JPH01181673A - Tray device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To have reception of a great amount of sheets while sorting operation is performed, by furnishing a frame swinging in the direction across exhaust of sheets, providing a driver part therefore, and by installing upward energizing members of soft member to receive the tail of exhaust tray and the sheets. CONSTITUTION:When a specified number of sheets P are exhausted out of an exhaust roller couple 11, a motor 31 is driven by a CPU to rotate an eccentric cam 32 half a turn, and the top 32b of the eccentric cam in contact with one of the contact plates 25a is put in pressure contact with the other contact plate 25b. This moves a frame 2 to the left and right with respect to the sheet exhaust direction, which is followed by a tray 4 and a soft member 5. When a further specified number of sheets P are exhausted from the roller couple 11, the cam 32 is alike rotated half a turn, and one of the contact plates 25a is pressed by the top 32b, and the frame 2 moves oppositely to return to the original position together with the tray 4 and soft member 5. Thus sheets to be stacked on the tray 4 are sorted for every specified number of sheets through reciprocation of the frame 2.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Industrial Application Field 1] The present invention relates to a tray device for stacking sheets discharged after image formation in image forming apparatuses such as copying machines and printing machines.

[Prior Art] As a conventional tray device, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 61-2174
There is one disclosed in Publication No. 64. As shown in FIG. 13, this tray device includes a main body 501 having a paper ejection port 511, and a paper trailing edge receiving member 505 provided on the main body 501 so as to be able to reciprocate in the left and right directions with respect to the ejection direction of the paper P.
and a tray 504 that is provided on the paper trailing edge receiving member 505 and moves in the vertical direction according to the paper lit height.

In this case, the tray 504 is placed at a position separated from the discharge port 511 by an appropriate falling distance so that the sheets can be smoothly discharged onto the tray 504 and aligned in the left-right direction. Further, by moving the tray 504 in the vertical direction, a large loading capacity is ensured. Then, the paper P discharged from the discharge port 511 has a trailing edge that is attached to the member 5.
05, they are sorted and sequentially stacked on a tray 504 that reciprocates in the left and right direction.

[Problems to be Solved by the Invention] In the conventional tray device described above, the tray 504 is provided with a member 505 at the rear end of the paper, and moves downward as the paper P is stacked on the tray 504. However, at this time, the paper P stacked on the tray 504 slides on the receiving surface with the rear end of the paper in contact with the member 505 .

As a result, the rear end of each sheet P is bent upward due to frictional resistance, which causes a problem in that it adversely affects the alignment of sheets to be stacked thereafter.

The present invention is intended to solve the above-mentioned problems, and its purpose is to provide a tray device that has a sorting function, a large loading capacity, and is excellent in alignment.

[Means for Solving the Problems] The tray device of the present invention includes a main body, a frame arranged to be swingable with respect to the main body in a direction intersecting the paper ejection direction, and a tray device that swings the frame. a drive unit, a tray on which at least a rear end is vertically swingably held by the frame and is loaded with paper to be discharged from a discharge port; and a rear end of the stacked paper with one end connected to the rear end of the tray. and a biasing member that biases at least the one end side portion of the flexible member upward.

[Effect]

In the tray device of the present invention, one end of the flexible member is connected to the rear end of the tray, and at least a portion of the flexible member on the one end side is urged upward by the urging member. In this case, the tray is placed below the discharge port at a suitable distance from which the paper falls, ensuring alignment. When the sheets are discharged from the discharge port in this state, the rear ends of the sheets are received by the flexible member and are sequentially stacked on the tray. At this time, the tray swings downward together with one end of the flexible member against the biasing force of the biasing member in accordance with the amount of stacked sheets. As a result, the falling distance of the paper subsequently stacked on the tray is maintained at an appropriate state, and the flexible member is sent downward to replenish the portion that receives the trailing edge of the paper. Therefore, no frictional resistance is generated between the rear end of the sheets stacked on the tray and the flexible member. Then, when sheets are stacked on the tray, the frame on which the tray, flexible member, etc. are arranged is reciprocated in the left-right direction with respect to the sheet ejection direction by the driving section.

That is, the sorting work is performed by reciprocating each time a predetermined number of sheets are loaded on the tray.

[Example] Hereinafter, a specific example in which the tray device of the present invention is applied to a copying machine will be described based on the drawings.

(First Embodiment) As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the tray device of this embodiment includes a main body 1, a frame 2, a drive section 3, and a tray 4.
, the flexible member 5, and the biasing member 6 are the main sound components.

The main body 1 forms an image on paper P by an electrophotographic process, and includes an image forming device, a developing device, a fixing device, etc. (not shown) inside. A pair of paper discharge rollers 11 is provided at a predetermined position of the main body 1 for discharging the paper on which the image has been formed to the outside.

The frame 2 serves as a base on which the tray 4, the flexible member 5, and the biasing member 6 are mounted, and is arranged below a pair of paper ejection rollers 11 from which the paper P is ejected. The frame 2 includes a bottom portion 21 and a wall portion 22 integrally formed on the rear end side of the bottom portion 21, and has a 1-shaped cross section. A roller 024 supported by a bearing member 23 is provided at a portion of each corner of the lower surface of the bottom portion 21, and the frame 2 is rotated horizontally with respect to the paper ejection direction by this roller 24.
VJ can be used freely. Further, on the outer surface 22a of the wall portion 22, a cam receiver 25 is provided which engages with the eccentric force 1132 of the drive portion 3, which will be briefly described. This cam receiver 25 has an outer surface 2
It consists of a pair of abutment plates 25a and 25b extending perpendicularly from 2a and provided in parallel to the vertical direction with a predetermined spacing therebetween.

The drive unit 3 includes a drive motor 31 and an eccentric cam 32. The drive module 31 is fixed to the main body 1, and is driven every time a predetermined time elapses after unification of the cPU (not shown) of the main body 1 (every time a predetermined number of sheets P are ejected onto the tray 4). Driven. As shown in FIG. 3, the eccentric cam 32 has an elliptical plate shape with an eccentric rotation axis 32a, and therefore has an apex 32b that is a long radius from the rotation axis 32a at one place on the circumferential surface. It is formed. This eccentric cam 32 has a rotation shaft 32a fixed to a drive shaft 31a of a drive motor 31, and is arranged in the cam receiver 25 with its circumferential surface facing both contact plates 25a and 25b. Note that the eccentric cam 32 has a length slightly shorter than the distance between the contact plates 25a125b.

The tray 4 is for stacking the paper P discharged from the pair of paper discharge rollers 11, and has a rectangular plate shape. This tray 2 has a pivot 41 on the lower surface side of its tip 4a, and this pivot 41 is connected to a support 2 provided on the frame 2.
6, it is supported in a vertically swingable manner. The tray 4 is located between the rear end 4b of the tray 4 and the frame 2.
A tray biasing member 42 that biases the rear end 4b upward is interposed, and the tray 4 is arranged so that the rear end 4b side is inclined downward and is substantially parallel to the extending direction of the paper P. Note that the tray 4 is used for storing paper P discharged from the pair of paper discharge rollers 11.
It is placed in a position where a suitable fall distance H is maintained.
The biasing force of the tray biasing member 42 is adjusted so as to maintain this appropriate falling path 11i1H. Although the tray 4 in this embodiment has a configuration in which the rear end 4b swings around the pivot portion 41, it may also be configured to move in parallel in the vertical direction.

The flexible member 5 is a belt-shaped member having approximately the same width as the tray 4.
It is made of a piece of cloth. The flexible member 5 has one end 5a fixed to the rear end 4b of the tray 4 at a substantially right angle, and the other end 5b locked to the frame 2 via a biasing member 6.

The intermediate portion of the flexible member 5 is supported by two feed rollers 28 whose ends are supported by a pair of support members 27 provided on both sides of the frame 2 in the width direction. Therefore, the flexible member 5 has an intermediate portion supported by the feed roller 28,
One end 5a and the other end 5b are pulled downward and bent into a substantially U-shape. In this case, the flexible member 5
An upright portion on one end 5a side fixed to the tray 4 serves as a receiving portion 5C for receiving the rear end of the paper P stacked on the tray 4. Further, the two feed O-rollers 28 are provided close to each other below the pair of paper ejection rollers 11, and are arranged so that the height of the receiving portion 5C is increased.

In this embodiment, a belt-shaped piece of cloth is used as the flexible member 5, but a plurality of narrow belts, wires, etc. may be used instead.

The biasing member 6 uses a tension coil spring, and both ends thereof are locked to the flexible member 5 and the frame 2. This biasing member 6 biases the receiving portion 5C of the flexible member 5 upward (toward the other end 5b side), and supplements and assists the biasing force of the tray biasing member 42 to push the rear end 4b of the tray 4. It is set in such a way that it is balanced with the downward load of the Thereby, the biasing member 6 allows the flexible member 5 to move following the movement of the rear end 4b of the tray 4, and maintains the tensioned state of the flexible member 5.

In this embodiment, two attachment 913 members 6 are provided on both sides of the flexible member 5 in the width direction, but depending on the relationship with the urging force, three or more may be used.

The tray Vt position of this embodiment is constructed as described above, and its operation will be explained next.

The paper P on which the iQ image has been formed in the main body 1 is delivered to the paper ejection roller pair 1.
Sent from 1. Then, the paper P falls onto the tray 4, slides down to the rear end 4bll due to the inclination of the tray 4, and is received by the receiving portion 5C of the flexible member 5. When the next sheet of paper ") is sent out from the pair of paper ejection rollers 11, it falls onto the previous sheet of paper P and slides toward the trailing edge 4b, and the trailing edge of the sheet of paper P is received by the receiving portion 5C. The subsequent paper P is stacked so that its trailing end overlaps the previous paper P4) with the receiving portion 5C as a reference.When the paper P is sequentially placed V1 on the tray 41 in this way, the tray 4 Due to the weight of the MP for use, the tray biasing member 42
The rear end 4b gradually swings downward about the leading end 4a against the urging force of the rear end 4b. At this time, the flexible member 5 has one end 5a
The tray 4 follows the movement of the rear end 4b of the tray 4 against the biasing force of the biasing member 6, and is gradually pulled downward 1f. As a result, the intermediate portion of the flexible member 5 supported by the feed roller 28 is sent out and replenished as the receiving portion 5c.

Therefore, as shown in FIG. 4, the height of the receiving portion 5C from the topmost sheet P to the feed roller 28, and the appropriate fall of the sheet P, are adjusted as in the initial state before the sheets P are loaded on the tray 4. The distance T1 is now secured.

Further, when the sheets P are sequentially stacked on the tray 4, sorting is being performed. In this case, when a predetermined number of sheets (for example, 5 sheets) of paper P are discharged from the paper discharge roller pair 11,
The drive motor 31 is driven by the CPU with timing, and the eccentric cam 32 is rotated by half 1q. As a result, the top portion 32b of the eccentric cam 32 that was in contact with one abutting plate 25a abuts and presses the other abutting plate 25b. As a result, the frame 2 moves in the left-right direction with respect to the paper discharge direction via the rollers 24, and the tray 4, flexible member 5, etc. also follow this movement. Thereafter, when a predetermined number of sheets P are further discharged from the pair of paper discharge rollers 11, the eccentric cam 32 is rotated another half turn in the same manner. As a result, one abutment plate 25a is pressed by the top portion 32b, and the frame 2 moves in the opposite direction and returns to its original position together with the tray 4, flexible member 5, and the like.

By reciprocating the frame 2 in this way,
The sheets stacked on the tray 4- are sorted into a predetermined number of sheets.

Then, when the paper P has been ejected and the stacked paper P is removed from the tray 4, the tray 4 is removed as shown in FIG.
is pushed up to an initial predetermined position by the biasing force of the tray biasing member 42. Along with this, the flexible member 5 has the other end 5
b is pulled by the biasing member 6, and the tensioned state of the receiving portion 5C is maintained.

As described above, in the tray device of this embodiment, the rear end 4 of the tray 4 swings downward according to the weight of the paper P(7) loaded on the tray 4, and is flexible together with the rear end 4b of the tray 4. The receiving portion 5C of the member 5 is pulled downward. Therefore, an appropriate falling distance H for the paper P discharged onto the tray 4 is ensured, and no frictional resistance is generated between the end of the stacked paper PI and the receiving part 5C, so that the paper P is transferred to the tray. 4 can be stacked with good alignment.

Since the receiving portion 5C is formed by the flexible member 5 being sent out from the feeding roller 28 as the sheets P are stacked on the tray 4, the loading capacity of the sheets P can be increased.

Further, since the flexible member 5 is supported by the feed roller 28 disposed close to and below the pair of paper ejection rollers 11, a sufficient height of the receiving portion 5c can be ensured.

(Modification) The tray device of this modification is such that the other end 5b side of the flexible member 5 in the tray mounting device of the first embodiment is wound up into a roll. In this case, as shown in FIG. 5, the other end 105b of the flexible member 105 is fixedly wound around a roller 129 whose both ends are rotatably supported by a support member 127. The roller 129 is provided with a biasing member (not shown) that biases the flexible member 105 in the winding direction. Further, below the paper ejection roller pair 111, there is a rotary roller 12 that supports the intermediate portion of the flexible member 105.
8 is provided, and the rotating roller 12 of the flexible member 105
A holder g105c is formed by an upright portion from the portion abutting 8 to one end 105a. Note that the other configurations are the same as those in the first embodiment, so explanations will be omitted.

In the tray device of this modification, as shown in FIG. 6, when sheets P are stacked on the tray 104, the tray 104 swings downward due to its lfa, and the flexible member 10
One end 105a of 5 is pulled downward. As a result, the flexible member 105 is gradually sent out against the biasing force of the biasing member, and is replenished as the receiving portion 105C. and,
When the paper P loaded on the tray 104 is removed, as the tray 104 swings upward due to the urging force of the tray urging member 142, the other end 1 of the flexible member 105
The 05b side is wound up by the biasing force of the biasing member, and the tension state of the receiving portion 105C is maintained.

As described above, in the tray device of this modification, the flexible member 10
Since the other end 105b of the flexible member 105 is wound up, the flexible member 105 can be made longer, and the loading capacity can be increased accordingly.

(Second Embodiment) As shown in FIG. 7, the tray device of this embodiment has a back plate member 220 for guiding the receiving portion 205c of the flexible member 205 added to the tray device of the first embodiment. It is something. The back plate member 220 has an L-shaped cross section and includes a fixed portion 220a and a guide portion 220b having a small coefficient of friction. This back plate member 220 has a fixed part 220a attached to the bottom part 222 of the frame 202 such that the guide part 220b is located along the back surface of the receiving part 205c of the flexible member 205.
is fixed. Further, the back plate member 220 may be composed of a plurality of linear members. For other configurations, please refer to the first
Since this is the same as the embodiment, the explanation will be omitted.

In the tray device of this embodiment, as shown in FIG.
C is pulled downward while being guided by the guide portion 220b. Therefore, the movement of the flexible member 205 can be made smooth, and the receiving portion 205c can be reinforced.

(Third Embodiment) As shown in FIG. 9, the tray device of this embodiment has the tray biasing member used in the tray device of the first embodiment by increasing the biasing force of the biasing member 306. 42 is omitted. In this case, instead of increasing the urging force of each urging member 306 itself, the number of ml of urging members 306 may be increased. Note that the other configurations are the same as those in the first embodiment, so explanations will be omitted.

In the tray device of this embodiment, as the sheets P are stacked on the tray 304, the rear end 304b of the tray 304 swings downward against the urging force of the urging member 306, as shown in FIG. At the same time, one end 305 of the flexible member 305
a is pulled downward. In this way, the swinging of the tray 304 and the feeding of the flexible member 305 are controlled only by the biasing member 306. Therefore, the tray device of the first embodiment can be made to have a simple structure.

(Fourth Embodiment) As shown in FIG. 11, the tray device of this embodiment uses a stretchable elastic material instead of the belt-like cloth used as the flexible member 5 in the tray device of the first embodiment. It uses members. This elastic member 405 is formed in the shape of a single belt, and the other end 405b is locked to the bottom 421 of the frame 402 via a hook 450. Therefore, the elastic member 405 of this embodiment has the functions of the flexible member 5 and the urging member 6 of the first embodiment. Further, in this embodiment, by utilizing the elastic restoring force of the elastic member 405, the tray biasing member 42 in the first embodiment is also omitted. Note that the other configurations are the same as those in the first embodiment, so explanations will be omitted.

In the tray device of this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 12, when a sheet P ffim is placed on the tray 404, the elastic member 405 gradually expands due to its elasticity according to its weight, and the tray 404 The rear end 404b of swings downward. As a result, a suitable falling distance H for the paper P that subsequently falls onto the tray 404 and a receiving portion 405C that receives the rear end of the paper P are always ensured.

As described above, in the tray device of this embodiment, the elastic member 40
5, the biasing member 6 and tray biasing member 42 in the first embodiment can be omitted. Therefore, in addition to increasing the stacking ratio and stacking the sheets P with good alignment, the number of parts can be further reduced and the structure can be simplified.

[Effects of the Invention] The tray device of the present invention includes a main body, a frame arranged to be swingable with respect to the main body in a direction intersecting the paper ejection direction, a drive unit for swinging the frame, and a drive unit that swings the frame. The frame includes a tray for loading paper to be discharged from the ejection port, the rear end of which is held swingably in the vertical direction, and one end of which is connected to the rear end of the tray to receive the rear end of the milligram paper. It is comprised of a flexible member and a biasing member that biases at least the one end side portion of the flexible member upward.

As a result, when sheets are loaded on the tray, the rear end of the tray swings downward, and at the same time, at least one end of the flexible member is pulled downward against the biasing force of the biasing member. At this time, the tray, flexible member, etc. are also reciprocated together with the frame as the frame is moved in the direction perpendicular to the paper ejection direction by the drive unit.Therefore, while sorting is done, the flexible member moves It becomes possible to receive paper in a.At the same time,
A suitable fall distance for the paper ejected from the ejection port is maintained, and S rubbing does not occur between the rear edge of the stacked paper and the flexible member, so the paper can be stacked in the tray L: with good alignment. can do. Therefore, the sorter has a function and a large canopy, and it is possible to stack sheets with good alignment.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

1 to 4 relate to a first embodiment of the present invention, in which FIG. 1 is a longitudinal sectional front view of the tray device, FIG. 2 is a perspective view thereof, and FIG. 3 shows the relationship between the eccentric cam and the cam receiver. The perspective view and FIG. 4 are vertical sectional front views of the tray device with sheets P loaded thereon. 5 and 6 relate to modified examples; FIG. 5 is a longitudinal sectional front view corresponding to FIG. 1, and FIG. 6 is a longitudinal sectional front view corresponding to FIG. 4. FIGS. 7 and 8 relate to the second embodiment,
7 is a longitudinal sectional front view corresponding to FIG. 1, and FIG. 8 is a longitudinal sectional front view corresponding to FIG. 4. 9 and 10 relate to the third embodiment; FIG. 9 is a longitudinal sectional front view of the main part, and FIG.
The figure is a longitudinal sectional front view of the main part in a state where sheets P are loaded. Figures 11 and 12 relate to the fourth embodiment;
The figure is a longitudinal sectional front view corresponding to FIG. 1, and FIG. 12 is a longitudinal sectional front view corresponding to FIG. 4. FIG. 13 is a longitudinal sectional front view of a conventional tray device. 1... Main body 2... Frame 3... Drive unit 4... Tray 5... Flexible member
6...Biasing member 27...Supporting member 28...
・Feed roller 42...Tray biasing member patent applicant Minolta Camera Co., Ltd. agent
Patent Attorney Hiroshi Okawa Figure 4 P Figure 7 (. Figure 8 Figure 10 Figure 11 Figure 13 P Application No. 3957 2. Title of the invention: Tray design 3. Relationship with the amended case Patent applicant: Osaka Kokusai Pill (607), 2-30 Ankami-cho, Higashi-ku, Osaka 541, Representative of Minolta Camera Co., Ltd. 1) Hideo Shima 4, Agent Address: 3-3-4, Meibaku 3-3, Nakamura-ku, Nagoya, Aichi Prefecture, Sentama Building (Episode 11 <052> 583-9720) 5, Column for application subject to amendment and detailed description of invention 6. Contents of amendment (1) Amend the application as shown in the attached sheet. (Insert "2. Number of claims...3".) (2) Insert "[Problem to be solved by the invention]" in the 9th line of page 3 of the specification. [Problem to be solved by r invention] Correct as J. (3) "[Means to solve the problem]" in the third line of page 4 of the Ming-mou will be corrected to "[Means to solve the problem]". 7. List of attached documents (1) Request 1 copy

Claims (3)

[Claims] (1) a main body; a frame disposed to be swingable relative to the main body in a direction intersecting the paper ejection direction; a drive unit for swinging the frame; and at least a rear end of the frame arranged in a vertical direction. a tray that is swingably held and stacks sheets to be discharged from a discharge port; a flexible member having one end connected to a rear end of the tray to receive the rear end of the stacked sheets; and at least one end of the flexible member. A tray device comprising a biasing member that biases a side portion upward. (2) The flexible member is arranged in a bent state, with the other end being locked to the frame via the biasing member, and the middle portion being movably supported by the guide member. tray device. (3) The tray is held by a frame so as to be able to swing freely at its leading end, and a tray biasing member that biases the rear end of the tray upward is interposed between the frame and the rear end of the tray. A tray device according to claim 1.