JP7070375B2 - Roller unit and image forming device equipped with it - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a roller unit that conveys a medium such as sheet-shaped paper for printing or cut paper, and an image forming apparatus including the roller unit.

In order to prevent leakage of confidential information, conventional printers collect printed cut paper or reverse it to the printing unit according to the confidentiality level if the printed cut paper is not removed within a certain period of time. Confidential information is filled by transportation (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

JP-A-2015-210591 (paragraphs 0012, 0029-0033, FIG. 4)

However, in the above-mentioned conventional technique, there is a problem that the configuration and control become complicated because a transport path for collecting printed cut paper is installed and reverse transport is performed for filling.
The present invention has been made to solve the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a means for preventing leakage of confidential information with a simple configuration.

In order to solve the above problems, the present invention comprises a first roller having a transport portion arranged on a rotating shaft and a cutting portion provided in parallel in the axial direction of the rotating shaft of the transport portion, and the first roller. A second roller that presses the transport portion and a third roller that has a contact portion that comes into contact with the cut portion and the contact portion overlaps the cut portion in the radial direction of the first roller. A rotatable discharge guide for supporting the discharged medium is provided downstream of the first roller and the discharge direction of the medium discharged by the second roller, and the discharge guide is rotated. Then, the first path by the first roller and the second roller and the second path toward the overlapping first roller and the third roller are switched, and the first roller is switched. It is characterized in that the cut portion of the above and the contact portion of the third roller are overlapped with each other.

Further, a first roller having a transport portion arranged on the rotating shaft, a cutting portion provided in parallel in the axial direction of the rotating shaft of the transport portion, and a second roller for pressing the transport portion. A third roller having an abutting portion in contact with the cutting portion, and the abutting portion overlapping the cutting portion in the radial direction of the first roller, the first roller, and the second roller. An image in which a roller unit provided with a rotatable discharge guide that is provided on the downstream side of the discharge direction of the medium discharged by the rollers and supports the discharged medium is arranged at the most downstream portion in the transport direction of the medium. It ’s a forming device,
If the medium discharged on the discharge guide is not received even after a predetermined waiting time has elapsed, the downstream end of the discharge guide in the discharge direction is rotated upward to cause the first roller. The cut portion of the first roller and the contact portion of the third roller are overlapped with each other, and the medium remaining on the discharge guide is overlapped with the cut portion of the first roller and the contact portion of the third roller. It is characterized by cutting with.

This makes it possible to use the first roller to provide a cutting mechanism consisting of a cutting portion close to the first roller and a third roller, so that confidential information can be stored in a simple configuration. The printed medium can be cut, and the effect of preventing the leakage of confidential information can be obtained.

If the printed medium remains on the ejection guide even after a predetermined standby time has elapsed, the remaining medium is provided by the ejection guide in which the end on the downstream side in the ejection direction is rotated upward. Is cut by its own weight by entering the overlapping part between the cutting part and the contact part of the third roller along the cutting path, so that it is possible to prevent the confidential information printed on the remaining medium from being stolen or taken out without permission. It is possible to obtain the effect that leakage of confidential information can be prevented with a simple configuration.

Explanatory drawing which shows the schematic structure of the printer of Example 1. External view of the printer of Example 1 as viewed from the front side. External view of the printer of Example 1 as seen from the rear side. A block diagram showing a control system of the printer of the first embodiment. Explanatory drawing which shows the structure of the roller unit of the printer of Example 1. External view showing the roller unit of Example 1. Explanatory drawing which shows the roller unit of Example 1. A flowchart showing a printing process including a cutting process of the printer of the first embodiment. Explanatory drawing which shows the cutting process of the printer of Example 1. A block diagram showing a control system of the printer of the second embodiment. A flowchart showing a printing process including a cutting process of the printer of the second embodiment. Explanatory drawing which shows the cutting process of the printer of Example 2. A block diagram showing a control system of the printer of the third embodiment. Explanatory drawing which shows the roller unit of Example 3. A flowchart showing a printing process including a cutting process of the printer of the third embodiment. Explanatory drawing which shows the cutting process of the printer of Example 3.

Hereinafter, examples of the roller unit and the image forming apparatus according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

Hereinafter, the roller unit and the printer of this embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 9.

The printer 1 as the image forming apparatus of this embodiment is an electrophotographic printer, and is used for printing roll paper, fan hold paper, or the like on the apparatus main body 1a and the apparatus main body 1a arranged on the side thereof. It has a paper feed unit 2 for supplying cut paper C as a medium obtained by cutting continuous paper, and has the configuration shown in FIGS. 1 to 3.
Further, the operation display unit 3 is arranged on the upper portion of the printer 1 on the front side of the apparatus main body 1a.

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the operation display unit 3 includes a display screen 3a such as an LCD provided with a touch panel on the surface, an operation key 3b for receiving a key operation by a user, and the like, and displays the display. A function to display various screens such as the status of the printer 1, predetermined information for the user, and an input screen on the screen 3a, and to receive an instruction input from the user by an input means consisting of a touch panel and an operation key 3b. Has.

The paper feed unit 2 of the printer 1 has a paper feed sensor 5, a transport roller 6, a cutter sensor 7, and a transport roller 8 along the transport direction of the medium transport path 4 (direction from right to left in FIG. 1). The cutters 9 are arranged in order.
The paper feed sensor 5 is a mechanical or optical sensor that is arranged in the vicinity of the medium supply port 4a, which is the most upstream portion of the medium transfer path 4, and detects the presence or absence of continuous paper in the medium supply port 4a.

The transfer roller 6 is arranged between the paper feed sensor 5 and the cutter sensor 7, and conveys continuous paper by sandwiching it between the roller pairs arranged so as to face each other.
The cutter sensor 7 is a mechanical or optical sensor that is arranged on the upstream side of the cutter 9 in the transport direction (hereinafter, also simply referred to as an upstream side) and detects continuous paper transported through the medium transport path 4.

The transfer roller 8 is arranged between the cutter sensor 7 and the cutter 9, and conveys continuous paper by sandwiching it between the roller pairs arranged so as to face each other.
The cutter 9 is a rotary cutter having a rotary blade and a swing blade that presses the rotary blade, and cuts continuous paper to a predetermined length to form a cut paper C.

As shown in FIG. 1, an image forming unit 11 for forming a toner image as a developer image to be printed is arranged at an upper portion of the apparatus main body 1a of the printer 1, and an image forming portion 11 is arranged below the image forming portion 11 to form a toner image as a developer image to be printed. A transfer roller 12, a writing sensor 13, a transfer belt 14, a fixing portion 15, a transfer roller 16, a roller unit 40 (details will be described later) and the like are arranged along the direction.
Further, a density detection unit 18 and a cleaning unit 21 are arranged on the lower surface side of the transport belt 14 on the opposite side of the image forming unit 11.

In the image forming unit 11 of this embodiment, three independent development units 23y, 23m, and 23c are arranged in the order of developing the toner image along the paper transport direction, and these three development units 23 are set in each. It has a toner cartridge 24 containing toner as a developer of colors, that is, Y color (yellow), M color (magenda), and C color (cyan), and these three development units 23 exclude the toner color. Since each has the same structure, one development unit 23y will be described below.
The developing unit 23y is integrally composed of a photoconductor drum 25 and a charging roller, a developing roller, a developing blade, a supply roller and the like arranged around the photoconductor drum 25, and is detachably attached to the printer 1.

Further, above the photoconductor drum 25 of each developing unit 23, an exposure head 26 that irradiates light from a light emitting body such as an LED to form an electrostatic latent image on the surface of the photoconductor drum 25 is arranged to face each other. ..
Further, in the transport belt 14 on the opposite side of the transport belt 14 of the photoconductor drum 25, the toner image formed by each developing unit 23 is transferred onto the continuous paper or cut paper C to be conveyed by the transfer belt 14. The transfer rollers 27 to be transferred are arranged so as to face each other.

The transport roller 12 is arranged between the cutter 9 and the image forming unit 11, and the continuous paper or the cut paper C is sandwiched and conveyed between the roller pairs arranged so as to face each other.
The writing sensor 13 is a mechanical or optical sensor arranged on the upstream side of the image forming unit 11 and detects continuous paper or cut paper C conveyed to the image forming unit 11.

The transport belt 14 is an endless belt made of a plastic film, which is rotationally driven in the counterclockwise direction in FIG. 1 by the drive pulley 14a and is tensioned in the right direction in FIG. 1 by the tension pulley 14b. The continuous paper or cut paper C adsorbed by the above method is conveyed in the direction of the fixing portion 15.
The fixing portion 15 fixes the toner image transferred onto the cut paper C by the transfer roller 27 on the cut paper C by the heat generated by the heater or the like and the pressure of the two rollers arranged opposite to each other.

The transport roller 16 is arranged between the fixing portion 15 and the roller unit 40, and the cut paper C is sandwiched between the roller pairs arranged so as to be opposed to each other and conveyed.
The density detection unit 18 is an optical sensor that detects the density of the toner of each color transferred onto the transport belt 14 when the toner density is adjusted.

The cleaning unit 21 is composed of a belt cleaning blade 21a and a waste toner tank 21b, and the belt cleaning blade 21a is arranged so as to face the cleaning roller 21c with the conveyor belt 14 interposed therebetween and to be in sliding contact with the outer peripheral surface of the conveyor belt 14. The toner adhering to the outer peripheral surface of the transport belt 14 is scraped off into the waste toner tank 21b to remove it.

The control unit 31 of the printer 1 shown in FIG. 4 has a function of controlling each unit in the printer 1 to execute a print process or the like based on the received print data.
The storage unit 32 stores a program executed by the control unit 31, various data used for the program, processing results by the control unit 31, and the like.

Based on the command from the control unit 31, the transfer drive unit 33 includes the transfer rollers 6, 9, 12, 16, the rollers of the fixing unit 15, the drive pulley 14a of the transfer belt 14, and the photoconductor drum 25 of each development unit 23. , The drive gear 49a (described later) of the roller unit 40 is driven to convey the continuous paper or the cut paper C.
The power supply unit 34 generates a high voltage such as a development voltage applied to the development roller of each image forming unit 24 and a transfer voltage applied to the transfer roller 27 based on a command from the control unit 31, and also generates a high voltage such as a paper feed sensor 5. , Cutter sensor 7, writing sensor 13, discharge sensor 45 (described later) of the roller unit 40, and the like to generate a low voltage to be supplied.

The roller unit 40 of this embodiment is arranged at the most downstream portion of the medium transport path 4, and as shown in FIG. 5, a discharge roller 41 as a first roller, a pressing roller 42 as a second roller, and a third roller. It has a plurality of contact members 43 as rollers, a sensor lever 44, a discharge sensor 45 as a medium detection unit, a discharge guide 46, a link mechanism 47, a cutting waste accommodating portion 48, and the like.
As shown in FIG. 6, the discharge roller 41 is an aggregate in which a plurality of transport portions 41b are arranged at predetermined intervals on the discharge roller shaft 41a as a rotation shaft.

Cutting blades 41c as cutting portions having a diameter smaller than the outer diameter of the transport portion 41b are provided on both sides of the transport portion 41b of the discharge roller 41 in parallel in the axial direction of the discharge roller shaft 41a.
Further, the discharge roller 41 is rotationally driven by a drive gear 49a that meshes with a gear 49b provided at one end of the discharge roller shaft 41a, and the transport portion 41b and the cutting blade 41c are both centered on the discharge roller shaft 41a. Rotate.

The pressing roller 42 is arranged one by one in each transport portion 41b of the discharge roller 41, and is urged in the direction of the transport portion 41b by an urging member such as a compression coil spring (not shown) to press the outer peripheral surface of the transport portion 41b. As the transport unit 41b rotates, it rotates in a driven manner.
As a result, the printed cut paper C is sandwiched between the outer peripheral surface of the transport portion 41b of the discharge rollers 41 arranged so as to face each other and the outer peripheral surface of the pressing roller 42, and is shown by a thick broken line in FIG. It is conveyed in the discharge direction along the discharge path as the path of the device, and is discharged to the outside of the apparatus main body 1a, that is, on the discharge guide 46.

A plurality of abutting members 43 are arranged on the abutting member shaft 43a, and each abutting member 43 is located between the facing side surfaces of the cutting blade 41c of the discharge roller 41 and on the outer side of the cutting blade 41c at both ends in the axial direction. When the gear 49c arranged and provided at one end of the contact member shaft 43a meshes with the gear 49b of the discharge roller shaft 41a, it is rotationally driven.
Further, the contact member 43 is swingably supported by the link mechanism 47 (see FIG. 5), and when the contact member 43 is moved toward the discharge roller 41 by the link mechanism 47, the discharge roller 41 is shown in FIG. The cutting blade 41c and the abutting portion 43b on the side surface of the abutting member 43 overlap each other in the diameter direction of the discharge roller 41 to form a superposed portion.

As a result, the cutting path as the second path shown by the two-dot chain line in FIG. 5 in the direction toward the overlapping portion of the cutting blade 41c and the contact portion 43b was opened and entered in the cutting direction along the cutting path. The cut paper C can be cut.
The sensor lever 44 is a plate-shaped member that rotates about the rotation fulcrum 44a, and when the shielding portion 44b is below, the tip portion on the opposite side of the rotation fulcrum 44a protrudes into the medium transport path 4. Stop at the position (called the original position).

The discharge sensor 45 is an optical sensor having a light emitting portion and a light receiving portion arranged close to the discharge roller 41 between the transport roller 16 and the discharge roller 41, and is transported from the fixing portion 15 and discharged. The presence or absence of the cut paper C conveyed by the 41 and the pressing roller 42 is detected.
In this case, the discharge sensor 45 detects the cut paper C by detecting that the light receiving portion has blocked the light from the light emitting portion by the shielding portion 44b of the sensor lever 44, and the sensor lever 44 is stopped at the in-situ position. Is detected, and the presence of the cut paper C is detected when the light from the light emitting unit is received by the light receiving unit.

As a result, when the output from the ejection sensor 45 changes from light-shielding to light-shielding, the arrival of the tip of the cut paper C is detected, and when the output changes from light-receiving to light-shielding, the passage of the rear end of the cut paper C is detected. To.
The discharge guide 46 is a plate-shaped member that supports the lower surface of the cut paper C discharged by the discharge roller 41 and the pressing roller 42, and the tip portion on the downstream side in the discharge direction with the rotation fulcrum 46a as the center is FIG. It is configured to rotate from the horizontal position (referred to as the ejection position) shown in (1) to the diagonally upward position (referred to as the cutting position; see FIG. 9). Prevents C from entering the cutting path (see FIG. 5). Further, when the discharge guide 46 is in the cutting position, the cutting path is opened.

One end of the link mechanism 47 is rotatably connected to the opposite end portion of the tip of the discharge guide 46 with the rotation fulcrum 46a interposed therebetween, and the other end thereof is connected to the contact member shaft 43a of the contact member 43. It is rotatably connected, and as the discharge guide 46 rotates from the discharge position to the cutting position, the outer periphery of the contact portion 43b of the contact member 43 is separated from the cutting blade 41c of the discharge roller 41. It moves from (see FIG. 5) to the polymerization position (see FIG. 7) overlapping the cutting blade 41c.

The cutting waste accommodating portion 48 is a bottomed box-shaped member arranged below the overlapping portion between the cutting blade 41c of the transport portion 41b of the discharge roller 41 and the contact member 43, and the cutting blade 41c and the contact member 43. The cutting scraps cut by the polymerization section of the above are stored.
Hereinafter, the printing process including the cutting process by the printer 1 of this embodiment will be described with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG. 8 according to the step shown by S.

S1: When the power is turned on to the printer 1, the control unit 31 of the printer 1 warms the fixing unit 15, and ends the warming when the temperature of the fixing unit 15 reaches a predetermined fixing temperature.

Then, the control unit 31 waits for the reception of print data from a higher-level device such as a personal computer (not shown) while maintaining the fixing temperature, and when the print data is received, starts the print process and proceeds to step S2. do. If the print data is not received, the above-mentioned standby is continued.

In this case, the user who intends to transmit the print data inserts the tip of the continuous paper for forming the cut paper C to be printed into the medium supply port 4a of the printer 1 and the discharge guide 46 of the roller unit 40. Manually lift the tip to position it in the cutting position.
At this time, the contact member 43 moves in the direction of the discharge roller 41 via the link mechanism 47, and the cutting blade 41c and the contact portion 43b of the contact member 43 overlap each other to form a superposed portion.

S2: When the paper feed sensor 5 of the paper feed unit 2 detects the presence of continuous paper, the control unit 31 that has started the printing process causes the continuous paper to pass through the cutter 9 by the transport rollers 6 and 8, and is an image forming unit. It is conveyed in the direction of 11 and delivered to the transfer roller 12 provided in the apparatus main body 1a.

When the writing sensor 13 detects the tip of the continuous paper or cut paper C delivered to the transport roller 12, the control unit 31 starts an image forming operation, and the continuous paper or cut delivered from the transport roller 12 to the transport belt 14. The paper C is conveyed by the conveying belt 14, and is passed through the developing units 23y, 23m, and 23c of the image forming unit 11 in order.
At this time, the control unit 31 irradiates the photoconductor drum 25 of each developing unit 23 with the light from the exposure head 26 to form an electrostatic latent image of each color on the surface of the photoconductor drum 25, and the respective photoconductor drums. Toner is adhered to the electrostatic latent image of 25 to develop a toner image of each color.

The developed toner image of each color is a toner image of each color on continuous paper or cut paper C from the transfer voltage applied from the power supply unit 34 to the transfer roller 27 when passing through the nip portion of the photoconductor drum 25 and the transfer roller 27. The images are sequentially transferred, and the toner adhering to the transport belt 14 after the transfer is removed by the belt cleaning blade 21a and collected in the waste toner tank 21b.
During this image forming operation, the control unit 31 waits for the elapse of the transport time (referred to as a specified time) for one sheet of cut paper C from the time when the cutter sensor 7 detects the tip of the continuous paper, and waits. When the specified time has elapsed, the continuous paper is cut by the cutter 9 to form the cut paper C having a predetermined length, and the continuous paper is stopped by the transport rollers 6 and 8.

The cut paper C on which the toner image is transferred is conveyed to the fixing unit 15, and the toner image on the cut paper C is fixed by the fixing unit 15 to print the image.
The printed cut paper C on which the image is printed is conveyed in the direction of the discharge roller 41 by the transfer roller 16.

S3: The control unit 31 waits for the tip of the cut paper C to reach the roller unit 40 due to the output from the discharge sensor 45, and waits for the cut paper C to be conveyed by the transfer roller 16 to be in the original position. By pushing the tip of the sensor lever 44 and rotating the sensor lever 44 as shown in FIG. 9A, when the output from the discharge sensor 45 is switched from shading to receiving light, the tip of the cut paper C Recognizing the arrival, the process proceeds to step S4. If the output from the discharge sensor 45 continues to be shielded from light, the above-mentioned standby is continued.

S4: The control unit 31 that recognizes the arrival of the tip of the cut paper C at the roller unit 40 continues the transfer by the transfer roller 16 for a predetermined time obtained by subtracting the transfer time corresponding to the predetermined holding allowance from the above-mentioned specified time. When the predetermined time has elapsed, the transport of the medium transport path 4 by the transport drive unit 33 is stopped, and the process proceeds to step S5.

At this time, the tip portion of the cut paper C sandwiched between the transport portion 41b of the discharge roller 41 and the pressing roller 42 and transported is upward along the discharge guide 46 at the cutting position, as shown in FIG. 9B. The rear end is stopped in a state of being sandwiched between the transport portion 41b of the discharge roller 41 and the pressing roller 42.

S5: The control unit 31 waits for the cut paper C to be pulled out from the roller unit 40 by the output from the discharge sensor 45, and waits for the cut paper C to be pulled out. If the output from the sensor 45 continues to receive light, it is determined that the printed cut paper C remains, and the process proceeds to step S6.

When the output from the ejection sensor 45 is switched from light receiving to shading, it is determined that the cut paper C has been taken out and received, and the process proceeds to step S8.

S6: The control unit 31 that determines that the printed cut paper C remains on the ejection guide 46 executes the cutting process of the remaining cut paper C.

That is, the control unit 31 restarts the transport of the cut paper C stopped by the ejection roller 41 and the pressing roller 42 while sandwiching the rear end portion, and after the output from the ejection sensor 45 is switched from light receiving to shading. , The transport is continued for a certain period of time, and the cut paper C is completely discharged onto the discharge guide 46 at the cutting position.

During transport by the discharge roller 41 or the like, the contact member 43 is rotated together with the cutting blade 41c of the discharge roller 41 by the gear 49c of the contact member shaft 43a that meshes with the gear 49b of the transport roller shaft 41a, and is discharged. As shown in FIG. 9C, the cut paper C moves downward along the discharge guide 46 due to its own weight.
When the rear end of the cut paper C reaches the overlapping portion between the cutting blade 41c of the discharge roller 41 and the abutting portion 43b of the abutting member 43, the cut paper C is cut along the cutting path as shown in FIG. 9D. It enters in the cutting direction and is cut by the shearing force of the cutting blade 41c of the discharge roller 41 and the abutting portion 43b of the abutting member 43. To.

S7: The control unit 31 waits for the elapse of a predetermined cutting time from the start of the cutting process, and when the predetermined cutting time elapses, determines the end of the cutting and proceeds to step S8. If the predetermined cutting time has not elapsed, the above-mentioned waiting is continued.

S8: The control unit 31 that determines the receipt of the printed cut paper C in step S5 or determines the end of cutting in step S7 determines that unprinted print data exists in the received print data, step S2. Return to, and the continuous paper transfer by the transfer rollers 6 and 8 is restarted to continue the execution of the printing process.

If there is no unprinted print data in the received print data, the current print process is terminated, the process returns to step S1 and the process waits for the reception of new print data.
In this way, the printing process including the cutting process by the printer 1 of this embodiment is executed.
As described above, in the present embodiment, the discharge roller 41 having the cutting blade 41c in the roller unit 40, the pressing roller 42 for pressing the transport portion 41b of the discharge roller 41, and the cutting blade 41c form the overlapping portion. Since the contact member 43 having the contact portion 43b is provided, the discharge roller 41 can be used to provide a cutting mechanism composed of the cutting blade 41c and the contact member 43 in close proximity to the discharge roller 41. The cut paper C on which the confidential information is printed can be cut with a simple configuration, and the leakage of the confidential information can be prevented.

Further, since the rotatable discharge guide 46 for supporting the printed cut paper C to be discharged is provided, the discharge guide 46 is linked to the rotation of the discharge guide 46 to the cutting position, and is in contact with the cutting blade 41c of the discharge roller 41. An overlapping portion with the contact member 43 can be formed.

Further, if the printed cut paper C remains on the discharge guide 46 even after a predetermined waiting time has elapsed, the printed cut paper C remains on the discharge guide 46 by rotating the end on the downstream side in the discharge direction upward. Since the cut paper C to be cut is cut by its own weight by entering the overlapping portion between the cutting blade 41c of the discharge roller 41 and the abutting portion 43b of the abutting member 43 along the cutting path, printing is performed on the remaining cut paper C. It is possible to prevent eavesdropping and unauthorized removal of confidential information, and it is possible to prevent leakage of confidential information with a simple configuration.

In this embodiment, the discharge guide 46 is rotated to the cutting position before the printing process is executed, and the contact portion 43b of the contact member 43 and the cutting blade 41c of the discharge roller 41 are overlapped with each other. These may be separated from each other while the cutting process is not executed.

Hereinafter, the roller unit and the printer of this embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 10 to 12. The same parts as those in the first embodiment are designated by the same reference numerals, and the description thereof will be omitted.

As shown in FIG. 10, the printer 1 of this embodiment is provided with a discharge guide drive unit 51 for automatically rotating the discharge guide 46 of the roller unit 40, and the discharge guide 46 has a rotation fulcrum 46a. It automatically reciprocates between the discharge position and the cutting position in the center.
Hereinafter, the printing process including the cutting process by the printer 1 of this embodiment will be described using the flowchart shown in FIG. 11 and following the steps shown in SA.

SA1: When the power is turned on to the printer 1, the control unit 31 of the printer 1 warms the fixing unit 15, and ends the warming when the temperature of the fixing unit 15 reaches a predetermined fixing temperature.

Then, the control unit 31 waits for the reception of print data from a higher-level device such as a personal computer (not shown) while maintaining the fixing temperature, and when the print data is received, starts the print process and proceeds to step SA2. do. If the print data is not received, the above-mentioned standby is continued.

In this case, the user who intends to transmit the print data prints the tip of the continuous paper for forming the cut paper C to be printed while keeping the tip of the discharge guide 46 of the roller unit 40 at the discharge position. It is inserted into the medium supply port 4a of 1.
The subsequent processing operation of step SA2 is the same as the processing operation of step S2 of the first embodiment, and thus the description thereof will be omitted.

SA3: The control unit 31 waits for the tip of the cut paper C to reach the roller unit 40 by the output from the discharge sensor 45, and waits for the cut paper C to be conveyed by the transfer roller 16 to be in the original position. The tip of the sensor lever 44 is pushed to rotate the sensor lever 44, and when the output from the discharge sensor 45 is switched from shading to receiving light, the arrival of the tip of the cut paper C is recognized and the process proceeds to step SA4. .. If the output from the discharge sensor 45 continues to be shielded from light, the above-mentioned standby is continued.

SA4: The control unit 31 that recognizes the arrival of the tip of the cut paper C at the roller unit 40 continues the transfer by the transfer roller 16 for a predetermined time obtained by subtracting the transfer time corresponding to the predetermined holding allowance from the above-mentioned specified time. When the predetermined time has elapsed, the transport of the medium transport path 4 by the transport drive unit 33 is stopped, and the process proceeds to step SA5.

At this time, the tip of the cut paper C sandwiched between the transport portion 41b of the discharge roller 41 and the pressing roller 42 and transported is downstream along the discharge guide 46 at the discharge position, as shown in FIG. 12 (a). It moves to the side and stops in a state where the rear end portion is sandwiched between the transport portion 41b of the discharge roller 41 and the pressing roller 42.

SA5: The control unit 31 waits for the cut paper C to be pulled out from the roller unit 40 by the output from the discharge sensor 45, and waits for the cut paper C to be pulled out. If the output from the sensor 45 continues to receive light, it is determined that the printed cut paper C remains, and the process proceeds to step SA6.

When the output from the ejection sensor 45 is switched from light receiving to shading, it is determined that the cut paper C has been taken out and received, and the process proceeds to step SA8.

SA6: The control unit 31 that determines that the printed cut paper C remains on the ejection guide 46 executes the cutting process of the remaining cut paper C.

That is, as shown in FIG. 12B, the control unit 31 rotates the discharge guide 46 around the rotation fulcrum 46a from the discharge position to the cutting position diagonally upward by the discharge guide drive unit 51.
At this time, the contact member 43 moves in the direction of the discharge roller 41 via the link mechanism 47, and the cutting blade 41c and the contact portion 43b of the contact member 43 overlap each other to form a superposed portion.

The control unit 31 that has rotated the discharge guide 46 to the cutting position resumes the transfer of the cut paper C stopped by the discharge roller 41 and the pressing roller 42 while sandwiching the rear end portion, and outputs from the discharge sensor 45. After switching from light reception to shading, the cut paper C is completely discharged onto the discharge guide 46 at the cutting position by continuing the transport for a certain period of time.

During transport by the discharge roller 41 or the like, the contact member 43 is rotated together with the cutting blade 41c of the discharge roller 41 by the gear 49c of the contact member shaft 43a that meshes with the gear 49b of the transport roller shaft 41a, and is discharged. As shown in FIG. 12 (c), the cut paper C moves downward along the discharge guide 46 due to its own weight.

When the rear end of the cut paper C reaches the overlapping portion between the cutting blade 41c of the discharge roller 41 and the abutting portion 43b of the abutting member 43, the cut paper C is cut along the cutting path as shown in FIG. 12 (d). It enters in the cutting direction and is cut by the shearing force of the cutting blade 41c of the discharge roller 41 and the abutting portion 43b of the abutting member 43. To.

SA7: The control unit 31 waits for the elapse of a predetermined cutting time from the start of the cutting process, and when the predetermined cutting time elapses, determines the end of cutting, and the discharge guide drive unit 51 determines the end of cutting. The 46 is returned from the cutting position to the discharging position, and the process proceeds to step SA8. If the predetermined cutting time has not elapsed, the above-mentioned waiting is continued.

SA8: The control unit 31 that determines the receipt of the printed cut paper C in step SA5 or determines the end of cutting in step SA7 and returns the ejection guide 46 to the ejection position has not printed on the received print data. If the print data of the above is present, the process returns to step SA2, the continuous paper transfer by the transfer rollers 6 and 8 is restarted, and the printing process is continued.

If there is no unprinted print data in the received print data, the current print process is terminated, the process returns to step SA1 and the process waits for the reception of new print data.
In this way, the printing process including the cutting process by the printer 1 of this embodiment is executed.

As described above, in the present embodiment, in addition to the same effect as in the first embodiment, the discharge guide 46 is rotated to the cutting position at the start of the cutting process, so that the contact member 43 is always used. It can be stopped, and the power consumption of the printer 1 can be reduced and the noise can be reduced.

Hereinafter, the roller unit and the printer of this embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 13 to 16. The same parts as in the second embodiment are designated by the same reference numerals, and the description thereof will be omitted.

As shown in FIG. 13, the printer 1 of this embodiment is provided with the same discharge guide drive unit 51 as in the second embodiment, and the lower surface side of the discharge guide 46 of the roller unit 40 is as shown in FIG. Is provided with a residual detection sensor 55 that detects the presence or absence of the cut paper C on the discharge guide 46.

The residual detection sensor 55 is an optical reflection type sensor having a light emitting portion and a light receiving portion, and the light reflected light emitted from the light emitting portion through the transmission hole is received by the light receiving portion and cut on the discharge guide 46. When the presence of the paper C is detected and the light receiving portion does not receive the light, the absence of the cut paper C on the ejection guide 46 is detected.

Hereinafter, the printing process including the cutting process by the printer 1 of this embodiment will be described with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG. 15 according to the steps shown in SB.

Since the processing operation of steps SB1 and SB2 of this embodiment is the same as the processing operation of steps SA1 and SA2 of the second embodiment, the description thereof will be omitted.

SB3: The control unit 31 waits for the tip of the cut paper C to reach the roller unit 40 due to the output from the discharge sensor 45, and waits for the cut paper C to be conveyed by the transfer roller 16 to be in the original position. The tip of the sensor lever 44 is pushed to rotate the sensor lever 44, the output from the discharge sensor 45 is switched from light-shielding to light-receiving, and after switching from light-receiving to light-shielding again, the cut paper C is continuously conveyed for a certain period of time. Is completely discharged onto the discharge guide 46 at the discharge position, the transport of the medium transport path 4 by the transport drive unit 33 is stopped, and the process proceeds to step SB4.

SB4: The control unit 31 waits for the cut paper C on the discharge guide 46 to be received by the output from the residual detection sensor 55, and waits for a predetermined waiting time (3 minutes in this embodiment) to elapse. However, if the output from the residual detection sensor 55 continues to be received, it is determined that the printed cut paper C remains, and the process proceeds to step SB5.

When the light receiving portion of the residual detection sensor 55 no longer receives the reflected light, it is determined that the cut paper C has been received, and the process proceeds to step SB7.

SB5: The control unit 31 that determines that the printed cut paper C remains on the ejection guide 46 executes the cutting process of the remaining cut paper C.

That is, the control unit 31 rotates the discharge guide 46 around the rotation fulcrum 46a by the discharge guide drive unit 51 from the discharge position to the cutting position diagonally upward, and the drive gear 49a by the transport drive unit 33 (FIG. 6). See) to resume driving.

At this time, the contact member 43 moves in the direction of the discharge roller 41 via the link mechanism 47, and the cutting blade 41c and the contact portion 43b of the contact member 43 overlap each other to form a superposed portion.
Further, the cutting blade 41c of the discharge roller 41 and the contact member 43 are rotated together by the gear 49b of the transport roller shaft 41a that meshes with the drive gear 49a and the gear 49c of the contact member shaft 43a that meshes with the gear 49b.

Then, when the discharge guide 46 is rotated to the cutting position, the cut paper C on the discharge guide 46 moves downward along the discharge guide 46 due to its own weight, as shown in FIG. 16B.
When the rear end of the cut paper C reaches the overlapping portion between the cutting blade 41c of the discharge roller 41 and the abutting portion 43b of the abutting member 43, the cut paper C is cut along the cutting path as shown in FIG. 16C. The paper enters in the cutting direction and is cut by the cutting force of the cutting blade 41c of the discharge roller 41 and the contact member 43, and the cut waste after cutting is dropped and stored in the cutting waste accommodating portion 48.

SB6: The control unit 31 waits for the elapse of a predetermined cutting time from the start of the cutting process, and when the predetermined cutting time elapses, determines the end of cutting, and the discharge guide drive unit 51 determines the end of cutting. The 46 is returned from the cutting position to the discharging position, and the process proceeds to step SB7. If the predetermined cutting time has not elapsed, the above-mentioned waiting is continued.

SB7: The control unit 31 that determines the receipt of the printed cut paper C in step SB4 or determines the end of cutting in step SB6 and returns the ejection guide 46 to the ejection position has not printed on the received print data. If the print data of the above is present, the process returns to step SB2, the continuous paper transfer by the transfer rollers 6 and 8 is restarted, and the printing process is continued.

If there is no unprinted print data in the received print data, the current print process is terminated, the process returns to step SB1 and the process waits for the reception of new print data.

In this way, the printing process including the cutting process by the printer 1 of this embodiment is executed.

As described above, in the present embodiment, in addition to the same effect as in the second embodiment, the printed cut paper C is discharged on the discharge guide 46 in advance, so that the user can use the printed cut. It is not necessary to remove the paper C, and the printed matter can be easily received.
In each of the above embodiments, the medium is the cut paper C cut from continuous paper, but the medium is not limited to the above, and a sheet-shaped paper such as A4 may be supplied.

Further, in each of the above embodiments, although it has been described that a plurality of transport units 41b of the discharge roller 41 are provided, the transport unit 41b may be one.
Further, in each of the above embodiments, the cutting blades 41c of the discharge roller 41 are provided on both side surfaces of the transport portion 41b of the discharge roller 41, but the positions are separated from both side surfaces in the axial direction of the discharge roller shaft 41a. The contact member 43 may be arranged in parallel with each other and between the cutting blades 41c provided in parallel.

Further, in each of the above embodiments, the contact member 43 has been described as one, but the contact member 43 may be divided into two in the axial direction of the contact member shaft 53a and arranged in two. You may try to do it.
Further, in each of the above embodiments, the image forming apparatus is described as a printer that uses three developing units 23 and transfers a toner image to the medium conveyed by the conveying belt 14 by the developing unit 23. The apparatus is not limited to the above, and may be a printer that transfers a toner image to a medium via an intermediate transfer belt, a monochrome printer that uses one development unit 23, a printer that uses two or four or more development units 23, and the like. ..

Further, in each of the above embodiments, the case where the roller unit 40 is applied to a printer has been described as an example, but the present invention can also be applied to a copying machine, a multifunction device, an automatic document reading device, and the like.

1 Printer 1a Device body 2 Paper feed unit 3 Operation display unit 3a Display screen 3b Operation key 4 Media transfer path 4a Media supply port 5 Paper feed sensor 6, 8, 12, 16 Transport roller 7 Cutter sensor 9 Cutter 11 Image forming unit 13 Writing sensor 14 Conveyance belt 14a Drive pulley 14b Tension pulley 15 Fixing part 18 Concentration detection part 21 Cleaning part 21a Belt cleaning blade 21b Waste toner tank 21c Cleaning roller 23, 23y, 23m, 23c Development unit 24 Toner cartridge 25 Photoreceptor drum 26 Exposure head 27 Transfer roller 31 Control unit 32 Storage unit 33 Transfer drive unit 34 Power supply unit 40 Roller unit 41 Discharge roller 41a Discharge roller shaft 41b Conveyance unit 41c Cutting blade 42 Pressing roller 43 Contact member 43a Contact member shaft 43b Contact section 44 Sensor levers 44a, 46a Rotation fulcrum 44b Shielding part 45 Discharge sensor 46 Discharge guide 47 Link mechanism 48 Cutting waste accommodating part 51 Discharge guide drive part 55 Residual detection sensor

Claims (4)

A first roller having a transport portion arranged on the rotating shaft and a cutting portion provided in parallel in the axial direction of the rotating shaft of the transport portion.
A second roller that presses the transport unit, and
A third roller having a contact portion in contact with the cut portion and the contact portion overlaps the cut portion in the radial direction of the first roller .
A rotatable discharge guide for supporting the discharged medium is provided on the downstream side in the discharge direction of the first roller and the medium discharged by the second roller .
Rotate the discharge guide to
Switching between the first path by the first roller and the second roller and the second path toward the overlapping first roller and the third roller,
A roller unit characterized in that a cut portion of the first roller and an abutting portion of the third roller are overlapped with each other. In the roller unit according to claim 1,
The first roller is a roller unit having a plurality of transport units. In the roller unit according to claim 1 or 2 .
If the medium discharged onto the discharge guide by the first route is not received even after a predetermined waiting time has elapsed, the discharge guide is rotated to switch to the second route. Roller unit. An image forming apparatus comprising the roller unit according to any one of claims 1 to 3 .

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