JPH0720667A - Automatic manuscript feeder - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To obtain an automatic manuscript feeder capable of feeding an unprocessed manuscripts without obstructing a feeding path regardless of the thickness of the unprocessed manuscript by pressing the unprocessed manuscripts fed from a manuscript placing table. CONSTITUTION:While the manuscript does not exist on the manuscript placing table 3 and the automatic manuscript feeder is not operated, a recycling lever 13 hangs down as shown in the figure, and a recycling sensor RS is made to be in a light shielded state. On the other hand, when the automatic manuscript feeder is started to be operated in a state where the manuscript is placed, the lever 13 is rotated. Then, the lever 13 is placed on the final processed manuscript and the sensor RS is made to be in a light passing state. Every time the manuscript is processed, it is fed to be superposed on the lever 13. In such a case, a recycling motor functioning as a pressing means presses the lever 13 to press down the unprocessed manuscripts placed on the manuscript placing table 3, so that the unprocessed manuscript is fed without obstructing the feeding path even in the case the unprocessed manuscript which is placed is thick.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an automatic document feeder capable of automatically feeding and placing a document on a document exposure section of an image forming apparatus.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, for example, a circulation type automatic document feeder (RDF) has been used as this type of apparatus.
This apparatus sequentially separates a bundle of documents set on a document placing table from the lowest document one by one, conveys and places them on an exposure unit of an image forming apparatus such as a copying machine, and after the exposure is completed, the documents are again reproduced. Is returned to the original placing table. This operation is configured so that a desired cycle can be repeated, with one cycle being repeated for the number of original sheets.

[0003]

As described above, the conventional automatic document feeder is provided with the recycle lever for separating the unprocessed document and the processed document. Further, in recent years, the functions of copying machines have improved, and large-sized paper may be folded as post-processing for copy paper, and more and more machines use the copy paper as a document.

However, when the paper folded by the above process is used as an original, when the original is drawn from the original stacking section to the conveyance path, the recycle lever is flipped up at the folded portion, and the original not processed. Since it is impossible to distinguish between the processed document and the document after the process, there is a possibility of causing a malfunction.

Further, when the leading edge of the discharged original collides with the recycle lever, it may slip under the recycle lever in some cases. Therefore, it is judged that the processed original is unprocessed and an excessive copy is made. There was a problem that the page order would come when it circulated.

Further, in the case of a rolled original, the trailing edge is curled with respect to the conveying direction, and when conveyed at high speed, the curl portion becomes a large jump and the recycle lever is flipped up, resulting in malfunction. There were also problems such as reaching.

The present invention has been made in order to solve the above-mentioned problems, and by pressing an unprocessed original conveyed from the original stacking table, the original is conveyed to the original conveyance path regardless of the thickness state of the unprocessed original. It is an object of the present invention to provide an automatic document feeder that can convey documents without any trouble.

[0008]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An automatic document feeder according to the present invention comprises a partitioning means for partitioning an unprocessed original and an unprocessed original transported from an original stacking table, and a partitioning means for urging the partitioning means. And a pressing means for pressing the unprocessed document in the mounting direction.

[0009]

According to the present invention, since the pressing means presses the partition means to hold the unprocessed original document placed on the original document loading table, even if the placed unprocessed original document is thick, It is possible to carry the paper on the carrying path without any trouble.

[0010]

【Example】

[First Embodiment] FIG. 1 is a sectional view showing an example of an automatic document feeder according to the first embodiment of the present invention, which corresponds to the case of being applied to a copying machine M, for example. The configuration and operation will be described below.

A circulating automatic document feeder (RDF) 1
Is arranged on the platen 2 of the copying machine M, and the document stacking section 3
Documents S loaded on the platen are automatically and sequentially one by one.
The original S is conveyed to the upper side, the original S is exposed on the platen 2, and the image of the original S is copied by the copying machine M. Also, this RD
F1 also serves as a pressure plate for bringing the document S into close contact with the platen 2 in the so-called book mode in which the document S is manually placed on the platen 2 for copying.

The document S stacked on the document stacking unit 3 is sent to the separating means 5 by the paper feed roller 4 and rotates in the transport direction (arrow direction in the figure) and the separation transport roller 5a and document return direction (arrow direction in the figure). ) Is rotated by the separation belt 5b,
The lowest document S is sequentially separated one by one and sent out to the conveyance path I. The document S sent to the transport path I passes through the registration rollers 6 and the transport path II, and then the transport rollers 7a, 7a.
b, the transport belt 7c, and the transport means 7 including the pressing roller rows 16a to 16d for the transport belt 7c.
It is fed to the predetermined position above.

Then, the exposed document S is sent out to the transport path III by the rotation of the transport belt 7c in the direction opposite to that at the time of feeding, and the flapper 9 is provided by the reversing roller 8. It is sent to the branching unit 10. Here, when the flapper 9 is at the solid line position in the figure, the original S
Is discharged onto the document stacking section 3 by the discharge roller 11 via the conveyance path IV. On the other hand, when the flapper 9 is at the position in the figure, the document S sent to the branching section 10 is re-fed on the platen 2 via the reversing path 12.

Here, three single-sided originals S1, S2, S3
The flow will be described with reference to FIG.

FIG. 2 is a view for explaining the circulation state of the document fed from the document stacking section 3 shown in FIG. 1. The same parts as those in FIG. 1 are designated by the same reference numerals.

As shown in this figure, the lowest document S
The sheets are sequentially fed and stored again from 3, and one set of processing is performed by performing the operation shown in FIG. 2 once, and a desired number of copies can be processed by repeating the required number of times.

Further, the original stacking section 3 includes a recycling lever 13 for separating the original S from the original before and after the processing.
A paper feed stopper 14 and a weight 15 are provided. The paper feed stopper 14 is located at the solid line position to set the leading edge of the document when the document S is set, and is moved to the broken line position when the document is fed. When there are few documents S on the document stacking unit 3, the weight 15 moves from the solid line position to the broken line position and presses the document S against the paper feed roller 4 to improve the feeding force of the paper feed roller 4.

3 and 4 are views for explaining the operating state of the recycle lever 13 shown in FIG. 1, and the same parts as those in FIG. 1 are designated by the same reference numerals.

As shown in FIG. 3A, the original stacking section 3
When there is no document in RDF1 and the RDF 1 is not operating, the recycle lever 13 hangs downward as shown in FIG. 4, and the recycle sensor RS is in a light shielding state. On the other hand, when documents S are stacked, as shown in FIG.
When the RDF 1 starts operating, the recycle lever 13 is rotated in the arrow direction. Along with this, the recycle lever 13 is placed on the final processed document, and the recycle sensor RS is in the light-transmitting state at this time. Each time a document is processed, it is carried out so as to be stacked on the recycle lever 13. When the final processed document is drawn from the document stacking section 3 into the transport path, the recycle lever 13 drops down and hangs down again.
S is in a light shielding state. At this time, the RDF 1 can detect that the document has circulated once.

As described above, in the automatic document feeder according to the present invention, since the rotating shaft of the recycle lever 13 is connected to the drive shaft of the recycle motor RM, the recycle motor RM as the pressing means is operated by the recycle lever 13 (partitioner). Means) to push in the unprocessed original document placed on the original document stacking section 3, so that even if the unprocessed original document placed is thick, it can be conveyed to the original document conveyance path without any trouble. Is possible. In this embodiment, the recycle motor RM is used.
However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the same effect can be obtained as long as the recycle lever 13 is pressed in the document mounting surface direction by means of a solenoid or the like. Play.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram illustrating the control configuration of the RDF 1 shown in FIG.

In the figure, 31 is a CPU, ROM, RA
A one-chip microcomputer including M (which functions as the control means of this embodiment) controls the drive of the motor, brake, solenoid, etc. based on the inputs of various sensors, switches, etc.

As shown in this figure, a recycle sensor RS for detecting the state of the recycle lever 13 is input to the input port I1 of the microcomputer 31, and a separation sensor S5 for detecting the separation state is input to the input port I5. Port I2
.. to I4 are the original detection sensor S1, the registration sensor S2, and the paper discharge sensor S3, respectively.
Connected via P4, A / D channel A / D
Outputs of the original detection sensor S1, the registration sensor S2, and the paper discharge sensor S3 are directly connected to 2 to A / D4.

Further, lock release (interlocking) type triple switches SW1 to SW3 are used as the transport condition selection means for selecting the transport mode of the originals at the input ports I6 to I8.
Are connected.

Then, the output ports O1 to O1 of the microcomputer 31
A recycling motor RM for driving the recycling lever 13, a weight solenoid WSL for driving a weight (weight) 15 and a separation motor M1 for driving the separating means 5 are connected to O3 through drivers D1 to D3, respectively, and output port O4 , O5 is connected to a belt motor M2 for driving the conveying means 7 and the registration rollers 6 via a forward / reverse circuit. At the output ports O6 to O10, the conveyance motor M3 that drives the reversing roller 8, the flapper solenoid FSL that drives the flapper 9, the electromagnetic brake BK for more surely stopping the registration roller 6 and the conveyance belt 7c, the jogging solenoid JOGSL, and the feed. Stopper solenoid STPS for driving the paper stopper 14
Each of L is connected via drivers D6 to D10. Further, the output port O11 is connected with a roller up solenoid UPSL for lowering the pressing roller in the entire belt via the driver D11. The microcomputer 31 functions as a control unit that controls the conveyance of the document S, and at the same time, a conveyance condition selection unit (mode 1 switch S).
W1, Mode 2 switch SW2, Mode 3 switch SW
Based on the information from 3), it also functions as a document transportation control unit that appropriately changes the transportation conditions of the document S.

FIG. 6 is a recycle lever 1 shown in FIG.
It is a figure which shows an example of the drive control circuit of FIG.

In the figure, PD is a photodiode,
An optical signal is detected by the phototransistor TR1 according to the position of the recycle lever 13. R1 to R13 are resistors. C1 and C2 are capacitors, TR2 to TR4 are transistors, D1 and D2 are diodes, and FF is a flip-flop. The operation of the circuit shown in FIG. 6 will be described below with reference to the timing chart shown in FIG.

FIG. 7 is a timing chart for explaining the operation of the drive control circuit shown in FIG.

First, when the power is turned on, in the initial state, the recycle lever 13 is in a suspended state as shown in FIG. 4, and the recycle sensor RS detects the "H" level state. After the document is placed on the document stacking unit 3, the RD is activated by an operation start signal from the copying machine M.
F1 activates the recycle motor RM and places the recycle lever 13 on the placed original in order to distinguish the original before and after the original. At this time, since the output of the recycle sensor RS is in the “L” level state, the microcomputer 31 catches the state in which the output of the recycle sensor RS changes from the “H” level to the “L” level and turns off the recycle motor signal. However, since the recycle motor drive signal latched by the flip-flop FF remains ON, the recycle motor RM remains energized, and the document is held by the recycle lever 13. Next, the originals are conveyed one after another from the bottom of the originals placed on the original stacking unit 3, and after the processing, the originals are sequentially stacked on the recycling lever 13. Then, at the moment when the final document is sent to the conveyance path, the recycle lever 13 falls downward, and the output of the recycle sensor RS becomes the “H” level state. Since the clear pulse CLR is input to the flip-flop FF during this period, the output of the flip-flop FF is inverted from the “H” level to the “L” level, the recycle motor drive signal is turned off, and the recycle motor RM is stopped. [Second Embodiment] FIG. 8 is a diagram for explaining the configuration of a recycle lever control circuit in an automatic document feeder according to a second embodiment of the present invention. The same parts as those in FIG. 6 are designated by the same reference numerals. There is.

In the figure, TR11 to TR14 are transistors, R11 to R15 are resistors, C11 is a capacitor, and D11 is a diode.

In the reset state, the transistor TR1
Since 2 is in the off state, at this time, the recycle motor RM and the resistor R are provided in the base of the transistor TR11.
A base current flows through 14 and is turned on. This base current is a minute current required to turn on the phototransistor TR1 and does not reach the rotation of the recycle motor RM. When the reset is released, the microcomputer 31
When a motor-on signal of a constant width is transmitted from the transistor TR13, the transistor TR13 switches from the off state to the on state, and the base-emitter voltage of the transistor TR11 becomes approximately 0 volt, and the transistor TR13 is in the off state. When the transistor TR11 is turned off, the transistor R12 has a resistor R
A base current flows through 11 and R12, the transistor TR12 is turned on, and the recycle motor RM starts rotating. With the transistor TR12 turned on,
Since the base voltage of the transistor TR11 becomes substantially equal to the collector voltage (zero volt) of the transistor TR12, the transistor TR11 maintains the off state. At this time, the recycle lever 13 that works in conjunction with the recycle motor RM is in a state of pressing the document on the document stacking unit 3. When the last document partitioned by the recycle lever 13 is conveyed toward the conveyance path, the recycle lever 13 turns the recycle sensor RS (detected as a photointerrupter in this embodiment) from the ON state to the OFF state. At this time, a rising current differentiated by the capacitor C11 flows through the base of the transistor TR14, turning on the transistor TR14. When the transistor TR14 is turned on, the base-emitter voltage of the transistor TR12 is close to 0 volt and turned off, so that the transistor TR11 is turned on. When the transistor TR12 switches from the on state to the off state, the generated current of the recycle motor RM is generated by the resistor R11,
The recycle motor RM is stopped by being discharged through the transistor TR11 and the diode D11. [Third Embodiment] FIG. 9 is a view for explaining the structure of a recycle lever control circuit in an automatic document feeder according to a third embodiment of the present invention. The same parts as those in FIG. 6 are designated by the same reference numerals. is there. In the figure, R21 to R25 are resistors and TR
21 to TR24 are transistors, D21 is a diode,
PI is a photo interrupter including an LED and a photo transistor. The operation will be described below with reference to the timing chart of FIG. The optical axis of the photo interrupter PI is configured not to be blocked.

Immediately after the power is turned on, the reset output RST is output from the reset circuit (not shown), so that the transistor TR24 is turned on and the transistor TR23 is turned off. Therefore, the transistor TR2 is turned on.
1 is in the ON state, and no current is supplied to the light emitting (LED) side of the photo interrupter PI. At this time, since the optical axis of the photo interrupter PI is not shielded, no current flows through the base of the transistor TR22, and the recycle motor RM is in the off state.

Next, when the motor-on signal (ON) is output from the microcomputer 31 after the reset is released as shown in FIG. 10, the base of the transistor TR21 is turned on.
The emitters have the same potential and are turned off. When the transistor TR21 is turned off, the photo interrupter P
Since a current flows through the LED of I to emit light, and the optical axis of the photo interrupter PI is not shielded, a current flows through the base of the transistor TR22 and the transistor TR2
2 is turned on, the recycle motor RM rotates,
The original document on the original document stacking section 3 is continuously pressed. When the transistor TR22 is turned on, the collector output of the transistor TR22 becomes "L" level at that time, and the microcomputer 31 detects that the recycle lever 13 continues to hold the document. Further, when the recycle lever 13 continues to hold the document, the optical axis of the photo interrupter PI remains in a state where it is not shielded.

Next, when the last document partitioned by the recycle lever 13 is conveyed toward the conveyance path, the recycle lever 13 is rotated again to block the optical axis of the photo interrupter PI for a moment. At this moment, the transistor TR22 is switched from the ON state to the OFF state, and the drive to the recycle motor RM is cut off. At the same time, the base current flows to the base of the transistor TR21 through the resistor R23 and the recycle motor RM, and thus the transistor TR22 is turned on. . In addition, this base current is a weak current required to turn on the transistor TR21, and the recycle motor RM does not rotate.

Further, as described above, the light blocking of the optical axis of the photo interrupter PI is momentary, and after the light blocking, the light transmitting state is restored again.
LED of photo interrupter PI is turned on.
Current does not flow into the recycle motor RM, and the recycle motor RM maintains the stopped state.

[0036]

As described above, according to the present invention, since the pressing means presses the partition means to press the unprocessed original document placed on the original document loading table, the unprocessed original document placed is thick. Even a document can be conveyed to the document conveyance path without any trouble.

Therefore, even if the original is a little thick or a folded original, the original can be repeatedly conveyed as many times as possible without causing an original feeding jam, which is an excellent effect.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional configuration diagram showing an example of an automatic document feeder according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a circulating state of a document fed from the document stacking unit shown in FIG.

FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an operating state of the recycling lever shown in FIG.

FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an operating state of the recycling lever shown in FIG.

5 is a block diagram illustrating a control configuration of the RDF shown in FIG.

6 is a diagram showing an example of a drive control circuit for the recycle lever shown in FIG.

7 is a timing chart explaining the operation of the drive control circuit shown in FIG.

FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of a recycle lever control circuit in an automatic document feeder according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of a recycle lever control circuit in an automatic document feeder according to a third embodiment of the present invention.

10 is a timing chart illustrating the operation of the drive control circuit shown in FIG.

[Explanation of symbols]

 3 Document Loading Section 13 Recycle Lever 31 Microcomputer RM Recycle Motor RS Recycle Sensor

 ─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of the front page (72) Inventor Yuji Morishige 3-30-2 Shimomaruko, Ota-ku, Tokyo Canon Inc.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A document stacking table for transporting each document separated from a document group placed on a document stacking table to a predetermined position in the stacking order and stopping the document, and transporting the document stopped at the predetermined position. In an automatic document feeder which is re-transportable and placed on top, a partition means for partitioning an unprocessed original document and an after-processed original document transported from the document stacking table, and the processing partitioning by urging the partitioning means. An automatic document feeder, comprising: a pressing unit that presses the front document in the mounting direction.