JPH04131849A - Sheet positioning device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To surely and rapidly position on a sheet, to improve reliability and to reduce a cost by making width that a sheet carrying means abuts on the surface of the sheet equal to or under width that an abutting means blocks a sheet carrying path and setting the sheet carrying means in the center part of the carrying path. CONSTITUTION:This device is provided with two abutting pins T1 which abut on the front edge of the carried sheet 3a and can retreat from the sheet carrying path, and a sheet detection means S1 installed on the upstream side of the pin T1. Furthermore, a carrying roller 2 installed at a position(the center part of the carrying path) which exists in a virtual band area(which is hatched) 60 where the width W is smaller than the width L that the abutting pin T1 abuts on the sheet and the width L is set as a lateral side and the sheet carrying direction is set as a vertical side, and a driving means 7 for retreating the pin T1 to the outside of the carrying path are provided. Thus, positioning is performed in a short time and the occurrence of faulty positioning is reduced.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION (Industrial Application Field) The present invention relates to a sheet positioning device used in a thermal image forming apparatus, and particularly relates to a sheet positioning device that releases a diffusible dye by thermal development,
The present invention relates to a sheet positioning device in a diffusion transfer type thermal developing device for thermally transferring the dye to an image receiving element, thereby separating the silver pixels and the dye to obtain a color image.

(Background of the invention) (1) Method for obtaining color images using diffusion transfer type photosensitive materials In order to obtain color images using diffusion transfer type photosensitive materials, a photosensitive silver salt flower material is coated on the surface of the support. A photosensitive sheet having a photosensitive layer and an image receiving sheet comprising a support coated with a layer (referred to as an image receiving layer) that receives the dye obtained by developing the photosensitive sheet are required.

First, the photosensitive sheet is imagewise exposed, and then the imagewise exposed photosensitive sheet and the image-receiving sheet are stacked so that the photosensitive layer and the image-receiving layer are in contact with each other. While these two sheets are still overlapped, heat them at high temperature (120℃ to 160℃) for 30 to 10 minutes.
Add for 20 seconds. The photosensitive sheet is developed (image-wise diffusible dye is produced) by the high temperature. Further, the generated diffusible dye is transferred to the image-receiving layer. In order to improve the adhesion between the photosensitive layer and the image-receiving layer and to improve the transfer rate of the diffusible dye from the photosensitive layer to the image-receiving layer, pressure may be applied in addition to high temperature. The purpose of this pressure is to maintain the close contact between the photosensitive layer and the image-receiving layer, and as long as the photosensitive layer or the image-receiving layer itself has adhesion, it does not need to be continuous and may be applied intermittently.

After developing and transferring for a predetermined period of time, the photosensitive sheet and image-receiving sheet are removed. The separation of the photosensitive layer and the image-receiving layer corresponds to fixing in general silver salt sensitive materials. Further, the image receiving sheet to which the diffusible dye is transferred becomes the final product.

(2) Photosensitive elements and image-receiving elements used for thermal development Color heat-developable photosensitive materials contain a binder, an organic silver salt, a photosensitive silver halide, a developer 1, a dye-providing substance, etc. in the photosensitive layer or its adjacent layer. It contains.

Examples of organic silver salts include galloic acid silver salt, oxalic acid silver salt,
Behenic acid silver salt, stearic acid silver salt, palmitic acid silver salt,
Imidazole silver salt, benzotriazole silver salt, 4-sulfobenzotriazole silver salt, thione silver salt, saccharic acid silver salt, 5-nitrotriazole silver salt, 4-hydroquine benzotriazole silver salt, thione silver salt, 5-chlorsalicyl There are aldoxime silver salts, etc.

Examples of photosensitive silver halide include silver chloride, silver bromide, silver iodide, silver chlorobromide, silver chloroiodide, silver iodobromide, and silver chlorobromoiodide. Preferred grain sizes of the photosensitive silver halide are from about 1.5 microns to about 0.001 microns, and more preferably from about 0.5 microns to about 0.05 microns.

Examples of the developer include phenols, sulfamide phenols, polyhydroquine benzenes, naphthols, hydroxybinaphthyls, methylene bisnaphthols, methylene bisphenols, ascorbic acids, 3-pyrazolidones, pyrazolines, pyrazolones, and amino acids. Phenols, paraphenylene diamines, sulpoamide anilines, sulfamic acids, and hydrazones can be used alone or in combination with the above-mentioned developers.

These developers may be used in the form of precursors.

Examples of the dye-providing substance include compounds that release sublimable or diffusible dyes upon thermal development. Regarding such compounds, JP-A-59-1
It is described in Publication No. 24332.

This compound is a thermally non-diffusible dye-providing substance that can release a sublimable dye or a sublimable dye precursor upon thermal development, and the sublimation temperature of the sublimable dye is said to be 80°C to 250°C.

As the binder for the photosensitive layer, either hydrophilic or hydrophobic polymers can be used.
Or you can use them in combination.

The image receiving layer of the image receiving sheet includes a saturated polyester layer, and examples of the saturated polyester include polyethylene terephthalate (PET, melting point 260°C), polybutylene terephthalate (PBT, melting point 224°C), poly1.
4-Cyclohexane dimethylene terephthalate (PCH
T, melting point 290°C), etc. Since the heat-developable photosensitive material used in the present invention is heated to 80-200 DEG C. during development, the melting point of the saturated polyester used in the image-receiving layer must be higher than the above-mentioned development temperature. The above-mentioned saturated polyester is to be distinguished from unsaturated polyester, which contains a double bond in its molecular structure that can be crosslinked with a vinyl compound to form a three-dimensional network structure.

The support used for the above-mentioned image-receiving layer and photosensitive layer may be any support as long as it can withstand the temperature during heat development treatment, such as paper, polyamide film, acetyl cellulose film, cellulose ester film, polyvinyl acetal. Resin materials such as film, polystyrene film, polycarbonate film, and polyethylene terephthalate film can be used.

(3) Structure of Positioning Mechanism When obtaining a color image using a diffusion transfer type sensitive material by the method described above, imagewise exposure of the photosensitive sheet must be performed at a predetermined location on the photosensitive sheet. For this purpose, in the recording apparatus, the photosensitive sheet is positioned at a predetermined location before exposure. When performing scanning recording (recording while conveying a sheet), it is common to position the sheet using an abutment means so that the sheet is conveyed in a predetermined direction.

A conventional example of this sheet positioning means is shown in FIG.

This conventional example includes two abutment pins 50a and 50b (both of which can be retracted to the outside of the conveyance path) for preventing sheet conveyance, and a conveyance roller 5 for conveying the sheet.
1, and a sheet detection means (not shown) provided between the abutment pins 50a, 50b and the conveyance roller 51.

When the conveyed sheet 52a (positioned diagonally) hits the abutment pin 50a, a slip occurs between the conveyance roller 51 and the sheet 52a, and the sheet abuts against both the abutment pins 50a and 50b. The seat rotates and is positioned. In the figure, the sheet 52b indicated by a dotted line shows the state after positioning.

(Problem to be Solved by the Invention) In a sheet positioning mechanism using a butting means, it is possible to obtain sufficient sheet conveying force and to generate rotation between the sheet and the conveying means by causing a quick slide. To promote
Conflicting functions are required.

The above-described conventional positioning device uses a pair of normal rollers as a conveyance means, and is configured to sandwich the sheet over almost its entire width. In this case, is the conveying force of the sheet sufficient? Rotation due to slipping on one side is unlikely to occur, and the time required for positioning may become longer, making it impossible to meet the specifications of the equipment, or causing wrinkles. There was a problem in that positioning could not be performed by using the paper, and as a result, sheet conveyance failures were likely to occur.

The present invention has been made in view of the problems of the prior art, and its purpose is to provide a highly reliable and inexpensive positioning device that can position a sheet reliably and quickly. .

(Means for Solving the Problems) In the sheet positioning device of the present invention, the width W of the sheet conveying means in contact with the sheet surface is set to be less than or equal to the width at which the abutting means blocks the sheet conveying path, and the sheet conveying means The means was installed in the center of the transport path.

Preferably, W≦L/2, and a layer of polyimide or the like that promotes slippage may be provided on the surface of the sheet conveying means.

Further, the distance between the sheet conveying means and the abutting means is less than or equal to the length of the sheet in the conveying direction, and preferably the sheet is positioned approximately in the center of the sheet in the conveying direction with the sheet in contact with the abutting means. It's beautiful.

(Function) The sheet conveyance means provided approximately at the center of the sheet conveyance path presses the central portion of the sheet surface moderately, and sends the entire sheet forward with sufficient strength.

On the other hand, the edges of the sheet are not in contact with the sheet conveying means and their movement is not restricted. Therefore, rotation of the sheet is promoted and positioning is performed quickly. In order to promote the rotation of the seat, it is best to release the restraint on the movement of the seat as much as possible, and it has been experimentally confirmed that W≦L/2 is desirable.

(Example) Next, an example of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

(1) Overall configuration of a thermal image forming apparatus to which the present invention is applied (Fig. 3) This thermal image forming apparatus includes a photosensitive sheet pickup unit (20) that picks up a photosensitive sheet that has been force-sorted to a predetermined size. , a photosensitive sheet transport unit (21) that positions the picked-up photosensitive sheet at a desired position on the transport path and then transports it to the exposure system; an exposure optical unit (22) that performs imagewise exposure on the photosensitive sheet; A photosensitive sheet conveyance unit (25) that conveys the photosensitive sheet to a superposition unit where it is superimposed on an image receiving sheet.
, a superposition unit (26) that superimposes the photosensitive sheet and the image-receiving sheet and transports them to a heat developing machine, an image-receiving sheet pickup unit (23) that picks up the image-receiving sheet cut to a predetermined size, and an image-receiving sheet that has been picked up. An image-receiving sheet transport unit (24) transports the sheet to a superimposing unit after positioning the sheet at a predetermined position on the transport path, and the image-receiving sheet is developed while maintaining close contact between the superimposed photosensitive sheet and the image-receiving sheet at high temperature. A heat developing machine (28) that transfers the diffusible dye to an image receiving sheet, a peeling unit (31) that does not peel off the photosensitive sheet in a high temperature state after heat development transfer and the transfer sheet, and a discharge unit (31) that discharges the transfer sheet. 35).

(2) Specific structure and operation of the thermal image forming apparatus The photosensitive sheet pickup unit 2o supplies the photosensitive sheets in the magazine to the photosensitive sheet transport unit 21 one by one. As a means of pickup, a suction cup or air suction is used. The pickup operation is performed when a sensor s2 provided in the exposure optical system that detects the presence or absence of a sheet outputs a signal indicating that there is no sheet.

The photosensitive sheet conveying unit 21 conveys the picked up photosensitive sheet to the exposure optical unit 22. At this time, the photosensitive sheet is positioned at a predetermined position with respect to the conveyance path. This positioning is necessary for exposing the photosensitive sheet to a predetermined position. That is,
If the sheet is fed from the pickup unit, the position of the sheet may be diagonal to the conveyance path.
If exposure is performed in this state, it is only possible to expose the photosensitive sheet at a predetermined position. To prevent this, it is necessary to position the photosensitive sheet.

Therefore, it is better to perform positioning closer to the exposure position.

The positioning means includes an abutment means T1 that can be retracted outside the conveyance path, and a sheet detection means S1 and a sheet conveyance means 2 provided upstream of the abutment means T1. Photosensitive sheet that has been conveyed or abutting means T]
The abutting means T1 needs to block the conveyance path while the abutting means T1 abuts against the object and is positioned in a desired direction. The time from when the sheet detection means S1 detects the sheet until the sheet faces the desired direction is within a certain range if the sheet conveyance speed is the same, so this time can be determined in advance through experiments. After this time period has elapsed, the abutment means may be retracted from the conveyance path and the object may be conveyed.

The photosensitive sheet conveyed to the exposure optical system 22 is scanned and recorded with an image by a scanning optical system (not shown) while being conveyed at a constant speed by a feed roller R1. The transport mechanism used for scanning recording needs to be highly accurate so that the intervals between recorded scanning lines are equal. For this reason, a speed-controlled DC motor, a Stella Pink motor with a small step angle error, or the like is used to drive the conveyance roller R1.

An example of a scanning optical system is one in which a laser beam is deflected using a rotating polygon mirror. In scanning recording by the exposure optical system, there is a sheet in the sheet sensor S2 of the exposure optical system, but there is no sheet in the sheet sensor S3 at the entrance of the conveying unit 25 for the next photosensitive sheet, and the image data to be recorded is not output. It is done when

The photosensitive sheet exposed by the exposure optical unit 22 is transferred to the overlapping unit 2 by the photosensitive sheet conveying unit 25.
It is transported to the entrance of No. 6.

From the entrance of the stacking unit 26 to the stacking section 27
It is longer than the length of the photosensitive sheet in the conveyance direction (sheet length). The overlapping section 27 is provided with a photosensitive sheet detection means S5 and an image receiving sheet detection means S8. The photosensitive sheets conveyed to the entrance of the overlapping unit yh26 are conveyed as they are to the overlapping unit 27. If there is a photosensitive sheet in the stacking section 27, the photosensitive sheet waits at the entrance of the stacking unit 26 until there is no photosensitive sheet.

The overlapping section 27 is provided with an abutment means T2 that can be retracted outside the conveyance path, and is provided upstream of the abutment means T2, and when the photosensitive sheet is not abutted against the abutment means T2 against the image receiving sheet, one of the abutment means T2 is provided. A conveying means that can rotate the roller to release the pressing force, and a photosensitive sheet abutting means T2
The image receiving sheet detecting means S8 detects that the image receiving sheet is in contact with the image receiving sheet.

Both sheet detection means S5.
When S8 detects that there is no sheet in the sheet detecting means S9 provided at the entrance of the heat developing machine, the pressing force of the conveying means is applied to both sheets, and the abutting means T2 is retracted out of the conveying path. , the conveying means is driven to convey both stacked sheets to the entrance of the heat developing machine. In any other state, the abutment means T2 closes the conveyance path, and the pressing force of the conveyance means remains released.

The heat developing machine 28 consists of a pair of endless belts, a heat roller that is a heat source provided inside these endless belts, and a pressure roller that opposes the heat roller via the belt (all of these are not shown). ). The stacked photosensitive sheet and image-receiving sheet are conveyed while being sandwiched between endless belts. The heat roller has a pipe shape, and a heat source such as a halogen lamp or a nichrome wire is installed inside the heat roller.

Since halogen lamps and nichrome wires emit light as well as heat, it is necessary to provide caps at both ends of the heat roller to prevent light leakage so that the photosensitive sheet is not exposed to the light from the heat source. The material of this cap is required to have sufficient heat resistance to allow light to pass through. Also, depending on the wiring of the heat source, it may be necessary to have insulation properties. Specifically, silicone rubber, fluorine rubber, phenol resin, polycarbonate, etc. are desirable.

The casing of the heat developing machine 28 must have a function of preventing light from entering the heat developing machine and preventing heat generated by the heat developing machine from being released to the outside, that is, a heat insulating function. In order to improve the heat insulation function, the casing may have a structure in which a heat insulating material made of nonwoven fabric or the like is attached to the inside and outside of the metal plate.

As a material for non-woven fabric, it is important to consider whether it has low thermal conductivity and does not burn.
Alternatively, it may need to be made of a material that is difficult to burn, and non-woven fabrics made from aramid fibers are most suitable. More preferably, a heat-reflecting material such as aluminum foil is provided on the surface of the inner track breaking material to make it difficult for heat to be transferred to the non-woven fabric serving as the heat insulating material.

The photosensitive sheet and transfer sheet that have passed through the heat developing machine 28 enter a cooling unit.

The photosensitive sheet and the transfer sheet that have been subjected to development and transfer processing in the heat developing machine 28 come out of the heat developing machine at a high temperature (approximately 150° C.). At this temperature, PET (polyethylene terephthalate), which is the support for both sheets, becomes soft and has no stiffness. Furthermore, since it is in a state where it easily adheres to metal materials, it is necessary to quickly lower the temperature to below the softening temperature of PET (approximately 80° C.). The cooling unit 29 includes a sheet conveying section formed by a pair of endless healds and means for cooling the endless healds. The photosensitive sheet and transfer sheet exiting the heat developing machine are cooled while being conveyed while being sandwiched between the pair of endless heddles while being superimposed. Therefore, the two sheets are cooled while maintaining their flatness. The material for the endless belt is preferably silicone rubber with a core made of carbon fiber or the like as the endless heald used in heat developing machines, or fluororubber with the same core. As means for cooling the endless belt, forced air cooling, bringing the cold side of a heat pipe into contact with an endless heald, the cold side of a Peltier element, etc. can be used. The cooled photosensitive sheet and transfer sheet are separated by a peeling unit 31, and the unnecessary photosensitive sheet is discarded.

The second peeling section includes a conveying means 30 on the upstream side and a peeling claw 3 that is rotatable around the rotation center and is biased in a direction that cools the conveying path.
3 and a conveying means 32 on the downstream side.

When the superimposed photosensitive sheet and image-receiving sheet are conveyed from the upstream side, the conveying means 32 grips the front edge portion of the image-receiving sheet in the conveying direction, with or without the photosensitive sheet, on the downstream side. At the same time, the part of the leading edge of the photosensitive sheet that does not have an image-receiving sheet is caught on the peeling claw 33. Since the photosensitive sheet is attached to the image-receiving sheet, when the image-receiving sheet is conveyed by the conveyance means 32, it moves together with the photosensitive sheet, and the peeling pawl 33 is rotated by the frictional force with the peeling pawl 33 due to its elastic nozzle. When the peeling claw rotates and leaves the transport path, the rotation of the peeling claw 33 is stopped by the stopper, and the photosensitive sheet begins to move along the peeling claw 33 and is separated from the image-receiving sheet. The separated photosensitive sheets are disposed of by a discharging means 35 to a waste disposal site outside the machine or inside the machine. One of the image-receiving sheets is a final product, and is conveyed to a discharge port outside the machine by a discharge unit.

FIG. 1 is a plan view showing an example of the configuration of a positioning device used in a photosensitive sheet transport unit 21. FIG.

This positioning device has two parts that can abut against the front edge of the sheet 3a being conveyed and can be retracted from the sheet conveyance path.
Book abutment pin T1 and sheet detection means (micro switch) S provided upstream of this abutment pin T]
A virtual band area (in the figure, the diagonal line indicates The conveyance roller 2 installed at a position (the center of the conveyance path in the case of the tree) and the abutting pin T
A driving means 7 (not shown in FIG. 1, but shown at the bottom of FIG. 2) for retracting 1 out of the conveyance path.

FIG. 2 is a plan view (upper part) and a sectional view (lower part) taken along line A-A of the above-mentioned positioning device and its peripheral devices.

As shown in the figure, the two abutment pins T1 are rotatable and are driven by the abutment pin driving means 7, so that they simultaneously rotate to the lower right and retreat to the lower side of the conveyance path. It has become. The abutting pin driving means 7 is constituted by a solenoid or a motor. The conveyance roller 2 comes into contact with the upper surface of the sheet 3a, and rotates to convey the sheet forward. The position where the conveyance roller 2 contacts the sheet surface and suppresses (pinches) the sheet may be within the temporary band area BO, but it should be near the center of the conveyance path, since the sheet will be more likely to rotate from side to side. , positioning time can be shortened. Further, the width W of the conveying roller 2 is within a range that does not cause problems in durability, and the shorter the width, the shorter the sheet positioning time. The material of the conveyance roller 2 is as follows:
Various rubber materials such as silicone rubber, those with a layer of low friction coefficient material such as polytetrafluoroethylene or polyimide on the surface of the rubber, and materials with brushed velvet or artificial leather on the roller surface (fine same) ) is better. When using rubber rollers, slippage between the roller and the sheet is less likely to occur compared to when using other materials, and it may be necessary to lower the pressing force of the roller pair than when using other materials. The sheet detection means S1 is not particularly limited, but it is more convenient to use a mechanical microswitch than an optical sensor because it does not cause fogging.

(4) Positioning operation The positioning operation will be explained using FIG.

Sheet 3a that has been conveyed obliquely to the conveyance path
While being conveyed by the conveyance roller 2, a portion thereof abuts against the abutting pin T1. Since the conveying roller 2 is still trying to continue conveying, a rotation moment acts on the sheet 3a, and the sheet 3a rotates around the abutting point until it abuts the other abutment pin. Front edge of the seat 2
When it hits the main positioning pin, that is, when it reaches the state 3b in the figure, the positioning is complete.

When the positioning is completed, the abutting pin is rotated in the conveying direction and retracted out of the conveying path. Then, the sheet is conveyed while maintaining the desired position with respect to the conveyance path. The time from when the sheet detection means S1 detects the sheet to when the sheet faces the desired direction will be within a certain range if the sheet conveyance speed V is the same. It is sufficient to calculate this value in advance, and after the second period of time has elapsed, the abutment pin T1 is retracted from the conveyance path and the sheet is conveyed.

Such a series of operations is executed under the control of CPU10 in FIG. The CPUIG has a butting control means 11, a sheet pickup detection means 13, and a timer 12 as functional blocks.

When the sheet pickup detection means 13 detects the pickup of a sheet, it instructs the roller driving means 14 to start driving the sheet conveyance roller 2, and when the sheet detection means S1 detects the sheet being conveyed, the abutment control means 11 starts the timer 12 and instructs the abutment pin driving means 7 to interpose the abutment pin T on the conveyance path to prevent conveyance of the sheet. After that, timer 12
When a predetermined period of time has elapsed since the activation of the abutment pin T), the abutment pin driving means 7 is instructed to retract the abutment pin T) out of the sheet conveyance path.

(5) Experimental results The time required for this positioning (the time from when the sheet hits one of the abutment pins until it hits the other abutment pin) is the width of the nipping width of the transport rollers 2 (the width of the sheet in contact with the sheet surface). ) If W is less than 1/2 of the width of the abutment means, when the sheet abuts one abutment pin, the distance between the other abutment pin and the sheet is d (m
m) and the sheet conveyance speed V is (mm/5ee), then d/v(see) to 3 d/v(s
ec).

On the other hand, when the clamping width of the conveyance rollers 2 was the full width of the sheet, the time required for positioning was about 10 seconds when the conveyance speed was 20 (mm/5ee) and d was 5 mm. When d was 10 mm, poor sheet conveyance occurred. Even when the clamping width of the transport roller 2 was the width of the abutment pin, the positioning time took about 10 seconds.

(6) Modifications The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, but can be modified in various ways.

For example, in addition to using two pins as the abutment means T1, an integral block 40 (the abutment width is larger than the clamping width W of the conveyance roller 2) as shown in FIG. You may also use a bent plate 41 as shown in the figure.

In addition to the roller pair, the conveyance means may be a belt pair or a combination of a roller and a belt. Also,
If a sheet with no stiffness is used, a sheet kite plate may be provided between the abutment means and the conveyance means to prevent the notebook from bending due to abutment, resulting in poor conveyance.

(Effects of the Invention) As explained above, according to the present invention, the following effects can be obtained by devising the configuration of the positioning mechanism.

(1) Positioning can be completed in a shorter time than conventionally.

Moreover, the occurrence of positioning defects can be reduced.

(2) The load on the seat is less than before, and it is possible to position a thinner seat with less stiffness.

(3) These improve the processing efficiency and application range of the thermal development device.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a plan view showing an example of the configuration of a positioning device used in the luminescent sheet conveying unit 21, and FIG. 2 is a plan view and a cross-sectional view taken along line A-A of the positioning device and its peripheral devices. 3 is a diagram showing the overall configuration of the heat developing device, FIG. 4 is a plan view showing another example of the positioning device, FIG. 5 is a plan view showing still another example of the positioning device, and FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an example of a conventional positioning device. 2...Conveyance rollers 3a, 3b...Sheet 7.
・Abutment pin driving means SL ・Photosensitive sheet detection sensor T1 ・Abutment means (abutment pin)

Claims (2)

[Claims] (1) A photosensitive sheet on which a latent image has been formed by imagewise exposure is superimposed on an image-receiving sheet, and the latent image is developed by heat-pressure bonding and transferred to the image-receiving sheet, and then the photosensitive sheet and the image-receiving sheet are separated, and the image is A sheet positioning device used in a thermal image forming apparatus that obtains an image-receiving sheet on which an image-receiving sheet is formed. Abutting means (
T1), a sheet detection means (S1) provided upstream of the abutment means (T1) in the sheet conveyance direction, and a sheet detection means (S1) provided upstream of the abutment means (T1) within a length of the sheet in the sheet conveyance direction. A sheet conveying means (2) provided on the upstream side and abutting against the sheet surface to feed the sheet in the direction of the abutting means; and an abutment for retracting the abutting means (T1) out of the sheet conveying path. and a driving means (7) of the sheet conveying means (2), and has a width (W) that abuts the sheet surface of the sheet conveying means (2).
) is set to be the same as or narrower than the maximum width (L) that the abutment means (T1) can abut against the sheet, and this sheet conveyance means (2) A virtual band area (
60) A seat positioning device, characterized in that it is provided at a position that fits within. (2) Pick-up means for picking up sheets (2)
0), sheet pickup detection means (13) for detecting that the sheet has been picked up by the pickup means, and when the sheet pickup detection means (13) detects that the sheet has been picked up, the sheet conveyance means (2) A driving means (14) of the sheet conveying means starts driving, a timer (12) used for time measurement, and a sheet detecting means (S1) that starts the timer (12) when the sheet detecting means (S1) detects a conveyed sheet. At the same time, the driving means (7) of the abutting means is instructed to drive the abutting means (
T1) is interposed in the conveyance path to prevent conveyance of the sheet,
abutment control means (11) that instructs the drive means (7) of the abutment means to retract the abutment means out of the sheet conveyance path when a predetermined time has elapsed from activation of the timer (12); The sheet positioning device according to claim 1, having the following.