JPH09166832A - Copying device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a copying device capable of effectively dealing with such the situation that a corresponding document group does not exist although a copying condition is previously inputted. SOLUTION: The document group placed on the document tray of an automatic document feeder is fed one by one so as to be copied. A copying mode corresponding to the document group can be previously stored in the RAM of a CPU. In the case of judging at an S20 that the following document group exists, the copying mode stored in the RAM is set at an S21, then, a copying operation is executed(YES at S32, S33). In the case the following document group does not exist, the copying mode is not set(NO at S20), and the copying operation is inhibited(NO at S32, S34). When the document group is placed on the tray(YES at S27) although the following document group does not exist, the copying mode stored in the RAM is set(S30), then, the copying operation is enabled(YES at S32, S33).

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an electrophotographic copying machine, and more particularly to a control mechanism for a copying machine equipped with an automatic document feeder and a sorter.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Recently, in response to a demand for automation of paper handling during copying, an automatic document feeder (hereinafter referred to as ADF) for automatically feeding stacked originals one by one, sorting of copied sheets Various peripheral devices such as a sorter for performing grouping have been developed and put into practical use.

As the demand for automation of copying increases, copying conditions corresponding to a plurality of document groups are input in advance, and a plurality of document groups are automatically copied under the corresponding conditions by one print start. A copying system equipped with a multi-job function has been put into practical use. However, in the conventional multi-job function, it is premised that a document group corresponding to the input copy condition exists, and control is not performed assuming that there is no corresponding document group. As a control close to this, the number of originals is input in advance, and if the number of originals provided for copying after execution of copying is different from the input number, it is considered that some abnormality has occurred and a warning is issued to that effect. There is.

In view of the above circumstances, it is an object of the present invention to provide a copying apparatus capable of effectively dealing with a case where a corresponding original group does not exist even if copying conditions are inputted in advance.

[0005]

In order to achieve the above object, a copying apparatus according to the present invention is provided with a storage means for storing copying conditions inputted in advance corresponding to a plurality of original groups, and an automatic original conveying apparatus. Detecting means for detecting the presence / absence of a document group on the document tray, and when the document group is not in the document tray even though the copy condition is stored in the storage means, the copying operation is prohibited and the document tray is And a control unit for calling and setting the copy condition stored in the storage unit according to the placement of the original group on the document.

[0006]

In the present invention, the copy condition is input for each document group and stored in the storage means. On the other hand, the detection means detects the presence or absence of a document group on the document tray of the automatic document feeder,
If there is a document group, the control means executes the copying operation based on the stored copying conditions. The control means prohibits the copying operation if the original group is not on the original tray even if the copying conditions are stored in the storage means. On the other hand, when a document group is placed on the document tray, the copy condition stored in the storage means is called and set. In this case, the copying operation may be automatically started under the set copying conditions, or the copying operation may be started based on the input of the copying start signal by the operator. In the latter case, the operator is provided with a margin to reexamine the correspondence between the document group and the set copying conditions.

[0007]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Embodiments of a copying apparatus according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

(Overall structure and operation of copying machine, see FIG. 1)
A photoconductor drum 1 is rotatably supported in a substantially central portion of the copying machine main body 100 in a direction of an arrow a in the figure, and an eraser lamp 2, a charging charger 3, an image end / inter-image eraser 4 are provided around the photoconductor drum 1. A developing device 6, a transfer charger 7, a separation charger 8 and a cleaning device 9 are sequentially arranged. The photosensitive drum 1 has a photosensitive layer on the surface,
This photoconductor layer is uniformly charged by passing through the eraser lamp 2 and the charging charger 3, and is subjected to image exposure from the scanning optical system 10 through the slit portion 5 to form an electrostatic latent image on the surface thereof. . Image end / inter-image eraser 4
Has a plurality of light emitting diodes arranged in the image width direction, and removes unnecessary charges on the surface of the photosensitive drum 1 during image formation.

The optical system 10 is arranged below the platen glass 16 so that the original image can be scanned.
And movable mirrors 11, 12, and 13, a lens 14, and a mirror 15. The exposure lamp 17 and the movable mirror 11 have a peripheral velocity v of the photosensitive drum 1 (equal magnification.
The movable mirrors 12 and 13 are integrated at a speed of v / 2 m so that they move integrally in the direction of arrow b at a speed of v / m (however, m: copy magnification) relative to a constant speed regardless of the magnification change. To arrow b
It is driven by the scan motor M3 so as to move in the direction. When changing the copy magnification, the stepping motor M4 moves the lens 14 along the optical axis and the mirror 15 moves and swings to correct the optical path length. , It is already known in principle. Regarding the control of the scanning speed of the optical system 10, the control of changing the rotational speed of the scan motor M3 is performed according to the preselected copy magnification data, which is well known and a specific control method or the like. Will not be described.

The copy paper is provided by an automatic paper feed mechanism 20 having two upper and lower cassette mounting portions provided on the left side of the copying machine main body 100 in the figure, or a manual paper feed mechanism 30 provided above the automatic paper feed mechanism 20.
Is fed into the machine by the timing roller pair 21, is temporarily stopped by the timing roller pair 21, is then fed to the transfer portion in synchronism with the image formed on the surface of the photosensitive drum 1, and the transfer charger 7 receives the transfer of the toner image. , The conveyor belt 22 separated from the surface of the photosensitive drum 1 by the separation charger 8.
To the fixing device 23, the image is fixed, and the discharge roller pair 24 causes a predetermined bin 3 of the sorter 300 described in detail below.
It is discharged to 01. This discharge is performed by the sheet detection switch 37.
It is detected by. Further, the key counter KC operates at the timing of feeding the copy paper and the total counter TC operates at the timing of discharge, and "1" is added as the count value of the number of copying operations.

After the transfer, the photosensitive drum 1 is cleaned by the cleaning device 9 and the eraser 2 to remove the toner and charges remaining on its surface, and is ready for the next copying process.

Automatic paper feed mechanism 20 and manual paper feed mechanism 30
Either one is selectively used. In the case of automatic sheet feeding, the image forming system including the photoconductor drum 1 is started by operating the print key 71 (see FIG. 3) that starts the copying operation of the copying machine 100, and the process at the time of pre-driving the photoconductor drum 1 is performed. When the processing is completed, the paper feed roller 25 or 26 is driven, the drive of the optical system 10 is started by the scan start signal output along with the conveyance of the copy paper, and the copying machine is fed in synchronization with the image forming operation. A few copy sheets are pushed out by the rotation of the paper feed roller 25 or 26,
Only the uppermost one sheet is delivered by the next-stage separating mechanism 27, 27 '.

In the separating mechanism 27, 27 ', the upper rollers 27a, 27a' are in the feeding direction, and the lower rollers 27b, 27a 'are in the feeding direction.
27b 'are rotationally driven in the push-back direction in the directions of the arrows shown in the figure. The second and subsequent copy sheets extruded together with the uppermost copy sheet by the paper feed rollers 25 or 26 are pushed back by the lower rollers 27b and 27b ', and only the uppermost copy sheet is the next intermediate roller pair 28. Or 28 '
Sent out to. The pair of intermediate rollers 28, 28 '
As will be described later, the drive is controlled in association with the next-stage timing roller pair 21.

On the other hand, in the case of manual feeding, when a copy sheet is inserted from the manual feeding table 31 into the manual insertion slot 32 and the sensor 34 detects it, the manual feeding roller 33 rotates to copy the copy sheet. After being fed into the machine, the driving of the photosensitive drum 1 and the like is started at the same time as or at a slight delay, similarly to the operation of the print key 71. Then, the manually fed copy paper is temporarily stopped by the detection unit of the copy paper leading edge detection switch 35 and stands by, and when the pre-driving process including the rotation of the photosensitive drum 1 is completed, the paper feed roller 33 is rotated again, By this, it is sent into the plane.

The manual feed table 31 is detachable from the main body of the copying machine.
In place of the above, a general-purpose paper feeding unit having a paper feeding motor, a paper feeding roller and the like can be mounted, and thereby, a function equivalent to that having a three-stage automatic paper feeding unit is provided. be able to.

In addition, size detecting switches SW11 to SW14 and S are provided in each cassette mounting portion of the automatic paper feeding mechanism 20.
A cassette 9 in which W21 to SW24 are provided and mounted
The operation state of the switch is changed by the arrangement of the protrusions or magnets (not shown) provided at 1, 92, and the size of the loaded copy paper is determined by a 4-bit binary code. As described above, many mechanisms are already known for discriminating the copy paper size by using the cassette containing the copy paper, and a detailed description thereof will be omitted.

(Structure and operation of automatic document feeder, see FIG. 1 and FIG. 2) On the other hand, the copying machine main body 100 is provided with an automatic document feeder 200 (hereinafter referred to as ADF) on the upper part thereof and makes a copy in cooperation with each other. You can take action. This ADF
The reference numeral 200 indicates a document feeding unit 201 that feeds documents one by one and feeds the documents one by one by a conveyor belt 205 on the upper surface of the platen glass 16 and stops at a predetermined position on the glass 16 surface. And a document transport unit 202 that sends the document onto the discharge tray 204 after scanning the document. The document feeder 202 can be used alone as a manual feeder for manual feeding, and can be opened and closed with respect to the copying machine main body 100 so as to expose the original platen glass 16 in a state of being mounted on the copying machine main body 100. It is possible and can be used in the same way as a normal original cover.

A magnet (not shown) is installed in the main body 100 of the copying machine. When the original conveying section 202 is closed, the switch OSW which is a reed switch is turned on by sensing the magnet, and turned off when released. This switch O
When the SW is turned on, the control of the ADF 200 and the control of the copying machine main body 100 are associated with each other, and the operation mode of the copying machine main body 100 can be switched to the ADF mode. ADF
What is the mode? When the ADF start key 401 (see FIG. 4) is operated, the ADF 200 starts operating while the copying machine main body 100 is kept in the standby state, and the lowermost one of the sheets placed on the document tray 203. Document is fed along the upper surface of the platen glass 16 and stopped at a predetermined position.
A start signal is output from the F200 to the copying machine main body 100 to start the above-described copying operation. When the final scanning movement of the optical system 10 with respect to the original document is completed, an operating signal is output from the copying machine main body 100 to the ADF 200. , The document is discharged onto the discharge tray 204. At this time, the next original is also conveyed to a predetermined position.

The fact that the original is on the original tray 203 means that
It is detected by the document empty sensor ES. While the document empty sensor ES detects that there is a document, copying is continuously performed in the ADF mode. In addition, the documents fed one by one are detected by the document detection sensor S.
It is detected by SW.

Further, the ADF 200 has means for automatically detecting the size of the original. That is, FIG. 2 shows AD
The main part of the document carry-in section of F200 is shown, and a document sensor 201 for detecting the sheet document D and identifying its size,
A specific example of the arrangement relationship of 211 is shown. This example is a specific example in which the reference position of the conveying device for the sheet document D and the optical system 10 is set at the center thereof (the center in the direction perpendicular to the conveying direction), and the reference position is indicated by a chain line C. .

The document sensors 210 and 211 are general reflection type photo sensors each having a light emitting element and a light receiving element as a set, and the light from the light emitting element is reflected by the document fed from the document tray 203. And enters the light receiving element, and the output of the light receiving element changes to detect the presence of the document D.

The document sensor 210 is provided on the reference line C and detects the document regardless of the size of the document D being conveyed. The document sensor 211 is
Provided at a distance X ₁ in the width direction (the conveying direction and perpendicular direction) of the document D, the size of the document D being conveyed, there is the case and when not to detect this. In order to identify the size of a sheet original, a timer t counts a pulse signal of a predetermined pitch when the original is detected by the sensor 210 so that a predetermined relationship is established between the number of pulses and the actual length. Thus, the length of the document in the transport direction can be determined.

This timer count value and the sensor 211
The size of the original is identified by the detection status signal of
In this embodiment, the calculation of the optimum copy size is executed at the same time. That is, the size of the cut sheet used in Japan is roughly classified into A row and B row defined by JIS (Japanese Industrial Standard). For example, the short side of A4 sheet is A.
5 has the same length as the long side of the sheet, and the short side of A5 is A6.
Sheet has the same length as the long side of the sheet, and the area is sequentially halved.
The long side of column 6 has the same length. On the other hand, in a general copying machine, the sheet size of A3 is often set to the maximum copying size. Therefore, since the platen glass of the copying machine is set to a size that matches the vertical feeding size of A3, The sheets A3 and B4 can be fed only in the vertical direction, and these two types can be identified only by detecting the length in the feeding direction. However, since other sizes are used in the vertical feed and in the horizontal feed, it may not be possible to identify the size only by detecting the length in the feed direction. For example, in the A4 horizontal feed, the length t is determined by the timer t, but this alone cannot be distinguished from the A5 vertical feed. Similarly, the A5 horizontal feed can be the A6 vertical feed and the B5 horizontal feed. Feed cannot be distinguished from B6 vertical feed.

Therefore, in this embodiment, the sensor 2
11 is installed so as to detect a sheet at a position separated by a distance X ₁ from the center position which is the reference of document conveyance, and all the sizes of the conveyed sheet can be identified including the vertical feed and the horizontal feed. The table below shows an example of the combination of the sheet size from A row No. 3 to B row No. 6 including vertical feed and horizontal feed, the count value of the timer t, and the sensor 21.
1 shows the relationship between ON and OFF of 1.

[0025]

[Table 1]

In the table, the sensor 211 is 74 mm <X
It is provided at a position satisfying ₁ <105 mm. In the combination example shown in the table, as described above, A3 and B4 can be identified only by the count value of the timer t. Similarly, when A4 and B5 are fed in the vertical direction and A6 and B6 are fed in the horizontal direction, if the original is a standard cut sheet, it can be identified only by the count value of the timer t. Therefore, the sensor 21 does not have a size corresponding to the count value of the timer t.
If the detection position is set such that the output state of 1 is different between the large size and the small size, it is possible to identify all sizes including the relationship between the vertical feed and the horizontal feed.

Therefore, as seen from the above table, the maximum size at which the sensor 211 is turned off is the case of A5 vertical feed, and the distance from the central reference position C at that time is 74 mm, so the condition of 74 mm <X ₁ is satisfied. Is satisfied, and the minimum size at which the sensor 211 is turned on is in the case of A5 lateral feed, which satisfies the condition of X ₁ <105 mm. In addition,
The size of each sheet shown in the above table is a reference value and actually has an error of about ± 1 mm, and this error must be taken into consideration when setting the count value of the timer t and the distance X _1. . Further, in the case where the conveyance of the document is based on one side of the sheet passage, that is, one side reference, the distance X ₂ (not shown) from the reference side of the sensor 211 is not as shown in the above table in Japan. In order to identify a commonly used sheet, the condition of 148 mm <X ₂ <210 mm should be satisfied.

As described above, when the size of the original is identified by the count value of the timer t and the output state of the sensor 211, the size of the original is stored in the memory in the microcomputer. The optimum copy paper size is determined by the copy magnification data selected and stored by the user. The description of the optimum copy paper size selection mechanism here is omitted. As the document size detecting means, various means such as a method of reading the size of the document by a sensor provided in the optical system 10 can be considered.

(Detection of Document Group Boundary) In the ADF 200 having the above configuration, the boundary between a plurality of document groups can be determined by inserting a partition sheet having a size different from the document size between the document groups. Is. This judgment is the manuscript 1
Each time the size of a sheet is detected, the size is stored in the microcomputer and compared with the size detected next. If they are different, it is determined that it is the boundary of the document group. In this case, when the first document of the next document group is fed, the document is also determined to have a different size from the partition sheet previously detected. However, if it is determined that two sheets have different sizes in succession, in this case, it is determined that it is the first sheet of the originals of the next group, and it is not determined that it is the original group boundary. Therefore, AD
The F200 is equipped with a counter that automatically counts the number of documents. It should be noted that although there is no comparison target for the sheet detected immediately after the operation of the ADF 200 is set to be a star, all the sheets are processed as an original.

By the way, as partition sheets of different sizes, for example, the following sheets can be used. (1) When the document group is the A-row, insert the B-row sheets. (2) When the original group is the A-row, a sheet having a width of A-row and a length of B-row is inserted. This is because the width of the partition sheet may not be regulated by the side guide plate and may skew when the width of the partition sheet is shorter than that of the document when the document is conveyed with the central reference as in the present embodiment. This is because only the dimensions match the original.

(3) When the original group is the row A, the unused sheets of the row A are inserted. For example, A
The A3 sheet is inserted as a partition with respect to the A4 document group, or the A4 size is horizontally inserted with respect to the A4 longitudinally fed document group. (4) A special notch is provided for a sheet of the same size as the original group. By delaying the on timing of the size detection sensor 211, it is detected that the sizes are substantially different.

The specific control of the document group boundary detection will be described with reference to the flow chart below together with the operation control of the sorter 300.

(Structure and Operation of Sorter, See FIG. 1) The sorter 300 is mounted in the copied sheet discharging portion of the copying machine main body 100, and the discharged sheets are distributed and stored in the bins 301. As for the bins 301, 10 bins are installed by being divided into upper and lower groups.

Specifically, the sheet carry-in section is the main body 1 of the copying machine.
00 is configured by a pair of upper and lower carry-in guide plates 302 facing the discharge roller pair 24, a carry-in roller pair 303, and a deflection claw 304. The deflecting claw 304 is rotatable around a pin 305 as a fulcrum, and distributes the sheet discharged from the copying machine main body 100 to the upper first group bin 301 or the lower second group bin 301. The upper and lower sides of the sheet conveying unit include guide plates 310 and 310, a pair of conveying rollers 311,
311, swing guide plates 312 and 312, and discharge roller pairs 313 and 313. Discharge roller pair 3
13 and 313 are each bottles 30 installed in 10 stages
The sheet can be moved to the position where the sheet is fed to the sheet 1 at every step, and in conjunction with this movement, the swing guide plates 312, 31
2 swings around the pair of conveying rollers 311 and 311 as a fulcrum, and the interval between the bin 301 into which the sheet is fed and the bin 301 one step above the bin 301 is widened. Discharge roller pair 3
The movement of 13, 313 is performed by a spiral cam, and the adjustment of the corresponding bin intervals is performed by a combination of a floating cam having a notch formed in one part and a trunnion provided on both sides of each bin 301.

Further, the sorter 300 includes transmissive photosensors 320a and 320a each including a light emitting element and a light receiving element.
b, 321a, 321b are installed. Sensor 32
0a and 320b are sheet discharge roller pairs 313 and 313.
It is detected that the sheets are discharged one by one to the bins 301 of the first group and the second group, and the sensors 321a and 321b detect the presence or absence of sheets on the bin 301 for each of the first group and the second group.

(Sorter operation mode) The sorter 300 having the above-described structure can basically accommodate sheets in three modes (non-sort mode, sort mode, and grouping mode), and the upper bin group. , The operation mode as two sorters divided into the lower bin group is added as a variation. Further, these various operation modes are also controlled according to the detection of the partition sheet by the ADF 200.

The non-sort mode is a mode in which all discharged sheets are stored in the uppermost bin 301 of the first group. The sort mode is a mode in which the copy sheets of one original are sequentially distributed one by one to the bins 301 corresponding to the number of copies, and page alignment is performed. The grouping mode is a mode in which the copy sheets of one original are sequentially distributed to the bins 301 by the number of copies.

In both the sorting mode and the grouping mode, the upper bins are distributed to the lower bins. Therefore, at the start of the operation of the sorter 300, as shown by the dotted line in FIG. 1, each bin 301 is set at the home position facing the uppermost bin 301 of the upper and lower groups. When all the upper bins 301 are used, the lower bin 301 is used next. It functions as a 20-bin sorter as a whole.

On the other hand, this sorter 300 can be used in such a manner that the upper bin group and the lower bin group are separately provided as if two 10-bin sorters are installed. Hereinafter, such an operation mode is referred to as a dual mode. For example,
The two document groups can be sorted by the upper bin group for the first document group and the lower bin group for the second document group. In addition, 3
If the sheet is removed from the bin group that has already been distributed for the above document group, the copy sheet of the next document group is distributed to the bin group, and the sorting operation can be performed endlessly.

Further, in the present embodiment, it is possible to preset the copy mode for each original group with respect to two or more original groups and execute copying for all original groups with one copy start signal. Is. Hereinafter, control by such a reservation system will be referred to as a multi-job. Further, when the number of copies is set to “1” for a plurality of document groups, copy sheets of one document group are automatically transferred to one bin 301.
Controlled to be housed in. Hereinafter, this type of control is referred to as a single multi-job. By the way, each control described above is performed on the basis of the ADF 200 detecting and discriminating the partition sheets of different sizes at the boundary of the document group.

(Operation Panel, See FIGS. 3, 4, and 5) In this embodiment, a copying machine panel 70, an ADF panel 400, and a sorter panel 410 are installed as the operation panels.

The copying machine panel 70 is installed on the upper front surface of the copying machine main body 100, and has a print key 71 for starting a copying operation when the ADF 200 is not used and an interrupt key 72 for temporarily interrupting the multi-copying operation. ,
A clear / stop key 73 for stopping the copy operation or canceling the number of copies, a numeric keypad group 74 for setting the number of multi-copy, etc., a display section 75 for displaying the number of copies, the state of the copying machine, etc. Up / down keys 76 and 77 for setting the density and the display LED group 7 thereof
8, a paper selection key 79 for selecting a copy paper size and its display LED group 80, a magnification selection key group 81 for selecting a preset copy magnification, and a magnification display for displaying the selected magnification An LED group 82, a selection key 83 for presetting the zoom magnification and its display LED 84, a key group 85 for presetting and selecting the zoom magnification and its selection display LED group 86 are installed. Information such as a paper jam of copy paper and toner empty is displayed on the key top of the print key 71.

The ADF panel 400 is installed on the upper surface of the ADF 200, and has an ADF start key 401 for starting a copying operation in cooperation with the ADF 200 and an LED 402 for displaying that the copying machine main body 100 is operating in the ADF mode. , Document empty display LED 403 for indicating that the document is out of the document tray 203, AD
A selection key 404 for causing the F200 to execute the document group boundary detection mode and a selection display LED 405 for this mode are installed. Document group boundary detection mode selection key 404
Is switched between selection and cancellation each time it is turned on, and the LED 405 lights up during selection.

On the sorter panel 410, the operation mode selection key 411 of the sorter 300, the non-sort mode display LED 412 and the sort mode display LED 4 which are the display portions thereof.
13 and grouping mode display LED 414, dual mode selection key 415 and its display LED 416, LED 417 indicating that the number of bins used for distribution exceeds the number of installed bins, and removal of copy sheets remaining in bin 301 An LED 418 for displaying is displayed.

The mode of the sorter 300 is initially set to the non-sort mode, and the mode selection key 411 is set to 1.
Each time it is turned on, sort mode, grouping mode,
Switch to non-sort mode one by one, and the corresponding LED4
12, 413 and 414 are turned on. The dual mode selection key 415 switches between selection and cancellation each time it is turned on, and the LED 416 lights up during selection.

(Control procedure, see FIGS. 6 to 29)
The control procedure of the copying apparatus having the above configuration will be described in detail. FIG. 6 shows a main routine of a microcomputer (hereinafter referred to as CPU) which is the center of control. Note that C
Although the PU itself is well known and not shown, its input / output port has the above-mentioned copying machine main body 100 and ADF 20.
0, various switches of the sorter 300, sensors, various loads, control circuits thereof, and the like are connected. When the CPU is reset and the program starts, step S
At 1, the random access memory (hereinafter referred to as RAM) is cleared, various registers are initialized, and the initial setting for setting each device to the initial mode is performed. Next, in step S2, an internal timer built in the CPU is started. This internal timer determines the time required for the main routine, and its value is set in the initial setting of step S1.

Next, in steps S3 to S6, the subroutines described in detail below are sequentially called, and when the processing of all the subroutines is completed, in step S7 the completion of the internal timer is awaited and the process returns to step S2. The time length of this one routine is used to count the various timers that appear in each subroutine. That is, in each subroutine, the end of the timer is determined by how many times each timer counts this one routine.

7 to 12 show a subroutine of the input processing executed in the step S3. First, step S
At 20, it is determined whether the document boundary flag is set to "1". The document boundary flag is set to "1" when the boundary of the document group is detected by the ADF 200, that is, when it is determined that the partition sheet is fed (FIG. 2).
0, see step S184). If it is set to "1", the input condition of the copy mode for the next document group stored in the RAM is called and displayed in step S21, and the memory flag is reset to "0" in step S22. The memory flag is set to "1" when the copy mode is stored in the RAM (see FIG. 9, step S54).

Next, in step S23, the number A input by the numeric keypad 74 is set, and in step S24, a copy paper selection subroutine is executed to set the selected copy paper size. In step S25, other input processing of the copying machine main body 100 is executed to set the set mode.

Next, in step S26, it is determined whether or not the copy flag is reset to "0". The copy flag is set to "1" during the copying operation and is "1".
If it is set to, the process immediately proceeds to step S35. If it is reset to "0", step S27-
In S34, the operation mode of the ADF 200 is accepted.

That is, in step S27, it is determined whether or not the document empty detection sensor ES is on edge. If it is on-edge, that is, if the document group is placed on the document tray 203, the warning flag F2 is reset to "0" in step S28. Warning flag F2 is ADF
Document tray 203 when start key 401 is pressed
If there is no document on the top, it is set to "1" (see steps S71 and S73). Succeedingly, in a step S29, it is determined whether or not the memory flag is set to "1",
If it is set to "1", the steps S21 and S2 are executed.
Similar to step 2, in steps S30 and S31, the input condition of the copy mode for the next document group stored in the RAM is set, and the memory flag is reset to "0". Next, in step S32, it is determined whether or not there is a document on the document tray 203 by turning on / off the sensor ES. If there is a document, the ADF mode flag is set to "1" in step S33, and if not, the flag is set to "0" in step S34.
Reset to. When the ADF mode flag is set to "1", the copy operation by the ADF 200 is enabled.

Steps S35 to S39 are for selecting and canceling the document group boundary detection mode. When this mode is selected, the sorter 300 performs a multi-job for each of the upper and lower bin groups. When it is confirmed that the copy flag is reset to "0" in step S35, the document group boundary detection mode selection switch 404 is selected in step S36.
Is determined to be an on-edge. If it is on edge, it is determined in step S37 whether or not the document group boundary detection mode flag is reset to "0" at that time. YES
If so, the flag is set to "1" in step S38, and if NO, it is reset to "0" in step S39.

Next, in step S40, a sort mode setting subroutine (described in detail in FIGS. 14 and 15) is executed. Steps S41 to S57 are for selecting the dual mode,
The input condition of the copy mode for the second document group in the cancellation and the multi-job is stored. However, it is not accepted during the copy operation. That is, after confirming that the copy flag is reset to "0" in step S41 ("1")
If it is set to, the process immediately proceeds to step S58), and in step S42 the dual mode selection switch 4
It is determined whether 15 is an on edge. If it is on edge, it is determined in step S43 whether or not the document group boundary detection mode flag is set to "1". If no operation is performed, the process proceeds to step S58. When the document group boundary detection mode is not selected, it is determined in step S44 whether or not the sort mode flag is set to "1", and if it is set to "1", then the dual mode flag is set to "0". It is determined in step S45 whether it has been reset to "". If YES, step S46
Then, the flag is set to "1", and if NO, it is reset to "0" at step S47.

If it is determined in step S43 that the document group boundary detection mode is selected, it is determined in step S48 whether the memory flag is reset to "0". If it is set to "1", the process proceeds to step S58, and if it is reset to "0", step S4.
9. In S50, after confirming that both the sort mode flag and the ADF mode flag are set to "1", it is determined in step S51 whether the number A is equal to or less than a / 2 (however, a: the number of bins). judge. If NO here, that is, if the number A exceeds the number of bins a / 2 of the upper and lower bin groups (10 bins in this embodiment) in the sorting mode, the warning flag F1 is set to "1" in step S57. Set to 1 ”.
The warning flag F1 is a flag for turning on the bin count over display LED 417. If the number A is a / 2 or less, the warning flag F1 is reset to "0" in step S52, the dual mode flag is set to "1" in step S53, and the memory flag is set to "1" in step S54. set. Subsequently, the copy condition currently selected is stored in the RAM in step S55, the copy condition is returned to the initial condition in step S56, and step S58 is performed.
Move to.

In steps S58 to S67, it is determined whether the number A exceeds the number of bins when the sort mode is selected. Also in this case, first, after confirming that the copy flag is reset to "0" in step S58, it is determined whether or not the dual mode flag and the sort mode flag are set to "1" in steps S59 and S63. judge. If the dual mode is selected (step S
(YES in 59), and in step S60, the registered number A is the number of bins a /
If it is YES, the warning flag F1 is reset to "0" in step S61, and if NO, the flag F1 is set to "1" in step S62. If only the sorting mode is selected (YES in step S63), it is determined in step S64 whether the number A is equal to or less than the number of bins a. If YES, the warning flag F1 is set to "0" in step S65. , And if NO, the flag F1 is set to "1" in step S66.

In step S68 and thereafter, the start of the copy operation is accepted. First, after confirming that the copy flag is reset to "0" in step S68, it is determined whether or not the copy permission flag is set to "1" in step S69. The copy permission flag is set to "1" when it is confirmed that the copy operation is not hindered (see step S269 in FIG. 26). Therefore, if it has already been set to "1", the flag is reset to "0" in step S76, the copy flag is set to "1" in step S77, and this subroutine is ended.
If the copy permission flag is reset to "0", it is determined in steps S70 and S74 whether the ADF start switch 401 and the print switch 71 are on edges. When the ADF start switch 401 is turned on, the ADF mode flag is set to "1" in step S71.
If YES, the bin empty determination subroutine is executed in step S72, and if NO, the warning flag F2 is set to "1" in step S73. The warning flag F2 is a flag for indicating that there is no document on the document tray 203 as described above. When the print switch 71 is turned on, a bin empty determination subroutine is executed in step S75. If neither of the switches 401 and 71 is turned on, this subroutine ends.

When any of the switches 401 and 71 is turned on, next, in steps S78, S79 and S80, it is confirmed that the warning flags F1, F2 and F3 are all reset to "0", and then the steps The copy permission flag is reset to "0" in S76, the copy flag is set to "1" in step S77, and this subroutine is finished.

FIG. 8 shows a subroutine for bin empty determination executed in steps S72 and S75. First, in step S90, it is determined whether the dual mode flag is set to "1". If it is set to "1", that is, if the dual mode is executed, the bins 3 of the first group and the second group are processed in steps S91 and S92.
Whether or not there is a sheet inside 01, sensors 321a, 321
Judgment is made by turning b on and off. Which group of bins 301
If there is another sheet, the warning flag F is determined in step S93.
Set 3 to "1". If there is no sheet in at least any one of the bins 301, the warning flag F3 is reset to "0" in step S94. That is, the dual mode permits the execution of the bins 301 of either group if they are empty.

On the other hand, if a mode in which all bins may be used instead of the dual mode is executed, it is determined in steps S95 and S96 whether or not there are sheets in the bins 301 of the first group and the second group. The determination is made by turning on / off the sensors 321a and 321b. The warning flag F3 is reset to "0" in step S97 only when there is no sheet in any of the bins 301 of any group, and if there is a sheet in any of the bins 301 of any group, the warning flag F3 is set to "1" in step S98. Set to. That is, in the modes other than the dual mode, the execution is not permitted unless the sheets are removed from all the bins 301 of the first group and the second group.

14 and 15 show a sort mode setting subroutine executed in step S40. The operation mode of the sorter 300 can be set other than during the copy operation, and after confirming that the copy flag is reset to "0" in step S100, the dual mode flag is reset to "0" in step S101. It is determined whether or not there is. Since the dual mode is selectable when the sort mode is selected (see steps S44 and S45 in FIG. 8), the following steps are executed when the dual mode flag is reset to "0". .

First, in step S102, it is determined whether or not the mode selection switch 411 is on edge. If it is on edge, the non-sort mode flag, sort mode flag, and grouping mode flag are set to "1" by switches S103, S106, and S109. It is determined whether or not it is set. If the non-sort mode flag is set to "1", the sort mode flag is set to "1" in step S104, and the non-sort mode flag is reset to "0" in step S105. If the sort mode flag is set to "1", step S10
The grouping mode flag is set to "1" in 7 and the sort mode flag is reset to "0" in step S108. If the grouping mode flag is set to "1", the non-sort mode flag is set to "1" in step S110, and the grouping mode flag is reset to "0" in step S111. On the other hand, if these flags are reset to "0", step S
At 112, set the non-sort mode flag to "1",
In step S113, the single multi-job flag is reset to "0". Note that the single multi-job executed when the registered number is "1" is step S1 in FIG.
45, S149, S150, and S151.

16 and 17 show a subroutine of the display processing executed in step S4 of the main routine. In this subroutine, first, in step S120, the ADF
It is determined whether or not the mode flag is set to "1". If the mode flag is set to "1", A is determined in step S121.
DF mode display, that is, the LED 402 is turned on,
If it is reset to "0", LE is executed in step S122.
Turn off D402. Subsequently, the display of the sort mode is processed in the subroutine of step S123, and one of the LEDs 412, 413, 414 is turned on according to the selected operation mode. In step S124, it is determined whether the dual mode flag is set to "1",
If it is set to "1", the dual mode is displayed in step S125, that is, the LED 416 is turned on and "0" is displayed.
If it is reset to LED41 in step S126
Turn off 6

Next, in step S127, a warning flag F
It is determined whether 1 is set to "1" and "1" is set.
If set to, LED 417 is set in step S128.
Is displayed to indicate that the number of bins is over, and if it is reset to "0", the LED 417 is turned off in step S129. In step S130, it is determined whether or not the warning flag F2 is set to "1". If it is set to "1", the LED 403 is turned on in step S131 to confirm that the original on the original tray 203 is empty. If it is displayed and reset to "0", the LED 403 is turned off in step S132. In step S133, it is determined whether or not the warning flag F3 is set to "1",
If it is set to "1", the LED is turned on in step S134.
418 is turned on to warn that the copy sheet needs to be removed from the bin 301, and if reset to "0", the LED 418 is turned off in step S135.

Next, in step S136, it is determined whether or not the copy flag is set to "1". If it is set to "1", the number of copies is displayed on the display unit 75 in step S137, If it is reset to "0", the number of remaining copies is also displayed on the display unit 75 in step S138. Subsequently, in step S139, other display processing is executed, and this subroutine is ended.

FIG. 18 shows a copy system processing subroutine executed in step S5 of the main routine.
First, in step S140, the ADF mode flag is "1".
If it is set to "1", the ADF mode processing subroutine is executed in step S141. Succeedingly, in a step S142, it is determined whether or not the non-sort mode flag is set to "1", and if it is set to "1", a step S14 is performed.
Subroutine of non-sort mode processing in step 3, step S
Sub-routine for copy processing at 153, step S154
Then, the other processing subroutines are executed respectively.

On the other hand, if the non-sort mode flag is reset to "0", it is determined in step S144 whether or not the sort mode flag is set to "1". If the flag is set to "1", step S
In 145, it is determined whether the number A is "1", and if it is not "1", the dual mode flag is set to "1" in step S146.
Is set to. If the flag is set to "1", the subroutine of the dual mode process is executed in step S147, the subroutine of the sort mode process is executed in step S148, and the processes of steps S153 and S154 are executed. If the dual mode flag is reset to "0", the process immediately shifts to the sort mode processing subroutine of step S148. If it is determined in step S145 that the number A is "1", it is determined in step S149 whether the document group boundary detection mode flag is "1". The flag is "1"
If so, the sort mode flag is reset to "0" in step S150, the single multi-job flag is set to "1" in step S151, and
After the grouping mode processing subroutine is executed in step S152, steps S153 and S154 are executed. If the original group boundary detection mode flag is reset to "0", the process proceeds to the subroutine of step S148.

On the other hand, if it is determined in step S144 that the sort mode flag has been reset to "0", the process proceeds to the grouping mode process of step S152. The non-sort mode subroutine executed in step S143 has the same control procedure as the conventional one, and the details thereof will be omitted.

FIG. 19 shows a subroutine of the ADF mode process executed in step S141 in the copy system process (see FIG. 18). Here, first, in step S160, it is determined whether or not the count value of the document counter that counts the number of fed documents is "0". If not "0", in step S161, there is a document on the document tray 203. Whether the sensor ES is turned on or off is determined. If there are no originals, it is determined that the ADF 200 has finished feeding all the originals, the original counter is reset in step S162, and the process proceeds to step S163. If the count value is "0" at the step S160, the document feeding operation is started from now on, and the step S163 is immediately started.
Move to.

Next, in step S163, it is determined whether or not the copy flag is set to "1". If the flag is reset to "0", this subroutine is immediately terminated, and if it is set to "1", step S1
At 64, a subroutine for document feeding processing is executed. Subsequently, when the off edge of the ADF paper feed sensor SSE is confirmed in step S165, the document counter is incremented in step S166, and a document size detection process subroutine is executed in step S167.

Next, it is determined whether or not the original group boundary detection mode flag is set to "1". If it is set to "1", the original group boundary detection mode processing subroutine is executed in step S169. . Succeedingly, in a step S170, it is determined whether or not the document boundary flag is set to "1", that is, whether or not the sheet fed at this time is a partition sheet, and if YES, the step S1 is performed.
At 72, a document discharge processing subroutine is executed to discharge the partition sheet from the document table glass 16. If the document boundary flag is reset to "0", that is, if the sheet fed at this time is a document, it is confirmed in step S171 that the optical system 10 has scanned the number of copies (number of copies). In step S172, a subroutine for document discharge processing is executed, and in step S173, a subroutine for other processing is executed, and this ADF mode processing is ended.

The original document feeding process and original document discharging process subroutines executed in steps S164 and S172 have the same control procedure as the conventional one, and the details thereof will be omitted.
Further, the document size detection processing executed in step S167 is as described in detail in the operation description of the ADF 200, and the control procedure is omitted.

FIG. 20 shows ADF mode processing (see FIG. 19).
The subroutine of the document group boundary detection mode process executed in step S169 therein is shown. First, step S18
At 0, it is determined whether the count value of the document counter is "1" or less, and if YES, this subroutine is immediately ended. That is, if the fed sheet is the first sheet, it is natural that it is a document, and therefore the following processing is not executed. When the second and subsequent originals are fed, based on the original size detected by the combination of the sensors 210 and 211 and the counter, the current original size Sn and the previous original size Sn _{−1 are determined in} step S181. If the sizes are different, "1" is added to the counter B in step S182, and the process proceeds to step S182. If the sizes are the same, the process proceeds directly to step S183.

In step S183, it is determined whether the count value of the counter B is "1". If it is "1", it is determined that a partition sheet of a different size has been fed, and step S1
At 84, the document boundary flag is set to "1", and this subroutine is finished. If NO in step S183, it is determined in step S185 whether the count value of the counter B is "2", and if "2", the first sheet of the next group of originals has been fed. It is determined that the document boundary flag is reset to "0" in step S186, and then step S187.
Then, the counter B is reset to "0", and this subroutine is finished.

FIG. 21 shows a subroutine of the grouping mode process executed in step S152 in the copy system process (see FIG. 18). Sorter 300 here
When the operation mode is selected as the grouping mode or the single multi-job is set, the processing is performed. That is, preprocessing for setting the bin 301 to the home position in step S200, step S2
In step 01, a transport process for sending a copy sheet to a predetermined bin 301 is performed. In step S202, the bin 301 is reset and each subroutine of post-process 1 for determining the usage state of the bin 301 is executed.

FIG. 22 shows a preprocessing subroutine executed in step S201. Here, first, in step S210, it is determined whether the copy flag is on-edge,
If NO, the process proceeds to step S214, and if YES, the bin counter and the sheet number counter are reset in steps S211, S212, the home position set flag is set to "1" in step S213, and step S21.
Move to 4.

In step S214, it is determined whether or not the home position set flag is set to "1", and if it is reset to "0", this subroutine is immediately ended. If the flag is set to "1", the home position setting process subroutine is executed in step S215. This subroutine is Sorter 30
The discharge roller pairs 313 and 313 of 0 are set to the positions where the sheets are discharged to the uppermost bin 301 of the first group and the second group, respectively, which is well known as a sorter of this type. Details are omitted.

Next, in step S216, after the completion of the return to the home position, step S217
Determines whether or not the sort mode flag is reset to "0". If it is reset to "0", the bin counter is incremented in step S218, and the home position set flag is reset to "0" in step S219. Then, this subroutine is finished. If the sort mode flag is set to "1", immediately step S
Move to 219.

FIG. 23 shows a subroutine of the carrying process executed in step S201. First, step S220
When the on-edge of the discharge switch 37 of the copying machine main body 100 is confirmed, that is, when the leading edge of the copy sheet reaches the discharge roller pair 24, the transport motor of the sorter 300 is turned on in step S221. As a result, the roller pairs 303, 311 and 313 in the sorter 300 start rotating.

Next, in step S222, the discharge sensor 32
Wait for 0a and 320b to be off edge, that is,
After waiting for the sheets to be distributed and stored in the predetermined bins 301, it is determined in step S223 whether or not the sort mode flag is set to "1". If the sort mode flag is set to "1", the bin counter is incremented in step S224, and if it is reset to "0", the number counter is incremented in step S225.

Next, in step S226, the motor timer is started. When it is confirmed in step S227 that this timer has ended, the sorter transport motor is turned off in step S228, and this subroutine is ended.

24 and 25 show the subroutine of the post-processing 1 executed in step S202. First, in step S230, it is determined whether the copy interruption flag is reset to "0". The copy interruption flag is for waiting for the sheet to be removed from the bin 301 and restarting the copy process when the sheet is distributed and accommodated in all the bins 301 during the copy process, and the following step S265 is performed.
(See FIG. 26) is set to "1". If the copy interruption flag is set to "1", the process proceeds to step S245, and if it is reset to "0", step S23.
At 1, it is determined whether the copy flag is set to "1". If the copy flag is reset to "0", this subroutine is immediately terminated, and if it is set to "1", it is determined in step S232 whether the single multi-job flag is set to "1". If the single multi-job flag is set to "1", that is, if the number A is "1", it is determined in step S234 whether the document boundary flag is reset to "0". If the flag is set to "1", that is, if the copying of one original group is completed and the partition sheet is fed, the process proceeds to step S243. If the document boundary flag is reset to "0", that is, if a copy process is being performed on a group of documents, step S23.
In step 5, it is determined whether the count value q of the sheet counter (meaning the number of sheets stored in one bin) is equal to the sheet storage capacity Q per bin. This step S235
If it is determined to be NO, that is, if there is still room for accommodation in the bin 301 being used at this time, this subroutine is ended, and if it is determined to be YES, that is, if it is the capacity limit, the routine proceeds to step S243. .

On the other hand, when it is determined in step S232 that the single multi-job flag is reset to "0", that is, when the group number A is "2" or more and the grouping mode processing is performed, the step is executed. In S236, it is determined whether or not the multi-bin use flag is reset to "0". The multiple-bin use flag is a flag indicating that the multiple bins 301 are used for one document when set to "1" (see step S242). If this flag is reset to "0", the copy end determination value C is set to the copy number A for one document in step S237, and the process proceeds to step S238. If the multi-bin use flag is set to "1", the process immediately proceeds to step S238.

In step S238, it is determined whether or not the count value q of the sheet counter is equal to the copy end determination value C. If NO, that is, the number of sheets accommodated in one bin 301 becomes the determination value C. If not reached, it is determined in step S240 whether the sheet count value q is equal to the sheet storage capacity Q. If the number-of-sheets count value q has not reached the capacity Q, this subroutine is immediately ended, and if reached, the C subtraction flag is set to "1" in step S241. The C subtraction flag is a bin 30 for storing sheets.
This is a flag for switching from 1 to the next lower one and recounting the number of accommodated sheets. Subsequently, in step S242, the multiple-bin use flag is set to "1", and the process proceeds to step S243. On the other hand, if it is determined in step S238 that the sheet number count value q has reached the determination value C, the multiple bin use flag is reset to "0" in step S239, and the process proceeds to step S243.

Next, in step S243, it is determined whether the count value p of the bin counter (meaning the number of bins in use) is equal to the number of bins a. While it is determined that the bin count value p is less than the number of bins a, step S24
In step 4, a subroutine for shifting the bin 301 by 1 bin is executed, and when the end of the bin shift process is confirmed in step S246, it is determined in step S247 whether the C subtraction flag is set to "1". If this flag is reset to "0", the process proceeds to step S250, and if it is set to "1", C is performed in step S248.
The subtraction flag is reset to "0", and the judgment value C is set to the value of AQ in step S249. Then, in step S250, the bin counter is incremented, in step S251 the number counter is reset, and this subroutine is completed.

If it is determined in step S243 that the bin count value p has reached the bin number a, step S
At 245, a sub-routine for operation continuation determination, which will be described in detail below, is executed. The 1-bin shift subroutine executed in step S244 is to move the discharge roller pair 313 of the sorter 300 to a position where the sheet is discharged to the bin 301 one step lower and to expand the space between the bins to be discharged. It is a control that is well known in this sorter.

FIG. 26 shows step S245 of the post-processing 1 described above.
3 shows a subroutine for determining whether to continue the operation, which is executed in step S3. This subroutine is performed in the bin 301 of the sorter 300 even though the document remains on the document tray 203 of the ADF 200.
Is used to interrupt the copy operation once, detect that the copy sheet is removed thereafter, and automatically restart the copy operation.

First, in step S260, it is determined whether or not there is a sheet in the bin 301 by turning on / off the sensors 321a and 321b. If there is a sheet, step S26
In step 1, the warning flag F3 is set to "1" and step S2
62, in S263, the bin reset flag and the copy flag are reset to "0". Subsequently, in step S264, it is determined whether or not there is a document on the document tray 203 by turning the sensor ES on or off. If there is no document, this subroutine is ended, and if there is, the copy interruption flag is set to "1" in step S265. To end this subroutine. When the warning flag F3 is set to "1" and the LED 418 is turned on in step S261, the operator who is aware of it will remove the copy sheet from the bin 301.

The sheet is removed, and step S260 is performed.
If NO is determined in step S266, the warning flag F3 is reset to "0" in step S266, and it is determined in step S267 whether or not the copy interruption flag is set to "1". If the flag is reset to "0", this subroutine is ended, and if it is set to "1", the copy interruption flag is reset to "0" in step S268,
In step S269, the copy permission flag is set to "1", and this subroutine is finished.

FIG. 27 shows a subroutine of the sort mode process executed in step S148 in the copy system process (see FIG. 18). Here, similar to the grouping mode shown in FIG. 21, preprocessing is performed in step S270, transport processing is performed in step S271, and step S272 is performed.
Then, each subroutine of the post-processing 2 is executed. The subroutine of steps S270 and S271 is shown in FIG.
This is similar to the subroutine shown in FIG.

FIG. 28 shows a subroutine of the post-process 2 executed in step S272 during the sort mode process.
First, in step S280, it is determined whether or not the copy interruption flag is reset to "0", and if it is set to "1", the process immediately proceeds to step S293 to execute a subroutine for operation continuation determination. When it is confirmed that the flag is reset to "0" and the copy flag is set to "1" in step S281, the following specific processing is performed.

That is, in step S282, it is determined whether the count value p of the bin counter is equal to the number A. Until the bin count value p reaches the number A, step S28
A subroutine for shifting the bin 301 by 1 bin is executed in step 3, and when the end of the bin shift process is confirmed in step S284, the bin counter is incremented in step S285, and the process proceeds to step S292.

On the other hand, if it is determined in step S282 that the bin count value p has reached the numeral A, then step S2
At 86, it is determined whether the document boundary flag is set to "1". If the flag is set to "1", the home position change flag is set to "1" in step S287, and the process proceeds to step S292. That is, when the copy process for one original group is completed, the bin group for distributing and accommodating sheets is changed. Step S286
If it is determined that the document boundary flag is reset to "0" in step S288, it is determined in step S288 whether the document ES is on the document tray 203 by turning on / off the sensor ES. If there is a document, the bin reset flag is set to "1" in step S289, the number counter is incremented in step S290, and the process proceeds to step S292.
If the originals are exhausted, the copy flag is reset to "0" in step S291, and the process proceeds to step S292. The bin reset flag is a flag for instructing to resume sheet distribution from the home position of the bin group in use when set to "1".

In step S292, it is determined whether the count value q of the sheet number counter is equal to the sheet storage capacity Q per bin. If NO is determined here, this subroutine is terminated, and if YES is determined, the step S293 is performed.
To execute the subroutine for determining whether to continue the operation. The process in step S293 is the same as the subroutine of the operation continuation determination shown in FIG.

FIG. 29 shows the dual mode processing subroutine executed in step S147 during the copy system processing (see FIG. 18). First, in step S300, it is determined whether the home position change flag is set to "1". The home position change flag is set in step S28 of the post-processing subroutine of sort mode processing.
As shown in FIG. 7, it is set to "1" when the boundary of the document group is detected. Therefore, if the flag is reset to "0", this subroutine is immediately terminated,
If set to "1", steps S301 and S30
At 7, it is determined whether or not there are sheets in the first group bin 301 and the second group bin 301 by turning on and off the sensors 321a and 321b.

If it is confirmed in step S301 that there is no sheet in the first group bin 301, step S3
In step 02, the warning flag F3 is reset to "0", and in step S303, a subroutine for setting the home position for starting sheet distribution to the first group is executed. Subsequently, when it is confirmed in step S304 that the setting of the home position has been completed, the home position change flag is reset to "0" in step S305, the copy permission flag is set to "1" in step S306, and this subroutine is ended. To do.

On the other hand, in step S307, the second group bin 30
If it is confirmed that there is no sheet in 1, the warning flag F3 is reset to "0" in step S308, and a subroutine for setting the home position for starting sheet distribution to the second group is executed in step S309. . Subsequently, when it is confirmed in step S310 that the setting of the home position has been completed, steps S305 and S306 are executed, and this subroutine is ended.

Further, in steps S301 and S307, the first
When it is determined that the sheet exists in both the group and the second group, the warning flag F3 is set to "1" in step S311 and the copy flag is reset to "0" in step S312.

(Main Part of Embodiment) In this embodiment, multi-jobs are possible. As described above, the multi-job is a control for presetting a copy mode for each original group for two or more original groups and executing copying for all original groups with one copy start signal. . Describing based on the control procedure, when copying of one original group is completed and a boundary with the next original group is detected (FIG. 7,
If YES in step S20), the input condition of the copy mode for the next document group stored in the RAM is called and displayed (step S21). Then, it is confirmed that there is a document on the document tray 203, and the ADF 200 is confirmed.
Enables the copying operation (YE in step S32).
S, S33). If there is no document, the copying operation by the ADF 200 is prohibited (NO in step S32, step S3).
4).

On the other hand, if there is no next original group (step S
(NO in 20), the input condition of the copy mode for the next document group is not set. However, if the document group is placed on the document tray 203 (step S2
If YES in step 7, the input condition of the copy mode for the next document group stored in the RAM is set (step S).
30) After that, after confirming that the original is on the tray 203, the copying operation by the ADF 200 is enabled (YES in step S32, step S33). By the above control, even when there is no next original group corresponding to the pre-input copy condition, the copying operation is prohibited if the original state continues, and if a new original group is set on the tray 203, it is pre-input. The copying operation is performed based on the copy conditions that are set.

(Other Embodiments) The copying apparatus according to the present invention is not limited to the above-mentioned embodiment, and can be variously modified within the scope of the gist thereof.

In particular, the boundary of the document group is determined by inserting a mark sheet or a color sheet and detecting these sheets in addition to the method of detecting the different size sheets inserted between the document groups by using the size detecting means. Alternatively, a method in which some information is added to the first sheet of the document group and this information is optically detected may be adopted. However, if the method of size detection is adopted as in the above-described embodiment, the existing document size detecting means can be used, and it is not necessary to provide a special mark sheet or detecting means.

Further, when the sheets are distributed and stored up to the final bin during the sorting and grouping processing, the following processing may be performed. (1) Accommodate subsequently copied sheets in the final bin.
At that time, since the boundaries of the sheets corresponding to the document group are unknown, a color sheet or a different size sheet for the boundaries is inserted between the copy sheets. (2) When the copying of the document group to be accommodated in the final bin is completed, in other words, when the boundary of the document group is detected, the operation of the ADF 200 is stopped and the copy prohibition signal or Output a warning signal.

Further, in the above-described embodiment, it has been described that the continuous control is performed when the document group is collectively set on the document tray 203 of the ADF 200. However, when all the documents are fed from the document tray 203. However, the control may be performed so that the document empty state is detected for a certain period of time.

If the number A input when the dual mode is selected is larger than the set number of bins, the following processing can be considered. (1) When the number of bins is exceeded, the number of characters displayed on the display unit 75 blinks. (2) Automatically change the number of units to the maximum number of bins. (3) The dual mode is canceled and the normal sort mode processing is performed (in this case, the reservation input is canceled).

Further, when the number of copies per bin for the first original group is larger than the bin capacity when the dual mode is selected, the following processing can be performed. (1) The storage of sheets is changed from the first bin group to the second bin group, and the reserved copy of the next original group is canceled. (2) The storage of sheets is transferred from the first bin group to the second bin group and the process is continued. When the capacity is exceeded as a whole, the copy process is prohibited. However, when the sheet is removed from the first bin group during the process of the second bin group, the copy process is continued.

On the other hand, regarding the document group boundary detection mode,
The document group boundary detection mode described above may be executed when the selection key 404 is off, and the document group boundary detection mode processing may be executed only when the partition sheet has a specific size when it is turned on. In this case, it is preferable that the specific size can be set arbitrarily.

[0107]

As is apparent from the above description, according to the present invention, the copying operation is prohibited when the original group is not on the original tray even though the copying conditions are stored in the storage means. Since the copy condition stored in response to the placement of the document group on the document tray is called and set, even if the copy condition is input in advance and the corresponding document group does not exist, The inhibition or continuation of the copying operation can be effectively dealt with.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram showing a copying apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a plan view showing a document carry-in section of the ADF.

FIG. 3 is a plan view showing a copier panel.

FIG. 4 is a plan view showing an ADF panel.

FIG. 5 is a plan view showing a sorter panel.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing a main routine of a control procedure of the copying machine.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing a subroutine of input processing.

8 is a flowchart showing a subroutine of input processing, continued from FIG. 7.

9 is a flowchart showing a subroutine of input processing, continued from FIG.

10 is a flowchart showing a subroutine of input processing, continued from FIG. 9;

11 is a flowchart showing a subroutine of input processing, continued from FIG.

FIG. 12 is a flowchart showing a subroutine of input processing, continued from FIG. 11.

FIG. 13 is a flowchart showing a subroutine for bin empty determination.

FIG. 14 is a flowchart showing a sort mode setting subroutine.

FIG. 15 is a flowchart showing a sort mode setting subroutine, continued from FIG. 14;

FIG. 16 is a flowchart showing a subroutine of display processing.

FIG. 17 is a flowchart showing a subroutine of display processing, continued from FIG. 16;

FIG. 18 is a flowchart showing a subroutine of copy system processing.

FIG. 19 is a flowchart showing a subroutine of ADF mode processing.

FIG. 20 is a flowchart showing a subroutine of document group boundary detection mode processing.

FIG. 21 is a flowchart showing a subroutine of grouping mode processing.

FIG. 22 is a flowchart showing a preprocessing subroutine.

FIG. 23 is a flowchart showing a subroutine of a carrying process.

FIG. 24 is a flowchart showing a subroutine of post-processing 1.

FIG. 25 is a flowchart showing a subroutine of post-processing 1, continuing from FIG. 24.

FIG. 26 is a flowchart showing a subroutine of operation continuation determination.

FIG. 27 is a flowchart showing a subroutine of sort mode processing.

FIG. 28 is a flowchart showing a subroutine of post-processing 2;

FIG. 29 is a flowchart showing a subroutine of dual mode processing.

[Explanation of symbols]

 70 ... Copier panel 100 ... Copier body 200 ... ADF (automatic document feeder) 203 ... Document tray ES ... Document empty sensor

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A copying apparatus having an automatic document feeder that feeds documents stacked on a document tray one by one, stops them at an exposure position, and discharges them after the exposure is completed. Storage means for storing a copy condition inputted in advance, detection means for detecting the presence or absence of a document group on a document tray of the automatic document feeder, and a document despite the copy condition being stored in the storage means When the group is not on the document tray, the copy operation is prohibited, and the copy condition stored in the storage unit is called and set according to the placement of the document group on the document tray. A copying machine comprising: