forming apparatus 100 is disposed in the paper receiving unit of the paper processing apparatus 200, and the inlet roller pair 202 is disposed on the most upstream side in the paper conveyance direction of the inlet guide plate 201. And a staple discharge roller pair 203 having a function of shifting and discharging the paper to the discharge tray 206 on the most downstream side, and an inlet roller pair 202 and a staple discharge roller pair 203 by an inlet motor (not shown). The paper is conveyed along the entrance guide plate 201 by rotating the. The staple discharge roller pair 203 functions as a conveying unit. However, when the inlet roller pair 202 provided along the inlet guide plate 201 is not separated, the two carry the paper.

  The paper discharge operation is different between the shift mode in which the paper is shifted and discharged (also called the straight paper discharge mode because the paper is discharged as it is) and the staple mode in which a plurality of papers are bound and discharged. A description will be given by adding the configuration of each part for each mode.

2.1 Shift mode (straight delivery mode)
The shift mode is a mode in which the paper discharge position is shifted in a direction perpendicular to the paper transport direction every predetermined number of times when the paper is discharged, and the paper is sorted by this shift.

  The staple discharge roller pair 203 is provided at the most downstream end of the entrance guide plate 201, and is driven to reciprocate in a direction perpendicular to the paper transport direction by a shift motor (not shown) and functions as a so-called shift roller. That is, when paper is sorted in the shift mode, the paper moves in a direction perpendicular to the paper transport direction every predetermined number of sheets, and is discharged onto the paper discharge tray 206 with the paper transport direction shifted by the amount moved in the vertical direction. . The operation of shifting the paper transport direction by the amount moved in the vertical direction is a so-called shift operation. As a result, when the paper is stacked on the paper discharge tray 206, the paper discharge position is alternately shifted every predetermined number of sheets, and the paper is sorted. Is done. Note that the shift mechanism itself to be shifted is a known mechanism as shown in FIG. 4 of Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2002-241030, FIG. 3 of Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2002-154734, etc. Description is omitted.

  Further, a paper discharge opening / closing guide plate 204 and a paper discharge roller 205 are disposed downstream of the staple paper discharge roller pair 203. The paper discharge roller 205 is driven by a paper discharge motor (not shown), and the paper discharge opening / closing guide plate 204 can be moved up and down by a stepping motor (not shown), and paper discharge attached to the paper discharge roller 205 and the paper discharge opening / closing guide plate 204. The paper is nipped and conveyed by the driven roller 205 a, the paper is discharged to the paper discharge tray 206, and is stacked on the paper discharge tray 206.

  A paper presser 208 for pressing the paper stacked on the paper discharge tray 206 is disposed at the attachment portion of the paper discharge tray 206 to the main body of the paper processing apparatus 200. Paper press release is performed by turning on / off a solenoid (not shown). Operation and sheet pressing operation are performed. That is, the solenoid is turned on in accordance with the conveyance of the paper to release the pressing operation of the paper press 208, and when the paper passes the paper discharge roller 205, the solenoid is turned off to press the paper.

  The discharge tray 206 functions as a fixed discharge tray on the downstream side in the transport direction, and includes a movable tray section 207 on the upstream side. The movable tray unit 207 moves up and down by a tray DC motor and a cam / link mechanism (not shown). The movable tray portion 207 is pivotally supported with respect to the fixed-side paper discharge tray via a support shaft 207a with the upstream end as a rotational end, and the operating end of the cam / link mechanism is movable. The tray 207 is connected. As a result, the tray DC motor rotates, and the movable tray portion 207 swings around the support shaft 207a according to the rotation. When the number of sheets stacked on the movable tray 207 reaches a certain number, a tray DC motor is rotated by a command from a control unit described later, and the free end of the movable tray unit 207 is lowered. As a result, the distance from the nip of the pair of paper discharge rollers 205 and 205a to the paper stacking portion of the movable tray 207 is increased, and a large number of sheets can be stacked.

  In addition, a tray paper surface sensor (not shown) is arranged on the paper presser 207. If the tray paper surface sensor is OFF while the paper presser 207 is pressing the paper, the discharge tray 206 is raised until the paper surface sensor is turned ON. If the paper surface sensor is ON, the discharge tray 206 is lowered until the paper surface sensor is turned OFF, and is raised until it is turned ON again so that the height of the paper discharge tray 206 loaded with paper is kept constant. It has become. By repeating this operation, the sorted sheets are stacked on the paper discharge tray 206.

  FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing a processing procedure at this time. The control is executed by a CPU 401 described later. The paper discharge opening / closing guide plate 204 stands by at the home position. When receiving paper, the paper discharge opening / closing guide plate 204 moves to a position where the free end side (paper discharge driven roller 205a support side) is lowered, and the paper discharge tray The movable part 207 rises. When the paper is received from the entrance guide plate 201 in this state (step S101), the paper is conveyed by the entrance roller 202 and the staple paper discharge roller 203 (step S102), and the paper discharge opening / closing guide plate 204 is closed (step S103). Is discharged. In this state, the paper is transported by the paper discharge roller 205 (step S104), and after the trailing edge pressing member 208 is retracted (step S105), the paper is discharged to the paper discharge tray 206 (step S106).

  The discharged paper is pressed by the rear end press 208 at the rear end of the discharge tray movable portion 207 of the discharge tray 206 (step S107), and the paper discharge process ends. Note that the execution timing of the process for closing the paper discharge opening / closing guide plate 204 and the process for retracting the trailing edge retainer 208 may be reversed. Although not shown, the trailing edge press 208 detects the height of the paper surface, and the discharge tray movable part is lowered and raised every several sheets to the target paper surface height.

2.2 Staple Mode The staple mode is a mode in which a predetermined number of sheets are bound by a stapler when a sheet is discharged and discharged.

  Between the pair of staple discharge rollers 203 provided at the most downstream end of the entrance guide plate 201 and the discharge opening / closing guide plate 204 provided immediately before discharging to the discharge tray 206 is not shown. A hitting roller 210 that is driven in the vertical direction by a stepping motor is disposed. The hitting roller 210 is composed of an arm portion and a roller portion that move up and down, and the roller portion is rotationally driven in a direction opposite to the paper transport direction by a paper discharge motor (not shown).

  In the staple mode, when the trailing edge of the sheet passes the staple discharge roller pair 203, the roller 210 is moved down, the sheet is pressed against the staple tray 209 as a stacking unit, and the roller is further rotated to rotate the sheet. Switch back until the end hits the rear end reference fence 212. Further, a rear end return roller 211 driven by an inlet motor (not shown) is disposed above the rear end reference fence 212 to assist the switchback of the paper and align the paper transport direction. In this alignment, the paper reference is set to the rear end reference fence 212 by abutting against the rear end reference fence 212.

  When the paper switchback is completed, the jogger fence 213 arranged on the staple tray 209 moves so as to press the paper against the front reference fence 214 in a direction perpendicular to the paper transport direction, and hits the edge of the paper. Touch and align the paper to the reference position and align. At that time, the end surface on one side of the rear end of the sheet is inserted to the binding position of the staple of the stapler 215 as the binding means, and after the transport operation, the switchback operation, and the alignment operation of the designated number of sheets are completed, The binding process is performed. Therefore, in this embodiment, the rear end reference fence 212 and the jogger fence 213 function as an alignment unit. Note that the stapler 215 has moved to the binding position before performing the binding process by a moving drive mechanism (not shown) including a drive motor.

  After the binding process, the sheet discharge opening / closing guide plate 204 is lowered, the sheet bundle is sandwiched between the sheet discharge roller 205 and the sheet discharge driven roller 205a attached to the sheet discharge opening / closing guide plate 204, and the sheet discharge motor is driven to drive the sheet. The bundle is discharged to the discharge tray 206. After the discharge of the sheet bundle is started, the discharge motor is driven for a certain step, and then the solenoid is turned on to release the sheet press 208 and move in the direction of the arrow 223 (see FIG. 9) to prevent the discharge. Retreating to a position where it does not occur, and further lowering the discharge tray 206 by a certain amount (FIG. 9: direction of arrow 224). The sheet discharge guide plate 204 is raised at the timing when the rear end of the sheet bundle passes the bundle sheet discharge sensor, and the sheet discharge motor is stopped to prepare for receiving the next sheet. At the same timing, the solenoid is turned off to press the sheet.

  FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing the processing procedure at this time, and FIGS. 6 to 10 are operation explanatory views showing the operation at this time. When the paper 216 is received, as shown in FIG. 6, the free end side of the paper discharge opening / closing guide plate 204 (the paper discharge driven roller 205a support side) moves to a lowered position, and the paper discharge tray movable portion 207 is raised. When the sheet is received from the entrance guide plate 201 in this state (step S201), the sheet 216 is conveyed as indicated by the arrow 217 by the entrance roller 202 and the staple discharge roller 203 (step S202). At that time, the sheet is conveyed while being guided by the lower surfaces of the paper discharge opening / closing guide plate 204 and the conveyance guide plate 219. Next, the jogger fence 213 moves to the paper receiving position (step S203), the paper 216 is discharged onto the staple tray 209 (step S204), and as shown in FIG. Direction) (step S205).

  After that, as shown in FIG. 8, the trailing end of the sheet is abutted against the rear end reference fence by the return roller 211, and the alignment operation in the transport direction is performed (step S206). Accordingly, the sheet 216 is discharged and accumulated in a state where the leading end side is positioned on the discharge tray 206 and the trailing end side is positioned on the staple tray 209 and straddles the discharge roller 205. FIG. 6 shows a state where the next sheet is already stacked on the staple tray 209 and conveyed onto the aligned sheet bundle 218.

  When the alignment operation in the transport direction is completed, the jogger fence 213 is driven to bring the paper 216 to the near side reference fence 214, and the alignment operation in the direction orthogonal to the transport direction is performed (step S207). Step S206 is so-called vertical alignment, and step S207 is horizontal alignment. This operation is repeated from the first sheet to the final sheet (step S208). When the discharge and alignment operations are completed to the final sheet, the end of the sheet bundle is bound by the stapler 215 (step S209), as shown by an arrow 221 in FIG. Then, the discharge opening / closing guide plate 204 is closed (step S210), and the sheet bundle 218 is conveyed to the discharge tray 206 side by the discharge roller 205 and the discharge driven roller 205a as shown in FIG. 9 (step S211—arrow 222). .

  In the meantime, as shown in FIG. 9, the trailing edge press 208 is retracted from the sheet discharge tray 206 (step S212—arrow 223), the sheet discharge tray movable portion 207 is lowered (step S213—arrow 224), and the sheet bundle is discharged. It is discharged onto the paper tray 206 (step S214). After the trailing edge of the sheet bundle 218 falls, as shown in FIG. 10, the trailing edge presser 208 holds the trailing edge of the sheet bundle (step S215—arrow 226), and raises the discharge tray movable unit 207 to the paper surface height ( Step S216—Arrow 225) The process ends.

  FIG. 11 to FIG. 13 are diagrams showing the configuration and operation of a unit including a hitting roller 210 and a conveyance guide plate 219. In these drawings, this unit includes a tapping roller arm 228 that supports a tapping roller 210, a conveying guide plate 219, a tapping roller driving cam 227, a lever 229 of the tapping roller arm 228 (hereinafter referred to as a first lever), and a conveying guide. It basically comprises a lever 230 (hereinafter referred to as a second lever) of the plate 219 and a stopper 231.

  The first lever 229 is supported by the protrusion 227a of the tapping roller driving cam 227, and the second lever 230 is supported by the protrusion 219a of the tapping roller lever 229 (see FIG. 11). Further, the conveyance guide plate 219 and the second lever 230 are connected to each other by a support shaft 219b so as to be swingable. In the figure, reference numeral 228a denotes a support shaft that supports the hitting roller arm 228 in a swingable manner.

  When the hitting roller driving cam 227 is rotationally driven by a drive motor which is a driving source (not shown), the hitting roller arm 228 rotates in the clockwise direction in the drawing, and the hitting roller 210 is lowered along with this, and the conveyance guide plate 219 is also moved. Descend. The lowering limit of the conveyance guide plate 219 is determined by the second lever 230 hitting the stopper 231, which is the lowering position (guide position B) when the paper is vertically aligned, and no further lowering (FIG. 12). reference). The tapping roller 10 further descends from the rotation of the driving motor (see FIG. 13), contacts the paper, and the tapping roller 210 is rotated by a driving mechanism (not shown), thereby moving the paper to the rear end reference fence 212 side. .

  The positions of the hitting roller 210 and the conveyance guide plate 219 in FIGS. 6, 8, 9 and 10 correspond to the positions of the hitting roller 210 and the conveyance guide plate 219 in FIG. 11 (conveyance guide position A). The positions of the tapping roller 210 and the conveyance guide plate 219 correspond to the positions (guide position B) of the tapping roller 210 and the conveyance guide plate 219 in FIG. In the state of FIG. 6, the conveyance guide plate 219 functions as a guide (conveyance guide position A) when the paper P is discharged to the staple tray 209, and in the state of FIG. It functions as a guide (guide position B) when moving to the 12 side.

  In the present embodiment, the guide means is constituted by the plate-shaped conveyance guide plate 219. However, instead of the conveyance guide plate 219, for example, it may be constituted by a lever and a roller or roller provided on the lever. When configured by rollers or roller rows, a plurality of roller rows or rollers arranged in a direction orthogonal to the transport direction can be provided and guided in the transport direction.

3. Control Device FIG. 14 is a block diagram showing a control configuration of the system according to the present embodiment.
In the figure, control of the image forming apparatus 100 is executed by an image forming apparatus control unit 410 having a built-in CPU 411, ROM 412, RAM 413, nonvolatile RAM 414, serial I / F 415, timer 416, and the like.

  The program code for control is stored in the ROM 412, and the CPU 411 expands the program code in the RAM 413, stores data necessary for control in the RAM 413, and uses the RAM as a work area, and defines the program code defined by the program code. To control each part.

  The image forming apparatus control unit 410 includes a motor used in the image forming unit 110 such as a photosensitive member, various DC loads 450 such as various motors and clutches in the sheet feeding unit 120, the sheet feeding conveyance path 130, and the double-side conveyance path 170, Various AC loads 470 and various sensors 460 such as a temperature sensor for detecting the temperature of the fixing roller are connected. Further, the image reading apparatus 300 and the operation display unit 440 are connected, and each unit is controlled via the image forming apparatus control unit 407.

  The control of the sheet processing apparatus 200 is executed by a sheet processing apparatus control unit 400 including a CPU 401, a ROM 402, a RAM 403, a serial I / F 404, a timer 405, and the like. The program code for control is stored in the ROM 402, and the CPU 401 expands the program code in the RAM 403, stores data necessary for control in the RAM 403, and uses the RAM as a work area, and the control defined by the program code. And various DC loads 420 are controlled.

  The image forming apparatus 100 and the sheet processing apparatus 200 send and receive commands necessary for sheet conveyance control via the serial I / Fs 415 and 404, and the CPU 401 of the sheet processing apparatus 200 receives the commands and sheet position information obtained from the various sensors 430. Accordingly, the drive control of the paper discharge opening / closing guide plate 204, the drive control of the staple paper discharge roller 203, the shift drive control of the shift mechanism (not shown), the control of the height position of the paper discharge tray 206, and the rotation of the paper discharge tray movable portion 207 Control, rotation control of the paper trailing edge press 208, alignment control of the jogger fence 213, alignment control by the hitting roller 210, swing control of the hitting roller arm 228 by the solenoid 229, elevation control of the paper discharge driven roller 205a by the link, paper ejection Paper abutting control by the contact roller 232 and the hitting roller 210, the stapler 215 Various controls including the binding control are executed.

  In the embodiment, the sheet processing apparatus 200 is provided in the space between the image reading apparatus 300 and the main body having the image forming unit of the image forming apparatus 100. However, the mounting space of the sheet processing apparatus 200 is the implementation space. For example, in the case of a form that is discharged from the side surface of the main body of the image forming apparatus 100, it is installed on the side surface of the main body. In any case, the installation position is set according to the main body shape, main body structure, and paper discharge position of the image forming apparatus 100. However, the configuration, operation, and control of the sheet processing apparatus 200 are the same regardless of the position at which the sheet processing apparatus 200 is installed on the paper discharge tray (casing tray) of the image forming apparatus 100.

  Thus, according to the present embodiment, the following effects can be obtained.

(1) An upper conveyance guide plate 219 between the staple paper discharge roller 203 and the paper discharge roller 205 is provided so as to be movable up and down. During normal conveyance of a sheet, the conveyance guide plate 219 is located at a raised position and guides the conveyance of the sheet. (Conveyance guide position A: first position ), and when aligning the staple tray 209, the conveyance guide plate 219 is in the lowered guide position B (second position) and the sheet to be switched back It functions as a guide for the trailing edge of the sheet so that the trailing edge does not go toward the staple discharge roller 203. As a result, it is not necessary to separately provide a back end guide member for preventing backflow when the sheet is returned to the staple tray 209. As a result, cost reduction and space saving can be promoted.

(2) Since the conveyance guide plate 219 moves up and down in conjunction with the vertical movement of the tapping roller 210, complicated control and an extra driving source are unnecessary. Thereby, cost reduction and space saving can be promoted.

(3) The lowering position (guide position B) of the conveyance guide plate 218 is constant regardless of the number of sheets stacked on the staple tray 209, and the lever of the conveyance guide plate 219 before the tapping roller 210 descends and contacts the sheet. 230 hits the stopper 231 and reaches the lowered position. As a result, the guide shape is always the same regardless of the number of sheets stacked on the staple tray 209, and a stable return operation can be performed.

(4) Since the raising / lowering operation of the conveyance guide plate 219 is performed in accordance with the vertical movement of the tapping roller 210, the rear end of the conveyance guide plate 219 is changed when changing the timing and time of the operation of returning the sheet by the tapping roller 210. It is not necessary to consider this control, and it is easy to change the timing or time of the return operation.

(5) Since the hitting roller 210 comes into contact with the paper after the lowering operation of the transport guide plate 219 is completed, the guide shape is always the same when the paper is returned, and a stable return operation can be performed.

(6) The lifting and lowering operation of the transport guide plate 219 is performed by a swinging operation with the support shaft 219b on the downstream side of the transport guide plate 219 as a fulcrum, so that the space above the transport guide plate 219 can be saved.

(7) Since the sheet processing apparatus 200 can be mounted on a portion (inside the cylinder) that originally was a space on the housing tray between the image forming apparatus 100 and the image reading apparatus 300, the space can be effectively used. Space saving can be promoted.

(8) The conveyance guide plate 219 functions as a normal paper guide when retracted upward, and is lifted and lowered by a rotating operation from a remote fulcrum 219b. Therefore, even when the height of the machine is restricted, It is not necessary to move above the position of the paper guide, and space saving can be promoted.

(9) Since the conveyance guide plate 219 is not driven by the paper, there is no possibility that the paper is damaged.

Incidentally, the reference numeral 216 in the embodiment form in the appended claims, to the product placing means staple tray 209, the sheet discharge unit staple sheet discharging rollers 203, the matching means to the rear end reference fence 21 2, conveying means Drives to the hitting roller 210, the guide means to the transport guide plate 219 , the first position to the transport guide position A , the second position to the guide position B, the spindle to the reference numeral 228a, and the hitting roller arm to the reference numeral 228. The mechanism corresponds to the tapping roller drive cam 227, the stopper corresponds to the reference numeral 231, the fulcrum corresponds to the reference numeral 219b, and the image forming system corresponds to the image forming apparatus 100 and the sheet processing apparatus 200, respectively.

  Furthermore, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various modifications can be made without departing from the spirit of the present invention, and all the technical matters included in the technical idea described in the claims are all included. The subject of the present invention. The above embodiment shows a preferable example, but those skilled in the art can realize various alternatives, modifications, variations, and improvements from the contents disclosed in this specification, These are included in the technical scope described in the appended claims.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 100 Image forming apparatus 200 Paper processing apparatus 203 Staple paper discharge roller 205 Paper discharge roller 205a Paper discharge driven roller 206 Paper discharge tray 209 Staple tray 210 Tapping roller 212 Rear end reference fence 215 Stapler 216 Paper 218 Paper bundle 219 Conveyance guide plate 219b 227 Tapping roller driving cam 228 Tapping roller arm 228a Support shaft 231 Stopper 401 CPU
B Guide position

JP 2009-256028 A

Claims (2)

A paper discharge means for discharging the paper;
Stacking means for stacking the discharged paper;
Aligning means for aligning edges of sheets stacked on the stacking means;
Conveying means for conveying the discharged paper to the alignment means side;
A guide means that is movably provided to a first position and a second position below the first position, and that guides the paper;
Equipped with a,
When the guide means is in the first position, the paper discharged by the paper discharge means is guided in the paper discharge direction, and the second position is interlocked with the movement of the transport means toward the paper side. moving, a sheet processing apparatus for guiding a sheet conveyed by said conveying means to said matching means side when in said second position,
The transporting means includes a hitting roller, a hitting roller arm that supports the hitting roller and is swingably supported by the support shaft, and a drive mechanism that drives the hitting roller arm to swing.
The guide means is supported by a fulcrum provided on the downstream side in the paper conveyance direction, swings in conjunction with the hitting roller arm, and a position on the side close to the paper by the stopper provided in the hitting roller arm is Including a transport guide plate regulated at the second position;
The sheet processing apparatus , wherein the hitting roller is further lowered and contacts the upper surface of the sheet after the conveyance guide plate is positioned at the second position in the process of being driven by the driving mechanism . An image forming system comprising the sheet processing apparatus according to claim 1.

Images