JPH1010930A - Image forming device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an image forming device in which during the execution of a RDH (a circulation type manuscript feeding device) mode, in the case that other copy mode is interrupted, time to interruption processing is shortened, and return of the preceding RDH mode is hastened, and an operator is not confused by the interruption of other copy mode. SOLUTION: During the execution of an RDH mode in which a manuscript is carried with an RDH 3 and an image is formed on a sheet member, when an SDH (a manuscript feeding device) manuscript detecting sensor 94 detects the placing of the manuscript in an SDH 4, in the case that the number of manuscripts detected with an SDH circulation detecting sensor 99b is smaller than that of interruption permission values, the RDH mode is discontinued, and an SDH mode in which the manuscript is carried with the SDH 4 and an image is formed on the sheet member is started.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus having a document feeder for conveying a document and capable of executing a plurality of copy modes.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art As an image forming apparatus having a document feeder for conveying a document and capable of executing a plurality of copy modes, there is a copying machine disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 6-35278.

As shown in FIG. 13, the copying machine of the above publication includes an optical system 110, a copying process 120, a paper feed cassette 133, 134, 135, a paper discharge tray 180, and a main body 101 including various transport means. I have. This body 10
1, a platen glass 103 made of transparent hard glass on which an original is placed, and the platen glass 103
And a recirculating document feeder (RDH) 102 is provided adjacent to.

The platen glass 103 is covered with a document cover 104 that can be freely opened and closed. This original cover 1
Reference numeral 04 presses and holds a document (not shown) placed on the platen glass 103. The reflected light obtained by irradiating the held document with light from below is formed as a document image on a photosensitive drum 112 through an optical system 110.

As shown in FIG. 14, an RDH 102 has a document table 145 on which a document is placed, and an optical scanning window 164 for exposing and scanning the front and back surfaces of the document fed from the document table 145. 165 and each optical scanning window 164
And a transport unit for transporting the original to the original document 5, reversing the original, and returning the original to the original table 145 again. Each optical scanning window 164.1
The reflected light obtained by irradiating the original moving in the direction 65 with light from below is formed as an original image on the photosensitive drum 112 through the optical system 110.

The original image formed on the photosensitive drum 112 is developed by the developing device 114 to become a toner image. Then, the toner image on the photoconductor 112 is transferred by the transfer device 116 onto a sheet conveyed from any of the sheet cassettes 133, 134, and 135. The toner image on the paper is
The sheet is fixed on the sheet by the fixing device 123. Then, the sheet on which the toner image has been fixed is sent out to the discharge tray 180, and copying of the document is completed.

The copying machine having the above-described configuration includes a copy mode (hereinafter, referred to as an RDH mode) in which a plurality of originals are placed on the original mounting table 145 by the RDH 102 and a plurality of copies are continuously made, and a platen glass 103. A copy mode (hereinafter, referred to as an OC mode) in which an original is placed and copied on the
One copy mode can be executed.

In the above-described copying machine, the same RDH mode and OC mode can be interrupted during execution of the RDH mode. For example, as a method of performing an interrupt during the RDH mode, there are cases where the OC mode is interrupted,
It is considered that the RDH mode is interrupted.

In the above case, only the document being transported is returned to the document loading table 145 of the RDH 102, and then the interrupted OC mode is executed. In the above case, the RDH mode in which the RDH 102 is interrupted is executed after only one copy of the document of the RDH 102 is completed.

The interrupt control in such a copy mode is as follows.
This is performed by control means (not shown). Then, the operator performs an interrupt process according to the purpose by operating a key for instructing the interrupt process provided on an operation panel (not shown). That is, the operator can select either the OC mode or the RDH mode from the operation panel during the execution of the RDH mode.

Therefore, in the copying machine having the above configuration, the OC
When the mode is interrupted, since the interrupt processing is completed in a short time, the time required for the RDH mode to return can be shortened.
When interrupting the DH mode, there is an advantage that the operation is simplified.

[0012]

However, in the above-mentioned conventional copying machine, when the RDH mode is interrupted during the execution of the RDH mode, the interrupt is made after one copy of the document already existing in the RDH 102 is completed. Since the process is executed, if the number of documents already existing in the RDH 102 is large, there is a problem that the time from when the interrupt process is designated to when the actual interrupt process is executed becomes longer.

When executing the interrupt processing in the RDH mode, if the number of originals or the number of original copies is large, the return of the RDH mode on the split side is delayed. For this reason, for the operator who previously performed the copying work in the RDH mode, if the number of originals and the number of copies in the interrupted copy mode are large, the stoppage time of the work despite the fact that the copying work has been started first is considered. Since the length of the copying operation increases, the time required for the entire copying operation increases.

Further, during execution of the RDH mode, the same R
When performing the RDH mode interrupt processing using the DH, even if this work is performed by one person, the replacement of the document is performed by one RDH 102, so that the operation becomes complicated and the operator may be confused. There is.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned problems, and has as its object to execute the RDH mode while executing the same RDH and interrupting the RDH mode. Time and the RD
It is an object of the present invention to provide an image forming apparatus that hasten the return of the H mode and does not confuse the operator due to the interruption of the RDH mode later.

[0016]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided an image forming apparatus, comprising: an exposure scanning unit having an exposure scanning unit for exposing and scanning an original; A first document feeder and a second document feeder for transferring the document to the exposure scanning unit, the image forming unit transferring the document to a member and forming an image on a sheet member;
A first image forming mode in which a document is conveyed by a document feeder to form an image on a sheet member, and a second image forming mode in which a document is conveyed by a second document feeder to form an image on a sheet member In the image forming apparatus capable of executing the first mode and the second mode, the second document feeder includes a document placement unit on which a document can be placed, and a document presence detection unit that detects that the document is placed on the document placement unit. Means, and second document number information detecting means for detecting information relating to the number of documents placed on the document placing portion, wherein the document presence / absence detecting means detects the presence or absence of the document while the first image forming mode is being executed. When it is detected that a document is placed on the document placing portion of the second document feeder, if the information detected by the second document number information detecting means is equal to or less than a predetermined value, the first image Suspends the formation mode and switches to the second image formation mode Control means is characterized in that provided that.

According to the above configuration, during execution of the first image forming mode for forming an image by the first document feeder, it is determined that a document is placed on the second document feeder by the second document feeder. When the presence / absence detection means detects the number of documents (information) detected by the second document number information detection means is equal to or less than a predetermined value,
Since the first image forming mode is interrupted and the interrupt mode in the second document feeder is executed, the second document feeder can cut the document without taking out the document from the first document feeder. To form an image.

Thus, when image formation is performed in a plurality of image formation modes, both the interrupting side and the interrupting side perform image formation using separate document feeders, thereby simplifying the situation in the interrupting operation. Therefore, confusion of the operator can be prevented.

In the first image forming mode to be interrupted, image formation is performed only on the originals remaining in the transport path of the first original feeder, and then the first image forming mode is stopped. The image forming mode can promptly change to the interrupt mode using the second document feeder without waiting for the completion of one-set image formation. This enables a speedy interrupt operation.

Further, if an attempt is made to perform an interrupt process on the number of originals greater than the value of the permitted number of interrupts, no interrupt is made, so that an operator who attempts to interrupt later does not perform an interrupt process that is too long. ing. Therefore, the inconvenience that the stop time of the image forming operation of the previous operator becomes long can be solved.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided an image forming apparatus, comprising: an exposure scanning unit having an exposure scanning unit for exposing and scanning an original; and transferring the exposed and scanned original image to a sheet member. An image forming section for forming an image on a sheet member, a first document feeder and a second document feeder for transporting the document to the exposure scanning section, and a document transported by the first document transporter; Image forming mode in which a first image forming mode in which an image is formed on a sheet member and a second image forming mode in which an image is formed on a sheet member by conveying a document by a second document feeder are executable. In the apparatus, the first document feeder includes a first document placing portion on which a document can be placed, and first document presence / absence detecting means for detecting that a document is placed on the first document placing portion. Detects information on the number of originals placed on the first original placing portion The second document feeder has a second document placement portion on which a document can be placed, and a document placed on the second document placement portion. And a second document number information detecting unit for detecting information on the number of documents placed on the second document placing unit, and a second document number detecting unit for detecting information on the number of documents placed on the second document placing unit. During execution, when the document presence detecting means detects that a document is placed on the document placing portion of the second document feeder, the number of documents detected by the first document number information detecting means is If the number of originals is larger than the number of originals detected by the second original number information detecting means, a control means for interrupting the first image forming mode and switching to the second image forming mode is provided.

According to the above arrangement, during the execution of the first image forming mode in which the first document feeder forms an image in accordance with the number of documents detected by the first document number detecting means,
When the second document presence / absence detection means detects that a document has been placed on the second document feeder, the number of documents (information) detected by the second document number information detection means is detected by the first document number detection means. If the number of originals is equal to or less than the number of originals, the first image forming mode is interrupted and the interrupt mode in the second original feeding device is executed. Even if the document is not taken out, the image can be formed by interrupting by the second document feeder.

In this way, when image formation is performed in a plurality of image formation modes, the interrupting side and the interrupting side perform image formation using separate document feeders, thereby simplifying the situation in the interrupting operation. And confusion of the operator can be prevented.

In the first image forming mode to be interrupted, the image forming apparatus stops the image forming operation after forming the image only of the originals remaining in the conveyance path of the first original feeding device. The image forming mode can promptly change to the interrupt mode using the second document feeder without waiting for the completion of one-set image formation. This enables a speedy interrupt operation.

Further, if an attempt is made to interrupt the document more than the number of documents in the first document feeder, no interruption is made. Not to be. Therefore, the inconvenience that the stop time of the image forming operation of the previous operator becomes long can be solved.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in order to solve the above-mentioned problem, in addition to the first and second aspects, the control means further comprises:
Is interrupted.

According to the above arrangement, in addition to the function of the first or second aspect, the control means interrupts the first image forming mode after the detection of the second document number information detecting means is completed. Therefore, while the second document number information detecting means of the second document feeder detects the first document number, for example, for one second or more, the first document number
Is not stopped. Thus, it is possible to prevent the first image forming mode from being uselessly stopped, and it is possible to eliminate the disadvantage that the previous operator has a long stopping time of the image forming operation.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, there is provided an image forming apparatus, comprising: an exposure scanning unit having an exposure scanning unit for exposing and scanning an original; and transferring the exposed and scanned original image to a sheet member. An image forming section for forming an image on a sheet member, a first document feeder and a second document feeder for transporting the document to the exposure scanning section, and a document transported by the first document transporter; Image forming mode in which a first image forming mode in which an image is formed on a sheet member and a second image forming mode in which an image is formed on a sheet member by conveying a document by a second document feeder are executable. In the apparatus, the second document feeder has a document placement portion on which a document can be placed, and document presence / absence detection means for detecting that a document is placed on the document placement portion; Number of sheet members on which images are formed in image forming mode 2 A number of image formation setting means for setting information about, during the execution of the first image forming mode,
When the document presence / absence detection means detects that a document is placed on the document placement section of the second document feeder, if the information set by the image formation number setting means is equal to or less than a predetermined value, A control means for interrupting the first image forming mode and switching to the second image forming mode is provided.

According to the above arrangement, during the execution of the first image forming mode in which the first document feeder forms an image,
When the second document presence / absence detecting means detects that a document has been placed on the document feeder, the number of image formations (information on the number of sheet members) set by the image formation number setting means for inputting the number of image formations If the value is equal to or less than a predetermined value, the first image forming mode is interrupted and the interrupt mode in the second document feeder is executed. Therefore, even if the document of the first document feeder is not taken out, Interrupt processing can be performed by the second document feeder. Thus, when image formation is performed in a plurality of image formation modes, the situation of the image forming apparatus can be simplified, and confusion of the operator can be prevented.

In the first image forming mode to be interrupted, the image forming apparatus stops the image forming operation after forming the image of only the originals remaining in the conveyance path of the first original feeding device. The image forming mode can promptly change to the interrupt mode using the second document feeder without waiting for the completion of one-set image formation. This enables a speedy interrupt operation.

Further, if an attempt is made to interrupt the document with a number larger than the number of documents in the first document feeder, no interruption is made, so that an operator who intends to interrupt later cannot perform an interrupt process that is too long. Therefore, the inconvenience that the stop time of the image forming operation of the previous operator becomes long can be solved.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in order to solve the above problem, in addition to the configuration of the fourth aspect, the information set by the image forming sheet number setting means is loaded on the second document feeder. Number of placed originals, number of image formations, and original 1
It is characterized by being the product of the image formation time per sheet.

According to the above arrangement, in addition to the function of the fourth aspect, the information set by the image forming number setting means,
That is, information on the number of sheet members on which an image is formed is
By taking the product of the image formation number of the bundle of documents placed on the second document feeder, the number of documents detected by the second document presence / absence detection unit, and the image formation time per document, this product is calculated. The interruption time in the second image forming mode can be used. As a result, it is possible to determine the actual interruption time for an interrupt process in which the number of documents is small but the number of images is large, or an interrupt process in which the number of images is small but the number of documents is large. It is possible to set so as not to perform an interrupt process that takes a long time and to perform an interrupt process that is too long for an operator who intends to interrupt later. Therefore, the inconvenience that the stop time of the image forming operation of the previous operator becomes long can be solved.

According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, in order to solve the above-mentioned problem, in addition to any one of the first, third, fourth, and fifth aspects, a predetermined value used by the control means is set. It is characterized by having predetermined value setting means.

According to the above configuration, in addition to any one of the first, third, fourth, and fifth aspects, for example, when a predetermined value is set as the number of permitted interrupts, the number of permitted interrupts is set. By providing the predetermined value setting means, if the value of the number of permitted interrupts is set to, for example, 0, it can be set so that no interrupt using the second document feeder can be performed. For example, if there is an operator A who makes a large number of copies in the first document feeder, by setting the value of the number of permitted interrupts to 0 before copying by the first document feeder, the image forming device Even if the user is away, the operator B who intends to make a large number of copies with the second document feeder or the like can be eliminated, and settings can be made so that the one used earlier can be used preferentially. . On the other hand, if the value of the number of permitted interrupts is, for example, 999, the setting is made such that an interrupt process using the second document feeder can be performed regardless of how many documents are placed in the second document feeder. be able to.

According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, there is provided an image forming apparatus, comprising: an exposure scanning section having an exposure scanning section for exposing and scanning an original; and transferring the exposed and scanned original image to a sheet member. An image forming section for forming an image on a sheet member, a first document feeder and a second document feeder for transporting the document to the exposure scanning section, and a document transported by the first document transporter; Image forming mode in which a first image forming mode in which an image is formed on a sheet member and a second image forming mode in which an image is formed on a sheet member by conveying a document by a second document feeder are executable. In the apparatus, an image forming number setting means for setting the number of image forming in the image forming section and an interrupt signal for interrupting the other image forming mode when one image forming mode is being executed. Means for generating an interrupt signal; During one image formation mode is executed, in response to an interrupt signal generated by said interrupt signal generating means,
Interrupt control means for interrupting the first image forming mode and executing the second image forming mode; and when an interrupt signal is generated during execution of the first image forming mode by the interrupt signal generating means. A first calculating unit for calculating a remaining time until the first image forming mode ends, and a period from when an interrupt signal is generated by the interrupt signal generating unit to when the second image forming mode ends. A second calculating means for calculating the time, wherein the interrupt control means determines that the time calculated by the second calculating means is equal to or less than a predetermined ratio of the time calculated by the first calculating means. It is characterized in that interrupt control by the interrupt control means is executed.

According to the above arrangement, if the interrupt processing time by the second document feeder is equal to or less than a predetermined ratio of the time calculated by the first calculating means, the first image forming mode is interrupted, Since the interruption mode in the second document feeder is executed, the substantial remaining image forming time in the first image forming mode is substantially reduced in the interruption mode by the second document feeding device. The interrupt processing such that the interrupt processing time is too long is not performed. As a result, it is possible to prevent an operator who intends to interrupt later from performing an interrupt process that is too long, so that the inconvenience of a long stoppage time of the image forming operation by the previous operator can be solved.

According to an eighth aspect of the present invention, in order to solve the above-mentioned problems, in addition to the configuration of the seventh aspect, the first document feeder includes a first document placement unit on which a document can be placed. And the first
First document presence / absence detecting means for detecting that a document is placed on the document placing portion; first document number information detecting means for detecting information on the number of documents placed on the first document placing portion; And the second document feeder has a second
A document placement unit, second document presence / absence detection means for detecting that a document is placed on the second document placement unit, and detecting information on the number of documents placed on the second document placement unit A second document number information detecting unit, wherein the second document presence detecting unit detects the document placing unit of the second document feeding device by the document presence detecting unit during execution of the first image forming mode; When it is detected that a document is placed on the image forming apparatus, an interrupt signal is generated as the interrupt signal generating means, and the first calculating means determines the remaining time until the first image forming mode ends. The remaining time until the end of the first image forming mode is calculated based on the information obtained from the product of the difference between the number of sheets formed and the number of sheets on which images have been formed, and the information on the number of documents. Time until the image forming mode ends
It is characterized in that a time until the end of the second image forming mode is calculated based on information obtained from a product of the information on the number of images formed and the number of documents.

According to the above arrangement, in addition to the function of the seventh aspect, the remaining image forming time in the first image forming mode is set to the number of remaining image forming copies, which is the difference between the number of image formed and the number of image formed, and Since the product of the first document feeder and the number of documents and the interrupt time of the second document feeder are the product of the number of image formations and the number of documents, the numerical value that changes depending on the image formation time is used for image formation. The determination can be made automatically by the device itself. This eliminates the need for the operator to perform cumbersome operations such as predicting the interruption time, and provides an unprecedented superior effect of simplifying the state of the image forming apparatus and preventing confusion for the operator.

[0040]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

[Embodiment 1] An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS.

A copying machine as an image forming apparatus according to the present embodiment includes a copying machine main body 1 as shown in FIG. A platen glass 2 made of a transparent hard glass on which an original is placed is provided on an upper portion of the copying machine main body 1.
A recirculating document feeder (RDH) 3 as a first document feeder is provided adjacent to the platen glass 2. Further, the second platen glass 2 is covered so as to cover the platen glass 2.
A document feeder (SDH) 4 is provided.

An optical system 10 including mirrors 5 to 8 is arranged below the RDH 3 and SDH 4 of the copying machine main body 1. The optical system 10 is provided with a light source 11 serving as an exposure scanning unit that irradiates light to a document placed on the platen glass 2 and a document circulated by the RDH 3. That is, the optical system 10 irradiates the original with the light emitted from each light source 11 to perform optical scanning, and also takes in the reflected light from the original to form an image on the photosensitive drum 12 and expose the same. . That is, the optical system 10 transmits the original to the light source 11.
Constitutes an exposure scanning unit having an exposure scanning unit for exposing the photosensitive drum 12 by optical scanning.

In the optical system 10, when copying an original placed on the platen glass 2 covered with the SDH 4, the light source 11 performs optical scanning while moving along the platen glass 2 while the RDH 3 is operated. When copying is performed by using the optical scanning, optical scanning is performed via an optical scanning window 64 or 65 described later.

Below the optical system 10, a photosensitive drum 12 rotatable clockwise is disposed. Around the photosensitive drum 12, a charging device 13, a developing device 14, a transfer device 16, a peeling device 17, a cleaning device 18, a static elimination lamp 19 and the like are arranged to constitute a copying process section 20. That is, in the copying process unit 20, the photosensitive drum 12 is exposed to light from the optical system 10, the formed electrostatic latent image is developed as a toner image, and the developed toner image is inverted by the transfer unit 16. It is charged to a polarity and is transferred to a copy sheet as a sheet member supplied from sheet cassettes 33 to 35 or an intermediate tray 28 described later.

The transferred copy sheet is sent to a copy process unit 2
The fixing unit 2 is moved by the conveyor belt 22 disposed on the paper output side of the fixing unit
3 and the toner image transferred onto the copy sheet is heated and fixed. A transport switching unit 24 is provided on the paper output side of the fixing unit 23.

The transport switching section 24 has a gate flapper 27 for switching the path of the transported copy sheet to either the discharge tray 42 or the intermediate tray 28.
By the switching operation of the gate flapper 27, the copy sheet on which the toner image has been fixed in the fixing unit 23 and the one-sided copy or the two-sided copy has been completed is discharged to the discharge tray 42 via the discharge roller 26, while the double-sided copy is performed. The copy sheet completed on one side is transported to the reversing transport section 25 having the gate flapper 30.

In the case of a composite copy in which copying is performed a plurality of times on the same surface of a copy sheet, the copy sheet on which the toner is fixed by the fixing unit 23 is once guided to the discharge roller 26 side.
The transport direction is reversed by rotating the discharge roller 26 in the reverse direction, and the transport roller 2 is transported to the gate flapper 27 again.
5 and the intermediate tray 28 through the gate flapper 30.
To be discharged.

The intermediate tray 28 is disposed below the conveyor belt 22 and the fixing unit 23, and the copy paper conveyed and placed thereon is sent to the outside by an air suction type delivery belt 32 provided on the paper output side. From the lower end, the toner is sequentially sent to the photosensitive drum 12 at a predetermined timing.

A paper feed cassette 34 is provided below the intermediate tray 28, and paper feed cassettes 33 and 35 are provided below the developing device 14. These paper cassettes 33
Unloaded copy papers are loaded in the paper feed rollers 35 to 35, and are sequentially fed from the uppermost one to the photosensitive drum 12 side by air suction type paper feed belts 37 to 39 provided on the paper output side. It has become.

The intermediate tray 28 and the paper cassettes 33 to 3
A supply transport unit 41 is provided between the photosensitive drum 12 and the photosensitive drum 12. The supply and transport section 41 is provided for each of the sheet cassettes 3.
It has a transport path 41a branched to the 3-35 side and a plurality of transport rollers 41b. A resist roller 41c is provided at the end of the supply / conveyance unit 41 on the side of the photosensitive drum 12 to temporarily stop the conveyed copy sheet as necessary and supply the copy sheet to the photosensitive drum 12 at a predetermined timing. ing.

Here, the RDH 3 will be described in detail with reference to FIG. As shown in FIG. 3, the RDH 3 includes a document placement unit 43, a paper supply unit 78, a supply / conveyance unit 44, and a rotating drum 4.
5, 46, a reverse transport unit 47 and a return transport unit 48.

The document placing section 43 is composed of an upper horizontal transport section of a transport belt 49 and a document hopper 50. The document placing section 43 has a plurality of documents D. In this state, it is placed on the upper horizontal portion of the conveyor belt 49. A document detection sensor (hereinafter, referred to as an RDH document detection sensor) 52c, which is a document detection unit, is attached to the upper surface side of the transport belt 49, and detects that the document D is placed on the document hopper 50. Then, a detection signal is output to a control system described later.

The transport belt 49 has a trapezoidal shape with an upper side as an upper horizontal transport portion. The transport belt 49 is driven over a driving roller 53 disposed at the apex of the trapezoid to perform optical scanning described later. It is a transport unit for inserting the returned and returned original D below the original hopper 50. In order to facilitate insertion of the document D inserted by the transport belt 49, a flip-up roller 54 for flipping the rear end of the document D is provided.

The original hopper 50 is placed on the placed original D.
Actuator 50a for detecting one circulation of
It has. The detection actuator 50a is at the lowermost position shown by a solid line in the drawing before the original D is set on the original hopper 50, and the original D is placed thereon. And
The detection actuator 50a rises as the originals D are supplied one by one and returned from the return conveyance unit 48 to the original placement unit 43, and when the originals D have all circulated, that is, indicated by virtual lines in the figure. When it reaches the uppermost position, it is detected by a document cycle detection sensor (hereinafter referred to as RDH cycle detection sensor) 55 disposed above the document hopper 50, and generates a detection signal indicating that one cycle is completed. ing. The detection signal controls the number of copies and the like. After the circulation of the document D is completed, the detection actuator 50a passes through the outside of the document hopper 50 for one time.
It rotates by 80 ° and returns to the lowermost position shown by the solid line.

On the other hand, in front of the paper output side of the original placing portion 43,
An air blowing fan 52d for ejecting air is provided, and the air blown in the direction of the end of the stacked originals D is used to float the originals D. In addition, air is blown to prevent double feeding. It is supposed to do.

The document D is placed above the document placing portion 43.
Feeding section 78 which is a feeding means for taking out the sheet at a predetermined timing
The paper supply unit 78 includes a paper supply belt 52a,
Suction fan 52 provided inside paper feed belt 52a
b (suction means).

The paper feed unit 78 generates an air flow (suction force) from below to the paper feed belt 52a by rotation of the suction fan 52b, and feeds the original located at the top of the originals D. The original is conveyed by rotating the paper feed belt 52a while adsorbing the original on the outer peripheral surface of the belt 52a. The suction fan 52b and the air blowing fan 52d are also rotated by a suction fan motor (not shown) and an air blowing fan motor (not shown), respectively.

The supply transport section 44 includes a transport path 56, separation rollers 57, a plurality of transport rollers 58 arranged at predetermined intervals, and registration rollers 59.
The transport path 56 is provided from a paper output side of the document placing section 43 to a paper input section 60 a of an outer peripheral transport path 60 described later.

The separation rollers 57 are connected to the conveyance path 56.
The registration rollers 59, 59 are provided slightly inward from the paper-feeding-side opening, and are provided near the paper-feeding portion 60a. The separation rollers 57 are driven by a pair of vertically arranged rollers being rotated in the same direction.
When two or more originals D are taken out one after another, they are separated to prevent double feeding. On the other hand, the registration rollers 59 stop the document D transported by the transport rollers 58... As needed, and supply the document D to the rotating drum 45 at a predetermined timing.

The rotating drums 45 and 46 are both driven to rotate in the direction of the arrow (clockwise) shown in the figure, and annular outer conveying paths 60 and 61 are formed along the respective outer peripheral surfaces. A plurality of driven rollers 62... 63 are provided in the outer peripheral conveying paths 60 and 61 so as to contact the outer peripheral surfaces of the rotating drums 45 and 46 for assisting the conveyance of the document D. … · 63… to rotary drums 45/46
The document D is conveyed so as to be pressed against the original D.

Light scanning windows 64 and 65 made of glass are respectively provided at portions of the upper end surface of the copying machine main body 1 facing the lower ends of the rotating drums 45 and 46.
The light scanning window 6 is provided with a slight gap.
By the light source 11 of the optical system 10 via 4.65,
Optical scanning of the document D is performed. For example, when performing double-sided copying, the document D placed on the document placing portion 43 first
The surface image is optically scanned by being transported between the rotating drum 45 and the optical scanning window 64, and then inverted by a reversing roller 74 and a transport path 69, which will be described later.
5, and the back side image is scanned (when the original is placed upside down on the original placing portion 43, it becomes the front side image of the original).

Each of the paper output portions 60b of the outer transport paths 60 and 61
The gates 61b are provided with gate flappers 66 and 67 for switching the path of the document D, respectively.

When optical scanning of the same original D is performed a plurality of times for multi-copy, the gate flapper 66/67 closes the paper output sections 60b / 61b of the outer peripheral transport paths 60/61 and closes the rotary drum 45/67. 46, an annular outer conveying path 60 around
The path of the original D is formed so that the original D is circulated around the rotating drums 45 and 46 a desired number of times by forming the original 61.

When a predetermined number of optical scans have been completed,
Alternatively, when optical scanning is not performed, the gate flapper 66
Is rotated to close the upper half of the outer transport path 60, and the document D
, The gate flapper 67 rotates to close the upper half of the outer transport path 61, and forms a path for guiding the document D to the return transport section 48. ing.

The reversing conveyance section 47 includes conveyance paths 68 and 69,
., A gate flapper 72, registration rollers 73, 73, and a reversing roller 7.
4 and 74.

One end of each of the transport paths 68 and 69 has a paper output section 60 b of the outer peripheral transport path 60 and a paper input section 6 of the outer peripheral transport path 61.
1a, while the other end joins and the reverse transport path 7
Connected to 0.

The delivery rollers 71 are provided in the vicinity of the confluence of the transport paths 68 and 69, and deliver the original D to the reverse transport path 70 or to the rotating drum 46. At this time, the course of the document D is changed by the conveyance path 68.6
9 is performed by the gate flapper 72 provided near the junction.

The registration rollers 73 are provided in the vicinity of the paper input section 61a in the conveyance path 69, and once stopped, the document D is fed to the rotating drum 46 at a predetermined timing. It is supposed to.

The reversing rollers 74 are provided in the reversing conveyance path 70, and reverse the direction of rotation to reverse the conveying direction of the document D.

The return transport section 48 is composed of a transport path 75 disposed from the paper output section 61b of the outer peripheral transport path 61 to the transport belt 49, and a plurality of transport rollers 76.

The transport belt 49 is connected to the original placing section 43.
, But also functions as the return transport unit 48, and transports the returned original D to the original placement unit 43 via the transport path 75. For this reason, the conveying belt 49 is provided with a call-in roller 77 in the vicinity of the paper exit side opening of the conveying path 75.
7, the document D is pressed against the transport belt 49, and the transport of the document D on the transport belt 49 is assisted.

Next, the SDH 4 will be described in detail with reference to FIG. As shown in FIG. 4, the SDH 4 includes a document placement unit 81, a paper supply unit 82, an exposure conveyance unit 83, and a discharge conveyance unit 8.
4 is provided.

The document placing section 81 has a document hopper 91 for placing a plurality of documents D. A document detection sensor (hereinafter, referred to as a document presence sensor) for detecting that a document D is placed on the bottom surface of the document hopper 91.
An SDH document detection sensor 94 is attached, and the detection signal is output to a control system described later.

Then, on the upper end side of the original hopper 91,
A detection actuator 99a constituting a document circulation detecting means for detecting one cycle of the document, and a document cycle detection sensor (referred to as an SDH cycle detection sensor) 99b are provided.

When the unscanned original D is placed on the original hopper 91, the detection actuator 99a
When the scanned document D is located above the document D and returned to the document hopper 91 again, the document D rotates in the direction of the arrow (counterclockwise) as shown in the figure. The document cycle detection sensor 99b detects the rotation of the detection actuator 99a and outputs a detection signal to a control system described later.

At the lower end of the original placing portion 81, an original D
Feeding section 8 which is a feeding means for taking out paper at a predetermined timing
The paper feeding section 82 includes a feeding roller 92 provided at the bottom of the original hopper 91, a paper feeding roller 93a provided at the bottom end, and a separation roller 93b.

That is, in the paper feeding section 82, the lowermost original of the originals D stacked on the original hopper 91 is moved toward the paper feeding roller 93a and the separation roller 93b by the counterclockwise rotation of the attraction roller 92. And send it out. And the paper feed roller 93
By rotating counterclockwise a and separating roller 93b clockwise, the document is output from the document hopper 91 while preventing double feeding of the document.

An exposure transport section 83 is provided downstream of the paper feed section 82. The exposure transport section 83 includes a transport belt 95 a suspended by a pair of transport belt rollers 95 b and 95 b so as to cover the platen glass 2 disposed on the upper surface of the copying machine main body 1, the platen glass 2, and the platen glass 2. A document stopper 96 is provided at the left end, and rotates and moves into and out of the platen glass 2.

That is, in the exposure transport section 83, the document D output from the paper feed section 82 slides on the platen glass 2 by the transport belt 95a and is transported leftward in FIG. A document stopper 96 is provided at the left end of the platen glass 2 as shown by a dotted line in FIG.
Is provided so as to protrude from the transfer belt 9.
The document D conveyed by 5a comes into contact with the document stopper 96, the leading ends thereof are aligned, and the document D stops at the exposure position. Then, the transport belt 95a is stopped, and the optical system 10 below the platen glass 2 performs exposure scanning. After the exposure scan, the original stopper 96 is rotated to a position where it is immersed in the platen glass 2 as shown by a solid line,
The transport belt 95a is operated again to discharge the document D from the exposure position, and is sent to the discharge transport section 84 provided on the downstream side.

The discharge / conveyance section 84 includes a document stopper 96
A transport path 97 provided to transport the original D to the original hopper 91 from the downstream of the transport belt 95a through the upper portion of the transport belt 95a.
And a plurality of transport rollers 98 that are constantly rotating and transport the original.
The original D output from the exposure transport unit 83 is sent to the original hopper 91.

Next, a control system in the copying machine having the above configuration will be described with reference to FIG. As shown in FIG. 5, the control system includes a CPU 204 as a control means, and controls the copier body 1, the RDH 3, and the SDH 4 in relation to each other. That is, the CPU 204
Via an I / O 203, a main body driving means 207 including a motor and a solenoid of the main body of the copier main body 1 and a driver and a driver including an operating component of the RDH 3 and an R including a driver.
DH drive means 201, SDH drive means 202 including each operating component of SDH4 and driver, RDH original detection sensor 5
2c, the RDH cycle detection sensor 55, the SDH document detection sensor 94, the SDH cycle detection sensor 99b, and the main body operation panel 210 are connected.

The CPU 204 has a ROM (Read
Only Memory 205 and RAM (Random Access Memo)
ry) 206 is connected, and performs various controls in accordance with a control program stored in the ROM 205 in advance. The control program includes an image forming sequence of the copying machine main body 1, control of the operation panel 210, RDH3,
The program includes all the operation sequences of the SDH 4 and programs for controlling various copy modes, setting of an interrupt permitted number value described later, and the like.

The ROM 205 further stores RDH3
When an interrupt copy is made with SDH4 during copying, a control program for permitting interrupt copy when the number of originals of SDH4 is smaller than a predetermined number is stored. It is remembered. The value of the number of permitted interrupts is stored in the ROM 205 when the power of the copier body 1 is turned on.
Is transferred to the RAM 206 and can be changed by an operation for changing the set value of the number of permitted interrupts described later.
Such a change in the set value of the number of permitted interrupts is performed by operating the operation panel 210 described above.

As shown in FIG. 6, for example, the operation panel 210 includes a ten key 211a for inputting the number of copies per document, a clear key 211b for clearing the set number of copies, and a plurality of documents using the RDH3. For selecting a copy mode when performing copying while sequentially circulating
A DH select key 211c, a mode for continuously copying a desired number of copies with a document placed on the platen glass 2, and S
A PL for selecting a copy mode in which a plurality of originals are transported to the platen glass 2 using the DH4 and a continuous copy is performed.
ATEN select key 211d, set display unit 213a for displaying the set number of copies, count display unit 213b for counting and displaying the number of copies, intermediate tray 28
A mode display unit 2 that lights up a lamp and displays which of the four copy modes using (FIG. 2) is selected.
13c to 213f and an interrupt selection key 2 for interrupting
14 are provided.

The mode display section 213c is turned on when a mode for performing single-sided copying from a single-sided document is selected, and the mode display section 213d is turned on when a mode for performing double-sided copying from a single-sided document is selected. The mode display unit 213e is turned on when a mode for performing one-sided copying from a two-sided original is selected, and the mode display unit 213f is
It is lit when a mode for performing duplex copying from a duplex document is selected. When all of the mode display units 213c to 213f have disappeared, R
A mode is shown in which the SDH 4 is opened upward, a document is placed on the platen glass 2, and the document is copied without using the DH 3 and the SDH 4.

Each of the above mode display units 213c to 213f
Is selected by the RDH select key 211c. That is, each time the RDH select key 211c is pressed once, the mode display portions 213c to 213f are sequentially switched from those at the uppermost position to those at the lower position, and the mode display portion 213f at the lowermost position is again displayed at the uppermost position. Part 21
3c lights up. Each time the PLAY key 211d is pressed once, the mode display units 213c to 213f are all turned off, the mode display unit 213c is turned on, the mode display unit 213d is sequentially turned on, and the mode display unit 213d is turned on. Next is the mode display sections 213c to 213 again.
The state returns to the state where 3f has all disappeared.

Here, the setting operation of the above-described interrupt permitted number value by the operation panel 210 will be described.

First, the operator simultaneously presses the 0 key of the numeric keypad 211a of the operation panel 210 and the interrupt selection key 214 for three times.
After pressing for two seconds, the value of the number of permitted interrupts is input from the ten keys 211a. Here, the CPU 204 detects a key signal from each pressed key, counts a timer for 3 seconds, and receives an interrupt permission number value when each key signal is continuously detected for 3 seconds or more. The mode is changed to a state in which the number of permitted interrupts can be input from the ten keys 211a. The inputtable value at this time is from 0 to 999.

Next, the operator presses the print key 211e after inputting the value of the number of permitted interrupts, thereby setting the input value as a new value of the number of permitted interrupts in the RAM 206. At this time, the CPU 204 terminates the interrupt-permitted-number-of-intervals receiving mode and returns to the normal mode.

Here, if the value of the number of permitted interrupts is set to 0, no interrupt using SDH4 can be made at all. For example, if there is an operator A who makes a large number of copies in RDH3,
By setting the above-mentioned interrupt permitting sheet number value to 0 before copying RDH3, even if the user moves away from the copying machine, the operator B who intends to copy a large amount on SDH4 during this time.
Can be eliminated. As a result, a setting can be made so that the one used earlier can use the copying machine preferentially.

On the other hand, if the value of the number of permitted interrupts is 999, no matter how many originals are placed on the SDH 4, the RD
An interrupt using SDH4 can be performed while H3 is being used.

Next, a copying operation when the RDH 3 is used in the above configuration will be described below with reference to FIGS. In this copy, a case in which double-sided copying is performed from a single-sided original will be described. Therefore, the mode display section 213d of the operation panel 210 is lit.

At the time of copying, first, a predetermined number of originals D are turned upside down, and the surface on which the image is formed is turned downward, and the originals of the last page are stacked in a page order so as to be at the uppermost position. Place on. At this time, the RDH document detection sensor 52c detects that the document D has been placed on the document placement unit 43, and outputs a detection signal to the CPU 204.

In this state, the operator presses the RDH select key 2
11c, a desired copy mode is selected, the number of copies is set by the ten keys 211a, and a copy start is instructed by the print switch 211e.
Reference numeral 4 stores the number of copies in the RAM 206, and rotates the suction fan motor (not shown) and the air blowing fan motor (not shown). As a result, the air blowing fan 52d causes the originals D placed on the original placing table 43 to move.
, And the document D... Is floated, and the suction fan 52b suctions the document D located at the top of the document D onto the paper feed belt 52a.

The CPU 204 detects the number of originals D,
The detected number of documents is stored in the RAM 206, and it is determined whether or not the number of documents is odd, and copying corresponding to each case is performed. Here, the number of originals is five (from the first page, D1, D2,..., D5 in sequence), and images I1, I2,.
... are formed.

When copying is started, the paper feed belt 5
The document D5 adsorbed on the sheet 2a, that is, the document D5 positioned at the top, is conveyed to the sheet feeding and conveying unit 44 with the rotation of the sheet feeding belt 52a, is sequentially supplied from the last page, and The circulation of the original is started. When the document D5 of the fifth page passes through the rotating drum 46, optical scanning is performed via an optical scanning window 65 (FIG. 2), which is an optical scanning position, and an image I5 of the document D5 is stored in the sheet cassettes 33 to. 35, for example, is copied onto the first copy sheet P1 supplied from the sheet cassette 33, and the copy sheet P1 is discharged to the discharge tray 42 as it is.

In the mode for performing double-sided copying from a single-sided original, optical scanning is performed using only the optical scanning window 65 on the rotating drum 46 side (the optical scanning window 64 is used in a copy mode for copying from a double-sided original). ).

Subsequently, the original D4 of the fourth page is
6, the document D4 is optically scanned, an image I4 is copied on a second copy sheet P2, and the copy sheet P2 is sent to the intermediate tray 28, where the image I4 is formed. Is discharged upward. In the meantime, the document D3 of the third page is skipped without being optically scanned by the rotating drum 46, and is discharged to the document placing portion 43 below the document D4.

Subsequently, the original D2 of the second page is
6, light scanning is performed, and the image I2 is copied onto a third copy sheet P3. The copy sheet P3 is sent to the intermediate tray 28 and discharged over the copy sheet P2. When the copying of the document D2 of the second page is completed, the switching operation of the paper supply source is started, and the air supply system is switched to the paper supply belt 3.
First, the intermediate tray 28 is moved by the delivery belt 32 from the 7th side.
The copy paper P <b> 2 stored at the lowermost position is sent out and supplied to the photosensitive drum 12. During this time, the document D1 of the first page is skipped without being optically scanned by the rotating drum 46, and is discharged to the document placing portion 43 below the document 2.

Then, when the original D3 of the third page reaches the rotating drum 46 during the circulation period of the original in the second cycle,
Optical scanning is performed on the document D3, and the image I3 is copied to the copy sheet P2.
Is copied to the non-copied side. Thereafter, the copy sheet P2 for which copying on both sides has been completed is discharged to the discharge tray 42. In the meantime, the original D2 of the second page skips the rotating drum 46 and is returned to the original placing section 43.

Then, the original D1 of the first page is
6, the copying paper P3 is supplied from the intermediate tray 28 to the photosensitive drum 12, and the original D1
Is copied on the non-copy side of the copy sheet P3.

Then, the copy sheet P3 is discharged to the discharge tray 42, while the original D1 is returned to the original placing section 43. Thus, all copying is completed while the originals D5 to D1 circulate twice.

Next, the copying operation using the SDH 4 will be described below with reference to FIGS. In this copy, a case in which double-sided copying is performed from a single-sided original will be described. Therefore, the mode display section 213d of the operation panel 210 is lit.

At the time of copying, first, a predetermined number of originals D...
Is placed on the original hopper 91, with the surface on which the image is formed facing upward, the original on the last page being stacked at the lowest position. At this time, the SDH document detection sensor 94 detects that the document D is placed on the document hopper 91, and outputs a detection signal to the CPU 204.

In this state, the operator presses the PLAY key 21
When a desired copy mode is selected with 1d, the number of copies is set with the ten keys 211a, and a copy start is instructed with the print switch 211e, the CPU 204
Rotates the feeding roller 92, the sheet feeding roller 93a, and the separation roller 93b. Thereby, the attraction roller 92
Feeds the original D at the lowermost position to the paper feed roller 93a and the separation roller 93b, and prevents the double feed by the separation roller 93b, while the exposure conveyance section 8 is fed by the paper feed roller 93a.
The original is sent to 3.

The CPU 204 detects the number of the originals D..., Determines whether or not the number of the originals is an odd number, and performs copying corresponding to each case. Here, the number of originals is five (from the first page, D1, D2.
5), an image I1 is placed on one side of each document D1, D2,.
It is assumed that I2,... Are formed.

When copying is started, the original D5 located at the bottom of the original hopper 91 is transported to the exposure transport section 83 with the rotation of the paper feed roller 93a, and is sequentially supplied from the last page. Then, the circulation of the first document is started.
When the fifth page document D5 is placed on the platen glass 2, optical scanning is performed by the optical system 10, and the image I5 of the document D5 is transferred to any of the sheet cassettes 33 to 35, for example, The first copy sheet P1 supplied from the paper cassette 33 is copied onto the first copy sheet P1, and the copy sheet P1 is discharged to the discharge tray 42 as it is.

Subsequently, the original D4 of the fourth page is transferred to the exposure transport unit 8
The document D4 is conveyed onto the platen glass 2, where an optical scan is performed on the document D4, and an image I4 is copied on a second copy sheet P2. The copy sheet P2 is sent to the intermediate tray 28 and the image I4 Is discharged so that the surface on which is formed faces upward. Meanwhile, the original D3 of the third page is the platen glass 2
Are skipped without being scanned by the light, and are discharged onto the document D4 of the document hopper 91.

Subsequently, the original D2 of the second page is transferred to the exposure transport unit 8
3 is conveyed onto the platen glass 2, where the original D2 is optically scanned, and the image I2 is copied onto a third copy sheet P3, which is sent to the intermediate tray 28 and It is discharged over P2. When the copying of the original D2 of the second page is completed, the switching operation of the paper supply source is started, and the air supply system is first moved from the paper supply belt 37 side to the lowermost position in the intermediate tray 28 by the delivery belt 32. The copy paper P2 stored in the photosensitive drum 1 is sent out.
2 is supplied. During this time, the original D1 of the first page is skipped without being optically scanned by the platen glass 2 and is discharged onto the original D2 of the original hopper 91.

Then, in the circulation period of the second original, the originals D5 and D4 of the fifth and fourth pages are respectively skipped and discharged to the original hopper 91. Then, when the third page document D3 reaches the platen glass 2 of the exposure scanning unit 83, the document D3 is optically scanned by the optical system 10, and the image I3 is copied on the non-copied surface of the copy sheet P2. .
Thereafter, the copy sheet P2 for which copying on both sides has been completed is discharged to the discharge tray 42. Meanwhile, the original D2 of the second page skips over the platen glass 2 and is returned to the original hopper 91.

After that, the original D1 of the first page is
3, the copy sheet P3 is supplied from the intermediate tray 28 to the photosensitive drum 12, and the image of the document D1 is copied onto the non-copy side of the copy sheet P3.

Then, the copy sheet P3 is discharged to the discharge tray 42, while the document D1 is returned to the document hopper 91. Thus, all copying is completed while the originals D5 to D1 circulate twice.

As described above, in SDH4, the above RDH3
In the case of (1), the original is set at the exposure position on the platen glass
It can be seen that the same operation is performed by replacing 0 with the point where optical scanning is performed by one round trip. Thereby, SD
Even in the case of H4, all copying is completed while the originals D5 to D1 circulate twice.

Next, the operation when interrupt copying is performed during copying in the RDH mode using the RDH 3 will be described below. The method of performing the interrupt copying includes a method of pressing the interrupt selection key 214 on the operation panel 210 and a method of SDH4.
There is a method of placing the manuscript directly in the.

First, the operation of interrupt copying by pressing the interrupt selection key 214 will be described.

In this case, when the operator presses the interrupt selection key 214, this key signal is input to the CPU 204. At this time, the CPU 204 checks whether or not the document detection sensor 94 of the SDH 4 is detecting a document at the time when the interrupt selection key 214 is pressed.

Here, when the document detection sensor 94 of the SDH 4 does not detect the document, the RDH 3 performs a copying operation only on the document in the transport path and does not newly feed the document. Then, the original D in the transport path is moved to the original placing section 4.
Returning to 3, the copying operation is stopped, and interrupt copying can be performed.

The set state and copy state at this time are stored in the RAM 20.
6, the display of the set display unit 213a for displaying the currently set number of copies of the RDH 3 is turned off. Then, the operator opens the SDH 4, places the original at the exposure position on the platen glass 2, sets the original, and
The number of copies is set in 1a, and the set number of copies is displayed by the set display unit 213a. Then, copying is performed by pressing the print switch 211e.

After the copying is completed, the operator presses the interrupt selection key 214 to release the interrupt state, and the CPU
204 recalls the data such as the setting state and the copying state in the RDH 3 held in the RAM 206, and the RDH 3
Is displayed on the set display unit 213a. Next, when the print switch 211e is pressed, the interrupted RD
The copying operation in the H mode is restarted.

When the document detection sensor 94 of the SDH 4 is detecting a document, first, the CPU 204
The number of documents of H4 is detected. Then, the value of the number of permitted interrupts stored in the ROM 205 is compared with the detected number of originals of SDH4. If the number of originals of SDH4 is equal to or greater than the permitted number of interrupts, the RDH is not entered into the interrupt mode.
Continue copying by mode. However, SDH4
If the number of originals is smaller than the number of permitted interrupts, RDH
The copying operation is performed only on the document in the transport path in No. 3 and no new paper feeding is performed. When the original in the transport path returns to the original placing section 43, the copying operation in the RDH mode is stopped, and interrupt copying can be performed.

The set state and copy state at this time are stored in the RAM 20.
6, the display of the set display unit 213a for displaying the currently set number of copies of the RDH 3 is turned off. Thereafter, the number of copies is set using the numeric keypad 211a, and the number of copies set by pressing the print switch 211e is displayed on the set display unit 213a, and copying is performed using the SDH4. After the copying is completed, the interruption state is released, the data held in the RAM 206 is recalled by the CPU 204, and the number of copies of the RDH 3 is displayed on the set display unit 213a. Then, the suspended copying operation in the RDH mode is resumed.

Next, an explanation will be given of the operation of the interrupt copying in the method of placing the original on the SDH 4. However, the interruption operation here is the same as the interruption copying operation when the original is detected on the SDH 4 by pressing the interruption selection key 214 of the operation panel 210 described above.

Next, the flow of the above-described copying operation will be described below with reference to the flowcharts shown in FIGS. 1, 7 and 8.

First, when the RDH mode is selected and the print switch is depressed, the SDH
The presence or absence of the H4 document is detected. That is, it is determined whether there is no original in the SDH 4 (S1). If there is a document on the SDH 4, a copy operation by the RDH 3 is started (S2). On the other hand, even if there is no original in SDH4, RDH3
Is started (S8).

At S2, after the copy operation by RDH3 is started, it is determined whether or not the interrupt selection key 214 has been pressed (S3). At this time, if the interrupt selection key 214 has not been pressed, it is determined whether the copy operation by the RDH 3 has been completed, that is, whether the copy in the RDH mode has been completed (S4). Here, the RDH copy operation ends, ie, RD
If copying in the H mode has not been completed, the process proceeds to S3.

On the other hand, if the interrupt selection key 214 has been pressed in S3,
The presence or absence of the H4 document is detected. That is, it is determined whether there is no original in the SDH 4 (S5). If it is determined that there is a document in the SDH 4, the process proceeds to S6 to execute a copy mode using the interrupt SDH.
Move to On the other hand, if it is determined in S5 that there is no original in the SDH 4, the process proceeds to S7, where a copy mode using the interrupting platen glass, that is, a copy mode in which the SDH 4 is opened and the original is placed on the platen glass 2, is executed. After the copy mode ends, the process proceeds to S4.

After the copy operation by the RDH 3 is started in S8, it is determined whether or not the interrupt selection key 214 is pressed (S9). At this time, the interrupt selection key 2
If the button 14 is not pressed, the SDH document detection sensor 94
Thus, the presence or absence of a document on SDH4 is detected. That is, SDH
It is determined whether there is no original document in the document No. 4 (S10). If it is determined that the document is present in the SDH 4, the process proceeds to S11 to execute the copy mode using the interrupt SDH. After the completion of the copy mode, the process proceeds to S13. On the other hand, in S10, S
If it is determined that there is no original in DH4, it is determined after the copying operation of RDH3 is completed, that is, whether or not copying in the RDH mode is completed (S13). Here, if the copying operation of the RDH 3 is completed, that is, if the copying in the RDH mode is not completed, the process proceeds to S9.

On the other hand, if the interrupt selection key 214 has been pressed in S9, the flow shifts to S12, where a copy mode using the interrupted platen glass is executed.
Move to

Next, S6 and S11 of the control shown in FIG.
Will be described below with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG.

First, the number of documents placed on the SDH 4 is detected, and the number of SDH documents is confirmed (S2).
1). Then, it is determined whether or not the number of originals placed on the SDH 4 is equal to or greater than a preset interrupt permitting number (S22).

If the number of originals placed on the SDH 4 is smaller than the number of permitted interrupts, the RDH copy being executed is interrupted (S23). At this time, the RDH copy is interrupted after the copying of only the document on the transport path in the RDH 3 is completed. Then, after the interruption of the RDH copy, the interruption copy by the SDH is started (S24).

On the other hand, if the number of originals placed on the SDH 4 is equal to or greater than the number of permitted interrupts in S22, the RDH mode copy is continued without executing the interrupt copy mode.

Next, S7 and S1 of the control shown in FIG.
The interrupt control by the interrupt platen glass in 2 will be described below with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG.

First, the RDH copy is interrupted (S31),
Interruption copying is performed by placing an original on the platen glass 2 (S32). Next, it is determined whether or not the interrupt selection key 214 has been pressed during execution of the copy mode (S3).
3). Here, if the interrupt selection key 214 is pressed, copying by the interrupt copy platen glass is interrupted, and RDH copying is resumed. The interrupt copy mode is set by the interrupt selection key 21
It is performed until 4 is pressed.

[Second Embodiment] The following will describe another embodiment of the present invention. The image forming apparatus according to the present embodiment performs another interrupt control in the copy mode using the interrupt SDH in the first embodiment. The configuration of the copying machine, which is an image forming apparatus, is the same as in the first embodiment, and a description thereof will not be repeated. The same applies to the following embodiments.

In the copy mode using the interrupt SDH in the first embodiment, in the flowchart shown in FIG. 7, the number of originals placed on the SDH 4 is compared with a preset value of the number of permitted interrupts. It is determined whether or not to execute the interrupt copying. For example, by comparing the number of documents placed on the SDH 4 with the number of documents placed on the RDH 3 currently being executed. It is also conceivable to determine whether or not to execute interrupt copying. However, RDH
It is assumed that the number of documents 3 is stored in the RAM 206 after being detected by the RDH document detection sensor 52c.

As a method of switching to the interruption copy mode during the copying in the RDH mode using the RDH 3, there are a method of pressing the interruption selection key 214 and a method of placing a document on the SDH 4. Interruption copying control when the SDH document detection sensor 94 of the SDH 4 detects a document is the same.

In this case, the CPU 204 detects the number of originals in the SDH 4, and outputs the R number stored in the RAM 206.
Compare the number of DH3 documents with the number of SDH4 documents,
If the number of originals in the SDH4 is equal to or greater than the number of originals in the RDH3, the control is performed so that the interrupt copy mode is not executed and the copying in the RDH mode is continued. On the other hand, the CPU 204
If the number of originals in the SDH4 is smaller than the number of originals in the RDH3, the copying operation is performed only on the originals in the transport path of the RDH3, and no new original is sent to the transport path.
When the process returns to the document placing section 43 of the DH3, the copying in the RDH mode is interrupted, and control is performed so that the interrupt copying mode can be executed.

When interrupting the copying in the RDH mode, the CPU 204 changes the setting state and the copying state at this time to RA.
M206 is stored and the display of the set display unit 213a for displaying the number of copies on the operation panel 210 is turned off. Thereafter, the number of copies is set with the ten keys 211a, and the set number of copies is displayed on the set display section 213a by pressing the print switch 211e, and an interrupt copy mode for performing copying using the SDH 4 is executed.

After the copying is completed, the interrupt state is released, the data held in the RAM 206 is recalled by the CPU 204, and the number of copies of the RDH 3 is displayed on the set display unit 213a. Then, the suspended copying operation in the RDH mode is resumed.

Accordingly, in the present embodiment, in S22 of the flowchart shown in FIG.
Other controls are the same as in the first embodiment, except that the number of documents is changed to DH3.

[Embodiment 3] The following will describe another embodiment of the present invention with reference to FIG.

In the image forming apparatus according to the present embodiment, a control method for performing interrupt copying during copying in the RDH mode using RDH 3 is different from that of the first embodiment as follows.

Also in this case, as a method of performing the interrupt copying,
There are two methods, a method of pressing the interrupt selection key 214 on the operation panel 210 and a method of placing a document on the SDH 4.

First, the operation when the interrupt selection key 214 is pressed will be described. When the operator presses the interrupt selection key 214, the signal of the interrupt selection key 214
4 is input. At this time, when the CPU 204 presses the interrupt selection key 214, the document detection sensor 9 of the SDH 4
It is checked whether or not 4 detects a document.

When the SDH document detection sensor 94 does not detect a document, the RDH 3 performs a copying operation only on the document in the transport path, and does not newly feed the document. Manuscript D
Is returned to the document placing section 43, the copying operation is stopped, and interrupt copying can be performed. The set state and copy state at this time are held in the RAM 206, and the currently set RDH3
The display of the set display unit 213a for displaying the number of copies of the image is erased. Then, the operator opens the SDH 4, places the original at the exposure position on the platen glass 2, sets the original, sets the number of copies using the ten keys 211a, and displays the set number of copies on the set display unit 213a.

Then, the operator operates the print switch 21.
Pressing 1e instructs execution of copying. At this time, the CPU 204 compares the set number of copies with the above-described interrupt permitted number, and if the set number of copies is equal to or greater than the above-described interrupt permitted number, does not enter the interrupt mode. R
The number of copies of DH3 is displayed on the set display unit 213a, and the RDH mode is continued as it is. However, if the set number of copies is less than the value of the number of permitted interrupts, interrupt copying is executed.

After the interruption copy, the operator presses the interruption selection key 2
By pressing the button 14, the interrupt state is released and the CPU 20
4, the data held in the RAM 206 is recalled, and the number of copies of the RDH 3 is displayed on the set display unit 213a. Next, when the print switch 211e is pressed, the suspended copying operation in the RDH mode is restarted.

When the SDH document detection sensor 94 is detecting a document, the RDH 3 performs a copying operation only on the document in the transport path, and does not newly feed the document. When the document D returns to the document placement section 43, the copying operation is stopped, and interrupt copying can be performed. The set state and copy state at this time are held in the RAM 206, and the currently set RD
The display of the set display unit 213a for displaying the number of copies of H3 is turned off.

Thereafter, the number of copies is set using the ten keys 211a, and the set number of copies is displayed on the set display section 213a. Then, by pressing the print switch 211e, the execution of copying is instructed using the SDH4. At this time, the CPU 204 compares the set number of copies with the above-described interrupt permitted number, and if the set number of copies is equal to or greater than the above-described interrupt permitted number, does not enter the interrupt mode. The number of RDH copies is displayed on the set display unit 213a, and the RDH mode is continued. However, if the set number of copies is smaller than the above-mentioned interrupt permitting number, interrupt copying is executed. After the copying is completed, the interrupt state is released, and the data held in the RAM 206 is recalled by the CPU 204. And the RDH that was suspended
The copying operation in the mode is restarted.

The control for switching the copy mode by placing a document on the SDH 4 is the same as the processing when the SDH document detection sensor 94 detects the document when the interrupt selection key 214 is pressed.

Further, the control of the interrupt copy of the present embodiment, that is, the interrupt control for performing the interrupt copy by the SDH 4 is the same as the flowchart shown in FIG. 1 of the first embodiment. The interrupt control for making an interrupt copy by the SDH 4 in S11 is different from the interrupt control for putting an original on the platen glass 2 and making an interrupt copy in S7 and S12. These different controls will be described below with reference to the flowcharts shown in FIGS.

First, the interrupt control in the case of performing the interrupt copy by the SDH 4 will be described with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG.

The copying operation in the RDH mode is interrupted (S41). Then, the ten keys 21 on the operation panel 210
It is determined whether the number of copies input in 1a is equal to or greater than the number of permitted interrupts (S4).
2). Here, if the input number of copies is equal to or greater than the number of permitted interrupts, the interrupt mode is not executed and the interrupted RDH mode copying is resumed. On the other hand, if the input number of copies is smaller than the value of the number of permitted interrupts, interrupt copying is performed using the SDH 4 (S
43). When the interrupt copying is completed, the interrupted RD
H-mode copying is resumed.

Next, the interrupt control in the case of performing the interrupt copy using the platen glass 2 will be described with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG.

The copying operation in the RDH mode is interrupted (S51). Then, the ten keys 21 on the operation panel 210
It is determined whether the number of copies input in 1a is equal to or greater than the number of permitted interrupts (S5).
2). Here, if the input number of copies is equal to or greater than the number of permitted interrupts, the interrupt mode is not executed and the interrupted RDH mode copying is resumed. On the other hand, if the input number of copies is smaller than the value of the number of permitted interrupts, interrupt copying is performed using the platen glass 2 (S53). When the interrupt copying is completed, the interrupted RDH mode copying is restarted.

[Embodiment 4] Still another embodiment of the present invention will be described below. In the copying machine according to the present embodiment, the interrupt mode is not switched by comparing the number of SDH4 documents and the number of allowed interrupts as in the first embodiment, but is switched by the interrupt permitted time. The control is performed. This interrupt control will be described below. In the present embodiment, as in the first embodiment, there are two methods for performing an interrupt copy: a method of pressing the interrupt selection key 214 and a method of placing a document on the SDH 4.

First, the operation when the interrupt selection key 214 is pressed will be described. When the operator presses the interrupt selection key 214, the signal of the interrupt selection key 214
4 is input. At this time, when the CPU 204 presses the interrupt selection key 214, the document detection sensor 9 of the SDH 4
It is checked whether or not 4 detects a document.

Here, when the document detection sensor 94 of the SDH 4 does not detect the document, the RDH 3 performs the copying operation only on the document in the transport path, and does not newly feed the document. When the document D returns to the document placement section 43, the copying operation is stopped, and interrupt copying can be performed. The set state and the copy state at this time are held in the RAM 206, and the set display unit 21 for displaying the currently set number of copies of the RDH 3
Turn off the display of 3a.

Then, the operator opens the SDH 4, places the original at the exposure position on the platen glass 2, and sets the original.
The number of copies is set using the ten keys 211a, and the set number of copies is displayed on the set display unit 213a.

Then, pressing the print switch 211e instructs execution of copying. At this point, CPU2
04 compares the product of the set number of copies and the time required for copying per sheet with the above-described interrupt permitting number,
If the time required for copying corresponding to the set number of copies is equal to or longer than the above-described interrupt permission time, the apparatus does not enter the interrupt mode, and
The number of copies of DH3 is displayed on the set display unit 213a, and the RDH mode is continued as it is.

However, if the time required for copying corresponding to the set number of copies is shorter than the above-described interrupt permission time, interrupt copying is executed. After the copying is completed, the operator presses the interrupt selection key 214 to release the interrupt state, and C
The data held in the RAM 206 is recalled by the PU 204, and the number of copies of the RDH is displayed on the set display unit 213a.
To be displayed. Next, when the print switch 211e is pressed, the suspended copying operation in the RDH mode is resumed.

When the document detection sensor 94 of the SDH 4 detects a document, the CPU 204 detects the number of documents of the SDH 4. Then, in the RDH 3, the copying operation is performed only for the document in the transport path, and no new paper feeding is performed. When the original in the transport path of the RDH 3 returns to the original placing section 43, the copying operation is stopped, and interrupt copying can be performed.
The set state and the copy state at this time are held in the RAM 206, and the display of the set display unit 213a for displaying the currently set number of RDH copies is turned off.

Thereafter, the number of copies is set using the ten keys 211a, and the set number of copies is displayed on the set display section 213a.
Will be displayed. Then, by pressing the print switch 211e, the execution of copying is instructed using the SDH4. At this time, the CPU 204 compares the product of the set number of copies, the number of documents and the time required for copying per document (copy time by SDH4) with the above-described interrupt permission time value, If the copy time is equal to or longer than the interrupt permission time, the number of copies of the RDH 3 is displayed on the set display unit 213a without executing the interrupt mode, and the RDH mode is continued.

However, if the copy time by the SDH 4 is shorter than the interrupt permission time, the interrupt copy is executed. Then, after the interruption copy is completed, the interruption state is released as it is,
The data held in the RAM 206 is recalled by the CPU 204. Then, the suspended copying operation in the RDH mode is resumed.

Next, the control of the method of switching the copy mode by placing a document on the SDH 4 is performed by the interrupt selection key 214 described above.
This is the same as the process when the SDH document detection sensor 94 detects a document when is pressed.

Accordingly, in the present embodiment, the point that S21 of the flowchart shown in FIG. 7 is inserted before S41 of the flowchart shown in FIG.
In S52 and S52, it is determined whether the product of the number of copies (original number) input with the numeric keypad and the copy time per sheet is equal to the interrupt permitted time or greater than the interrupt permitted sheet value. The other control is the same as that of the third embodiment except for the difference.

[Embodiment 5] Still another embodiment of the present invention will be described below. In the copying machine as the image forming apparatus according to the present embodiment, the interrupt permission time used in the fourth embodiment is set to the number of copies in the RDH mode, the number of documents, and the copy time per document. The interruption copying is performed by setting a predetermined ratio of the time obtained from the product of. For example, the above-mentioned predetermined ratio is a ratio for permitting execution of interrupt copying in SDH4 if the interrupt time in SDH4 is less than half of the remaining time in the RDH mode.

In the above-described copying machine, when the SDH document detection sensor 94 for detecting the presence / absence of a document on the SDH 4 is in the RDH mode, an interrupt signal for generating an interrupt signal for interrupting the SDH mode is generated. Used as a means. In other words, the control device of the copying machine has a function as an interrupt control unit for interrupting the RDH mode and executing the SDH mode in accordance with the detection signal from the SDH document detection sensor 94 during the execution of the RDH mode. doing.

Further, in the copying machine, when an interrupt signal is generated during execution of the RDH mode, the remaining time until the end of the RDH mode is calculated based on the detection signal from the SDH original detection sensor 94. 1 after the detection signal is generated by the calculating means and the SDH document detection sensor 94,
Second calculation means for calculating a time until the H mode ends is provided.

The control means may determine that the time calculated by the second calculation means is less than or equal to a predetermined ratio of the time calculated by the first calculation means to the time calculated by the first calculation means. The interruption control by the interruption control means is executed.

According to the above configuration, if the interrupt processing time by the SDH 4 is shorter than the predetermined ratio set in advance than the remaining copy time in the RDH mode, the RDH mode is interrupted, and the interrupt mode in the SDH 4 is set. Since the execution is performed, the interruption processing in which the substantial interruption processing time in the interruption mode by the SDH 4 is too long with respect to the substantial remaining copying time in the RDH mode is prevented.

As a result, it is possible to prevent an operator who intends to interrupt later from performing an interrupt process that is too long, so that the inconvenience of a long stoppage time of image forming work by the previous operator can be solved.

The first calculating means calculates the remaining time until the end of the RDH mode based on information obtained from the product of the difference between the number of copies of the original on RDH 3 and the number of copies, and the information on the number of originals. The remaining time until the end of the RDH mode is calculated, and the second calculating means calculates the time until the end of the second image forming mode based on the information obtained from the product of the number of copies and the number of documents. The time until the SDH mode ends is calculated.

Therefore, the remaining copy time in the RDH mode is defined as the product of the number of copies remaining, which is the difference between the number of copies and the number of copies, and the number of documents in RDH3, and the interrupt time in SDH4 is defined as the product of the number of copies and the number of documents. Thus, the copying machine itself can automatically determine the numerical value that changes depending on the copying time situation.

This eliminates the need for the operator to perform cumbersome operations such as estimating the interruption time, and provides an unprecedented superior effect of simplifying the interruption state of the copying machine and preventing confusion of the operator.

By the way, if the original size is different, the original 1
The copy time per sheet changes. This means, for example, that A4
This is apparent from the fact that the number of copies per unit time is smaller in the A3 continuous copy than in the continuous copy. Therefore,
It can be seen that more preferable interrupt processing can be performed by calculating the remaining time of the RDH mode for copying and the interrupt time of SDH4 in consideration of the document size.

As this method, for example, (number of documents)
The remaining time in the RDH mode for copying and the interrupt time for SDH4 may be calculated from × (number of copies) × (copying time per sheet according to the size of the used document).

The above-mentioned interrupt control will be described below with reference to the flowchart of FIG.

First, the number of copies in the RDH mode set by the ten keys on the operation panel 210 is stored in the RAM 206 as a variable called Nrm (S61). next,
The copying time Tr per document is selected according to various conditions such as the size of the document used in the RDH mode, paper size, magnification, and the like, and this value is stored in the RAM 206 (S
62).

Next, when the RDH mode is selected and the print switch is pressed, the SDH original detection sensor 94 causes the
The presence or absence of the document of DH4 is detected. That is, it is determined whether there is no original in the SDH 4 (S63). Where SDH
If there is an original in No. 4, the copy operation by RDH3 is started (S64). On the other hand, even if there is no original in SDH4, R
The copy operation by DH3 is started (S71).

At S64, after the copy operation by RDH3 is started, the current remaining number of originals in the RDH mode is set to N.
ro is stored in the RAM 206 as a variable (S6
5). Then, it is determined whether or not the interrupt selection key 214 has been pressed (S66). At this time, the interrupt selection key 214
If is not pressed, it is determined whether the copying operation by the RDH 3 is completed, that is, whether the copying in the RDH mode is completed (S67). Here, if the RDH copy operation has been completed, that is, if the copying in the RDH mode has not been completed, the flow shifts to S65.

On the other hand, if the interrupt selection key 214 has been pressed in S66,
The presence or absence of the document of DH4 is detected. That is, it is determined whether there is no original in the SDH 4 (S68). Here, SDH4
If it is determined that there is an original, the process proceeds to S69 and interrupts SD
H, the copy mode is executed, and after the copy mode ends, the flow shifts to S67. On the other hand, if it is determined in S68 that there is no original in the SDH 4, the process proceeds to S70, and a copy mode using the interrupted platen glass, that is, a copy mode in which the SDH 4 is opened and the original is placed on the platen glass 2, is executed. After the copy mode ends, the flow shifts to S67.

After the copy operation by the RDH 3 is started in S71, the current remaining number of originals in the RDH mode is stored in the RAM 206 as a variable called Nro (S72). Then, it is determined whether or not the interrupt selection key 214 has been pressed (S73). At this time, if the interrupt selection key 214 has not been pressed in S73, the presence / absence of an SDH4 document is detected by the SDH document detection sensor 94.
That is, it is determined whether there is no original in the SDH 4 (S7).
4). Here, if it is determined that there is a document in SDH4, S
The flow shifts to 75, where a copy mode using the interrupt SDH is executed. After this copy mode ends, the flow shifts to S76. on the other hand,
If it is determined in S74 that there is no original in SDH4, RDH
After the completion of the copying operation of No. 3, that is, whether or not copying in the RDH mode is completed is determined (S76). Where RD
If the copying operation of H3 has not been completed, that is, if the copying in the RDH mode has not been completed, the process proceeds to S72.

On the other hand, if the interrupt selection key 214 has been pressed in S73, the flow shifts to S77, where the copy mode using the interrupted platen glass is executed.
Move to 6.

The control by the interrupt SDH of the above interrupt control will be described below with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG.

First, when the copy operation in the interrupt SDH mode is started, the number of documents stacked on the SDH 4 is stored in the RAM 206 as a variable called Nso (S81).
Next, the number of copies set by the ten keys in the SDH interrupt mode is stored in the RAM 206 as a variable called Nsm (S82). Next, the original 1 is set according to various conditions such as the size of the original used in the SDH interrupt mode, the paper size, and the magnification.
The copy time Ts per sheet is selected and stored in the RAM 206 (S83).

Next, Nro × Nrm × Tr as the remaining copy time in the RDH mode is multiplied by α (eg, と し て) as a predetermined ratio, and Nso × Nsm as the copy time in the SDH interrupt mode. × Ts is compared. That is, Nro × Nrm × Tr × α becomes Nso × Nsm × Ts
It is determined whether or not this is the case (S84). Where N
If ro.times.Nrm.times.Tr.times..alpha. is equal to or greater than Nso.times.Nsm.times.Ts, that is, the remaining copy time in the RDH mode is SDH.
If it is longer than the interrupt copy time of the mode, the running RDH
The copying is interrupted (S85). At this time, the RDH copy is interrupted after the copying of only the document on the transport path in the RDH 3 is completed. Then, after interrupting the RDH copy, interrupt copy by SDH is started (S8).
6). After the end of the SDH interrupt copying, copying in the RDH mode is restarted.

On the other hand, if the number of originals placed on the SDH 4 is equal to or more than the interrupt permitted number in S84, the RDH mode copying is continued without executing the interrupt copying mode.

As described above, each of the first to fifth embodiments described above
According to the above, when the RDH mode as the first image forming mode is executed using the RDH 3 as the first document feeder, the second image using the SDH 4 as the second document feeder When the SDH mode, which is the formation mode, is interrupted, if the conditions of the SDH mode, that is, the conditions that the substantial interrupt processing time is shorter than the processing time in the RDH mode, are satisfied, all or a part of the RDH3 document is satisfied. Copying can be performed by interrupt processing by SDH4 without completing copying.

The interrupted RDH mode is RDH
After copying only the originals remaining in the transport path of No. 3,
Since the RDH mode is stopped, the SDH is not waited for completion of one copy in the interrupted RDH mode.
It can be quickly changed to the interrupt mode using H4. This enables a speedy interrupt operation.

As a result, the interrupt is easy and the time for the interrupt can be limited, so that even if an attempt is made to perform an interrupt process that substantially increases the interrupt processing time, the interrupt process cannot be performed. This prevents an operator who intends to interrupt later from performing an interrupt process that is too long, so that the inconvenience of a longer stoppage time of the copying operation by the previous operator can be solved.

Further, when copying is performed in a plurality of copy modes, the interrupting side and the interrupting side also perform copying using separate document feeders (RDH3 and SDH4), thereby simplifying the situation in the interrupting operation. This can prevent the operator from being confused.

In each of the first to fifth embodiments, a copying machine as shown in FIG. 1 having a document feeder as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4 has been described as an image forming apparatus. However, the present invention is not limited to this. RDH other than the configuration of RDH3 as shown in FIG.
The two-sided original feeder (RA) in which the original after copying does not return to the original placing table on which the original before copying is placed
DF), any combination of document feeders that does not return the original after copying to the original mounting table on which the original before copying is placed (ADF), or sends only one original (SDF). The present invention may be applied to any of them. In addition, any configuration such as a document number detecting unit and an image forming unit is applicable without being limited to the above embodiment.

[0195]

As described above, the image forming apparatus according to the first aspect of the present invention includes an exposure scanning unit having an exposure scanning unit for exposing and scanning an original, and transferring an exposure-scanned original image to a sheet member. An image forming section for forming an image on a sheet member, a first document feeder for conveying a document to the exposure scanning section, and a second document feeder
A first image forming mode in which a first document feeder conveys a document to form an image on a sheet member, and a second document feeder conveys a document to form a sheet. In an image forming apparatus capable of executing a second image forming mode for forming an image on a member, the second document feeder includes a document placing portion on which a document can be placed, and a document placed on the document placing portion. The first image forming mode, comprising: a document presence / absence detecting means for detecting that the document is placed; and a second document number information detecting means for detecting information on the number of documents placed on the document placing portion. During the execution of the second operation,
If the information detected by the second document number information detecting means is equal to or less than a predetermined value when it is detected that the document is placed on the document placing portion of the document feeder of the first image forming mode, , And a control means for switching to the second image forming mode is provided.

Therefore, when image formation is performed in a plurality of image formation modes, the interrupting side and the interrupting side perform image formation using separate document feeders.
Since the situation in the interruption operation can be simplified, confusion of the operator can be prevented.

In the interrupted first image forming mode, after the image forming of only the originals remaining in the conveyance path of the first original feeder is performed, the first image forming mode is stopped. Therefore, it is possible to quickly change to the interrupt mode using the second document feeder without waiting for completion of one-set image formation in the interrupted first image forming mode. This enables a speedy interrupt operation.

Further, if an attempt is made to perform an interrupt process for a document number greater than the interrupt permitted number value, no interrupt is made, so that an operator who attempts to interrupt later will not be allowed to perform an interrupt process that is too long. ing. Therefore, there is an effect that an inconvenience such as a longer stoppage time of the image forming operation by the previous operator can be solved.

As described above, the image forming apparatus according to the second aspect of the present invention includes an exposure scanning unit having an exposure scanning unit for exposing and scanning an original, and transferring an exposure-scanned original image to a sheet member. An image forming unit for forming an image thereon, and a first document feeder and a second document feeder for conveying the document to the exposure scanning unit. An image forming apparatus capable of executing a first image forming mode for forming an image on a sheet member and a second image forming mode for forming an image on a sheet member by conveying a document by a second document feeder The first document feeder includes:
A first document placing portion on which a document can be placed, first document presence / absence detecting means for detecting that a document is placed on the first document placing portion, and a first document placing portion placed on the first document placing portion. First document number information detecting means for detecting information on the number of documents; the second document feeder includes a second document placing portion on which a document can be placed, and a second document placing portion; A second document presence / absence detecting means for detecting that a document is placed, and a second document number information detecting means for detecting information on the number of documents placed on the second document placing portion; During the execution of the first image forming mode, when the document presence / absence detecting means detects that a document is placed on the document placing portion of the second document feeder,
If the number of documents detected by the first document number information detecting means is larger than the number of documents detected by the second document number information detecting means, the first image forming mode is interrupted and the second image forming mode is set. In this configuration, switching control means is provided.

Therefore, when image formation is performed in a plurality of image formation modes, both the interrupting side and the interrupting side perform image formation using separate document feeders.
Since the situation in the interruption operation can be simplified, confusion of the operator can be prevented.

In the interrupted first image forming mode, after the image forming of only the originals remaining in the conveyance path of the first original feeder is performed, the first image forming mode is stopped. Therefore, it is possible to quickly change to the interrupt mode using the second document feeder without waiting for completion of one-set image formation in the interrupted first image forming mode. This enables a speedy interrupt operation.

Further, if an attempt is made to interrupt a document whose number is larger than that of the first document feeder, no interruption is made. Not to be. Therefore, there is an effect that an inconvenience such as a longer stoppage time of the image forming operation by the previous operator can be solved.

According to the image forming apparatus of the third aspect of the present invention, as described above, in addition to the configuration of the first or second aspect, the control means further comprises:
After the detection by the second document number information detecting means is completed, the first image forming mode is interrupted.

Therefore, in addition to the effect of the first or second aspect, the control means interrupts the first image forming mode after the end of the detection by the second document number information detecting means. Since the first image forming mode is not stopped during the detection by the second document number information detecting means of the document feeder, for example, for 1 second or more, it is possible to prevent the first image forming mode from being uselessly stopped. This has the effect of eliminating the disadvantage that the previous operator has a long stopping time of the image forming operation.

The image forming apparatus according to the fourth aspect of the present invention comprises: an exposure scanning unit having an exposure scanning unit for exposing and scanning an original; and transferring an exposure-scanned original image to a sheet member. An image forming unit for forming an image thereon, and a first document feeder and a second document feeder for conveying the document to the exposure scanning unit. An image forming apparatus capable of executing a first image forming mode for forming an image on a sheet member and a second image forming mode for forming an image on a sheet member by conveying a document by a second document feeder The second document feeder includes:
A sheet member having a document placing portion on which a document can be placed, and document presence detecting means for detecting that a document is placed on the document placing portion, wherein an image is formed in the second image forming mode; A document is set on a document placing portion of a second document feeder by the document presence / absence detecting means during execution of the first image forming mode. Control means for interrupting the first image forming mode and switching to the second image forming mode if the information set by the image forming number setting means is equal to or less than a predetermined value when the information is detected. Configuration.

Therefore, the second document feeder can perform the interrupt processing without taking out the document from the first document feeder. Therefore, when performing image formation in a plurality of image forming modes, the image forming apparatus Can be simplified, and confusion of the operator can be prevented.

In the first image forming mode to be interrupted, the first image forming mode is stopped after forming an image only of the originals remaining in the transport path of the first original feeder. Therefore, it is possible to quickly change to the interrupt mode using the second document feeder without waiting for completion of one-set image formation in the interrupted first image forming mode. This enables a speedy interrupt operation.

Further, if an attempt is made to interrupt the document with a number greater than the number of documents in the first document feeder, no interruption is made, so that an operator who intends to interrupt later cannot perform an interrupt process that is too long. Therefore, there is an effect that an inconvenience such as a longer stoppage time of the image forming operation by the previous operator can be solved.

[0209] According to the image forming apparatus of the fifth aspect of the present invention, in addition to the configuration of the fourth aspect, the information set by the image forming number setting means is placed on the second document feeder. This is the product of the number of originals, the number of images formed, and the image formation time per original.

[0210] Therefore, in addition to the effect of the configuration of claim 4, the information set by the image formation number setting means,
That is, information on the number of sheet members on which an image is formed is
By taking the product of the image formation number of the bundle of documents placed on the second document feeder, the number of documents detected by the second document presence / absence detection unit, and the image formation time per document, this product is calculated. The interruption time in the second image forming mode can be used.

[0211] Thus, it is possible to obtain a substantial interruption time for an interruption process in which the number of documents is small but the number of images is large, or an interruption process in which the number of images is small but the number of documents is large. In this case, it is possible to set so that an interrupt process in which an interrupt time is lengthened is not performed, and an operator who attempts to interrupt later will not perform an interrupt process that is too long. Therefore, there is an effect that an inconvenience such as a longer stoppage time of the image forming operation by the previous operator can be solved.

According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, as described above, in addition to any one of the first, third, fourth, and fifth aspects, the predetermined value for setting the predetermined value used by the control means is provided. This is a configuration having setting means.

Therefore, in addition to the effect of any one of the first, third, fourth, and fifth aspects, for example, when a predetermined value is set as the number of permitted interrupts, the predetermined number of interrupts is set. By providing the value setting means, if the value of the number of permitted interrupts is set to, for example, 0, it is possible to set so that no interrupt using the second document feeder can be performed. For example, if there is an operator A who makes a large number of copies in the first document feeder, by setting the value of the number of permitted interrupts to 0 before copying by the first document feeder, the image forming device Even if the user is away, the operator B who intends to make a large number of copies with the second document feeder or the like can be eliminated, and settings can be made so that the one used earlier can be used preferentially. . On the other hand, if the value of the number of permitted interrupts is, for example, 999, the setting is made such that an interrupt process using the second document feeder can be performed regardless of how many documents are placed in the second document feeder. It has the effect of being able to do so.

According to the image forming apparatus of the present invention, as described above, the exposure scanning means having the exposure scanning section for exposing and scanning the original, and transferring the exposed and scanned original image to the sheet member, An image forming unit for forming an image thereon, and a first document feeder and a second document feeder for conveying the document to the exposure scanning unit. An image forming apparatus capable of executing a first image forming mode for forming an image on a sheet member and a second image forming mode for forming an image on a sheet member by conveying a document by a second document feeder An image forming number setting means for setting the number of image forming in the image forming section, and an interrupt for generating an interrupt signal for interrupting the other image forming mode when one image forming mode is being executed. Signal generation means and a first image Interrupt control means for interrupting the first image forming mode and executing the second image forming mode in response to an interrupt signal generated by the interrupt signal generating means during execution of the forming mode; When an interrupt signal is generated during execution of the first image forming mode by the interrupt signal generating means,
A first calculating means for calculating a remaining time until the first image forming mode ends, and a time from when an interrupt signal is generated by the interrupt signal generating means to when the second image forming mode ends. And the interrupt control means, if the time calculated by the second calculation means is equal to or less than a predetermined ratio of the time calculated by the first calculation means, This is a configuration for executing interrupt control by interrupt control means.

Therefore, if the interruption processing time by the second document feeder is shorter than a predetermined ratio set in advance, the remaining image formation time in the first image formation mode is shorter than the first image formation mode.
Is interrupted, and the interruption mode in the second document feeder is executed. Therefore, the second document feeder is required for the substantial remaining image forming time of the first image formation mode. Is not performed such that the substantial interrupt processing time in the interrupt mode is too long. As a result, it is possible to prevent an operator who intends to interrupt later from performing an interrupt process that is too long, so that it is possible to eliminate an inconvenience of a long stoppage time of the image forming operation of the previous operator.

According to an eighth aspect of the present invention, in order to solve the above-mentioned problem, in addition to the configuration of the seventh aspect, the first document feeder further comprises a first document placement unit on which a document can be placed. And the first
First document presence / absence detecting means for detecting that a document is placed on the document placing portion; first document number information detecting means for detecting information on the number of documents placed on the first document placing portion; And the second document feeder has a second
A document placement unit, second document presence / absence detection means for detecting that a document is placed on the second document placement unit, and detecting information on the number of documents placed on the second document placement unit A second document number information detecting unit, wherein the second document presence detecting unit detects the document placing unit of the second document feeding device by the document presence detecting unit during execution of the first image forming mode; When it is detected that a document is placed on the image forming apparatus, an interrupt signal is generated as the interrupt signal generating means, and the first calculating means determines the remaining time until the first image forming mode ends. The remaining time until the end of the first image forming mode is calculated based on the information obtained from the product of the difference between the number of sheets formed and the number of sheets on which images have been formed, and the information on the number of documents. Time until the image forming mode ends
The configuration is such that the time until the second image forming mode ends is calculated based on information obtained from the product of the number of image formation sheets and the number of document sheets.

Therefore, in addition to the effect of the configuration of claim 7, the remaining image forming time in the first image forming mode is set to the difference between the number of image forming sheets and the number of remaining image forming copies, which is the difference between the number of image forming sheets and the number of image formed sheets. The product of the document feeder and the number of documents
Is set to the product of the number of image forming sheets and the number of original sheets, so that the image forming apparatus itself can automatically determine a numerical value that changes depending on the image forming time. This eliminates the need for the operator to perform cumbersome operations such as predicting the interruption time, and has the effect of simplifying the situation of the image forming apparatus and preventing confusion for the operator.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a flowchart illustrating interrupt copying control in a copying machine as an image forming apparatus according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a schematic configuration diagram of a copying machine as an image forming apparatus of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a schematic configuration diagram of an RDH provided in the copying machine shown in FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a schematic configuration diagram of an SDH provided in the copying machine shown in FIG. 2;

FIG. 5 is a control system block diagram of the copying machine shown in FIG. 2;

FIG. 6 is a schematic plan view showing an operation panel provided in the copying machine shown in FIG.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing a flow of interrupt SDH control of the interrupt copy control shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing a flow of interrupt platen glass control of the interrupt copy control shown in FIG.

FIG. 9 is a flowchart illustrating another example of the interrupt SDH control illustrated in FIG. 7;

FIG. 10 is a flowchart illustrating another example of interrupt platen glass control shown in FIG.

FIG. 11 is a flowchart showing another example of the interrupt copy control shown in FIG.

FIG. 12 is a flowchart showing the flow of interrupt SDH control of the interrupt copy control shown in FIG. 11;

FIG. 13 is a schematic configuration diagram of a copying machine as a conventional image forming apparatus.

14 is an RDH provided in the copying machine shown in FIG.
FIG.

[Explanation of symbols]

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Copier main body 2 Platen glass (exposure scanning part, document placing part) 3 RDH (first document feeding device) 4 SDH (second document feeding device) 10 Optical system (exposure scanning means) 43 Document placing part (First Document Placement Section) 52c RDH Document Detection Sensor (First Document Presence Detecting Means) 55 RDH Loop Detection Sensor (First Document Number Information Detecting Means) 64 Scan Window (Exposure Scan Section) 65 Scan Window (Exposure Scan Section) 81 Document placement section (second document placement section) 94 SDH document detection sensor (second document presence / absence detection means, interrupt signal generation means) 99b RDH cycle detection sensor (second document number information detection means) 204 CPU ( Control means, interrupt control means)

Claims (8)

[Claims] An exposure scanning section having an exposure scanning section for exposing and scanning an original; an image forming section for transferring an exposure-scanned original image to a sheet member to form an image on the sheet member; A first image forming mode including a first document feeder and a second document feeder for transporting to an exposure scanning unit, wherein the first document feeder transports a document and forms an image on a sheet member; An image forming apparatus capable of executing a second image forming mode in which an original is conveyed by a second original document feeder to form an image on a sheet member; A possible document placement unit, document presence detection means for detecting that a document is placed on the document placement unit, and a second document number for detecting information about the number of documents placed on the document placement unit Execution of the first image forming mode. When the document presence detecting means detects that a document is placed on the document placing portion of the second document feeder, the information detected by the second document number information detecting means is equal to or less than a predetermined value. If so, the image forming apparatus is provided with control means for interrupting the first image forming mode and switching to the second image forming mode. 2. An exposure scanning means having an exposure scanning section for exposing and scanning an original, an image forming section for transferring an exposure-scanned original image to a sheet member and forming an image on the sheet member, and A first image forming mode including a first document feeder and a second document feeder for transporting to an exposure scanning unit, wherein the first document feeder transports a document and forms an image on a sheet member; An image forming apparatus capable of executing a second image forming mode in which an original is conveyed by a second original document feeder and an image is formed on a sheet member; Possible first document placement section, first document presence / absence detecting means for detecting that a document is placed on the first document placement section, and number of documents placed on the first document placement section A first document number information detecting means for detecting information; A second document placement unit on which a document can be placed; second document presence / absence detecting means for detecting that a document has been placed on the second document placement unit; and a second document placement unit. A second document number information detecting means for detecting information on the number of placed documents, wherein the document of the second document feeder is detected by the document presence detecting means during execution of the first image forming mode. When it is detected that a document is placed on the placing portion, if the number of documents detected by the first document number information detecting means is larger than the number of documents detected by the second document number information detecting means, An image forming apparatus, comprising: control means for interrupting a first image forming mode and switching to a second image forming mode. 3. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said control means interrupts the first image forming mode after the detection of the second document number information detecting means is completed. 4. An exposure scanning means having an exposure scanning section for exposing and scanning an original, an image forming section for transferring an exposure-scanned original image to a sheet member and forming an image on the sheet member, and A first image forming mode including a first document feeder and a second document feeder for transporting to an exposure scanning unit, wherein the first document feeder transports a document and forms an image on a sheet member; An image forming apparatus capable of executing a second image forming mode in which an original is conveyed by a second original document feeder to form an image on a sheet member; A document placement unit, and a document presence / absence detection unit for detecting that a document is placed on the document placement unit, and information on the number of sheet members on which images are formed in the second image forming mode. Means for setting the number of image forming sheets for setting During execution of the image forming mode, when the document presence / absence detection means detects that a document is placed on the document placement section of the second document feeder, the number of sheets set by the image formation number setting means is set. If the information is less than the predetermined value,
Control means for interrupting the first image forming mode and switching to the second image forming mode. 5. The information set by the image forming number setting means is a product of the number of documents placed on the second document feeder, the number of images formed, and the image forming time per document. The image forming apparatus according to claim 4, wherein: 6. The apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a predetermined value setting means for setting a predetermined value used by said control means.
6. The image forming apparatus according to any one of 3, 4, and 5. 7. An exposure scanning means having an exposure scanning section for exposing and scanning an original, an image forming section for transferring an exposure-scanned original image to a sheet member and forming an image on the sheet member, and A first image forming mode including a first document feeder and a second document feeder for transporting to an exposure scanning unit, wherein the first document feeder transports a document and forms an image on a sheet member; An image forming apparatus capable of executing a second image forming mode in which an original is conveyed by a second original document feeder and forms an image on a sheet member; Means for setting the number of sheets to be formed, interrupt signal generating means for generating an interrupt signal for interrupting the other image forming mode while one image forming mode is being executed, and execution of the first image forming mode And the above interrupt signal generating means Interrupt control means for interrupting the first image forming mode in response to the generated interrupt signal and executing the second image forming mode; and controlling the first image forming mode by the interrupt signal generating means. When an interrupt signal is generated during execution, first calculating means for calculating a remaining time until the first image forming mode ends, and after the interrupt signal is generated by the interrupt signal generating means,
A second calculating means for calculating a time until the second image forming mode ends, wherein the interrupt control means calculates the time calculated by the second calculating means by the first calculating means. An image forming apparatus, wherein if the time is equal to or less than a predetermined ratio, the interruption control by the interruption control means is executed. 8. A first document feeder, comprising: a first document placing portion on which a document can be placed; and a first document presence / absence detection detecting that the document is placed on the first document placing portion. Means, and first document number information detecting means for detecting information relating to the number of documents placed on the first document placing portion. (2) a document placement section, second document presence / absence detection means for detecting that a document has been placed on the second document placement section, and detection of information on the number of documents placed on the second document placement section The second document presence / absence detection means performs the first image forming mode, and the second document presence / absence detection means detects the document placement of the second document feeder by the document presence / absence detection means. When it is detected that a document is placed on the copy unit, an interrupt signal is generated as the interrupt signal generating means, and The first calculating means determines the remaining time until the first image forming mode ends based on information obtained from the product of the difference between the number of image formations and the number of images formed and the number of originals information. Calculating the remaining time until the end of the image forming mode. The second calculating means calculates the time until the end of the second image forming mode by using information obtained from the product of the number of image formation sheets and the number of document sheets. 8. The image forming apparatus according to claim 7, wherein a time until the end of the second image forming mode is calculated based on the time.