JPS62232636A - Original document carrying method for copying machine - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To increase the quantity for generating a copy per a unit time, and also, to suppress the complicacy for processing an original document when the abnormality is generated, to the minimum, by quickening the feed timing of the original document from an automatic original document carrying device at the time of repeat copying. CONSTITUTION:At the time of repeat copying, between the time of starting the last illumination to the previous original document and the time of ending its illumination, by the timing by which the next original document is waiting at a position immediately before an original document carrying path, namely, in a stopper gate 5, this original document is fed out of an automatic original document carrying device 1. Also, when the original which is carried along a circulating path receives the last illumination, and the rear end of the original document is passed through an original document resist sensor 28, a solenoid 6 is energized, and the next original document waiting in the stopper gate 5 until that time is fed into an original document carrying path 7. In this way, an interval between the rear end of the previous original document and the front end of the next original document is narrowed, the next original document is fed quickly into a transparent plate 12 and an illumination to its original document image can be started, the productivity of a copy is improved, and also, the interference of the rear end of the previous original document and the front end of the next original document can be prevented.

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] Technique 1 The present invention feeds a document to a document conveyance path by an automatic document conveyance device, illuminates the document being conveyed through the 1M document conveyance path, and copies the document image. When making a single copy to obtain a single copy image from one original, the original is not circulated in the original transport path, but the original that has been illuminated once is ejected from the original transport path, and multiple copies are made from the same original. During repeat copying to obtain a copy image, the original is circulated through the original transport path to copy the original image, and the original that has been illuminated a predetermined number of times is ejected from the original transport path, and the next original is fed into the original transport path. The present invention relates to a method for conveying a document in a copying machine that illuminates the document image.

Chitoyo Namime: When making a single copy according to the above-mentioned document transport method, the original is ejected as it is without being circulated in the original transport path, so even when copying multiple originals in sequence,
By narrowing the distance between originals within a range that does not affect other copying controls, it is possible to increase the number of originals transported per unit time, that is, copy productivity.

On the other hand, during repeat copying, the original circulates through the original transport path a predetermined number of times, so the next original cannot be sent into the original transport path during the illumination process for this original. This is because if a plurality of original documents are sent into the conveyance path, not only will it become impossible to perform a predetermined illumination process, but also there is a risk that problems (jams) in the conveyance of the originals will occur. For this reason, conventionally, after the original that has undergone illumination processing is discharged from the original transport path, the automatic original transport device starts feeding the primary original and sends this to the original transport path. However, in this case, especially when the distance from the automatic document feeder to the document feed path is long, a relatively long time is required until the primary document is sent to the document feed path and its illumination is started. For this reason, a long loss time occurs between the end of illumination of the previous document and the start of illumination of the next document, resulting in a reduction in copy productivity.

Therefore, as soon as the previous original is sent to the original transport path, the next original is placed on standby in front of the original transport path, and the next original is sent to the original transport path as soon as the previous original is illuminated. is possible. In this way, the time until the start of illumination of the next document can be shortened, and copy productivity can be increased. However, the previous document was stuck in the document transport path.
If, for example, an abnormality occurs with this FA document, such as a transport error, while the document is being processed, in addition to processing the previous document, the next document that is waiting must also be processed. , it becomes necessary to carry out adhesive cover processing for a total of two original sheets, and the work is very complicated.

The present invention starts from the above-mentioned novel recognition,
The purpose is to provide a document transport method of the type described at the beginning, which can increase copy productivity compared to conventional methods and can also minimize the complexity of document processing when an abnormality occurs. It is.

In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, the present invention, during repeat copying, prints the next original at the timing when the next original is waiting in front of the original transport path, from the start of the last illumination to the end of the illumination for the previous original. We propose a configuration in which the documents are sent out from an automatic document feeder.

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram schematically showing an example of a copying machine to which the present invention is applied. When automatically feeding a document, as is well known in the art, the document 3 is placed on the paper feed tray 2 of the automatic document transport bag 1 by operating the switch on the operation section (not shown) of the cellar 1-01. mode (automatic document transport) and press the start switch (not shown). As a result, a document feed latch (not shown) of the paper feed roller 4 is turned on, the roller 4 rotates counterclockwise, and one document 3 on the paper feed tray 2 is conveyed in the direction of arrow A. Transported M
The document hits a stopper gate 5 provided to correct the skew during feeding (the curved shape S with respect to the traveling direction of the J7X document), and the document stops after slackening at the leading edge of the document. , 2, the document size is determined, and control such as selection of the transfer paper size to be used can be performed.

Next, the solenoid 6 is activated at a timing described later to attract the stopper gate 5. As a result, the stoppage game 1 to 5 retreats from the document path, and the document is conveyed again by the feed roller 50 and fed into the document conveyance path 7.

The document transport path 7 is configured with an appropriate number of circulation paths so that the document can be circulated as necessary. In the example of FIG. 1, four first to fourth conveyance rollers 8, 9, 10.11 are rotationally driven in a counterclockwise direction by a document motor (not shown);
As will be described later, three circulation paths are constituted by driven rollers that roll in contact with these.

The original sent into the original transport path 7 is moved by the first transport roller 8
and their driven rollers in the direction of arrow B, and after passing between the second and third transport rollers 9, 10 and these driven rollers, a transparent plate 12 made of, for example, transparent glass is provided. passes through the illumination section, and at this time light source 1
3, the original is illuminated. 14 is a reflective shade for the light source 13; 14a is a reflective mirror that reflects the light from the light source 13; 6. The light reflected from the illuminated surface of the original is reflected by the first mirror 15, and then passes through the imaging lens 16. The light is reflected by the second and third mirrors 17 and 18, and reaches a drum-shaped photoreceptor 19 that rotates counterclockwise, where an original image is formed. Since the photoreceptor 19 is charged in advance by the charger 20, an electrostatic latent image corresponding to the original image is formed on the photoreceptor 19 by the exposure. This latent image is in the developing bag [
21, the toner forms a visible image, and this visible image is transferred by a transfer charger 24 to a transfer paper 23 that is fed from a paper feed tray 22 of a paper feed device toward a photoreceptor at a predetermined timing. Ru. After the transfer paper is separated from the photoreceptor 19 by the AC separation charger 25, it is sent to a fixing device (not shown), where the transferred visible image is fixed. In this way, the final copy image is formed on the transfer paper.

As described above, of the transfer paper 23 on the paper feed tray 22 that is fed to the photoreceptor 19, only the uppermost paper is fed by the separation roller 26 by molecules m and sent to the registration roller 27. A document registration sensor 2 in which the leading edge of the document is provided close to the illumination section
8, and at the timing of generation of the detection signal, the transfer paper 23 waiting on the registration rollers 27 is aligned with the visible image on the photoreceptor. Further, the feeding of the transfer paper in the paper feed tray 22 is started at the same time as the original hits the stopper gate 5 as described above and is stopped, and the leading edge of the transfer paper is stopped at the paper feed sensor 22.
When detected, the solenoid 6 is turned on, the stopper gate 5 is retracted, and the feed roller 50 is activated to feed the document.

As mentioned above, the original is illuminated and the copying operation is performed.
During single copying to obtain a single copy image from this original, the original that has passed through the transparent plate 12 is transferred to the fourth conveyance roller 11.
After being conveyed in the direction of arrow C by the roller and its driven roller,
It passes the third, second and first conveyance rollers 10, 9.8 while being guided by the first to third switching guide pawls 30, 31°32, respectively occupying the positions indicated by the chain lines, and the paper ejection roller 33 and its counterpart. The paper is discharged onto a paper discharge tray 36 by rollers 34 and 35 as shown by the arrow. In this manner, in the case of single copying, the original is ejected as it is without being circulated in the original transport path 7 after completing one illumination.

On the other hand, when repeat copying is performed to obtain multiple copies of the same original, the number of copies to be repeated is set in advance using a numeric keypad (not shown) on the operation unit, and the original sent to the original transport path 7 is passed through the transparent plate 12 that number of times. As it passes, it is illuminated each time, and the above-mentioned copying operation takes place. Therefore, it is necessary to circulate the original in the original transport path 7. At that time, the document is placed in a circulation path according to its size so that the front and rear edges of the circulating document do not overlap each other, and so that the gap between the front and rear edges does not become too large, resulting in a large loss of time. transported. In the illustrated example, three circulation paths are configured as described above, each of which is connected to A4°, A3. Assuming that the document is for an A2 size document, when the document fed into the JM document transport path 7 is the smallest A4 size document, the first switching guide pawl 30 is switched to the position shown by the solid line. Therefore, the transparent plate 12
The A4-sized document sent in the direction of arrow C is transported along the third transport roller 10 as shown by arrow E. Therefore, this original passes through the transparent plate 12 again.

At this time, it is illuminated by the light source 13 and the above-described copying operation is performed again. In this way, the original is sequentially circulated and illuminated for the set number of repetitions, and the number of copied images corresponding to the number of repetitions is obtained.

When this circulation path is defined as the first circulation path, the length of the first circulation path is set such that the front and rear edges of the documents circulating here do not overlap each other and are spaced apart from each other by a predetermined distance that is not too large. is determined.

When the document size is A3, the first switching guide claw 30 is switched to the position indicated by the chain line, but the second switching guide claw 31 occupies the position indicated by the solid line, so that the document is transferred to the second circulation as shown by arrow F. Each time it passes through a transparent plate 12, it is illuminated and the image is transferred to a separate transfer paper. Similarly, when the original is A2 size, the first and second switching guide claws 30°31 are at the positions indicated by the chain lines, and the third switching guide claw 32
is switched to the position shown by the solid line, and the original is placed in the third position as shown by arrow G.
The document is transported through a circulation path, and each time it passes through the transparent plate 12, it is illuminated and its original image is copied.

Also when the original is conveyed through the second and third circulation paths.

The length of each circulation path is set so that the front and rear ends do not overlap and the distance between the two does not become excessive.

After the document has been circulated through one of the circulation paths a predetermined number of times and has been illuminated in a predetermined manner, it is moved to the switching guide claws 30, 3, which occupy the positions indicated by chain lines.
1.32 and is discharged to the paper discharge tray 36.

The next document fed from the automatic document feeder 1 to the document feed path 7 is similarly fed through one of the circulation paths and subjected to the illumination operation.

During repeat copying, visible images of the same document are sequentially formed on the photoconductor 19, and these are transferred to different transfer papers, but each transfer paper can be aligned with each visible image sequentially formed on the photoconductor. It goes without saying that the light is fed to the photoreceptor at the appropriate timing. At this time, each transfer paper needs to be temporarily stopped by the registration roller 27 to take the timing, so each transfer paper is slightly spaced, for example, by 3 At short intervals of about 40 AO.

The paper is sent out from the paper feed tray 22. Figure 1 shows A2, A
3. Three circulation paths for A4 size documents are shown, but by increasing the number of conveyance rollers, a larger number of circulation paths,
For example, it is also possible to configure four circulation paths for originals from A4 size to Al size, and circulate R documents through one of the circulation paths depending on the size.

In addition, the copying machine shown in Fig.
A manual paper feed table 37 for feeding sheets one by one is also provided, and the operator can also feed documents from this paper feed table 37 to the document transport path 7 as indicated by arrow H, if necessary.

The above-mentioned configuration itself is not different from the conventional one.

At that time, conventionally, an automatic document feeder was used to feed the documents one by one.
When repeat copying is performed for each document by automatically feeding each document sheet by sheet, as described above, after the illumination process for the previous document is completed and it is ejected from the document transport path 7 to the paper output tray 36, Automatic document feeder i! 1, the time it takes to eject the previous document and the time it takes to send the next document to the document transport path 7 becomes longer, resulting in a reduction in copy productivity.

Therefore, in the configuration according to the present invention, during repeat copying, the primary document is placed at a position immediately before the document transport path from the time when the last illumination for the previous document starts until the time when the illumination ends.
In the example shown in FIG. 1, the document is sent out from the automatic document feeder 1 at the timing when it is waiting at the stopper gate 5. Further, in the embodiment shown in FIG. 1, when the trailing edge of the document passes the document registration sensor 28 while the document being conveyed through the circulation path receives the final illumination, the solenoid 6 is energized. The next original, which has been waiting at the stopper gate 5 until then, is sent to the original transport path 7 (not the next original, but the first original to be fed, when the leading edge of the transfer paper is detected by the sensor 29). (As described above, the document is sent into the document conveyance path 7 by retraction of the stopper gate 5).

Therefore, the distance between the rear end of the previous original and the front end of the next original can be narrowed, and the next original can be quickly fed to the transparent plate 12 and illumination of the original image can be started.

Improved copy productivity can be achieved. Moreover, interference between the rear end of the previous document and the front end of the next document can be prevented.

Automatic document feeder i! A more specific example of the timing of transporting the original from 1 will be explained. Previous manuscript is the smallest A
4 size, this original circulates in the first circulation path, but at this time, it is assumed that the time required for the original to go around this circulation path once is about 1 second, and the original is transferred to the automatic document feeder 1.
Assuming that it takes about 2.5 seconds to reach stopper gate 5 from the beginning, when the previous document reaches the position 3 pages before it has finished copying the entire number of repeats, the next document will be automatically transported. When the document feed starts from 1, this document reaches the stopper gate 5 and waits there between the start of the last illumination of the previous document and the end of that illumination, that is, during the final illumination of the previous document. I can do it.

When the size of the document is other than A4, the timing of feeding the document from the automatic document feeder 1 may be controlled according to the size. For example, in the case of an A2 size document, if the time required for this document to go around the third Jvi loop is approximately 2.5 seconds, then the next document will be automatically scanned when the final illumination of the previous document starts. It is sufficient to start feeding from the document conveying device 1. These controls are easily executed by the CPU.

By the way, as soon as the previous document is fed into the document transport path 7, the next document is sent out from the automatic document feeder 1, and this document is stopped by the stopper gate 5 and kept on standby. , the rear end is sensor 2
The same effect as described above can be obtained even if the standby original is sent to the original transport path 7 when it passes through 8. However, in this case, if an abnormality occurs due to a jam of the previous original while it is being circulated, the waiting original must also be taken out in addition to the previous original, making this process complicated.

If the original circulating in the original transport path 7 is skewed diagonally with respect to the direction of travel or is shifted sideways (in a copying machine that circulates the original, the original may be left in a free state without being clamped). The same is true for documents (because they are transported, it is relatively easy for skew to occur depending on the paper quality and stiffness of the document, or for the document to gradually shift laterally during circulation).

From this point of view, it is better to delay the time when the next document is fed from the automatic document feeder as much as possible, but as mentioned above, copy productivity will decrease if this is done. Taking both ideas into account, the next document should reach the front of the document transport path during the final illumination of the previous document.

This is made to wait here.

In this way, copy productivity can be increased as described above, and the next document will not be waiting before the last illumination of the previous document.

In the example explained earlier about an A4 size document, the next document is transferred to the automatic document feeder three pages before the previous document has been completely copied! ! ! Since the first document is sent out from the first document, if an abnormality (jam, skew, lateral shift, etc.) occurs in the previous document, there is no need to process the first document, and only the previous document needs to be processed.

Even in the configuration according to the present invention, if an abnormality occurs in the previous document after the next document is fed from the automatic document feeder ii1, it is necessary to process the previous document and the subsequent document.
The probability of such a situation occurring is significantly reduced compared to the case where, after Moe's original enters the original transport path, the next original is immediately placed on standby in front of this transport path. Also, the previous manuscript was crooked.

Alternatively, even if the document is only shifted horizontally, it is possible to transport the document in the document transport path, so when such an abnormality occurs, instead of stopping the conventional circulation transport of the previous document, it is possible to transport this document instead of the previous document. The paper was conveyed from the path 7 to the paper discharge tray 36 and discharged. The copying machine shown in the figure takes this idea even further, and when the above-mentioned abnormality occurs in the first original after it has been fed from the automatic document feeder, not only the previous original but also the next waiting original will be temporarily removed. The document is fed into the document transport path 7 and is immediately discharged onto the paper discharge tray 36. Therefore, it is possible to easily process two originals, and there is an advantage that the glue cover operation after an abnormality occurs can be simplified. Regarding the two ejected originals,
Manual feed tray 37?

Then, the paper is fed again and the copies are processed to obtain a predetermined number of subsequent images. Similarly, when the transfer paper jams, if there is a previous original and a waiting original, put them together and move them to paper output tray 3.
6, and after the jam is cleared, these originals are re-fed from the manual feed tray 37.

If a problem such as a jam, skew, or lateral deviation of the original or a jam of the transfer paper occurs and you return only the previous original or both the previous original and the next original to the paper ejection tray 36, refer to the symbols in Figure 3. As shown with 40, the number of returned originals is displayed on the display section 41. "-2" shown here means that two originals, the previous original and the next original, have been returned.

If the next document has not yet been sent out from the automatic document feeder 1, "-1" is displayed to indicate that only the previous document has been returned. A sensor (not shown) detects whether the next original has already been sent out, that is, whether there is a waiting original. After completing work such as jam removal, the operator feeds one or two originals to the manual feed tray 37 according to this display.
You can refeed the paper from In FIG. 3, r30'J indicates the number of repeat copy sets, and "27" indicates the number of copies, that is, the value of the copy counter.

Note that during single copying, there is no problem even if a plurality of originals enter the original transport path 7, so the originals are sequentially fed into the original transport path 7 from the automatic original transport device l. At this time, the interval between each document should be set as narrow as possible without interfering with the conveyance of the transfer paper, and at a timing that allows the transfer paper to align with the visible image on the photoreceptor, thereby increasing copy productivity. This is desirable. For example, set the interval between each M manuscript to 150.
or 200I.

Next, in order to understand the present invention, the operations related to document conveyance of the copying machine shown in FIG. 1 will be explained together with reference to FIG.
).

In Figure 2, when the operator sets the number of repeat sheets (A) and in the ADF mode (B), Star!・
When the switch is turned on (T), the document feed clutch of the automatic document feeder 1 is turned on (D), one document on the paper feed tray 2 is fed (O), and when the feeding operation is completed. The clutch is disengaged (f).

The number of repeats is 1. In other words, during single copying, the interval between each original is 150 mm (ki, ri), and in this state, the originals on the paper feed tray 2 are fed one after another (ke), with an interval of 150 mm.
is regulated in a known manner, for example, by a timer (not shown).

During repeat copying, the first original is fed into the original transport path 7, and when its leading edge passes through the sensor to the register 1, the sensor 28 is turned on (c), the original is illuminated, and a copying operation is executed.

If no transfer paper jam, original skew, or horizontal deviation of the original occurs (S, S, S), the copy counter value from 1 to r+1 is added (S), and the copy count number is calculated from the number of repeat set sheets. The number of remaining beats is checked (ne).

); ha, ma; ya).

When the size of the original is A4 and the number of repeat set sheets is 3 or more, the above-mentioned operations (k) and ()) are performed repeatedly, and when the remaining number of beats becomes 2, that is, the remaining copies The next document is sent out from the automatic document feeder [1] three pages in front of the document. When detected at 28, the document is fed into the document conveyance path 7.

When the size of the document is A4 and the number of repeat set sheets is 2, the next document is sent out from the automatic document feeder and sent into the document feed path 7 when the number of remaining beats reaches 1 (N). When the number of repeat set sheets is 2, the next document cannot be sent out before the remaining 3 copies, so the front edge of the previous document that has just entered the document transport path 7 passes the sensor 28, and the remaining number of beats is When the number reaches 1, the next original is sent out immediately.

When the original size is A3, the next original is sent out from the automatic document feeder l when the number of remaining beats is 1 (C, M,
ke, engineering...). Further, when the original size is A2 rather than A4 or A3, the next gWJ is sent out when the number of remaining repeats is 0, that is, when the final illumination of the previous original starts (Y, KE, WORK, etc.).

When an abnormality occurs in the conveyance of the transfer paper or the original (S, S, S), the ADF mode is reset (S), and if there is a circulating original and a waiting original, this original is also ejected from the original transport path 7. An error message is displayed (Yu, Chi). When there are waiting originals, the number of originals to be returned (-2) is displayed (see also Figure 3), and when there are no originals, "-1" is displayed.
" is displayed (g). (The original motor then stops).

Conveyance rollers 8, 9. to, 11 stops.

It goes without saying that the present invention can also be applied to any 'M1 copying machine other than the type shown in FIG.

According to the present invention, by advancing the timing of feeding the original from the automatic document feeder during repeat copying, it is possible to increase the amount of copies made per unit time.
Furthermore, it has become possible to minimize the complexity of document processing when an abnormality occurs.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of a copying machine that implements the method according to the present invention, FIG. 2 is a flowchart h showing an example of document conveyance operation, and FIG. 3 is a front view of a display section. 1...Automatic document feeder 3...Document 7...Document transport path

Claims (1)

[Claims] Feeding a document to a document conveyance path by an automatic document feeder,
During single copying, a single copy image is obtained by illuminating the original being transported through the original transport path and copying the original image from one sheet of original by illuminating the original once without circulating the original in the original transport path. The original is ejected from the original transport path as it is, and during repeat copying to obtain multiple copies of the same original, the original is circulated through the original transport path and the original image is copied.
In the document transport method of a copying machine, in which the original is ejected from the document transport path after being illuminated a predetermined number of times, the next original is sent into the document transport path, and the original image is illuminated. A document conveying method characterized in that, between the start of illumination and the end of illumination, the next document is sent out from an automatic document feeder at a timing when the next document is placed on standby in front of the document conveyance path.