JPH0420438A - Paper feeding device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To prevent 2 color former on the surface of a development paper from being damaged by rubbing and thereby obtain an image of high quality by providing an inclined portion or a recessed portion, which transforms a sheet shaped medium when absorbed by virtue of an absorption means, on the surface, where the sheet shaped medium comes in contact with, of a supporting member supporting a flexible suction disc mounted on the absorption means. CONSTITUTION:An inclined portion or recessed portion, which transforms a development paper 18 when absorbed, on the surface contacting the development paper 18 which is a sheet shaped medium of a supporting member 54 supporting a flexible suction disc 31 mounted on a absorption means. By this, the development paper 18 transforms, when the development paper 18 is absorbed, following the shape of the supporting member 54 supporting the suction disc 31, and forms a gap between the development paper 18 located at the bottom. As a result, air comes easily in between the development papers 18 and, moreover, the development paper 18 is easily separated from the other paper because the development paper 18 at the bottom can not follow the transformation of the development paper 18 absorbed.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Industrial Application Field] The present invention relates to a paper feeding device configured to feed out sheets of paper stored in a paper cassette by sucking them one by one with a suction cup.

[Prior Art] Conventionally, for example, a copying machine is configured to include a copying mechanism and a paper feeding device that feeds paper to the copying mechanism within the main body of the machine. Generally, in this type of paper feeding device, the paper supplied to the copying mechanism is stored in a stacked state in a paper cassette that is removably attached to the main body of the device, and the paper in the paper cassette is stacked in order from the top. It is configured to take out one sheet at a time. Conventionally, the mechanism for taking out paper in order has mainly used a half-moon-shaped paper feed roller, but in recent years, special paper with a coloring agent coated on the surface has been used especially for copying paper. For devices that are incorporated into color copying machines and the like, those that utilize suction cups have been developed in order to prevent stains on recorded images caused by scratches on the coloring agent layer on the paper surface. This is equipped with a rotating arm with a suction cup attached to the tip, and the rotating arm is rotated to place the suction cup on the paper.In this state, the pressure inside the suction cup is reduced to cause the paper to be attracted to the suction cup.After this, By rotating the synchronizing arm in the opposite direction, only the topmost sheet of paper in the paper cassette is taken up from the paper cassette and sent to the paper feeding mechanism.

[Problems to be Solved by the Invention] However, in the above-described configuration in which paper is sucked by a suction cup and taken out from a paper cassette, the separation effect between the top layer of paper sucked by the suction cup and the paper below it is insufficient. Because this mechanism is not fully utilized, two overlapping sheets of paper may be sucked into the suction cup and removed from the paper cassette, causing a problem in which so-called double feeding of paper is more likely to occur. .

The present invention has been made in order to solve the above-mentioned problems, and it is an object of the present invention to provide an inexpensive paper feeding device that can reliably prevent double feeding of paper by using a suction cup method that does not damage the paper.

[Means for solving the problem] In order to achieve this object, the present invention includes a suction means for suctioning the sheet-like medium on the uppermost surface of the stacked sheet-like media, and In a paper feeding device configured to feed paper, when the suction means suctions the surface in contact with the sheet-like medium of the holding member that holds the flexible suction cup provided on the suction means, the sheet-like medium It has a deformable slope or recess.

[Operation] According to the present invention having the above configuration, the flexible suction cup comes into contact with the paper during the paper feeding operation, and by performing the suction operation in this state, the paper is sucked by the suction cup. At this time, the paper deforms according to the shape of the holding member that holds the suction cup, and a gap is formed between the paper and the paper located below. By doing this, air can easily flow between the sheets, and since the lower sheet cannot follow the deformation of the stone-absorbed sheet, the sheets are easily separated.

[Embodiment] Hereinafter, an embodiment embodying the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 5, in which it is applied to a photosensitive pressure-sensitive copying machine capable of full-color copying.

First, in FIG. 4, a movable document table glass 2 and a document table cover 3 are located on the top surface of the main body 1 of the copying machine.
is provided, and a desired original 4 is placed on the original platen glass 2.
is set face down.

A light source such as a halogen lamp 5 is disposed at the top of the main body 1 of the apparatus, and this emits light in a line toward the document table glass 2 . Light emitted from the halogen lamp 5 is transmitted through the transparent document platen glass 2 and reflected by the document 4 placed thereon. Therefore, the document platen glass 2
By moving, exposure scanning of the original 4 is performed.

The light reflected from the original 4 passes through a filter 6 for adjusting the color tone of the copied image and enters a projection lens 7, and the light projected by this lens 7 passes through a pair of reflection mirrors 8 and 9.
The direction is changed by , and an image is formed on the microcapsule paper 11 positioned along the exposure stage 10 . The reflecting mirrors 8 and 9 are mounted on a mirror mounting plate, and by finely adjusting the mirror mounting position, the optical path length and focus can be adjusted.

On the other hand, the microcapsule paper 11 is housed in a removable cartridge lla in the device main body 1 while being wound around a cartridge shaft 12, and one end of the microcapsule paper 11 is connected to a number of rollers 14a, 14b, 14c and a pressure developing device. 13 and a separation mechanism 14d to reach the winding shaft 15. That is, the microcapsule paper 11 that has come out from the lower part of the cartridge [1a] is guided by a feed roller 14a and a guide roller 14b and passes below the exposure table 10, and then passes through the pressure developing device [3].
The microcapsule paper 11 that has passed through the pressure developing device 13 is guided to a feed roller 14C, a separation mechanism 14d, and a meandering adjustment roller 14e, and is then wound onto a winder 15. Note that the unexposed microcapsule paper 11 after leaving the cartridge is maintained in an unexposed state by the light shielding cover. In addition, since the conveyance speed of the microcapsule paper 11 is controlled to be constant and is made to match the moving speed of the document table glass 2, the exposure table 10
Latent images of predetermined lines of the original are sequentially formed on the mycolobusel paper 11 as it passes through.

Below the pressure developing device 13, a paper cassette 16 guided by a guide frame (not shown) is removably provided with respect to the main body 1 of the apparatus. A suction cup type paper feeding device 17 is incorporated. This is to take out the color developing paper (paper) 18 stacked in the paper cassette 16 one by one and send it to the paper feeding mechanism 19 side. The developer paper 18 that has been taken out is sent to the feed roller 19a of the paper feed mechanism 19.

It is conveyed by the pinch roller 19b, and the developing paper roller 19
After the leading end is aligned by the resist gates 19c and 19d and the resist gate 19e, it is transported to the pressure developing device 13.

In this way, the pressure developing device 13 contains the microcapsule paper 1.
1 and developer paper 18 are supplied in a state in which they are in close contact with each other and are integrated, and the microcapsule surface of microcapsule paper 11 on which the latent image is formed is in contact with the developer-coated surface of color developer paper 18 on the inside. The roller 13a is then sandwiched between the small diameter roller 13a and the backup roller 13b, and pressure is applied thereto. This pressure destroys the unexposed microcapsules and forms an image on the color developing paper 18.

After the microcapsule paper 11 and the color developer paper 18 that have come out of the pressure developing device 13 are separated by a separation mechanism 14d, the color development of the color developer paper 18 is promoted by the heat roller 20a of the heat fixing device 20 to form an image. After that, the paper is discharged onto the paper discharge tray 21 by the paper discharge roller. Note that the separated microcapsule paper 11 is wound onto the winding shaft 15 via the meandering adjustment roller 14e.

Next, the structure of the above-mentioned suction cup type paper feeding device 17 will be explained in more detail with reference to FIGS. 1 to 3.

The suction cup 31 is attached to a suction cup holder 54, and the suction cup holder 54 is attached to the mounting plate 3 on a rotatable suction arm 32.
2a, and this suction arm 32 is provided so that its rotation shaft 34 can be raised and lowered relative to the main body side plate 35 (only the front side plate is shown in FIG. 2, but there is also a rear side plate). It is rotatably supported by a frame 36. The rotation shaft 34, which is the center of rotation of the suction cup 31, has its center on an extension line of the suction surface of the suction cup 31, and
is located on the rear side with respect to the paper conveyance direction than the part that attracts the color developing paper 18.

Further, a paper uppermost surface detection sensor 33 made of a microswitch or the like is attached to the suction arm 32 via a mounting plate 32b branched from the mounting plate 32a at a predetermined angle. Here, when the mounting plate 32b is located in a vertical state, the sensor 33 and the rotation shaft 34 are in a relationship such that they are located on substantially the same horizontal plane.

A motor 37 is attached to the frame 36, and the rotation of the motor 37 causes a gear 38a, a swing gear 3
8b, the suction arm 32 can be rotated in the directions of arrows A and B. With this, the suction arm 32 is moved to the take-out position (the fifth
A drive mechanism 39 that rotates reciprocally between the feed position (shown in FIG. 5(d)) and the delivery position (shown in FIG. 5(d)) where the developing paper 18 is sent to the paper feeder $19 while being attracted. is configured. Further, the frame 36 is supported by a guide mechanism (not shown) to be able to move up and down, and is driven by a step motor 40 attached to the side plate 35 of the main body as shown by arrows C and D.
It is possible to move up and down in the directions. As a mechanism for this purpose, a binion 41. ．． 42 is pivotally supported, a rack 43.44 is formed on the frame 36, and a gear mechanism 45.42 is provided for rotating the binion 41.42. A belt transmission mechanism 46 is provided.

The suction cup 3] is connected to a suction mechanism 48 via a tube 47, so that when the suction cup 31 comes into contact with the color developing paper 18, a negative pressure is applied to the space therebetween. The intake mechanism 48 includes a cylinder 49° and a piston 50. gear 515
2 and a step motor 53. Based on the rotation of the step motor 53, the piston 50 moves into the cylinder 49.
It is designed to move linearly in the direction of arrow E to generate negative pressure.

FIG. 3 shows a suction cup holder 54 that holds the suction cup 31. FIG. 3(a) is a side view of the suction cup holder 54, and FIG. 3(b) is an AA sectional view of the suction cup holder 54. The surface of the suction cup holder 54 in contact with the developing paper 18 has a parallel portion, an inclined portion, and a U-shaped groove with respect to the paper surface. Suction cup holder 54
The upper part of the tube 47 is attached when the tube 47 is installed.
It has a stepped structure to prevent it from falling out easily. Further, since the suction cup 31 is made of a flexible material, it can be easily deformed by negative pressure.

Next, the paper feeding operation of the paper feeding device 17 configured as described above will be explained with reference also to FIGS. 5(a) to 5(e).

Now, when the frame 36 is at a predetermined home position and the step motor 40 is driven based on a predetermined paper feed signal, the frame 36 descends in the direction of the arrow as described above, and the suction arm 32 integrated with the frame 36 descends in the direction of the arrow. also falls at the same time.

Note that during this descent, the arm 32 moves as shown in FIGS. 2 and 5 (
As shown in a), the mounting plate 32b is in a vertical position so that the sensor 33 can first detect the uppermost surface of the paper.

When the sensor 33 detects the uppermost surface of the paper, the rotation of the step motor 40 is stopped, and the lowering of the frame 36 is stopped. Next, the rotation shaft 34 is rotated by driving the step motor 37, and the suction arm 32 is rotated in the direction of arrow B. Then, since the suction cup 31 and the rotating shaft 34 are located on the same plane, the suction cup 3
1 is in a state where it can be attracted to the top layer developing paper 18.

In this state, the step motor 53 in the intake mechanism 48
When the piston 50 is moved in the direction of the arrow E, negative pressure is generated within the suction cup 31, and the suction cup 31 sucks the top layer of color developing paper 18. At this time, since the suction cup holder 54 holding the suction cup 31 has a U-shaped groove and an inclined part on its surface facing the color developer paper 18, the tip of the top layer of the color developer paper 18 is as shown in FIG. 5(c). As shown in FIG. 6, it is deformed into a U-shape and bent along the slope of the suction cup holder 51.

This allows separation using a paper strainer, and an air inflow path is formed between the uppermost color developer paper 18 and the color developer paper 18 located below, allowing separation.

Next, the step motor 37 is driven in the opposite direction to that described above, and the suction arm 32 is rotated by a predetermined angle in the direction of arrow A about the rotation shaft 34, so as to be in the state shown in FIG. 5(d). Here,
Because the center of rotation is the rotation shaft 34 located on the rear side of the paper than the suction cup 31, the suction cup 3 rotates with rotation and movement, so even if the negative pressure suction by the suction cup 31 is relatively low, , By the above-mentioned rotation, a separation action utilizing paper straining can be obtained here as well.

After this separation operation, the pinch roller 19b is rotated in the direction of arrow G to sandwich the leading edge of the paper between the feed roller 19a and the pinch roller 19b indicated by the two-dot chain line.
By driving the motor 53 in the suction mechanism 48 in the opposite direction to the above and moving the piston 52 in the direction of arrow F, suction of the color developing paper 18 by the suction cup 31 is stopped, and the suction cup 31
The color developer paper 18 is released from the screen (FIG. 5(e)).

Through the above series of operations, only one sheet of the color developing paper 18 is separated and fed to the paper feed mechanism 19, and from then on,
The paper is fed by the feed roller 19a and the pinch roller 19b until the leading edge of the paper hits the registration gate 19e (at the initial stage of paper feeding, the developing paper rollers 19c and 19d are open as shown by the two-dot chain line in FIG. 2). ), the leading edge of the paper is aligned, and the skew correction is performed, and then, at a predetermined timing, the developer paper rollers 19c and 19d are closed, the registration gates 1 and 19e are opened, and the developer paper 18 is conveyed.

After this paper feeding operation is completed, the step motor 37 is driven to rotate the suction arm 32 clockwise, as shown in FIG.
The state returns to state a) and prepares for the next copy operation.

"Effects of the Invention" As is clear from the detailed description above, according to the present invention, since the suction cup method is used and the paper is fed by suction, the color forming agent on the surface of the color developing paper is prevented from being rubbed and damaged. A high-quality image can be obtained, and when the stacked color developer papers are taken out from the cassette, they can be reliably separated and taken out one by one.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

1 to 6 show embodiments embodying the present invention; FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the paper feeder section, and FIG. 2 is a side view and a partial view of the paper feeder section. , Fig. 3 is a cross-sectional and side view of the suction cup and the suction cup holder, Fig. 4 is a schematic configuration diagram of the copying machine, Fig. 5 is a partial sectional view for explaining the operation, and Fig. 6 is an explanatory diagram for explaining the operation. It is. In the figure, 18 is developing paper, 31 is a suction cup, and 54 is a suction cup holder.

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] 1. A paper feeding device comprising a suction means for suctioning the uppermost sheet-like medium of stacked sheet-like media, and feeding the paper sucked by the suction means. , a holding member that holds a flexible suction cup provided in the suction means is provided with an inclined portion or a recessed portion on the surface in contact with the sheet-like medium so that the sheet-like medium is deformed when sucked by the suction means; A paper feeding device characterized by: