JPH05341482A - Separation and accumulation device for printed photograph - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To easily collect an acceptable printed photograph and a reprinting printed photograph in a next process, to realize an automatic packing system and to save manpower as for packing work by separating the acceptable printed photograph and the reprinting printed photograph and accumulating them in parallel by separating them up and down. CONSTITUTION:Mark sensors 45 and 46 detecting a reprinting mark and an unnecessary mark are arranged on a common carrying system 40 and an outputted mark detection signal is sent to a controller 47. Based on the mark detection signal, solenoids 48a and 49a are driven and branching guides 48 and 49 are respectively turned. By providing the mark sensors at two positions in such a way, the mark can be easily detected without changing detection timing or the like in terms of software for normal size and panoramic size. Besides, the acceptable printed photograph and the reprinting printed photograph carried by a first and a second branching and carrying systems 41 and 42 are accumulated in accumulating stations P1, P2 under a state that they are arrayed by the arraying plates 76, 77 of an accumulation part 43.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a print photograph separating / collecting apparatus used in a print photograph automatic packaging system. More specifically, one print photograph is separated into a passing product and a rebaked product and collected. It relates to a device for doing.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art When a DP reception shop accepts simultaneous printing, it fills a DP bag with predetermined items, puts a patrone in the DP bag, and hands it to a large-scale photo lab. At this large scale laboratory, the cartridge is taken out of the DP bag, and then the exposed photographic film is pulled out from the cartridge. These photographic films are spliced together to form a long film. After developing this long film with a film processor, it is set in a photographic printer and each frame is printed and exposed on paper (printing paper). The exposed paper is developed by a paper processor and then subjected to finish verification. In this finish test, for a print photograph that needs to be reprinted, a reburn mark consisting of, for example, one diagonal line, is printed on the surface on which the image is recorded, and for a defective print photograph such as a shooting failure, for example, a diagonal line 2 is printed. A defective mark made of a book is written with a felt-tip pen or the like.

The roll paper, which has been verified as finished, is loaded into a cutter / sorter, where it is cut into individual print photographs. In addition, this cutter / sorter reads reburn marks and defective marks with a mark sensor, and based on this mark, one print photo is classified into a pass print photo, a reprint print photo, and a defective print photo. The defective prints are placed in a waste box, and the accepted prints and the reprinted prints are ejected in inclined trays, respectively. Here, depending on the width of the paper set in the photo printer, the E size of 82.5 x 117 mm and 89 x 127 mm are included in the print photos.
In addition to the L size, there is a panoramic size having a length twice as large as these sizes.

On the other hand, the long film which has been printed has been cut into a predetermined number of frames in one photographic film,
The obtained film piece is inserted into a film sheath (film storage sheet). The operator manually takes out the pass print photograph and the reprint print photograph discharged in an oblique state to each receiving rack and superimposes them. Next, after collating the one group of printed photographs with the photographic film in the film sheath, these are put in a print bag. After this print bag is loaded into the original DP bag, only the print pictures that have passed are sent to the shipping process. Those containing the reprint print photograph are sent to the reprint print step.

In the above printing system, the pass print and the reprint print are automatically sorted by using a cutter / sorter. The sorted print photos are grouped by the operator one by one. Was
It is stored in a print bag. For this reason, there is a problem that manpower is required and efficient loading and shipping of printed photographs cannot be performed.

[0006]

In order to solve the above problem, a system for automatically loading a DP bag is disclosed in Japanese Patent Publication No. 56-768, Japanese Patent Publication No. 56-35862, and Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 4-38. No. 70832, JP-A-4-7654
No. 7 publication. Of these, Japanese public Sho 56
In the '768 publication, there is described a device that conveys each print photograph in a vertical state, sorts a pass print photograph and a reprint print photograph during the conveyance, and accumulates two kinds of print photographs in a vertical state. ing. Considering loading into a print bag or DP bag, it is necessary to collect print photographs in a neatly aligned state. However, with this device, there is no problem when the print photos are conveyed slowly, but in order to improve the processing capability, for example, when the print photos are conveyed at a high speed of 90 m / min, the print photos are neatly arranged. Difficult to accumulate.

The present invention has been made to solve the above problems, and provides a separating and accumulating device for print photographs, which enables the print photographs to be collected in a neatly aligned state even when they are conveyed at a high speed. The purpose is to

[0008]

In order to achieve the above object, the invention according to claim 1 has a common transport system for transporting a print photograph and a mark for instructing reprinting during transport by the common transport system. A mark sensor that detects the attached print photograph, a branch guide that separates the re-print print photograph and the pass print photograph based on the mark detection signal from the mark sensor, and at least two types of branched print photographs are vertically arranged. First and second branching and conveying systems that horizontally send out in a separated state, and first and second aligning plates that receive the leading edge of the print photograph discharged from each of the branching and conveying systems,
First and second collection stations for collecting print photographs that have been stopped by the alignment plates are provided.
The printed photographs sorted by the branch guide are discharged at a high speed in a horizontal state by a branch conveying system, collide with an alignment plate in a vertical state, drop as they are, and are accumulated in a collecting station.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, one of the first and second branch conveyance systems is also used as a part of the common conveyance system. One of the branch transport systems can be arranged so as to be flush with the common transport system. In this case, the branch transport system and the common transport system can be combined.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, the position of the alignment plate is adjusted in the feed direction of the print photograph according to the size of the print photograph.

In the invention described in claim 4, the alignment plate is
It is composed of a stopper plate and a flexible sheet placed in front of the stopper plate with an appropriate gap. This flexible sheet absorbs the collision force of the printed photograph to prevent the printed sheet from bouncing and prevents the leading edge of the printed photograph from being scratched.

In the invention described in claim 5, the upper end of the aligning plate is fixed to the mounting shaft, and when the rear end edge of the printed photographs accumulated at each accumulating station is pushed and sent to the next step, the aligning plate is aligned. The plate is retracted upward.

In the invention described in claim 6, each branching and conveying system is provided with a pair of endless belts arranged at a predetermined interval in a direction orthogonal to the conveying direction, and arranged on both sides of the endless belts to print. It is composed of a pair of guide plates for pressing the back side of the photograph to press the front side of the printed photograph against each endless belt.

[0014]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS FIG. 2 shows the outline of a print photograph automatic packaging system using the separating and accumulating device of the present invention. A well-known paper cutter 1 is provided in front of the separating and accumulating device 10.
1 is arranged. In this paper cutter 11,
The paper roll 12 that has undergone the finish verification process is set on the roll set shaft 13. This paper roll 1
In No. 2, the surface on which the image is printed is wound outside, and a mark is written with a felt-tip pen or the like in the finish verification step. If the printing exposure amount is corrected to obtain a good finish, for example, a re-burning mark 14 consisting of one slanted line is written on the image, and if it is due to a shooting failure such as out-of-focus, there are two slanted lines. The defective mark 15 consisting of is written. It should be noted that no mark is written on the pass print photograph having a good finish.

The roll set shaft 13 is driven by the motor 16.
When the pull-out roller 17 is rotated at a constant speed, the printed paper 12a is pulled out from the paper roll 12, passes through the guide roller 18 and the dancer roller 19, and is then sent to the horizontal paper path. As is well known, the paper passage is provided with a base plate and a pair of Ls arranged on the base plate for guiding both side edges of the paper 12a.
Shaped guide plate. A cut mark sensor 22 and a sort mark sensor 23 are provided in the paper passage.
And a feed roller pair 25 driven by a motor 24 and a cutter 26 on the outlet side.

The cut mark sensor 22 is used for the paper 12
Cut mark 27 consisting of a small hole formed on the side edge of a
Is detected, and based on this, the cutter 26 is operated to separate one print photograph 28 from the paper 12a.
Further, the sort mark sensor 23 detects the sort mark 29 indicating the division of each case. Based on the sort mark 29, the operation of the feed roller pair 25 and the cutter 26 is stopped until one print photograph made from one photographic film, for example, a negative film, is fed from the separating and accumulating device 10 and becomes empty. Then, the printed photographs are sorted according to each case.

A print photograph 28 separated for each sheet
Is sent to the separating and accumulating device 10, and a pass print photograph 28a in which no mark is recorded, a reprint print photograph 28b in which the reburn mark 14 is applied, and a defective print photograph 28c in which the defective mark 15 is applied are recorded. It is distributed.
Pass print 28a and reprint print 28b
Are sent to each collecting station and collected within one case.

The accumulated print photograph 29a of the accepted print photograph 28a and the accumulated print photograph 29b of the re-baked print photograph 28b are extruded in an aligned state and sent to the elevator 30. The integrated print photograph 29a is placed on the pair of intermediate shelves 31 which are retracted in the lateral direction, and the integrated print photograph 29b is placed on the elevating plate 32. When the elevating plate 32 moves upward as indicated by the arrow, the pair of intermediate shelves 31 gradually moves to the left and right in conjunction with the elevating plate 32. Then, when the upper surface of the integrated print photograph 29b comes very close to the lower surface of the integrated print photograph 29a, the pair of intermediate shelves 31 are completely retracted, and the integrated print photograph 29 is removed.
a is superimposed on the integrated print photograph 29b. As a result, a plurality of accepted print photographs 28a and a plurality of reprint print photographs 28b created from one photograph film become one integrated print photograph 29.

The integrated print photograph 29 is sent to the print bag loading device 33, and is put in the print bag together with the film sheath and the advertisement leaflet describing the print service. As is well known, in the film sheath, a film piece obtained by dividing one photographic film into, for example, 6 frames is housed in each pocket and is flatly folded with the width of two pockets.

The print bag is sent to the DP bag loading device 34 after the flaps are folded so that the prints and the like do not come out, and the print bag is dropped into the opened DP bag. After loading the print bag, the simultaneous print service fee is printed. The DP bag not including the reprint print photograph is sent to the shipping process 35 and returned to the DP reception shop. The DP bag containing the reprint print photo is the reprint print process 3
Sent to 6.

In the rebaking printing step 36, the DP bag is opened, the print bag is taken out, and the rebaking print photograph 28b and the film sheath are taken out from the DP bag. The frame corresponding to the reprint print photograph 28b is found, the printing exposure amount is determined with reference to the reprint print photograph 28b, and then the frame is printed on the paper. This paper is cut into one frame and then developed. If the obtained print is good, put it in a print bag together with the film sheath and then use DP.
Put it back in the bag. The reprinted print photograph 28b is discarded.

When the film sheath and the print photograph are loaded into the print bag and when the print bag is loaded into the DP bag, the IDs of the two check tapes attached to the DP bag and the cartridge at the time of simultaneous print reception. Automatic verification is performed using numbers. That is, the LSI card in which the information of each frame is written at the time of film certification and printing exposure is set in the print photograph automatic packaging system, and the ID number of the print photograph is read. On the other hand, since the check tape of the cartridge is reattached to the front end of the film when the film is pulled out, the ID number of the check tape is read by the bar code reader in the print bag loading device 33. By comparing these ID numbers, the photo film and the print photo are collated. Also, D
Also in the P bag loading device 34, the DP tape check tape I
The D number is read by the bar code reader, and the print photograph loaded in the print bag is collated with the ID number of the DP bag. The print service fee includes the type and print size of the photo film read from the LSI card,
It is calculated from the total number of passed prints and reprint prints classified by the separating and accumulating device 10.

Next, the separation and integration device will be described. As shown in FIG. 1, the separation / collection device 10 includes a common transport system 40 for transporting print photographs from the paper cutter 11, and a pass print photograph 28 without marks.
The first branching and conveying system 41 for horizontally sending a to the first stacking station P1 and the horizontal printing system for sending the rebaking print photograph 28b with the rebaking mark 14 to the second stacking station P2. Second branch transport system 42
And a stacking unit 43 in which the first and second stacking stations P1 and P2 are formed. Since the first branch transport system 41 is located on the extension of the common transport system 40,
By extending the common transport system 40 and using this extended portion as the first branch transport system 41, the first branch transport system 41 may be omitted. These transport systems 40 to 42 are operated by the motor 4
4 drives in the arrow direction at the same linear velocity.

The common transport system 40 includes re-baking marks 14,
Mark sensors 45 and 46 for detecting the defective mark 15 are arranged, and mark detection signals output from these are sent to the controller 47. This controller 47
Is based on the mark detection signal, the solenoids 48a, 4a
9a is driven to rotate the branch guides 48, 49 clockwise. Mark sensor 4 arranged on the inlet side
Reference numeral 5 is for detecting marks recorded in a print photograph of a panorama size longer than that of a normal print photograph. In addition, the mark sensor 46 arranged on the downstream side
Is for detecting marks recorded in a normal size print photograph such as L size or E size. By providing the mark sensors at two positions in this way, it is possible to easily detect the mark not only for the normal size but also for the panorama size without changing the detection timing or the like by software.

For the defective print photograph 28c, the first
The branch guide 48 rises in the direction of the arrow, and the waste box 50
The defective print photograph 28c is sent diagonally downward toward the. Since the paper cutter 11 cuts out the boundary portion of the print photograph, chips are generated, but these chips are preferably put in the waste box 50 by a belt conveyor or the like. For the reprint print 28b, the second
The branch guide 49 stands up and enters the second branch transport system 42. The accepted print photograph 28a includes a branch guide 48,
It passes over 49 and enters the first branch transport system 41.

As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the common conveying system 40 includes three pairs of endless belts 50, 51, 52 arranged in the feeding direction of the print photograph 28, and a guide plate for guiding the print photograph 28. 55a, 55b, 56 and a plurality of guide rollers 58, 59, and a print photograph 2
8 is conveyed along the common conveying path at a high speed of 90 m / min. As shown in FIG. 3, the first pair of endless belts 50 includes two endless belts 50 wound around pulleys 60 a to 60 c.
It is composed of a and 50b. Second endless belt 51
As shown in FIG. 4, is composed of a pair of endless belts 51a and 51b hung on pulleys 61a and 61b. Further, the third endless belt 52 is composed of a pair of endless belts 52a and 52b hung on pulleys 62a and 62b. These endless belts 50 to 52 are rotated at the same linear velocity by a motor 44 via a timing belt (not shown). The second endless belt pair 51 is arranged so as to overlap with the first endless belt pair 50, and the print photograph 28 is nipped and conveyed between them. Also, the first
The third endless belt pair 52 is arranged so as to overlap the rear end side of the endless belt pair 50.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 4, the guide rollers 58 and 59 are rotatably mounted on the roller mounting frames 65a and 65b, respectively.
9 presses the print photograph 28 downward so as to contact the first endless belt pair 50. In addition, the roller mounting frame 6
Mark sensors 45 and 46 are arranged in 5a and 65b.

Each branching conveyance system 41, 42 pushes up both sides of the endless belt pair 70, 71 and the back surface of the print photograph 28, and the front surface on which the image is recorded, the endless belt pair 60, 61.
It is composed of conveyance guide plates 72 and 73 for pressing the sheet onto the sheet, and conveys at a high speed of 90 m / min along each branch conveyance path. The endless belt pair 70 is wound around three pulleys 74a to 74c arranged in a substantially equilateral triangle. Further, the endless belt 71 is wound around two pulleys 75a and 75b arranged horizontally and one pulley 75c arranged obliquely above.

The accepted print photograph 28a and the reprint print photograph 28b conveyed by the first and second branch conveying systems 41, 42 are aligned by the aligning plates 76, 77 of the accumulating section 43, and the accumulating station P1. , P2. When all 1 items are collected, the sending rod 7
Elevator 3 without breaking alignment by 8,79
0 (see FIG. 2). As described above, the aligning means and the feeding means are arranged in the upper and lower two stages, and the stacking stations P1 and P2 are stacked in two horizontal stages.

As shown in FIG. 5, the stacking unit 43 includes print receiving plates 81, which form stacking stations P1 and P2.
82, and the alignment plates 76, 7 that are in a vertical state above them.
7 and 7. Print receiving plates 81, 82
Is arranged at a position 2 to 3 cm below the print photo discharge position of each of the branch transport systems 40 and 41, which allows about 50 print photos to be accumulated at each accumulating station P1 and P2. Become. Print receiving plate 8
Reference numeral 1 is bent in an L shape and is composed of a horizontal portion 81a and a vertical portion 81b. The print photographs 28a are accumulated on the horizontal portion 81a, and the vertical portion 81b guides the passed print photographs 28a so that their side edges are aligned when the accumulated print photographs 29a are sent to the elevator 30. The print receiving plate 82 also has the same structure as this, and therefore the reference numerals are given and the description thereof is omitted.

The integrated print photograph 29 is provided on the horizontal portion 81a.
an opening 83 for moving the feeding rod 78 along the feeding direction of a.
Are formed. In the moving opening 83, the rails 85a and 85a are provided so that the endless chain 84 does not fall off.
It is sandwiched by 85b and movably held, and two delivery rods 78 are vertically fixed at the same pitch to the endless chain 84. The endless chain 84 is wound around four chain sprockets 86 in a horizontal plane, and is rotationally driven by a motor 87. As a result, the delivery bar 78 moves within the moving opening 83, and the integrated print photograph 29a is delivered to the elevator 30. Then, when the delivery is completed and the endless chain 84 rotates by half the length, the next delivery rod 78 is set to the position before the delivery.

The aligning plate 76 is composed of a stopper plate 90 and a flexible sheet 91 placed in front of the stopper plate 90 with a gap therebetween. Since the printed photographs from the respective branch transport systems 41 and 42 are discharged at a high speed of 90 m / min, for example, the stopper plate 90 alone abuts against this and bounces off.
The edges of the printed photo will be uneven, and in some cases the edges will be damaged. For this reason, the flexible sheet 91 is arranged as a cushioning material to absorb the impact at the time of discharging, and to make the edges aligned and to drop onto the print receiving plate 81. The other aligning plate 77 has the same structure.

Similarly, the delivery rod 79 is the endless belt 9
The endless belt 92 is looped around four chain sprockets 93. Since these chain sprockets 93 are provided coaxially with the chain sprockets 86, the two endless belts 8
4,92 rotate together.

As shown in FIG. 6, the alignment plates 76 and 77 are
They are fixed to the mounting shafts 95 and 96, respectively. These mounting shafts 95, 96 are rotatably mounted on the moving frame 97. The moving frame 97 is supported by two guide rods 98 and 99 arranged vertically, and is movable in the print photograph feeding direction. The moving frame 97 is connected to the endless belt 100.
Is hung on the pulleys 103a and 103b. The pulley 103a is rotated by a motor 102 via gears 101a and 101b. By rotating the motor 102, the alignment plate 7 can be adjusted according to the size of the print photograph 28.
The position of 6,77 can be adjusted.

When the integrated print photographs 29a, 29b are sent out, the sending-out rods 78, 79 are arranged by the aligning plates 76, 7.
These alignment plates 76, 7 so that they do not hit 7
An evacuation mechanism 105 for flipping up 7 substantially horizontally is provided. The retracting mechanism 105 includes a link 106,
A motor 107 for moving the link 106 is provided. The link 106 includes levers 108 and 109 fixed to the mounting shafts 95 and 96, and a connecting rod 110 that connects them.
It consists of and. Further, a push rod 112 is connected to the upper mounting shaft 95 via a lever 111.

The pushing rod 112 is an operating lever 113.
It is pin-coupled to and reciprocates. The operating lever 113 has
A long hole 113a is formed, and a pin 115 of the motor 107 is fitted in the long hole 113a. Therefore, the motor 1
When 07 rotates a half turn, the operating lever 113 moves the pin 113b.
Is used as a fulcrum, and the lever 111 is swung via the forward rod 112. This lever 111 is a link 10
Rotate the upper and lower mounting shafts 95 and 96 by 90 ° via 6,
The alignment plates 76 and 77 are changed from the vertical state to the horizontal state. The flexible sheet 91 hangs down by its own weight, but since it escapes with the movement of the integrated print photograph, it does not hinder this movement.

Next, the operation of the above embodiment will be briefly described. As shown in FIG. 2, when the motor 16 rotates,
The paper 12a is continuously pulled out from the paper roll 12 and sent toward the cutter 26 through a horizontal conveyance path at a high speed of approximately 100 m / min. Paper 12a
The cut mark 27 is detected by the cut mark sensor 22 while the sheet is conveyed along the conveying path. Since the rotation of the motor 24 is controlled according to the detection signal of the cut mark sensor 22, the motor 24 stops when the detected cut mark 27 reaches the cutter 26. This motor 2
Immediately after 4 has stopped, the cutter 26 operates to separate one print photograph 28 from the paper 12a. The motor 24 rotates again and sends the next cut mark 27 to the paper cutting position.

The individual print photographs 28 separated by the paper cutter 11 enter the separating and accumulating device 10, and
Sorted and accumulated during transportation at a high speed of 0 m / min. That is, the print photograph 28 is first printed in the common transport system 4.
The mark sensor 46 detects the reprint mark 14 and the defective mark 15 during the conveyance along the horizontal common conveyance path by 0. Based on the mark detection signal, the controller 47 determines that the corresponding print photograph 28 has the branch guides 48, 49.
Applicable branch guide 4 at the timing immediately before reaching
8 and 49 are swung upward and sorted into a pass print photograph 28a, a reprint print photograph 28b, and a defective print photograph 28c.

For example, in the case of the defective print photograph 28c having the defective mark 15, the controller 47
The branch guide 48 is operated to send it to the waste box 50. In the case of the reprinted print photograph 28b having the reprint mark, the branch guide 49 is operated to enter the second branch conveyance path, and in the case of the accepted print photograph, the first branch path is entered. Reprinted print photograph 28b entering the second branch road
Is transported obliquely downward by the second branch transport system 42 and then discharged horizontally to the second stacking station P2. The accepted print photograph 28a that entered the first branch is
The sheet is conveyed as it is by the first branch conveyance system 41, and is discharged to the first stacking station P1 in a horizontal state.

Since the aligning plates 76 and 77 are set in the stacking stations P1 and P2 at positions corresponding to the print size in a vertical state, these aligning plates 76 and 7 are arranged.
The leading edges of the printed photographs 28a and 28b hit the flexible sheet 91 of No. 7 and fall onto the receiving plates 81 and 82. Since the flexible sheet 91 absorbs the impact caused by the collision of the print photographs, the print photographs do not bounce around, and the leading edges of the flexible sheets 91 are aligned and accumulated in an aligned state. Moreover, the front edge of the printed photograph is not damaged by the impact.

The paper cutter 11 has a sort mark 2
When it is detected based on the detection signal 9 that the separation of one print photograph has been completed, an end signal is sent to the separation / integration device 10. When a predetermined time has elapsed after the end signal was input, the controller 47 determines that the last print photograph has been accumulated at a predetermined position.

The controller 47 is the motor 1 shown in FIG.
07 is rotated a half turn and each alignment plate 7 is connected via the link 106.
Rotate 6,77 90 degrees and set to a horizontal retracted position. Next, the motor 87 shown in FIG. 5 is rotated by a predetermined amount to move the delivery rods 78 and 79 via the chains 84 and 92. By this movement, each collecting station P
Passed integrated print photos 29a accumulated on P1 and P2
The rear end of the accumulated reprinted printed photograph 29b is pushed and ejected to the elevator 30. Further, by this movement, the next delivery rods 78 and 79 are set to the standby position before the stacking stations P1 and P2 as shown in FIG.

After sending out to the elevator 30, the controller 47 makes the motor 107 rotate half a turn and the alignment plate 7
Return 6,77 to its original vertical position. In addition, the controller 47 sends an integration preparation completion signal to the paper cutter 11.
To start cutting the next one print photo.

As shown in FIG. 2, the elevator 30 is
The integrated print photos 29b set on the lift plate 32 are lifted, the intermediate shelf 31 is allowed to escape to the side, and the integrated print photos 29a stacked on this are stacked, and one stack is made on the lift plate 32. The elevating plate 32 further rises slightly and then stops, after which the clamp mechanism enters the elevator 30 and sends the accumulated print photograph to the print bag loading device 33 while being clamped. A film sheath and an advertisement leaflet are automatically set in advance in the print bag loading device 33, and an integrated print photograph is loaded into the print bag together with them. The loaded print bag is sent to the DP bag loading device 34, where it is packed in the DP bag.

The DP bags are automatically sorted according to a signal from the controller 47 into those containing only acceptable print photographs and those containing reprint print photographs. And
Those that have only passed prints are sent to the shipping process 35. Further, the one including the reprint print photograph is sent to the reprint step 36, the exposure correction amount at the time of reprint is determined while observing the reprint print photograph, and the reprint print is performed based on this. At the time of this reprint printing, the reprint print photographs are grouped together separately from the pass print photographs, so that only the reprint print photographs can be easily taken out.

In the above embodiment, the endless belt pair 5 is used.
Although the print photographs are conveyed by 0, 51, 52 and the guide plates 55a, 55b, 56, the print photographs may be nipped and conveyed by a pair of conveyance rollers arranged above and below.

[0047]

As described above, according to the present invention,
Since the pass print and the reprint print are separated and stacked in parallel at the top and bottom, these are
It becomes easy to put them together. Therefore, it becomes possible to construct an automatic wrapping system for printed photographs by using the apparatus of the present invention, whereby labor for wrapping printed photographs, which has conventionally been considerably troublesome, can be saved.

Further, since the flexible sheet is arranged so as to hang down on the aligning plate, even if the sent print photograph hits the aligning plate at a high speed, the impact at the time of the collision is buffered by the flexible sheet. It is possible to collect printed pictures in a state where the edges are aligned without bounce. Moreover, since the shock at the time of collision is buffered, the leading edge of the printed photograph is not damaged. Further, the durability is superior to the case where a cushioning material such as a sponge is used, and the number of times of replacement can be reduced.

Further, since the aligning plate is constructed so as to be movable in the feed direction of the print photograph, and the stop position thereof is determined according to the size of the print photograph, even if the print photographs of different sizes are not bounced, they are optimal. Print photos can be collected at the location.

Further, the upper part of the alignment plate is fixed to the mounting shaft, and the mounting shaft rotates to retract the alignment plate upward when discharging the integrated print photograph, so that there is no obstacle to this discharging. Moreover, since the mounting shaft is rotated by 90 ° to retract from the receiving plate, unlike the case of simply moving upward to retract, the retreat space can be reduced and the entire device can be made compact.

Further, since the front side of the printed photograph is conveyed and the moving belt or the guide roller is arranged so as to be in contact with this front side, the surface of the printed photograph is not scratched by a guide member or the like. ..

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a vertical sectional view of an apparatus for separating and accumulating printed photographs according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a schematic view showing an automatic print photograph packaging system.

FIG. 3 is a plan view of a main part of a separation and collection device for print photographs.

FIG. 4 is a plan view showing a mounting state of a mark sensor and a guide roller.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing a stacking unit.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view showing an alignment plate and a retracting mechanism.

[Explanation of symbols]

 10 Separation and Accumulation Device 11 Paper Cutter 14 Rebaking Mark 15 Defect Mark 26 Cutter 28 Print Photograph 40 Common Conveying System 41, 42 Branch Conveying System 43 Accumulating Section 45, 46 Mark Sensor 48, 49 Branch Guide 50, 51, 52, 70, 71 Endless Belt Pair 76, 77 Alignment Plate 78, 79 Sending Rod 91 Flexible Sheet 97 Moving Frame 105 Evacuation Mechanism P1, P2 Collecting Station

─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ───

[Procedure amendment]

[Submission date] July 14, 1992

[Procedure Amendment 1]

[Document name to be amended] Statement

[Name of item to be corrected] 0002

[Correction method] Change

[Correction content]

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art When a DP reception shop accepts simultaneous printing, it fills a DP bag with predetermined items, puts a patrone in the DP bag, and hands it to a large-scale photo lab. At this large scale laboratory, the cartridge is taken out of the DP bag, and then the exposed photographic film is pulled out from the cartridge. These photographic films are spliced together to form a long film. After developing this long film with a film processor, it is set in a photographic printer and each frame is printed and exposed on paper (printing paper). The exposed paper is developed by a paper processor and then subjected to finish verification. In this finish test, for a print photograph that needs reprinting, a reburn mark consisting of, for example, one diagonal line, is printed on the surface on which the image is recorded, and for an unnecessary print photograph such as a shooting failure, for example, a two shaded line is printed. An unnecessary mark made of a book is written with a felt-tip pen or the like.

[Procedure Amendment 2]

[Document name to be amended] Statement

[Name of item to be corrected] 0003

[Correction method] Change

[Correction content]

The roll paper, which has been verified as finished, is loaded into a cutter / sorter, where it is cut into individual print photographs. In addition, this cutter / sorter reads the reprint mark and unnecessary mark with a mark sensor, and based on this mark, one print photo is sorted into a pass print photo, a reprint print photo, and an unnecessary print photo. The unnecessary print photographs are put in a waste box, and the accepted print photographs and the reprinted print photographs are respectively discharged into the inclined tray. Here, depending on the width of the paper set in the photo printer, the E size of 82.5 x 117 mm and 89 x 127 mm are included in the print photos.
In addition to the L size, there is a panoramic size having a length twice as large as these sizes.

[Procedure 3]

[Document name to be amended] Statement

[Correction target item name] 0014

[Correction method] Change

[Correction content]

[0014]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS FIG. 2 shows the outline of a print photograph automatic packaging system using the separating and accumulating device of the present invention. A well-known paper cutter 1 is provided in front of the separating and accumulating device 10.
1 is arranged. In this paper cutter 11,
The paper roll 12 that has undergone the finish verification process is set on the roll set shaft 13. This paper roll 1
In No. 2, the surface on which the image is printed is wound outside, and a mark is written with a felt-tip pen or the like in the finish verification step. If the printing exposure amount is corrected to obtain a good finish, for example, a re-burning mark 14 consisting of one slanted line is written on the image, and if it is due to a shooting failure such as out-of-focus, there are two slanted lines. Consists of
The unnecessary mark 15 is entered. It should be noted that no mark is written on the pass print photograph having a good finish.

[Procedure amendment 4]

[Document name to be amended] Statement

[Correction target item name] 0017

[Correction method] Change

[Correction content]

A print photograph 28 separated for each sheet
Is sent to the separating and accumulating device 10 to be a pass print photograph 28a in which no mark is recorded, a reprint print photograph 28b in which the reburn mark 14 is applied, and an unnecessary print photograph 28c in which the unnecessary mark 15 is applied. It is distributed.
Pass print 28a and reprint print 28b
Are sent to each collecting station and collected within one case.

[Procedure Amendment 5]

[Document name to be amended] Statement

[Correction target item name] 0024

[Correction method] Change

[Correction content]

The common transport system 40 includes re-baking marks 14,
Mark sensors 45 and 46 that detect the unnecessary mark 15 are arranged, and a mark detection signal output from these is sent to the controller 47. This controller 47
Is based on the mark detection signal, the solenoids 48a, 4a
9a is driven to rotate the branch guides 48, 49 clockwise. Mark sensor 4 arranged on the inlet side
Reference numeral 5 is for detecting marks recorded in a print photograph of a panorama size longer than that of a normal print photograph. In addition, the mark sensor 46 arranged on the downstream side
Is for detecting marks recorded in a normal size print photograph such as L size or E size. By providing the mark sensors at two positions in this way, it is possible to easily detect the mark not only for the normal size but also for the panorama size without changing the detection timing or the like by software.

[Procedure Amendment 6]

[Document name to be amended] Statement

[Name of item to be corrected] 0025

[Correction method] Change

[Correction content]

For the unnecessary print photograph 28c, the first
The branch guide 48 rises in the direction of the arrow, and the waste box 50
The unnecessary print photograph 28c is sent diagonally downward toward the. Since the paper cutter 11 cuts out the boundary portion of the print photograph, chips are generated, but these chips are preferably put in the waste box 50 by a belt conveyor or the like. For the reprint print 28b, the second
The branch guide 49 stands up and enters the second branch transport system 42. The accepted print photograph 28a includes a branch guide 48,
It passes over 49 and enters the first branch transport system 41.

[Procedure Amendment 7]

[Document name to be amended] Statement

[Correction target item name] 0035

[Correction method] Change

[Correction content]

When the integrated print photographs 29a, 29b are sent out, the sending-out rods 78, 79 are arranged by the aligning plates 76, 7.
These alignment plates 76, 7 so that they do not hit 7
An evacuation mechanism 105 for flipping up 7 substantially horizontally is provided. The retracting mechanism 105 includes a link 106,
Rotary solenoid 107 that moves this link 106
It has and. The link 106 is composed of levers 108 and 109 fixed to the mounting shafts 95 and 96, and a connecting rod 110 that connects them. Further, a push rod 112 is connected to the upper mounting shaft 95 via a lever 111.

[Procedure Amendment 8]

[Document name to be amended] Statement

[Correction target item name] 0036

[Correction method] Change

[Correction content]

The pushing rod 112 is an operating lever 113.
It is pin-coupled to and reciprocates. The operating lever 113 is
It is fixed to the rotary solenoid 107. Because
When the rotary solenoid 107 rotates,
The bar 113 swings to swing the lever 111 via the forward rod 112. This lever 111 is a link 10
Rotate the upper and lower mounting shafts 95 and 96 by 90 ° via 6,
The alignment plates 76 and 77 are changed from the vertical state to the horizontal state. The flexible sheet 91 hangs down by its own weight, but since it escapes with the movement of the integrated print photograph, it does not hinder this movement.

[Procedure Amendment 9]

[Document name to be amended] Statement

[Correction target item name] 0038

[Correction method] Change

[Correction content]

The individual print photographs 28 separated by the paper cutter 11 enter the separating and accumulating device 10, and
Sorted and accumulated during transportation at a high speed of 0 m / min. That is, the print photograph 28 is first printed in the common transport system 4.
The mark sensor 46 detects the reprint mark 14 and the unnecessary mark 15 during the conveyance along the horizontal common conveyance path by 0. Based on the mark detection signal, the controller 47 determines that the corresponding print photograph 28 has the branch guides 48, 49.
Applicable branch guide 4 at the timing immediately before reaching
8 and 49 are swung upward and sorted into a pass print photograph 28a, a reprint print photograph 28b, and an unnecessary print photograph 28c.

[Procedure Amendment 10]

[Document name to be amended] Statement

[Correction target item name] 0039

[Correction method] Change

[Correction content]

For example, in the case of the unnecessary print photograph 28c in which the unnecessary mark 15 is written, the controller 47
The branch guide 48 is operated to send it to the waste box 50. In the case of the reprinted print photograph 28b having the reprint mark, the branch guide 49 is operated to enter the second branch conveyance path, and in the case of the accepted print photograph, the first branch path is entered. Reprinted print photograph 28b entering the second branch road
Is transported obliquely downward by the second branch transport system 42 and then discharged horizontally to the second stacking station P2. The accepted print photograph 28a that entered the first branch is
The sheet is conveyed as it is by the first branch conveyance system 41, and is discharged to the first stacking station P1 in a horizontal state.

[Procedure Amendment 11]

[Document name to be amended] Statement

[Correction target item name] 0042

[Correction method] Change

[Correction content]

The controller 47 is the rotary shown in FIG.
-The solenoid 107 is rotated half a turn, and the alignment plates 76 and 77 are rotated 90 ° via the link 106 to set the alignment plates 76 and 77 in the horizontal retracted position. Next, the motor 87 shown in FIG. 5 is rotated by a predetermined amount to move the delivery rods 78 and 79 via the chains 84 and 92. As a result of this movement, the passed integrated print photos 29a and the reprinted integrated print photos 29b accumulated on the respective accumulation stations P1 and P2 are discharged to the elevator 30 with their rear edges pressed. Further, by this movement, the next delivery rods 78 and 79 are set to the standby position before the stacking stations P1 and P2 as shown in FIG.

[Procedure Amendment 12]

[Document name to be amended] Statement

[Name of item to be corrected] Brief explanation of the drawing

[Correction method] Change

[Correction content]

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a vertical sectional view of an apparatus for separating and accumulating printed photographs according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a schematic view showing an automatic print photograph packaging system.

FIG. 3 is a plan view of a main part of a separation and collection device for print photographs.

FIG. 4 is a plan view showing a mounting state of a mark sensor and a guide roller.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing a stacking unit.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view showing an alignment plate and a retracting mechanism.

[Explanation of Codes] 10 Separation and Accumulation Device 11 Paper Cutter 14 Rebaking Mark 15 Unnecessary Mark 26 Cutter 28 Print Photograph 40 Common Transport System 41,42 Branch Transport System 43 Stacking Unit 45,46 Mark Sensor 48,49 Branch Guide 50,51 , 52, 70, 71 Endless belt pair 76, 77 Alignment plate 78, 79 Sending bar 91 Flexible sheet 97 Moving frame 105 Evacuation mechanism P1, P2 Stacking station

[Procedure Amendment 13]

[Document name to be corrected] Drawing

[Name of item to be corrected] Figure 6

[Correction method] Change

[Correction content]

[Figure 6]

Claims (6)

[Claims] 1. A common transport system for transporting the print photos in a print photo separation / collection device for sorting at least reprinted print photos and accepted print photos after separating them one by one. , A mark sensor for detecting a print photograph to which a mark for instructing reprinting is attached during conveyance by the common conveying system, and a re-print print photograph and a pass print photograph are separated based on a mark detection signal from the mark sensor. A branching guide, and first and second branching and conveying systems for horizontally sending out at least two types of branched print pictures vertically separated from each other,
Provided are first and second alignment plates that receive the leading edge of the print photos discharged from each branching conveyance system, and first and second collection stations that are stopped at each alignment plate and collect the dropped print photos. An apparatus for separating and accumulating printed photographs. 2. An apparatus for separating and accumulating print photographs according to claim 1, wherein one of the first and second branching and conveying systems is also used as a part of a common conveying system. 3. An apparatus for separating and accumulating print photographs according to claim 1, wherein the position of the aligning plate is adjustable in the feeding direction of the print photographs according to the size of the print photographs. 4. The separation of printed photographs according to claim 1, wherein the alignment plate is composed of a stopper plate and a flexible sheet placed in front of the stopper plate with a proper gap. Accumulation device. 5. The aligning plate has an upper end fixed to a mounting shaft, and is retracted upward by rotating the mounting shaft when ejecting print photographs accumulated in each accumulating station. An apparatus for separating and accumulating printed photographs as described. 6. A pair of endless belts, each pair of endless belts being arranged at a predetermined interval in a direction orthogonal to the conveying direction, and arranged on both sides of the endless belts, by pushing the back surface of the print photograph, 2. The apparatus for separating and accumulating printed photographs according to claim 1, comprising a pair of guide plates for pressing the surface of the printed photographs against each endless belt.