JPH02178168A - Sorter - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To prevent a sheet from jumping out at the time of sheet loading onto the upper stage by setting up each space at the free end side of a plural numbers of bins so as to be wider than that of a base end at the paper discharge unit side. CONSTITUTION:A plural numbers of bins 72a-72f are fixed of its side 85 of a paper discharge unit 60, and the side of a free end 89 is formed so as to make the angle so steep in order from a bin at the lower stage so as to cause a space to be widened. This paper discharge unit 60 is moved up and down so as to cause sheets to be loaded on these bins 72a-72f in order. Rotational speed of a paper discharge roller 63 is made to be a large one because of its tensity with a fixing roller 16, in case of a long sheet, at a lowermost stage position of this roller 63. Accordingly, if this paper discharge roller 63 is lifted up, this mutual tensity is brought to nothing so that the rotational speed comes too much, and a discharge rate is increased, but since a bin 72 is made so speed in its angle in proportion as going to the upper stage, the sheet is prevented from jumping out.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention (a) Industrial Application Field The present invention is connected to an image forming apparatus such as a copying machine, a laser beam printer, or a facsimile machine, and is used to sort and classify sheets discharged from the image forming apparatus. Regarding sorters.

(B) Prior Art Conventionally, this type of sorter has been connected near the paper output section of copying machines, printers, etc., and is described in Japanese Patent Application No. 63-219883 as a sorter connected to a laser beam printer, for example. What is possible has been devised. This sorter is connected to the upper paper ejection port of the printer, and sorts the sheets by fixing the tray and moving the sheet ejection means.The sorter suppresses the vibration of the sorter itself as much as possible and transfers the sheets to the printer. This eliminates problems such as image blurring caused by vibration transmission.

In this sorter, the sheet ejection means moves in the vertical direction, so the bins of the sorter and the sheet ejection means cannot overlap, and the sheets must be ejected by pushing them from the sheet ejection means to the bins. . Also, the printer's sheet ejecting speed and the sorter's ejecting speed are different, and in -m, the sorter's ejecting speed is faster than the printer's, causing sheet tension. .

Also, the bins of the sorter are fixed parallel bins,
To make it easier to take out the sheets loaded in the bin,
The tip of the bottle is not fixed and is left free, so that even if a certain amount of force is applied to the bottle, the tip itself can bend.

(c) Problems to be Solved by the Invention In the conventional sorter described above, sheet tension occurs near the paper ejection port of the printer to which the sorter is attached, and between the sheet ejection means of the sorter and the printer. There is tension between the fuser and the fuser. Due to the configuration of the sorter, among the many bins, tension occurs particularly in the lower bins, but not in the upper bins.

Therefore, the discharge speed of the sorter must be set to the discharge speed of the lower bin, and since sheets do not pull against each other in the upper bin, the discharge speed is faster than in the lower bin, and the sheets are discharged onto the bin. In some cases, the particles flew too far and the consistency deteriorated, or as a result of the poor consistency, they were pushed out and fell from the top of the bin.

In addition, only the base end of the sorter bin is fixed near the ejecting means, and the tip on the opposite side is free, so that as sheets are loaded into the bin, the tip of the bin can bend due to the weight of the sheets. As a result, the distance between each of the lower bins except for the topmost bin becomes narrower at the tip, and the tip acts as resistance when discharging sheets to each bin, causing problems such as paper ejection failure and jams. Ta.

In the present invention, each bin of the saw S is set so that the distance between the bins on the free end side is larger than the distance between the base ends on the side closer to the ejecting means, thereby stably discharging sheets to each bin. The purpose of this invention is to provide a vine sorter that performs the following tasks.

(d) Means for Solving the Problems The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned circumstances. For example, as shown in FIGS. A plurality of bins (72) capable of storing sheets (S), and a paper discharge unit (27) that moves vertically near the sheet entrance of the bin (27) and discharges the sheet (S) into the bin (72). 60), the interval between the free ends (89) of each of the bins (72) is equal to the base end (
The feature is that each bin (72) is arranged so that the interval is wider than the interval between the bins (88).

(f) Effect Based on the above configuration, when the sheet (S) discharged from the laser beam printer (2) is discharged to the sorter (5) by the paper discharge unit (60), the bin of the sorter (5) is The distance between the free ends (89) of (72) and the proximal end (88
), so even if the free end (89) of the bin (72) curves as the sheets (S) are loaded onto the bin (72), the sheets (S) Bottle (7
2) It is discharged and loaded without upward resistance.

Note that the above-mentioned symbols in parentheses are shown for reference and do not similarly limit the structure of the present invention.

(F) Example A first example of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS. 1 and 4.

1 and 2, an image forming apparatus 1 includes, for example, a laser beam printer 2 and a sorter (sheet material processing apparatus) 5 attached to a main body 3 of the apparatus. The apparatus main body 3 is composed of an upper unit 6 and a lower unit 7, and the upper unit 6 is pivotally connected to the lower unit 7 by a split shaft 9 so as to be openable and closable.

The laser beam printer 2 includes a paper feed unit 12 consisting of a cassette 10 that stores sheets S and is detachably attached to a lower unit 7, a paper feed roller 11 that feeds out the sheets S, and a photosensitive drum 1.
3, a fixing device 16 that fixes the toner image, a paper discharge section 19 that discharges the sheet S conveyed through the U-shaped conveyance path 17, and a paper discharge section 19 on which the sheet S to be discharged is placed. It has a paper discharge bin 20 etc. in which the paper is placed.

A negative charger 21, a developer 22, a transfer charger 23, a cleaner 25, etc. are arranged around the apparatus main body 3, and functional parts other than the transfer charger 23 are housed in a process cartridge C. There is. laser scanner 2
The laser beam emitted from the photosensitive drum 13 is irradiated through the mirror 26a to form a latent image, and this latent image is developed by the developing device 22 to form a toner image.

A pair of registration rollers 29 are provided downstream of the paper feed roller 11 at appropriate positions on the conveyance path 27 to photosensitive the sheet S in synchronization with the position of the toner image on the photosensitive drum 13. It acts to send out to the drum 13.

The sheet S in the cassette 10 is conveyed to the registration roller 29 by the rotation of the paper feed roller 11, and then
9, the toner image is transferred to the transfer charger 23 at a predetermined timing.

After the toner image has been transferred, the sheet S is fixed by a fixing device 16 and then conveyed to a paper discharge section 19 via a conveyance path 17. The sheet S is ejected from the paper ejection section 19 while being held between a paper ejection roller 30 that constitutes the paper ejection section 19 and a plurality of rollers 30a that are in pressure contact with the paper ejection roller 30 . The paper discharge roller 30 is covered by an eaves 6a formed by bending the upper end of the upper unit 6.

The photosensitive drum 13, which has completed the transfer of the toner image, has residual toner removed by the cleaner 25, and is then charged again by the negative charger 21 to form the next image.

Next, the configuration of the sorter 5 will be explained. .

FIG. 2 is a longitudinal sectional side view of the sorter 5 shown in FIG. 1, viewed from the left side.

The sorter 5 has a pair of side plates 31 and 32 each opening laterally and forming a channel shape (U-shape), as shown in FIG.
It has upper stays 33. at the upper and lower parts of both side plates 31. Lower stays 35 are installed respectively. These side plates 31, 32 and upper and lower stays 33, 35 are covered by an exterior cover 388 and constitute the fuselage 38.

A portion of the lower stay 35 is cut and raised to form a pair of cut and raised parts (protrusions) 35a and 35b facing each other, and a pair of short shafts 36 are fixed to both cut and raised parts 35a and 35b, respectively. has been done.

A flapper 37 disposed on the downstream side of the paper discharge section 19
Both ends of the flapper 37 are pivotally connected to the shaft 36, and the bases of leaf springs 39 are fixed to the upper portions of both ends of the flapper 37, respectively. Cut-up portion 3 of the lower stay 35
A pair of shafts 40 and 41 are further fixed in parallel to each of the shafts 5a and 35b, and a carry-in roller 42 is rotatably mounted on the shaft 40, and a guide roller 43 is rotatably mounted on the other shaft 41. is supported by

A shaft 46 is rotatably mounted on bearings 45 fixed to the lower portions of the side plates 31 and 32, respectively, and a pulley 47 having a gear 47a formed at its tip is fixed to one end of the shaft 46. , and a pulley 49 at the other end of the shaft 46.
is fixed.

Further, pulleys 51 and 52 are rotatably mounted on shafts 50 fixed to the upper portions of both side plates 31 and 32, respectively. Timing belts 53 are stretched between the pulleys 47 and 52, and between the pulleys 49 and 51, respectively. The support plate 5 fixed to the side plate 32 has a motor 56 having a drive and a nion 56a.
is installed. The drive pinion 56a meshes with the gear 47a of the pulley 47 via an idle gear 57 disposed on the support plate 55.

Guide members 59 are attached to vertically movable long holes (not shown) formed in the vertical direction of the side plates 31 and 32. Portions Boa and 60b pass through each of them.

The ends 60a, 60b are connected to both the timing belts 53
The paper ejection unit 60 is supported by being attached to each of them.

The paper discharge unit 60 includes a frame 61 shown in FIG. 1, and a projection 61a is formed by cutting a portion of the frame 61 downward. The shaft to which the paper discharge roller 62 is fixed is rotatably supported by the frame 61, and a guide plate 63 having a notch 63a is fixed to the frame 61. A deflection spring 65 is fixed to the guide plate 63 as shown in FIG.
The leaf springs 65 rotatably support the rollers 66 and 87 and urge them against the paper discharge roller 62. A gear 69 (see FIG. 2) is fixed to one end of the shaft to which the paper discharge roller 62 is fixed, and this gear 69 is connected to a drive means (not shown).

At the left end of the paper ejection unit 60, there is a sensor 70 for position detection.
and a light shielding plate 71 are provided. The sensor 70 is
A pair of side plates 38b of the fuselage body 38 have protrusions 73a at positions corresponding to the plurality of bins 72a to 72f (see FIG. 1) arranged along the vertical direction,
It is turned on and off by a light shielding member 73 provided at 1. A sensor 75 is disposed on the lower stay 35, and this sensor 75 is connected to the light shielding plate 7.
1, it is turned ON-OFF.

The above-mentioned side plates 72a to 72f are fixed at their base ends to the side plate 38b so that the intervals on the base end side thereof are equal intervals, and the bins on the upper side than any lower side are Each bin (other than the bottom bin) is arranged so that the slope of the bin is steep. In this way, each of 72a to 72
By arranging the bins 72a to 72f, the distance between the free ends of each of the bins 72a to 72f is wider than the distance between the base ends thereof.

The lowermost bin 72f is covered with a cover 76 to form a space, and a spring 77 whose one end is fixed to the cover 76 is disposed in this space. A sheet-shaped guide member 79 is stretched between the spring 77 and the frame 61, and this guide member 79 constitutes one side of the paper discharge path A that guides the sheets S to the sorter 5. A door 80 is attached to the exterior cover 38a by a hinge 81 so that it can be opened freely, and a rib 82 that constitutes one side of the paper ejection path A is provided on the inside of the door 80. is located at the opening 63a of the guide plate 63. In addition, in FIG. 2, the paper ejection unit 60 is at the highest position, which corresponds to the state shown in FIG. 4, which will be described later. S can be ejected.

Next, the operation of this embodiment configured as described above will be explained.

When the operator selects to eject the sheet S to the paper ejection bin 20 using an operation unit (not shown), the control unit (path shown) that receives a signal from the operation unit starts the motor 56 to eject the sheet at an arbitrary position. The unit 60 is lowered, and the light shielding plate 71 that descends together with the paper ejection unit 60 turns the sensor 75 off.
F, the motor 56 stops. As a result, the paper ejection unit 60 is placed at the lowest home position (see Figure 1).
Located in At this stop, the protrusion 61a of the frame 61 of the paper ejection unit 60 comes into contact with the leaf spring 39, causing the flapper 3
Turn 7 clockwise. The leaf spring 39 is provided for escape when the flapper 37 is pushed too far.

The flapper 37 is located at a position spaced upward and clockwise from the sheet S discharged by the paper discharge roller 30,
The guide member 79 is pulled by the spring 77 and positioned between the lowest bin 72f and the cover 76.

When an image signal is transmitted to the laser beam printer 2 from an external device (not shown), the control section operates the laser scanner 26 based on this image signal, and the image forming section 15
form an image. Further, from the cassette 10, the sheet S is fed by the paper feed roller 11 to the registration rollers 29, and the sheet S is conveyed to the image forming section 15 by the registration rollers 29 in synchronization with the image on the image forming section 15. The toner image is transferred by the transfer charger 23. After the transfer, the toner image is fixed on the sheet S in the fixing device 16, and the sheet S is conveyed to the paper discharge section 19 via the conveyance path 17, and is discharged onto the paper discharge bin 20 by the paper discharge roller 30.

Next, when sorting and storing the sheets S by the sorter 5,
When the operator selects to discharge the sheets S to the sorter 5 using the operation unit, the control unit that receives the signal from the operation unit activates the motor 56 to move the sheet discharge unit 60 to a position facing the bottom bin 72f. That is, the sensor 70 is raised to a position where it is turned ON-OFF by the lowest protrusion 73a of the light shielding member 73.

At this time, the protrusion 61a of the frame 61 is
Since the flapper 37 is rotated counterclockwise by its own weight, the flapper 37 is positioned in a state where it can guide the sheets S discharged by the paper discharge roller 3o into the sorter 5. Also,
As the paper ejection unit 60 rises, the guide member 79 is pulled out from between the bin 72f and the guide member 79 against the elasticity of the spring 77, and this pulled out portion is connected to the rib 8.
Together with 2, the discharge path for the sheet S is configured.

The sheet S on which images have been formed by the same action as described above is discharged from the paper discharge section 19 to the outside of the apparatus main body 3 by the paper discharge roller 30, and is transferred to the carry-in roller 42 by the flapper 37.
You will be guided to. This sheet S is conveyed by the carry-in roller 42 through the sheet discharge path between the rib 82 and the guide member 79 to the nip between the sheet discharge roller 62 and the roller 67, and is further guided by the guide plate 63 while being fed. The rollers 62 and 66 discharge the liquid onto the bottom bin 72f. Sheets S are similarly discharged to the other bins 72a to 72e.

In this embodiment, since the sorter 5 is disposed at the upper discharge port of the laser beam printer 2, the long sheets S are stored in the bin 72f at the lower stage of the sorter 5.
The paper discharge unit 60 of the laser beam printer 2 and the fixing roller of the fixing device 16 of the laser beam printer 2 engage in tension with each other. Therefore, if a higher paper ejection speed (sheet ejection torque) is applied to the paper ejection roller 62 of the paper ejection unit 6o than can eject the sheets to the lower bin 72f of the sorter 5, the upper bin 72f does not pull the sheets S against the fixing device 16. In the bin 72a, the paper ejection speed becomes faster.

Therefore, as in this embodiment, each of the upper bins 72a to 7
By arranging the bins 2e such that the slope is larger than that of the lower bins 72b to 72f, the uppermost bin 72
The slope becomes steeper as it gets closer to point a, and the sheet S discharged onto the bin is subjected to a greater return force due to its own weight, and the rear end is formed on the wall plate 85 formed at the base end of the bin 72. are matched and matched.

In this embodiment, according to experiments, the angle of the bins 72 with respect to the horizontal plane is 20 degrees for the bottom bin 72f and 25 degrees for the top bin 72a, for a total of six bins 7.
2 is arranged so that each upper bin 72 has a slope 1 degree larger than that of the lower bin 72, and as a result of discharging the sheets S to each bin 72, the The return of Sheet S was optimal.

Furthermore, even if the number of sheets S stacked on the bin 72 increases and the tip 89 bends to some extent, the tip 89 of the bin 72
Since the soil spacing is wider than the soil spacing at the base end 72B, there is no resistance to the discharge and loading of the sheets S onto the bin 72, and smooth loading of the sheets S is possible.

FIG. 3 shows a second embodiment of the invention.

In this embodiment, the side plate 38b of the body 38 of the sorter 5 is
has an extending portion 38c at its front portion (right side in the figure) and closes the side of the bottle 72. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 1, only a portion of the sides between the bins 72a to 72f of the sorter 5 on the proximal end 88 side is closed by the side plate 38b, and as the sheets S are loaded, the free ends gradually become closed. However, in this embodiment, as described above, the side part of the bottle 72 is completely closed by the side plate 38b and its extension part 38c, so the free end of the bottle 72 is free from the sheet S. The opening angle is guaranteed regardless of loading, and the sheet S can be reliably taken out.

FIG. 4 shows a third embodiment of the present invention. As described above, the sheets S are conveyed to the sorter 5 by the frame 61 of the door 80 and the sheet discharge unit 60 facing the frame 61. In this embodiment, one end of the guide member 79 is fixed to the frame 61 as in the first embodiment.
The other end is wound around a shaft 86. The shaft 86 is supported by the free end of a lever 87 whose base is attached to the body 38, and is oriented counterclockwise in the figure by a torsion coil spring (not shown), that is, in a direction that applies tension to the guide member 79. Forced.

By supporting one end of the guide member 79 as described above, a large cover 76 is placed under the bottom bin 72f.
is no longer necessary, and the degree of freedom at the tip of the bin 72f is guaranteed in the same way as the other bins 72, and even if the sheets S are loaded, the gaps between the tips of the bins 72 are wide enough that the sheets S cannot be loaded from above all the bins 72. It can be done smoothly.

FIG. 5 shows a fourth embodiment of the invention.

In this embodiment, each of the bins 72a to 72f is composed of a base-end bin 72m and a free-end bin 72n having a base at its free end that is detachable as described below.

6 and 7 show details of the connecting portion of the bin 72. A step portion 90 is formed at the upper free end of the base end side bottle 72m of any bottle 72. This step 9
A hole 91 is bored on the back side of o, and a portion of the hole 91 passes through the stepped portion 90. In addition, a stepped portion 92 is formed on the upper surface of the base end of the free end side bottle 72n, and a hole 93 is formed on the lower surface, so that the base end side of the free end side bottle 72n forms a 5-shape. A locking portion 94 is configured. Free end side bin 7 for base end side bin 72m
Attachment and detachment of the free end bottle 72n is performed by moving the locking portion 94 of the free end side bottle 72n forward and backward into the hole 91 from diagonally above.

Further, the end surface of the free end side bin 72n on the connecting portion side is chamfered 95 to prevent the tip of the sheet 5 from getting caught. By configuring the sorter 5 in this way, the base end bin 72m of the sorter 5 can be made into a unit, and the free end bin 72n can be shared, thereby reducing the cost of the apparatus.

(G) Detailed Description of the Invention According to the present invention, the multi-tiered bins (72) of the sorter (5) are arranged so that the distance between the free ends (89) and the base ends (88) By configuring the gap to be large, it is possible to prevent the upper sheet (S) from flying out and falling when the sheet (S) is ejected onto the bin (72), and the sheet S on the bin (72) can be prevented from falling. Even when the loading progresses, the tips of the bins (72a) to (72f) do not become too narrow, thereby preventing resistance to the action of discharging and stacking the sheets (S) onto each bin (728 to 72f). Can be done.

In addition, due to the increased distance between the tips of the bottles (72),
This has the effect of making it easier for the operator to handle the sheet (S) on the bin (72).

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a longitudinal sectional side view of a sorter showing a first embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a plan view thereof, FIG. 3 is a longitudinal sectional side view of a sorter showing a second embodiment of the invention, and FIG. The figure shows the third aspect of the present invention.
FIG. 5 is a vertical side view of a sorter showing a fourth embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 6 is a vertical side view of a sorter showing a fourth embodiment of the present invention.
The perspective view of the sorter in the figure and FIG. 7 are also side views. S... Sheet 2... Laser beam printer 5... Sorter (sheet material processing device) 60... Paper discharge unit

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A plurality of bins (72) arranged at regular intervals in the vertical direction and capable of storing sheets (S);
72), the sorter (5) has a sheet discharge unit (60) that moves vertically near the sheet entrance and discharges the sheets (S) into the bins (72), the free end side of each of the bins (72); A sorter characterized in that the bins (72) are arranged such that the interval between the bins (89) is wider than the interval between the base end portions (88) on the paper discharge unit (60) side. 2. The sorter according to claim 1, wherein the bins (72) have a gradient with respect to the horizontal direction that is greater in the bins (72) located above than in the bins (72) located below.