JPH03267263A - Discharged paper storage device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To store a large quantity of paper sheets in a state of being offset through a simple structure by energizing an offset plate upward with an elastic energizing member via a bottom plate, and moving the offset plate too in the same direction with movements in a direction orthogonal with a paper discharge route of a guide wall. CONSTITUTION:An offset plate 4 is attached to a bottom plate 3 free of slide motion in a direction orthogonal with a paper discharge route X of paper P, and a hook part 7 is erected on the underside of the offset plate 4, while a roller 8 moving in a guide groove 6 is supported by a bearing 9 in free of rotation. A compression spring 11 is set up in space between the underside of the bottom plate 3 and a frame 1, thereby giving upward energizing force to the bottom plate 3 and the offset plate 4 either. A guide wall 12 with a curved surface almost along the mobile locus in and around a free end of the offset plate 4 is set up in and around a free end of the offset plate 4 as extended in the vertical direction, and then a guide groove 13, where a projection 10 is engaged free of slide motion, is formed in the guide wall 12. A pin 14 of this guide wall 12 is engaged with a snaky groove 15a in free of slide motion, while turning force out of a motor is transmitted to a shaft 17 of a cylindrical cam 15.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Field of Industrial Application] The present invention relates to a discharge paper storage device used in an image forming apparatus such as a printer.

[Conventional technology]

In an image forming apparatus such as a printer, a sheet of paper on which an image has been recorded is discharged to a discharge paper storage device such as a paper discharge tray. For example, in a printer used as an output device for a workstation or computer, a large amount of paper is ejected, and paper with different content recorded on it is ejected onto the paper ejection tray based on instructions from each workstation, etc. Ru.

Therefore, different types of paper are mixed on the same paper ejection tray, and it is not easy to take out the desired paper from the paper ejection tray.

Therefore, in the past, in order to be able to store a large amount of paper, a large paper ejection storage device called an elevator tray, which is driven up and down by a motor or the like, has been used. Also,
Paper is sorted by offsetting the paper by type, that is, by shifting the paper in a direction perpendicular to the paper ejection path. In order to offset this paper, a swingable paper ejection paddle is installed above the elevator tray, and by changing the swing direction according to instructions, the ejection direction of the paper ejected from the paper ejection roller can be changed. It is known.

[Problem to be solved by the invention]

However, the elevator tray requires a complicated drive mechanism including a motor, gears, etc. to move the tray up and down, resulting in an increase in cost. Furthermore, since the peripheral drive mechanism becomes larger, its placement location is restricted, and, for example, it cannot be configured integrally with the printer.

Further, since the paper ejection paddle needs to be provided at a location where the paper ejection posture is free, it is arranged near directly above the elevator tray. Therefore, in order to take out the paper on the tray, it is necessary to pull out the elevator tray itself, which complicates the layer structure.

Furthermore, most paper sizes are fixed, and the ejected paper is aligned at each offset position by coming into contact with a pair of positioning pins placed at both ends perpendicular to the paper ejection path. Since the spacing between the positioning pins is constant, there is a problem in that it cannot accommodate a mixture of sheets of different sizes.

The present invention was devised to solve the above-mentioned problems, and an object of the present invention is to store a large amount of paper in an offset state with a simple configuration.

[Means to solve the problem]

In order to achieve the above object, the discharge paper storage device of the present invention includes a bottom plate that is movable in the vertical direction with respect to the frame and is urged upward by a biasing means, and a paper discharge path on the bottom plate. an offset plate member that is slidably attached in a direction perpendicular to the offset plate member and has at least one protrusion;
It is attached so that it can move freely in the direction perpendicular to the paper ejection path.
It is characterized by comprising a guide wall having a guide groove extending in the vertical direction with which the protrusion is slidably engaged, and a driving means for moving the guide wall a predetermined distance in a direction perpendicular to the paper discharge path. .

[Effect]

In the present invention, when the paper is discharged from the paper discharge roller, the paper is sequentially stacked on the offset plate. Since the offset plate body is urged upward by the elastic biasing member via the bottom plate, when the loading amount increases, the offset plate body sinks together with the bottom plate due to the weight of the paper. Therefore, the distance between the paper ejection roller and the top surface of the stacked sheets is maintained at a distance suitable for paper ejection, regardless of the amount of ejected paper. At this time, the protrusion provided on the offset plate is
Since the offset plate moves along the guide groove of the guide wall, the movement of the offset plate is not hindered.

Further, when the guide wall is moved in a direction perpendicular to the paper ejection path by the driving means, the protrusion of the offset plate body is engaged with the guide groove of the guide wall, so that the offset plate body also moves into the paper ejection path. Move in the right angle direction. Therefore, the sheets stacked on the offset plate are offset.

〔Example〕

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION Hereinafter, features of the present invention will be specifically described based on examples with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing an embodiment of the discharged paper storage device of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a schematic plan view showing the discharged paper storage device shown in FIG. 1 with some members removed, and FIG. FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of essential parts of the discharged paper storage device shown in FIG. 1;

As shown in FIG. 1, a support member 2 provided on a frame 1
A bottom plate 3 is tiltably attached to a shaft 2b provided at the upper end 2a, and an offset plate 4 is slidable on the bottom plate 3 in a direction perpendicular to the paper discharge path X of the paper P. is attached to.

On the bottom plate 3, as shown in FIG.
A plurality of elongated holes 5 and guide grooves 6 are formed in a direction perpendicular to . Further, a hook portion 7 that slidably engages with the long hole 5 is installed on the lower surface of the offset plate body 4, and the front 8
A roller 8 moving within the self-guiding groove 6 is rotatably supported by a bearing 9. Note that the axis of the roller 8 is oriented in a direction parallel to the paper discharge path X of the paper P. Furthermore, a pair of protrusions 10 are formed at the free end of the offset plate 4.

Further, a compression spring 11 is arranged between the lower surface of the bottom plate 3 and the frame 1, and applies an upward biasing force to the bottom plate 3 and the offset plate body 4.

Further, near the free end of the offset plate body 4, a guide wall 12 is disposed extending in the vertical direction and has a curved surface that substantially follows the locus of movement of the free end. This guide wall 12 is formed with a pair of guide grooves 13 extending in the vertical direction and into which the pair of protrusions 10 are slidably engaged. This guide groove 1
3 is formed near the upper part of the guide wall 12 but does not reach the upper end, and there is a stepped part 13 at the upper end of the guide groove 13.
a is formed.

Further, a pin 14 is protruded from the side surface of the guide wall 12 opposite to the offset plate 4, and this pin 14 is slidably engaged with a meandering groove 15a of a cylindrical cam 15. . Furthermore, a C-shaped clamp bearing 16 is formed on the back side of the guide wall 120 and the guide groove 13. The clamp bearing 16 is slidably fitted onto the shaft 17 of the cylindrical cam 15, and the shaft 17 functions as a guide member for the guide wall 12.

As shown in FIG. 4, the rotational force from the motor 18 is applied to the shaft 17 of the cylindrical cam 15 by the belt 19. Gear 20a.

20b is applied via a spring clutch 21, and the spring clutch 21 is driven by a solenoid 21& to intermittent rotational force. Note that the motor 18 is stopped when the printer is in a standby state, but constantly rotates while an image recording operation is being performed.

Further, between the guide wall 12 and the cover 22, there is provided a paper ejection chute 23 for guiding recorded paper from an image recording section, which will be described later. A paper roller 24 is provided.

FIG. 5 is a schematic front view of a printer incorporating the above-mentioned discharged paper storage device, in which the paper stored in the paper storage section 25 is transported to the image recording section 27 by the paper transport section 26,
After recording, the paper is discharged to a paper discharge tray 28 attached to the side of the printer or a paper discharge storage device 29 integrally provided at the top of the printer.

As shown in FIG. 6, the printer 30 shown in FIG.
32b and 32c. The printer 30 is connected to each workstation 32a, 32b.

Based on the print instructions from 32c, image recording is performed in the order of instructions.

Next, the operation of the above-mentioned discharged paper storage device will be explained.

In the initial state, the biasing force of the spring 11 causes the offset plate 4 to move to the upper limit position, that is, the protrusion 10 of the offset plate 4 to the step 13a at the upper end of the guide groove 13 of the guide wall 12.
It has been pushed up to the position where it touches the. At this upper limit position, the offset plate 4 is inclined so that the paper discharge roller 24 side is lower. Further, in the initial state, the offset plate 4 is in the position shown in FIG. 4, and the spring clutch 21 is in the disengaged state. Note that while the printer 30 is performing an image recording operation, the motor 18 is constantly rotating, but the spring clutch 21 is in the disconnected state, so the cylindrical cam 15 does not rotate and the offset plate 4 does not move.

Now, for example, printer 30 is connected to workstation 3.
Image recording work based on printing instructions from 2a (hereinafter referred to as 1st
(referred to as job).

As shown in FIG. 1, the recorded paper P sent from the image recording section 27 (see FIG. 5) through the paper ejection chute 23 is conveyed while being held between a pair of paper ejection rollers 24. It is discharged onto the offset plate body 4. The ejected paper P slides down along the slope of the offset plate 4 and stops with its rear end abutting the guide wall 12 and being positioned.

At this time, the offset plate 4 is at the position shown by the dashed line in FIG. 2, so the paper P discharged from the paper discharge roller 24
are sequentially stacked on the offset plate 4 in a state closer to the left side when viewed from the paper discharge path. The offset plate body 4 is the bottom plate 3
The offset plate 4 is biased upwardly by the compression spring 11, which is an elastic biasing member, so that when the loaded amount of paper P increases, the offset plate 4 tilts around the shaft 2b due to the weight of the paper P, and the bottom plate It sinks with 3. For this reason,
The falling distance between the paper ejection roller 24 and the top surface of the stacked paper P is always maintained at a distance suitable for paper ejection, regardless of the amount of paper P ejected. Note that if the falling distance is too short, the leading edge of the newly ejected paper will collide with the trailing edge of the loaded paper, causing problems such as paper jams, and if the falling distance is too large, The posture of the paper is disturbed and the position of the paper becomes irregular.

At this time, since the protrusion lO provided on the offset plate 4 moves in the vertical direction along the guide groove 13 of the guide wall 12, the movement of the offset plate 4 is not hindered.

After the first job is finished, workstation 3
Image recording work based on printing instructions from 2b (hereinafter referred to as 2nd
job)), the solenoid 21a (
(see FIG. 4) is turned on for a certain period of time, and the spring clutch 21 is brought into contact. Therefore, the cylindrical cam 15 starts rotating, and the offset plate 4 starts moving in the six directions of arrows perpendicular to the paper discharge path X of the paper P. The spring clutch 21 is connected to the cylindrical cam 1 by a solenoid 21a.
Since the cylindrical cam 15 is in the contact state for the time required for the cam 5 to rotate 180 degrees and then in the disconnected state, the cylindrical cam 15 rotates 180 degrees.
Stops after rotating. Meandering groove 15 of cylindrical cam 15
Since a pin 14 provided on the guide wall 12 is slidably engaged with a, the guide wall 12 moves in the six directions of the arrow as the cylindrical cam 15 rotates. Furthermore, the guide groove 13 of the guide wall 12
Since the protrusion 10 of the offset plate 4 is engaged with the offset plate 4, the offset plate 4 is loaded with the paper printed by the first job, and the top of the bottom plate 3 is shown by the solid line in FIG. Move to position.

At this time, since a plurality of rollers 8 are provided between the offset plate 4 and the bottom plate 3, the offset plate 4 can be smoothly moved with respect to the bottom plate 3. Furthermore, since the guide wall 12 moves together with the offset plate 4,
The rear end of the paper P in contact with the guide wall 12 is not disturbed.

After this, the second job is started, and in the same manner as described above, the second job is placed on the paper of the first job on the offset plate 4.
The paper for each job is stacked in sequence. Therefore, the paper produced by the first job and the paper produced by the second job are
The sheets are sequentially stacked while being offset by a certain distance W determined by the shape of the meandering groove 15a of the cylindrical cam 15, and the amount of offset is always constant regardless of the size of the sheets.

Furthermore, a third job, for example, a print job based on a print instruction for another document from the workstations 32a, 32b, or another workstation 32c.
When there is an image recording operation based on a printing instruction from the cylindrical cam 15, the cylindrical cam 15 is further rotated by 180 degrees, and the offset plate 4 is moved in the direction of arrow B to return to the original position shown in FIG. The sheets according to the third job are sequentially stacked on top of the sheets according to the second job.

Thereafter, similar operations are repeated for each job, and as shown in FIG. 7, the printed sheets P are stacked in an offset state for each job.

〔Effect of the invention〕

As described above, according to the present invention, the following effects can be achieved.

(1) The offset plate has the paper offset function, the bottom plate has the function of storing a large amount of paper, and the guide wall has the functions of aligning the paper and driving the offset plate, and each member can be slid freely. Since the paper is engaged with and operated in conjunction with the paper, it is possible to store a large amount of paper in an offset state with a simple structure. Therefore, the device is miniaturized and is no longer subject to restrictions on placement, and for example, it becomes possible to provide the discharged paper storage device integrally on the top of the printer.

(2) Since the paper is offset by moving the offset plate, there is no need to provide an offset means above the paper. Therefore, paper can be easily taken out.

(3) Since the guide wall moves together with the offset plate, the trailing edge of the sheet in contact with the guide wall is not disturbed.

(4) Since the amount of offset is uniquely determined by the amount of movement of the offset plate, regardless of the size of the paper, it is possible to cope with the case where papers of different sizes coexist.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing an embodiment of the discharged paper storage device of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a schematic plan view showing the discharged paper storage device shown in FIG. 1 with some members removed, and FIG. Figure 1 is an exploded perspective view of essential parts of the discharged paper storage device shown in Figure 4, a schematic diagram of the offset mechanism portion of the discharged paper storage device, and Figure 5 is a schematic front view of a printer incorporating the above-mentioned discharged paper storage device. 6 is a block diagram showing the relationship between the printer and multiple workstations,
FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram showing sheets stacked in an offset state. 1: Frame 2a: Upper end 3: Bottom plate 5: Long hole 7: Hook portion 9: Bearing 11: Compression spring 13: Guide groove 14: Bin 15a: Meandering groove 17: Shaft 19: Belt 21 Spring clutch 21a: Solenoid 22 : 2: Support material 2b 2 Shaft 4: Offset plate 6: Guide groove 8: Roller 10: Projection 12: Guide wall 13a; Step 15: Cylindrical cam 16: Clamp bearing 18: Motor 20a, 20b: Gear cover 23 , paper ejection chute 24; paper ejection roller 25: paper storage section 26: paper transport hole 27: image recording section
28; Paper discharge tray 29: Paper discharge storage device 30:
Printer 31: LAN cables 32a, 32b, 32c: '7-x station B
P: Paper X: Paper output path

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] 1. A bottom plate that is movable in the vertical direction with respect to the frame and is urged upward by a biasing means, and that is slidable on the bottom plate in a direction perpendicular to the paper ejection path. an offset plate having at least one protrusion;
A guide wall having a guide groove extending in the vertical direction with which the protrusion is slidably engaged, and a driving means for moving the guide wall a predetermined distance in a direction perpendicular to the paper discharge path. Ejected paper storage device.