JPH0611970Y2 - Image forming system device - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention provides an image including an image forming apparatus such as an electronic copying apparatus for forming an image on a sheet and a feeder device for supplying a detachable sheet to the image forming apparatus. The present invention relates to a forming system device.

Generally, in an image forming apparatus that forms an image on a sheet, such as an electronic copying apparatus or an electronic printer, a sheet feeding cassette is installed in the sheet feeding unit of the image forming apparatus so that the sheet can be easily replenished or the size can be easily changed. A cassette-type paper feeder that can be inserted and removed freely is used. However,
In an image forming apparatus adopting such a cassette type paper feeding device, for example, when a large number of paper sheets are continuously required to perform continuous copying, the paper feeding cassette must be frequently replenished. However, there is a problem that the operation is very troublesome and inconvenient.

The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to replace a paper feeding cassette having a small storage capacity with a feeder device having a large storage capacity when a large number of sheets are continuously required. It is equipped with an image forming apparatus and configured so that it can be operated as if it were being fed from a paper feeding cassette, so that it can be easily handled without changing the specifications of the image forming apparatus. Another object of the present invention is to provide a convenient image forming system device.

It is another object of the present invention to provide an image forming system device capable of surely conveying and feeding the paper in the feeder device to the image forming means in the image forming device.

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

1 to 3 show the whole of an image forming system apparatus according to the present invention. A so-called double-cassette type electronic copying apparatus 1 as an image forming apparatus and a large number of consecutive sheets in this electronic copying apparatus 1 are shown. When paper is required, it is composed of a feeder device 2 mounted in the electronic copying apparatus 1 instead of the paper feeding cassette, and a common stand 3 on which the electronic copying apparatus 1 and the feeder device 2 are placed.

The electronic copying apparatus 1 is configured as follows. That is, the document placing section 5 and the operation panel 6 are provided on the upper surface of the apparatus body 4. Operation panel 6 above
A copy switch 7, a numeric keypad 8 for setting the number of sheets, a display section 9 for displaying the number of sheets and various states are provided. Then, on the right side surface of the apparatus body 4, the paper P
Paper feed cassettes 10 ₁ and 10 ₂ storing ₁ are inserted in upper and lower stages in a freely attachable / detachable manner, and a paper discharge tray for receiving the copied paper P ₂ discharged from a paper discharge port 11 is provided above these paper feed cassettes. The tray 12 is projected. Further, the paper feed units 13 ₁ and 13 ₂ as the paper feed cassette mounting units of the apparatus body 4 into which the front end portions of the paper feed cassettes 10 ₁ and 10 ₂ are inserted respectively have take-out rollers 14 ₁ as fourth rollers. , 14 ₂
Is provided, and the take-out rollers 14 ₁ and 14 ₂ are selectively operated to take out the paper P ₁ in the designated paper feed cassette 10 ₁ or 10 _{2 one} by one. . In this way, the paper P ₁ supplied from the paper supply unit 13 ₁ or 13 ₂ passes through the guide path 15 ₁ or 15 ₂ as shown in FIG. 3, and the feed rollers 16 and 16 as the first rollers. The toner image is transferred by being guided to the inside, is sent into the common transfer path 17 with the rotation of the feed roller 16, and passes through the transfer portion 20 between the photoconductor drum 18 and the transfer device 19, so that the toner image is transferred. Then, the toner image is fixed by passing through the fixing rollers 21 and 21. Then, the copied paper P ₂ is
Paper discharge rollers 22 provided at the end of the transfer path 17,
It is configured to be discharged to the paper discharge tray 12 via 22.

On the other hand, as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the paper feeding section 13 ₁
Of in the vicinity of the take-out roller 14 _1, one end have a paper absence detection lever 24 which is rotatably supported by a shaft 23 is provided, the free end of the detection lever 24, i.e. the tip paper feed cassette 10 ₁ above And is brought into contact with the paper P ₁ in the paper feed cassette 10 ₁ . A switch actuating lever 25 is fixed to the support side of the detection lever 24, and a micro switch 26 as a detector is provided at a portion facing the switch actuating lever 25. Then, the paper P _{1 is} placed in the paper feed cassette 10 ₁ .
If there is, the switch 26 does not operate because the tip of the detection lever 24 swings upward, and the paper feed cassette 10
_When the paper P _{1 in 1} is taken out and reduced, the tip of the detection lever 24 swings downward accordingly, and when all the paper P ₁ is taken out, the switch operating lever 25 presses the actuator of the switch 26. As a result, the switch 26 is configured to operate (turn on). The detection lever 24 is also operated by inserting and removing a sheet guide portion 29 of the feeder device 2 which will be described later. The detection lever 24, the switch operating lever 25, and the switch 26 constitute a paper presence / absence detection mechanism on the electronic copying machine side. Although not shown in the figure, a similar paper presence / absence detection mechanism is also provided in the vicinity of the take-out roller 14 ₂ of the paper feeding unit 13 ₂ . Further, as shown in FIG. 3, a micro switch 27 as a paper passage detector is provided in front of the feed roller 16.
Is provided.

Further, the feeder device 2 is roughly divided into a feeder main body 28 for accommodating a large number of papers P ₁ collectively and sequentially taking out one by _one from the uppermost paper P ₁ and the feeder main body 2
8 and a paper guide portion 29 provided on the paper take-out direction side. Then, pull the sheet feeding cassette 10 _first bottom as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the sheet guide unit 29
Tip is configured to be mounted to the lower portion of the right side face of the electronic copying apparatus 1 to be positioned in the electronic copying apparatus 1 of the paper supply unit 13 _1. In this case, as the feeder device 2 is attached to or removed from the electronic copying device 1, the electronic copying device 1
The change-over switch 30 (see FIG. 3) provided in the main body 4 is operated. This changeover switch 3
0 is for switching the control of this apparatus to the paper feed control by the paper feed cassettes 10 ₁ and 10 ₂ or the paper feed control by the feeder device 2.

Further, the mounting table 3 has a copying apparatus mounting section 31 and a feeder apparatus mounting section 32 as shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, and carts 33, 33, ... Are mounted on the bottom side thereof. It is composed. The copying apparatus mounting portion 31 has a table 34 on which the electronic copying apparatus 1 is mounted, and a lower portion of the table 34 is a supplies storage chamber 36 whose front surface is opened and closed by doors 35, 35. . Further, the feeder device mounting portion 32 is composed of a horizontal support body 37 integrally projectingly provided on the lower right side surface of the copying device mounting portion 31, and the bottom portion of the feeder main body portion 28 is provided on the upper surface of the support body 37. A positioning recess 38 for fitting is formed. An inclined surface 39 for facilitating the placement of the feeder device 2 is formed on the right side edge of the opening of the recess 38. In addition, the feeder device mounting portion 3
As shown in FIG. 3, the height adjusting screws 40, ... By which the tip of the feeder 2 protrudes into the recess 38 and the height position of the feeder device 2 can be adjusted are provided.

4 to 9 show the feeder device 2 in detail. That is, as shown in FIGS. 4 and 5,
Left and right frames 42 ₁ and 42 ₂ are erected in the housing 41 by fixing their lower ends to a base frame 43 that forms the bottom of the housing 41.
A paper feed table 44 is provided between 2 ₁ and 42 ₂ . The paper feed table 44 is composed of a movable base 45 which is supported so as to be vertically movable by means to be described later, and an elevator tray 47 which is attached to the upper side of the movable base 45 via spacers 46, .... In addition, the frame 4
Guide shafts 48 and 48, whose upper and lower ends are fixed via horizontal mounting portions, are attached to the front end face sides of 2 ₁ and 42 ₂ , and elevator arms 49 and 49 are attached to these guide shafts 48 and 48, respectively. Is mounted so that it can move up and down. Both ends of the movable base 45 are fixed to the elevator arms 49, 49, so that the paper feed table 44 can be smoothly moved up and down.

Further, the elevator arms 49, 49 are connected to the endless elevator chain 5 via the connecting links 50, 50, respectively.
It is connected to 1,51. This elevator chain 5
1,51 is vertical sprocket 5 in a state along the frame ₄₂ 1, 42 ₂ of the outer surface side and the guide shaft 48, 48
It is stretched via 2, 53 respectively. The lower right sprocket 53 (not shown) is attached to the frame 4
2 _1, 42 ₂ is fitted to the right end of the rotary shaft 54 horizontally extends in the through state and the sprocket 53 on the lower left side of the elevator feed electromagnetic clutch 55 fixed to the left end of the rotary shaft 54 The sprockets 53, 53 are fixed to the output side so that they rotate integrally. A gear 56 is fixed to the input side of the electromagnetic clutch 55, and the gear 56 meshes with a drive gear 58 to which the driving force of a reversible motor 57 is transmitted. Then,
By rotating the motor 57 in the forward or reverse direction, the elevator chains 51, 51 are configured to travel in the forward direction (the solid arrow direction in FIG. 4) or in the reverse direction (the broken arrow direction in FIG. 4). ing. Also, the paper feed table 4
Guide plates 59, 60, 61 for guiding the front end and both side ends of the paper P ₁ along the moving path 4 are provided.
These guide plates 59, 60, 61 form a paper storage portion 62 on the upper surface side of the paper feed tray 44.
A paper take-out mechanism 63 is arranged in the upper front part of the paper take-up section 62, and the paper guide section 29 is formed on the paper feed direction side of the paper take-out mechanism 63.

On the other hand, the left frame 42 ₁ side, the take-out roller is arranged at the distal end portion of the sheet removing mechanism 63 and the paper guide unit 29 1
4 paper feeding roller 64 as a third _{roller 1} and the opposing
A paper feed roller drive mechanism 65 for driving the
The uppermost sheet P ₁ is taken out and then fed to the feed roller 16 side. That is, the paper take-out mechanism 63
On the left end side of the drive shaft 66 in
8 and 99 are attached to each other, and the sprocket 68 is engaged with the sprocket 99. Further, the sprocket 99 and the sprocket 67 are the endless chain 6
They are linked with each other through 9. And
By rotating the sprocket 99, the sprocket 6
8 is rotated. In addition, the sprocket 6
7, an upper sprocket 70 is continuously provided, the upper sprocket 70 is interlocked with a lower sprocket 72 via an endless feed chain 71, and the lower sprocket 72 is fixed to an output side of a paper feed electromagnetic clutch 73. . A gear 74 is fixed to the input side of the electromagnetic clutch 73, and the gear 74 meshes with the drive gear 58. Then, when the electromagnetic clutch 73 is turned on by the paper feed signal, the paper take-out mechanism 6
The drive shaft 66 and the paper feed roller 64 of No. 3 are configured to be driven according to the paper feed timing. Incidentally, the paper feed roller 64, a state in which the feeder device 2 securely attached to the electronic copying apparatus 1, that is, the detection lever 24 that is disposed in the paper feed unit 13 ₁ as shown by the two-dot chain line in FIG. 4 in certainly pushed up is the state by the tip portion inclined surface of the paper guide unit 29 is configured to deliver to pinching the sheet P ₁ in these sensitive rollingly contacts the take-out roller 14 ₁ of the paper feed portion 13 ₁ .

Further, the paper take-out mechanism 63 is provided with a pair of paper feed roller units 75, 75.
5 is constructed as shown in FIG. That is, an arm 76 is rotatably attached to the drive shaft 66, and a paper feed roller shaft 77 is rotatable on the free end side of the arm 76 and swings vertically with a central portion in the longitudinal direction as a fulcrum. It is movably attached. Paper feed rollers 78, 78 as second rollers are fixed to both ends of the paper feed roller shaft 77, and a driven sprocket 79 is fitted to the center portion in the length direction. On the other hand, a drive sprocket 81 is attached to a midway portion of the drive shaft 66 corresponding to the driven sprocket 79 via a one-way clutch 80, and these two sprockets 79 and 81 are interlocked with each other via an endless chain 82. It is supposed to do. Therefore, the sheet feeding roller unit 75 configured as described above,
The arm 75 is swingable about the drive shaft 66 as the center of rotation until the end surface of the positioning hole, which is an elongated hole (not shown), contacts the stopper shaft (not shown).

Thus, as shown in FIGS. 4 to 6, the drive shaft 66
An actuator 84 for transmitting the vertical swing of the arm 76 to an upper limit switch (for example, a micro switch) 83 is provided on the left end side of the. This actuator 8
Reference numeral 4 denotes, for example, a wire bent, and an arcuate portion formed in the middle of the wire is fitted onto the drive shaft 66 so that the wire can be rotated about the drive shaft 66. Is locked to the arm 76, and the other end faces the operator of the upper limit switch 83. Then, as shown by the solid line in FIG. 6, when the paper P ₁ in the paper storage unit 62 decreases, the paper feed rollers 78, 78 are correspondingly reduced.
Is lowered, the actuator 84 pushes the operator of the upper limit switch 83, and when the upper limit switch 83 is turned on, the paper feed table 44 is raised. Then, as indicated by the chain double-dashed line in FIG. 6, the uppermost sheet P ₁
When the position of is higher than a certain height, the paper feed rollers 78, 78 are raised accordingly, and the pressing of the actuator by the actuator 84 is released, the upper limit switch 83 is turned off, and the paper feed tray 44 moves. It is configured to stop. It should be noted that when the height position of the uppermost sheet P ₁ is lowered due to sheet feeding and when the height position of the uppermost sheet P ₁ is slightly increased as the sheet feeding table 44 is raised, the sheet feeding roller 7
8, 78 and the separation claws 85, 85 for preventing the two-sheet picking that press both corners on the side of the sheet take-out direction are placed on the sheet P ₁ by its own weight, so that this vertical movement can be sufficiently covered, and the sheet P ₁ It does not adversely affect the taking out of.

Further, as shown in FIGS. 4, 5, and 7, a paper presence / absence detection lever 87 rotatably held by a holding member 86 is provided near the left paper feed roller unit 75. The free end, that is, the front end of the detection lever 87 is led out onto the elevator tray 47 of the paper feed table 44. A switch operating lever 88 is fixed to the holding side of the detection lever 87.
A micro switch 89 as a detector is provided at a portion opposite to 8. On the other hand, a leading end drop hole 90 is formed in the elevator tray 47 of the paper feed table 44 so as to face the leading end of the detection lever 87. Then, when the paper feed tray 44 is located below or the paper P ₁ is completely taken out, the tip of the detection lever 87 is located at the seventh position.
As shown by the solid line in the figure, it swings downward and is at the lower limit position,
Therefore, when the switch operating lever 88 presses the operator of the switch 89, the switch 89 is operated (turned on). On the other hand, the paper feed table 44 moves up and the uppermost sheet P ₁ comes into contact with the tip of the detection lever 87, and the tip is pushed up to bring the uppermost sheet P ₁ into contact with the sheet feed rollers 78, 78. The switch actuating lever 88 is separated from the actuator of the switch 89, so that the switch 89 is turned off. Here, the detection lever 87, the switch actuation lever 88, and the switch 89 constitute a paper presence / absence detection mechanism on the feeder device side.

Further, as shown in FIG. 4 and FIG.
A lower limit switch (for example, a micro switch) 91 is provided in the lower portion of 1. The lower limit switch 91 is for detecting the lower limit position of the paper feed table 44, and the operator is pressed by an operating piece 92 provided on the rear portion of the lower surface of the movable base 45 of the paper feed table 44 on the left end side. It is supposed to work.

On the other hand, as shown in FIGS. 1 to 5, an opening window 93 extends from the front surface of the housing 41 of the feeder device 2 to the front portion of the left side surface thereof.
Is formed so that the paper P ₁ can be easily replenished in the paper storage unit 62. The opening window 93
Is closed by a door 94 made of a translucent member that allows the inside to be seen through, and can be opened and closed as needed. The opening / closing of the door 94 is configured to be detected by a door opening / closing detection switch (for example, a micro switch) 95 as shown in FIGS. 3 to 5 and 9.

FIG. 10 shows a control circuit as a control means of the feeder device 2. That is, each of the switches 7 and 2
6, 27, 83, 89, 91 and 95 are circuit-connected as shown so as to output a logical "0" signal when turned off and a logical "1" signal when turned on. Further, reference numeral 100 is an auto-clear circuit, which generates a clear signal when the power of the apparatus is turned on. Then, the signal from the copy switch 7 is supplied to one input terminal of the OR circuit 101, and the paper feed signal is supplied to the other input terminal of the OR circuit 101.
The paper feed signal is a signal output from a copy controller (not shown) during continuous paper feed. Further, the signal from the paper passage detection switch 27 is supplied to one input terminal of the OR circuit 103 via the delay circuit 102.
The output signal of the auto clear circuit 100 is supplied to the other input terminal of 03. The output of the OR circuit 101 is supplied to the set input terminal of the FF circuit 104, and the output of the OR circuit 103 is supplied to the reset input terminal of the FF circuit 104. The set output of the FF circuit 104 is supplied to the drive circuit 105, and the drive circuit 1
The electromagnetic clutch 106 is driven by 05. The electromagnetic clutch 106 is used in the electronic copying apparatus 1
The take-out roller 14 ₁ is intended for coupling to the drive unit. Further, the set output of the FF circuit 104 is supplied to one input terminal of the OR circuit 107, and the OR circuit 10
The other input terminal of 7 is supplied with the output of the AND circuit 111 described later. The output of the OR circuit 107 is supplied to the drive circuit 108, and the drive circuit 108 drives the motor forward rotation relay 109. Further, the set output of the FF circuit 104 is supplied to the driving circuit 110, and the driving circuit 110 drives the electromagnetic clutch 73.

On the other hand, the signal from the upper limit switch 83 is supplied to one input terminal of the AND circuit 111, and the output of the inverter circuit 112 is supplied to the other input terminal of the AND circuit 111. Further, the signal from the lower limit switch 91 passes through the inverter circuit 113 and the AND circuit 11
4 is supplied to one input terminal of the AND circuit 114
A set output of the FF circuit 119 described later is supplied to the other input terminal of the. The output of the AND circuit 114 is supplied to the drive circuit 115, and the drive circuit 115 drives the motor reverse rotation relay 116. The output of the AND circuit 114 is the OR circuit 1.
17 is supplied to one of the input terminals of the OR circuit 117.
The output of the AND circuit 111 is supplied to the other input terminal of the. The output of the OR circuit 117 is the drive circuit 1
18 and the drive circuit 118 drives the electromagnetic clutch 55. Further, the signal from the door open / close detection switch 95 is sent to the FF circuit 119.
Of the OR circuit 121 through the inverter circuit 120, and the output signal of the auto clear circuit 100 is supplied to the other input terminal of the OR circuit 121. . And
The output of the OR circuit 121 is supplied to the reset input terminal of the FF circuit 119. Further, each signal from the switch 26 of the paper presence detection mechanism on the electronic copying apparatus side and the switch 89 of the paper presence detection mechanism on the feeder apparatus side is the OR circuit 12.
The output of the OR circuit 122 is supplied to the drive circuit 123, and the drive circuit 123 drives the paper non-display lamp (empty lamp) 124 to light. It should be noted that the above paper-less display lamp 1
Reference numeral 24 is provided in the display section 9 of the operation panel 6.

FIG. 11 shows a drive circuit of the reversible motor 57 in the feeder device 2. One end of the AC power supply 125 has the power switch 126, the fuse 127, and the normally open contact 109a of the motor forward rotation relay 109 in series, and the above motor is connected to the motor. It is connected to the forward rotation terminal 57. In addition, the fuse 1
The connection point between 27 and the normally open contact 109a is connected to the reverse rotation terminal of the motor 57 via the normally open contact 116a of the motor reverse rotation relay 116. A capacitor 128 is connected between the normal rotation terminal and the reverse rotation terminal. On the other hand, the other end of the power supply 125 is connected to a common terminal of the motor 57 via a power switch 126.

Next, the operation of the feeder device 2 configured as above will be described. A timing chart for explaining this operation is shown in FIG. Now the power switch 126
When (see FIG. 11) is turned on, the auto clear circuit 1
A clear signal is output from 00, and FF is output by that signal.
The circuits 104 and 119 are reset respectively. In this state, when the copy switch 7 is turned on, the FF circuit 104 is set, so that the electromagnetic clutches 73 and 106 and the motor forward rotation relay 109 are driven. When the motor forward rotation relay 109 operates, the reversible motor 57 rotates forward, and the electromagnetic clutch 73 also operates at this time.
The drive shaft 66 of the paper take-out mechanism 63 is driven, and the paper feed rollers 78, 78 of the paper feed roller units 75, 75 interlocking with the drive shaft 66 are rotationally driven clockwise in the state of FIG. Paper feed roller 64 of the guide portion 29
Is rotated counterclockwise in the state shown in FIG.
Therefore, the uppermost sheet P ₁ in the sheet accommodating portion 62 is taken out with the rotation of the sheet feeding rollers 78, 78 and sent to the sheet guiding portion 29. At this time, the paper P ₁ taken out is
Lower surface guide plate 9 integrated with the guide plate 59 of the paper guide portion 29
6 is guided by the paper feed roller 64 and the electronic copying apparatus 1.
It led to the paper feed portion 13 contact portion between the take-out roller 14 ₁ provided on the _1, is sent to the electronic copying apparatus 1 by these two rollers 64 and 14 _1. In this way, the feeding of paper from the feeder device 2 to the electronic copying device 1 is started.

Then, the paper P ₁ supplied from the feeder device 2 is
It is guided by the guide passage 15 ₁ is guided between the feed rollers 16 and 16, the transfer unit 20 by the rollers 16, 16
Will be guided to the side. By the way, when the paper P ₁ is guided between the feed rollers 16 and 16, the switch 27 is turned on by the leading edge of the paper P ₁ . This switch 2
The ON signal of _No. 7 is delayed by the delay circuit 102 by the time T at which the paper P ₁ is bent, and the FF circuit 104 is reset by the delay signal. As a result, the electromagnetic clutches 73 and 106 and the motor 57 are deenergized, and the paper feeding operation is stopped. After this, that is, after the second sheet, the sheet feeding operation similar to the above is restarted by the sheet feeding signal, and continuous sheet feeding is performed.

In this way, when the paper P ₁ in the paper storage unit 62 decreases due to continuous paper feeding, the paper feed rollers 78, 78 descend accordingly, and when they descend to a predetermined position, the upper limit switch 83 ( (See FIGS. 4 to 6)
Turns on. When the switch 83 is turned on, the FF circuit 119 is in the reset state at this time, so the AND circuit 1
11, the electromagnetic clutch 55 and the motor forward rotation relay 109 are driven by the output thereof, so that the motor 57 rotates forward and the paper feed tray 44 rises. When the upper limit switch 83 is turned off again due to this rise, the AND circuit 111 is not established and the electromagnetic clutch 55 and the motor 57 are deenergized, so that the paper feed tray 44 stops at the upper limit position. By repeating such an intermittent raising operation of the paper feed tray 44, the uppermost paper P ₁ in the paper storage unit 62 is controlled so as to always be positioned within a fixed paper feed range. Then, when all of the paper P ₁ is taken out, the tip of the detection lever 87 (see FIGS. 4, 5, and 7) is in the tip drop hole 90 provided in the elevator tray 47 of the paper feed table 44. Switch 89 turns on. When the switch 89 is turned on, the paper non-display lamp 124 is driven to light, and the display unit 9 on the operation panel 6 is driven.
No paper is displayed (empty display).

In this way, when no paper is displayed on the display unit 9,
The operator opens the door 94 to replenish the paper P ₁ . That is, when the door 94 is first opened, the switch 95 is turned on, and the FF circuit 119 is set by the ON signal. Then, at this time, if the paper feed tray 44 is not located at the lower limit position, the lower limit switch 91 is in the off state, and the AND circuit 114 is established, and the output thereof causes the electromagnetic clutch 55 and the motor reversing relay 11 to operate.
6 is driven. When the motor reverse relay 116 operates, the motor 57 rotates in the reverse direction. At this time, since the electromagnetic clutch 55 is also operating, the paper feed tray 44 moves down. Then, when the paper feed tray 44 is lowered to the lower limit position, the lower limit switch 91 (see FIGS. 4 and 8) is turned on. When the switch 91 is turned on, the AND circuit 114 is not established,
Since the electromagnetic clutch 55 and the motor 57 are deenergized, the paper feed tray 44 stops at the lower limit position. Therefore, in this state, the sheet P ₁ is replenished on the sheet feeding table 44.
Then, when the paper supply is completed, the door 94 is closed again to turn off the switch 95 again, and the FF circuit 119 is reset by the off signal. Then, at this time, since the paper feed rollers 78, 78 are located at the lower limit position and the upper limit switch 83 is in the ON state, the AND circuit 111 is established. Therefore, as described above, the motor 57 rotates forward to feed the paper. The platform 44 rises. When the upper limit switch 83 is turned off due to this rise, the AND circuit 111 is not established, and as described above, the paper feed tray 44 stops at the upper limit position and enters a standby state in which paper can be fed.

As described above, according to the above-described embodiment, when a large number of sheets of paper are required in succession, a feeder device having a large storage capacity is attached to the electronic copying apparatus instead of a paper cassette having a small storage capacity, It can be operated as if it were feeding from a paper feeding cassette. Further, when the feeder device is unnecessary, a paper feed cassette which is inexpensive and has a small storage capacity can be mounted as in the conventional case. Therefore, it is easy to handle without changing the specifications of the electronic copying apparatus, has excellent operability, and
A very convenient device is obtained.

Further, since the feeder device is configured to be attached to the lowermost paper feed cassette insertion / removal section of the electronic copying apparatus, the paper feed mechanism in the feeder device has a natural shape (for example, paper feed roller It is possible to dispose the sheets in the sheet accommodating section by separating them one by one by arranging them in the upper portion of the accommodating section. Further, by using the dedicated stand, the effect that the feeder device can be easily attached to and detached from the electronic copying device can be obtained. Further, with such a configuration, it does not hinder the insertion and removal of the upper sheet feeding cassette, and the installation of the sheet ejection tray located above the sheet feeding cassette,
Various effects can be expected, such as not disturbing the attachment / detachment or the operation of receiving the discharged paper on the paper discharge tray.

Further, when mounting the feeder apparatus includes a feed roller provided in the sheet feeding portion of the electronic copying apparatus (16) and take-out roller (14 _1), the paper take-out mechanism provided in the sheet feeding portion of the feeder apparatus ( 63), the paper in the feeder device is conveyed and supplied to the image forming means in the electronic copying device.
Even if the size of the paper is very small, the paper can be reliably conveyed and supplied to the image forming unit.

In the above embodiment, the case where the paper feed roller is used as the paper feed unit of the paper guide unit in the feeder device has been described. However, for example, an endless conveyor belt may be used, and the point is that the paper taken out from the paper storage unit is used. Any configuration may be used as long as it can be reliably fed into the main body of the electronic copying apparatus with the take-out device provided on the electronic copying apparatus side. Further, although the case where the electronic copying apparatus is used as the image forming apparatus has been described, the present invention is not limited to this, and the same operation can be performed by using an electronic printer, facsimile machine or image information storage / retrieval apparatus having a similar mechanism. obtain.

Besides, the present invention is not limited to the above embodiment,
Of course, various modifications can be made without departing from the spirit of the present invention.

As described above in detail, according to the image forming system apparatus of the present invention, when a large number of sheets are required continuously, the feeder apparatus having a large storage amount is replaced with the feeder device having a large storage amount. It can be mounted on the printer and operated as if it were feeding from a paper feeding cassette. Further, when the feeder device is unnecessary, a paper feed cassette which is inexpensive and has a small storage capacity can be mounted as in the conventional case. Therefore, it is possible to obtain a highly convenient device that is easy to handle without changing the specifications of the image forming device.

Further, according to the image forming system apparatus of the present invention, when the feeder apparatus is mounted, the first sheet feeding unit (corresponding to the feed roller 16) and the second sheet feeding unit provided in the sheet feeding unit on the image forming apparatus side are provided.
And paper feed means (corresponding to the take-out roller 14 _1), (corresponding to the sheet removing mechanism 63) the third sheet feeding means provided in the sheet feeding portion of the feeder apparatus and the image forming sheets in the feeder device Since the paper is conveyed and supplied to the image forming means in the apparatus, the paper can be surely conveyed and supplied to the image forming means even if the size of the paper is very small.

[Brief description of drawings]

1 shows an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 1 is a front view of the entire image forming system apparatus, FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the entire image forming system apparatus with a feeder device installed, and FIG. FIG. 4 is a vertical cross-sectional side view of the feeder device, FIG. 4 is a vertical cross-sectional view of the entire image forming system device with the feeder device attached, and FIG. FIG. 7 is a side view of the upper limit switch part, FIG. 7 is a side view of the paper presence detection mechanism, FIG. 8 is a side view of the lower limit switch part, and FIG. 9 is a side view of the door opening / closing detection switch part. FIG. 11 is a configuration diagram showing a control circuit of the feeder device, FIG. 11 is a connection diagram showing a motor drive circuit of the feeder device, and FIG. 12 is a timing chart for explaining the operation. P ₁ ... paper, 1 ... electronic copying apparatus (image forming apparatus),
2 ... Feeder device, 3 ... Stand, 10 ₁ , 10 ₂ ......
Paper feed cassette, 11 ...... sheet discharge port, 12 ...... discharge tray (paper discharge _unit), 13 1, 13 ₂ ...... feeding _section, 14 1, 14
₂ ... Take-out roller (take-out device), 29 ... Paper guide section,
31 ... Copying device mounting part, 32 ... Feeder device mounting part, 44 ... Paper feeding table, 62 ... Paper accommodating part, 63 ... Paper ejection mechanism, 64 ... Paper feeding roller (paper feeding body) .

Claims (1)

[Scope of utility model registration request] 1. An image forming unit for forming an image on a sheet, a first roller provided immediately before the image forming unit for feeding the sheet to the image forming unit, and a sheet feeding unit for containing the sheet. A cassette, a paper feed cassette mounting portion that detachably supports the paper feed cassette, and a paper storage portion that is detachably provided in the paper feed cassette mounting portion and that stores a larger amount of paper than the paper feed cassette. And a second roller that is provided in the feeder device to take out the sheets stored in the sheet storage unit one by one, and a sheet that is provided in the feeder device and that is taken out by the second roller. A third roller for feeding and feeding the sheet to the first roller; and a third roller that is provided near the paper feed cassette mounting portion and has a paper feed cassette mounted in the paper feed cassette mounting portion. It acts as a take-out roller that takes out the sheets one by one from the paper feed cassette and conveys and feeds the paper to the first roller, and contacts the third roller when the feeder device is mounted in the paper feed cassette mounting portion. A fourth roller that acts as a conveyance roller that conveys the sheet taken out by the second roller to the first roller; and when the feeder device is attached to the paper feed cassette attachment unit, The paper taken out by the second roller is conveyed to the first roller by interlocking the third roller and the fourth roller,
An image forming system apparatus comprising: a control unit that controls the first to fourth rollers so that the sheet is supplied to the image forming apparatus by the rollers.