JPH0655874A - Posttreatment apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To enable improving of reliability in stapling finish. CONSTITUTION:Forms discharged from the body 1 of an image forming apparatus, on which images have been formed are received and stored through conveyance paths 3, 5 into storage means 6 provided with an end fence 7. A bundle of forms stored in the storage means 6 are put in order to be stapled by stapling means, and the thus stapled bundle of forms is delivered to a delivery tray 4. A displacement means (the end fence 7 or arm or roller) is provided for displacing a bundle of forms stored in the storage means 6 in a thicknesswise direction.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a post-processing apparatus that receives paper discharged from a paper discharge section of an image forming apparatus and performs post-processing such as stapling.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art FIG. 6 is a simplified block diagram of a post-processing device.

Paper discharged from the paper discharge unit of the image forming apparatus main body 1 in the direction of arrow a is sent to the post-processing apparatus main body 2, and is discharged to the shift tray 4 via the conveying path 3 in the stack mode. On the other hand, in the staple mode, the sheet is conveyed downward in the downward conveying path 5 as indicated by the arrow b, then the direction is reversed at the arc portion at the lower end of the conveying path 5, and the direction of the arrow c is shown along the inclined surface of the storage section 6. To the end face 7 and the bottom surface 6a of the storage unit 6
The position is regulated by. Then, after being stapled by the stapler 8, the sheet bundle is discharged to the shift tray 4 through a schematically illustrated transport path 9 (in the case of the storage section 6, the rear surface thereof is actually the transport path).

FIG. 7 is a side view showing the sheets accommodated in the accommodating section with a gap in the overlapping section. When the sheets are curled by the heat of the fixing section, the sheet bundle P is caused by other reasons. It is easy to make a gap in

FIG. 9 is a perspective view showing the paper stored in the storage unit with the bottoms of the sheets being uneven, and a large amount of weak paper or thick paper is stored in the storage unit 6 having a narrow bottom surface 6a.
In some cases, the bottom surface 6a may not be completely dropped when it is stored in.

[0006]

As shown in FIG. 7, when there are gaps in the bundle of sheets and stapling is performed at two positions on both ends, as shown in FIG. There is a drawback that the paper floats and makes it look unattractive.

Further, as shown in FIG. 9, when the lower end of the sheet is not aligned, as shown in FIG.
There was a risk of a defect in which unstapled paper came out.

The present invention has been made based on such a background, and an object thereof is to provide a post-processing apparatus capable of solving the above-mentioned drawbacks of the conventional apparatus and improving the reliability of staple finishing. .

[0009]

The above-described object is to receive an image-formed sheet discharged from the main body of the image forming apparatus, store the sheet in a storing means having an end fence through a conveying path, and store the sheet. The sheet bundle stored in the means is aligned and stapled by the stapling means.
In the post-processing apparatus for discharging the stapled sheet bundle onto the sheet discharge tray, it is achieved by the first means including the displacement means for displacing the sheet bundle stored in the storage means in the thickness direction.

Further, the above object is the first means, wherein the displacing means is operated a plurality of times before the stapling operation.
It is achieved by means of.

Further, the above object is achieved by the third means, in the first and second means, wherein the displacing means is constituted by an end fence which is swingable in the paper thickness direction.

Further, the above-mentioned object is, in the first and second means, the displacement means is slidable in the thickness direction of the sheet bundle,
This is achieved by the fourth means provided separately from the end fence.

[0013]

In the first means, the sheet bundle is pressed in the thickness direction to eliminate the gap between the sheets.

In the second means, all the sheets are surely dropped to the bottom by aligning the lower ends by pressing the bundle of sheets in a predetermined number of sheets in the middle of storing or collectively pressing a plurality of times after storing.

In the third means, the displacement means is composed of the movable end fence itself, so that the mechanism can be simplified.

In the fourth means, by using a displacement means separate from the end fence, the paper pressing performance can be made more stable and a degree of freedom can be provided.

[0017]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. It should be noted that parts that are the same as or can be regarded as the same as those in the conventional example are denoted by the same reference numerals, and redundant description is omitted.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a main part of a post-processing apparatus according to the first embodiment, FIG. 2 is an enlarged perspective view of an end fence in the center of FIG. 1, and FIG. 3 shows a staple finishing sheet bundle according to the present invention. It is a perspective view.

As shown in FIG. 1, the bottom surface 6a of the storage portion 6 is divided into three parts in the width direction of the sheet bundle P, and accordingly, the end fence 7 connected to the bottom surface 6a is also divided into three parts. The center end fence 7 is pivotally supported on the end fence 6a so as to be swingable in the thickness direction of the sheet bundle P.

That is, as shown in FIG. 2, the end fence 7 is pivotally supported on the shaft 10 at the tip of the bottom surface 6a. Further, a hanging piece 7a integral with the end fence 7 is provided below the bottom surface, and a solenoid 11 is used to pull the tension spring 1 as shown in FIG.
The hanging piece 7a is pulled via the 2.

The operation will now be described. When a set number of sheets are stored in the storage section 6 (state of FIG. 1), the solenoid 11 is actuated and the tension spring 12 is used to move the sheets as shown in FIG. Then pull the hanging piece 7a in the direction of arrow d. Then, the end fence 7 swings in the direction of the arrow f, that is, in the direction of pressing (displaceing) the center of the sheet bundle P.

By this operation, the central portion of the sheet bundle P is pressed and the gap in the thickness direction is eliminated. Then, the stapler 8 is pressed against the sheet bundle P while the sheet bundle P is being pressed.
The sheet bundle P is moved in the width direction to staple two positions at both ends of the sheet bundle P. The swinging movement of the end fence 7 by the solenoid 11 may be performed not only once but also a plurality of times. In this way, the lower end of the paper is surely aligned with the bottom surface 6a.

When the stapling operation is completed, the solenoid 1
1 is turned off, the hanging piece 7a returns in the direction of arrow e, and accordingly the end fence 7 returns in the direction of arrow g.

As shown in FIG. 3, the stapled sheet bundle P has no floating sheets, is good in appearance, and has no staple error.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the main part of the post-processing apparatus according to the second embodiment, and FIG. 5 is a side view showing the operating state of the displacing means.

In the figure, 15 is a U-shaped arm which swings about a fulcrum 16 between positions A and B shown in FIG. 5, and 17 is attached to the tip of an upper arm piece 15a of the arm 15. A roller, 18 is a lower arm piece 1 of the arm 15.
It is a solenoid arranged by tensioning a tension spring 19 with the tip of 5b. The arm 15 and the solenoid 18 are fixed to a casing 20 of the stapler 8, and the stapler 8
It is linked to the movement of.

Next, the operation will be described. When a set number of sheets are stored in the storage section 6, the solenoid 18 operates and pulls the lower arm piece 15b downward via the tension spring 19. Then, the upper arm piece 15a swings clockwise from the position A shown by the broken line to the position B shown by the solid line in FIG. 5, and the roller 17 presses the sheet bundle P. In this state, the stapler 8 staples one corner of the sheet bundle P. After the stapling operation at one location is completed, the stapler 8 moves together with the housing 20 due to the stapling operation at another location, but as described above, the arm 15 and the solenoid 18 also move integrally. At this time, since the roller 17 rolls while contacting the uppermost surface of the sheet bundle, the slack of the sheet is eliminated and the gap between the sheets is also removed. 2 in this state
The stapling operation is performed on the spots, and a staple-finished sheet bundle that looks good and has no staple error as shown in FIG. 3 is obtained.

Also in this embodiment, by repeatedly pressing the paper by the rollers 17 a plurality of times before stapling, the lower end of the paper can be surely aligned with the bottom surface 6a.

[0029]

According to the first aspect of the invention, the gap between the sheets can be eliminated by pressing the sheet bundle in the thickness direction.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, all the sheets can be surely dropped to the bottom surface and the lower ends can be aligned by pressing the bundle of sheets every predetermined number of sheets in the middle of storing or collectively pressing a plurality of times after storing. it can.

According to the third aspect of the invention, the mechanism can be simplified by forming the displacement means by the movable end fence itself.

According to the invention described in claims 4 to 6, by using the displacement means separate from the end fence, the paper pressing performance can be further stabilized and a degree of freedom can be provided.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a main part of a post-processing apparatus according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an enlarged perspective view of a portion A of FIG.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a staple finishing sheet stack according to the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a main part of a post-processing apparatus according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a side view showing an operating state of the displacing means of the post-processing apparatus according to the second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a schematic configuration diagram of a post-processing device.

FIG. 7 is a side view showing the sheets stored in the storage section with a gap in the overlapping section.

FIG. 8 is a perspective view showing an example of a conventional staple finishing sheet bundle.

FIG. 9 is a perspective view showing a sheet stored in a storage unit with its bottom end being uneven.

FIG. 10 is a perspective view showing another example of a conventional staple finish sheet bundle.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 Image forming apparatus main body 2 Post-processing apparatus main body 3,5 Conveyance path 4 Shift tray (paper discharge tray) 6 Storage section (storage means) 6a Bottom surface 7 End fence (displacement means) 7a Hanging piece 11, 18 Solenoid 15 Arm (displacement) Means) 17 roller (displacement means)

Claims (6)

[Claims] 1. An image-formed sheet discharged from a main body of an image forming apparatus is received, the sheet is stored in a storage unit having an end fence through a transport path, and the sheet bundle stored in the storage unit is stored. In the post-processing device that aligns and staples by the stapling means, and further discharges the stapled sheet bundle onto the sheet ejection tray, the post-processing apparatus includes displacement means that displaces the sheet bundle stored in the storage means in the thickness direction. A post-processing device characterized by the above. 2. The post-processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the displacement means operates a plurality of times before the stapling operation. 3. The method according to claim 1 or 2,
The post-processing apparatus, wherein the displacing means is composed of an end fence that is swingable in the sheet thickness direction. 4. The method according to claim 1 or 2,
The post-processing device, wherein the displacing means is provided separately from the end fence so as to be slidable in the thickness direction of the sheet bundle. 5. The post-processing according to claim 4, wherein the displacing means is composed of a swingable arm and a roller attached to a tip of the arm and contacting and separating the sheet bundle. apparatus. 6. The post-processing apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the displacement means is provided integrally with the stapling means.