JPH05278924A - Sheet stacking device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To enhance the accuracy of sheet alignment and the quality, reduce works of adjusting the position of the sheet under transport, and increase the stacking speed. CONSTITUTION:A sheet buffer part 21 having a back stopper 5 for heat buffer and a sheet stacking part 22 are installed in the sheet stacking position 20 so that they are adjacent in the direction perpendicular to the sheet supply direction when viewed on the plan. A sheet receiving surface 4 and a sheet stacking surface 9 are inclined to respective specified angles showed with 11, 12, 13, 14. The sheet stacking part 22 is provided with a side stopper 7 and a stopper 8 for sheet alignment, and airstream is spouted from perforated plate 15 of the sheet receiving surface 4.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a sheet stacking apparatus for transporting sheets in a substantially horizontal direction and stacking the sheets while keeping them substantially horizontal.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, as a device for conveying sheets in a substantially horizontal direction and accumulating them in a sheet accumulating portion while keeping them substantially horizontal, as shown in FIG. The airflow is discharged from the lower side toward the left and right sides of the sheet (see the arrow), and while the sheet 36 is kept in a substantially horizontal state by this airflow, the sheet tip 36a is urged against the cushioning material 37 and Stacking frame (front stopper 31,
A stacking device is known in which the four sides of the sheet 36 are defined by the side stoppers 32, 33 and the back stopper 34, and the sheet 36 is dropped onto the stacking position E in a substantially horizontal state and stacked in a bundle (special feature). (Kaisho 59-167451 publication).

[0003]

Since the sheets are brought into contact with the stacking frame and stacked in the stacking apparatus described above, the sheet alignment accuracy is determined by the alignment accuracy and the manufacturing accuracy (flatness) of the stacking frame. Is determined by.
Therefore, in order to improve the sheet alignment accuracy, an expensive alignment mechanism for the stacking frame is required, and high precision manufacturing accuracy is required to improve the flatness of the stacking frame.

Further, in the above-mentioned stacking device, four sheets are used.
Since the sides are brought into contact with the four stacking frames and stacked, quality defects such as side edges and corner edges are likely to occur in the supplied sheet. In this case, in particular, when the sheet buffered by the back stopper bounces and comes into contact with the front stopper, side edges or corner edges are likely to occur.

Further, in the above-mentioned stacking apparatus, the sheet is conveyed while being irregularly meandered by the conveying means,
It is continuously supplied to the stacking position, guided by the side stoppers of the stacking frame at both end portions, and stacked.

However, since the side stopper of the above-described stacking device has a small tolerance for the meandering of the sheet,
If the meandering of the sheets becomes large, the sheets cannot be accurately stacked, and it becomes necessary to change the sheet conveying position.

Further, in the above-mentioned stacking device, the front end of the sheet is buffered by the back stopper, and then the front stopper,
Sheets are aligned and accumulated while gradually cushioning with side stoppers. At this time, the buffer force of the back stopper is determined by the kinetic energy of the sheet at the time of sheet feeding (depending on the sheet weight and sheet feeding speed),
The sheet alignment accuracy is determined by the frictional force between the supplied sheets and the sheets already accumulated (depending on the sheet's own weight, the attractive force between the sheets, such as static electricity). From the above, it can be seen that the back stopper has two functions, a sheet cushioning function and a sheet aligning function.
At this time, it is necessary to adjust the sheet supply speed to the sheet aligning force in order to set the back stopper to match the sheet aligning force.

However, when the sheet feeding speed is adjusted to the sheet aligning force, a force more than necessary for the sheet cushioning is applied to the sheet at the time of cushioning the sheet, and as a result, a knick occurs at the leading end of the fed sheet. Therefore, the sheets cannot be accumulated at high speed.

In view of the above-mentioned circumstances, the present invention provides a sheet feeding device capable of preventing the edges of the sheet, corners and the like, increasing the permissible meandering amount of the sheet, and further stacking the sheets at a high speed. The purpose is that.

[0010]

A first sheet stacking apparatus according to the present invention supplies a sheet in a substantially horizontal direction from near the stacking position toward the stacking position and drops the sheet to the stacking position. In a sheet stacking device for stacking by
A sheet cushioning portion at the stacking position, having a cushioning means for cushioning the leading end of the sheet, and a sheet receiving surface for receiving the sheet cushioned by the cushioning means;
A sheet stacking section having a sheet stacking surface for stacking the sheets, which is adjacent to the sheet cushioning section in a direction substantially horizontal to the sheet supply direction; and the sheet from the sheet cushioning section to the sheet stacking section. And a moving means for moving the.

A second sheet stacking device according to the present invention is the above-described first stacking device according to the present invention, wherein the moving means is composed of the inclined sheet receiving surface, and the sheet receiving surface is the above-mentioned. It is characterized in that it is inclined so that the downstream side in the sheet feeding direction becomes lower and becomes lower as it approaches the sheet stacking portion.

Further, a third sheet stacking apparatus according to the present invention is the above-mentioned first or second sheet stacking apparatus according to the present invention, wherein the sheet receiving surface has a plurality of holes,
It is characterized in that an air flow discharge means for discharging an air flow from the hole is provided.

Further, a fourth sheet stacking apparatus according to the present invention is characterized in that, in the above-described first, second or third sheet stacking apparatus according to the present invention, a plurality of the sheet stacking portions are provided. Is.

[0014]

As described above, the sheet stacking apparatus according to the present invention is provided with the sheet stacking section separately, and the cushioning and stacking of the sheets supplied thereby are performed separately. That is, the supplied sheets are temporarily buffered in the sheet buffer section, and then moved by the moving means to be stacked by the moving means to the adjacent sheet stacking section in the direction substantially perpendicular to the sheet supply direction of the sheet buffer section. Is.
Therefore, even if the sheets are supplied at a high speed, the sheets can be stacked without causing a knick at the leading edge of the sheets.

Further, the moving means is composed of a sheet receiving surface of the sheet cushioning portion, and the sheet receiving surface is inclined so that it becomes lower on the downstream side in the sheet feeding direction and becomes lower as it approaches the sheet stacking portion. For example, the buffered sheets move to the stacking section by their own weight.

Further, a plurality of holes are provided on the sheet receiving surface,
By providing the air flow discharge means for discharging the air flow from this hole, the sheet can be buffered in a non-contact state with the sheet receiving surface, so that the meandering of the sheet during conveyance can be allowed to a large extent, and troubles during sheet stacking can be prevented. There is no need to change the sheet conveyance position or the sheet conveyance position.

If a plurality of sheet stacking units are provided, sheets can be stacked at higher speed.

[0018]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a sheet stacking apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a sectional view taken along line II of FIG. 1, and FIG.
FIG. 6 is a diagram showing movement of sheets until the sheets supplied to the stacking position by the transport conveyor are stacked in the stacking frame.

The sheet stacking apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention is
At the stacking position 20, the sheet cushioning section 21 and the sheet stacking section 22,
The sheets are arranged so as to be adjacent to each other in the direction substantially perpendicular to the sheet feeding direction. The sheet receiving surface 4 of the sheet cushioning portion 21 is inclined at a constant angle 12 so that the downstream side in the sheet feeding direction is low, and is further inclined at a constant angle 11 as it approaches the sheet stacking portion 22. .. Similarly, the sheet stacking surface 9 of the sheet stacking unit
Even at a constant angle 1 so that the downstream side in the sheet feeding direction becomes low
4. It is inclined at a constant angle 13 so that it becomes lower as it moves away from the seat cushioning portion. The front floater 3 which is the second air flow discharging means is provided between the transport conveyor 1 and the stacking position 20, and the third air flow discharging means is provided between the sheet buffer section 21 and the sheet stacking section 22. The side floater 6 is arranged.

The sheet cushioning portion 21 is provided with a sheet cushioning back stopper 5, and the sheet stacking portion 22 is provided with a side stopper 7 and a sheet aligning stopper 8. Further, the sheet receiving surface 4 of the sheet cushioning portion 21 is provided with a perforated plate 15 having a plurality of holes on the surface.

The sheet 2 is continuously supplied to the stacking position by the conveyor 1. The supplied sheet 2 is kept in a non-contact state with other sheets by the air discharged from the front floater 3 to the back surface of the sheet 2 entering between the sheets, whereby the front surface of the sheet 2, It is possible to prevent scratches on the back surface.

The seat 2 that has passed over the front floater 3
Are conveyed on the sheet receiving surface 4 in a non-contact manner. While the sheet 2 is conveyed to the sheet cushioning back stopper 5, the sheet 2 receives the sheet 2 due to the air discharged from the perforated plate 15 of the sheet receiving surface 4 and the predetermined inclination angles 11 and 12 on the sheet receiving surface 4. The paper is conveyed so as to come into contact with the buffer back stopper 5.

The sheet receiving surface 4 of the sheet cushioning portion 21 comprises a perforated plate 15 having a plurality of holes on the surface thereof, and has a box structure as shown in FIG. Several air supply holes 16 are provided on the lower surface of the box, and the air supplied from the air supply holes 16 is discharged from the perforated plate 15 of the sheet receiving surface 4. The air discharge holes of the perforated plate 15 face different directions at the position of the sheet, and as shown in FIG.
In Nos. 7 and 19, air is ejected outward and upward from the inner side to the outer side in the width direction of the sheet 2. As a result, the discharged air acts on the entire back surface of the sheet 2. At this time, it is the air mainly acting on the sheet side end portions 17 and 19 that keeps the posture of the sheet being conveyed.

The sheet 2 conveyed to the position of the sheet buffer back stopper 5 while being controlled by the air as described above (see position A in FIG. 3) is buffered by the sheet buffer back stopper 5. Here, the sheet cushioning back stopper 5 is preferably a cushioning material such as a sponge supported by a spring member so as to have elasticity in the sheet feeding direction.

The sheet 2 cushioned by the sheet cushioning back stopper 5 is reclined toward the front floater 3 in a state of being inclined to the sheet stacking portion 22 by a fixed angle 12 and is placed on the sheet receiving surface 4 of the sheet cushioning portion 21. Be transported.

The sheet 2 conveyed toward the front floater 3 side against the weight of the sheet is moved by the inclination of the sheet receiving surface 4 at a constant angle 11 and the sheet receiving surface 4 is moved.
The air discharged from the sheet and the air discharged from the side floater 6 are conveyed in a direction perpendicular to the sheet loading direction and are supplied to the sheet stacking unit 22. As described above, the sheet stacking surface 9 of the sheet stacking unit 22 is inclined by the predetermined angle 14 so that the downstream side in the sheet supply direction becomes lower, and the predetermined angle 13 that becomes lower as the distance from the sheet cushioning unit increases. The sheet 2 supplied to the portion 22 moves toward the side stopper 7 and the sheet aligning back stopper 8 by its own weight (see position B in FIG. 3).

At this time, the air jetted from the side floater 6 toward the back surface of the sheet is sent between the conveying sheet 2 and the stacked sheet 10 to bring the sheets into a non-contact state. As a result, scratches on the front surface and the back surface of the sheet 2 are prevented, and the frictional force between the sheets 2 is reduced, so that the sheet 2 can be easily moved.

Further, when a sheet whose width direction is larger than the sheet receiving surface 4 is conveyed toward the sheet cushioning back stopper 5 on the sheet receiving surface 4, the portion of the sheet 2 protruding from the sheet receiving surface 4 is It is possible to prevent the drooping portion and the contact of the drooping portion with the upper surface of the stacked sheets 10 by lifting the drooping portion of the sheet by the air discharged from the side floater 6. As a result, it is possible to prevent the upper surface of the stacked sheets 10 from being scratched.

The sheet 2 which has been moved onto the loaded sheet 10 by its own weight (see position C in FIG. 3) is stopped at its two sides by the sheet aligning back stopper 8 and the side stopper 7, and the sheet stacking surface 9 is held. The sheets are stacked on top (see position D in FIG. 3). The sheet aligning back stopper 8 and the side stopper 7 can improve the sheet aligning accuracy without requiring highly accurate alignment of these stoppers and highly accurate flatness. Further, since the number of stoppers is small, it is possible to reduce the side edges and corner edges of the sheet 2.

In the above-described embodiment, the sheet receiving surface of the sheet cushioning section is inclined to move the supplied sheet to the sheet stacking section. However, this is not necessary, and the sheet is conveyed. You may make it move using any means, such as a roller.

If the sheet cushioning back stopper in the above-described embodiment is provided so as to be retractable from the position where the leading edge of the sheet is stopped, the back stopper is retracted when a defective sheet is supplied. , Only defective sheets can be sorted. Further, if another sheet stacking unit is provided at a position downstream in the sheet feeding direction and the back stopper is retracted, the place where the sheets are stacked can be switched.

When two sheets are conveyed in parallel, two sheet accumulating devices according to the present invention may be provided as shown in FIG. In this case, the position where the sheets are stacked can be changed by changing the length of the sheet receiving surface in the width direction of the sheets.

[0034]

As described above in detail, the sheet stacking apparatus according to the present invention can achieve the direction of the sheet alignment accuracy and the prevention of the edges and corners of the sheets when the sheets are stacked.

Further, since it is possible to increase the permissible meandering amount of the sheet during conveyance, it is possible to improve the accuracy of sheet alignment at the time of stacking the sheets, and it is not necessary to align the sheets during sheet conveyance.

Further, since the cushioning and the stacking of the sheets are performed separately, the sheets can be accumulated at a high speed without causing a knick at the leading edge of the sheets.

[0037]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION The present invention configured as described above can be implemented in the following modes.

(1) In a sheet stacking apparatus for feeding a sheet in a substantially horizontal direction from the vicinity of the stacking position toward the stacking position and dropping the sheet to the stacking position to stack the sheet, A sheet cushioning portion having a cushioning means for cushioning the leading end of the sheet, a sheet receiving surface for receiving the sheet cushioned by the cushioning means, and a sheet cushioning direction of the sheet cushioning portion with respect to the sheet feeding direction. And a sheet stacking portion having a sheet stacking surface for stacking the sheets, which are adjacent to each other in a direction substantially perpendicular to the horizontal direction, and a moving unit that moves the sheet from the sheet cushioning portion to the sheet stacking portion. Sheet stacking device.

(2) The moving means is composed of the slanted sheet receiving surface, and the sheet receiving surface is lowered so as to be lower on the downstream side in the sheet feeding direction and as it is closer to the sheet stacking portion. The sheet stacking apparatus according to the first embodiment, wherein the sheet stacking apparatus is inclined as described above.

(3) The sheet receiving surface has a plurality of holes,
3. The sheet stacking device according to the embodiment 1 or 2, further comprising a first air flow discharge means for discharging an air flow from the hole.

(4) The first air flow discharge means corresponds to a central portion of the sheet outside and above the sheet receiving surface from a portion of the sheet receiving surface corresponding to the side edge of the sheet. 4. The sheet stacking apparatus according to the third embodiment, which is an airflow discharge means for discharging an airflow from the portion to be discharged above the sheet receiving surface.

(5) The sheet stacking apparatus according to any one of the first, second, third, and fourth aspects, characterized in that a plurality of the sheet stacking sections are provided.

(6) In the first embodiment, the sheet stacking surface is inclined so that the downstream side in the sheet feeding direction becomes lower and becomes lower as the distance from the sheet cushioning portion increases. 5. The sheet stacking device according to any one of 5 above.

(7) To the sheet stacking unit, a leading end defining unit that is located on the downstream side of the sheet stacking unit in the sheet feeding direction and defines the leading end of the sheet is adjacent to the sheet cushioning unit of the sheet stacking unit. 7. The sheet stacking apparatus according to any one of the first to sixth embodiments, which is provided on a side opposite to a side for providing a side edge defining means for defining a side edge of the sheet.

(8) Any one of Embodiments 1 to 7 characterized in that a second air flow discharge means is provided immediately before the stacking position and discharges an air flow inward and above the stacking position. 2. The sheet stacking device according to claim 1.

(9) A third air flow discharge means is provided between the sheet cushioning section and the sheet stacking section for discharging an air flow inward and above the sheet stacking section. 9. The sheet stacking device according to any one of the first to eighth embodiments.

(10) The sheet cushioning means comprises a plate-like stopper member provided upright on the downstream side of the sheet receiving surface so as to buffer the leading end of the fed sheet. 10. The sheet stacking device according to any one of aspects 1 to 9.

(11) The sheet according to any one of Embodiments 1 to 10, wherein the stopper member is provided so as to be retractable from a position where the leading end of the supplied sheet is buffered and stopped. Accumulation device.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a sheet stacking device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a sectional view taken along line I-I of FIG.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing the movement of sheets until the sheets supplied to a stacking position by a conveyor are stacked in a stacking frame.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing a conventional sheet stacking device.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 Transport Conveyor 2 Sheet 3 Front Floater 4 Sheet Receiving Surface 5 Sheet Buffer Back Stopper 6 Side Floater 7 Side Stopper (Stacking Frame) 8 Sheet Aligning Back Stopper (Stacking Frame) 9 Sheet Stacking Surface 10 Stacked Sheets 11 Air Table Inclination angle perpendicular to the sheet loading direction 12 Inclination angle of the air table in the sheet loading direction 13 Inclination angle in the direction perpendicular to the sheet loading direction of the sheet loading table 14 Inclination angle in the sheet loading direction of the sheet loading table 15 Sheet transport surface (Perforated plate) 16 Air supply hole 17 Air jet at the edge of the sheet 18 Air jet at the center of the sheet 19 Air jet at the edge of the sheet 20 Stacking position 21 Sheet cushioning section 22 Sheet stacking section

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. A sheet stacking apparatus for feeding a sheet in a substantially horizontal direction from the vicinity of the stacking position toward the stacking position and dropping the sheet to the stacking position to stack the sheets, A sheet cushioning portion having a cushioning means for cushioning the leading end of the sheet, a sheet receiving surface for receiving the sheet cushioned by the cushioning means, and a sheet cushioning direction of the sheet cushioning portion with respect to the sheet feeding direction. A sheet stacking unit having a sheet stacking surface for stacking the sheets and being adjacent to each other in a direction substantially perpendicular to the horizontal direction; and a moving unit for moving the sheet from the sheet buffer unit to the sheet stacking unit. Sheet stacking device. 2. The moving means is constituted by the inclined sheet receiving surface, and the sheet receiving surface is lowered toward the downstream side in the sheet feeding direction and is lowered toward the sheet stacking portion. 2. The sheet stacking device according to claim 1, wherein the sheet stacking device is inclined. 3. The sheet stacking apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the sheet receiving surface has a plurality of holes, and air flow discharge means for discharging an air flow from the holes is provided. 4. The sheet stacking apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a plurality of the sheet stacking units.