JPH10301341A - Sheet transporting device and image forming device provided with the same - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a sheet transporting device capable of attaining the high speed of the sheet transportation. SOLUTION: This sheet transporting device makes the feeding speed of a separate-transporting roller 8 quicker than the feeding speed of the feeding roller 9. Then, a transporting path is made possible to divide into a first path 71 and the second path 72, and to use by switching. At the time of transporting an original, by making a separation flapper 70 actuated, and appropriately using the first path 71 and the second path 72 by each original, the original is respectively prevented from coming into collision with each other, while an interval between the original transportation can be shortened.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a sheet conveying apparatus applicable to an image forming apparatus such as a copying machine and an LBP, and an image forming apparatus provided with the sheet conveying apparatus. The present invention relates to a sheet transporting apparatus provided with a separating apparatus for feeding out a sheet after being separated and placed or transported at a predetermined position, and a sheet feeding apparatus.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, a sheet conveying apparatus separates a plurality of sheets stacked on a tray or the like into individual sheets at a separating section and feeds the sheets to a predetermined position. Such a sheet conveying device is used in an image reading unit of an image forming apparatus such as a copying machine.
The present invention is applied to an automatic document feeder that conveys, stacks, and automatically feeds sheet-shaped documents.

An example of a document feeder (sheet feeder) will be described with reference to FIG.

That is, a document feeder 802 provided in the image forming apparatus 801 feeds a plurality of sheet-like documents stacked on a document tray 804 to a separation unit in order from the top sheet by rotating a feed roller 805. . The separation unit includes a separation conveyance roller 808 that rotates in the paper feeding direction, and a separation belt 806 that rotates in the direction to return the original. The separation conveyance roller 808 and the separation belt 806 cause the paper to be fed. Documents are separated and fed one by one.

The first paper feed roller 816 feeds the document thus separated and fed further downstream, and abuts the stationary second paper feed roller 809 to form a loop. By doing so, the skew of the document is corrected and the leading edge is adjusted. Thereafter, the document is fed further downstream by rotating the second paper feed roller 809 at an appropriate timing. At this time, the original is conveyed on the platen 803 by the driving of the driving roller 836 which rewinds the conveying belt 807 by the conveying belt 807, and is placed at a predetermined reading placing position.

When the reading of the image of the original is completed, the transport belt 807 is driven again to move the original to the discharge tray 81.
Transport to the 0 side. Then, finally, the discharge roller 81
The sheet is discharged to a sheet discharge tray 810 by the steps 1 and 812.

[0007] As an image reading method, a platen 8 is used.
In addition to the method of reading an image while fixing an original and moving the image reading unit on the document 03 (fixed reading method),
There is also a method of reading an image while fixing an image reading unit and transporting a document (flow reading method). Both types can be used properly depending on the type of paper and the mode.

In FIG. 46, reference numeral "200" denotes a reader unit for reading an image, and reference numeral "300" denotes an image forming unit for forming an image.

[0009]

However, in the above-mentioned prior art, when a document is separated and conveyed by the separation section, the separation belt 806 rotates in the direction of returning the document to prevent the next document from entering. doing. For this reason, there is a case where the straight traveling property of the document is unstable.

Also, depending on the friction state of the surface of the original,
In some cases, the separation and feeding roller 808 does not follow the rotation (slip between the document and the roller) and the separation and feeding time is delayed. In such an apparatus, the presence or absence of the separation delay of the document is monitored based on the detection result of the separation sensor that monitors the document. So, in the worst case,
In some cases, the control device determines that a document separation delay (a sensor is not detected even after a predetermined time) has occurred, and the device is stopped.

In the moving reading mode, during reading of an image, it is necessary to separate and feed the next original and transport it to a reading standby position. However, if the separation delay occurs, the next document is not conveyed to the standby position, so that the time (productivity) for continuously reading the images of a plurality of documents decreases.

In order to prevent the separation delay from occurring, it is conceivable to increase the separation and conveyance speed. However, in this case, the leading edge of the next document may collide with the trailing edge of the document being read, causing a jam.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to provide a sheet conveying apparatus capable of conveying a sheet at a high speed and an image forming apparatus capable of forming a high-speed image.

[0014]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made to achieve the above object. As a first aspect, a loading section on which sheets are loaded and a loading section on the loading section are provided. A separating unit that separates and feeds the sheet, a feeding unit that feeds the sheet downstream of the separating unit, a plurality of transport paths from the separating unit to the feeding unit, and a plurality of transport paths. Switching means for switching a conveying path through which the sheet passes, wherein the separating means feeds the sheet at a speed higher than a feeding speed of the feeding means. Is done.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a sheet conveying apparatus according to claim 1 for conveying a sheet, reading means for reading an image of the sheet sent by the sheet conveying apparatus, and reading means for reading the image of the sheet. And an image forming means for forming an image read on the recording medium on the recording medium.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided a sheet conveying apparatus according to claim 1 for conveying a sheet, and an image forming means for forming an image on the sheet sent by the sheet conveying apparatus. An image forming apparatus is provided.

The operation will be described.

The separating means feeds the sheet at a speed higher than the feeding speed of the feeding means. Therefore, the stop of the apparatus and the decrease in productivity due to the separation delay do not occur. In addition, by switching a plurality of prepared transport paths and selectively using the switching unit, it is possible to prevent the next sheet from catching up with and colliding with the previously transported sheet.

[0019]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, an image forming apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

In the embodiment described below, the "separating means" in the present invention is a separating and conveying roller 8,
This is realized by the separation belt 6, the separation motor 100, a control device, and the like. The “feeding means” includes a second feeding roller 9,
This is realized by the transport motor 101, a control device, and the like. "Switching means" is realized by the separation flapper 70, the separation flapper solenoid 110, and the control device. The “multiple transport paths” correspond to the first pass 7
1 and the second pass 72.

[Overview of Image Forming Apparatus] ... See FIG. 1 As shown in FIG. 1, the image forming apparatus according to the present embodiment has an image input section (hereinafter referred to as "reader section") 200 and an image output section (hereinafter "" A copying machine main body 1 includes a printer unit 300), and a document feeder (hereinafter, referred to as “ADF”) 2 disposed above the copying machine main body 1.

The reader unit 200 optically reads an image of a document placed on a platen glass (platen) 3 which is a reading position of the copying machine body 1, photoelectrically converts the image, and inputs the image data. The reader unit 200 includes a scanner unit 204 having a platen 3, a lamp 202, and a mirror 203, mirrors 205 and 206, and a lens 2.
07, an image sensor 208 and the like.

The printer section 300 is a well-known image forming means for outputting an image read by the reader section 200 to a predetermined sheet. The printer unit 300 will be described later in detail with reference to FIG.

The ADF 2 is for conveying a document to a predetermined reading position of the copying machine main body 1. ADF
Reference numeral 2 denotes a document tray 4 on which documents are stacked. The wide belt 7 wound around the drive roller 36 and the other turn roller 37 is disposed below the wide belt 7. The document on the document tray 4 is sequentially separated from the uppermost sheet, and is conveyed to a platen glass (platen) 3 which is a reading position of the copying machine body 1.

The wide belt 7 is in contact with the platen 3 and places a document conveyed from the document tray 4 at a predetermined position on the platen 3 or discharges a document on the platen 3. It is carried out onto the tray 10. The originals are placed on the tray 4 in order of 1 page (2 pages), 3 pages (4 pages)... From the top. The ADF 2 will be described later in detail.

In the present invention, the reader unit 200 and the ADF 2
Can also be applied as a reader in which is integrated.
Further, the copying machine main body 1 can include an ADF 2.

Hereinafter, the details of each of the above components will be described. [ADF2] Hereinafter, the ADF2 will be described in detail for each part. 1. Configuration of Document Tray and Its Surroundings 1.1 Document Tray—See FIG. 4 The document tray 4 is for stacking sheet-shaped documents. On the document tray 4, a pair of width direction regulating plates are slidably arranged in the width direction of the document. By regulating the width direction of the document placed on the document tray 4 by the width direction regulating plate, stability during feeding can be ensured.

At the downstream end of the document tray 4 in the transport direction, there is provided a stopper 21 which is rotatable. By rotating the stopper 21 to a predetermined angular position as necessary, it is possible to prevent the document set on the document tray 4 from inadvertently advancing downstream. 1.2 Sensors on Document Tray—See FIG. 4 Document set detection sensors 40a and 40b that detect that a document bundle has been set are provided near the upstream portion of the stopper 21. In this embodiment, transmission type optical sensors are used as the document set detection sensors 40a and 40b.

Further, in the middle of the document tray 4, a document trailing edge detection sensor 41 for determining whether or not the size of the set document is a half size is provided.
This document trailing edge detection sensor 41 is
It is arranged at a distance of 5 mm, and when a long document is set, its detection state is set to "ON". In the present embodiment, a reflection type optical sensor is used as the document trailing edge detection sensor 41.

A final document detection sensor 43 is provided between the document set detection sensor 40 and the rear end detection sensor 41. The detection result of the final document detection sensor 43 is used for determining whether or not the document being transported is the final document. In this embodiment, a reflection type optical sensor is used as the final document detection sensor 43.

Further, below the document tray 4, a paper width detection sensor 44 for detecting the length of the document bundle P set on the document tray 4 in the width direction is provided. However, the paper width detection sensor 44 of the present embodiment actually detects the position of the width direction regulating plate. 2. Paper feed / separation mechanism See FIGS. 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, and 10. As shown in FIG. 5, a swing arm 53 and a lifting arm 51 are provided above the document tray 4. , And is configured to be swingable about the rotation axis center C1 of the separation / conveyance roller 8.
Further, the swing arm 53 is swing-restricted by an arm shaft 51c penetratingly supported by support plates 51a and 51b in front and behind the lifting arm 51. The paper feed roller 5 is provided at the tip of the swing arm 53.

Normally, since the paper feed roller 5 is restrained by the arm shaft 51c and retracted to the home position (FIG. 5) above the separation upper guide plate 52 (suppressed by the pin 51g), the document setting is performed. It does not hinder work. The elevating arm 51 includes a swing motor 103 as described later.
(See FIG. 4) and is in the position shown in the figure. FIG.
0 shows a part of the components constituting the sheet feeding / separating mechanism.

FIG. 9 is a plan view of the paper feed / separation configuration. The elevating arm 51 is movable from the state (position) illustrated in FIG. 5 to the state (position) illustrated in FIG. 6 by rotating about the rotation axis center C1. As described above, the paper feed roller 5
Is a swing arm 5 that rotates around a rotation center axis C1.
7 and 53 are provided at the tips. Swing arm 57,5
When 3 descends by its own weight as the lifting arm 51 moves,
The paper feed roller 5 lands on the uppermost sheet of the document P and stops (the position in FIG. 8). By rotating the paper feed roller 5 in this state, the document P can be sequentially conveyed from the uppermost sheet. The upper guide plate 52 is suppressed to the position shown in FIG. 6 by a stopper (not shown).

In the state shown in FIG. 8, the swing arms 57, 5
The arm shaft 51c supporting the arm 3 is disengaged when the paper feed roller 5 lands on the document surface. At this time, since the engagement is released, the relative positional relationship between the swing arms 57 and 53 and the lifting arm 51 starts to shift. The amount of displacement is determined by the first swing arm flag 54 and the second swing arm flag 5, which are a part of the swing arms 57 and 53.
5, and a first swing position sensor 46 and a second swing position sensor 47 attached to the lifting arm 51. When the states of the first swing position sensor 46 and the second swing position sensor 47 change from the non-detection state to the detection state (see FIG. 8), the swing arms 57 and 53 receive stop control.

In this state, the swing arms 57, 5
Since the paper feed roller 3 and the paper feed roller 5 are placed on the original bundle P stacked on the tray 4 by its own weight, it is possible to always apply a stable feeding force to the original P.

The elevating arm 51 is driven by a rocking motor 103. The elevating arm 51 can be moved to any state (position) between the state (position) shown in FIG. 5 and the state (position) shown in FIG. Position) (see FIG. 7).

Above the separation roller 6, a paper feed roller home sensor 45 is attached to a fixed support plate 56. In this embodiment, a transmission type optical sensor is used as the paper feed roller home sensor 45. When the lifting arm 51 is at the home position (standby position), the swing arm 5
A lifting arm flag 51d provided on each of the rollers 7 and 53 shields the sensor optical path of the paper feed roller home sensor 45 from light.

As described above, the lift arm 51 is provided with the first swing position sensor 46 and the second swing sensor 47 that move integrally with the lift arm 51. The first oscillating position sensor 46 and the second oscillating sensor 47 detect a first oscillating arm flag 54 and a second oscillating arm flag 55 that are formed to extend in the descending direction of the oscillating arms 57 and 53. It is supposed to.

The state shown in FIG. 7 is the retreat position during continuous paper feeding. Swing arms 57 and 5 during continuous paper feeding
3 does not need to return to the home position (see FIG. 5). Therefore, at the time of continuous sheet feeding, the swing arms 57 and 53
Is the minimum amount of paper feed roller 5 from the original bundle (about 3 to 5 mm)
It is controlled so that it stops intermediately at the separated position (the retracted position shown in FIG. 7).

With this configuration, the paper feed roller 5
Can be minimized, and the landing vibration of the paper feed roller 5 on the document P is reduced, which contributes to improving the paper feeding performance. At the same time, the time until the start of the subsequent sheet feeding can be shortened, and sheet feeding control with a shorter sheet feeding interval can be performed.

When the feeding operation is started in a state where the paper feed roller 5 is bound by the impact when the paper P lands on the original P, the pressure balance between the front and rear paper feed rollers 5 against the original P is lost, and the paper feeding time is reduced. The possibility of generating skew is increased.

As shown in FIG. 9, a plurality of paper feed rollers 5 arranged in the width direction each have an independent suspension structure and are easily equalized to the document P, so that the paper feed performance is improved. Is possible.

Downstream of the shutter 21 in the transport direction, there is provided a separating section including a well-known separation belt 6 and a separate transport roller 8, and is separated by rotating in the direction of the arrow (FIG. 8). The operation is performed. 3. Transport mechanism 3.1 Transport path See FIGS. 3 and 13 As shown in FIG. 3, from the document tray 4 to the platen 3, a document feed path (a) for guiding the document onto the platen 3 (B) and (c) are configured. The document feeding paths (a), (b), and (c) are bent (curved downward) and connected to a document conveying path (d) on the platen 3.

The document transport path (a) is a transport path in which the document separated by the separation unit is transported downstream by the separation transport roller 8.

The document feed path (b) is divided into a first path 71 and a second path 72 as shown in FIG. 13, but is configured to join again on the downstream side.

From the original feeding path (b) to the reverse feeding path (h)
(He) and (li) are extending. The reversing feed path (h) (to)
(I) is used to turn the original upside down before transporting the original to the platen 3.

The original reversed in the reversing feeding path (h), (h), and (li) is switched back, conveyed to the lip platen 3 through the original feeding / discharging path (e), and placed thereon.

Further, a document reversing path (g) branches off from the reversing feeding path (f) so that it can be joined with the document feeding path (b). If the transport paths (e), (f), (g), and (c) are used, the document on the platen 3 can be switched back, turned upside down, and returned to the platen 3 again.

After the reading of the image on the platen 3 is completed, the document is discharged to a discharge tray 10 through a document conveying path (d) on the platen and a document discharge path (nu) shown in FIG.

On the right side of the ADF 2, an openable manual document tray 14 is provided (see FIG. 1). A document (single document) set on the manual document tray 14 can be fed to the platen 3 through a manual feed path. 3.2 Roller: See FIGS. 1, 3, 4, and 13 A first feeding roller 16 is provided between the document feeding paths (a) and (b). The first feeding roller 16 restrains the document sent from the separation section (separation belt 6, separation conveyance roller 8) and prevents skew.

The separation / conveyance roller 8 has a one-way mechanism. This reduces the transport load when the original is pulled out of the separation unit by the first feeding roller 16.

A second feeding roller 9 is provided at the junction of the document conveying paths (a), (b) and (c) and the document reversing path (g). The second feeding roller 9 forms a loop on the reached document to prevent skew of the document.

A first reversing roller 17 and a second reversing roller 18 are provided in the reversing feed path (h), (f) and (i). The first reversing roller 17 and the second reversing roller 18
The document is conveyed along a loop-shaped reversal path.

On the right side of the ADF 2, a manual feed roller 1 is provided.
3 are provided. The manual feed roller 13 feeds a document set on the manual document tray 14 from right to left.

A manual registration roller 11 is provided between the manual paper feed roller 13 and the platen 3. The manual feed registration roller 11 forms a loop in a manually fed document, thereby preventing skew. Further, the manual registration rollers 11 relay the discharge of the original from the platen 3.

A paper discharge roller 12 for discharging the discharged paper to the paper discharge tray 10 is provided in the document discharge path (N). 3.3 Flapper: Figures 3, 4, 13, and 1
4 and FIG. 15 FIGS. 4 and 13 show the positions of the flapper on the transport path. In addition, about each feeding path, it is as having shown in FIG.

Downstream of the first feed roller 16 in the conveying direction,
A separation flapper 70 is provided. The separation flapper 7
0 switches between the first path 71 and the second path 72 of the document feed path (b) as shown in FIGS. 13, 14, and 15.

A reversing sheet flapper 22 is provided downstream of the second feeding roller 9 in the conveying direction. The reversing sheet feeding flapper 22 is for switching between a document feeding path (C) and a reversing feeding path (H). The reverse sheet feeding flapper 22
When the original is conveyed to the reverse feeding path (H), (H), and (H), the original is drawn as a solid line in FIG. On the other hand, when the document is transported to the document feeding path (c) and the document transport path (d), the document is swung to be in a state drawn by a chain line in FIG.

A reversing flapper 23 is provided downstream of the second reversing roller 18 in the transport direction. The reversing flapper 23
Is for switching between a reversing feed path (i) and a document reversing path (g).

When a document conveyed from the document feeding path (b) or the reverse feeding path (h) is reversed, the reversing flapper 23 is in a state drawn by a solid line in FIG. On the other hand, when the document from the platen 3 is reversed through the document supply / discharge path (e), the reversing feed path (f), and the document reversal path (g), the document is swung to a state depicted by a chain line in FIG. Become. A one-way flapper 24 (to which a mylar or the like is attached) is provided at the junction of the reversing feed path (h) and the document supply / discharge path (e) near the upstream of the first reversing roller 17. The one-way flapper 24 reverses the original and feeds the original.
It plays the role of a guide when the paper is transported from to the reversing feed path. When the original is transported from the reversing feed path (g) to the platen 3 through the original feeding / discharging path (e), the original plays a role of preventing the original from entering the reversing feeding path (h). Play.

On the platen 3 side of the reversing supply / discharge path (e), a supply / discharge flapper 25 interlocked with the reversal sheet supply flapper 22 is provided. When a document is conveyed from the document supply / discharge path (e) to the platen 3, the supply / discharge flapper 25 is in a state shown by a solid line in FIG. Collision with the end is prevented.
Further, when the document is transported from the platen 3 to the document supply / discharge path (e), the document is swung to be in a state drawn by a chain line in FIG. 13 and the document from the platen 3 is scooped.

A paper discharge flapper 26 is provided between the right end of the platen 3 and the manual feed registration roller 11 (FIG. 4).
reference). When the document is conveyed from the manual conveyance path (L) to the platen 3, the discharge flapper 26 is drawn by a solid line in FIG. 4, and the leading end of the document entering the platen 3 is the end of the platen 3. It prevents collision with the department. When the document is discharged from the platen 3 to the document discharge path (nu), the document is swung to a state drawn by a chain line in FIG. 4, and the document from the platen 3 is scooped.

A one-way manual flapper 27 is provided at the junction of the document discharge path (N) and the manual conveyance path (L) (see FIG. 4). The manual flapper 27 has a platen 3
When a document is ejected from the printer, the document is prevented from entering the manual feed path.

A manual shutter 28 is provided near the downstream side of the manual paper feed roller 13 in the transport direction (see FIG. 4). The manual feed shutter 28 is for preventing the manual feed document set on the manual feed tray 14 from entering the manual feed registration roller 11 during the discharge of the copied original. At this time, the conveying force is set low so that the manual paper feed roller 13 and the document slip. 3.4 Sensors on the Conveyance Path See FIG. 4 A separation sensor 30 is provided between the separation conveyance roller 8 and the first feeding roller 16. The separation sensor 30 detects a document conveyed by the separation conveyance roller 8. A skew detection sensor 31 is also provided at the same position in the transport direction as the separation sensor 30 and at a position separated by a predetermined distance in the thrust direction. Skew detection sensor 3
1 and the detection results of the separation sensor 30 are used to detect the skew amount of the fed original. In the present embodiment, a transmission type optical sensor is used as the separation sensor 30 and the skew detection sensor 31.

In the vicinity of the downstream side of the first feeding roller 16, a mixed detection sensor 32 is provided. The mixed loading detection sensor 3
Reference numeral 2 is for detecting a document by moving the flag. The control device, which will be described later, determines that documents of different sizes are set on the document tray 4 by judging the detection result of the mixed detection sensor 32 and the detection results of various sensors on the document tray 4 together. The detection is performed during document conveyance.

A paper feed sensor 35 is provided near the upstream of the second feeding roller 9. The paper feed sensor 35 is for detecting the front end and the rear end of a document that has passed through any of the document feeding paths (a), (b), and (c) and the document reversing path (g). In the present embodiment, a transmission type optical sensor is used as the paper feed sensor 35.

A registration sensor 39 is provided downstream of the feed roller 9. The registration sensor 39 is for detecting the rear end of the document. The detection result is
It is used to control the stop position of the document. In the present embodiment, a transmission type optical sensor is used as the resist sensor 39.

A reversing sensor 50 is provided on the reversing conveyance path (e). The reversing sensor 50 detects a document discharged from the platen 3 or a document entering the platen 3. In this embodiment, a transmission type optical sensor is used as the reversing sensor 50.

The reversal feed sensor (3) has a reversal detection sensor 3
3 are provided. The reversing detection sensor 33 detects that the document has been guided to the reversing feeding path (R). In the present embodiment, as the reversal detection sensor 33,
A type that detects a document by moving a flag is used.

A manual registration sensor 34 is provided near the downstream of the manual registration roller 11 in the sheet discharging direction. The manual feed registration sensor 34 is provided on a manual feed path (R).
And a document discharged from the platen 3 to a document discharge path (nu). In the present embodiment, a transmission type optical sensor is used as the manual feed registration sensor 34.

A manual document detection sensor 60 is provided on the manual document tray 14 side of the manual paper feed roller 13. The manual feed document detection sensor 60 is used for the manual feed tray 1.
4 is for detecting that a document has been set. In this embodiment, a sensor that detects a document by moving a flag is used as the manual document detection sensor 60. 3.5 Drive System See FIGS. 4 and 13 FIG. 4 is a drive system diagram showing motors and solenoids for driving each transport roller and flapper.

The separation motor 100 drives the separation section (separation / conveyance roller 8 and separation belt 6) in the direction of the arrow in FIG. The driving force of the separation motor 100 is also transmitted to the paper feed roller 5 via the separation clutch 106 to drive it. In this embodiment, the separation motor 100
A DC brush motor controlled by PLL is used.

The separation motor 100 includes the separation motor 10
A mechanism is provided that generates a clock pulse proportional to the number of rotations when 0 rotates. The mechanism includes a clock plate 100a having a plurality of slits attached to a motor shaft of the separation motor 100, and a separation clock sensor 100b which is a transmission type optical sensor.

The transport motor 101 has a second feeding roller 9,
This is for driving the first reversing roller 17 and the second reversing roller 18. In this embodiment, a stepping motor that can rotate forward and backward is used as the transport motor 101.

The transport motor 101 includes the transport motor 10
A mechanism is provided for generating a clock pulse proportional to the number of revolutions when 1 rotates. The mechanism comprises a second
It comprises a clock plate 101a provided with a plurality of slits attached to a driven roller shaft of the feeding roller 9, and an inverted clock sensor 101b which is a transmission type optical sensor. Based on the number of clock pulses generated by this mechanism and the number of drive clocks of the conveyance motor 101, the amount of slip when the document is conveyed by the second feeding roller 9 can be measured.

The belt motor 102 drives the wide belt 7 and the manual registration roller 11. The driving force of the belt motor 102 is
6 to a wide belt 7. Thereafter, the driving force is transmitted to the manual registration roller 11 via the wide belt 7 and the turn roller 37. in this case,
The conveying speed of the original on the platen 3 and the conveying speed by the manual registration rollers 11 are set to be equal. In the present embodiment, a stepping motor capable of normal and reverse rotation is used as the belt motor 102.

The swing motor 103 drives the lifting arm 53 of the paper feed roller. In this embodiment, a forward / reverse stepping motor is used as the swing motor 103.

The paper discharge motor 104 is for driving the paper discharge roller 12 and the manual paper feed roller 13.
In the present embodiment, an FG servo control type DC motor is used as the discharge motor 104.

The paper discharge motor 104 is provided with a mechanism for generating a clock pulse proportional to the number of rotations. The mechanism includes a clock plate 1 having a plurality of slits attached to a motor shaft of a paper discharge motor 104.
04a and a paper ejection clock sensor 104b which is a transmission type optical sensor.

The stopper solenoid 105 drives the stopper 21 at the paper feed end of the document tray 4.
When the stopper 21 is off, it is at the position shown by the solid line in FIG. 13, and when it is on, it swings to the position shown by the chain line in FIG.

The separation clutch 106 is connected to the separation motor 100
This is for controlling the transmission / interruption of the driving force to the sheet feeding roller 5, the separation belt 6 and the separation and conveyance roller 8.

The path switching solenoid 107 drives the reverse sheet feeding flapper 22 and the supply / discharge flapper 25. When the path switching solenoid 107 is off, the reverse sheet feeding flapper 22 and the supply / discharge flapper 25
Are in the states drawn by solid lines in FIG. on the other hand,
When the path switching solenoid 107 is on, the reverse sheet feeding flapper 22 and the supply / discharge flapper 25
By swinging, each of them is brought into a state drawn by a chain line in FIG.

The reversing flapper solenoid 108 drives the reversing flapper 23. When the reverse flapper solenoid 108 is turned off, the reverse flapper 23 is in a state drawn by a solid line in FIG. On the other hand, when the reversing flapper solenoid 108 is turned on, the reversing flapper 23 swings to be in a state drawn by a chain line in FIG.

The discharge flapper solenoid 109 drives the discharge flapper 26 and the manual shutter 28. When the discharge flapper solenoid 109 is turned off, the discharge flapper 26 and the manual shutter 2
8 is a state drawn by a chain line in the figure. On the other hand, when the discharge flapper solenoid 109 is on,
The paper discharge flapper 26 and the manual feed shutter 28 swing to be in a state drawn by a solid line in the drawing.

The separation flapper solenoid 110 drives the separation flapper 70. When the separation flapper solenoid 110 is off, the separation flapper 70
It is in the state drawn with a solid line. On the other hand, when the separation flapper solenoid 110 is on, the separation flapper 70 swings to be in a state drawn by a chain line in the figure. 3.6 Reading Position: See FIGS. 11 and 12 FIG. 11 is a diagram showing a document reading position on the platen 3.

There are three document reading positions (reading position R1, reading position R2, reading position R3).
Either of these modes is selected according to the document transport mode and the size of the document to be transported.

The reading position R1 is used in the double-sided document mode. In this case, the reading of the image is performed by scanning the scanner unit 204 of the copying machine main body 1 with the original placed on the original with the original end aligned with the reading position R1 (fixed reading mode).

The reading position R2 is used when reading a half-size original in the one-sided original mode. In this case, the image is read while the scanner unit 204 is fixed at the reading position R2 and the document is conveyed (flow reading mode).

The reading position R3 is used when a large-size or half-size original in the single-sided original mode is fed vertically. In this case, the reading of the image is performed while the scanner unit 204 is fixed at the reading position R3 and the document is conveyed (flow reading mode).

In FIG. 11, L1 shown in FIG.
This is the distance from the nip point of the feeding roller 9 to the reading position R1. L2 is the distance from the nip point of the second feeding roller 9 to the reading position R2. L3 is the distance from the nip point of the second feeding roller 9 to the reading position R3.

L4 shown in FIG. 12 is the distance from the reading position R1 to the stop position for standby of the half-size original placed on the left side of the platen 3. L5 is the distance from the leading edge of the document stopped at the standby position to the reading position R2. L6 is a set value of a distance from the trailing edge of the preceding document to the leading edge of the succeeding document (hereinafter, referred to as “paper distance”). During conveyance, the sheet distance is controlled to be L6. L7 is the distance from the reading position R1 to the manual feed registration roller 11.

The length of the half-size document in the transport direction is Lp
When h is set, the stop position of the half-size document is controlled so that the following relational expression holds.

L7 <[L4 + 2 × L6 + Lph] L2> [L5-Lph] As a result, as shown in FIG.
n, Pn-1 is stopped, the preceding original P
The rear end of n-2 passes through the nip of the manual registration roller 11. The rear end of the document Pn waiting for image formation passes through the nip of the second feeding roller 9. 3.7 Transport Operation The document transport operation of the document transport device will be described.

At the time of the transport, first, a separation operation common to each document transport mode is performed, and thereafter, a different operation is performed for each document transport mode. Hereinafter, the separation operation and the operation unique to each document transport mode will be described separately. In order to clarify the order of conveyance, a document conveyed earlier may be referred to as a “previous document”, and a document conveyed later may be referred to as a “subsequent document”. 3.7.1 Separation Operation When a document bundle on the document tray 4 is detected by the document set detection sensors 40a and 40b, a pre-separation operation is started. That is, first, the paper feed roller 5 is lowered and lands on the document bundle. In the following description, the documents stacked on the document tray 4 are referred to as a document P1, a document P2, a document P3,. When the order of the originals is not specified, the original is set as the original P.

When copy conditions are input on the operation unit of the copying machine and the start key is pressed, the size of the original is detected by a sensor on the platen 3 or the like. Further, the stopper 21
Is operated by the stopper solenoid 105 to release the path of the document bundle. The document bundle is fed by the paper feed roller 5, and the document P1 (uppermost document) advances to the downstream.

The separation conveyance roller 8 and the separation belt 6 rotate in the directions of the arrows shown in FIG. 5, respectively, to separate the documents P that have advanced from the document tray 4 one by one, and to separate the separated documents. Convey downstream.

The document P that has passed through the separation section is
After the skew detection is performed by 0 and the skew sensor 31, the skew is conveyed by the first feed roller 16.

When the original is conveyed by the first feed roller 16, the feed roller 5 is raised. Subsequently, the separation belt 6 and the separation conveyance roller 8 stop. The stop is performed by turning off the clutch 106 and disconnecting the drive of the separation belt 6 and the separation conveyance roller 8.

After the stop, the separation / conveyance roller 8 rotates (rotates) following the movement of the document P being conveyed.

The document P is conveyed only by the first feeding roller 16 and hits the stopped second feeding roller 9 to perform a known skew feeding.

When the skew feeding is completed, the first feed roller 16
And the second feed roller 9 start rotating at the same time. In this case, the first feed roller 16 and the second feed roller 9 are synchronously speed-controlled such that their transport speeds match.

When the document is fed continuously, the separation flapper 70 is swung to alternately pass each sheet (second pass 7).
2 / First path 71) is switched.

That is, as shown in FIG. 13, when a document passes through the nip of the first feeding roller 16, the separation flapper 70 is operated in preparation for the entry of the next document, and the transport path is switched. The timing at which the separation flapper 70 is operated is determined based on a signal indicating that the separation sensor 30 has detected the rear end of the preceding document.

FIG. 14 shows a state in which the trailing edge of the preceding document P1 has passed through the separation sensor 30 and the separation and feeding of the next document P2 has started.

FIG. 15 shows the original P1 separated and fed earlier.
However, FIG. 7 shows a state in which the separation flapper 70 is switched after passing through the nip of the first feeding roller 16. In the present embodiment, the separation speed of the document P2 after switching the separation flapper 70 is set higher than the synchronization speed. Therefore, the document P2 catches up with the document P1, enters the second path 72, and stands by separately. However, since the first path 71 and the second path 72 are regulated by the separation flapper 70, the document P1 and the document P2 do not interfere with each other.

Depending on the frictional state of the surface of the document, the document may not follow the rotation of the separation / conveyance roller 8 (slip between the document and the roller). However, in the present embodiment, the separation speed is set higher than the feeding speed of the second feeding roller 9 in consideration of such a separation delay. Therefore, there is no possibility that the device is stopped or the productivity is reduced due to the separation delay.

If the separation speed is set higher than the feeding speed of the second feeding roller 9, the next original may catch up with the preceding original. However, in the present embodiment, since the separation flapper 70 regulates the path, there is no collision with the selected document.

When the document P1 comes off the second feeding roller 9 after the document P2 is separated and standby, the skew feeding is performed.

The description of the separating operation has been completed. After that, the operation of each document transport mode is performed. 3.7.2 Operation in Each Document Transport Mode The operation after the above-described separation operation is described in each document transport mode (half-size single-sided document transport mode, large-size single-sided document transport mode, half-size double-sided document transport mode, large-size double-sided document Transport mode and manual document transport mode). 3.7.2.1 Half-size one-sided original transport mode FIGS. 16 and 17 are schematic diagrams showing the flow of originals in the one-sided original transport mode.

When the original transport mode is the one-sided original transport mode, the path switching solenoid 107 is turned off, and
The transport path is on the side of the document feeding path (C). In this state, the preceding document P1 enters the platen 3. At this time, the conveyance speed of the wide belt 7 is controlled in advance to match the speed of the second feeding roller 9.

When the trailing edge of the preceding document P1 passes through the nip point of the sheet feeding roller 5, in preparation for the feeding operation of the succeeding document P2,
The feed roller 5 is lowered again.

Further, when the trailing end of the preceding document P1 passes through the nip point of the first feeding roller 16, the separation clutch 106 is turned on, and the feeding of the succeeding document P2 by the feeding roller 5 is started (see FIG. 4). FIG. 16A).

When the trailing edge of the preceding document P1 passes through the nip of the second feed roller 9, the second transport roller 9 is stopped. After the feeding by the feed roller 5 is started, the subsequent document P2 is rapidly accelerated, and when the second transport roller 9 stops, the feed sensor 3
5 is controlled so as to reach the position detected. When the paper feed sensor 35 detects the succeeding document P2,
Control for skew removal is performed in the same manner as in the case of the preceding document P1.

At this time, the preceding document P1 has entered the transport path (d) on the platen 3 and is independently transported by the wide belt 7. Then, when the trailing end advances a predetermined distance after passing through the paper feed sensor 35, the preceding original P1 is temporarily stopped (see FIG. 16B).

At this time, the distance between the leading edge of the document P1 and the image reading position R2 is controlled to be L5.
The distance L8 from the rear end of the document P1 to the nip point of the second feed roller 9 is configured to be positive (the rear end of the document P1 passes through the nip of the second feed roller 9). ).

Note that L8 has the following relationship with L2, L5 and the size of the conveyed document.

L8 = L2-L5-conveyed document size L2: distance from image reading position R2 to second feed roller 9 The ADF 2 stops the preceding document P1 once and at the same time, , And outputs a transfer completion signal 120. Then, it waits for the input of the transport start signal 121.

When the conveyance start signal 121 from the copying machine main body is received and the skew feed control of the succeeding document P2 is completed, the wide belt 7 is started, and the wide belt 7 conveys the preceding document P1 at the image forming speed. I do.

When the inter-sheet distance (the distance between the trailing edge of the preceding document P1 and the leading edge of the succeeding document P2) has reached a predetermined distance, the second
The feed roller 9 is activated. Then, the second original feed roller 9 conveys the succeeding original P2 at the image forming speed in the same manner as the preceding original P1.

In this case, when the conveying speeds of the wide belt 7 and the second feeding roller 9 coincide with each other, the above-mentioned paper distance is L6.
The activation and acceleration of the second feed roller 9 are controlled so that When the preceding original P1 reaches the reading position R2, the A
DF2 outputs an image arrival signal 122. Copying machine body 1
Receives this, starts reading the image of the preceding original P1.

FIG. 16C shows a state after reading of the image of the original P1 is completed. The document P1 is stopped after being transported a predetermined distance (L9) after the reading is completed. At this time, the subsequent document P2 is moved to the reading position R.
It is stopped at the position of distance L5 from 2. Further, the succeeding document P3 forms a loop for skew removal by the second feeding roller 9.
Waiting while maintaining by.

In this state, when the conveyance start signal 121 is input from the copying machine main body 1, an image for the original P2 is formed. FIG. 17A shows the position of the original in the transport path during reading of the image of the original P2. Manuscript P
1 is conveyed by a wide belt 7, a manual feed registration roller 11, and a paper discharge roller 12. At this time, the conveying speed of the wide belt 7 and the conveying speed of the manual registration roller 11 are configured to be equal. The transport speed of the discharge roller 12 is controlled to be equal to or slightly faster than these speeds.

FIG. 17B shows a state when reading of the succeeding original P2 is completed. After the reading is completed, the wide belt 7 is stopped.
P3 is stopped on the platen 3. Since the trailing end of the preceding document P <b> 1 has already passed through the nip of the manual registration roller 11, it is independently conveyed by the discharge roller 12 and discharged to the discharge tray 10. 3.7.2.2 Large Size One-Sided Document Conveying Mode FIGS. 18 and 19 are schematic diagrams showing the flow of a document in the large size one-sided document conveying mode.

As in the case of the small-size one-sided document transport mode, the path switching solenoid 107 is controlled to be off, and the transport path is on the document feed path (c). In this state, the preceding document P1 enters the platen 3. When the trailing edge of the preceding document P1 passes through the nip point of the separation / conveyance roller 8, the feeding roller 5 is lowered again in preparation for the feeding operation of the following document P2.

Further, when the trailing end of the preceding document P1 passes through the nip point of the first feeding roller 16, the separation clutch 106 is turned on, and the feeding of the succeeding document P2 by the feeding roller 5 is started (see FIG. 4). FIG. 18A).

When the trailing edge of the preceding document P1 passes through the nip of the second feeding roller 9, the second conveying roller 9 is stopped. After the feeding by the feed roller 5 is started, the subsequent document P2 is rapidly accelerated, and when the second transport roller 9 stops, the feed sensor 3
5 is controlled. When the paper feed sensor 35 detects the succeeding document P2, control for skew feeding is performed as in the case of the preceding document P1.

At this time, the preceding document P1 has entered the transport path (d) on the platen 3 and is independently transported by the wide belt 7. Then, when the trailing end advances a predetermined distance after passing through the paper feed sensor 35, the preceding original P1 is temporarily stopped (see FIG. 18B).

At this time, the distance between the leading edge of the document P1 and the image reading position R3 is controlled to be L5 as in the case of transporting a half-size document. The distance L10 from the rear end of the document P1 to the nip point of the second feeding roller 9 is configured to be positive (the rear end of the document P1 passes through the nip of the second feeding roller 9). There).

L10 has the following relationship with L3, L5, and document size.

L10 = L3-L5-conveyed document size L3: distance from image reading position R3 to second feeding roller 9 The ADF 2 temporarily stops the preceding document P1 and at the same time, , And outputs a transfer completion signal 120. Then, it waits for the input of the transport start signal 121.

When the conveyance start signal 121 from the copying machine main body is received and the skew feed control of the succeeding original P2 is completed, the wide belt 7 is started. Then, the preceding document P1 is conveyed by the wide belt 7 at an image forming speed. When the preceding original P1 reaches the reading position R3, AD
F2 outputs the image destination arrival signal 122. Copying machine body 1
Receives this, starts reading the image of the preceding original P1.

When the inter-paper distance (the distance between the trailing edge of the preceding document P1 and the leading edge of the succeeding document P2) has reached a predetermined distance, the second
The feed roller 9 is activated. The second document feed roller 9 conveys the succeeding document P2 at the same image forming speed as the preceding document P1. At this time, the activation and acceleration of the second feeding roller 9 are controlled so that the above-mentioned sheet distance becomes L11 when the conveying speeds of the wide belt 7 and the second feeding roller 9 match. This state is shown in FIG.

FIG. 19B shows a state after reading of the image of the original P1 is completed. The succeeding document P2 is stopped on the platen 3. The sheet distance L11 is set to be greater than the distance from the leading edge of the succeeding document P2 to the nip point of the manual feed registration roller 11. Therefore, when the succeeding document P2 is stopped, the rear end of the preceding document P1 has already passed the nip point of the manual feed registration roller 11, and the document P1 is independently conveyed and discharged by the discharge roller 12. 3.7.2.3 Half-size double-sided original transport mode FIGS. 20, 21, 22, and 23 are schematic diagrams showing the flow of originals during double-sided original transport. The transport speeds of the second feeding roller 9 and the wide belt 7 are controlled to be constant except in special cases.

When the document transport mode is the duplex document transport mode, first, the reverse sheet feed flapper 22 and the reverse flapper 2
3 is in a state drawn by a solid line in FIG. In this state, the document P1 is guided to the reverse feeding path (H), (H), and (R) (see FIG. 20A).

When the rear end of the document P1 passes through the one-way flapper 24, the rollers 17 and 18 are rotated in the reverse direction to convey the document P1 in the reverse direction. The supply / discharge flapper 25 is in a state drawn by a solid line in FIG.
Is guided to a document conveying path (d) on the platen 3 (FIG. 2).
0 (b)).

When the original has been further conveyed a predetermined distance from the time when the reversing sensor 50 detects the rear end of the original in the conveying direction, the wide belt 7 is stopped. As a result, the document P1 is placed at the reading position R1 in the fixed reading mode (see FIG. 21A). Then, in this state, the scanning scan of the second surface is performed by the scanner unit 204 of the copying machine body 1.

The path switching solenoid 107 is turned off around the time when the placing of the document P1 is completed. Then, the reversing sheet feeding flapper 22 and the supply / discharge flapper 25 swing to be in a state drawn by a chain line in FIG. Scanner unit 20
When the scanning for reading the second surface of the document P1 by the document 4 is completed, the wide belt 7 is reversed and the document P1 is conveyed to the document feeding / ejecting path (e). At this time, the reversal flapper 23 swings at the same time as the reverse rotation of the wide belt 7, and is in a state drawn by a chain line in FIG. Therefore, the document P1 is
The document is guided to the document reversing path (g) (see FIG. 21B).

When the document is further conveyed a predetermined distance from the time when the reversing sensor 50 detects the leading edge of the document, the rotation of the wide belt 7 is temporarily stopped and then reversed (reverse rotation →
Forward rotation). When the leading end of the reversed document P1 approaches the document conveying path (d) on the platen 3, the control is performed such that the conveying speeds of the second feeding roller 9 and the wide belt 7 are the same.

When the trailing edge of the preceding document P1 passes through the nip point of the second feeding roller 9, the second feeding roller 9 is stopped and waits for the arrival of the following document P2.

The preceding document P1 is independently conveyed by the wide belt 7. However, when the document is further conveyed by a predetermined distance from the time when the paper feed sensor 35 detects the rear end of the document, the wide belt 7 is stopped. As a result, the document P1 is placed at the reading position R1 in the fixed reading mode. Then, in this state, reading scanning of the first surface is performed by the scanner unit 204.

In addition, before and after the trailing edge of the preceding document is detected by the paper feed sensor 35, the separating operation of the succeeding document P2 is started, and the second feeding roller 9 performs the well-known skew feeding.

Document P1 by Scanner Unit 204
During the scanning of the first side, the reversing operation of the succeeding document P2 is completed. After the reversal, the subsequent document P2 is on standby with the vicinity of the leading end thereof being nipped by the first reversing roller 17 (FIG. 22).
(A)).

When the scanning for reading the first surface of the preceding original P1 is completed, the first reversing roller 17 and the second reversing roller 1
8 starts rotating, and the wide belt 7 starts rotating forward. As a result, the preceding document P1 and the succeeding document P2 are placed on the platen 3 with a predetermined distance L12 between them (see FIG. 22B).

Document P2 by Scanner Unit 204
Is completed, the reversing operation of the succeeding document P2 is started, as in the case of the preceding document P1.
2 and the preceding document P1 are transported in the direction of the reverse feeding path (e). However, while the preceding original P1 is still in the transport path (d) on the platen 3, the rotation of the belt is temporarily stopped.
Thereafter, the rotation direction of the wide belt 7 is switched (note: this is possible by setting the paper distance L12 to an appropriate value). As a result, the original P1 and the original P2
Is again conveyed in the direction of the paper discharge roller 12 and stops (see FIG. 23A). Then, in this state, reading of the first side of the document P2 is started again. The distance between the document P1 and the document P2 at this time is L13 (it is also possible to control to L12). At this time, the subsequent document P3 is in a state of being nipped by the first reversing roller 17 as in the case of the document P2 shown in FIG.

When the reading scan of the first side of the document P2 is completed, the first reversing roller 17 and the second reversing roller 18
, The forward rotation of the wide belt 7, and the rotation of the paper discharge roller 12 are started. As a result, the subsequent document P3, the document P2 for which image reading has been completed, and the document P1 are simultaneously conveyed.

When the wide belt 7 is stopped and the placement of the second side of the succeeding document P3 is completed, the rear end of the preceding document P1 has already passed through the nip of the manual feed registration roller 11. Therefore, the preceding original P1 is thereafter
2 and is discharged to the discharge tray 10 (see FIG. 23B). This is achieved by setting the sheet distance to L13.

By performing the above operations continuously, when the scanning of the first surface of the final document Pn is completed, the final document Pn and the final pre-document Pn-1 are arranged on the platen 3 so as to be wide. The belt 7 is continuously discharged by the continuous operation. 3.7.2.4 Large-size double-sided original transport mode FIGS. 24, 25, 26, and 27 are schematic diagrams showing the flow of originals during large-size double-sided original transport. The transport speeds of the second feeding roller 9 and the wide belt 7 are controlled to be constant except in special cases.

When the document transport mode is the duplex document transport mode, first, the reversing sheet flapper 22 and the reversing flapper 23
Is in a state drawn by a solid line in FIG. In this state, the document P1 is guided to the reverse feeding path (h), (h), and (i) (see FIG. 24A).

When the rear end of the document passes through the one-way flapper 24, the rollers 17 and 18 are rotated in the reverse direction to convey the document P1 in the reverse direction.

Since the supply / discharge flapper 25 is in a state drawn by a solid line in FIG. 13, the document P1 conveyed in the reverse direction is guided to the document conveyance path (d) on the platen 3 (FIG. 24).
(B)).

When the original P1 is further conveyed by a predetermined distance from the time when the reversing sensor 50 detects the rear end of the original in the conveying direction, the wide belt 7 is stopped. In this state, the document P1 is in the reading position R1 in the fixed reading mode.
(See FIG. 25A).

The path switching solenoid 107 is turned off around the time when document placement is completed. Then, the reverse feed flapper 2
13, and the supply / discharge flapper 25 swings to a state drawn by a chain line in FIG. When the scanning of the second surface of the document P1 by the scanner unit 204 is completed, the wide belt 7 is rotated in the reverse direction, and the document P1 is transported to the document feeding / ejecting path (e). At this time, the reversing flapper 23 swings simultaneously with the reverse rotation of the wide belt 7, and is in the state of the chain line in FIG. Therefore, the document P1 is guided to the document reversing path (g) (see FIG. 25B).

When the document is further conveyed a predetermined distance from the time when the reversing sensor 50 detects the leading edge of the document, the rotation of the wide belt 7 is temporarily stopped and then reversed (reverse rotation →
Forward rotation). When the leading end of the inverted document P1 approaches the document conveying path (d) on the platen, the second feeding roller 9
And the conveying speed of the wide belt 7 is controlled.

When the trailing edge of the preceding document P1 passes through the nip point of the second feeding roller 9, the second feeding roller 9 is stopped and waits for the arrival of the following document P2.

The preceding document P 1 is independently conveyed by the wide belt 7. However, when the document P1 is further conveyed by a predetermined distance from the time when the paper feed sensor 35 detects the rear end of the document P1, the wide belt 7 is stopped. As a result, the document P1 is placed at the stop position R1 in the fixed reading mode.

In addition, before and after the trailing edge of the preceding document is detected by the paper feed sensor 35, the separating operation of the succeeding document P2 is started, and the well-known skew feeding is performed by the stopped second feeding roller. And then, the reversing feed path (h)
The document P2 is guided to (f) and (d) (see FIG. 26A).

During the scanning of the first surface by the scanner unit 204, the reversing operation of the succeeding document P2 is completed as in the case of the preceding document P1. After the reversal, the subsequent document P1 waits in a state where the vicinity of the leading end thereof is nipped by the first reversing roller 17 (see FIG. 26B). At this time, the inter-paper distance between the preceding original P1 and the following succeeding original P2 is controlled to be L14.

When the scanning for reading the first side of the preceding original P1 is completed, the first reversing roller 17 and the second reversing roller 1
8 is started simultaneously with the forward rotation of the wide belt 7. Thus, when the succeeding document P2 is placed on the platen 3, the rear end of the preceding document P1 passes through the nip of the manual registration roller 11 (see FIG. 27). L14 mentioned above
Is set in advance in such a state.

Thereafter, the same operation is continued up to the final document Pn. 3.7.2.5 Manual Document Conveying Mode FIGS. 28 and 29 are diagrams showing the flow of a document during manual document conveying.

When the manual document detection sensor 60 detects that the document P1 has been set (see FIG. 28A), the manual flapper 27 and the manual shutter 28 are in the state depicted by solid lines in FIG. Then, the original P1
Is fed by the manual paper feed roller 13 and skewed by the stopped manual paper registration roller 11. Thereafter, the leading edge of the document is moved to the reading position R1 of the platen 3.
, The conveyance of the document P1 is stopped (see FIG. 28B). At this time, the manual feed flapper 27 and the manual shutter 28 return to the state drawn by the chain line in FIG. 4 to enable the next original set.

After the scanning by the scanner unit 204 is completed, the wide belt 7 is rotated in the reverse direction, so that the document P1 is discharged toward the discharge roller 12. The manual feed roller 13 also rotates with the rotation of the discharge roller 12. However, since the leading edge of the document P2 is regulated by the manual feed shutter 28, the manual feed roller 13 slips, and the document P2 does not advance (see FIG. 29A).

The rear end of the document P1 is the manual registration sensor 3
4, the manual registration roller 11 stops (see FIG. 29B). Further, the manual flapper 27 and the manual shutter 28 are in a state drawn by a solid line in FIG.

Thereafter, the document P2 is conveyed to the manual registration roller 11 side by the manual paper feed roller 13, and is placed on the platen 3 in the same manner as the document P1 after the above-described skew feeding is completed. 4. Control Configuration 4.1 Control Circuit... See FIG. 30 FIG. 30 is a block diagram showing a circuit configuration of the control device of the present embodiment.

The control device is a microprocessor (CP
U) 501, a RAM (not shown) backed up by a battery (not shown), a ROM (not shown) storing control sequence software, and a communication IC 502 for controlling data communication with the copier body. And Drive circuits of various loads and sensor signals are connected to input / output ports of the CPU 501.

In FIG. 30, the separation motor 100 (DC
The brush motor) includes a driver 503 and a controller 50.
The drive is controlled by 3a. Controller 503
To a, a reference clock serving as a reference for the motor rotation speed, an on / off signal, and the like are input from the CPU 501.

In this embodiment, the transport motor 101 (stepping motor) and the stepping motor driver 504 are used.
Driven by Similarly, the belt motor 102
Is also driven by the stepping motor driver 505 at a constant current. Each driver receives a phase excitation signal from the CPU 501 and a motor current control signal.

Oscillating motor 103 (stepping motor)
Are driven at a constant voltage by the driver 506. The discharge motor 104 (DC brush motor) is a driver 50
7 and an FG servo controller 507a.

Each of the motors 100 to 104 has a clock plate 100a to 104a and a clock sensor 100b as mechanisms for detecting the rotational speed of the motor.
To 104b are attached (see FIG. 4).

Further, the stopper solenoid 105 is driven by the driver 508. Similarly, the separation clutch 106 is controlled by the driver 509, the path switching solenoid 107 is controlled by the driver 510, the reverse flapper solenoid 108 is controlled by the driver 511, the discharge flapper solenoid 109 is controlled by the driver 512, and the separation flapper solenoid 110 is controlled by the driver 513.
Each is driven.

All of the drivers 503 to 513 are CPU
The operation is controlled by a signal connected to the input / output port 501.

Further, a separation sensor 30, a skew detection sensor 31, a mixed loading detection sensor 32, a reversal detection sensor 33, a manual feed registration sensor 34, a paper feed sensor 35, and a reversal sensor 5
0, manual document detection sensor 60, registration sensor 39,
Document set detection sensor 40, document rear end detection sensor 41,
Various sensors such as a final document detection sensor 43, a paper width detection sensor 44, a paper feed roller home sensor 45, and a swing position sensor 46 are connected to an input port of the CPU 501.
It is used to monitor the behavior of a document and the behavior of a movable load in the apparatus. 4.2 Control Operation 4.2.1 Outline of Control Operation FIG. 31 is a main flowchart of the control operation by the control device.

The control device determines whether a document is set on the document tray 4, whether a document is set on the manual document tray 14, and a copy key (not shown) on the operation unit of the copying machine main body. ) Is in a standby state while repeatedly determining whether or not (main1, m) has been depressed.
ain7). The determination as to whether or not a document is set is made based on the detection results of the document set detection sensor 40 and the manual document detection sensor 60.

As a result of the determination, if the original is set on the original tray 4 and the copy key is depressed, a determination process of main2 and main3 is performed.

The control device sets the copy mode transmitted from the main body of the copier in main 2 and the main mode.
At 3, it is determined whether or not the document trailing edge detection sensor 41 is off. Then, the copying process in each mode is performed according to the result of the determination made here (main4,
main5, main6). That is, if the mode is not the one-sided original mode, a series of copying processes are executed in the two-sided original mode, and the operation is terminated (main6). If the original mode is the single-sided original mode and the original trailing edge detection sensor 41 is off, a series of copying processes are executed in the first continuous reading mode, and the operation ends (main4). If the mode is the one-sided original mode and the original trailing edge detection sensor 41 is not turned off, a series of copying processes are executed in a second flow reading mode described later, and the operation ends (main5).

It should be noted that the details of the first scanning mode, the second scanning mode, and the double-sided original mode will be described later with reference to FIG.
This will be described with reference to FIGS.

As a result of the judgment in main2,
If a document has been set on the manual document tray 14 and the copy key has been depressed, a series of copying processes are executed in a manual feed mode, which will be described later, and the operation ends (main8). The details of the manual feed mode will be described later with reference to FIG.

Here, the mode selection according to the document size is performed based only on the detection result (ON / OFF) of the document trailing edge detection sensor 41, that is, based only on the length of the document in the feed direction. I was However, the mode may be selected using the detection result of the paper width detection sensor 44 (that is, the width of the document). 4.2.2 Details of Control Operation in Each Mode 4.2.2.1 First Streaming Mode The details of the first streaming mode will be described with reference to FIG.

The control device controls the feed roller 5 to move the document tray 4
A pickup down process described later is performed so as to move the image onto the paper placed on the sheet (draftmd1). afterwards,
Separation processing (draf
tmd2) and a sheet feeding process (draftmd3). Further, a document flow reading process for reading the document image with the optical system of the copying machine main body fixed at a predetermined position is started (draftmd4). After that, it keeps waiting for the trailing end of the document to be detected by the separation sensor 30 (dra
ftmd5). When the separation sensor 30 detects the trailing end of the document, subsequently, based on the detection result of the document set detection sensor 40 that detects the break of the document bundle, it is determined whether or not the document fed at that time is the last document. Judgment (draftmd
6). If the result of the determination is that the document is not the final document, a discharge process described later is started to discharge the document onto the discharge tray 10 (draftmd7). After that, (draf
Returning to tmd2), the process is repeated.

In (draftmd6), if the original is the last original, the paper discharge process is started (draftmd6).
md8) Then, the pickup roller 5 is returned to the upper limit position by performing a pickup up process described later (draftmd).
9). Then, a series of processing ends.

When the length of the document in the feeding direction is L ′ mm, the scanner unit 204 (see FIG. 1)
It is located L'mm or more from the second feeding roller 9 and downstream of the conveying path in the conveying direction (the reading position R in FIG. 11).
2, R3). The position control of the scanner unit 204
The control may be based on the well-known stepping motor control, or may be based on another mechanical stopper configuration.

The various basic processes (for example, the pickup d
own processing and separation processing) will be described later in detail. 4.2.2.2 Second Flow Reading Mode The second flow reading mode will be described with reference to FIG.

The control device controls the feed roller 5 to move the document tray 4
The pickup down processing described later is performed to move the paper onto the paper placed on the paper (draft2md1). Thereafter, a separation process (draft2md2), which will be described later, and a paper feed process (draft) to separate the topmost document by one sheet.
2md3). Further, a document flow reading process for reading the document image with the optical system of the copying machine main body fixed at a predetermined position is started (draft2md4). further,
Since the fixed position of the optical system is near the paper discharge unit, a paper discharge process described later is started to discharge the document onto the paper discharge tray 10 (draft2md5). Thereafter, the control device continues to wait for the separation sensor 30 to detect the trailing edge of the document (draft2md6). When the separation sensor 30 detects the trailing end of the original, the control device subsequently determines that the original fed at that time is the final original based on the detection result of the original set detection sensor 40 that detects a break in the original bundle. It is determined whether or not (draft2md7). If the result of the determination is that the document is not the final document, the process returns to (draft2md2) and the process is repeated. On the other hand, if it is the last original, the pickup roller 5 is returned to the upper limit position by performing pickup up processing described later (draft 2 md8), and thereafter, a series of processing is ended.

At this time, the scanner unit 20
4 (see FIG. 1) is at the reading position R3 (see FIG. 11).

Various basic processes (for example, the pickup d
own processing and separation processing) will be described later in detail. 4.2.2.3 Duplex Document Mode The duplex document mode will be described with reference to FIG.

The control device controls the feed roller 5 to move the document tray 4
A pickup down process, which will be described later, is performed to move the paper onto the paper placed on the surface of the paper (double1). Thereafter, a separation process (doubled2) described later is performed to separate only the uppermost document by one sheet. Further, a pre-reversal process (doublebled3), which will be described later, is performed so that the separated document is turned upside down so that the second surface of the document comes into contact with the platen 3 and is placed on the left end of the platen 3. Thereafter, an optical system moving original reading process for reading the original image while moving the optical system of the copying machine body is performed (doublem).
d4). When the reading process is completed, the reversing process is performed again to reverse the front and back surfaces (doubled5), and thereafter, the reading of the original image on the first side is completed by performing the optical system moving original reading process (doublebled6).

While the reading process is being performed, the control device performs the following operations based on the detection result of the document set detection sensor 40.
At this time, it is determined whether or not the fed original is the final original (doubled 7). If the result of the determination is that the document is not the final document, a discharge process described later is started to discharge the document to the discharge tray 10 (doubled8), and thereafter, the process returns to (doublemd2) and the same process is repeated. On the other hand, in the case of the last original, after performing a paper discharging process (double 9), a pickup up which will be described later is performed.
By performing the processing, the paper feed roller 5 is returned to the upper limit position (do
ublemd10). Then, a series of processing ends.

Various basic processes (for example, pickup dow) constituting the process of the double-sided document mode described above.
n processing and separation processing) will be described later in detail. 4.2.2.4 Manual Feed Mode The manual feed mode will be described with reference to FIG.

The control device performs a manual sheet feeding process (manualmd1) in order to convey the document set on the manual document tray 14 onto the platen 3 of the copying machine main body.
Thereafter, an optical system moving original reading process for reading the original image while moving the optical system of the copying machine body is performed (m
analmd2), after the completion of the processing, the paper discharge processing is started to discharge the original to the paper discharge tray 10 (mand2).
ualmd3). Thereafter, the control device continues to wait for the trailing edge of the document to be detected by the manual registration sensor 34 (manualmd4). Manual feed registration sensor 3
When the trailing edge of the original is detected by the control unit 4, the control device determines the presence or absence of the next original based on the detection result of the manual original detection sensor 60 (manualmd5). If the result of the determination is that there is a next original, the process returns to (manualmd1) and the same processing is repeated. On the other hand, if there is no next original, a manual sheet discharging process is performed, and the series of processes ends.

The various basic processes (for example, the manual paper feed process and the document flow reading process) constituting the processes in the manual feed mode described above will be described later in detail. 4.2.3 Basic Processing The basic processing that constitutes the control operation described above will be described. 4.2.3.1 Pickup Down Processing The pickup down processing will be described with reference to FIG.

The paper feed roller 5 is connected to the paper feed roller home sensor 4
The swing motor 103 is driven (pickupdwn1) to lower the document bundle P placed on the document tray from the position shown in FIG. The arm 2 is lowered. After the feed roller home sensor 45 was turned off, it was confirmed that the feed roller was lowered (pickupdwn2), and then the first
When the swing position sensor 46 and the second swing position sensor 47 are turned on to detect that the paper feed roller 5 has dropped onto the paper surface (pickupdwn3), the drive of the swing motor 103 is stopped (pickupdwn4). 4.2.3.2 Pickup Up Processing The pickup up processing will be described with reference to FIG.

The control device drives the swing motor 103 so as to raise the sheet feeding roller 5 to the position shown in FIG. 5 (pickup 1). Paper feed roller home sensor 45
When it is detected that the upper limit position has been reached (pickup2), the drive of the swing motor 103 is stopped (pickup3). The swing motor 10 at this time
The rotation direction of No. 3 is opposite to that during the pickup down processing. 4.2.3.3 Separation Processing The separation processing will be described with reference to FIG.

The control device turns on the separation motor 100 (sepa1), and rotates each of the paper feed roller, the separation belt 6, the separation / conveyance roller 8, and the first feeding roller 16 that have fallen on the document bundle P. Then, only the uppermost document of the document bundle P is separated and conveyed in the sheet path (a).

Thereafter, based on the detection result of the separation sensor 30, the control device continues to monitor whether or not the leading edge of the document has reached the detection position of the separation sensor 30 (sepa2). When the detection result of the separation sensor 30 is turned on, that is, when the leading end of the document reaches the detection position of the separation sensor 30, the separation motor is set so that the separation processing is completed within a predetermined time range. 100 speed control (s
epa3). The speed control is performed based on the remaining transport distance until the leading edge of the document is brought into contact with the second feed roller 9 to form a loop and the elapsed time until the separation sensor 30 is turned on.

Thereafter, the control device continues to monitor whether or not the leading edge of the document has reached the detection position of the paper feed sensor 35 based on the detection result of the paper feed sensor 35 (sepa4). When the detection result of the paper feed sensor 35 is turned on, that is, when the leading end of the document reaches the detection position of the paper feed sensor 35, the separation loop counter is started (sepa).
5). The separation loop counter counts by a clock signal input from a separation clock.

Thereafter, the control device waits for the separation loop counter to count to a predetermined value (sepa6). After the counting is completed, the control device turns off the separation motor 100 (sepa7). As a result, the original is stopped in a state where the leading end is abutted against the nip portion of the second feeding roller 9 and a predetermined amount of loop is formed, so that the skew that has occurred at the time of separation can be corrected. 4.2.3.4 Feeding Process The feeding process will be described with reference to FIG.

As shown by a solid line in FIG.
When 07 is off, the original is urged to be conveyed to the sheet path (h).

The control device first turns on the path switching solenoid 107 to switch the reversing sheet feeding flapper 22 to the state shown by the chain line in FIG. 13 (ent
1).

Further, the separation motor 100, and (d) for transporting the original, which has its tip abutted against the second feeding roller 9 and is nipped by the first feeding roller 16, to the sheet paths (c) and (d). Conveying motor 101 and belt motor 10
2 is turned on (ent2). Thus, the driving of the first feeding roller 16, the second feeding roller 9, and the wide belt 7 is started.

At the same time, the size check counter is started (ent3). Note that the size check counter is a counter that counts with a clock signal input from an inverted clock.

Thereafter, based on whether or not the detection result of the registration sensor 39 is turned on (that is, whether or not the leading edge of the document has been detected), it is determined whether or not the document has been conveyed to the sheet path (C). The system enters the standby state while determining (ent4).

If it is confirmed that the document has been conveyed to the sheet path (C), then it is determined whether or not the detection result of the separation sensor 30 is ON (that is, the rear end of the document is Is determined (ent5). As a result of the determination, when it is confirmed that the rear end of the document has passed the detection position of the separation sensor 30,
The separation off counter is started (ent6). The separation off counter counts with a clock signal input from the separation clock. The control device waits until the counting for the distance from the first feeding roller 16 to the separation sensor 30 is completed (ent7).

When the count is completed, the original has already passed through the first feed roller 16 at the rear end, so the control device stops the driving of the first feed roller 16 by turning off the separation motor 100. (Ent8).

Thereafter, the control device waits until the paper feed sensor 35 is turned off (ent9). If the paper feed sensor 35 has been turned off (that is, if the rear end of the document has passed the detection position of the paper feed sensor 35), the size check counter is stopped (ent10), and the size check is performed based on the data. Processing (ent11) is performed. The size check processing will be described later with reference to FIG.

Thereafter, a registration counter is started to stop the document at a predetermined position on the platen 3 (ent12). The registration counter is counted by a belt excitation clock.

Thereafter, the control device waits for the registration counter to count the distance L4 from the paper feed sensor 35 to the second feeding roller 9 (ent13). After the registration counter has counted the distance L4, the control device
The transport motor 101 is turned off (ent14). Thereafter, the process waits until the started registration counter ends (ent15). When the counting is completed, the control device turns off the belt motor 102 (ent16). Further, the path switching solenoid 107 is turned off (en
t17). 4.2.3.5 Pre-Inversion Processing The pre-inversion processing will be described with reference to FIG.

As shown by a solid line in FIG.
When 07 is off, the original is urged to be conveyed to the sheet path (h).

[0207] The front end is abutted against the second feeding roller 9, and
The separation motor 100 and the conveyance motor 101 are turned on in order to convey the document nipped by the first feeding roller 16 to the sheet paths (c) and (d) (pre).
trn1). As a result, the first feeding roller 16, the second feeding roller 9, the first reversing roller 17, the second reversing roller 18
Is started.

At the same time, the size check counter is started (pretrn2). Note that the size check counter is a counter that counts with a clock signal input from an inverted clock.

Thereafter, based on whether or not the detection result of the registration sensor 39 has been turned on (ie, whether or not the leading edge of the document has been detected), it is determined whether or not the document has been conveyed to the sheet path (h). It stands by while determining (pretrn
3).

If it is confirmed that the document has been conveyed to the sheet path (C), then it is determined whether or not the detection result of the separation sensor 30 is ON (that is, the rear end of the document is at the separation sensor 30). Is determined (pretrn4). As a result of the determination, the separation sensor 30
Is detected, the separation off counter is started (pretr.
n5). The separation off counter counts with a clock signal input from the separation clock. The control device waits until the count for the distance from the first feed roller 16 to the separation sensor 30 is completed (pretrn).
6).

At the time when the counting is completed, the rear end of the document has already been removed from the first feeding roller 16. Therefore, the control device stops the driving of the first feeding roller 16 by turning off the separation motor 100. (Pretrn7).

Thereafter, the control device waits until the paper feed sensor 35 is turned off (pretrn8). Paper feed sensor 35
Is turned off (that is, when the trailing edge of the document passes the detection position of the paper feed sensor 35), the size check counter is stopped (pretrn9), and a size check process is performed based on the data (pretrn9). pretr
n10).

Thereafter, the control device operates the registration sensor 39
Is turned off (pretrn11). When the registration sensor 39 is turned off (that is, when the trailing edge of the document passes through the registration sensor 39), the pre-reversal counter is stopped to stop the trailing edge of the document at a predetermined position that has passed through the sheet path (h). Start (pretrn
12). The pre-inversion counter is a counter that is counted by an inversion excitation clock.

At this time, the reverse flapper 23
Is biased so that the document is conveyed to the sheet path (re) as shown by the solid line in FIG.

Thereafter, when the counting by the pre-inversion counter is completed (pretrn13), the control device
The transport motor 101 is turned off (pretrn14).

After a lapse of a predetermined time, the transport motor 10
By starting the reverse rotation of 1 and turning on the belt motor 102, the document is conveyed to the sheet path (e) (pretrn15).

The control device confirms that the reversing sensor 50 is turned on, thereby confirming that the document has been conveyed to the sheet path (e) (pretrn16).

Thereafter, after waiting for the reversing sensor 50 to be turned off, that is, for the rear end of the document to pass the detection position of the reversing sensor 50 (pretrn17),
The control device turns off the conveyance motor 101 (pret
rn18). Further, a pre-feed counter is started to stop the original at a predetermined position on the platen (pre
trn19). The pre-feed counter is counted by the belt excitation clock. Then, when the count of the pre-feed counter ends (pretrn20), the belt motor 102 is turned off (pretrn21). 4.2.3.6 Inversion Process The inversion process will be described with reference to FIG.

When the reversing flapper solenoid 108 is off, the reversing flapper 23 is biased so that the document is conveyed to the sheet path (re) as shown by the solid line in FIG.

The control device is a reversing flapper solenoid 10
By turning on 8, the reverse flapper 23 is switched to the state drawn by the solid line in FIG. Further, by turning on the path switching flapper solenoid 107, the reverse sheet feeding flapper 22 and the supply / discharge flapper 25 are each switched to the state drawn by the chain line in FIG. 13 (tr
n1).

Subsequently, the control device controls the belt motor 1 to convey the document on the platen 3 to the sheet path (e).
02, the transport motor 101 is turned on (trn2). Thus, the wide belt 7, the second feeding roller 9, the first reversing roller 17, and the second reversing roller 18 are driven.

The control device waits until the reversing sensor 50 is turned on (trn3). When the reversing sensor 50 is turned on (that is, when the leading edge of the document has passed the detection position of the reversing sensor 50), the reversing counter is started to count up to a predetermined value (trn4). The inversion counter is a counter that is counted by a belt excitation clock. The predetermined value here is set to stop / reverse the belt motor 102 when the leading edge of the document reaches a predetermined position in the sheet path (F) or (G).

Thereafter, the control device waits for the counting by the inversion counter to end (trn5). When the counting by the reversal counter is completed, the belt motor 102 is turned off (trn6), and after a predetermined time has elapsed, the belt motor 102 is started to rotate in reverse (trn6).
7).

During this time, the transport motor 101 is turned on, and the first reversing roller 17 where the document is nipped,
The second reversing roller 18 and the second feeding roller 9 are driven. Therefore, the document is conveyed along the sheet paths (to) and (to).

The control device waits until the paper feed sensor 35 is turned on (trn8). The control device confirms that the sheet feed sensor 35 has been turned on (that is, that the leading end of the document has passed the detection position of the sheet feed sensor 35), thereby confirming that the sheet path (g) is being conveyed. Confirm.

The control device waits for the registration sensor 39 to be turned on (trn9). Then, when the registration sensor 39 is turned on, the control device controls the transport motor 1
01 is turned off (trn10). At the same time, in order to stop the document at a predetermined position on the platen 3, the counting by the reversal sheet feeding counter is started (trn1
1). The reverse sheet feeding counter is counted by the belt excitation clock. Then, the control device waits for the counting by the reversing sheet feeding counter to end (trn1
2).

When the counting by the reversing sheet feeding counter is completed, the control device turns off the belt motor 102 (trn13). Further, the inverted flapper solenoid 10
By turning off 8, the reverse flapper 23 is brought into a state drawn by a solid line in FIG. Further, by turning off the path switching solenoid 107, the reverse sheet feeding flapper 22 and the supply / discharge flapper 25 are returned to the state drawn by the solid line in FIG. 13 (trn14).

At (trn7), the first reversing roller 17 and the wide belt 7 pull the document in directions opposite to each other. However, since the nip force of the first reversing roller 17 is stronger, the document is conveyed following the first reversing roller 17. However, if the original is long in the feed direction,
Since it is greatly affected by the nip force between the internal pressing roller and the platen 3, it does not follow the first reversing roller 17. Therefore, the timing of stopping the belt motor 102 and performing reverse rotation (ie, the value to be counted by the reversing counter) is set according to the length of the document in the feeding direction. 4.2.3.7 Discharge Process The discharge process will be described with reference to FIG.

When the paper discharge flapper solenoid 109 is turned off, the paper discharge flapper 26 has a flapper tip portion of the platen 3 as shown by a chain line in FIG.
It is biased to a lower position.

The control device controls the belt motor 1 to convey the original on the platen 3 to the sheet paths (d) and (d).
02 and the discharge motor 104 are turned on (ejct
1). Thereby, the wide belt 7, the manual feed roller 1
3. The paper discharge roller 12 is driven.

The control device determines whether the document is in the sheet state based on whether the detection result of the manual document detection sensor 60 is turned on (ie, whether the leading edge of the document has passed the detection position of the manual document detection sensor 60). It is confirmed that the path (nu) is being conveyed (ejct2). When the detection result of the manual feed document detection sensor 60 is turned on (that is, when it is confirmed that the document is being conveyed along the sheet path (nu)), the detection position of the manual feed document detection sensor 60 is subsequently determined. Wait for the trailing edge of the document to pass through (ejct
3) Turn off the belt motor 102 (ejct
4).

Also, the counting by the paper discharge counter is started (ejct5). The paper discharge counter counts according to a clock signal input from a paper discharge clock.
During this time, the control device checks whether or not the count value of the paper discharge counter has reached a predetermined value (ejct).
6). If the count value has reached the predetermined value,
The discharge motor 104 is turned off (ejct7). At this time, the document has already passed through the sheet path (N), has passed through the paper discharge roller 12 and has been discharged onto the paper discharge tray 10. 4.2.3.8 Manual Feed Process The manual feed process will be described with reference to FIG.

When the discharge flapper solenoid 109 is off, the discharge flapper 26 is urged to a position where the tip of the discharge flapper is lower than the platen as shown by the solid line in FIG. The manual feed shutter 28 is in a state where the leading edge of the document set on the manual document tray 14 is abutted.

The control device turns on the paper discharge flapper 109 and puts the manual feed shutter 2 in the state depicted by the chain line in FIG.
8. The paper discharge flapper 26 is switched (ment1). Subsequently, the paper discharge motor 104 is turned on to rotate the manual paper feed roller 13 (ment2). As a result, the document is conveyed in the sheet path.

The control device determines whether or not the leading edge of the document has passed the detection position of the manual feed registration sensor 34 based on whether or not the detection result of the manual feed registration sensor 34 has been turned on (ment 3). When the detection result of the manual feed registration sensor 34 is turned on (that is, when the leading end of the document passes the detection position of the manual feed registration sensor 34), counting by the manual feed loop counter is started (ment 4). The manual feed loop counter is counted by a clock signal input from a paper discharge clock. When the count by the manual feed loop counter reaches a predetermined value (ment5), the control device turns off the paper discharge motor 104 (ment6). As a result, the leading end of the document is abutted against the nip portion of the manual registration roller 11, stops in a state where a predetermined amount of loop is formed, and the skew generated during conveyance by the manual paper feed roller 13 is reduced. Be corrected.

After a predetermined period of time has elapsed since the discharge motor 104 was turned off, the control device sends the document to the sheet path (L),
The paper discharge motor 104 and the belt motor 102 are turned on to convey (d) (ment 7). Thus, the manual feed roller 13, the manual registration roller 11, and the wide belt 7 are driven.

At the same time, the control device starts a size check counter (ment 8). Further, a belt registration counter is started (men
t9). The size check counter counts with a clock signal input from a belt clock. The belt registration counter is counted by a belt excitation clock to stop at a predetermined position on the platen 3. Then, the manual feed registration sensor 34
Is detected (that is, the trailing edge of the document has passed the detection position of the manual feed registration sensor 34) (ment 10), the size check counter is stopped. Then, a size check process (ment 11) shown in FIG. 43 is performed based on the data.

The trailing edge of the original is already in the manual feed roller 1
3, the control device turns off the discharge motor 104 (ment 12). Thereafter, when the count value of the manual feed counter reaches a predetermined value, (men
t13), the belt motor 102 is turned off (ment
14). Then, the discharge flapper solenoid 109 is turned off (ment 15). 4.2.3.9 Document Flow Reading Process The document flow reading process will be described with reference to FIG.

The control device controls the belt motor 10 so that the image of the original is read by the optical system of the main body of the copying machine.
2 is turned on (move 1), and the wide belt 7 is driven. At the same time, when the leading edge of the document has reached the predetermined position, the image-on-counter is started to turn on the image-point signal (move 2). The image on-counter is counted by the belt excitation clock. At this time, the rotation of the belt motor 102 is controlled at a constant speed by outputting an excitation clock signal based on the reading speed data (V) received from the copying machine main body. Thereafter, when the count value of the image destination on-counter reaches a predetermined value (mov
e3), the image signal is turned on (transmitted to the copying machine body) (move 4).

After receiving the image tip signal, the copier main body performs actual control of the time required for the leading edge of the document to reach the optical system fixed position during the flow reading to perform actual image reading. After a lapse of a predetermined time, the control device turns off the image destination signal (move 5, 6, 7). Thereafter, when the trailing edge of the document has passed the reading position, the belt motor 102
Is turned off (move 8).

It is to be noted that the reading speed data (V) may be equal to the reading speed (V1) when the optical system is moved.
May be different. In particular, when V> V1 is set,
Since the reading of the document image is completed in a shorter time than in the normal optical system moving reading, the copying speed is improved. 4.2.3.10 Size Check Process The size check process will be described with reference to FIG.

In this size check process, the true document size (length in the feed direction) is corrected by adding the distance from the nip position of the second feed roller 9 to the paper feed sensor 35 to the size check counter data. ) Is obtained (size
ck1). The document is conveyed by the second feed roller 35 and the wide belt 7, and the feed amount surely matches the count value by the belt excitation clock.

Thereafter, the control device determines the size of the obtained true document size (size1 to sizec).
k7). Then, based on the determination result, the size of the original at that time is A5, B5, A4, B5R, A4
It is concluded which of R, B4, A3, etc. (sizes 8 to 14).

The description of the ADF 2 in this embodiment has been completed. [Printer Unit 300] The printer unit 300 as an image output unit will be described with reference to FIG.

The sheet on which an image is formed is stored in the upper cassette 302a, the lower cassette 302b, and the sheet stacking device 30.
8 is housed. Then, a photosensitive drum 31 described later is used.
2 each time an image is formed on the cassettes 302a and 302
b, is fed from one of the decks 308.

The sheets in the upper cassette 300a are separated and fed one by one by the action of the separation claw and the feeding roller 301, and are guided to the registration rollers 306. Similarly, the sheets in the lower cassette 302b are
The sheets are separated and fed one by one by the action of 03 and guided to the registration rollers 306. Further, the sheet stacking device (deck type) 308 is an intermediate plate 308 that is raised and lowered by a motor or the like.
a. The sheets on the middle plate 308a are separated and fed one by one by the action of the feeding roller 309 and the separating claw, and are guided to the transport roller 310.

In addition to this, the sheet is a
04 can also be supplied. The sheets placed on the manual feed guide 304 are guided one by one to a registration roller 306 via a roller 305.

The image forming section includes a photosensitive drum 312, a developing device 314, a transfer charger 315, a separation charger 316 and the like. In the image forming unit, an electrostatic latent image of an image read by the scanner unit 204 of the reader unit 200 is formed on the photosensitive drum 312. Then, the toner images obtained by developing the electrostatic latent images are transferred to the cassettes 302a and 30a.
2b, the image is transferred to a sheet fed from one of the decks 308. The registration between the toner image on the photosensitive drum 312 and the fed sheet is performed by a registration roller 306.

The above image formation is repeated according to the set number of copies.

The sheet on which the toner image has been transferred in the image forming section is guided to a fixing device 318 by a conveyor belt 317, where the toner image is fixed. Thereafter, the sheet is transported to the sorter 322 by the transport rollers 319, the flapper 320, the discharge rollers 321 and the like.

The sorter 322 is a non-sort tray 32
2a, sort bin tray 322b, non-sort tray discharge roller 322c, sort bin tray discharge roller 322
d. The sorter 322 sorts sheets one by one by raising and lowering a non-sort tray 322a and a sort bin tray 322b. In addition, sorter 32
In place of 2, a discharge tray may be mounted.

When the required number of copies are formed, the ADF 2 discharges the original from the platen 3 and conveys the next original to position it on the platen 3. Hereinafter, the same applies.

The intermediate tray 400 is used to stock a sheet on which an image has been formed once when an image is formed on both sides of the sheet or when an image is formed on one side of the sheet (multiple). Things. The intermediate tray 4
The conveyance and accommodation of the sheet on which the image is formed is performed by the conveyance roller 401, the conveyance belt 402, the flapper 403,
This is performed by the transport belt 404, the transport roller 405, and the like.

In the case of double-sided copying, the sheet is passed
Through the intermediate tray 400. In this case, the sheet is oriented with the image side up. In the case of the multiple copy, the sheet is guided to the intermediate tray 400 through the path 407. The sheet is image side down.

The sheets stacked on the intermediate tray 400 are:
Auxiliary rollers 409, 410, forward / reverse separation roller pair 411
The sheets are separated one by one from below and fed again. The re-fed sheet is transported by rollers 413, 414, 41
5 and the rollers 310 and the registration rollers 306, and are again guided to the image forming section. After image formation, the paper is discharged in the same manner as described above.

The procedure of double-sided copying will be described.

First, one-sided copying is performed on one document placed on the platen in accordance with the number of copies set at that time. At this time, the sheet on which the image is formed on one side is stacked on the intermediate tray 400. After that, the document on the platen 3 is turned over by the ADF 2 and then guided again to the platen 3.
Then, the image of the original is read again and formed on a sheet re-fed from the intermediate tray 400. They are,
Sorted by the sorter 322 in page order. There is also a method in which only one copy is created each time a document is rotated by the ADF 2. According to this method, even when a plurality of copies are made, a copy group with the same page order can be obtained in order, so that a necessary number of copies can be obtained separately without a sorter. When making a two-sided copy using this method, read both sides of one document continuously, copy and discharge both sides of the sheet continuously, and then discharge the same. If it is repeated, a divided double-sided copy group is obtained.

According to the embodiment described above, it is possible to prevent a delay in document separation without causing collision between documents.

This embodiment is an automatic document feeder provided in an image forming apparatus for feeding a sheet-shaped document. However, the present invention is applicable to a general sheet conveying apparatus for conveying a sheet.

In the present invention, the mechanism for separating sheets one by one is not particularly limited. Various separation devices such as a well-known separation pad separation system and a retard separation system can be adopted.

[0261]

As described above, since the separation feeding speed is set higher than the feeding speed, even if the sheet does not follow the rotation of the separation means due to the state of the sheet or the friction state of the surface, the separation is performed. The payout time is not delayed. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the apparatus from being stopped or the productivity from being lowered due to the separation delay. Further, by using a plurality of paths, even if the next sheet catches up with the preceding sheet, the sheets do not collide with each other or jam does not occur.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is an image forming apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention, in particular,
FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of an ADF.

FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a detailed configuration of a printer unit.

FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a path of an ADF.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a drive system of the ADF.

FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating an operation of a separation unit of the ADF (as viewed from an arrow AA in FIG. 9).

FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating an operation of an ADF separation unit (viewed along the line AA in FIG. 9).

FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating an operation of an ADF separation unit (viewed along arrow AA in FIG. 9).

FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating the operation of the separation unit of the ADF (viewed along the line AA in FIG. 9).

FIG. 9 is a plan view of the ADF.

FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of main members of the ADF.

FIG. 11 illustrates a document reading position.

FIG. 12 illustrates a document reading position.

FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrating a separation sheet feeding unit of the ADF of the present invention.

FIG. 14 is a diagram illustrating a separation sheet feeding unit of the ADF of the present invention.

FIG. 15 is a diagram illustrating a separation sheet feeding unit of the ADF of the present invention.

FIG. 16 is a diagram illustrating a flow of a half-size document in a single-sided document transport mode.

FIG. 17 is a diagram illustrating a flow of a half-size document in a single-sided document transport mode.

FIG. 18 is a diagram illustrating a flow of a large-size document in a single-sided document transport mode.

FIG. 19 is a diagram illustrating a flow of a large-size document in a single-sided document transport mode.

FIG. 20 is a diagram illustrating a flow of a half-size document in a two-sided document conveyance mode.

FIG. 21 is a diagram illustrating a flow of a half-size document in a two-sided document transport mode.

FIG. 22 is a diagram illustrating a flow of a half-size document in a double-sided document conveyance mode.

FIG. 23 is a diagram illustrating a flow of a half-size document in a two-sided document conveyance mode.

FIG. 24 is a diagram illustrating a flow of a large-size document in a two-sided document transport mode.

FIG. 25 is a diagram illustrating a flow of a large-size document in a two-sided document transport mode.

FIG. 26 is a diagram illustrating a flow of a large-size document in a two-sided document transport mode.

FIG. 27 is a diagram illustrating a flow of a large-size document in a two-sided document transport mode.

FIG. 28 is a diagram illustrating a flow of a document when a manual document is conveyed.

FIG. 29 is a diagram illustrating a flow of a document when a manual document is conveyed.

FIG. 30 is a block diagram showing a circuit configuration of a control device.

FIG. 31 is a flowchart showing an operation outline.

FIG. 32 is a flowchart showing a process in a first moving reading mode.

FIG. 33 is a flowchart showing a process in a second moving-reading mode.

FIG. 34 is a flowchart showing a process in a duplex document mode.

FIG. 35 is a flowchart showing processing in a manual document mode.

FIG. 36 is a flowchart showing a pickup down process for lowering a paper feed roller.

FIG. 37 is a flowchart showing a pickup up process for raising the feed roller.

FIG. 38 is a flowchart showing a separation process.

FIG. 39 is a flowchart illustrating a sheet feeding process.

FIG. 40 is a flowchart showing a document pre-reversal process.

FIG. 41 is a flowchart showing an inversion process.

FIG. 42 is a flowchart showing a sheet discharging process.

FIG. 43 is a flowchart showing a manual sheet feeding process.

FIG. 44 is a flowchart showing a process of reading a document by moving a document.

FIG. 45 is a flowchart showing a size check process.

FIG. 46 is a diagram showing a conventional example.

[Explanation of symbols]

 2 ADF 4 Document tray 5 Feed roller 6 Separation belt 8 Separation / conveyance roller 9 Second feed roller 16 First feed roller 30 Separation sensor 35 Feed sensor 39 Registration sensor 70 Separation flapper 71 First pass 72 Second pass 100 Separation motor 101 Transport motor 106 Separation clutch 110 Separation flapper solenoid (a) (b) (c) Document feed path (d) Document transport path on platen

Claims (3)

[Claims] A stacking unit on which sheets are stacked, a separating unit for separating and feeding out the sheets stacked on the stacking unit; a feeding unit for feeding the sheets downstream of the separating unit; A plurality of conveying paths from the separating unit to the feeding unit; and a switching unit for switching a conveying path through which the sheet passes at the time among the plurality of conveying paths. Feeding the sheet at a speed higher than a feeding speed. 2. A sheet conveying device according to claim 1, which conveys the sheet, reading means for reading an image of the sheet sent by the sheet conveying device, and an image read by the reading means on a recording medium. An image forming apparatus, comprising: an image forming unit that is formed thereon. 3. An image forming apparatus comprising: the sheet conveying device according to claim 1 for conveying a sheet; and image forming means for forming an image on the sheet sent by the sheet conveying device. apparatus.