JPS61156057A - Automatic double face copying machine - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To remove the cause of jam generation, to improve working efficiency and to prevent the inner devices of the titled machine previously from damages and failures by forming a proper paper selecting means for feeding only proper paper at the selection of a double face copying mode. CONSTITUTION:A had feeding tray 2, upper paper cassette 3 and a lower paper cassette 4 are loaded to the upper, intermediate and lower stages of a paper feeding part arranged on the right side part of a copying machine body 1. The tray 2 is used at the feeding of the small number of sheets of the feeding of specific thick paper or paper having specific paper quality. The paper of single size is stored in each of the cassettes 3, 4. Paper feeding rollers 5-7 are arranged on positions close to the leading ends of the tray 2 and the cassettes 3, 4 respectively and the paper feeding roller selected by the operator is rotated and the paper feeding roller selected by the operator is rotated and the paper set up or stored on the position is fed.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION Technical Field The present invention relates to an automatic double-sided copying machine that temporarily stores sheets with single-sided copies in an intermediate storage section and conveys them to a copying process section again.

<Prior Art and Its Disadvantages> In recent years, with the progress of simplifying copying operations and increasing the number of functions of copying machines, many copying machines equipped with an automatic double-sided copying function have been commercialized. The above-mentioned automatic duplex copying machine has a conveyance path for double-sided copying that is connected to the lower part of the paper conveyance path for single-sided copying from its paper discharge section to the front of the copying process section. The section is equipped with an intermediate tray and a switchback means for reversing the paper conveyance direction,
Furthermore, a switching means for switching the paper conveyance direction is provided near the paper discharge section. With the above configuration, in the single-sided copy mode, the paper that has been copied on one side is conveyed in the paper ejection direction, and in the double-sided copy mode, it is conveyed to the double-sided copy conveyance path and temporarily stored in the intermediate tray. Next, the sheet of paper that has been changed into a back-side original and has been copied on one side is again conveyed from the intermediate tray to the copying process section, where images are formed on both sides of the sheet.

By the way, in the duplex copying mode, it is necessary to reverse the conveying direction of the single-sided copied paper using a switch hack means and convey it to the copying process section, and the intermediate tray that temporarily stores the single-sided copied paper makes sure that the paper is stored in the correct position. In addition, the space for its installation is often subject to structural restrictions. For this reason, conventional automatic duplex copying machines generally have to feed paper whose quality is significantly different from normal copy paper, such as thick paper, thin paper, or label paper, in duplex copy mode, or use a universal drawer that cannot detect the paper size of the stored paper. It was not possible to feed paper of a size that could be stored in the intermediate tray, such as when feeding paper from a machine. However, conventional automatic duplex copying machines do not have a means to restrict the feeding of non-conforming paper during duplex copying, and to feed only paper that is compatible with the duplex copying mode. When the above-mentioned non-conforming paper is fed during duplex copying mode, a jam occurs near the switchback means or the intermediate tray, and the dead time spent on clearing this jam has the drawback of significantly reducing the operating efficiency of the copying machine. . In addition, there was a drawback that it caused a failure of the copying machine and damage to the internal equipment. <Object of the Invention> In view of the above-mentioned drawbacks of the prior art, an object of the present invention is to prevent non-conforming paper from being conveyed to the duplex copying conveyance path in the duplex copying mode. An object of the present invention is to provide an automatic double-sided copying machine that can eliminate the causes of jamming, improve operating efficiency, and prevent damage and failure of internal devices.

<Structure of the Invention> The present invention is characterized in that it includes a compatible paper selection means that allows only compatible paper to be fed when the double-sided copy mode is selected.

<Embodiment> FIG. 2 is a front sectional view showing the schematic structure of an automatic double-sided copying machine which is an embodiment of the present invention.

A paper feed section configured on the right side of the copying machine main body 1 is equipped with a manual paper feed tray 2 at the upper stage, an upper paper cassette 3 at the middle stage, and a lower paper cassette 4 at the lower stage. The manual paper feed tray 2 is used to feed a small number of sheets or to feed sheets of special thickness and quality. Further, the upper paper cassette 3 and the lower paper cassette 4 each store paper of a single type of size. Paper feed rollers 5, 6.7 are disposed near the tips of the manual paper feed tray 2 and the paper cassette 3.4, respectively, and the paper feed roller at the position selected by the operator rotates, Paper placed or stored at the position is fed. Copy machine body 1
A photoreceptor drum 8 is installed approximately at the center of the drum, and a charger 9 and a developing device 1 are installed near the outer periphery of the photoreceptor drum 8.
0, transfer/peel charger 11, static elimination charger 12,
Together with the cleaner 13 and the like, it constitutes a copying process section. Inside the copying machine body 1, there is a single-sided copying conveyance path 12 from the paper feed section to the paper discharge section on the left side of the copying machine body 1 via the copying process section.
and a paper discharge roller 15. A fixing roller 16 is provided between the conveyance belt 14 and the paper ejection roller 15.
is installed. The fixing roller 16 heats and presses the paper onto which the developed image has been transferred after passing through the copying process section, thereby fixing the developer onto the surface of the paper.

A sorter 40 is attached to the paper discharge section of the main body 1 of the copying machine. In the sorter 40, bins 17 for storing discharged sheets are stacked in multiple stages. Further, a feed belt 18 is disposed inside the sorter 40 while being stretched around rollers, and together with a paper input guide 19 disposed near the end of the bin 17 on the side of the feed belt 18, sheets are transferred to the sorter 40. Lead inward.

By operating the paper input guide 19 in sequence, the ejected paper can be loaded into each of the bins stacked in multiple stages, and the bookkeeping work when copying multiple continuous documents can be automatically performed. can be done. When copying a single document, the paper entry guide direction is closed by the operation of the gate 20, and the paper is ejected to the topmost bin 17a.

A switchback conveyance path 22 including a reversing conveyance roller 23 is configured below the copying machine main body of the feed belt 18 . In the double-sided copying mode, when one-sided copying of the paper is completed, the switchback conveyance path 2 (Boo) 21 is
2 is opened and the paper is guided to the Sui-Nochiback transport path 22. When the trailing edge of the sheet passes the sensor S4, the reversing conveyance roller 23 rotates in the opposite direction, reversing the conveying direction of the single-sided copy sheet and guiding it into the mounting table 30.

There is one general feed roller 24.25.2 inside the above-mentioned mounting table 30.
9, an intermediate tray 27, and a paper feed roller 28.

The single-sided copied sheet, which has been placed in the loading table 30 with its conveying direction reversed, is stored in the intermediate tray 27 by the rotation of the conveying rollers 24 and 25. After the set number of single-sided copies have been completed and the original placed on the document table 31 has been changed to a back-side original, the single-sided copied paper is transferred from the intermediate tray 27 by the rotation of the paper feed roller 28 and the transport roller 29. P.T.
It is conveyed in the direction of the crawler 3 and guided again to the copying process section. Through the above operation, an image of the back side original is formed on the back side of the paper, and the paper with images formed on both sides is ejected by the ejection roller 15.

Sensors ucs 1 to ucs 4 and lc are provided at positions engaging the front end of the paper cassette 3.4 of the paper feed section, respectively.
31 to LC34 are arranged.

The sensor detects the size display member of the paper cassette and inputs the size of the paper stored in the attached paper cassette to the CPU. Further, the single-sided copying conveyance path 1
2, sorter 40, double-sided copying conveyance path 26, intermediate tray 2
7 is provided with sensors S1 to S8. The sensor 5l-38 detects the presence or absence of paper at that position, and
It is input to the PU and determines the operation timing of each roller, belt, guide, gate, etc.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing the operation of the gate provided in the sorter mounted in the above embodiment.

Inside the sorter 40, gates 20 and 21 are disposed above the feeding tank 18 so as to be swingable in the directions of the arrows E and F and G, respectively. When the paper that has been copied on one side in the single-sided copy mode or the paper that has been copied on both sides in the double-sided copy mode is discharged by the rotation of the paper discharge roller 15, and its leading edge reaches the position of the sensor S3, The gates 20 and 21 move in the directions of arrows E and G, respectively. By the above operation, the sheets are guided in the direction of arrow A and are guided to the uppermost bin 17a disposed on the sorter 40. When the sort or group mode is selected during continuous copying of a plurality of originals, the gate 20 moves in the direction of arrow G, and the gate 21 moves in the direction of arrow G. The paper ejected by the above operation is guided in the direction of arrow B, and is guided through the paper input guide 19 and the feed belt 1.
8, the liquid is stored in each of the bins 17 arranged in multiple stages in order.

In the double-sided copying mode, when the leading edge of the paper that has undergone single-sided copying reaches the position of the sensor S3, the gate 21 moves in the direction of arrow F and guides the paper in the direction of arrow C. A solenoid actuator (not shown) is engaged with each of the gates 20 and 21, and when the solenoid is turned on, the gates 20 and 21 move to the arrow E.
, move in the G direction.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing the structure of the intermediate tray provided in the above embodiment.

The intermediate tray 27 constitutes a paper storage section by a tray plate 27a, an alignment plate 27b, and a stopper 27c. The positions of the tray plate 27a and the stopper 27c are fixed, and the paper is placed on the tray 27a, and the paper is stored by regulating the position in the transport direction by engaging the stopper 27c and the leading end of the paper. The alignment plates 27b are arranged on each side of the tray plate 27a parallel to the paper conveyance direction. One end of the rank gear 32 is fixed to each of the alignment plates 27b. Below the tray plate 27, a pinion gear 33 that meshes with the rack gear 32 is coaxially fixed to the boot J34. A pulley 35 is fixed to the pulley 34 and the rotating shaft of the stamping motor 36 A wire 37 is stretched between the pinion gear 33 and the rack gear 3. With the above configuration, when the stepping motor 36 is driven, the pinion gear 33 rotates.
When the stepping motor 36 rotates due to the engagement with the alignment plates 27b and 2, the two alignment plates 27b each move an equal distance in the direction of the arrow H1. One matching plate 27b has a plate plate 3.
8 is fixed, and a photo ink clubter 39 for detecting this plate 3B is arranged near it. By detecting the plate 38, the photo ink printer 39 informs the CPU that the alignment plate 27b is at the home position. The CPU drives the stepping motor 36 so that the alignment plate 27b moves to a position corresponding to the paper size set in the duplex copying mode. During paper storage, the interval between the two alignment plates 27b is set slightly wider than the set paper size, and during alignment, the interval is adjusted to the regular size of the paper.

The size of the tray plate 27a remains unchanged due to the simplified structure, and its length in the paper conveyance direction is regulated due to the structural requirement to avoid interference with other devices such as rollers. . Further, the amount of movement of the alignment plate 27b is regulated by the length of the rack gear 32 and the arrangement position of the photo interrupter 39 and the like. For the above reasons, the paper sizes that can be stored in the intermediate tray 27 are limited. For example, in this embodiment, only four sizes of paper, A3 and B4 sizes in the horizontal direction and A4 and Bs sizes in the vertical direction, can be stored. , A4 and B5 size sheets in the landscape direction and irregularly sized sheets cannot be stored.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram of the above embodiment.

The CPU 41 has input terminals INO-7 connected to the paper strength cent size detection sensors UC5I-4 and LC3I-4, and input terminals IN8-15 connected to paper detection sensors S1-8. Also output terminal 0UTO
and l are connected to solenoids 43 and 44 for operating the sorter gates 20 and 21. 0 again
A stepping motor 36 that operates the alignment plate of the intermediate tray is connected to the UTs 2 to 4. Furthermore, an operation unit 42 is connected to the CPU 41, and inputs by operator's key operations and outputs to various displays are performed. It should be noted that a warning indicator, which is a warning display means of the present invention, is provided in the operation section.

FIGS. 1A and 1B are flowcharts showing the operation of the above embodiment.

Step nl (hereinafter step ni is simply referred to as ni)
determine whether the double-sided copy mode is selected in the step;
When the double-sided copy mode is selected, the process advances to B2. At B2, it is determined whether the paper cassette currently set to feed paper has an appropriate size. If the paper cassette set to feed paper in B2 is not the compatible size, it is determined in B3 whether or not a paper cassette of the compatible size is installed in the paper feed section, and if a paper cassette of the compatible size is installed. , change the paper feed setting to that paper cassette and proceed to B7. If the paper cassette set to feed paper at B2 is of the appropriate size, the process advances to B5, where the operator selects a paper cassette. After this, in n6,
It is determined whether the selected paper cassette is of an appropriate size, and if it is an appropriate size, the process proceeds to B7. If there is no compatible size in B3 or if the paper cassette selected in B6 is not a compatible size, proceed to nlO, display a warning prohibiting double-sided copy mode on the operation unit,
Turn on solenoid 43.44 with nil and n12. As the solenoid is driven, the gates 20 and 21 disposed inside the sorter 40 move in the directions of arrows E and G shown in FIG. 3, respectively, to close the switchback conveyance path 22 and the direction of the bins 17 below the sorter. g When the operator accidentally operates the copy switch when the paper cassette of an incompatible size is set to be fed by the above operation, the paper for which one-sided copying has been completed is ejected in the direction of arrow A shown in Fig. 3; The paper does not enter the double-sided copying conveyance path 26, and jams near the intermediate tray 27 can be prevented.

If the paper cassette set to feed paper at B6 is of an appropriate size, the solenoid 44 is turned off at B7. As a result, the gate 21 moves in the direction of arrow F shown in FIG.
Open the paper conveyance path in the direction of arrow C. Further, in I8, the stepping motor is driven to move the alignment plate 17b of the intermediate tray 17 to a position corresponding to the paper size set for paper feeding, and the process proceeds to I9. At I9, it is determined whether or not the copy switch has been operated, and if the copy switch has not been operated, the process returns to nl and the above operations are repeated.

Note that if there is no compatible size in the paper feed section in I3 or if the paper cassette forcibly set by the operator to feed paper is not the compatible size in I6, a warning prohibiting double-sided copy mode is displayed in nlO, and then the ready lamp is turned on. By turning off the light and returning to nl, it is possible to disable the start of the copying operation and prohibit the double-sided copying mode.

<Effects of the Invention> As described above, according to the present invention, when the duplex copying mode is selected, only compatible paper can be fed to the duplex copying conveyance path, and it is possible to feed only compatible paper to the duplex copying conveyance path. This makes it possible to prevent jams from occurring, improving the operating efficiency of the copying machine, and eliminating the cause of damage and malfunction of internal devices. Specifically, if duplex copy mode is selected and non-conforming paper is set to be fed, it will be changed to compliant paper, and if compliant paper is forcibly set to be fed by the operator or compliant paper is being fed. If paper is not available, a warning is displayed on the operation unit and the double-sided copy mode is canceled. Therefore, it not only prompts the operator to change the paper feed settings or prepare conforming paper and prohibits the start of duplex copying mode with non-conforming paper, but also prevents the operator from starting the duplex copying mode with non-conforming paper. Troubles such as occurrence of jams can be avoided.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

Figures 1 (A) and (B) are flowcharts showing the operation of an automatic double-sided copying machine that is an embodiment of the present invention, Figure 2 is a schematic structural diagram of the embodiment, and Figure 3 is the inside of a sorter of the embodiment. Figures 4(A) and 4(B) are a plan view and a side view, respectively, of the intermediate tray used in the same embodiment.
FIG. 5 is a block diagram of the same embodiment. 2-manual paper feed tray, 3.4-paper cassette, I2-conveyance path for single-sided copying, 22-switchback conveyance path, 26-conveyance path for double-sided copying, 27-intermediate tray.

Claims (3)

[Claims] (1) It has a single-sided copying function for many types of paper, and
For single or multiple types of compatible paper capable of double-sided copying among the many types listed above, automatic double-sided copying machines with a double-sided copying function can feed only the compatible paper when double-sided copy mode is selected. An automatic double-sided copying machine comprising a compatible paper selection means. (2) The conforming paper selection means changes to conforming paper when non-conforming paper is set to be fed in advance, and when non-conforming paper is forcibly set to be fed or conforming paper can be fed. Claim 1 includes a warning display means for prompting to change the paper feed setting or prepare compatible paper when the printer is not in the state, and a mode change means for canceling the double-sided copy mode when the warning display means is activated. Automatic duplex copying machine. (3) The automatic double-sided copying machine according to claim 2, wherein the mode changing means is means for disabling the start of a copying operation.