JPH0675448A - Original feeder - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To obtain an original feeder preventing the occurrence of a miscopy by warning the fact that the setting state of an original is unsuitable and simultaneously, the delay of a copying action without interrupting the copying action by an image forming device even when the setting of the original has abnormality in such a case as an operator leaves from the image forming device and the abnormal state is not corrected. CONSTITUTION:The original feeder is provided with a first detecting means 8 detecting movement in the feeding direction of a delivered original, second detecting means 15 detecting length in a direction perpendicular to the feeding direction of the original, a size deciding means combining the detection signals of the first and second detecting means 8 and 15 to specify the size of the original carried from an original setting part 1, and a size signal output means outputting a deciding signal from the size deciding means, and one of the second detecting means 15 detects the placing state of the original to warn the abnormality of the setting of the original.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a document feeder,
More specifically, it relates to a structure for controlling a copying operation according to the state of a document set.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Generally, an image forming apparatus such as a copying machine or a printer may be equipped with a document feeding apparatus having a structure capable of automatically feeding a document toward a reading section of the apparatus.

This document feeder separates a document placed on a document setting table and transfers it to a document table located on the upper surface of a document reading section provided on the image forming apparatus side. In addition, when the reading on the document placing table is completed, the document discharged from the document placing table is collected. By the way, in such a document feeding apparatus, the transfer paper size in the image forming apparatus is selected according to the size of the fed document. In this selection, the size of the first one of the originals to be fed out is detected in consideration of the fact that the originals placed on the original set table are often set in the same size in the past. The transfer paper size was often selected by doing so.

Further, after the first original is fed out,
In some cases, so-called feed-out control, which is so-called stop-and-start control, may be performed to select and feed a transfer sheet by estimating that an original of the same size is fed.

By executing such advance control, the length of the succeeding original is detected as compared with the case where the transfer paper is selected and the paper is fed after the size of the original is detected. After that, the time from selecting the transfer paper to feeding the paper is shortened.

For this reason, in the document feeder, the size of the document initially fed out is detected in the width direction and the length direction. Among the sizes to be detected, the longitudinal size of a vertically placed document (hereinafter referred to as the length) that is set parallel to the document feeding direction and that sets the longitudinal direction of the document is An encoder that detects the amount of movement of the document in the longitudinal direction is provided immediately before the loading table or near the leading edge of the document feeding table on the document setting table, and a signal according to the amount of movement of the document is output to determine the size of the document in the longitudinal direction. The structure that was designed to be used was adopted.

[0007]

By the way, in the above-mentioned structure, when detecting the sizes of the originals, the mixed originals are placed in the direction perpendicular to the feeding direction with respect to the placing reference edge on the original placing table. It is assumed that one end is aligned. However, in practice, there is a case where a small-sized original among the mixed originals is not aligned with the large-sized original at the placement reference edge. In this case, the obtained copy image is not transferred onto the transfer paper. There is a case where a part is lost, that is, a so-called miscopy.

On the other hand, when copying is performed by continuously feeding out a document from the document feeder, the operator may decide the copy format. That is, the operator operates the input means for selecting various copy formats from the operation panel of the image forming apparatus in order to set the number of copies from one original and the sorting. However, once the copy format is set, the operator does not always monitor the copy operation until the copy is completed. In particular, when a large number of copies are to be made, they often leave after the copy format is set.

As described above, when an image is formed in accordance with the original feeding from the original feeding device without being monitored by the operator, the originals having different copy formats are mixed and mounted on the original feeding device. When copying from a set of originals to be performed continuously using subsequent sets of originals, when the originals are not placed properly on the original feeding device side, or when this is not the case There are times when it is done.
In such a state, abnormal processing is performed because the image forming processing cannot be performed, and specifically, the operation of the image forming apparatus is often interrupted. Therefore, there is a possibility that the copying process using a plurality of copying formats may be delayed and the copying efficiency may deteriorate.

Therefore, in view of the problem in the conventional document feeder, an object of the present invention is to shorten the transfer paper selection time particularly when a copy is obtained from a mixed-size document, particularly when performing continuous copying. A document feed that can achieve the same or similar processing speed as in the case of documents of the same size, and can detect the document placement state and warn if the document placement state is abnormal. To get the equipment.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a document feeding apparatus which can warn when the state of the document set is inappropriate and prevent the occurrence of miscopying. Further, an object of the present invention is to prevent the copying operation from being interrupted without interrupting the copying operation by the image forming apparatus even when the original setting abnormality occurs when the operator leaves the image forming apparatus or the like and the state is not corrected. An object of the present invention is to obtain a document feeding device capable of preventing the above.

[0012]

In order to achieve this object, the invention according to claim 1 conveys an original set portion for placing and setting an original and an original fed from a paper feeding portion to an image reading portion. And a transport unit to read images
In a document feeding device having a carry-out section that conveys a document after reading and re-stacks it at a predetermined place, a first detecting unit that detects a movement of a fed document in a feeding direction, and the document feeding device. A size for specifying the size of the original conveyed from the original setting section by combining the second detection means for detecting the length in the direction orthogonal to the feeding direction and the detection signals from the first and second detection means. A determination unit and a size display unit for displaying a determination signal from the size determination unit are provided, and one of the second detection units is used as a unit for detecting the placement state of the document, When a case where the storage state is abnormal is detected, a signal for warning the state is output.

According to a second aspect of the invention, in the document feeding apparatus according to the first aspect, when the signal from the document placement reference position side of the second detecting means is not output,
It is characterized in that it is provided with means for determining that the document placement is not proper and outputting a signal for prohibiting execution of the copying process on the image forming apparatus side.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the document feeding apparatus according to the second aspect, the means for outputting a signal for prohibiting execution of the copying process on the image forming apparatus side is the original placement reference in the second detecting means. When the signal from the position side is not output, the display for correcting the document placement state is continued until the state is corrected.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the document feeding apparatus according to the second aspect, the means for outputting the prohibition signal includes a means for selecting whether or not to receive the prohibition signal at its input portion. It is characterized by

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the document feeding apparatus according to the third aspect, the means for outputting a signal for prohibiting execution of the copying process on the image forming apparatus side has a certain time while the prohibition signal is output. Even after the lapse of time, when the placement state is not corrected, a transfer paper selection command according to the document size is output to restart the copying operation.

According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, in the document feeding apparatus according to the fourth aspect, the means for outputting the prohibition signal is provided with a human body detecting means in the vicinity of the image forming apparatus, and when the prohibition signal is not accepted. The feature is that the copying operation is not interrupted even when the operator leaves the image forming apparatus.

According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, in the document feeding apparatus according to the fourth aspect, the means for outputting the prohibition signal includes a detection mechanism for detecting the stacking thickness of the document, and the document detected by this detection mechanism. When the prohibition signal is output without outputting the signal from the second detecting means when the copying operation is performed based on the estimated number of sheets, the number of sheets copied by the operator is the time required to copy the estimated number of sheets. It is characterized in that it is predicted by the product of the above and the above-mentioned expected number of sheets, and that the copying operation is not interrupted when the estimated time is equal to or longer than a preset predetermined time.

[0019]

According to the present invention, the set state of the document can be determined by detecting the position of the set reference end face on the end face in the direction perpendicular to the feeding direction of the set document.

Further, according to the present invention, when the original set is not normal, a copy operation prohibition command is issued.

Further, according to the present invention, even when the original set is not corrected at the stage where the inhibition signal is output, the copying operation is restarted to avoid interruption of the copying operation.

Further, according to the present invention, if the operator is not present when the prohibition signal is output, and the copying operation is not interrupted when the prohibition signal is not accepted, the copying operation is not interrupted. Is prevented from being delayed.

Further, according to the present invention, the expected number of originals is calculated from the thickness of the placed originals, and when the copy operation prohibition signal is output, the operator inputs the time required to copy the expected number of originals. The product of the number of sheets to be copied and the above-mentioned number of sheets to be predicted is used to make a prediction. Therefore, even when the operator does not constantly monitor, such as during mass copying, the copying operation is not interrupted without being interrupted.

[0024]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The details of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS.

FIG. 1 is a schematic layout view showing the overall structure of the document feeding apparatus of the present invention. In FIG. 1, the document feeding apparatus 1 includes a document setting section 2, a sheet feeding section 3, and a conveying section. 4, a document carry-out section 5, a document reversing section 6, and a document stacker 7 are provided as main sections, and each section will be described together with its function.

The original setting section 2 is composed of a tray provided on the upper part of the main body of the original feeding apparatus, and one end in the direction perpendicular to the feeding direction is set as the reference feeding end when the original is placed. Then, the leading end of the original placed by pressing against this end can be guided to the paper feeding unit 3.

The original setting section 2 is provided with a first detecting means 8 for detecting the size of the original in the feeding direction, which will be described later in the paper feeding section 3. To do.

The paper feeding section 3 is a section that separates one original placed on the original setting section 2 and transfers it to the original placing table 9. Therefore, at the position corresponding to the leading end of the document placed on the document setting unit 2, the feeding roller 10 capable of reversing the feeding direction of the document by the peripheral surface is arranged. A separation belt 11 movable in a relative direction with respect to the rotation direction of the feeding roller 10 (the direction of the arrow in the drawing) is brought into contact with the feeding roller 10.

Further, a plurality of feeding rollers 12 and 13 are arranged along the feeding direction at a position in front of the feeding roller 10 in the feeding direction of the original document (direction indicated by reference numeral A). These feeding rollers 12 and 13 are arranged so as to come out from the tray of the document setting section 2 toward the upper part and come into contact with the document.

Further, at a position where the feeding direction is reversed by the feeding roller 10, a feeding roller 14 for feeding the original toward the original placing table 9 is opposed and abutted across the original feeding path. .

The feeding roller 10 and the separation belt 11 described above are used as the feeding roller 1 of the loaded originals.
This is for separating the original that is in contact with 0 from other originals and feeding it. For this reason, the feeding roller 10 is set to have a higher friction coefficient with respect to the document than the separation belt 11. Therefore, when the separation belt 11 moves in the relative direction to the feeding roller 10, only the original document in contact with the feeding roller 10 is fed.

The transport section 4 is a section for transporting the document fed from the sheet feeding section 3 on the document mounting table 9, and is provided with a transport belt 4A movable along the upper surface of the document mounting table 9. There is. The conveyor belt 4A is hung on both ends of the document placing table 9 along the feeding direction and a plurality of pulleys 4B, 4C, 4D arranged on the document placing table 9 so that the document can be transferred and set. It has become.

Further, the document carrying-out section 5 is a part for introducing the document which has been read into the document stacker 7, and a carrying-out roller to a position where the leading end of the document sent by the carrying belt 4A of the document carrying section 4 reaches. It has 5A.

Further, the document reversing section 6 is a part for reversing the surface of the document whose one side has been read when reading a two-sided document. For this reason, the switching claw 6A that can move forward and backward with respect to the document discharge path set by the discharge roller 5A of the document discharge section 5 and the guide section facing the discharge roller 5A.
And a guide member 6B for guiding the original whose surface is inverted by the switching claw 6A toward the original placing table 9. The switching claw 6A can select the transport path to the above-described document stacker 7 and the transport path to the guide member 6B by switching the position thereof.

Therefore, when the conveyance path is set toward the guide member 6B, the original sheet carried out from the original table 9 is again conveyed to the original table 9 with its front and back surfaces reversed.

On the other hand, the above-mentioned paper feeding section 3 is provided with a document size detecting mechanism which is a feature of this embodiment.

That is, this mechanism is provided with the above-mentioned first detecting means 8 and second detecting means 15.

The first detecting means 8 includes a driven roller 8A which is exposed from the tray side of the document setting section 2 and can contact the lowest document, and a sector 8B which is supported by the driven roller 8A and its shaft. , And a photo interrupter 8C arranged near the sector 8B.

The first detecting means 8 is for detecting the length of the document along the feeding direction. Then, as shown in FIG. 3, the first detecting means 8 is arranged along the document feeding direction in a horizontally placed document which is placed with its longitudinal direction set to a direction perpendicular to the document feeding direction indicated by the arrow. On the upstream side of the longest position of the lengths, that is, on the so-called trailing edge side of the document, and along the document feeding direction of the vertically placed document to be placed by setting the longitudinal direction along the feeding direction. It is provided on the downstream side of the shortest position of the length, that is, on the so-called front side of the rear end of the document. Therefore, the first detecting means 8 can determine whether the document is placed vertically or horizontally, and when the document is placed vertically, the first detecting means 8 moves around as the document moves. In the figure, reference numeral a represents the maximum length of a horizontally placed document, and reference numeral b represents the minimum length of a vertically placed document.
Reference numeral c indicates the range in which the first detecting means 8 can be installed.

On the other hand, the second detecting means 15 is for detecting the size of the document in the width direction corresponding to the direction perpendicular to the feeding direction of the document, and is composed of, for example, a reflection type photo sensor. There is. Then, this second detection means 1
In FIG. 2, the document 5 is arranged immediately before the document fed from the sheet feeding section 3 reaches the document placing table 9.

The second detecting means 15 is a placement reference end side of the original set in the original setting section 2 in FIG.
In order from the side (indicated by reference character P in the drawing), each size in the width direction of the readable original can be detected, as indicated by reference characters 15A, 15B, and 15C in the drawing, respectively. Of these, the detection means 15A located on the reference end side is provided at a position separated from the reference end by a predetermined amount. This is to detect the case where the edge of the document is not aligned with the reference edge to detect the state of the document set.

Further, in this embodiment, in order to guarantee the interlocking with the original by the first detecting means 8, the original setting section 2 is provided with a means for pressing the original toward the first detecting means 8. Has been.

That is, as shown in FIG. 4, the pressurizing means 16 is provided with a pressurizing arm 16A which is located on the side facing the first detecting means 8 with the original interposed therebetween. The end opposite to the document and the end opposite to the original are pivotally attached to one end of an oscillating arm 16B. The pressurizing arm 16A and the operating arm 16B are connected by a spring 16C, and the pressurizing arm 16A is swung toward a locking portion provided on the operating arm 16B side, and is normally indicated by a solid line. In addition, an extension portion on the same straight line as the operating arm 16B is set.

On the other hand, the operating arm 16B is swingably supported by the pin 16D, and the actuator 17A of the solenoid 17 is connected to the end portion on the side where the pressure arm 16A is not pivotally attached.

This operating arm 16B is a pressure arm 16
A spring 16B1 is hooked on the swing end on the side connected to A. This spring 16B1 has its end fixed to an immovable part inside the device, so that the operating arm 16B1
It has an urging force for rotating B in the counterclockwise direction in the figure.
Therefore, this pressing force presses the pressure arm 16A against the upper surface of the document.

The solenoid 17 causes the actuator 17A to project when it is in the non-excited state. When in the non-excited state, the pressure arm 1 is pressed by the spring 16B1 as shown by the solid line.
6A is set to be in pressure contact with the upper surface of the original, and upon excitation, the pressing arm 16A is separated from the upper surface of the original against the bias of the spring as shown by the chain double-dashed line.

In the present embodiment, the type of the document placed vertically and horizontally can also be discriminated by the pressing means 16.

That is, as shown in FIG. 4, the tray of the document setting section 2 facing the swinging end of the pressure arm 16A is placed downstream of the maximum length of the horizontally placed document in the feeding direction, as shown in FIG. The recess 2A is formed so as to be positioned lower than the placement surface. Then, in the vicinity of the recess 2A, for example,
A reflection type photo sensor 2B is arranged. Therefore,
When the solenoid 17 is de-energized, the pressure arm 16A has a recess 2
When it falls to A and is detected by the photo sensor 2B, it is possible to determine that the original is in a horizontal state in which the end in the length direction does not correspond to this position, as described in FIG. .

Further, the above-mentioned pressurizing means 16 can also detect the stacking thickness of the originals when a plurality of originals are stacked in the original setting section 2, that is,
A detection plate 16E is fixed to the other of the swinging ends of the operation arm 16B, and the operation plate 1 is attached to the detection plate 16E.
Light-transmitting portions formed of slits are formed at equal intervals along the swinging direction of 6B. A transmissive or reflective optical sensor 18 is provided in the vicinity of the detection plate 16E so as to face it, and counts and outputs the number of translucent parts facing each other.

On the other hand, the above-mentioned first and second detecting means 8,
The optical sensor 15 and the optical sensor 18 are connected to a control unit 19 used for size determination.
As shown in FIG. 5, the main part is constituted by, for example, a microcomputer that performs sequence control for image formation of the image forming apparatus.

On the input side of the control unit 19, a pressure plate (not shown) which is opened / closed on the first and second detecting means 8 and 15, the optical sensor 18 and the document table 9 is opened / closed. A switch 20, a prohibition signal release switch 21 described later,
And the human body detection means 22 are connected respectively. Further, on the output side of the control unit 19, a feeding member such as the feeding roller 10 provided in the paper feeding unit 3 and a driving unit 17C of the solenoid 17 of the pressurizing unit 16 (in the figure, these members are (Collectively shown as the paper feed unit 3), and further, the display unit 23, the image forming unit 24 for executing the copying process including the selection of the transfer paper and the paper feeding are not shown
They are connected via the O interface.

The prohibition signal release switch 21 connected to the input side of the control unit 19 is clarified by the operation of the control unit 19 which will be described later, but the copying operation is continued when the document setting abnormality is detected. It is operated for the purpose of continuing the copying operation regardless of the presence or absence of a prohibition signal for prohibiting the copying, and is provided to prevent so-called interruption of the copying operation. The human body detecting means 22 is for detecting that an operator is near the image forming apparatus and is monitoring the copying operation, and for example, an infrared sensor or the like is used.

In the control section 19, the original size is determined by combining the signals from the first and second detection means 8 and 15, and the transfer paper is selected according to the determination result, and the second The presence / absence of a signal from the detection means 15A on the placement reference end side of the detection means is determined to determine whether the original placement state is good or bad.

In this determination, it is determined that the original set is abnormal when the signal from the second detection means 15 is not output. In this case, the original set on the display unit 23 is proper. A signal is displayed to indicate that the copy operation is not performed, and a signal for prohibiting the execution of the copying operation is output to the image forming unit 24.

Therefore, as shown in Table 1, a map for determining the document size based on the types of signals from the first detecting means 8 and the second detecting means 15 is registered in the control section 19. There is.

[0056]

[Table 1]

On the other hand, in the controller 19, when the above-mentioned display signal and prohibition signal are output, when the operator opens and closes the pressure plate to correct the document set, the signal from the pressure plate opening / closing switch 20 is input. As a result, the original feeding on the original feeding / feeding device side is restarted, the prohibition signal is cleared, and the copying operation including the selection of the transfer paper according to the original size determined in Table 1 is performed. It is supposed to restart. The opening and closing of the pressure plate in this case is an operation for correcting the document placement state.If the pressure plate is opened after it is determined that the document placement is abnormal, the document placement state is corrected. You can judge that

In order to determine whether or not the document placement state has been corrected, for example, a timer built in the control unit 19 is used to measure the time. That is,
The time until the opening / closing signal of the thick plate is input is compared with a preset predetermined time, and it is detected that the opening / closing signal is not input until the predetermined time elapses. Therefore, in the control unit 19, when the opening / closing signal of the pressure plate is not input until the predetermined time elapses, the first,
Based on the information obtained by the second detecting means 8 and 15, the transfer paper size corresponding to the document size judged from Table 1 is selected and the copying operation is restarted.

Further, when the control section 19 outputs a signal for abnormal document setting and prohibition of copying operation, when the signal from the human body detecting means 22 is not input within a predetermined time after the signal is output. When the signal from the prohibition signal release switch 20 is input in advance,
The copying operation is not interrupted.

These processes are for determining whether or not the operator is far from the image forming apparatus. If it is determined that the operator is far from the image forming apparatus, the copying operation is interrupted when the prohibition signal is output, and the copying operation is stopped. Is implemented to prevent stagnation. It is needless to say that the copying operation is not interrupted when the signal from the human body detecting means 22 is input.

Then, in the control section 19, the interruption or continuation of the copying operation is set based on the signal from the optical sensor 18 for detecting the thickness.

For example, when copying a large number of originals, the copying operation is prevented from being interrupted when the operator leaves the image forming apparatus after placing the originals once. This is a process for avoiding a situation where the operation is delayed.

In this case, the thickness of the original is determined by the optical sensor 1.
It is obtained from the count value of 8, and the copy processing time predicted value is obtained by the following formula based on this count value.

Predicted value of copy processing time = Count value of original thickness × Number of copies × Process count However, process count: original size, copy mode (single-sided copy,
Correction value based on double-sided copying), presence / absence of stapling, scaling, etc.This predicted value is the document estimated from the thickness of each document loaded on the assumption that the thickness is average. This is an estimate of the time required to copy the number of sheets, and this estimated value is used to discriminate between large quantity copy and small quantity copy. When this product is equal to or greater than a preset predetermined value, it is determined that a large amount of copying is being performed, and the copying operation is not interrupted even if the copying operation prohibition signal is output. ing.

As a result, in the case of mass copying, if the operator leaves the image forming apparatus such as a copying machine after setting the original once, the copying operation is continued without interruption and the copying operation is delayed. Will be prevented.

Since this embodiment has the above-mentioned structure,
The procedure will be described with reference to the flowchart showing the operation of the control unit 19 as shown in FIG.

The parameters used in the flow chart shown in FIG. 6 have the following meanings.

RDFEIN: document feed signal (FEINF: document feed flag; 1 = document feed) RGSN: registration sensor for detecting arrival of the document just before the document transport unit (this is the document transport unit 4 The second detection means 15 arranged immediately before is used; ON = paper present SCSN: A signal from the detection means 15A on the mounting reference end side of the second detection means 15 (0 = detection signal) Is output,
It means that the original is set properly.) FRSTF: First original feeding flag (1 = feed start) STPTM: Copy operation prohibit timer PRNTF: Copy operation flag (1 = copy operation execution) First, control In the section 19, when the copy start switch is turned on, the document set is discriminated based on the input on the image forming apparatus side, the document is fed from the document feeder (hereinafter referred to as ADF) or manually fed. A determination is made as to whether or not it is a feed. Further, in accordance with this determination, in the case of the ADF mode, the flag of the mode is determined, and when each determination result is affirmative, it means that the document is fed from the document feeding device. FEINF) is set and the drive motor of the paper feeding unit 3 is operated.

When the registration sensor (second detecting means 15) is turned on, the driving of the drive motor of the sheet feeding section 3 is stopped. At this time, whether or not the first original has been fed is determined by a flag (FRSTF), and if the original is the first original, the drive motor of the transport unit 4 is driven to place it on the original table 9. Transport the original.

At the time of feeding the first original, whether or not the original is aligned at the loading reference edge is determined by a flag (SCSN) based on a signal from the second detecting means 15, and the original is aligned. If the signal from the registration sensor is cleared, the drive motor of the conveyance unit 4 is decelerated and stopped to place the original document on the original platen 9 to prepare for the reading process, and the original document feed flag (FEINF). ) Is reset.

On the other hand, when the second detecting means 15 determines that the originals are not aligned by the flag (SCSN), as shown in FIG. 7, the image forming unit 24 (see FIG.
It is registered in the storage unit in the control unit 19 as a copy operation prohibition signal used in the control (see). Further, if the presence or absence of a signal from the pressure plate opening / closing switch 20 is determined at this point and the signal is input, it is transmitted to the storage unit in the control unit 19 as a pressure plate opening / closing signal for controlling the image forming unit 24. It Therefore, the copying operation and the document feeding operation are restarted from this point.

When the first original is not fed, it is determined whether or not the drive motor in the transport unit 4 is driven, and thereafter, the placement state of the original is determined as in the case described above. After that, in the case where the document set is abnormal, a process for placing the document on the document table 9 is executed.

By the way, the control section 19 is adapted to control the drive state in the image forming section 24 based on the above-mentioned discrimination result, and the process is shown in FIG.

That is, in the control section 19, the determination of the original set on the original feeding apparatus 1 is made in accordance with the start of copying.
When the input from the copy start key is discriminated and both are affirmative, the copy operation flag (PRNTF) is set and the image forming process for copying is executed. In executing this process, the input determination from the prohibition signal release switch 21 of the copying operation, the human body detection unit 22 and the determination of the copying process prediction are performed.

In each of these judgments, in the case of a normal copying operation, a signal for executing the image forming process for this is output to the image forming section 24.

On the other hand, in each of the above-mentioned discrimination results, the prohibition signal release switch 21 is turned on so that the selection of the prohibition signal is not canceled, no signal is input from the human body detecting means 22, and the copying process is performed. If the value corresponding to the time in the actual copying operation with respect to the predicted time value does not reach the predetermined value, it is determined whether or not the inhibition signal release signal is input. A signal for displaying that is output to the display unit 23.

Further, in this state, the control unit 19 starts the time counting by the timer, and it is judged whether or not the predetermined time has been reached. If it is within this time, the signal from the pressure plate open / close switch 20 is not inputted. Determine if there is.

Then, when the signal from the pressure plate open / close switch 20 is input and when the timer has reached the predetermined time, the display on the display unit 23 is cleared. As a result, the ADF mode is automatically restored, and a signal is output to the image forming unit 24 so as to select the transfer sheet corresponding to the indexed document size and execute the copying operation. When these processes are executed, the copy operation flag (P
RNTF) is reset. In this case, although the original set is abnormal, the original size is determined based on a signal from any of the second detecting means 15, and then the copying operation is continued.

Therefore, when it is determined that the original set is not corrected within the predetermined time, it is determined that the operator is absent and the copying operation is automatically restarted. Therefore, the copying operation should be suspended for a long time. It is possible to avoid such a situation.

Such an operation is also applied when there is no signal from the human body detecting means 22 and when the manuscript is once placed and the operator leaves the place. For this case also, the estimated copying time mentioned above is applied. The predicted value corresponding to is compared with the predetermined time.

[0081]

As described above, according to the present invention, it is possible to detect the placed state of the document in accordance with the detection of the document size.

Further, according to the present invention, when the document placement state is not proper, the operator is warned and the document feed for copying is automatically performed when the placement state is corrected. Since it can be restarted automatically, the operator can quickly restart the copying, and the delay of the copying work can be minimized.

Further, according to the present invention, the copying continuation condition is discriminated even when the operator is away from the image forming apparatus despite the warning that the document placement state is abnormal. Since the copying operation is automatically executed, it is possible to prevent the delay of the copying operation by shortening the time from the time when the copying operation is interrupted until the copying operation is restarted.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a layout view showing an overall configuration of a document feeder according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a layout diagram showing a main part of the document feeding apparatus shown in FIG.

FIG. 3 is a plan view showing an arrangement configuration of first and second detection means in the main part shown in FIG.

FIG. 4 is a side view showing a configuration of a pressurizing unit in the main part shown in FIG.

5 is a block diagram for explaining a configuration of a control unit used in the document feeding apparatus shown in FIG.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart for explaining the operation of the control unit shown in FIG.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart for explaining another operation in the control unit shown in FIG.

8 is a flowchart for explaining another operation of the control unit shown in FIG.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 Document Feeding Device 2 Document Setting Unit 3 Paper Feeding Unit 4 Conveying Unit 7 Document Stacker 8 First Detecting Unit 9 Document Placement Table 15 Second Detecting Unit 15A Detecting Unit on Reference Side of Document Placement 16 Pressurizing Unit 18 Optical sensor 19 Control unit 20 Pressure plate opening / closing switch 21 Prohibition signal release switch 23 Display unit 24 Image forming unit

Claims (7)

[Claims] 1. An original setting unit for placing and setting an original, a conveying unit for conveying an original fed from a paper feeding unit to an image reading unit and reading an image, and conveying an original after reading. In a document feeding device having a carry-out section for re-stacking at a predetermined place, a first detecting means for detecting a movement of a fed document in the feeding direction and a length in a direction orthogonal to the document feeding direction. Size detecting means for detecting the size of the original conveyed from the original setting section by combining the detection signals from the first and second detecting means, and the size determining means. A size display means for displaying a determination signal from the one of the second detection means, and one of the second detection means is used as a means for detecting the placement state of the document, and detects a case where the placement state of the document is abnormal. Did The document feeding device and outputs a signal to alert the state. 2. The document feeder according to claim 1, wherein when the signal from the document placement reference position side of the second detection means is not output, it is determined that the document placement is not proper. A document feeding apparatus having means for outputting a signal for prohibiting execution of the copying process on the image forming apparatus side. 3. The document feeding apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the means for outputting a signal for prohibiting execution of the copying process on the image forming apparatus side is from the document placement reference position side of the second detecting means. A document feeding device that continues a display for correcting the document placement state when no signal is output until the state is corrected. 4. The document feeding apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the means for outputting the prohibition signal has a means for selecting whether to receive the prohibition signal at its input portion. . 5. A document feeding apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the means for outputting a signal for prohibiting execution of the copying process on the image forming apparatus side is mounted even after a certain period of time has elapsed with the prohibition signal being output. A document feeding device that outputs a transfer paper selection command according to the document size and restarts the copying operation when the placement state is not corrected. 6. The document feeding apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the means for outputting the prohibition signal comprises a human body detecting means near the image forming apparatus, and when the human body detecting means detects a human body, a copying operation is performed. A document feeding device that does not interrupt the copying operation even when the operator leaves the image forming apparatus in a state where the human body detecting unit does not detect the human body and does not accept the prohibition signal. 7. The document feeder according to claim 4, wherein the means for outputting the prohibition signal comprises a detection mechanism for detecting the stacking thickness of the document, and based on the expected number of documents detected by this detection mechanism. In executing the copying operation, when the prohibition signal is output without outputting the signal from the second detecting means, the time required for copying the above-mentioned estimated number of sheets is the number of copies input by the operator and the above-mentioned estimated number of sheets. A document feeding device that predicts the product and does not interrupt the copying operation when the predicted time is equal to or longer than a preset predetermined time.