JPH06115831A - Circulation type automatic document transport device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To stabilize delimiting operation of a sheaf of documents by providing a delimiting means having a delimiting lever inserted between a document finally fed among the documents on a document loading part and a document returned from a discharge means to the document loading part. CONSTITUTION:In an automatic document transport device 300 having a document loading part 310 provided with a feeding belt 311, a delimiting means 315 for the number of copies is arranged in the vicinity of the side end part of the feeding belt 311. The delimiting means 315 is provided with a delimiting lever 315A which is elevatably moved, moved front and rear in the direction meeting at right angles with paper feed direction, and driven obliquely downward, and the function to divide a paper sheet of the lowermost layer of a sheaf of documents piled on the feeding belt 311 from a paper sheet of the upper most layer of a sheaf of documents circulatedly transported after readout process and put in the lowermost layer of the piled sheaf of documents, and the delimiting lever 315A is pushed up by action of a push-up lever 314A. Further, the feeding belt 311 is formed with a cutout part 311D, so as to allow the delimiting lever 315A to retreat under the feeding belt 311.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an improvement of a recording apparatus such as an electrophotographic copying machine or an automatic document feeder in an image reading apparatus, and more particularly to a single-sided or double-sided recording original loaded on an original placing portion. Separate the sheets and feed them to the image reading unit,
The present invention relates to a circulating automatic document feeder having a document feeding mode (RDH mode) and a double-sided document reversing feeding mode (R-RDH mode), which is capable of returning the read document to the document placing section again and feeding it repeatedly. .

[0002]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION As a device capable of efficiently feeding an image-recorded document to a recording device such as an electrophotographic copying machine or a recorded image reading device, even in an unmanned state, an automated document conveying device ( ADF) has already been provided.

Further, as a copying machine capable of copying each image of an original (double-sided original) having recorded images on the front and back sides and one side or both sides of the recording paper, and an image reading device capable of reading and recording the images, the ADF is provided with front and back sides of the original. An automatic document feeder (RADF) equipped with a reversing function has been put into practical use.

Further, the originals stacked on the original placing portion are separated one by one and automatically fed on the platen glass of the copying machine, and the originals after the exposure processing on the platen glass are again placed on the original placing portion. A circulating automatic document feeder (RDH) that can be returned and repeatedly processed has also been proposed.

This circulating automatic document feeder (RDH)
Makes copies one by one in one cycle, and circulates the original for the number of copies.

Further, recently, the present applicant has also provided a circulating automatic document feeder (R-RDH) in which a document front and back surface reversing mechanism is added to the above RDH (Japanese Patent Application No. 63-20228).

These circulating automatic document feeders (RDH,
R-RDH (hereinafter referred to as RDH device) enables high-speed continuous copying and quick page alignment of copied recording paper, and is connected to a finisher device for stapling and punching the recording paper for recording and final processing. Can be completed unattended.

In such an RDH apparatus, a plurality of originals, which are stacked with the front side of the originals facing upward on the original placing section, are fed one by one from the lowermost layer to the processing section (platen glass surface) in the feeding section. It is a bottom feed top return system that separates and conveys toward the bottom.

[0009] Such a bottom-feeding top-returning RDH
In the apparatus, when the document is fed out, problems such as the disorder of the document image due to dirt and rubbing on the document front and back surfaces caused by friction between the document front and back surfaces occur. In particular, in the case of a pencil-written manuscript, the manuscript stains due to the above problems are remarkable.

As a means for solving the above problem, Japanese Patent Publication No. 56
The top feed / bottom restack type RDH device disclosed in Japanese Patent No. 37536 has been proposed. In this method, the processed sheet is inserted from the lower side of the stack sheet by the cyclically moving stack lifting means for lifting the sheet.

The sheet storing and feeding apparatus disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 3-205273 discloses a sheet feeding and feeding apparatus for an RDH apparatus. The vertical pressing member is arranged at the position.

Further, the invention of Japanese Patent Application No. 2-403220 by the applicant of the present invention is, in a circulating automatic document feeder of an upper feed bottom return type, an upper suction fan means, a document feed means by a feed belt, and a lower part. And a document returning / rotating unit using a plurality of narrow belts.

[0013]

DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION Problems to be Solved by the Invention
In a circulation type automatic document feeder having an RDH function, a copy number division for dividing a document stack pre-loaded on the document placement unit and a document unloaded from the image reading unit and reloaded on the document placement unit Need a means.

In the conventional bottom-feeding-up / returning-type RDH apparatus, the copy number dividing means is a simple lever that press-contacts the upper surface of the original stack. However, in the top-feeding and bottom-returning type RDH apparatus, it is necessary to provide a copy number dividing means for moving forward and backward in the lowermost layer of the document stack. For this reason, the copy number dividing unit may interfere with the document feeding unit of the document placing unit and the document conveyed on the document placing unit. Particularly in an RDH device that circulates originals at high speed, it is necessary to stabilize the operation of separating the originals.

[0015]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention solves various problems in the conventional automatic document feeder as described above, and in an RDH device of the upper feed bottom return type, the last page of the document being circulated and conveyed. It is an object of the present invention to provide an automatic document feeder that reliably operates a device that enters or retracts into a sheet and divides a set of copies without hindering document transportation.

A circulation type automatic document feeder according to the present invention which achieves the above object, is provided with a document placing section on which at least one set of a plurality of originals can be loaded, and a plurality of originals loaded on the document placing section. Paper feed means for separating and feeding the originals one by one among the originals, and feeding it to the image reading section; a conveying means located downstream of the paper feeding means for feeding the originals on the image reading section; In a circulating automatic document feeder of the document top feed bottom return type, which is located on the transport downstream side of the reading unit and comprises discharge means for returning the document discharged from the transport means to the lowermost layer of the stacked document on the document placing section. , Holding and feeding the leading edge of the original document returned to the original document placing portion, inserting it into the lowermost layer of the original document stack on the original document placing portion, and feeding it so that it can be moved in the paper feeding direction by the driving means. The belt and the feeding belt are installed in the vicinity of the side edges of the feeding belt, and are placed on the document placing section. And a document which is fed last among the set of plural originals and a document which is first returned from the discharging means to the document placing portion among the set of plural originals. Separating means having a separating lever for separating the originals, and a notch portion that does not hinder the movement of the separating lever is provided in the vicinity of the side end of the feeding belt.

[0017]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of the automatic document feeder according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 1 is an overall configuration diagram of a copying machine equipped with an automatic document feeder. 100 is a copying machine main body, 200 is a paper feeding unit (PFU device), and 300 is a circulation type automatic document feeder (RDH device). ), 400 is a copying paper post-processing device (finisher (sorter with stapler device, etc.) hereafter referred to as FNS device).

The copying machine main body 100 includes a scanning exposure unit 110, an image forming unit 120, a paper feeding unit 130, a conveying unit 140, a fixing unit 150, a paper discharge switching unit 160, a plurality of paper feeding cassettes 170, and copy paper for double-sided copying. It is composed of a re-feeding device (ADU device) 180.

In the figure, the alternate long and short dash line indicates the conveyance path of the copy paper P. After the copy paper P stored in the paper feed cassette 170 or the paper feed unit (PFU) 200 at the bottom of the copying machine main body 100 is image-formed by the image forming unit 120, the transport unit 140, the fixing unit 150, and the paper discharge unit. The main route accommodated in the FNS device 400 via the switching unit 160 and the copy paper P branched from the paper discharge switching unit 160 are temporarily stocked in the ADU device 180, and then re-fed to the copying machine main body 100. The circulation route to the paper feeding unit 130.

FIG. 2 is a sectional view of the automatic document feeder 300 mounted on the upper portion of the copying machine main body 100. The automatic document feeder 300 to which the present invention is applicable conveys a plurality of originals (single-sided original or double-sided original) from the original placing section 310 to the exposure section of the platen glass 111 of the copying machine main body 100,
It is provided with various functions such as a circulation type RDH device, an R-RDH device, an ADF device, an R-ADF device, etc., which conveys again onto the document placing section 310.

The automatic document feeder 300 includes a document placing section 310,
Feeding unit 320, intermediate conveying unit 330, conveying unit 340, paper discharge reversing unit 350
It consists of

When the original stack D is placed on the original placing portion 310, the presence or absence of the original is detected by the original set detection sensor (zero original detection sensor) S1, and the ADF mode is displayed on the control panel of the copying machine main body 100. Is displayed. When the document stack D is set at a predetermined position, the document size (B5 to A3) is detected by the document size sensor S2 and input to the control unit of the copying machine main body 100.

A movable pressing plate 317 is swingable around a swing shaft 317A at the leading end side of the document feeding portion 310 on the downstream side of document feeding. A drive plate 319 is screwed to the swing shaft 317A so that it can swing integrally. Further, an elastically deformable member (for example, a torsion spring) 317B is wound around the swing shaft 317A, and both ends thereof are the drive plate 319.
At the center, the movable pressing plates 317 can be pressed against each other.

The actuator portion provided on the drive plate 319 has a pressing home position sensor S fixed to a fixed bottom plate.
The optical path of 3 is turned on and off, and the home position of the drive plate 319 is detected.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of an essential part of the document placing section 310. The wide feeding belt 311 which is loaded with the document D and supported and is rotatable is an endless belt wound around two axes of a driving roller 312A and a driven roller 312B.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the feeding belt 311. One end of the feeding belt 311 is joined by a joint 311A to form a loop. The other end of the belt 311 forms a tongue-shaped holding piece portion (gripper portion) 311B extending outward from the seam portion 311A. The feeding belt 311 is formed of a cloth belt coated with resin, a polyethylene terephthalate (PET) film, or the like. The inner surface of the sandwiching piece portion 311B of the feeding belt 311 and the outer surface of the belt (between A and B in FIG. 4) are roughened to have a high friction coefficient, and the other outer surface of the belt (B in FIG. 4). (Between C and C) forms a low friction coefficient smooth surface. 31
Reference numeral 1C is a detection hole formed in a part of the belt 311, and the home position of the feeding belt 311 is detected by the reflection type sensor S13 for detecting the home position of the feeding belt 311. The stop position of the sandwiching piece 311B is controlled.

In FIG. 3, an electromagnetic brake BRK2 and an electromagnetic clutch CL4, which are connected to the discharge motor M3 of the drive source, are provided at the shaft end of the rotary shaft of the drive roller 312A. A fixed plate 313 is fixedly provided inside the feeding belt 311 between the drive roller 312A and the driven roller 312B. The fixing plate 313 supports the document stack D on the feeding belt 311 by placing it on a flat surface.

Numeral 315 is a division of the number of copies that separates the lowermost sheet of the original bundle stacked on the feeding belt 311 from the uppermost sheet of the original bundle that is circulated and conveyed after the reading process and is bottomed into the lowermost layer of the stacked original bundle. It is a means. The separating lever 315A of the separating means 315 is spring-biased, and the solenoid SL
3, SL4 moves up and down, forwards and backwards in a direction orthogonal to the sheet feeding, and obliquely descends.

In 311D, the separating lever 315A is a feeding belt.
A cutout portion provided on the side of the feeding belt 311 for retracting below 311.

The original stack placed on the original placing section 310 is stacked on the feeding belt 311 and a movable pressing plate 317 which will be described later, and the width stopper plate 316 for restricting the original stack in the original width direction by one side base. At the same time, the leading edge of the original is brought into contact with an original leading end stopper 318, which will be described later, and aligned and placed. At this time, the separating lever 315A is pressed and lowered by the weight of the document stack, and lightly pushes up the lowermost layer of the document stack. Further, the swingable paper pressing lever 310Z provided on the upstream side of the separating lever 315A for conveyance assists the returning original document to be surely inserted under the original document stack, and the original surface is lightened by its own weight. Pressure contact. The paper retainer lever 310Z
Is a separator lever 315A when carrying curled paper or a small number of originals.
It is also effective for stabilizing the operation of.

FIG. 5 is a front sectional view of the document placing portion 310 and the feeding portion 320, FIG. 6 is a plan view of the separating means 315, and FIGS.
Is a side view showing the operation of the separating means 315, and FIG. 9 is a front view and a side view of the separating lever pushing means (hereinafter referred to as pushing means) 314.

In these figures, the feeding belt 311
A separating means 315 and a pushing-up means 314 are fixedly provided on one fixed side plate 310A that axially stops the driving roller 312A and the driven roller 312B that rotate. That is, in the vicinity of one side end of the feeding belt 311, the pushing means 314 is provided on the upstream side of feeding,
A copy number separating means 315 is fixedly provided on the downstream side of the arrow.

A solenoid SL3 is fixed to the lower portion of the substrate 315B of the separating means 315, and the solenoid SL3 is fixed.
The lower end of the swing lever 315C is pin-connected to one end of the plunger SL3A. The swing lever 315C is provided on the substrate 3
It can swing around a fulcrum shaft 315D planted in 15B and is urged in one direction by a spring 315E. The upper end of the swing lever 315C has a separating lever 315A and a pin 315F.
Are bound by. Separation lever 315A has pin 315F
The weight 31 that can be swung around is fixed to the left end.
Due to its own weight of 5G, the left end is slanted and tilted when no restriction force is applied.

A pin 315H is provided in the middle of the separating lever 315A.
And is movable along the wall surface of the D-shaped cam groove portion 315J formed in the substrate 315B. 315K is a boat-shaped leaf spring attached to the base plate 315B, and is in sliding contact with the upper surface of the separating lever 315A to form a separating lever 315A.
Will be the guide surface for horizontal movement.

FIG. 9 shows a push-up means 314 for pushing up the tip of the separating lever 315A when necessary, and FIG.
Is a front view and FIG. 9B is a side view.

A solenoid SL4 is fixed to the lower portion of the base plate 314B of the separating lever pushing-up means 314, and a swing lever 314 is provided at one end of a plunger SL4A of the solenoid SL4.
One end of C is pin-connected. The swing lever 314C can swing about a fulcrum shaft 314D planted on the upper portion of the substrate 314B, and is biased in one direction by a torsion spring 315E. The base of a long rod-shaped push-up lever 314A is driven into the other end of the rocking lever 314C so that the tip thereof projects. The push-up lever 314A is the separation lever 3
It contacts the lower surface of the tip of 15A and holds it so that it can move up and down.

FIG. 7A shows an initial unloaded state in which the document stack is not placed on the feeding belt 311 of the document placing section 310. In this state, the separating lever 315A has a weight 315G.
Is tilted by its own weight and the right end portion is in a raised posture (first position). And the pin 315H is the cam groove 3
It has reached the top dead center of 15J in the figure and is stopped due to position restriction.
At the raised position of the separating lever 315A, the copy number separating sensor S14 is turned off.

FIG. 7B shows the feeding belt 3 of the document placing section 310.
11 shows a state in which the document bundle D is stacked on the document stack 11 and the leading end of the separating lever 315A is lowered by the weight of the document bundle D.
The pin 315H of the separating lever 315A descends and stops along the path a of the cam groove portion 315J (third position). In this descending state of the separating lever 315A, the copy number separating sensor S14 is turned on.

FIG. 7C is a side view showing the moving process of the separating lever 315A. As the document stack on the document stacking unit 310 is fed out and conveyed back to the bottom, the front end of the separating lever 315A is sandwiched between the last page of the stack of document stacks and the first page of the return document and the return document is returned. As the first page of the returned manuscript reaches the top, as shown in FIG.
In the state of (A), it jumps up into the upper space. At this time, the copy number sensor S14 is turned off.

8 (D) and 8 (E) show the separating lever 31.
5A shows a state in which 5A is retracted to the left in the drawing by the suction operation of the solenoid S3 (second position). When the voltage is applied to the solenoid S3, the plunger SL3A is attracted,
Separation lever 3 which is formed by swinging swing lever 315C in the counterclockwise direction about the fulcrum shaft 315D and is connected by pin 315F.
Move 15A downward to the left. The pin 315H planted in the separating lever 315A moves downwardly in the path c of the cam groove portion 315J to the left end of the cam groove portion 315J and stops moving. At this time, the leaf spring 315K slides on the upper surface of the separating lever 315A to prevent the separating lever 315A from jumping upward.

When the solenoid SD3 is turned off, the separation lever 315A is guided to the right in the passage D by being guided by the spring 315K, and is inserted into the lowermost part of the document stack. The bin 315H moves (a) upward by its own weight, moves (c) downward left by SD3 suction, and moves right (b) right by turning off the solenoid SD3.

FIG. 8E is a side view showing a state in which the separating lever 315A is raised by a predetermined amount by the push-up lever 314A. A notch 311D is formed at one end of the feeding belt 311 so that the separating lever 315A can be retracted below the feeding belt 311. When the document bundle is stacked on the feeding belt 311 and rotated, the cutout portion 311D may collide with the lower layer of the document bundle to cause conveyance failure. In order to prevent this, before the cutout portion 311D passes the upstream side of the document stack, one end of the document stack is pushed upward so as not to interfere with the feeding belt 311 and at the same time, the tip of the lever 315A. Make sure that the paper is inserted back above the original. In other words, when the first document after the exposure processing is discharged and returned to the bottom of the document stack on the feeding belt 311 of the document placing section 310, the nip portion 311B of the rotating feeding belt 311 is used. The separation lever 315A is raised by a predetermined amount so as to prevent the preceding cutout portion 311D from colliding with the document stack, and the relevant portion of the document stack is retracted upward. Therefore, the solenoid SL4 is actuated by the signal of the document replacement, the plunger SL4A is attracted, and the swing lever 314C is moved.
Is swung around the fulcrum shaft 314D to raise the lifting lever 314A. When the push-up lever 314A swings, the corresponding separation lever 315A is lifted upward by a predetermined amount and stopped. As a result, one end of the stack of originals of the separating lever 315A is lifted upward so that it can pass through the cutout portion 311D of the feeding belt 311 and at the same time, the return original is surely guided below the separating lever 315A.

As shown in FIGS. 2, 3, 5, and 6, a movable pressing plate 317 of movable pressing means is integrally formed with the fixed bottom plate 310A on the downstream side of the original feeding of the feeding belt 311. A drive plate 319 is screwed to a swing shaft 317A supported by bearings provided on both side plates, and can swing together. An elastically deformable member (for example, a torsion spring) 317B is wound around the swing shaft 317A, and both ends of the elastically deformable member 317B are pressed against the drive plate 319 and the movable pressing plate 317 to bias the spring. At this time, the movable pressing plate 317 and the drive plate 319 are
Although the torsion spring 317B is pushed in the opening direction, the lower end portion of the movable pressing plate 317 comes into contact with one end of the drive plate 319 and is regulated so that the opening angle between the two does not open beyond a certain amount.
The spring pressure of the torsion spring 317B is adjusted to the set pressure.

An actuator portion (light shielding plate portion) 319A projects from one end of the swing shaft 317A. The actuator portion 319A includes a pressing home position sensor (for example, a photo interrupter) S3 fixed to the fixed bottom plate 310A.
The optical position of the drive plate 319 is turned on and off, and the home position of the drive plate 319 is detected. It can swing around the swing shaft 317A. Further, the gear G1 is attached to one shaft end of the swing shaft 317A.
Is fixed, and the gear G is fixed to the drive shaft of the pressing motor M1.
2 (see FIG. 6).

A document end stopper 318 is fixed to the main body of the automatic document feeder near the leading end of the movable pressing plate 317 on the downstream side of the document feeding.

Above the movable pressing plate 317, a feeding section 320 is provided.
Is provided. The feeding unit 320 includes a feeding roller 321.
A driving roller 323, a driven roller 322, a feed belt 324 that winds and rotates both rollers, and a double feed preventing reverse roller 325 located below the feed belt 324. The driving force of the driving motor M2 is transmitted to the driving roller 322 via the electromagnetic clutch CL1.

Frame body 321 holding the delivery roller 321
A is swingable around a support shaft A. The frame 321A
The actuator part 321 protruding at the tip of the
B is integrally formed and turns on / off the detection optical path of the pressure detection sensor S4 fixed at a predetermined position of the fixed stay member 300A of the automatic document feeder 300.

FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram showing a conveyance state of the document D discharged from the sheet discharge reversing section 350 to the feeding belt 311 of the document placing section 310 and the movable pressing plate 317.

After being detected by the leading edge passage sensor S9 of the original document D1, after a predetermined time (the leading edge of the original document comes in the vicinity of the clamping piece portion 311B), the clutch is engaged and the clamping piece of the feeding belt 311 which starts rotating from the home position. When the leading edge of the document D is clamped by the portion 311B, the document D is clamped on the rough surface of the feeding belt 311 which further rotates, and is inserted into the lowermost layer of the stacked unprocessed document stack D to the left in the figure. Be carried to (Fig. 10 (A), (B)
reference).

At this time, the movable pressing plate 317 is in the lowered position, and the front end of the document bundle D is separated from the feeding roller 321. The surface linear velocity of the feeding belt 311 is the same as that of the paper output reversing unit 3
It is set to be slightly higher than or equal to the surface linear velocity of 50 circulation paper ejection rollers (deviation correction rollers) 355. Further, since the surface of the feeding belt 311 that comes into contact with the document D is a rough surface, the document D is reliably held by the feeding belt 311 and fed.

Further, since the surface of the feeding belt 311 which contacts the lowermost layer of the document bundle D is a smooth surface, the feeding belt 311 smoothly rotates in sliding contact with the lower surface of the document bundle.

Document D held on the feeding belt 311
Is slid on the upper surface of the movable pressing plate 317 slightly below the upper surface of the feeding belt 311 as the feeding belt 311 is turned downward along the driven roller 312B, and hits the document leading edge stopper 318. , Feeding stops. Therefore, if the entire circumference of the feeding belt 311 is set to be equal to or greater than the maximum length of the document D being circulated and conveyed in the feeding direction, the document returning operation is good.

Referring again to FIG. 2, an intermediate conveyance section 330 is provided on the downstream side of the original conveyance with respect to the feeding section 320. The intermediate conveying section 330 includes a first intermediate conveying roller pair 3 which is driven to rotate forward.
31, a curved guide plate 332, a pair of second intermediate conveying rollers 333 that are driven to rotate forward and backward, and a pair of third intermediate conveying rollers 334, and the document D sent from the feeding unit 320 is placed on one end of the platen glass 111. It forms a transportation route for transportation.

A reversing means is provided to the left of the third intermediate conveying roller pair 334 and to the left of the platen glass 111 in the drawing. The pair of reverse conveyance rollers 335 is always driven to rotate normally by the one-way clutch CL5. A curved guide plate 336 connects the nip positions of the third intermediate conveyance roller pair 334 and the reverse conveyance roller pair 335, and forms a document reverse feed path. A reversal detection sensor is provided in a part of the reversal feed path, and detects passage of a reversal fed document. 337 is a switching claw.

On the surface of the platen glass 111, a conveyor belt 341 is rotatably stretched between a driving roller 342, a driven roller 343, four document pressing rollers 344 and a tension roller 345. A clutch and a brake are rotatably supported on the shaft of the drive roller 342.
Is operated by the driving force of the drive motor M2.

The paper output reversing section 350 includes the paper output rollers 351, 352,
Switching claws 353, 357, reverse paper ejection roller 354, circulation paper ejection roller 3
55 and guide plates 356A, 356B, 356C and the like. The paper discharge rollers 351, 352, the reverse paper discharge roller 354, and the circulation paper discharge roller 355 are driven by the paper discharge motor M3. The paper discharge rollers 351, 352, the reverse paper discharge roller 354, and the circulation paper discharge roller 355 are driven by a paper discharge motor M3,
The reverse discharge rollers 351 and 354 are driven to rotate in the forward and reverse directions and are discharge rollers.
355 and 352 are always driven forward. The switching claw 353 is driven by the switching solenoid SL1. The switching claw 357 is driven by the switching solenoid SL2.

On the upper part of the copying machine main body 100, a discharge tray section 360 is fixedly provided near the discharge opening of the discharge reversing section 350 of the automatic document feeder 300. The paper output tray unit 360 is
A fixed tray 361 having an inclined surface fixed to the upper surface of the casing of the copying machine main body 100 by a screw or the like, and a movable tray (resin tray that is swingable by being pivotally supported by a fulcrum shaft 362 provided at one end of the fixed tray 361. ) And 363. In the folded state of the movable tray 363, a reverse discharge path 364 is formed between the inclined upper surface of the fixed tray 361 and the inclined lower surface of the movable tray 363 with a constant space. The document D fed from the reversing and discharging roller 354 goes up the reversing and discharging path 364 and is temporarily stopped.
By the reverse rotation drive of 54, it is introduced into the automatic document feeder 300, passes through the guide 356C in the ADF mode of a single-sided document, and is discharged out of the apparatus by the discharge roller 352 of the discharge reversing unit 350, and the movable tray 363 is moved. Placed on the top surface.

When the movable tray 363 of the paper discharge tray section 360 is swung and unfolded, the upper surface side of the fixed tray 361 is
By extending to the upper surface side of the movable tray 363, it is possible to eject and place a large original such as A2 size paper or fanfold paper (CFF).

In addition, the reverse circulation mode (R-R
At the time of DH), the switching claw 357 is switched downward, and the document D once conveyed to the above-mentioned reverse discharge path 364 is guided from the reverse discharge roller 354 to the guide plates 356C and 356B and the circulation discharge roller 3
After 55, it is returned to the document placing section 310.

FIG. 11 is a schematic diagram showing the document transport path (dotted line) in the RDH mode and the R-RDH mode.

FIG. 11 (A) is a schematic diagram of the RDH mode showing the circulation of originals during single-sided copying and single-sided copying. The single-sided original D passes through the progressive feeding paths a, b, c, d, e, and after the exposure processing passes through the paths f, g, n of the sheet discharge reversing unit 350, and the feeding belt 311 of the original placing unit 310. The sheet enters the holding piece portion 311B, is conveyed by the feeding belt 311, and is returned to the bottom of the document stack.

FIG. 11 (B) is a schematic view of the R-RDH mode showing the circulation and conveyance of the document at the time of double-sided document and double-sided copy. The path to the exposure process for the odd-numbered side of a two-sided original is
Same as the mode, one side copied sheets are stacked in ADU 180. Further, the original is sent again through the feeding paths a, b, c, d, the surface is inverted by i, and the original D after the exposure processing reaches the exposures f, j, k, and the surface when it is sent back by switching back is set. The original is returned to the original placing section 310 via the paths m and n.

FIG. 12 is a block diagram showing the drive system (power transmission system) of the automatic document feeder 300. The CPU controls all of the operations of feeding, feeding, and discharging the document circulation, document reversal circulation. Be done.

Of the various document transport operations in various modes,
As an example, a single-sided document circulation transport mode (R-RDH mode) will be described.

(1) Initialization (1A) Turn on the main switch of the copying machine main body 100. When the main switch is turned on, the pressing motor M1 starts to rotate in the reverse direction and the offset correction motor M4 starts to rotate in the normal direction. At the same time, the paper discharge motor M3 and the bottom return clutch CL4 are turned on to start the driving rotation of the driving roller 312A.

(1B) Movable pressure plate home position stop When the main switch is turned on, the pressure motor (stepping motor) M1 is driven to rotate in the reverse direction to swing the drive plate 319 and the actuator portion 319A fixed to the swing shaft 317A. When the pressing home position sensor S3 is turned on, the reverse rotation of the pressing motor M1 is stopped by the detection signal,
The drive plate 319 and the movable pressing plate 317 are stopped at the lowest initial position (home position). This is effective in absorbing the time lag of the drive gear and the sensor on. At this home position stop position, a clearance capable of accommodating a predetermined maximum amount of the document bundle D is maintained.

(1C) Placement of Document Bundle When the document stack D is placed on the feeding belt 311 and the movable pressing plate 317, the set detection sensor S1 is turned on and the ADF mode is set. At the same time, the size detection sensor S2 is turned on to detect the document size. Next, the R-RDH mode is selected and input.

(1D) Home Position Search Operation of the Offset Correcting Roller The offset correcting roller 355 is movable in the direction orthogonal to the sheet conveyance, and is driven by the offset correcting motor M4 which is driven and rotated by turning on the main switch. . An offset home position sensor S15 for detecting the roller position is provided outside the sheet passage of the offset correction roller 355.

When the main switch is turned on, the sensor S
If 15 is off, rotate the offset correction motor M4,
When the sensor S15 is turned on by moving the roller 355 in the depth direction, the motor M4 is stopped. The motor M4 is a step motor, and after stopping, a constant voltage is applied to bring it into a hold state. If the sensor S15 is on, the motor M4
Reversely, the roller 355 is moved in the front direction to turn off the sensor S15 once, and then the motor M4 is again rotated forward to stop and hold the motor M4 when the sensor S15 is turned on. By this operation, the motor M4 to the roller 355
The roller 355 always stops at an accurate predetermined position regardless of rattling of gears and the like. This predetermined position is usually adjusted to be substantially at the center of the possible range of the roller 355.

(1E) Bottom-Returning Feeding Belt Home Position Search Operation The bottom-returning feeding belt 311 having a nipping piece portion 311B partially hung between the driving roller 312 and the driven roller 313 has the bottom-returning feeding belt 311 shown in FIGS. Through hole for home position detection as shown in
311C is open. When the main switch is turned on, the paper discharge motor M3 and the bottom return CL4 are turned on, and the drive roller 31
Rotate 2 The drive roller 312 is a one-way rotating clutch C.
It is driven via L6 and always rotates in the direction of the solid line arrow regardless of the forward / reverse rotation of the motor M4.

When the home position detecting hole 311C on the feeding belt 311 passes through the belt home position sensor S13, the sensor S13 is turned off, and after a predetermined time, the bottom return clutch CL4 is turned off and, at the same time, the paper discharge brake BRK2 is turned on. Then, the drive roller 312A is suddenly stopped. As shown in the figure, the bottom return feeding belt 311 is arranged such that the holding piece portion 311B is an extension of the offset correction roller pair 355, and the cutout portion 311D is aligned with the position of the separating lever 315A.

(2) Circulation of Original Document By the above initialization operation, the preparation for feeding the original document is completed, and the document feeding is subsequently started. FIG. 13 is a schematic view showing a process of conveying originals of odd pages.

(2A) When the copy button is turned on, the pressing motor M1, the paper discharge motor M3, the bottom return clutch CL4
Is turned on, and ADF and copy can be started.

(2B) When the copy button is turned on, the bottom return clutch CL4 is turned on to start the low speed drive rotation of the paper discharge motor M3. As a result, the driving roller 312A is rotated and the feeding belt 311 is rotated. When the detection hole 311C of the feeding belt 311 passes the belt home position sensor S13, the feeding belt 311 is stopped by a brake after a predetermined time by the detection signal. After that, the copy number separating solenoid SL3 is turned on, and the separating lever 315A comes into contact with the lowermost layer of the document stack through the cutout portion 311D.

(2C) When the copy button is turned on, the pressing motor (stepping motor) M1 is driven and rotated, and the swing shaft is moved.
The movable pressing plate 317 oscillates and rotates via the drive plate 319 fixed to 317A and the torsion spring 317B, and the leading end of the movable pressing plate 317 rises to lift the stacked document stack D. In the ascending process, the swing angle of the swing shaft 317A counts the pulse count C1 by a rotary encoder or the like.

(2D) When the upper surface of the document stack D stacked on the movable pressing plate 317 is lightly pressed against the outer peripheral surface of the feed roller 321 which is lowered to a predetermined position by its own weight, the movable pressing plate 317 is moved. Feeding roller 321 with the stack of originals sandwiched
Raise. After rising by a predetermined amount, the pressure detection sensor S at the tip
4 is turned on, and counting is started. When it further oscillates, the frame 321A holding the feed roller 321 comes into contact with a fixing member (not shown) and stops. However, drive plate 31
9 is further driven and rotated to rotate counterclockwise while compressing the torsion spring 317B, and the movable pressing plate 317 and the driving plate 319 are rotated.
The intervals between are getting narrower. When the pressure detection sensor S4 is turned on, the initial set pressure (for example, the roller own weight of 50 g) is reached, and counting of the count C1 is stopped.

(2E) The paper bundle thickness of the document bundle D is detected by the output of the count C1, and the press is predetermined by the document size detected by the size sensor S2 previously detected or the setting input of thick paper or thin paper. The designated pulse is determined by the pulse table.

The original sheet bundle thickness is detected from the count value of the count C1 and the sheet bundle thickness is set to be divided into, for example, three stages of multi, medium and clear.

As the original paper size, for example, B5 to
A3 size is set, and this is detected by the size detection sensor S2. When a stack of document sheets of a plurality of document sizes is mixedly mounted, the user specifies it by pressing a mixed mounting key mounted on the operation panel of the copying machine main body.
The paper thickness of one original paper is designated by pressing a thin paper key or a thick paper key placed on the operation panel.

As described above, the original sheet bundle thickness and the original size are automatically detected by the respective sensors, and the mixed originals and the sheet thickness are manually set.

The pressure pulse table is set in advance by these detected values and manual setting, and is stored in the non-volatile memory, and the count C2 is determined by these sheet condition inputting means.

(2F) When the count C2 is input by the designated pulse and the drive plate 319 is driven to continue counting the count C2, and the drive plate 319 is swung until the designated count number C2 counts up, The winding amount of the torsion spring 317B increases, the elastic force changes almost linearly, and the pressing force increases.

(1A27) When the count C2 is counted up, the movable pressing plate 317 has a predetermined pressing force (for example, 100 g).
Then, the document D is pressed against the feed roller 321 and the pressing motor M1 stops driving.

(2G) At the same time as the driving of the pressing motor M1 is stopped by the above count-up, the delivery clutch CL1
The drive motor M2 is turned on, the drive motor M2 is rotated at a low speed, and the document feeding is started. That is, the feed belt started to rotate by the driving force of the drive motor M2 rotated at a low speed.
The original document in the upper layer is sent out by 324, and only the uppermost original document D1 among the plurality of original documents sent out by the reverse roller 325 is separated and sent.

(2H) The front end of one sheet of the document D1 separated and fed is detected by the curl correction sensor S5, and a predetermined time (timer T
1) After a lapse of time, the drive motor M2 is turned off, the registration clutch CL2 is turned off, and the first intermediate conveyance roller (registration roller) 331 is struck to form an accumulation, and the feeding bend of the document D1 is corrected ( See FIG. 13 (A).

(2I) Before the timer T1 finishes timing, the timer T2 turns off the paper discharge motor M3 and the paper discharge brake BRK2, the drive roller 312A suddenly stops rotating, and the gripping piece 311B of the feeding belt 311 is stopped. Set the home position of.

(2J) Further, after a lapse of a predetermined time from the start of detection of the detection hole 311C of the feeding belt 311 by the timer T3, the drive motor M2 is re-driven and rotated. At this time, the drive motor M2 is rotated at a high speed, the registration clutch CL2 and the transport clutch CL3 are turned on simultaneously with the delivery clutch CL1, and the document D1 is transported downstream. When the leading edge of the document D1 crosses the passage detection sensor S6, the feed clutch CL1 driving the drive roller 323 is turned off, and the feed belt 324 is driven to rotate until the trailing edge of the document D1 passes through the sensor S6. After that, the document D1 is conveyed by the drive motor M1 by the first intermediate conveyance roller pair 331.

(2K) Also, when the timer T3 turns on the timing path 3, the pressing motor M1 is switched to the reverse rotation, and the driving plate 319 and the movable pressing plate 317 are lowered to release the pressing and the driving plate 319. Has returned to the initial position,
When the home position detection sensor S3 detects it, the pressing motor M1 is stopped. Alternatively, when a plurality of originals are continuously fed, the driving plate 319 and the movable pressing plate 317 are not returned to the home position, and the pressing detection sensor S4 is used.
Based on the detection signal of 1) or the drive start signal in the separating direction of the drive means, the descent drive of the drive plate 319 and the movable pressing plate 317 is stopped in the middle.

(2L) After the sensor S13 detects the passage of the home position detecting hole 311C on the feeding belt 311, and after a predetermined time is counted by the timer T3, the member separating solenoid SL3 of the lifting means 314 is turned off, and the lifting lever is pushed. 314A
Is descended. As a result, the separator lever 315A held on the push-up lever 314A also follows its own weight downward to release the push-up of one end of the document stack and retract to the bottom of the document in the lowermost layer. The stop position is detected by S14.

Here, if the original stack is first placed on the original placing section 31.
When the separator lever 315A is placed below the separator lever 315A of 0 or the separator lever 315A enters between the document stacks, the copy separator sensor S14 does not detect the stop position, and the signal causes the separator lever 315A located above to be turned off by turning off the solenoid SL3. While lowering the push-up lever 314A, the solenoid S
When L4 is turned on, the separating lever 315A tilts down along the path C shown in FIG. 7 (A) and retracts to the position shown in FIG. 8 (D), and subsequently the solenoid SL4 is turned off to cause the spring 31 to move.
The separator lever 315A is moved forward by being urged by 5E and moves to the position shown in FIG.
When the sheet reaches the position shown in FIG.
1 is inserted below the notch 311D.

(2M) Next, when the leading edge of the document D1 passes the registration sensor S7 and the signal is turned on, the conveyor belt 34
Counting is started by the encoder sensor S16 for the encoder plate RE directly connected to the first driving roller 342 and the third intermediate conveying roller pair (registration roller) 334. After the predetermined count (φ1) by the encoder RE, the drive motor M2 is turned off. Further, at this time, the encoder plate RE starts counting, and after a predetermined count (φ2), the registration clutch C
L2 and the transport clutch CL3 are turned off, and the transport brake BR
K1 is turned on, and the rotation of the conveyor belt 341 and the third intermediate conveyor roller pair 334 is stopped. At this time, the leading edge of the document D1 reaches a predetermined standby position (a position at a distance L1 from the stop position, for example, 236 mm) of the platen glass 111 and stops (see FIG. 13B).

When the leading edge of the first original D1 passes through the registration sensor S7 and the detection signal is turned on, the pressing motor M1 starts the pressing drive of the drive means based on the detection signal to drive the drive plate 319 and the drive plate 319. The movable pressing plate 317 is raised to continue pressing the subsequent document D2.

(2N) After a predetermined time from the count-up (φ2) of the encoder plate RE, the drive motor M2 and the delivery clutch CL1 are turned on, and the delivery roller 321
Then, the feed belt 324 rotates at a low speed to feed the original D2 at a low speed, hit the first intermediate conveyance roller pair (registration roller) 331 to form an accumulation and stop the same as the above-mentioned original D1 ( See FIG. 13 (C).

(2O) Next, the drive motor M after a predetermined time.
2, sending clutch CL1, registration clutch CL
2, the transport clutch CL4 is turned on, the transport brake BRK1
Is turned off, the originals D1 and D2 are conveyed at high speed, and the original D1 is
When the predetermined exposure position on the platen glass 111 is reached, the drive motor M2 is turned off, and the transport clutch CL3
By turning off the registration clutch CL2 and turning on the conveyance brake BRK1, the document D1 is stopped at the exposure position, and at the same time, the document D2 is stopped at a predetermined standby position on the platen glass 111 (see FIG. 13D). That is, in the present embodiment, the moving amount of the document D is managed by counting the number of pulses of the rotary encoder RE with the registration sensor S7 as a reference without using the document stopper, and the document D is conveyed to the reading position. is there.

(2P) When both originals D1 and D2 are stopped,
The document D1 is scanned and exposed by a signal from the copying machine body (see FIG. 13E). That is, the original D1 is exposed on the first surface by the exposure lamp of the scanning exposure unit 110 while the original D1 is stopped on the platen glass 111, and the original image is formed on the photosensitive drum via the lens, the mirror, and the like. Then, the same exposure is repeated for the set number of copies,
A series of copy processes for the document D1 is performed.

During the exposure operation, the timer counts up, the drive motor M2 and the clutch CL1 are actuated, the feed belt 324 starts to rotate, the next original D3 is sent out, and the registration operation is controlled by the timer. Then, the document D3 is stopped at a position where the front end of the document D3 maintains a predetermined distance L1 from the trailing end of the document D2.

Therefore, at this time, the three originals D1 to D3 are arranged in a row at a predetermined interval L from each other on the conveying path from the separating / feeding means to the reading section. still,
At this time, the original document D1 is placed at the reading position of the platen glass 111, and the original document D2 stands by at the position where it is stretched between the transport belt 141 and the second intermediate transport roller pair 132 (second transport roller pair). The original document D3 is waited at the position where it hits the registration roller 331, and the original documents D2 and D3 are waited in a state where the subsequent conveyance can be performed stably.

(2Q) Original Exchange After the exposure operation of the original D1 is completed, the conveyor belt 141 is rotated by the high speed rotation drive of the drive motor M2, and the paper discharge motor M3 is rotated at high speed. The exposed original document D1 passes through the paper discharge reversing unit 350 and is returned to the original document placing unit 310.

(2R) Due to the high speed rotation of the paper discharge motor M3, the document D1 has already passed through the reverse paper discharge passage 364 of the paper discharge tray 360 through the reverse paper discharge roller 354 and the guide plate 356C and has already passed through the RDH.
The switching claw 357 swings by the switching solenoid SL2, and the guide plate 356 is passed through the branch portion where the upper passage is switched and opened.
Proceed in B. When the leading edge of the document D1 is detected by the paper discharge sensor S9 during this conveyance, the timer starts counting. When the timer counts up, the bottom return clutch CL4 is turned on. At this time, if the deviation detection sensor S10 is off, the deviation correction motor M4 is started to rotate in the depth direction. If the sensor S10 is turned on, the sensor S10 is moved to the front side, turned off, and then turned inward again to be stopped at the same time as the sensor is turned on, and the original is abutted against the width stopper plate 316 to correct the deviation and align. . The timer is set to turn on the bottom return clutch CL4 so that the front end of the document D1 is pinched by the pinching piece portion 311B of the feeding belt 311.

In this embodiment, the conveyance distance from the paper discharge roller 351 to the sandwiching piece portion 311B has an interval equal to or larger than the paper passing size, but the rear end of the document D1 is discharged by a timer independent of the timer. After passing through the paper roller 351, the deviation correction motor M4 may be turned on so that the distance from the sandwiching piece 311B to the paper discharge roller 351 is maintained shorter than the original size.

(2S) Further, the bottom return feeding belt 311
Then, the offset correction roller pair 355 is rotated, and the document D1 is inserted below the upper document stack. Here, the separating lever 315A of the copy number separating means 315 is raised upward by a certain amount by the copy number separating solenoid SL4, and the sandwiching piece portion is provided.
The document D1 whose front end is nipped at 311B is inserted below the final undocumented document.

(2T) The original D4 is further sent out after the completion of the original replacement operation, and the movable pressing plate 317 is lowered immediately after the completion of the registration, so that the original D1 in the operation of returning to the original placing section 310 is moved downward. It passes over the pressing plate 317 and hits the document leading edge stopper 318 to stop.

(2U) When the document D4 is sent to the registration position, the rear end of the document D4 passes through the separating lever 315A,
The separating lever 315A moves upward, the copy number separating sensor S14 is turned on, and it is detected that the last document of the first circulation is sent out.

(2V) After the original document D4 is conveyed to the second stop position, the original document D1 returned to the original document placing section 310 is again fed out during the exposure of the original document D3. Similarly, when D2, D3, and D4 are sent out and D4 returns, the copy number separating solenoid S
The L3 is operated to move the separating lever 315 to the lower side of the document D4.
Insert A. This operation is repeated a predetermined number of times.

In this embodiment, after the registration feeding is completed, the movable pressing plate 317 is configured to return when the movable pressing plate 317 is lowered, but the feeding operation may be performed after the completion of the returning. here,
The paper pressing lever 310Z provided on the upstream side of the separating lever 315A in the conveying direction assists the returning original document to be surely inserted under the original document bundle, and presses the original document lightly by its own weight. The paper pressing lever 310Z is also effective for stabilizing the operation of the separating lever 315A when conveying curled paper or a small number of originals.

(3) R-RDH Mode (Double-sided Original Circulation and Transport Mode) The above operation is for single-sided copying of a single-sided original in the RDH mode. In the R-RDH mode in which a two-sided original is copied on both sides, the original is reversed in the first cycle, and only odd pages are copied (see FIG. 11A), and even pages are copied in the second cycle (FIG. 11 ( See B)). Of course, the copying machine body
100 side copy paper feeding operation is also in the above RDH mode, RR
The movement according to the DH mode will be performed.

14 and 15 are for copying a double-sided original on both sides R
FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram showing a document conveyance process in a −RDH mode. The document conveyance for even-page copying of a small size document will be described below.

(3a) FIG. 14 (a) shows the starting state of the first original D1 of even pages. At this time, the preceding document D4 is stopped at a predetermined position on the platen glass 111 and an exposure process is performed, and the leading end of the document D5 is at a standby position keeping a predetermined distance L1 from the document D4.

(3b) Next, the original D5 is a platen glass
The film is conveyed to a predetermined position on 111 and exposed. At the same time, the leading original document D1 in the second cycle enters one end of the platen glass 111 and is stopped while maintaining the interval between the original documents D5 and L1. Further, during the exposure operation of the document D5, the document D2 is sent out and the registration roller 331 waits for registration.

(3c) When the originals D5 and D1 are simultaneously conveyed and the trailing edge of the original D1 passes the registration sensor S7, the conveyor belt 341 is driven in reverse to feed the original D1 to the guide plate 336 in the reverse path.

(3d) Subsequently, the document D1 is fed back, is reversed through the path i, and enters the platen glass 111 with the second surface facing downward. The document D5 advances toward the document placing section 310. After a predetermined time from the detection of the leading edge of the document D1 by the reversal detection sensor S17, the drive motor M2 is turned off to switch to the normal rotation. However, since the reversal rollers 334 and 335 always rotate in the normal direction, the document D1 is continuously fed onto the platen glass 111. . Further, at this time, after a lapse of a predetermined time from turning on the sensor S17, the delivery clutch CL1 is turned on to deliver the document D2 while keeping the document D1 at a predetermined distance.

(3e) The originals D1 and D2 are simultaneously conveyed,
The document D1 stops at a predetermined position on the right end only on the platen glass 111, and undergoes an exposure process. At this time, the document D2 advances to a predetermined standby position on the platen glass 111 and is stopped. D3 is fed out during the exposure of document D2 and stops at the position where it hits registration roller 331.

(3f) The document D1 is discharged to the discharge reversal unit 350. At the same time, the document D2 enters the platen glass 111 surface.

(3g) The original D2 is turned upside down by the turning guide plate 336, and the platen glass is turned with the fourth side facing downward.
Enter one end of 111. During this time, the leading document D1 passes through the reversing paths j, k, m, and n in the discharge reversing unit 350 and advances to the document placing unit 310 with the first surface facing upward.

In the same manner, the even-numbered page original is turned upside down by the intermediate feeding unit 330, and is fed onto the platen glass 111 with the even-numbered page face down, and is turned upside down by the paper discharge inverting unit 350 after the exposure processing. Then, the odd-numbered page surface is turned upward and returned to the lowermost layer of the document stack on the document placing section 310.

The feeding belt having the holding piece and the movable pressing plate in the automatic document feeder according to the present invention are effective when applied to a recycle type automatic document feeder (RDH). The present invention can be widely applied to a sheet re-feeding device in which the sending sheet setting unit and the discharged sheet placing unit are the same.

[0118]

As described above, according to the automatic document feeder of the present invention, the documents set or re-stacked on the document placing table are fed from the uppermost sheet of the document placing table to the sheet feeding section and the processing section. After that, since it is returned to the lowermost layer of the original stack on the original placing table again in a closed loop, the originals are not contaminated due to front and back friction between the originals. Further, the automatic document feeder of the present invention does not require suction work or the like and has a simple structure, so that it is not only effective in reducing the manufacturing cost, but also excellent in that noise and vibration are not generated. Have advantages.

Furthermore, by using a wide belt having a holding piece, it is effective in preventing damage to the leading edge of the document.

In particular, in the RDH mode or the R-RDH mode in the automatic document feeder of the present invention, when the double-sided document discharged from the paper discharge reversing unit is returned to the bottom, it is separated from the document on the document placing unit. Can be executed reliably and stably. Further, the sorting means of the present invention allows manuscripts to be operated easily without any trouble when the manuscript stack is placed on the manuscript placing portion.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is an overall configuration diagram of a copying machine equipped with an automatic document feeder according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a sectional view of the automatic document feeder.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a main portion of a document placing portion.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a sheet feeding belt and related members of the document placing portion.

FIG. 5 is a front sectional view of a document placing section and a feeding section.

FIG. 6 is a plan view of a separating means and a lifting means.

FIG. 7 is a side view showing the operation of the separating means.

FIG. 8 is a side view showing the operation of the separating means.

9A and 9B are a front view and a side view of the lifting means.

FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram showing a document transportation path in a document circulation mode on a document placing section.

FIG. 11 is a schematic diagram showing a document transport path in an RDH mode and an R-RDH mode.

FIG. 12 is a configuration diagram of a drive system of the automatic document feeder.

FIG. 13 is a schematic diagram showing an odd-numbered page original transport path in the R-RDH mode.

FIG. 14 is a schematic diagram showing the first half of the even-numbered-page original conveyance process in the above mode.

FIG. 15 is a schematic diagram showing the second half of the even-numbered-page original conveyance process in the above mode.

[Explanation of symbols]

 100 Copier main body 110 Scanning exposure section 111 Platen glass (reading section) 120 Image forming section 300 Recycling type automatic document feeder (RDH device) 310 Document placing section 310Z Paper pressing lever 311 Feed belt 311A Seam section 311B Nipple section (Gripper part) 311C Detection hole 311D Notch part 312A Drive roller 314 Separation lever pushing up means (pushing up means) 314A Pushing up lever 315 Separation means 315A Separation lever 316 Width stopper plate 317 Movable pressing plate 318 Original tip stopper 319 Drive Plate 320 Feeding Unit 321 Feeding Roller 324 Feed Belt 330 Intermediate Conveying Unit 331 Registration Roller (First Intermediate Conveying Roller Pair) 334 Registration Roller (Third Intermediate Conveying Roller Pair) 340 Conveying Unit 341 Conveying Belt 350 Paper Ejecting Reversing Unit 355 Circulation Paper ejection roller (deviation correction roller) 360 Paper ejection tray section a, b, c, d, e, i Paper feeding path f, g, h, j, k, m, n Ejection Paper path D, D1 to D5 Original (bundle of originals)

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. An original placing section on which at least one set of a plurality of originals can be stacked, and one of the plurality of originals stacked on the original placing section, the original is separated and fed, and the image is fed. A paper feeding unit for feeding to the reading unit, a conveyance unit located downstream of the paper feeding unit for conveying an original on the image reading unit, and a conveyance unit located downstream of the image reading unit for being conveyed out of the conveyance unit. In a circulating automatic document feeder of the document top feed bottom return type, which comprises a discharge means for returning the loaded original document to the bottom layer of the stacked original document on the original document placing portion, the leading end portion of the original document returned to the original document placing portion Is held and fed, is inserted into the lowermost layer of the document stack on the document placing section, and is installed in the vicinity of the side end of the feeding belt which is movable in the sheet feeding direction by the driving means. A document to be fed last among a set of a plurality of documents placed on the document placing section; A pair of a plurality of originals, the separating means having a dividing lever which is inserted between the first original returned from the discharging means to the original placing portion and separates the two originals; A circulating automatic document feeder, characterized in that a notch is provided in the vicinity of a side end thereof so as not to prevent movement of the separating lever.