JP6024717B2 - Sheet post-processing device - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a sheet post-processing apparatus mounted on an image forming apparatus.

Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2004-228561 discloses a configuration of a sheet post-processing apparatus that performs post-processing such as stapling on a sheet discharged from an image forming apparatus.
The sheet post-processing apparatus is arranged so that the alignment tray and the stack tray are arranged in the discharge direction of the sheets discharged from the image forming apparatus, and a sheet bundle composed of a plurality of sheets is temporarily placed on the alignment tray. Then, the sheet bundle is sandwiched between the alignment plate on the front side of the apparatus and the alignment plate on the back side of the apparatus and aligned in the sheet width direction. Then, after stapling is performed on the aligned sheet bundle, the post-staple sheet bundle is transferred from the alignment tray to a stack tray disposed on the side thereof and stored. The user can take out the sheet bundle loaded and accommodated in the stack tray.

JP 2002-128364 A

However, in the configuration of the above-described Patent Document 1, the size of the sheet post-processing apparatus inevitably increases in the alignment direction of the alignment tray and the stack tray, specifically, in the left-right direction when viewed from the front side of the apparatus. In order to avoid this, for example, it may be considered that a stack tray is arranged on the front side of the apparatus with respect to the alignment tray.
In the case of adopting this configuration, a mechanism for transferring the sheet on the alignment tray to the front side of the apparatus is required. As this transfer mechanism, for example, the following configuration can be adopted.

  That is, the alignment tray is composed of two partial trays arranged in the left-right direction when viewed from the front side of the apparatus. Specifically, of the two partial trays, a downstream side in the sheet discharge direction of a sheet discharged from the image forming apparatus is a first tray, and an upstream side is a second tray. The first tray and the second tray can be shifted to each other between a connected state aligned in the left-right direction and a divided state in which the first tray is higher in height than the second tray.

For the second tray, the first alignment member is disposed on each of the front side and the back side of the apparatus, and for the first tray, the second alignment member is disposed only on the back side of the apparatus.
In such a configuration, when a sheet is placed on the second tray when the first tray and the second tray are in the connected state, the sheet is moved by the first alignment members on the front side and the back side of the apparatus. Align in the width direction across

After transporting the aligned sheet from the first tray onto the second tray, only the second tray is raised to shift to the split state, and the sheet on the second tray is pushed out to the front side of the apparatus by the second alignment member. To be accommodated in a stack tray on the front side of the apparatus. Staple binding for the sheet bundle is executed immediately after the alignment is completed.
However, when the above-described transport mechanism is employed, the sheet alignment and push-out operations are performed separately, so that a drive mechanism (such as a motor) for moving the first alignment member and a second alignment member are moved. It is necessary to separately arrange the drive mechanism.

Arranging the drive mechanisms separately increases the cost, and there is a problem that a space for installing them is required, leading to an increase in the size of the apparatus. Also, if the amount of heat generated during driving of a plurality of motors increases and the temperature in the apparatus rises, a cooling device is necessary only for that purpose, and the drive mechanism cannot be simplified.
The problems as described above are not limited to the configuration in which the stack tray is disposed on the front side of the apparatus with respect to the alignment tray, but includes, for example, a configuration in which the stack tray is disposed on the diagonally front side. Then, in general, a sheet post-processing apparatus that requires a reduction in apparatus size in the left-right direction may occur.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above-described problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a sheet post-processing apparatus capable of downsizing the apparatus and simplifying a drive mechanism.

  In order to achieve the above object, a sheet post-processing apparatus according to the present invention is a sheet post-processing apparatus that aligns sheets discharged from an image forming apparatus and then accommodates them in a paper discharge tray, and is in a connected state. And an alignment tray including a first tray and a second tray that can be divided and switched to a state in which the relative arrangement is displaced, and can move on the first tray in a direction opposite to the sheet alignment direction. A first aligning member, a second aligning member movable on the second tray in the same direction as the first aligning member, a conveying means for conveying the sheet on the second tray to the first tray, Drive means for moving the first alignment member, and the first tray and the second tray are arranged in a direction orthogonal to the alignment direction, and when aligning the sheets on the second tray, The first tray and the second tray When the ray is connected, the first alignment member engages with the second alignment member, and the second alignment member operates together with the first alignment member as the first alignment member moves in the alignment direction. Then, after the alignment is completed, the sheet on the second tray is conveyed to the first tray, and the first tray and the second tray are divided and the relative arrangement is shifted to a shifted state. When the engagement is released, the sheet on the first tray is pushed out in the alignment direction by the movement of only the first alignment member by the movement of the first alignment member in the alignment direction to be accommodated in the paper discharge tray. It is comprised as follows.

The first alignment member includes an engaging portion that engages with the second alignment member. During the alignment, the engaging portion of the first alignment member engages with the second alignment member. The second alignment member may be operated together with the first alignment member by pushing the second alignment member in the alignment direction.
And a biasing member that biases the second alignment member in a direction opposite to the alignment direction, wherein the second alignment member is in an engaged state with the first alignment member. When moving in the direction opposite to the alignment direction, it may be moved in the opposite direction by the urging force of the urging member together with the first alignment member.

Here, the second alignment member may return to a predetermined home position by the urging force of the urging member when the engagement with the first alignment member is released.
Here, the first alignment member has a predetermined home position set on the opposite side of the alignment direction from the home position of the second alignment member, and the first alignment member and the second alignment member In the state where each of the two is positioned at its own home position, the engaging portion may be positioned on the opposite side of the alignment direction with respect to the second alignment member.

  The first tray can be moved up and down relatively with respect to the second tray. When the first tray is lowered, the first tray is connected to the second tray. When the first tray is raised, the first tray is separated from the second tray. And the relative alignment is displaced, and the first alignment member is raised and lowered integrally with the first tray, and the first tray is moved upward in the alignment direction by the movement in the alignment direction. The sheet on the first tray may be pushed out.

Here, after the pushing operation of the sheet on the first tray due to the movement of the first alignment member in the alignment direction, the first alignment member moves in a direction opposite to the alignment direction to a predetermined home position. When returning, the engagement of the first alignment member and the second alignment member may be resumed by shifting the first tray from the raised state to the lowered state.
In addition, a determination means for determining whether or not the first tray is in a lowered state is provided, and it is determined that the first tray is not in a lowered state when the apparatus is turned on or resumed after interruption of operation. In this case, after the first alignment member is returned to a predetermined home position, the first tray is lowered and the engagement between the first alignment member and the second alignment member is resumed. good.

Further, the alignment direction corresponds to a direction orthogonal to the sheet discharge direction from the image forming apparatus, and the first tray and the second tray are arranged so as to be aligned along the sheet discharge direction, The paper discharge tray may be arranged in a direction perpendicular to the sheet discharge direction with respect to the first tray.
Here, the direction orthogonal to the sheet discharge direction corresponds to the front-rear direction when the sheet post-processing apparatus is viewed from the front side of the apparatus, and the discharge tray is on the front side of the apparatus with respect to the first tray. It may be located at.

  The present invention relates to a sheet post-processing apparatus that aligns sheets discharged from an image forming apparatus and then accommodates them in a sheet discharge tray, and includes an alignment tray, a sheet alignment direction on the alignment tray, and the alignment tray. Comprises a first alignment member movable in the opposite direction, a second alignment member movable on the alignment tray in the same direction as the first alignment member, and drive means for moving the first alignment member. In the alignment, the first alignment member engages with the second alignment member, and the second alignment member operates together with the first alignment member as the first alignment member moves in the alignment direction. When the operation of pushing out the sheet on the alignment tray to the paper discharge tray is performed after the alignment is completed, the engagement is released so that the operation is performed only by the first alignment member.

  If comprised as mentioned above, since it suffices to provide a drive means for driving the first alignment member, it is possible to reduce the size of the apparatus and simplify the drive mechanism.

1 is a diagram illustrating an overall configuration of an image forming system including an image forming apparatus and a sheet post-processing apparatus. It is a perspective view which shows a mode that the sheet | seat bundle is accommodated in the front tray of a sheet | seat post-processing apparatus. It is a schematic whole perspective view when the sheet post-processing apparatus is viewed from the front side of the apparatus and from above. It is a schematic perspective view which shows a mode that the 1st sheet | seat is mounted on the post-processing tray. It is a schematic perspective view which shows the state in which the sheet bundle was aligned on the post-processing tray. FIG. 6 is a schematic perspective view illustrating a state in which a sheet bundle is conveyed to a staple binding position by an FD conveying member and stopped. FIG. 6 is a schematic perspective view illustrating a state in which a sheet bundle after stapling is conveyed to a transfer position by an FD conveying member. It is a schematic perspective view which shows a mode that two guide claws were switched to the protrusion attitude | position. It is a schematic perspective view which shows the state which changed the rocking | swiveling tray to the horizontal attitude | position. It is a schematic perspective view which shows a mode that the sheet | seat bundle | flux on a rocking | feeding tray is transferred to the apparatus front side. It is a schematic perspective view which shows a mode that the sheet | seat bundle conveyed from the rocking | feeding tray is accommodated in the front tray. FIG. 4 is a block diagram for explaining a configuration of each control system of the image forming apparatus and the sheet post-processing apparatus. 10 is a flowchart illustrating a part of the content of staple binding control executed by the sheet post-processing apparatus. 6 is a flowchart illustrating the remaining part of the content of staple binding control executed by the sheet post-processing apparatus. It is a figure which shows the content of the initialization operation | movement. Each of (a) to (d) is a top view schematically showing a front tray according to a modification. (A) is the whole perspective view of the structure of the modification which provides a clearance gap in the right side of a front tray, (b) is a front schematic diagram of the front tray periphery in the structure. It is a figure which shows the outline of the whole structure of the image forming apparatus which concerns on a modification.

Embodiments of a sheet post-processing apparatus and an image forming system according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1 is a front view showing the overall configuration of the image forming system.
As shown in FIG. 1, the image forming system 10 includes an image forming apparatus 1 and a sheet post-processing apparatus 2 mounted on the image forming apparatus 1.
<Configuration of Image Forming Apparatus 1>
The image forming apparatus 1 includes a scanner unit 3, a printer unit 4, an operation unit 5, and a control unit 6. The printer unit 4 has a space 1 a having an opening 1 b on the front side of the apparatus below the scanner unit 3. This is an in-cylinder discharge type that is connected to a scan job that reads an image of a document, a copy job that prints a document image on a sheet based on the image data obtained by scanning, and a network connection It has a function of receiving a job request from an external terminal (not shown), and executing various jobs such as a print job for printing an image related to the received job on a sheet.

A scanner unit (image reading unit) 3 conveys a set original and reads an image of the original to obtain image data.
The printer unit (image forming unit) 4 forms (prints) an image on a sheet based on image data obtained by the scanner unit 3 or print job data from an external terminal by electrophotography.

  At the time of image formation, the printer unit 4 feeds sheets one by one from the cassette 4a arranged at the lowest position, forms an image for each fed sheet, and the sheet on which the image is formed. Are discharged one by one by a discharge roller 7 (FIG. 3). The discharged sheet is carried into the sheet post-processing apparatus 2 disposed in the space 1a. The printer unit 4 is not limited to an electrophotographic system, and may be an inkjet system, for example.

The operation unit 5 is disposed at a position that is easy to operate when the user stands in front of the image forming apparatus 1, and performs input operations by the user, for example, input of the number of copies, job start instruction such as copying, and job stop An instruction, post-processing in the sheet post-processing apparatus 2, here, an instruction to execute stapling, designation of the number of copies, and the like are received, and the received content is transmitted to the control unit 6.
The control unit 6 receives input information from the user from the operation unit 5, and controls the scanner unit 3 and the printer unit 4 to smoothly execute a job according to a user instruction. Further, when an instruction to perform post-processing is given, the fact is notified to the sheet post-processing apparatus 2 and the instructed post-processing is executed.

Hereinafter, when the image forming apparatus 1 is viewed from the front side of the apparatus, the image forming apparatus 1 is viewed from the front side of the apparatus, the rear side (back side) of the apparatus is the back side of the apparatus, and the right side is the apparatus. The right side and the left side are referred to as the apparatus left side, the direction connecting the apparatus front side and the apparatus back side is referred to as the apparatus front-rear direction, and the left-right direction orthogonal thereto is referred to as the apparatus lateral direction.
<Configuration of Sheet Post-Processing Apparatus 2>
The sheet post-processing apparatus 2 is disposed in a space 1a provided in the image forming apparatus 1 and having an opening 1b on the front side of the apparatus, and staples a sheet bundle composed of a plurality of sheets discharged from the printer unit 4. As shown in FIG. 2, the sheet bundle Sb after staple binding is stored in a front tray 51 provided on the front side of the apparatus. Hereinafter, a specific configuration of the sheet post-processing apparatus 2 will be described with reference to FIGS.

FIG. 3 is a schematic overall perspective view of the sheet post-processing apparatus 2 when viewed from the front side of the apparatus and from above, and also shows a discharge roller 7 of the printer unit 4.
As shown in the figure, the sheet post-processing apparatus 2 includes a first storage unit 101, a second storage unit 102, a stapler 103, a control unit 104, and the like.
<Configuration of the first storage unit 101>
The first storage unit 101 temporarily stores sheets discharged from the discharge rollers 7 of the printer unit 4, and includes a post-processing tray 11, a CD reference plate 12, a CD alignment plate 13, and an FD alignment member. 14, an FD conveying member 15, and guide claws 16 and 17.

The post-processing tray 11 includes a fixed tray 21 and a swing tray 22, and the fixed tray 21 and the swing tray are arranged along the conveyance direction (direction indicated by the arrow X) of the sheet discharged by the discharge roller 7 of the printer unit 4. 22 are arranged in this order. Hereinafter, the direction indicated by the arrow X on the post-processing tray 11 is referred to as a sheet conveying direction.
The fixed tray 21 is fixedly supported by the apparatus housing 100 of the sheet post-processing apparatus 2.

The swing tray 22 is supported by the apparatus housing 100 so that the upstream end 22c in the sheet transport direction can swing up and down around a support shaft 22b provided at the downstream end in the sheet transport direction.
FIG. 3 shows a state in which the end 22c of the swing tray 22 is in an inclined position located at the lowest position, and the sheet on the swing tray 22 is transferred to the front side of the apparatus as will be described later. At this time, the end portion 22c of the swing tray 22 is lifted to change to a horizontal posture (FIG. 9) in which the swing tray 22 is horizontal. The swing of the swing tray 22 is performed by driving, for example, a cam mechanism (not shown) disposed below the swing tray 22 by a driving force of a lift motor M5 (FIG. 12) as tray moving means. Any mechanism other than the cam mechanism may be used as long as the mechanism can move in the vertical direction.

The upper surfaces of both the fixed tray 21 and the swing tray 22 are the sheet placement surfaces 21a and 22a.
Two plate-like stoppers 18a and 18b are erected on the upstream side end 21b of the sheet placement surface 21a with a gap in the longitudinal direction of the apparatus.
The stoppers 18a and 18b are used as restricting members when aligning the sheets on the post-processing tray 11 in the sheet conveyance direction. Aligning a sheet in the sheet conveyance direction is called FD alignment.

Immediately above the stoppers 18a and 18b, presser guides 19a and 19b are arranged at positions spaced apart from the stoppers 18a and 18b by a predetermined distance. The holding guides 19a and 19b guide the sheet discharged from the discharge roller 7 of the printer unit 4 to the fixed tray 21 while changing the direction of the sheet downward.
One sheet guided through the holding guides 19 a and 19 b and guided onto the fixed tray 21 is placed on the sheet placement surface 21 a of the fixed tray 21, but the length in the sheet conveyance direction is longer than that of the fixed tray 21. In the case of a long sheet, the sheet is placed on the sheet placement surfaces 21 a and 22 a in a state of straddling both the fixed tray 21 and the swing tray 22. The holding guides 19 a and 19 b of the first storage unit 101 serve as inlet portions for sheets discharged from the printer unit 4, and the discharge roller 7 serves as a discharge unit of the printer unit 4.

  The CD reference plate 12 is used as a positioning member that determines a reference position when aligning the sheets on the post-processing tray 11 in the front-rear direction of the apparatus. The CD reference plate 12 is perpendicular to the sheet placement surface 22a of the swing tray 22 and is in the sheet conveyance direction. Is supported by the sheet placement surface 22a so as to be movable in the front-rear direction of the apparatus along two grooves 22d, 22e that are long in the front-rear direction of the apparatus and are provided at intervals in the sheet conveyance direction. The alignment of the sheet in the longitudinal direction of the apparatus is called CD alignment.

FIG. 3 shows a state where the CD reference plate 12 is located at the home position which is the most rear side of the apparatus. When CD alignment is performed, the CD reference plate 12 moves to the apparatus front side by a predetermined distance (for example, 10 mm) from the home position. Stop. This stop position becomes the reference position for CD alignment. This reference position is also a reference for the staple binding position in the longitudinal direction of the apparatus by the stapler 103.
The CD reference plate 12 also serves as a transfer means for transferring the sheet on the post-processing tray 11 to the front tray 51 of the second storage unit 102 by moving to the position closest to the front side of the apparatus as will be described later. But there is. The CD reference plate 12 is moved by the driving force of the transfer motor M4 (FIG. 12). For example, the CD reference plate 12 and the transfer motor M4 are connected via a rotating wire (not shown) stretched around two or more pulleys. The CD reference plate 12 can be moved by connecting the rotation shafts of the two, rotating the rotating wire with the driving force of the transfer motor M4 and transmitting the driving force to the CD reference plate 12.

In addition, it is not restricted to a wire drive, For example, it can also be set as the structure which linearly moves the CD reference board 12 with a screw feed mechanism. The same moving mechanism as that of the CD reference plate 12 can be adopted for the CD alignment plate 13, the FD alignment member 14, and the FD transport member 15 described below.
The CD aligning plate 13 is a member for CD aligning the sheets on the post-processing tray 11, and is in a posture perpendicular to the sheet placing surface 21a of the fixed tray 21 and parallel to the sheet conveying direction. It is supported by the fixed tray 21 so as to be movable in the longitudinal direction of the apparatus along a groove 21c provided in the longitudinal direction of the apparatus 21a. FIG. 3 shows a state in which the CD alignment plate 13 is located at the home position which is the front side of the apparatus. The CD alignment plate 13 is moved by the driving force of the CD alignment motor M2 (FIG. 12).

A CD reference plate 29 is disposed at the end of the fixed tray 21 on the apparatus rear side, at a position facing the CD alignment plate 13 and at a position upstream of the CD reference plate 12 in the sheet conveying direction.
The CD reference plate 29 has the same CD alignment function as the CD reference plate 12, and is in a posture perpendicular to the sheet placement surface 21a of the fixed tray 21 and parallel to the sheet conveying direction. Is supported so as to be movable in the longitudinal direction of the apparatus along a groove 21d that is long in the longitudinal direction of the apparatus.

The CD reference plate 29 is connected to a part 100a of the apparatus housing via a tension spring 28, and the device of the CD reference plate 29 is acted upon by an urging force in the direction toward the back side of the apparatus by the tension spring 28. The back surface 29a is always in contact with the protrusion 12a provided on the upstream end of the CD reference plate 12 in the sheet conveying direction.
When the CD reference plate 12 moves to the front side of the apparatus, the force toward the front side of the apparatus is transmitted to the CD reference plate 29 through the protrusion 12a, and the CD reference plate 29 resists the urging force of the tension spring 28. And move to the front side of the device.

On the other hand, when the CD reference plate 12 moves to the back side of the apparatus, the CD reference plate 29 is integrated with the CD reference plate 12 while maintaining the contact state with the protrusion 12a of the CD reference plate 12 by the urging force of the tension spring 28. It is configured to move to the back side of the device. From this, it can be said that the CD reference plate 12 is the driving side and the CD reference plate 29 is the driven side.
The CD reference plate 29 is restricted so as not to move to the rear side of the apparatus from the home position. When the swing tray 22 to be described later is changed to a horizontal posture, the CD reference plate 29 is not in contact with the CD reference plate 12. When the engagement is released, the tension spring 28 returns to the home position by the urging force.

The FD alignment member 14 is used for FD alignment of the sheet on the post-processing tray 11 and is supported so as to be movable along a groove 22f provided in the sheet loading surface 22a of the swing tray 22 in the sheet conveyance direction. Has been.
At the home position shown in FIG. 3, the FD alignment member 14 is in an immersion position in which the FD alignment member 14 is immersed in the groove 22f of the swing tray 22, but the direction opposite to the sheet conveyance direction from the home position (the direction indicated by the arrow Y). 4 and is positioned upstream of the home position in the sheet conveying direction, the protruding posture is such that the upper end rises from the groove 22f and protrudes (FIG. 4). The FD alignment member 14 is moved by the driving force of the FD alignment motor M3 (FIG. 12).

  The FD conveyance member 15 is a member for conveying the sheet placed on the post-processing tray 11 along the sheet conveyance direction, and is arranged in the sheet conveyance direction provided on the sheet placement surface 21 a of the fixed tray 21. Along the long groove 21e, the upper end portion is supported so as to be movable in a posture protruding from the groove 21e. FIG. 3 shows a state where the FD conveyance member 15 is located at the home position that is the most upstream side in the sheet conveyance direction. The FD transport member 15 is moved by the driving force of the transport motor M1 (FIG. 12).

  The guide claws 16 and 17 are the sheet placement surface 22a of the swing tray 22, and are located in holes 16a and 17a provided in the vicinity of the end portion 22c on the upstream side in the sheet conveying direction and spaced in the front-rear direction of the apparatus. As shown in FIG. 3, the swing tray 22 can be switched between an immersion position in which the holes 16a and 17a are immersed and a protruding position (FIG. 8) in which the upper end protrudes from the holes 16a and 17a. It is supported. The postures of the guide claws 16 and 17 are switched by a driving force of a guide claw driving actuator 36 (FIG. 12) made of, for example, a solenoid.

Here, when the guide claw drive actuator 36 is driven, the guide claws 16 and 17 are in the protruding posture, and when the driving is stopped, the guide claw driving actuator 36 is returned to the immersive posture by the urging force of a tension spring (not shown). Yes.
<Configuration of Second Storage Unit 102>
The second storage unit 102 includes a front tray 51 and four pressing claws 52.

The front tray 51 is disposed on the front side of the apparatus with respect to the post-processing tray 11 of the first storage unit 101, and stores sheets transferred from the post-processing tray 11 to the front side of the apparatus.
The front tray 51 is vertically raised upward from a sheet placement surface 51a inclined downward from the front side of the apparatus toward the back side of the apparatus, and an end of the sheet placement surface 51a on the back side of the apparatus. It has the standing wall part 51b.

The front tray 51 has a positional relationship (FIG. 1) aligned with the operation unit 5 in the lateral direction of the apparatus when viewed from the front side of the apparatus with the sheet post-processing apparatus 2 mounted on the image forming apparatus 1. An end portion 51d on the apparatus front side of the tray 51 has a positional relationship such that the end section 3a (FIG. 1) on the apparatus front side of the scanner section 3 is positioned on the apparatus front side in the apparatus front-rear direction.
Further, as shown in FIG. 3, the apparatus lateral length of the front tray 51 is almost the same as the apparatus lateral length of the swing tray 22 of the first accommodating portion 101.

  The holding claws 52 are arranged inside each of the four cutout portions 51c provided in the standing wall portion 51b at intervals along the lateral direction of the apparatus. It is supported so that it can be switched to a projecting position (FIG. 11) projecting from the portion 51b. By switching to the projecting position, the sheet stored in the front tray 51 is pressed from above and held so as not to lift. .

<Configuration of stapler 103>
The stapler 103 is disposed at the end of the swinging tray 22 on the rear side of the apparatus and on the downstream side in the sheet conveying direction, and the needle driving unit 111 and the needle receiving unit 112 are provided at intervals in the vertical direction. . In staple binding, an end portion (corner portion) on the rear side of the sheet bundle and the front end side in the sheet conveying direction of the sheet bundle placed on the swing tray 22 is interposed between the needle driving portion 111 and the needle receiving portion 112. In this state, the needle driving portion 111 is lowered in a direction approaching the needle receiving portion 112, the corner portion of the sheet bundle is sandwiched between the needle receiving portion 112, and the bottom portion of the needle driving portion 111 is the uppermost position of the sheet bundle. This is performed by driving a staple needle in a state where the sheet is pressed.

<Description of operation when stapling>
Next, the operation in the case of stapling onto N (plurality) sheets S discharged from the image forming apparatus 1 will be specifically described. The N sheets are the number of sheets S (the number of sheets to be bound) constituting one sheet bundle.
When the first sheet is carried into the sheet post-processing apparatus 2 from the image forming apparatus 1 via the discharge roller 7, the first sheet is guided to the post-processing tray 11 via the pressing guides 19a and 19b. The sheet is conveyed in the sheet conveyance direction on the post-processing tray 11 by the driving force of the discharge roller 7 until the rear end in the sheet conveyance direction passes through the discharge roller 7.

When the rear end of the first sheet in the conveyance direction passes through the discharge roller 7, conveyance on the post-processing tray 11 is stopped and the sheet is placed on the post-processing tray 11.
FIG. 4 is a schematic perspective view showing a state in which the first sheet S is placed on the post-processing tray 11.
The figure shows an example in which a large-sized sheet S whose length in the sheet conveying direction is longer than that of the fixed tray 21 is placed in a state of straddling the fixed tray 21 and the swinging tray 22.

Before the sheet S is placed on the post-processing tray 11, the CD reference plates 12 and 29 are moved from the home position to the reference position shown in the figure, and the sheet S is placed on the post-processing tray 11. Then, in order to perform FD alignment, the FD alignment member 14 moves in the direction indicated by the arrow Y from the home position to the FD alignment position corresponding to the sheet size of the sheet S.
The FD alignment position corresponds to a position that is separated from the stoppers 18a and 18b by the length (sheet length) L of the sheet S in the sheet conveyance direction. The specification of the FD alignment position is the size of the sheet S (A4, etc.). And sheet information indicating the conveying posture (vertical or horizontal) is acquired from the image forming apparatus 1.

Here, the vertical conveyance posture of the sheet S is a posture when the sheet S is conveyed with the long side of the sheet S in the posture along the sheet conveyance direction among the long side and the short side of the sheet S. The attitude refers to an attitude when the sheet S is conveyed with the short side of the sheet S along the sheet conveying direction.
As the FD aligning member 14 moves to the FD aligning position, the sheet S on the post-processing tray 11 is pushed in the direction indicated by the arrow Y by the FD aligning member 14, and the leading end Sf of the sheet S in the transport direction is moved to the FD aligning member 14. The rear end Se of the sheet S in the conveying direction is in contact with the stoppers 18a and 18b. As a result, the sheet S is aligned on the post-processing tray 11 in the sheet conveying direction with reference to the positions of the stoppers 18a and 18b (FD alignment).

When the FD alignment is completed, the CD alignment plate 13 moves from the home position to the CD alignment position corresponding to the sheet size of the sheet S in the direction indicated by the arrow A (the direction toward the back side of the apparatus) in order to perform CD alignment next. .
The CD alignment position corresponds to a position that is separated from the CD reference plate 12 in the longitudinal direction of the sheet S by the width direction length (sheet width) W of the sheet S. This CD alignment position is specified by specifying the sheet information in the image forming apparatus 1. It is done by acquiring from.

  When the CD aligning plate 13 moves to the CD aligning position, the sheet S on the post-processing tray 11 is pushed in the direction indicated by the arrow A by the CD aligning plate 13, and one side edge Sc of the sheet S in the width direction is CD. The other side edge Sd is in contact with the CD reference plates 12 and 29 while in contact with the alignment plate 13. As a result, the sheet S is aligned on the post-processing tray 11 in the longitudinal direction of the apparatus based on the positions of the CD reference plates 12 and 29 (CD alignment).

  The FD alignment member 14 stops for a certain time (for example, 100 ms) after moving to the FD alignment position, and when the FD alignment for the first sheet S is completed, only a predetermined distance (for example, 10 mm, 15 mm) from the FD alignment position. Return to the remote location and wait. The CD aligning plate 13 also stops for a certain time (for example, 100 ms) after moving to the CD aligning position, and when the CD aligning is completed, it returns to a position separated from the CD aligning position by a predetermined distance (for example, 10 mm, 15 mm) and waits. Then, it waits for the next second sheet S to be carried from the image forming apparatus 1 onto the post-processing tray 11. When the sheet S is the first sheet, CD alignment may be omitted.

  When the second sheet S is carried onto the post-processing tray 11, the above-described FD alignment and CD alignment are performed in a state where the second sheet S is stacked on the aligned first sheet S. Is executed again. The FD alignment and the CD alignment are repeatedly performed every time one sheet S is carried in until the loading of all N sheets S is completed. As a result, a plurality of sheets S are stacked on the post-processing tray 11 in an aligned state.

FIG. 5 is a schematic perspective view showing a state in which the sheet bundle Sb formed by stacking N sheets S is aligned on the post-processing tray 11. When the alignment for all N sheets S is completed, the FD alignment member 14 moves in the direction indicated by the arrow X (the sheet conveying direction) and returns to the home position. The CD reference plates 12 and 29 move to a position 2 mm from the end of the paper.
Then, the FD conveying member 15 is moved from the home position in the direction indicated by the arrow X, and the sheet bundle Sb sandwiched between the CD reference plates 12 and 29 and the CD alignment plate 13 is stapled along the direction indicated by the arrow X. Then, the FD conveying member 15 is stopped. Note that the movement distance of the FD conveyance member 15 for conveying the sheet bundle Sb to the staple binding position is determined by referring to staple position information in which the sheet size and the movement distance are associated in advance.

FIG. 6 is a schematic perspective view illustrating a state in which the sheet bundle Sb is conveyed to the staple binding position by the FD conveying member 15 and is stopped. When the sheet bundle Sb is in the stopped state, the stapler 103 executes staple binding with the staple needle Sz (FIG. 7).
After stapling, the FD conveying member 15 is further moved in the direction indicated by the arrow X as shown in FIG. 7, and the sheet bundle Sb sandwiched between the CD reference plates 12 and 29 and the CD aligning plate 13 is conveyed in the conveying direction. The rear end Se is transported to a position (transfer position) downstream by a predetermined distance from the upstream end 22c of the swing tray 22 in the sheet transport direction, and the FD transport member 15 is stopped.

  The movement distance of the FD conveyance member 15 for conveying the sheet bundle Sb to the transfer position is L1, which is the distance required to convey the aligned sheet bundle Sb to the staple binding position, and is located at the transfer position from the stoppers 18a and 18b. When the distance to the rear end Se of the sheet bundle Sb is L2, it is obtained based on the distance (L2−L1) which is the difference between L1 and L2, but L1 is determined in advance according to the size of the sheet S. Since L2 is determined in advance, if the size of the sheet S is known, the moving distance of the FD conveying member 15 can be specified.

By conveying the sheet bundle Sb to the transfer position, the sheet bundle Sb is not placed on the fixed tray 21 but placed on the swing tray 22.
When the conveyance of the sheet bundle Sb to the transfer position is completed, the guide claws 16 and 17 disposed on the upstream end 22c of the swing tray 22 in the sheet conveyance direction are switched from the immersion position to the protruding position as shown in FIG. After that, the FD conveyance member 15 moves in the arrow Y direction and returns to the home position.

The positional relationship between the guide claws 16 and 17 in the protruding posture and the rear end Se of the sheet bundle Sb positioned at the transfer position and the end 22c of the swing tray 22 is such that the rear end Se of the sheet bundle Sb and the swing tray 22 are The guide claws 16 and 17 in the protruding posture are positioned between the end 22c.
When the FD conveying member 15 moves in the arrow Y direction, the sheet bundle Sb placed on the swinging tray 22 in the inclined posture tends to slide down toward the fixed tray 21 along the tilt of the swinging tray 22. By restricting the sliding by the guide claws 16 and 17 in the projecting posture, the state of being placed on the swing tray 22 is maintained.

Then, when the CD aligning plate 13 is moved to the front side of the apparatus and returned to the home position, as shown in FIG. 9, the support shaft 22b at the end of the swing tray 22 on the downstream side in the sheet conveying direction is used as a fulcrum. The end 22c on the upstream side in the sheet conveying direction is lifted, and the swinging tray 22 in the inclined posture is changed to the horizontal posture.
When the swing tray 22 is in a horizontal posture, the entire side edge 22g on the sheet front surface 22a of the swing tray 22 is positioned above the upper end 53 of the standing wall portion 51b of the second storage portion 102. The positional relationship in the vertical direction is determined in advance.

The CD reference plate 12, the stapler 103, and the guide claws 16, 17 swing integrally with the swing tray 22, but the CD alignment plate 13 and CD reference plate 29 are supported by the fixed tray 21. No oscillating as one.
When the swing tray 22 is in a horizontal position, the swing range in the vertical direction of the swing tray 22 and the vertical direction of the CD alignment plate 13 are such that the upper end 131 of the CD alignment plate 13 is positioned below the swing tray 22. The height relationship is also predetermined.

  When the swing tray 22 is in the inclined posture, the edge 22m (first side) on the one end side, which is the end on the downstream side in the sheet conveyance direction, of the side edge 22g on the front side of the apparatus on the sheet placement surface 22a. Edge portion) is located above the upper end 53 of the standing wall portion 51b of the second storage portion 102, and the other end side edge portion 22n (second edge portion) which is the upstream end portion in the sheet conveying direction is the standing wall portion. It is located below the upper end 53 of 51b.

When the swing tray 22 is in the horizontal posture, the engagement of the CD reference plate 12 and the CD reference plate 29 is released, and only the CD reference plate 29 returns to the home position by the urging force of the tension spring 28.
When the transition of the swing tray 22 to the horizontal posture is completed, the CD reference plate 12 moves from the back side of the apparatus to the front side of the apparatus in the direction indicated by the arrow B as shown in FIG. As a result, the sheet bundle Sb placed on the swinging tray 22 in the horizontal posture passes above the upper end 53 of the standing wall portion 51b and is transferred toward the front tray 51 on the front side of the apparatus. When the swinging tray 22 is in the horizontal posture, the swinging tray 22 is positioned above the CD aligning plate 13, so that the transfer of the sheet bundle Sb to the front side of the apparatus is hindered by the CD aligning plate 13. There is nothing.

When the CD reference plate 12 moves to the full front side of the apparatus, the sheet bundle Sb on the swinging tray 22 in the horizontal posture moves to the front tray 51 as shown in FIG. 11, and on the sheet placement surface 51a of the front tray 51. Placed on.
The sheet bundle Sb placed on the sheet placement surface 51a of the front tray 51 slides down to the rear side of the apparatus along the inclination of the sheet placement surface 51a, but the side edge Sd ( The tip end in the sliding direction abuts against the standing wall portion 51b provided on the back side of the apparatus, and the sliding of the sheet bundle Sb is restricted by the standing wall portion 51b.

As a result, the sheet bundle Sb on the sheet placement surface 51a comes to a standstill in a state where the side edge Sd on the back side of the apparatus is in contact with the standing wall portion 51b. In this sense, the standing wall portion 51b functions as a restricting portion that restricts the sheet bundle Sb on the sheet placement surface 51a.
Note that the sheet bundle Sb on the swinging tray 22 in the horizontal posture is only required to be transferred to the sheet placement surface 51a of the front tray 51 without being blocked by the standing wall portion 51b. For example, the side edge 22g of the sheet placement surface 22a and the upper end 53 of the standing wall portion 51b are at the same position, instead of the above-described positional relationship between the sheet placement surface 22a and the upper end 53 of the standing wall portion 51b. Such a positional relationship can also be adopted.

Further, the posture is not limited to the horizontal posture as long as the sheet bundle Sb can be transferred (transfer posture). For example, the swing tray 22 is located on the back side of the apparatus higher than the side edge 22g on the front side of the apparatus. It can also be set as the structure which takes such a forward leaning attitude | position. This can be realized by incorporating a mechanism capable of tilting forward in the longitudinal direction of the apparatus in addition to the vertical swing mechanism of the swing tray 22.
When a plurality of staple bindings are designated by the user, a series of operations from alignment of the sheet bundle Sb, staple binding, transition of the swing tray 22 to the horizontal position, and transfer from the swing tray 22 to the front tray 51 are performed. Processing is sequentially executed in units of copies.

In this case, as shown in the figure, when the first sheet bundle Sb is stored in the front tray 51, the holding pawl 52 disposed in the notch 51c from the notch 51c of the standing wall 51b. And the first sheet bundle Sb accommodated in the front tray 51 is held from above by the pressing claws 52.
The pressing claw 52 is returned to the original immersion position (FIG. 3) immediately before the second sheet bundle Sb is transferred to the front tray 51. The raising and lowering operation of the presser pawl 52 is performed by the driving force of the presser pawl drive actuator 37 (FIG. 12) made of, for example, a solenoid. Here, when the pressing claw drive actuator 37 is driven, the tip of the pressing claw 52 protrudes from the standing wall portion 51b to press the sheet bundle Sb, and when the driving is stopped, the biasing force of a tension spring (not shown) is applied. It is configured to return to the immersive position.

  When the second sheet bundle Sb is transferred to the front tray 51 and the second sheet bundle Sb is stacked on the first sheet bundle Sb already accommodated in the front tray 51, the four sheet bundles Sb again. The holding claws 52 hold the two stacked sheet bundles Sb pressed. Thereafter, when stapling in units of copies is continued, the above operation is repeated for each number of copies, and when the job is finished, the pressing claw 52 is returned to the immersive position and the pressed holding state is released. . If the staple binding is only one copy, after pressing the sheet bundle Sb by the pressing claw 52 only once, the pressing claw 52 is returned to the immersive position.

Thereby, one or more sheet bundles Sb after stapling are stored in the front tray 51 arranged on the front side of the apparatus, and the user can easily store the sheet bundle Sb stored in the front tray 51. It can be taken out from the front side of the device.
When the transfer of the sheet bundle Sb from the swing tray 22 to the front tray 51 is completed, the CD reference plate 12 returns to the home position from the front side of the apparatus toward the back side of the apparatus. When the CD reference plate 12 returns to the home position, the swing tray 22 descends and returns to the inclined posture.

When the CD reference plate 12 returns to the home position, the projection 12a (FIG. 3) of the CD reference plate 12 is positioned on the back side of the CD reference plate 29 located at the home position. When moving to the front side, the protrusion 12a comes into contact with the surface 29a on the back side of the CD reference plate 29, so that the engagement state of the CD reference plate 12 and the CD reference plate 29 is resumed.
In the above, an example in which a job for performing staple binding on the sheet bundle Sb has been described. However, for example, a job for printing on a plurality of sheets S, and when staple binding is not performed, except for staple binding. Alignment of the sheet bundle Sb, conveyance to the swinging tray 22, transition of the swinging tray 22 to the horizontal posture, and transfer from the swinging tray 22 to the front tray 51 are performed as described above.

For example, in the case of a job that prints on only one sheet S, the same processing except for the alignment and stapling described above, that is, transport to the swing tray 22, transition to the horizontal posture of the swing tray 22, Transfer from the swing tray 22 to the front tray 51 is performed.
<Configuration of Control System of Image Forming Apparatus 1 and Sheet Post-Processing Apparatus 2>
FIG. 12 is a block diagram for explaining the configuration of each control system of the image forming apparatus 1 and the sheet post-processing apparatus 2.

  As shown in the figure, the control unit 6 of the image forming apparatus 1 controls the scanner unit 3 and the printer unit 4 to execute a scan job and a copy job. When the control unit 6 receives print job data from an external terminal connected to the network via the external interface (I / F) unit 8, the control unit 6 causes the printer unit 4 to execute the print job based on the received data. .

When a staple binding execution instruction is received from the user via the operation unit 5, the sheet post-processing device 2 controls the number of sheets S to be stapled (the number of sheets to be bound), information on the designated number of copies, and the like. Send to part 104.
Furthermore, the detection signal from the sheet size detection sensor 9a arranged in the cassette 4a of the printer unit 4 is received, and the size and transport posture (vertical or horizontal) of the sheet S accommodated in the cassette 4a are detected. The size and conveying posture detected by the sheet size detection sensor 9a become sheet information sent to the control unit 104 of the sheet post-processing apparatus 2.

  Further, when a detection signal of the rear end (sheet rear end) of the sheet S in the sheet conveyance direction of the sheet S discharged by the discharge roller 7 is received from the sheet discharge sensor 9b (FIG. 3) placed near the discharge roller 7, after printing It is detected that the sheet S is discharged from the discharge roller 7. When the discharge of the sheet S is detected for each sheet S after printing, a sheet discharge signal indicating that is sent to the control unit 104 of the sheet post-processing apparatus 2.

The control unit 104 of the sheet post-processing apparatus 2 controls the stapler 103, the conveyance motor M1 to the lift motor M5, the guide claw drive actuator 36, the holding claw drive actuator 37, and the like, thereby aligning the sheet bundle Sb, stapling, The posture of the swing tray 22 is changed, and the sheet bundle Sb is transferred from the swing tray 22 to the front tray 51.
Further, the control unit 104 receives a detection signal from the home position detection sensor 31 (FIG. 10) for detecting that the CD reference plate 12 is located at the home position, and the CD reference plate 12 is moved to the home position. It is detected whether it is located in.

As the home position detection sensor 31, for example, an optical sensor having a light emitting portion and a light receiving portion arranged with a space therebetween is used.
When this optical sensor is used, the following detection method can be taken.
That is, when the CD reference plate 12 is positioned at the home position, a light shielding unit (not shown) that moves integrally with the CD reference plate 12 is interposed between the light emitting unit and the light receiving unit, so that light from the light emitting unit is transmitted. When the home position detection sensor 31 outputs an OFF signal and the CD reference plate 12 is separated from the home position, the shielding member is separated from between the light emitting unit and the light receiving unit. When the light from the light emitting unit is received by the light receiving unit, the home position detection sensor 31 is configured to output an ON signal.

  The control unit 104 detects whether the ON signal or the OFF signal is output from the home position detection sensor 31, thereby determining whether the CD reference plate 12 is positioned at the home position or not at the home position. Can be detected. The home position detection method may be another detection method. The same home position detection method can be used for the other home position detection sensors 32 to 35 described below.

Further, the control unit 104 receives a detection signal from the home position detection sensor 32 for detecting that the CD alignment plate 13 is positioned at the home position, and the CD alignment plate 13 is positioned at the home position. Detect whether or not.
Further, the control unit 104 receives a detection signal from the home position detection sensor 33 for detecting that the FD alignment member 14 is positioned at the home position, and the FD alignment member 14 is positioned at the home position. Detect whether or not.

Further, the control unit 104 receives a detection signal from the home position detection sensor 34 for detecting that the FD conveyance member 15 is located at the home position, and the FD conveyance member 15 is located at the home position. Detect whether or not.
Further, the control unit 104 receives a detection signal from the home position detection sensor 35 for detecting that the swing tray 22 is in the tilted posture (home position), and the swing tray 22 is set to the home position. Detect whether it is located.

Further, the control unit 104 can exchange data and information with the control unit 6 of the image forming apparatus 1, such as an instruction to execute stapling and the number of copies by the user, sheet information detected by the image forming apparatus 1, and the like. Various types of information are acquired from the control unit 6.
<Contents of Stapling Control Performed by Sheet Post-Processing Apparatus 2>
FIGS. 13 and 14 are flowcharts showing the contents of the staple binding control executed by the sheet post-processing apparatus 2, and are executed when the control unit 104 receives a staple binding instruction from the control unit 6 of the image forming apparatus 1. Is done.

As shown in FIG. 13, sheet information for the sheet S discharged from the image forming apparatus 1 is acquired (step S1).
Then, the CD reference plate 12 is moved from the home position to the reference position (step S2).
The movement of the CD reference plate 12 drives the transfer motor M4 in the normal direction by the rotation number or rotation angle determined in advance as the rotation number or rotation angle of the transfer motor M4 corresponding to a predetermined distance from the home position to the reference position. Is done. As the CD reference plate 12 moves to the reference position, the CD reference plate 29 also moves to the reference position.

Subsequently, when a sheet discharge signal for the first sheet S is acquired from the image forming apparatus 1 (step S3), it is assumed that the first sheet S has been carried onto the post-processing tray 11, and the FD alignment member 14 FD alignment is performed (step S4), and CD alignment is performed by the CD alignment plate 13 (step S5) (FIG. 4).
FD alignment by the FD alignment member 14 is performed by moving the FD alignment member 14 from the home position to an FD alignment position corresponding to the sheet length L based on the sheet information.

The moving distance from the home position of the FD alignment member 14 to the FD alignment position is determined in advance for each sheet length L. The FD alignment member 14 is moved by rotating the FD alignment motor M3 in the normal direction by the number of rotations or the rotation angle of the FD alignment motor M3 corresponding to the moving distance from the home position to the FD alignment position corresponding to the sheet length L. Done.
CD alignment by the CD alignment plate 13 is performed by moving the CD alignment plate 13 from the home position to a CD alignment position corresponding to the sheet width W based on the sheet information.

The moving distance from the home position of the CD alignment plate 13 to the CD alignment position is predetermined for each sheet width W. The CD aligning plate 13 is moved by rotating the CD aligning motor M2 in the normal direction by the number of rotations or the rotation angle of the CD aligning motor M2 corresponding to the moving distance from the home position to the CD aligning position corresponding to the sheet width W. Done.
It is determined whether or not the number of sheets S discharged from the image forming apparatus 1 (the number of sheets) is equal to the number of sheets S to be stapled (the number of sheets to be bound) N (step S6).

If it is determined that the number of sheets is not equal to the binding number N (“NO” in step S6), both the FD alignment member 14 and the CD alignment plate 13 are moved from the alignment position to the home position side by a predetermined distance (10 mm in the above example). ) (Step S7), and waits for the next second sheet S to be carried in.
The operation of returning the FD alignment member 14 and the CD alignment plate 13 to the home position side by a predetermined distance is the same as the FD alignment motor M3 and the CD alignment by the rotation number or rotation angle of the FD alignment motor M3 and the CD alignment motor M2 corresponding to the predetermined distance. This is done by driving the motor M2 in the reverse direction.

When a sheet discharge signal for the second sheet S is acquired from the image forming apparatus 1 (step S3), the first sheet S and the second sheet S stacked thereon are processed by the processes of steps S4 and S5. And the process proceeds to step S6.
If it is determined that the number of sheets is not equal to the binding number N (“NO” in step S6), the processes in steps S7 and S3 to S6 are executed again. Until it is determined that the number of sheets is equal to the binding number N, the processes in steps S3 to S7 are repeated.

If it is determined that the number of sheets is equal to the number of sheets N (“YES” in step S6), an operation of returning the FD alignment member 14 to the home position is executed (step S8) (FIG. 5).
The operation of returning the FD alignment member 14 to the home position is performed by driving the FD alignment motor M3 in the reverse direction and stopping the FD alignment motor M3 when the home position detection sensor 33 detects the FD alignment member 14.

Subsequently, the FD conveying member 15 is moved to convey the sheet bundle Sb on the post-processing tray 11 to the staple binding position (step S9) (FIG. 6).
The sheet bundle Sb is transported to the staple binding position by driving the transport motor M1 in the forward direction by the rotational speed or rotation angle of the transport motor M1 corresponding to the transport distance determined based on the staple position information. This is done by moving 15.

When the sheet bundle Sb is conveyed to the staple binding position, staple binding to the sheet bundle Sb by the stapler 103 is executed (step S10).
When the staple binding to the sheet bundle Sb is executed, the FD conveying member 15 is further moved to convey the stapled sheet bundle Sb to a transfer position to the front side of the apparatus (step S11) (FIG. 7).

The conveyance of the sheet bundle Sb to the transfer position moves the FD conveyance member 15 by driving the conveyance motor M1 in the normal direction by the rotation number or rotation angle of the conveyance motor M1 corresponding to the conveyance distance to the transfer position of the sheet bundle Sb. Is done. The conveyance distance to the transfer position of the sheet bundle Sb is specified based on the size of the distance (L2-L1).
Then, the guide claws 16 and 17 are switched from the immersive posture to the protruding posture (step S12) (FIG. 8). This switching is performed by driving the guide claw drive actuator 36.

When the switching of the guide claws 16 and 17 from the immersive posture to the protruding posture is completed, an operation of returning the FD conveying member 15 to the home position is executed (step S13).
The operation of returning the FD transport member 15 to the home position is performed by driving the transport motor M1 in the reverse direction and stopping the transport motor M1 when the home position detection sensor 34 detects the FD transport member 15.

Subsequently, an operation of returning the CD alignment plate 13 to the home position is executed (step S14).
The operation of returning the CD alignment plate 13 to the home position is performed by driving the CD alignment motor M2 in the reverse direction and stopping the CD alignment motor M2 when the CD alignment plate 13 is detected by the home position detection sensor 32.
Then, in step S15 shown in FIG. 14, the swing tray 22 is raised to change from the inclined posture to the horizontal posture (FIG. 9).

The transition of the swing tray 22 from the tilted posture to the horizontal posture is performed by rotating the lift motor M5 forward by a predetermined number of rotations or rotation angle of the lift motor M5 required to change the posture of the swing tray 22 from the tilted posture to the horizontal posture. This is done by driving.
It is determined whether or not the holding of the sheet bundle Sb by the four pressing claws 52 provided on the standing wall portion 51b is in operation (step S16). Holding of the sheet bundle Sb by the presser claw 52 is performed in step S20 described later.

Here, it is determined that the sheet is not in operation ("NO" in step S16), and the CD reference plate 12 is moved from the rear side of the apparatus to the front side of the apparatus, and the sheet bundle Sb placed on the swing tray 22 is placed. Is transferred to the front side of the apparatus (step S18) (FIG. 10). The sheet bundle Sb is transferred by driving the transfer motor M4 to rotate forward.
The movement of the CD reference plate 12 from the rear side of the apparatus to the front side of the apparatus is performed by rotating the transfer motor M4 corresponding to a predetermined distance from the reference position of the rear side of the CD reference plate 12 to a predetermined position full of the front side of the apparatus. This is done by driving the transfer motor M4 in the normal direction only by the rotation angle.

  When the CD reference plate 12 is moved to the full front side of the apparatus, the transfer of the sheet bundle Sb to the front side of the apparatus is completed (“YES” in step S19), and it is assumed that the sheet bundle Sb is accommodated in the front tray 51. The holding claw 52 is used to hold the sheet bundle Sb (step S20) (FIG. 11). The holding operation of the sheet bundle Sb by the pressing claw 52 is executed by driving the pressing claw driving actuator 37.

Then, the CD reference plate 12 is moved from the front side of the apparatus to the back side of the apparatus, and an operation of returning to the home position is executed (step S21). The operation of returning the CD reference plate 12 to the home position is performed by driving the transfer motor M4 in the reverse direction and stopping the transfer motor M4 when the CD reference plate 12 is detected by the home position detection sensor 31.
When the CD reference plate 12 returns to the home position, the swing tray 22 is lowered to change from the horizontal posture to the inclined posture (step S22).

In the transition from the horizontal posture to the tilted posture of the swing tray 22, when the lift motor M5 is driven in the reverse direction and the home position detection sensor 35 detects that the swing tray 22 has returned to the tilted posture, the lift motor M5. This is done by stopping.
Then, the guide claws 16 and 17 are returned to the immersive posture (step S23). The transition to the immersion posture is executed by stopping the driving of the guide claw drive actuator 36.

Subsequently, it is determined whether or not the job is finished (step S24). If it is determined that the job is not finished (“NO” in step S24), the process returns to step S2 shown in FIG. 13 to execute the processing from step S2 onward in order to execute stapling for the second sheet bundle Sb. To do.
After stapling is completed for the second sheet bundle Sb (step S10), when the swing tray 22 is shifted to the horizontal position (step S15), the sheet bundle Sb is held by the four pressing claws 52. It is determined whether it is operating (step S16). Here, since the holding operation for the first sheet bundle Sb (step S20) is continuing, it is determined that the sheet bundle Sb is in operation (“YES” in step S16), and the holding claw 52 holds the sheet bundle Sb. Release (step S17). This release is executed by stopping the driving of the pressing claw drive actuator 37, whereby the pressing claw 52 returns to the immersive position.

When the holding of the sheet bundle Sb by the pressing claw 52 is released, the second sheet bundle Sb placed on the swing tray 22 is transferred to the front side of the apparatus and stored in the front tray 51 (step S18). .
As a result, the second sheet bundle Sb is accommodated on the front tray 51 while being stacked on the first sheet bundle Sb already accommodated in the front tray 51. With the second sheet bundle Sb being stacked on the first sheet bundle Sb, the holding claw 52 holds the sheet bundle Sb again (step S20).

If it is determined in step S24 that the stapling of the third sheet bundle Sb is not completed but the end of the job (“NO” in step S24), the process returns to step S2 again, and the processes from steps S2 to S24 are executed. To do.
The processing in steps S2 to S24 is repeatedly executed for each number of copies until it is determined that the job is finished, and when the transfer of the sheet bundle Sb after stapling to the total number of copies is completed, it is determined that the job is finished ( After “YES” in step S24), the holding of the sheet bundle Sb by the pressing claw 52 is released (step S25), and the control is finished.

  In the above, an example in which the staple binding is performed on the sheet bundle Sb has been described. However, for example, when the staple binding is not performed, the processes of steps S9 and S10 are not executed. Further, in the case of a job that prints only one sheet S instead of the sheet bundle Sb, only the processes of steps S3, S11, S12, S13, S15, S18, S19, S21, and S22 are executed in this order. Then, the control is finished.

  As described above, in the present embodiment, in the sheet post-processing apparatus 2 disposed in the space 1 a between the scanner unit 3 and the printer unit 4 of the image forming apparatus 1, 1 discharged from the image forming apparatus 1. After a sheet bundle Sb or a sheet bundle Sb formed by stacking a plurality of sheets S is temporarily stored in the post-processing tray 11 on the rear side of the apparatus, one sheet S or sheet bundle Sb on the post-processing tray 11 is stored. Is transferred from the rear side of the apparatus toward the front side of the apparatus to the front tray 51 disposed on the front side of the apparatus with respect to the post-processing tray 11 and is accommodated in the front tray 51.

As a result, the size of the apparatus can be reduced in the left-right (lateral) direction of the apparatus, and the user can easily take out the sheet S or the sheet bundle Sb stored in the front tray 51 from the front side of the apparatus, thereby improving operability. .
Further, a swing tray 22 that can swing up and down is adopted as the post-processing tray 11 that temporarily stores the sheet S discharged from the discharge roller 7 of the printer unit 4, and the swing tray 22 corresponds to the lowest position. The vertical height of the space 1a of the image forming apparatus 1 can be reduced by adopting a configuration in which the sheet S discharged from the discharge roller 7 is received in the inclined posture.

  Assuming that a configuration is adopted in which only a fixed tray in a horizontal posture is disposed instead of the swinging tray 22, in order to transfer the sheet bundle Sb from the fixed tray to the front tray 51, the fixed tray is used as the front tray 51. The discharge roller 7 of the printer unit 4 must be positioned above the fixed tray in order to carry the sheet S into the fixed tray above the vertical wall 51b. This is because the sheet post-processing apparatus 2 cannot be mounted unless the space 1a is made large in the vertical direction.

In the present embodiment, the swing range of the swing tray 22 in the vertical direction is substantially the same as the vertical height of the standing wall portion 51b of the front tray 51, and the swing tray 22 has an inclined posture corresponding to the lowest position. In some cases, the sheet S discharged by the discharge roller 7 of the printer unit 4 is received.
As a result, the vertical position of the discharge roller 7 (sheet discharge portion) of the printer unit 4 is within the range of the vertical height of the standing wall portion 51b provided on the front tray 51 of the sheet post-processing apparatus 2, thereby forming an image. The sheet post-processing apparatus 2 can be mounted in a limited space 1a between the scanner unit 3 and the printer unit 4 of the apparatus 1 in accordance with the height position of the sheet discharge port of the image forming apparatus 1 in the vertical direction. It becomes like this.

Further, the operation unit 5 of the image forming apparatus 1 is arranged on the front side of the apparatus, and when the sheet post-processing apparatus 2 is mounted on the image forming apparatus 1, the operation unit 5 of the image forming apparatus 1 and the sheet post-processing apparatus 2 are used. The front tray 51 is adjacent to each other in the left-right direction of the apparatus.
Thereby, the user can take out the printed sheet S or the sheet bundle Sb stored in the front tray 51 by executing the job while instructing the job execution by operating the operation unit 5 from the front side of the apparatus. Operability is improved.

The present invention is not limited to the sheet post-processing apparatus, and may be an image forming system including the image forming apparatus 1 and the sheet post-processing apparatus 2 attached thereto.
Further, it may be a sheet post-processing method executed by the sheet post-processing apparatus. Furthermore, the method may be a program executed by a computer. The program according to the present invention includes, for example, a magnetic disk such as a magnetic tape and a flexible disk, an optical recording medium such as a DVD-ROM, DVD-RAM, CD-ROM, CD-R, MO, and PD, and a flash memory recording medium. It can be recorded on various computer-readable recording media, and may be produced, transferred, etc. in the form of the recording medium, wired and wireless various networks including the Internet in the form of programs, In some cases, the data is transmitted and supplied via broadcasting, telecommunication lines, satellite communications, or the like.

(Modification)
As described above, the present invention has been described based on the embodiment. However, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and the following modifications may be considered.
(1) In the above-described embodiment, a description has been given of a configuration example in which the fixed tray 21 constituting the post-processing tray 11 is positioned upstream of the swing tray 22 in the sheet conveyance direction and is aligned with the swing tray 22. However, the arrangement order is not limited to this. For example, the reverse order, that is, the fixed tray 21 may be positioned downstream of the swinging tray 22 in the sheet conveying direction.

In this configuration, the arrangement positions of the stoppers 18a and 18b, the support shaft 22b of the swing tray 22, the FD alignment member 14, the FD transport member 15, the stapler 103, and the like are reversed from the left and right with respect to the embodiment.
For example, the support shaft 22b of the swing tray 22 is positioned on the right side (the side close to the discharge roller 7 in the lateral direction of the apparatus), and the left side of the swing tray 22 (the side far from the discharge roller 7) is the support shaft 22b. It is configured to swing up and down. The sheet S discharged from the discharge roller 7 is conveyed in the order of the swinging tray 22 and the fixed tray 21 in an inclined posture.

  After the alignment of the sheet bundle Sb, when the sheet bundle Sb is conveyed to the staple binding position by moving the FD conveying member 15 in the right direction (the direction opposite to the sheet discharge direction by the discharge roller 7), the staple binding is performed. . Then, by further movement of the FD conveying member 15 in the right direction, the sheet bundle Sb after stapling is conveyed to the transfer position in the right direction and is placed on the swinging tray 22 so that the swinging tray 22 becomes horizontal. After the transition to the posture, the sorting bundle Sb is transferred to the front side of the apparatus.

(2) In the above embodiment, the swing tray 22 that swings up and down is provided. However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, instead of the swinging tray 22, a horizontal tray that can move in the vertical direction with a horizontal posture may be provided.
When this configuration is adopted, when the sheet S is carried in from the discharge roller 7, the horizontal tray has the sheet placement surface of the horizontal tray positioned below the upper end 53 of the standing wall portion 51b, and the sheet bundle on the horizontal tray. Is moved to a position above the upper end 53 of the upright wall portion 51b or the same position in the up-down direction.

  Further, although the post-processing tray 11 includes the fixed tray 21 and the swing tray 22, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the post-processing tray 11 is configured to swing the integrated tray in which the fixed tray 21 and the swing tray 22 are integrated. You can also When this configuration is adopted, the sheet bundle Sb on the integrated tray is FD aligned by the movement of the FD alignment member 14, and is sequentially conveyed to the staple binding position and the transfer position to the front side of the apparatus by the movement of the FD conveyance member 15. It ’s fine.

Furthermore, in the above description, the post-processing tray 11 is movable in the vertical direction and the front tray 51 is not moved (fixed) in the vertical direction. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and at least one of the post-processing tray 11 and the front tray 51 is relatively Therefore, it is possible to adopt a configuration capable of moving (up and down) vertically.
The sheet S (or sheet bundle Sb) temporarily stored on the post-processing tray 11 provided in the first storage unit 101 located on the back side of the apparatus is provided in the second storage unit 102 located on the front side of the apparatus. It suffices if it can be transferred to the front tray 51 toward the front side of the apparatus.

  For example, the post-processing tray 11 is fixed and the front tray 51 can be moved up and down, and the front tray 51 is post-processed in the vertical direction except when the sheet S (or sheet bundle Sb) is transferred to the front side of the apparatus. It is also possible to adopt a configuration in which it is positioned at the home position at the same height as the tray 11 and lowered to a transfer position below the home position at the time of transfer. Further, both the post-processing tray 11 and the front tray 51 may be movable in the vertical direction. This can be realized by providing a mechanism (such as a cam mechanism) that supports the tray to be moved so as to be movable in the vertical direction and a driving means such as a motor that applies a driving force in the vertical direction to the tray.

If there is a margin in the vertical height of the space 1a of the image forming apparatus 1, for example, both the post-processing tray 11 and the front tray 51 can be configured not to be movable up and down (fixed).
(3) In the above embodiment, the CD reference plate 12 movable in the longitudinal direction of the apparatus also serves as a transfer means for transferring the sheet bundle Sb on the swing tray 22 to the front tray 51, thereby simplifying the configuration as much as possible. However, it is not limited to this. For example, a member different from the CD reference plate 12 can be arranged as the transfer means.

In addition, the configuration example in which the stapler 103 swings integrally with the swing tray 22 has been described. However, the configuration is not limited to this, and depending on the apparatus configuration, the stapler 103 and the swing tray 22 are separated and the stapler 103 does not move up and down. A configuration can also be taken.
(4) In the above embodiment, the CD reference plates 12 and 29 and the CD alignment plate 13 are used as a pair of CD alignment members for performing CD alignment, and the CD reference plates 12 and 29 that are stopped are in the CD. Although the configuration example in which the CD alignment is performed by moving the alignment plate 13 in the longitudinal direction of the apparatus has been described, the present invention is not limited to this.

For example, it is possible to adopt a configuration in which CD alignment is performed by moving both of a pair of CD alignment members opposed to each other in the front-rear direction of the apparatus with the sheet S interposed therebetween.
(5) In the above embodiment, the scanner unit 3 and the front tray 51 are arranged such that the front side end 51d of the front tray 51 is closer to the front side of the device than the end 3a of the front side of the device of the scanner unit 3 in the longitudinal direction of the device. Although the example of a structure in the case where it exists in the relationship located in the apparatus front side was demonstrated, it is not restricted to this.

For example, the end portion 3a of the scanner unit 3 on the front side of the device and the end portion 51d of the front tray 51 on the front side of the device are located at the same position in the longitudinal direction of the device. The end 51d on the front side of the apparatus of the front tray 51 may be positioned closer to the back side of the apparatus than 3a.
(6) In the above embodiment, the configuration example in which the sheet placement surface 51a of the front tray 51 is inclined downward from the apparatus front side toward the apparatus rear side has been described. Not limited.

For example, when viewed from the front side of the apparatus, the front tray 51 may be inclined such that the left side is downward and the right side is upward. When taking this inclined posture, a stopper (corresponding to the above-mentioned standing wall portion 51b) is erected on the left end portion to restrict the sliding of the sheet S. It is also possible to adopt an inclined posture in which the right side of the front tray 51 is downward and the left side is upward.
(7) In the above-described embodiment, the example in which the image forming apparatus 1 is a multi-function multifunction peripheral has been described. However, the scanner unit 3 (image reading unit) and the printer unit 4 (image forming unit) positioned below the scanner unit 3 are described. For example, a copying machine or a facsimile machine may be used as long as the image forming apparatus is provided with a space 1a having an opening 1b on the front side of the apparatus.

In the above-described embodiment, the configuration example capable of executing the staple binding function has been described as the sheet post-processing apparatus 2 disposed in the space 1a provided in the image forming apparatus 1. However, the post-processing is limited to staple binding. For example, the present invention can also be applied to a sheet post-processing apparatus that uses post-processing as punch processing for punching holes in a sheet bundle on the post-processing tray 11.
Further, the shape and number of members such as the CD reference plate 12 and the FD matching member 14 are not limited to the above, and the shape and number suitable for the apparatus configuration can be determined.

  (8) The projection 12a provided on the CD reference plate 12 can come into contact with the CD reference plate 29 from the back side of the apparatus when the power of the image forming apparatus 1 is turned on or when the operation is resumed after the jam processing. Then, the initialization operation is performed. In other words, in a state where the swing tray 22 is lowered to the inclined posture, the CD reference plate 12 and the CD reference plate 12 are swung so that the CD reference plate 12 is at the home position and the protrusion 12a is positioned on the rear side of the CD reference plate 29. The moving tray 22 is operated.

FIG. 15 shows the contents of the initialization operation.
As shown in the figure, when the CD reference plate 12 is not at the home position (“NO” in step 31), the swing tray 22 is not in a horizontal position (“NO” in step 32), and the swing tray 22 Is raised to a horizontal posture (step 33), and if it is already a horizontal posture (“YES” in step 32), it proceeds to the next step with the posture as it is. Next, the CD reference plate 12 is moved to the home position (step 34), and the swing tray 22 is lowered until it is in the inclined posture (step 35), and the process is ended.

On the other hand, when the CD reference plate 12 is at the home position (“YES” in step S31), the swing tray 22 is not in the tilted posture (“NO” in step 36), and the swing tray 22 is in the tilted posture. (Step 37), and the process ends. If it is already an inclined posture (“YES” in step 36), the posture is maintained as it is, and the process is terminated.
With the above operation, the CD reference plate 12 is at the home position and the protrusion 12a is positioned on the rear side of the CD reference plate 29 with the swing tray 22 lowered to the inclined position.

  (9) In the image forming apparatus 1 described above, the front tray 51 is in a positional relationship (FIG. 1) aligned with the operation unit 5 along the lateral direction of the apparatus when viewed from the front side of the apparatus. Further, the front end 51d of the front tray 51 is located on the front side of the apparatus in the front-rear direction of the apparatus with respect to the end 3a (FIG. 1) of the front side of the scanner 3 and the front side of the front tray 51 The end 51d is positioned so as not to protrude to the front side of the apparatus body. As shown in FIG. 3, the lateral length of the front tray 51 is almost the same as the lateral length of the swing tray 22 of the first storage unit 101. With such a configuration, the horizontal direction and height of the image forming apparatus 1 can be reduced, and the discharged paper can be easily taken.

Further, the length in the front-rear direction of the front tray 51 is shorter than the length (210 mm) in the short side direction of the A4 size paper. As a result, when a frequently used size of paper is discharged, the paper protrudes to the near side from the image forming apparatus (FIGS. 2 and 11), and the paper can be easily taken out.
In addition to the notch 51c, the standing wall 51b is provided with a recess 51e (FIG. 1) that is a notch that is wider in the apparatus lateral direction than the notch 51c. The recess 51e is provided so that the user can put his hand into the space 1a, and jamming in the space 1a is facilitated.

(10) The shape of the front tray 51 is not limited to the above. FIG. 16 is a top view schematically showing a front tray 151 as another example of the front tray. The front tray 151 is disposed at the same position as the front tray 51 in the image forming apparatus 1 of FIG.
As shown in FIG. 16A, the front tray 151 stores a first extension tray 154 (broken line), and as shown in FIG. 16B, the first extension tray 154 can be pulled out to the front side of the apparatus. It is possible. The first extension tray 154 may further be provided with a second extension tray 155 that can rotate about a rotation center 156 provided at the left end of the apparatus.

  The second extension tray 155 rotates from the first state (FIG. 16B) completely overlapping with the first extension tray 154 about the rotation center 156, so that the second extension tray 155 is opposite to the rotation center 156 in the left-right direction. After a certain right end 157 is pulled out to the front side of the apparatus (FIG. 16 (c)), the posture until reaching the second state (FIG. 16 (d)) located adjacent to the left side of the apparatus on the front tray 151 It is possible to change the posture and change the posture from the second state to the first state. In the second state, the tip 159 of the end portion 157 of the second extension tray 155 enters the hole 158 provided on the left side surface of the apparatus of the front tray 151, thereby being engaged with the front tray 151. Yes.

The sheet stacking range is extended to the front side of the apparatus by pulling out the first extension tray 154, and is extended to the left side of the apparatus by the second extension tray 155. Dropping and shifting can be suppressed.
(11) Further, as shown in the overall perspective view of FIG. 17A and the schematic front view around the front tray of FIG. A gap 160 of about 20 mm may be provided. When the paper S (curved line shown in FIG. 17B) that is largely curled like a thick paper is discharged, it is easy to slip off from the front tray 51, but a gap 160 is provided to fit the end of the paper S. As a result, the fall of the sheet can be suppressed.

  (12) When the image forming apparatus 1 performs image formation by electrophotography, a toner box 4a may be disposed inside the front tray 51 as shown in FIG. Here, the toner box 4a is located on the front side of the post-processing tray 11 in the front-rear direction of the image forming apparatus 1 and does not interfere with the swinging tray 22, so that the height direction and the left-right direction of the image forming apparatus 1 are set. Can be miniaturized.

Further, a sheet transport unit 4b that forms an image on a sheet and discharges the sheet to the space 1a is arranged on the right side of the apparatus when viewed from the front side of the apparatus, that is, on the operation unit 5 side, and a front tray 51 is further arranged on the left side. You may be made to do. With this configuration, the image forming apparatus 1 can be downsized.
(13) In the image forming apparatus 1 described above, the operation unit 5 is disposed on the right side and the front tray 51 is disposed on the left side as viewed from the front of the apparatus.

(14) The above embodiment includes the following inventions.
(A) The post-processing apparatus is integrated with the alignment tray (the post-processing tray 11), a first alignment plate (CD reference plate 12) that aligns the sheets supplied and stacked on the alignment tray, and the first alignment plate. A second alignment plate (CD reference plate 29) that can be operated automatically, and a control unit that controls operations of the alignment tray, the first alignment plate, and the second alignment plate. Here, the alignment tray includes a first tray (swinging tray 22) and a second tray (fixed tray 21). Hereinafter, the first tray is referred to as a first alignment tray, and the second tray is referred to as a second alignment tray.

The first alignment tray and the second alignment tray are arranged so as to be aligned in a direction orthogonal to the alignment direction of the sheets (corresponding to the discharge direction of the sheets from the image forming apparatus 1 in the above example).
The controller operates at least one of the first alignment tray and the second alignment tray so that the first alignment tray and the second alignment tray are connected or divided. Here, in a state where the first alignment tray and the second alignment tray are connected, the first alignment plate and the second alignment plate are engaged so that the second alignment plate operates together with the operation of the first alignment plate. When the first alignment tray and the second alignment tray are divided and the relative arrangement is displaced, the engagement between the first alignment plate and the second alignment plate is released so that only the first alignment plate operates. Is done. Each of these states is configured to be switchable.

  (B) In the post-processing apparatus, the first alignment plate performs a sheet alignment operation and a sheet push-out operation from the alignment tray to the paper discharge tray (front tray 51). When the operation is performed, the first alignment plate and the second alignment plate are engaged with each other, and when the push-out operation to the discharge tray is performed, only the first alignment plate is operated. The engagement between the first alignment plate and the second alignment plate is released.

  (C) The post-processing apparatus includes a motor (CD alignment motor M3) that drives the first alignment plate, and an urging member (tensile spring 28) that urges the second alignment plate in a direction opposite to the sheet alignment direction. The first alignment plate is provided with an interlocking bar (protrusion 12a) that engages with the second alignment plate. Here, the control unit performs an operation of aligning the sheets in a state where the first alignment plate and the second alignment plate are engaged. When the first alignment plate is driven by the motor in the alignment direction of the paper, the interlocking bar (engagement portion) of the first alignment plate is aligned with the engaged portion of the second alignment plate (the surface that contacts the paper) By pushing the opposite surface) in the alignment direction, both the first alignment plate and the second alignment plate move in the alignment direction. When the first alignment plate is moved in the direction opposite to the alignment direction, the second alignment plate is urged by the urging member to move in the direction opposite to the alignment direction. The two alignment plates move together.

(D) When performing the operation of pushing out the paper to the paper discharge tray, the control unit removes the contact between the interlocking bar of the first alignment plate and the second alignment plate, and moves only the first alignment plate by driving the motor.
(E) The controller raises and lowers the first alignment tray relative to the second alignment tray, and lowers the first alignment tray relative to the second alignment tray when performing sheet alignment. In this state, when the sheet is connected to the second alignment tray and the sheet is pushed out to the discharge tray, the sheet on the second alignment tray is conveyed onto the first alignment tray and the first alignment tray is raised. In this state, it is separated from the second alignment tray.

(F) The first alignment plate discharges the sheet bundle to a sheet discharge tray positioned in a direction perpendicular to the direction in which the sheets are supplied to the alignment tray.
(G) On the first alignment plate and the second alignment plate, a predetermined position that is most moved in the direction opposite to the sheet alignment direction is set as the home position, and the home position of the first alignment plate is the second position. In the state where the aligning plate is positioned on the opposite side of the alignment direction of the sheet from the home position of the aligning plate and the first aligning plate and the second aligning plate are both at the home position, the interlocking bar is more It is located on the opposite side to the alignment direction. When the engagement of the second alignment plate with the first alignment plate is released, the second alignment plate returns to the home position by the urging force of the urging member.

(H) After pushing the sheet to the paper discharge tray with the first alignment tray raised, the control unit lowers the first alignment tray after returning the first alignment plate to the home position.
(I) The control unit determines whether or not the first tray is in a lowered state (in the above example, an inclined posture) when the apparatus is turned on or restarted after the operation is interrupted. If the tray is not lowered, the first alignment plate is lowered after returning the first alignment plate to the home position.

  (15) Further, the contents of the above embodiment and the above modification may be combined as much as possible.

  The present invention can be widely applied to a sheet post-processing apparatus that performs post-processing such as stapling on a sheet.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Image forming apparatus 1a Space 1b Opening 2 Sheet | seat post-processing apparatus 3 Scanner part 4 Printer part 5 Operation part 6, 104 Control part 7 Discharge roller 11 Post-processing tray 12 CD reference board (1st alignment board)
13 CD alignment plate 15 FD transport member 21 Fixed tray (second tray)
21a, 22a, 51a Sheet placement surface 22 Swing tray (first tray)
29 CD reference plate (second alignment plate)
51, 151 Front tray 103 Stapler S sheet Sb Sheet bundle

Claims (11)

A sheet post-processing apparatus for aligning sheets discharged from an image forming apparatus and storing them in a sheet discharge tray,
An alignment tray including a first tray and a second tray that are switchable between a connected state and a state in which the relative arrangement is displaced while being divided;
A first aligning member movable on the first tray in a direction opposite to the sheet aligning direction;
A second alignment member movable on the second tray in the same direction as the first alignment member;
Conveying means for conveying a sheet on the second tray to the first tray;
Drive means for moving the first alignment member;
With
The first tray and the second tray are arranged so as to be aligned in a direction orthogonal to the alignment direction,
When aligning sheets on the second tray, the first alignment member is engaged with the second alignment member by connecting the first tray and the second tray, and the alignment direction of the first alignment member is The second alignment member operates together with the first alignment member in accordance with the movement to
After completion of the alignment, the sheet on the second tray is conveyed to the first tray, and the first tray and the second tray are divided and the relative arrangement is changed to a displaced state. When the alignment is released, the sheet on the first tray is pushed out in the alignment direction by the movement of only the first alignment member due to the movement of the first alignment member in the alignment direction so as to be accommodated in the discharge tray. A sheet post-processing apparatus that is configured. An engagement portion provided on the first alignment member and engaged with the second alignment member;
During the alignment,
The engaging portion of the first alignment member engages with the second alignment member, and the second alignment member operates together with the first alignment member by pushing the second alignment member in the alignment direction. The sheet post-processing apparatus according to claim 1. And a biasing member that biases the second alignment member in a direction opposite to the alignment direction.
The second alignment member is
When the first alignment member moves in the direction opposite to the alignment direction in the engaged state with the first alignment member, the first alignment member moves in the opposite direction together with the first alignment member by the urging force of the urging member. The sheet post-processing apparatus according to claim 2. The second alignment member is
The sheet post-processing apparatus according to claim 3, wherein when the engagement with the first alignment member is released, the sheet is returned to a predetermined home position by the urging force of the urging member. The first alignment member is
A predetermined home position is set on the opposite side of the alignment direction from the home position of the second alignment member;
In a state where each of the first alignment member and the second alignment member is located at its home position, the engaging portion is positioned on the opposite side of the alignment direction with respect to the second alignment member. The sheet post-processing apparatus according to claim 4. The first tray is
Can be raised and lowered relative to the second tray;
In the lowered state, it is connected to the second tray, and in the raised state, the second tray is divided and the relative arrangement is displaced,
The first alignment member is
Ascending and descending integrally with the first tray,
The sheet post-processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the sheet on the first tray is pushed out by movement in the alignment direction in a state where the first tray is raised.   After the pushing operation of the sheet on the first tray by the movement of the first alignment member in the alignment direction, the first alignment member moves in a direction opposite to the alignment direction and returns to a predetermined home position. The sheet post-processing apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the engagement of the first alignment member and the second alignment member is resumed by transitioning the first tray from a raised state to a lowered state. . Determining means for determining whether or not the first tray is in a lowered state;
When it is determined that the first tray is not in a lowered state when the apparatus is turned on or resumed after interruption of operation, the first tray is returned to the predetermined home position after the first alignment member is returned to the predetermined home position. The sheet post-processing apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the engagement of the first alignment member and the second alignment member is resumed by transitioning to a state where the position is lowered. The alignment direction is
Corresponding to a direction perpendicular to the sheet discharge direction from the image forming apparatus,
The first tray and the second tray are:
Arranged along the discharge direction of the sheet,
The paper discharge tray is
The sheet post-processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the sheet post-processing apparatus is arranged so as to be arranged in a direction orthogonal to the discharge direction of the sheet with respect to the first tray. The direction perpendicular to the sheet discharge direction is:
It corresponds to the front-rear direction when the sheet post-processing apparatus is viewed from the front side of the apparatus,
The paper discharge tray is
The sheet post-processing apparatus according to claim 9, wherein the sheet post-processing apparatus is located on a front side of the apparatus with respect to the first tray. A sheet post-processing apparatus for aligning sheets discharged from an image forming apparatus and storing them in a sheet discharge tray,
Alignment tray,
A first alignment member movable on the alignment tray in a direction opposite to the sheet alignment direction;
A second alignment member movable on the alignment tray in the same direction as the first alignment member;
Drive means for moving the first alignment member;
With
At the time of alignment, the first alignment member engages with the second alignment member, and the second alignment member operates together with the first alignment member as the first alignment member moves in the alignment direction.
After completion of the alignment, when the operation of pushing out the sheet on the alignment tray to the paper discharge tray is performed, the engagement is released so that the sheet is operated only by the first alignment member. Processing equipment.

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