JPH01214576A - Sheet storage device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To make sheet matching good at a stacking part by falling a sheet bundle stapled with the bottom part thereof open via its own weight and providing a staple tray for discharge, a guide board for guiding the sheet bundle to a stacking part and a projection approximately at the central part of the guide board. CONSTITUTION:In a staple mode, a selector member 70 is set to a dot line position in the illustration herein and a copied sheet is fed to the inside of a staple tray 150 via carriage rollers 165 and 165, and matched with the rotation of a paddle wheel 180. Upon completion of matching a final copied sheet for a group of drafts, a stapler 150 is driven and a copied sheet bundle is stapled. Then, a stopper 160 is turned in an arrow (g) direction and the bottom part of the staple tray 150 is released, thereby guiding and discharging stapled copied sheets via a guide board 215. In this case, as a projection 216 is formed at the central part of the guide board 215, the copied sheet is discharged as energized in a discharge direction and sheet matching in a stack cage is improved.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a paper storage device that stores and aligns sheets discharged from an image forming apparatus such as a copying machine and performs stable processing.

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, this type of paper storage device was disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No. 59-4.
3765 and JP-A-60-183461 are known. These are usually called finishers, and are configured to stack copied sheets on a tray or the like, align them, perform stable processing, and then transfer them to a stacking section where they are stacked and accommodated.

In these devices, in order to move the stabled paper bundle to the stacking section, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 60-183
In the device disclosed in No. 461, a belt that also serves as a tray is swung and rotated, and in the device in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 59-43765, a pinch roller and a discharge roller are rotated.

Problems to be Solved by the Invention However, in the roller type, the roller is installed so that it can move forward and backward in order to function only when discharging the paper, but this has the problem of being mechanically complicated.

Even in the belt system, the belt is oscillated, making it mechanically complex and requiring a large amount of dead space.

On the other hand, to simplify the configuration, it is conceivable to use the paper stack's own weight to slide off the tray, but the paper tends to curl as it passes through the copier's fixing device, so it simply falls freely. It is difficult to accommodate the material in the stack section with good alignment if the material is thin.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to provide a paper storage device that can discharge a bound bundle of sheets from a staple tray and store them in a stack section with a simple configuration, and that also has good paper alignment in the stack section. It is in.

Means for Solving the Problems In order to solve the problems above, the paper storage device according to the present invention has the following features: In the sheet storage device that discharges the paper to the rear stack section, (b) a staple tray that opens the bottom to allow the bound stack of sheets to fall under its own weight and is discharged; and (C) a stack section that is ejected from the vicinity of the discharge section of the staple tray. (d) a protrusion installed approximately in the center of the kite plate so as to extend in the discharge direction;

Function In the configuration described above, the sheets discharged from the image forming apparatus are fed into the staple tray and stapled by the binding means. Thereafter, the bottom of the staple tray is opened, and the stack of sheets falls under its own weight and is completely discharged to the stack section. During this ejection, the paper stack is guided by a guide plate,
The protrusion provided at approximately the center of the guide plate deforms into a substantially mountain shape when viewed in a cross section perpendicular to the ejection direction, and is bent relative to the ejection direction, i.e., heat curls. It can be stored in the stack part with good alignment in the corrected state.

Embodiments of the paper storage device according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[Overall configuration including the copying machine main body] First, the overall configuration including the copying machine main body (1) will be described according to FIG.

The copying machine main body (1) is placed on a desk (45), and a circulating automatic document feeder (30) (hereinafter referred to as R) is mounted on the top surface.
(denoted as DH) is attached. This copying machine body (1)
Inside, there is a photoreceptor drum (2) that can be rotated in the direction of arrow (a), an optical system (3), and a charger (4).
, a developing device (5), and a transfer charger (6).

Image forming elements such as a cleaning device (7) and an eraser lamp (8>) are arranged.Since these devices and the copying process are well known, their explanation will be omitted.

The copy paper can be fully stored in the automatic paper feed set (10), (11), and the copy paper can be stored in any of the cassettes (10), (11).
The paper is selectively fed one by one from the timing roller pair (
In step 15), the toner image is conveyed to the transfer section (2a) in synchronization with the toner image formed on the outer peripheral surface of the photoreceptor drum (2).

After the transfer, the copy paper is sent to the fixing device (17>) via the conveyor belt (16>, where the toner is fixed, and then ejected from the ejection roller pair <18). (18>Sensor (SEL>(
(see Figure 2).

RDH (30) generally includes a document tray (31), a paper feed belt (32), a pair of paper feed rollers (33), a reversing guide plate (34), a conveyor belt (35), and a reversing roller (36).
, a pair of discharge rollers (37). RDH(
30) is a system in which the original is conveyed in a circular manner starting from the last page, and the original is placed on the tray (31) with the back side of the last page facing down, and the paper feed belt 32) is fed from the last page.
The sheet is pulled out by the rotation of the paper feeding roller pair (33) and fed between the conveyance belt (35) and the document table glass (9) via the reversing guide plate (34>.Next, the conveyance belt (35) ) is set at a predetermined position on the original table glass cover 9), and is irradiated with light by an optical system (not shown). After image exposure, the document is conveyed from above the document table glass (9) to the right in FIG.
The document is discharged from a pair of discharge rollers (37>) via a pair of discharge rollers (36) onto a document placed on a tray (31>) with the image side facing up.

The number of originals and the number of copies can be input using an input means (numeric keypad) on the operation panel (not shown), and when the copying of the - group of originals is completed, as described below,
In order to shift the ray (80) or perform stable processing and stamp processing, a group of documents is conveyed in a circular manner for a set number of copies while the copying operation is interrupted, as described above.

In this embodiment, the paper storage device is the main body of the copying machine (1).
selectively stores the ejected copy paper on the paper ejection tray (80) or in the staple tray (150);
The sheets are aligned and stapled using a stapler (190). Therefore, when copying a plurality of copies using the RDH (30) and performing stable processing and stamp processing at the same time, the copy sheets are sequentially stored in the staple tray (150) and the copies are After the copying end signal from the main body (1) of the machine has completed one cycle of originals and the alignment of the final copy sheet is completed, the stapler (190)
, operate the stamp (200) to bind and print the copy paper. Bound copies are in the stack basket (220)
It is loaded and stored inside.

[Configuration of finisher unit] Next, regarding the configuration of the finisher unit (50),
This will be explained with reference to FIGS. 2 to 10.

This finisher unit (50) generally includes rollers (60) and (61) for receiving copy paper, a switching member (70) for switching the conveyance path, a paper ejection tray (80), and - A shift block (90) that shifts the paper ejection tray (80) in a direction perpendicular to the paper ejection direction each time a copy sheet for a group of originals is stored, and a paper ejection tray (
a staple tray having a stabilizing function and a stamping function; (150).

The copy paper receiving section has a driving roller <60> and a driven roller (
In addition to 61), it is composed of kite plates (62) and (63) facing the discharge roller pair (18), and the finisher unit (50) further includes the switching member (7o) and the guide plate (64), (69), (91) A sensor (SE3) is installed to detect the copy paper discharged to the paper discharge tray (80>).

The switching member (70) has a beak shape and is rotatably attached to the support shaft (71) as a fulcrum, and is rotated from the solid line position to the dotted line position in FIG. 2 by turning on a solenoid (not shown). When in the solid line position, the top surface (70a) guides the copy paper toward the paper output tray (80), and when switched to the dotted line position, the curved surface (70b) guides the copy paper toward the staple tray (150> side). do.

As shown in Fig. 3, copy paper is ejected to the paper ejection tray (80>) using an ejection roller (95) and a pole (67>), which are installed coaxially with the ejection roller (95). The ejected copy sheets are aligned with the paddle (99).The paddle (99) has flexible blade members arranged radially, and when rotated in the direction of arrow (b), the ejected copy sheets are aligned. A biasing force in the opposite direction to the direction of ejection is applied to the rear end of the copy paper discharged upward, and the back plate 75 fixes the rear end of the copy paper.
), and in this embodiment, the paper ejection tray (80) is shifted at a predetermined timing to sort the copy sheets. Therefore, it is necessary to shift the paddle (99), which is in constant contact with the rear end portion of the ejected copy paper, in conjunction with the shift operation so as not to disturb the alignment of the copy paper. Therefore, the paddle (99) and the ejection roller (9)
5) has a structure that can be shifted integrally.

That is, the paddle (99) and the discharge roller (95) are fixed to a pipe-shaped shaft (96), and the shaft (96) is loosely fitted to a support shaft (98) rotatably attached to a frame (not shown). There is. The support shaft (98) can be rotated in the direction of arrow (b) by a transport motor (not shown), and its groove (98a)
) are engaged with projections (not shown) provided on ring-shaped stoppers (97) fixed to both ends of the shaft (96).

Therefore, the paddle (99) and the discharge roller (95) are connected to the shaft (
It is rotationally driven in the direction of the arrow (b) integrally with the support shaft (98) via the support shaft (96), and can be shifted in the direction of the arrow (c). In this shift operation, the stopper (97) engages with the notch (91a) of the lower guide plate (91), and as explained below, the lower guide plate (91) moves in the direction of the arrow (c) together with the shift block (9o). This is done in conjunction with the shift to Further, the paddle (99) and the discharge roller (95) are located in the notches (91b) and (91c) of the lower guide plate (91), respectively.

On the other hand, the ball (67) is rotatably pressed against the discharge roller (95>) by its own weight. That is, as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the ball (67) is pressed against the upper guide plate (64). It is located in the opening (64a) formed in the opening (64'a), and movement is prevented by a holder claw 5) fixed to a protrusion (64b) cut and raised from the opening (64'a). The ball (67> is the holder (65)
) can be driven by the rotation and shift of the ejection roller (95), and the copy paper is sandwiched between the ejection roller (95) and sent onto the paper ejection tray (80>).

As shown in FIG. 2, the paper discharge tray (80) has a plurality of protrusions (80a) on its surface extending in the paper discharge direction, and is mounted on the shift frame (100) via a holding plate (85). installed. The rear end of the paper output tray (80) is attached to the fixed back plate (7).
5), and the actuator (86>) of the sensor (SE3) is located directly above it.The actuator (86) is rotatably attached to the shaft (88) integrally with the lever (87>). , the lower end of the lever (87) normally blocks the optical axis of the sensor (SE3).
) When the number of sheets of copy paper stored on the top of
7) rotates together with the actuator (86) about the shaft 88) in the counterclockwise direction in FIG.
) opens the optical axis of the sensor (SE3). With this, the top surface level of the copy paper is detected, and the operation of the nilevate block (130), which will be described in detail below, is enabled and the paper output tray (
80).

[Shift block] Shift frame (in which the paper output tray (80) is installed)
100), as shown in FIGS. 3 and 5, the support shaft (132) is attached to the horizontal guide portion (t3ta) of the lifting frame (131).
) and is guided by a rotatably provided guide roller (133) and can be shifted in the direction of arrow (C).

A cam (120) shown in FIG. 7 is installed in this horizontal guide part (131a), and a pin (122) fixed to the upper edge of the cam (120) is inserted into the elongated hole (100a) of the shift frame (100). ) is engaged with. The cam (120) can be rotated in the direction of the arrow (d) about the support shaft (121) by a shift motor (not shown), and has recesses (120a), (12
0b) is formed. Further, the actuator (125) of the sensor (SE8) comes into contact with the outer peripheral surface of the cam (120), and the sensor (SE8) is actuated whenever the actuator (125) falls into the recesses (120a) and (120b) based on the rotation of the cam (120). (SE8) operates.

In the above configuration, when the RDH (30) finishes copying the - group of originals and the copy sheet of the final original is stored on the paper ejection tray (80), the shift motor is activated.
The cam (120) is rotationally driven in the direction of the arrow (d), and the actuator (125) moves to the next recess (120a) or (1).
20b), the shift motor is turned off. That is, the cam 20) intermittently rotates 180° every time a predetermined number of copy sheets are stored on the paper ejection tray (80), and the shift frame (100) moves to the paper ejection tray via the pin (122). (80), the reciprocating movement (shift) is repeated in the direction of arrow (C), that is, in the direction orthogonal to the direction in which the copy paper is ejected.

Furthermore, a fixed back plate (75) and a movable back plate (110>) are installed on the back of the shift frame (100).

The fixed back plate (75) is fixed to the main body frame of the finisher unit (50), and regulates the rear end of the copy paper stored on the paper discharge tray (80). Movable back plate (11
0) is installed to shift the ejection roller (95), the sensor (SE3) and its actuator (86) in conjunction with the ejection tray (80), and the lower guide plate (
91) is also fixed to this movable back plate (110).

Specifically, as shown in Figures 3 and 5, the movable back plate (1
10) are three wooden pins (76) fixed to the fixed backboard (75).
) is formed in this movable back plate (110) through a long hole (110a
), the pin (101) fixed to the shift frame (100) can be engaged with the horizontal guide portion (131a) of the lifting frame (131). Guide plate (134) fixed to
The elongated hole (134a) and the opening (75) of the fixed back plate (75)
The movable back plate (110) is engaged with a long hole (110b) formed in the vertical direction through the movable back plate (110). Therefore, the movable back plate (1
10) is shifted in the direction of arrow (c) together with the shift frame <100) and the paper discharge tray (80) by engagement between the pin (101) and the elongated hole (110b). And a movable back plate (
110), the horizontal long hole (110a) is shifted by the pin (
76). On the other hand, due to the operation of the elevator 1 block (130), which will be described in detail below, the shift frame (100) is
) moves up and down, the pin (101) is connected to the elongated hole (110b).
The movable back plate (110) maintains a constant height position and does not move up or down. That is, the discharge roller (95).

The height of the actuator (86) is constant.

[Nirebate Block] The Nilevate block (130) is the shift block (
90) to raise and lower the paper discharge tray (80).

As shown in FIG. 6, the elevating frame (131) that shiftably supports the shift frame (100) has rollers (136) rotatably mounted on both sides that support the main body frame (
a guide frame (140) fixed to a guide frame (not shown);
By engaging the inside of (140), it can be raised and lowered. In addition, this elevating frame (131) includes a pinion (138) fixed to a support shaft <137), (13
8) is completely attached. This pinion (138), (
138) are lifting guide frames (140), (140
) is engaged with racks (140a), (140a) formed in It moves up and down together with the tray (80).

In the above configuration, the paper is ejected onto the ejection tray (80).

When the number of stored copy sheets increases and the upper surface of the copy sheets lifts the actuator (86) and the sensor (SE3) operates, the lifting motor is driven to rotate in the normal direction. The lifting frame (131,) is now the shift frame (100).

It descends together with the paper discharge tray (80). In the lowering operation, when the paper output tray (80) is lowered, the top surface of the copy paper is moved through the actuator (86), and the lever (87) is moved again to the sensor (SE2).
) When the light is blocked, the normal rotation of the lifting motor is stopped. In this way, the paper ejection tray (80) is intermittently lowered according to the amount of copy paper stored, so that the height at which the trailing edge of the copy paper falls onto the paper ejection tray (<80) is increased by the ejection roller (80). 95) and the ball (67) to the copy paper upper surface position of the actuator (86), plus the amount of descent while the lifting motor is driven in normal rotation. can be maintained. Coupled with the alignment effect of the paddle (99) on the copy paper, the alignment of the copy paper on the paper discharge tray (80) is made good.

On the other hand, as shown in Figure 2, Nilevate block (130
) Sensors (SE5) and (SE6) are installed below. This sensor (SE5), (SE6)
is the corner (131b) of the lowered lifting frame (131)
It operates when the optical axis is blocked. Sensor (SE5
) operates, it means that the output tray <80) is full of copy paper, and outputs an unaccommodating signal to the copier main unit (1), and if necessary, removes the copy paper from above the output tray (80). to show that it is removed.

In addition, since the lifting frame (131) operates the stamp (200), the corner (131b) is connected to the sensor (SE6).
descend until it is detected.

[Stamp mechanism] Here, the stamp mechanism will be explained.

As shown in FIG. 6, the stamp (200) is used to print predetermined characters such as "Secret", "Circulation", etc. on the copy paper stored in the staple tray (150), which will be described in detail below. It is driven by an elevating frame (131). In other words, the stamp (200) has the printing surface (200a) aligned with the arrow (
e) direction, and the pin (201) is in the guide hole (
209) so that it can be moved in the direction of arrow (e). This stamp (200) is a pin (204)
The links (202) and (203) connected at ing.

The horizontal guide part (131a) of the elevating frame (131)
) is fixed with a projecting piece (135), and the elevating frame (13
1) descends to the lowest position, the protruding piece (135) touches the pin (
204) to move the stamp (200) in the direction of arrow (e) and print on the copy paper in the staple tray (150). The printing operation is controlled to be performed immediately after the binding operation by the stapler (190), and when the sensor (SE6) operates at the same time as printing, the elevating motor is driven in reverse, and the elevating frame (131) is raised and returned to the second position. do. Then, the links (202) and (203), which are no longer pressed by the protruding piece (135), are rotated upward by the spring force of the torsion coil spring (206), and the stamp (200)
) will return to its initial position.

[Staple Tray] As shown in FIG. 2, the staple tray (150) includes a substrate (151), a guide plate (155), and a stopper (160).
), and is installed in an upright position with a slight incline. The stopper (160) is attached to the staple tray (1
50), which is rotatably supported by a support shaft (161) and connected to a discharge solenoid (not shown). This stopper (16
0) is normally engaged with the lower part of the guide plate (155) when the discharge solenoid is turned off, and the staple tray (1
50) is closed at the bottom. When the discharge solenoid is turned on, the stopper (160) rotates in the direction of arrow (f) about the support shaft (161), and the staple tray (15
Open the bottom of 0).

Further, at the bottom of the staple tray (150), there is a paddle wheel (180) for aligning the stored copy sheets.
A stapler (190), a guide roller (195), and a sensor (SE7) for detecting the presence or absence of copy paper are installed. As shown in FIG. 8, the paddle wheel <180) has a flexible blade member (18
2) are attached radially and are driven to rotate in the direction of arrow (g). As a result, the blade member (182) comes into sliding contact with the copy paper, urges the copy paper sent to the staple tray (150) one by one in one direction, and aligns the copy paper.

The stapler (190) is of a well-known conductive type, and the base of the stable staple receiver is installed on the same plane as the stopper (160). Bind the section.

The guide roller (195) is rotatably attached to the lower part of a lever (196) that is swingably attached to the guide plate (155), and in particular, the guide roller (195) is rotatably attached to the lower part of the lever (196) that is swingably attached to the guide plate (155). Guide the movements to be performed.

Meanwhile, the upper part of the guide plate (155) extends to the vicinity of the switching member (70), and guides the copy paper to the staple tray (150) with the guide plate (69).

Directly above the staple tray (150) is a conveyance roller (
165), (166), and a sensor (SE4) for detecting the copy paper fed in.

Furthermore, a regulation lever (156) is provided on the guide plate (155).
.

(157) and a copy paper static elimination brush (15g) are installed.The regulation levers (156) and (157) enter the staple tray (150) by turning on the solenoids (SLI) and (SL2). , can be rotated to the position indicated by the dotted line in Fig. 1, thereby regulating the fall of the copy paper and preventing page alignment from being disturbed.Therefore, the regulation levers (156) and (157) are capable of stable processing. The staple tray (150) is set at a position that corresponds to the size of the copy paper stored in the staple tray (150) and regulates the upper end portion of the copy paper stored in the staple tray (150).

Next, a configuration for discharging stabilized copy paper from the staple tray (150) will be described.

A protrusion (211) is attached to the frame (210) installed in the finisher unit 50) at a position facing the lower part of the copy paper stored in the staple tray (150), as shown in FIG. As shown, the stopper (160) is formed with a long hole (160b) that corresponds to the protrusion (211). Therefore, the stopper (1
60) rotates in the direction of arrow (g) to remove the staple tray (
150>, when the bottom of
160b) and regulates the lower part of the copy paper. This is to prevent the lower part of the copy paper from moving in the direction of the arrow (g>) while contacting the lower end regulating portion (160a) of the stopper (160) when the stopper (160) is opened, which would cause an ejection failure. Therefore, the regulating surface of the protruding piece (211) is an inclined surface so as to guide the copy paper in the ejection direction.

Further, as shown in FIG. 10, the stabilized copy paper is guided by the guide plate (215) into the stack basket (2).
20) (see Figure 1). At this time, the copy paper tends to curl in the direction of arrow (h) in Figure 2 due to heating by the fixing device (17) inside the copying machine main body (1), so it is difficult to simply guide it with the guide plate (215). , are stored in a stack in a disordered state (220). Therefore, in this embodiment, a protrusion (216) is provided at the center of the guide plate (215). In this way, the copy paper is ejected in a state where it is bent in the ejection direction, and the copy paper is ejected into the stack basket (
220).

[Operating Mode] The finisher unit (50) consisting of
Can operate in stamp mode.

These movement modes are finish units 1-(50
) can be selectively set by turning on the mode selection switch installed above.

The non-stable mode is an operation mode in which copy sheets discharged from the copying machine main body (1) are stacked and accommodated on the paper discharge tray (80). At this time, the switching member (70)
The copy paper is held at the solid line position in the figure, and the copy paper is ejected by the ejection roller (95).
, ball <67) onto the output tray 80) and is aligned based on the rotation of the paddle (99). Then, each time the sensor (SE3) detects the upper surface of the fully accommodated copy paper, the nilevate block (1, 30> operates as described above, and the discharge roller (95) and ball (67)
The height between the nip portion and the top surface of the copy paper is kept approximately constant.

For the shift operation of the paper output tray (80>) by the shift block (90), the number of copies must be set to "2" or more,
Alternatively, use the RDH (30) to increase the number of copies.
By setting it to 2” or more, it can be executed automatically.

At this time, one copy process is completed and the sensor (SE2)
When the ejection of the final copy sheet is detected, the ejection tray <8
0) can be shifted left and right, and the copy sheets are sorted by number of copies.

In the stable mode, the copy paper that has been completely ejected from the copying machine main body (1) is stored on the staple tray (150), the stapler 90) is operated to staple the copy paper stack, and the stapled copy paper stack is This is an operation mode in which the stack cage (220) is accommodated. At this time, the switching member <70) is set to the dotted line position in FIG.
), (165) into the staple tray (150) and is aligned based on rotation of the paddle wheel (180). Then, when the alignment of the final copy sheet with respect to the - group of documents is completed, the stapler (190) is driven.

Stamp mode refers to an operation mode in which a stamp (200) is printed on the first page of copy paper stored in the staple tray (150), and in this embodiment, it is executable only in conjunction with stable mode. Printing is performed immediately after table processing. In this case, operate the Nilevate block (130) to lower the elevating frame (131) together with the paper ejection tray (80) until its corner (131b) is detected by the sensor (SE6),
2) Stamp (200) with the linked action of (203)
Move and print.

[Other Embodiments] Note that the paper accommodating device according to the present invention is not limited to the above-mentioned embodiments, and can be variously modified within the scope of the gist thereof.

In particular, various specific configurations can be adopted for the staple tray (150), and the stack portion may also have a box shape other than the basket shape as in the embodiment.

Furthermore, in this paper storage device, a mechanism for shifting the paper discharge tray, a mechanism for raising and lowering the paper discharge tray, and a mechanism for stamping bound sheets are not essential elements.

Effects of the Invention As is clear from the above explanation, the present invention provides a protrusion extending in the ejection direction at approximately the center of the guide plate that guides the stack of sheets falling under its own weight to the stacking section. In addition to making it possible to eject the paper stack with this configuration, the paper stack is stabilized in the ejection direction, and is stored in the stack section with heat curls corrected, resulting in good alignment within the stack section. Become.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

The drawings show an embodiment of the paper storage device according to the present invention, in which FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram including the main body of the copying machine, FIG. 2 is an internal configuration diagram of the finisher unit, and FIG. 3 is an illustration of the ejection roller and shift block. FIG. 4 is an exploded perspective view illustrating the ejection of copy sheets to the paper output tray. FIG. 5 is an exploded perspective view of the rear side of the shift block. FIG. Figure 7 is a perspective view of the shift cam, Figure 8 is a perspective view of the paddle wheel in the staple tray, and Figure 9 is a perspective view of the shift cam.
FIG. 10 is a perspective view of a stopper of the staple tray, and FIG. 10 is a perspective view of a copy paper stack discharge section of the staple tray. (1) Copy machine main body, (50) Finisher unit, (150) Staple tray, (15
1)...Substrate, (160)...Stopper, (190
)... Stapler, (215)... Guide plate, (2
16)... Protrusion, (220)... Stack basket.

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] 1. In a paper storage device that stores and aligns sheets of paper discharged from an image forming apparatus in a staple tray, binds them with a binding means, and then discharges them to a stack unit, the paper can be bound by opening the bottom. a staple tray that drops and discharges a stack of sheets under its own weight; a guide plate that guides the stack of sheets from near the discharge section of the staple tray to a stack section; and a substantially central portion of the guide plate that extends in the discharge direction. A paper storage device characterized by comprising: a protrusion installed at the top;