JPH0242460A - Copying device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To make the total number of times of circulations smaller than that of a conventional device, to decrease the breakage of an original and to shorten total copying time by copying the even-numbered pages of the original in a first original circulation, copying both faces in subsequent circulations and copying its odd-numbered pages in the last circulation. CONSTITUTION:The title device is provided with an intermediate storage means 24c to once store a copying paper on whose one face an original picture is copied, a carrying means 24d to carry the copying paper stored in the intermediate storage means 24c to a picture forming position. The title device is also provided with a copy control means 4 to copy the even-numbered pages of the one-face original in the first circulation of original feeding, copy the odd- numbered pages of the one-face original onto the copying paper once stored in the intermediate storage means 24c in and after a second circulation, carry the copying paper on which the even-numbered pages are copied to the intermediate storage means 24c and copy the odd-numbered pages in the last original circulation. Thus, the total copying time is shortened and the breakage of the original is prevented.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION (Field of Industrial Application) The present invention relates to a copying apparatus that automatically circulates and feeds an original and copies a one-sided original onto both sides of copy paper.

(Background of the Invention) Recently, in addition to copying machines, various recording devices such as printers and facsimile machines have been widely used in various fields, and copying machines in particular are becoming faster and more multifunctional. Making a large number of copies using a copy machine and sorting them,
Devices for automatically bunching and folding have been proposed (for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 61-94180, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 61-84662, Journal of Electrophotography, Vol. 24, No. 3).
(1985), pp. 188 to 194), in order to record a large amount of this kind of recorded material at high speed, a circulation type automatic document feeder such as that disclosed in Japanese Patent Application No. 12201/1983 is needed. It is conceivable to use a recording paper processing device such as that proposed in the same application in conjunction with a copying machine, but recently it has become possible to use a recording paper processing device such as the one proposed in
Also, a copying apparatus has been proposed which has a function of copying a document having images on both sides onto one side of each sheet of copy paper.

By the way, when trying to copy an original with an image on one side onto both the front and back sides of the copy paper using a copying machine that has many functions, the odd number Only the pages are first copied onto the front side of each copy paper, then the - sets of originals are sequentially returned to their original positions, and the copy paper that has been copied onto the front side is temporarily stored in the device.
When all the originals have been collected, the set of originals is fed again, and the copy sheets with the front side copied stored in the device are sent out one after another, and even-numbered pages of the original are copied on the back side of each copy sheet. Once the back side of the copy sheet has been copied, both the front and back sides have been copied, so the copy sheet is ejected from the apparatus. In this way, double-sided copying is possible from a single-sided original.

As is clear from the above, in conventional double-sided copying, a set of manuscripts is circulated twice, with the first copy copying the odd-numbered pages of the manuscript, and the second copying copying the even-numbered pages. ,
- To make some double-sided copies from a set of single-sided originals, it is necessary to circulate the original twice, which takes time, and as the number of copies increases, the number of circulation increases, which can lead to serious damage to the original. There is.

(Objects and Structure of the Invention) The present invention has been made in view of the above points, and aims to shorten the total copying time and prevent document damage. The even-numbered pages were copied, both sides were copied in subsequent cycles, and the odd-numbered pages were copied in the last cycle.

(Example) The present invention will be explained below based on the drawings.

In an embodiment illustrated below as an example of a copying apparatus according to the present invention, as shown in FIG. A copying machine that combines and integrates an automatic document feeder with a reversing function (hereinafter referred to as RDH device) 3 that feeds copies, and a copy paper processing device 4 that binds and punches finished copy sheets. The copying apparatus main body 1 and the paper feed unit 2 are connected to the position of the broken line A, the RDH device 3 is connected to the position of the broken line B, and the copy paper processing device 4 is connected to the position of the broken line C. It has become. Each of these four components 1, 2, 3, and 4 constituting the copying apparatus has a movable part, and each movable part is configured to be driven by an independent drive source for each component.

(1) Copying device main body 1 The copying device of this embodiment has a function of selectively copying on one side or both sides of copy paper, and for this purpose, in addition to the normal electrophotographic process, the copy paper is A reversing mechanism that
It has an intermediate stacker for temporarily placing the reversed copy paper on standby, and a paper feeding mechanism for feeding the reversed copy paper.

As a mechanism for realizing a normal electrophotographic process, an exposure lamp 11 and a mirror 12a, which are arranged under a glass original table lO for storing originals provided on the upper surface of the main body l,
12b, 12c and a lens system 13, a charging electrode 15 sequentially arranged around the photosensitive drum 14 rotating in the direction of the arrow, a magnetic brush type developing device 16, a transfer electrode 17a, and a static elimination electrode 17b. , a cleaning device ta, a conveyor belt 19 that conveys the copy paper after transfer, and a fixing unit 20. On the side of the paper feed unit 2 when viewed from the photoreceptor drum 14, there are paper feed rollers 21a and 2.
1b and a registration roller 22 are arranged. These components for the electrophotographic process are well known and will not be described further.

On the downstream side of the fixing unit 2Q, there is provided a reversing mechanism 23 for reversing the single-sided recorded copy paper that has been fixed by the fixing unit 20 for later copying on the reverse side. This is done by switching the position of the rotatable claw 23a.

Reference numeral 23b is a drive unit for conveying the thus reversed copy sheet in the direction of the next intermediate stacker 24.

The intermediate stacker 24 is disposed below the electrophotographic process mechanism, and has a conveyor belt 24b driven by a conveyor roller 24a that conveys the single-sided copy paper that has been reversed and conveyed by the first reversing mechanism 23 and then reverses it again. , a tray 24c that temporarily holds the reversed copy paper, and a transport roller 24d that transports the copy paper held on the tray 24c.
It is composed of.

On the other hand, the paper feed roller 31 shown on the side closer to the paper feed unit 2 of the apparatus main body l is provided in a part of the paper feed unit 2, and when the paper feed unit 2 is combined with the copying apparatus main body l It is designed to fit inside the main body 1.

Note that 25 is a toner replenishing device that replenishes toner to the developing device 16.

An operation panel 26 and a display section 27 are provided on the upper surface of the apparatus main body of this embodiment. In addition to the copy button that you press to start copying, the operation panel 26 also has a stop/clear button that you press to change the set number of copies or stop a continuous copying operation midway through, and a button that changes the copy magnification to 1x. , magnification selection button to switch to enlargement, reduction, etc., density selection button to change the copy density, paper size selection button to select the copy paper size, numeric keypad to set the number of copies, another button during continuous copying. Interrupt button to press when you want to make a copy of an original, punch button to press to punch holes in a copy, binding button to press to bind a copy with a binding, press to create a binding margin on copy paper. A button and a button for specifying the binding margin to the right or left are provided. In addition, the display section 27
In addition to the set number of copies, the selected paper size,
Displays information such as density, magnification, various warnings (paper jam, toner replenishment, number of sheets exceeded, etc.), single-sided or double-sided copying from a single-sided original, single-sided or double-sided copying from a double-sided original, and other messages you want to notify the user.

Here, the operation of the reversing mechanism during double-sided copying will be explained.

Exposure is performed while the RDH M-equipped original is fed at a constant speed on the glass document table IO, and the visible image transferred to the copy paper by the normal electrophotographic process is transferred to the fixing unit 2.
At the time of double-sided copying, the claw 23 of the reversing mechanism 23 is fixed at 0.
Since a is switched counterclockwise, the fixed copy sheet is not ejected but is sent toward the intermediate stacker 24 by the drive section 23b. That is, a copy sheet having a copy image on one side is conveyed by the conveyor belt 24b, reversed, and enters the tray 24c. At this time, the fixed copy image will be on the top surface of the copy paper.

The single-sided copy paper stored in the tray 24c is conveyed again toward the transfer position by the conveyance roller 24d, and waits at the registration roller 22. Thereafter, the copy paper is fed out in synchronization with the operation of the electrophotographic process, and this time the image is transferred onto the uncopied side of the copy paper. The copy paper on which the new copy image has been placed is fixed by the fixing unit 20, and this time, the pawl 23a of the reversing mechanism 23 is rotated clockwise, so that the paper is ejected.

(2) Paper feed unit 2 Since the copying apparatus of this embodiment is exemplified as a large-sized copying apparatus that can make many copies at once, large trays 70, 80 and 90 that can store a large amount of copy paper are used. A paper feed unit is used.

Each of the trays 70, 80, and 90 is of a pull-out type as shown in FIG. 1, and can accommodate copy sheets of the same size or different sizes.

Near the upper paper feed port of each tray, a paper feed roller 28a,
29a and 30a are provided, and the copy paper sent out from either tray by this paper feeding roller is fed by feeding rollers 28b, 29b, and 30b, and then the receiving roller is connected to the feeding roller 31 and sent to the main body of the apparatus. The paper is conveyed by paper feed rollers 21a and 21b provided in the paper and fed to the registration rollers 22.

(3) RDH device 3 The RDH device N3 is removably installed on the glass document table IO provided on the top surface of the main body l of the copying machine, and copies are placed on the document storage plate 35 as shown in detail in FIG. Turn the multiple sheets of original G you are trying to print face up, and read the first page, second page, etc. from the top.
They are placed one on top of the other in the order of... The document placement sensor R indicates that the document G is placed on the document placement plate 35.
Detected by S.

When the copy button provided on the operation panel 26 of the copying apparatus main body L is pressed, the rear end regulating plate 36 of the RDH unit N3 moves forward and the entire document G is pushed forward (toward the right in the figure) and pushed out into the front passage. Gate 37 above rises 0M
When the document G passes the gate 37 and advances a little, the document leading edge detection sensor R5 detects the leading edge of the document, and the gate 37 is lowered and the trailing edge regulating plate 35 is temporarily stopped.

At this point, the operation of counting the number of original sheets is started.

The first document (the document placed at the bottom) is fed, and when the leading edge of the first document is detected by the document passage detection sensor R3, it is temporarily stopped. The document is restarted by a command from the apparatus main body 1, and when the trailing edge is detected by the registration sensor R34, the number of documents is counted by one. From the second document onwards, the document is fed without being stopped once, and the count is increased by the signal from the registration sensor R3.
When the leading edge of the original document is detected by the leading edge detection sensor R3, it moves backward.

After counting the number of originals, feeding of the originals for exposure starts. As the half-moon-shaped feed roller 38 rotates, the double-feed prevention roller 39 rotates to remove the lowest document or one.
Only one sheet will be sent out. The ejected original moves forward along the guide plate 40, and stops once the leading edge is detected by the original passage detection sensor R33.

Thereafter, when a start signal is output from the copying apparatus main body l at a predetermined timing, the copying machine restarts, is taken over by the conveyor belt 42, and moves at a predetermined speed on the glass document table IO of the copying apparatus main body l. An optical system consisting of a lamp 11 for irradiating the original, reflecting mirrors 12b, 12c, etc. is provided below the glass original table 1O, and the original is exposed to light by this optical system while it is not moving, and the optical system is placed on the photoreceptor tram 14. When a document trailing edge detection signal from sensor R34, which is projected as an image (this is called synchronous exposure), is sent to copying apparatus main body l, feeding of copy paper from paper feeding unit 2 starts. When the single-sided original copy mode is selected, the exposed original is transferred to another conveyor belt 43 and becomes the top original of the set of originals G placed on the original storage plate 35. When the document is ejected onto the paper and the document ejection sensor R5 detects this, the document feed motor is stopped.

On the other hand, when the single-sided original copy mode is selected, when the exposure of one side of the original is completed, the conveyor belt 42 is driven in the opposite direction, and the original is guided to the zero reversing section where it is guided to the guide 44 of the reversing section. When the trailing edge of the original document is detected by the trailing edge detection sensor R36, the drive motor of the conveyor belt 42 is stopped, and when the leading edge of the document is detected by the document passage detection sensor R33, the feeding of the document is temporarily stopped and the conveyance is stopped. Drive the belt 42 in the forward direction again. Thereafter, the document is restarted by a restart signal from the apparatus main body l. Since the document has been reversed in the reversing section, it is now moved toward the document table IO with the surface opposite to the surface that has already been exposed, so that that surface is exposed.

The feeding of the second original starts when the first original is detected by the registration sensor R5.

In the same manner, when the exposure by the optical system of the copying device is completed for the third, fourth, etc. documents, the document leading edge detection sensor R82 confirms that the number of documents is 0,
In this way, the feeding of the original for one portion of the copy is completed.

If a plurality of copies (for example, five copies) of the same copy are to be made, the document is automatically fed again in sequence from the last page and exposed sequentially up to the first page, and this document feeding operation is repeated for the required number of copies.

In addition to the above-mentioned automatic document feeding, the RDH device 3 is also capable of manual document feeding.

In this case, when the manual feed cover 45 is reversed and opened using point A as a fulcrum to the position shown by the chain line, the cover reversal detection sensor R3 detects this and the double feed prevention roller 39 is unlocked. This manual feed cover 45
When the user manually inserts the document along the document, the document is automatically fed when the leading edge of the document is detected by the document leading edge detection sensor R3. The subsequent movement of the document may be the same as in the case of automatic feeding described above, but it is also possible to stop the document on a glass document table and move the optical system for exposure. The exposed document is discharged onto the document discharge tray 46.

In this embodiment, the operation panel 26 of the copying apparatus main body 1
By selecting the copy magnification in , you can copy at a predetermined magnification such as enlargement or reduction.

When a copying magnification is selected using the magnification selection button, the document conveyance belt 42 of the RDH device 3 moves at a predetermined speed according to the selected magnification, so that the rotational speed of the photoconductor drum 15 of the copying apparatus main body 1 increases. If they are kept constant, enlargement or reduction will be performed depending on the relative speed of the two.

Generally, a method of changing the speed of the photoreceptor drum is used to perform magnification changes such as enlargement and reduction, but this also requires changes in the electrophotographic processes such as charging, development, and transfer, as well as the conveyance speed of the copy paper. In addition to making it difficult to make small speed changes or wide ranges of speed changes, the power changes in the drive system also become large, making control difficult. However, 1
In this embodiment, the magnification can be changed simply by changing the speed of the conveyor belt 42 of the RDH device 3, which simplifies control.

(4) Processing device 4 The processing device 4 is a device that punches or binds copy sheets that have been copied on one or both sides discharged from the copying machine main body l.As shown in FIG.
A conveyance roller 51 that outputs the copies copied and discharged from the apparatus as is to the shift tray unit 50 without punching or binding them, and a path switching gate 52 that switches between punching or binding the copies and outputting them to the shift tray unit 50. Conveyance roller 54 that conveys the copy to the stacker unit 53
, a processing unit 55 that punches holes in the copies equivalent to one copy stored in the stacker unit 53 and staples them together, and a final storage tray 56 that stores the punched, stapled, etc. copies. Conveyance roller 57 conveys the
．． 58. Among the above components,
Conveyance roller 51. Stacker unit 53. Conveyance roller 54. The processing unit 55, the storage tray 56, and the conveyance rollers 57, 58 are constructed as independent units for reasons of assembly and maintenance, and each unit is detachable. For example, the processing unit 55 has one punch machine and two staplers placed on both sides of it (so-called staplers).
This processing unit 55 can be independently pulled out to the front of the apparatus (perpendicularly to the front in FIG. 1). In addition to the above-mentioned reasons, this is because it makes it easier to dispose of the punch waste left as a result of punch processing by the punch machine, load or replenish staples in the stapler (so-called staples), and remove jammed staples. This is to do so.

The detailed structure and operation of this processing device 4 are disclosed in Japanese Patent Application No. 12201/1983 filed by the same applicant as the present application, so please refer to it if necessary.

The shift tray unit 50 includes a lifting mechanism 50b that lowers a tray 50a from which copy sheets are discharged one by one;
Each time the original goes around, it is placed on the front or back side of the tray (second
A shift tray mode 50c for alternately shifting a predetermined distance in a direction (perpendicular to the paper plane of the figure) by a predetermined distance, and the shift tray mode can be selected using the operation panel 26 of the main body l of the copying apparatus.

FIG. 4 shows a control circuit of the copying apparatus of this embodiment.

The copying device includes a copying device main body L, a paper feed unit 2, and a copying device body L.
The DH device 3 and the processing device 4 each have separate control circuits.

The control circuit of the copying apparatus main body l includes sensors 101 including microswitches and optical sensors disposed along the conveyance path of the copy paper for detecting the leading edge, trailing edge, or passage of the copy paper, and the control circuit of the apparatus main body l. The signals from the switches 102 and the sensors 101 which are turned on and off by the operation buttons provided on the operation panel 26 of the CPU 10
a sensor input circuit 103 that converts it into a form that can be processed with 0;
It consists of a drive circuit 105 that drives motors 104 for rotating the photosensitive drum 14, the magnetic sleeve of the developing device, various rollers, and the like.

The paper feed unit 2 includes a paper feed roller Z8a for feeding copy sheets from the trays 70, 80, and 90, respectively.

29a, :loa and feeding rollers 28b, 29b, 30b, and 31 for conveying the fed copy paper. Rotation and stopping are controlled.

The control circuit of the RDH device 3 includes a CPU 300, the above-described sensors R3I, R3, . . . -FIS, and a sensor input circuit 301.

The control circuit of the processing device 4 includes sensors 401 consisting of microswitches, optical sensors, or sensors arranged along the conveyance path of copy paper, or sensors for detecting the movement of a punching machine or a binding machine, and these sensors. A sensor input circuit 402 converts signals from the group 401 into a form that can be processed by the CP 0400, and a motor group 4 receives instructions from the CPU 40.
04, and a drive circuit 403 that controls the 04.

The copying operation is controlled by mutually transmitting and receiving signals between the copying apparatus main body 1, the paper feed unit 2, the RDH device 13, and the processing device 4.

Here, the copying operation according to the present invention will be explained using the copying apparatus according to the present embodiment.
The case of double-sided copying will be explained.

First, one-sided originals to be copied are placed on the original placing plate 35 of the RDH device 3 in the order of page 1, page 2, etc. from the top, with the image facing upward.

Next, on the operation panel 26 of the copying machine main body l, select the number of copies 1.
Set the magnification, copy paper size, and density, select punching or binding, select double-sided copying, and then press the copy button.

The RDH device 3 first circulates a set of single-sided originals, counts and stores the number of originals, and then returns the originals to the original storage plate 35 and feeds them in order from the last page.

The copying apparatus of this embodiment employs a synchronous exposure method in which a series of exposures is performed by moving a photoreceptor drum or the like while moving the original one by one. In this second round of document feeding,
- Copy only even-numbered pages of a set of single-sided originals. A set of originals that have been fed and exposed synchronously are returned to the original plate 35 again, and the copy paper on which only even-numbered pages have been copied on one side is reversed by the reversing mechanism 23 in the main body of the copying machine l and once placed in the middle. It is stored in the stacker 24. When the third cycle of feeding of the set of single-sided originals that has returned to the original loading plate 35 begins, the even-numbered pages are copied onto new copy paper in the same way as the 1111th copy, and the odd-numbered pages are transferred to the intermediate stacker. The copy paper stored in the copy paper 24 on which even-numbered pages have already been copied is sent out in accordance with the timing of document feeding, and the images of the odd-numbered pages are copied on the opposite side of the copy paper (as the first copy) and processed. It is sent to device 4.

In the processing device 4, when a portion of the copy sheets is collected, punch processing or binding processing is performed according to the initial instruction, and the copy sheets are discharged onto the storage tray 56.

On the other hand, the copy paper on which even-numbered pages have been copied on one side is reversed by the reversing mechanism 23 and transferred to the intermediate stacker 23 in the same way as in the case of the l minute page.
will be stored in.

In the 4th document feeding, in exactly the same way as in the 3rd circulation, odd-numbered pages of the document are copied onto the opposite side of the one-sided copy paper stored in the intermediate stacker 24 (as the second copy).
Copy paper, on which even-numbered pages of the original are copied on one side, is fed into the processing device 4 and stored in the intermediate stacker 24 .

During the fifth circulation of document feeding, no copy paper is fed from the paper feed unit 2, and only the copy paper with one-sided copies stored in the intermediate stacker 24 is sent out at the timing of document feeding. , odd-numbered pages of the original are copied onto the opposite side of the copy paper (as a third copy) and sent to the processing device 4.

Processing device I4 processes the second copy in the same way as the first copy.

The third copy is also punched or stapled as instructed. Note that when making double-sided copies from single-sided originals, the binding margins on the front and back sides are reversed when viewed in the direction of travel of the copy paper, so image shift processing is required to align the front and back margins on the same side. Since this is not the gist of the present invention, it will not be explained here.

Three double-sided copies are thus obtained.

According to this embodiment, the original is circulated five times (six times including the first circulation for counting the number of originals) to obtain three double-sided copies, which is different from the conventional method. The number of times the manuscript is circulated is one less than six times.

According to the present invention, if one single-sided original is circulated N times to produce n double-sided copies, then N=n+1 (not including circulation for counting the number of originals),
On the other hand, according to the conventional method, N=2n, so in the present invention, 2n-(n+1)=n
-The number of times the original is circulated is reduced by one time, and the number of times the phenomenon occurs is n.
The larger the value is, that is, the larger the required number of copies, the greater the effect of reducing the total copying time and preventing document damage.

In the above embodiment, when the number of single-sided originals to be copied is an even number, as described above, but when it is an odd number, the copy paper on which the last odd-numbered page was copied in the second cycle is used as is. It will be discharged. Further, in the above embodiment, even-numbered pages of the original are copied at the 11th i-th time of original feeding,
Although odd-numbered pages of a manuscript are copied in the last circulation, in the present invention, it is also possible to copy odd-numbered pages of a manuscript in the order I and copy even-numbered pages of a manuscript in the last circulation. However, in that case, if you eject the original as it is, the order of the pages will be reversed, so you will have to turn it over and eject it.Also, if you are copying an odd-numbered original from the odd-numbered page, the last odd-numbered page should be copied every other time. It is necessary to avoid copying.

(Effects of the Invention) As explained above, in the present invention, even-numbered pages of a manuscript are copied in the first manuscript circulation, both sides are copied in subsequent circulations, and odd-numbered pages are copied in the last circulation. As a result, the total number of circulations can be reduced compared to the conventional method, resulting in less damage to the document and shortening the total copying time.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is an overall diagram of a copying apparatus according to the present invention, FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram showing the internal structure of the copying apparatus according to the present invention, and FIG. 3 is an internal view of an RDH device forming a part of the copying apparatus according to the present invention. A schematic diagram showing the structure, FIG. 4 is a block diagram of the control circuit of the copying apparatus according to the present invention. l... Copying device main body, 2... Paper feed unit, 3...
- RDH device, 4... processing device, 10... glass original table. 14... Photosensitive drum, 16... Developing device, 20...
...Fixing unit, 23...Reversing mechanism, 23--Intermediate stacker, 26--Operation panel, 27--Display unit, 35--Document placement plate, 42--Transport belt,
44--Reversing guide, 5 G--Shift tray unit, 51--Conveyance roller, 53--Stacker unit, SS--Processing unit, 56--Storage tray, 70.80.9O- ) - Ray Figure 1

Claims (1)

[Claims] Automatically circulates and feeds single-sided originals to be copied in sequence,
A copying apparatus that forms original images on both sides of copy paper using an electrophotographic process includes an intermediate storage means for temporarily storing the copy paper with the original image copied on one side, and an image forming position for the copy paper stored in the intermediate storage means. a conveyance means for conveying the
Copy paper that copies even-numbered pages of a single-sided original in the first cycle of document feeding, and copies odd-numbered pages of the single-sided original and copies even-numbered pages from the second cycle onwards on the copy paper once stored in the intermediate storage means. and a copying control means for conveying the original document to the intermediate storage means and copying odd-numbered pages in the final circulation of the original document.