JPS6259011B2 - - Google Patents

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention (Technical Field) The present invention enables a desired type of paper to be fed without replacing the paper feed cassette, and
The present invention relates to a paper feeding device used in a copying machine, etc., which is capable of displaying the capacity of a storage container that stores paper according to the consumption amount.

(Prior Art) As a conventional paper feeding device, there is one shown in FIG. 1, for example. This paper feeding device has paper feeding cassettes 2 and 3 that are detachably attached to the copying machine main body 1 (in the direction of the arrow in the figure), and one sheet of paper 4a and 4b set in each paper feeding cassette. Paper feed rollers 5a, 5b that feed paper; separation rollers 6a, 6b that rotate in synchronization with the paper feed rollers 5a, 5b; The separation belt 7a rotates around the
7b, and feed rollers 8 and 9 that transport the fed paper to the transfer position. In Figure 1, two paper cassettes are loaded at the same time.
Although an example in which one can be installed is shown, most copying machines are usually equipped with two or three.

In the above configuration, it is assumed that the paper feed cassettes 2 and 3 are loaded with paper of the required size, and are loaded into the copying machine main body 1 from the direction of the arrow in the figure.
For example, if paper feed cassette 2 is set to A4 size and paper feed cassette 3 is set to B5 size, when the document is A4 size and the reduction ratio is 1, the paper feed cassette 2 is set by a control unit (not shown). selected. As the copying operation progresses, the paper feed roller 5a and the separation roller 6a start rotating, and one sheet of paper is moved from the paper feed cassette 2 to the separation roller 6a by the frictional force caused by the press contact of the paper feed roller 5a.
The taken out paper is fed between the separation roller 6a and the separation belt 7a, and one sheet of paper is sent to the feed roller 8 and reaches the transfer position. The above is the operation of the paper feed cassette 2, but the operation is exactly the same for the paper feed cassette 3, so the explanation will be omitted.

However, with conventional paper feeding devices, only two or three of the paper feeding cassettes prepared for each paper size can be installed, which limits the types of paper that can be selected and makes them inconvenient to use. . In particular, in recent years, copiers that are capable of making multiple types of variable-size copies have appeared, but with these models, the cassettes must be replaced frequently, which is becoming even more inconvenient. .

(Object and structure of the invention) The present invention has been made in view of the above,
The support position has been adjusted to allow you to feed the desired type of paper without having to replace the paper feed cassette, etc., and to improve usability by displaying the capacity of the storage container that stores paper according to the consumption amount. The present invention provides a paper feeding device used in a copying machine, etc., which supports a plurality of storage containers by a support mechanism whose level can be changed, and displays the capacity based on the level.

(Example) Hereinafter, a paper feeding device according to the present invention will be described in detail.

FIG. 2 shows an embodiment of the present invention, in which rolls 11 and 12 are arranged vertically at a predetermined distance in a copying machine main body or a separate case, and a roll 1.
1 and a belt 13 stretched between the roll 12;
A motor 14 connected to the roll 12 to rotationally drive the roll 12, and paper storage containers 15a to 15d arranged vertically at predetermined intervals parallel to one surface of the belt 13 and storing sheets of different sizes.
and rolls 16a to 16d that are disposed above each paper storage container 15a to 15d and rotate while being pressed against the outer surface of the belt 13, and the rolls 16a to 16d.
Transmission parts 17a to 17 each have a pair of rotating parts that are spaced apart from each other and arranged in parallel so that they can be freely engaged with one axis.
d, and clutches 18a to 18d that freely engage or disengage the pair of rotating parts of the transmission parts 17a to 17d.
, each of the transmission parts 17a to 17d and the roll 16a
The belt 19a stretched between each of the belts 16d to 16d
19d, feed rolls 20a to 20d, which are placed on the uppermost surface of the sheets of paper placed in each of the paper storage containers 15a to 15d, and feed out the sheets of paper by frictional force when driven to rotate.
Belts 21a to 21d stretched between each of a to 20d and each of the transmission parts 17a to 17d are disposed vertically at a predetermined distance from the dispensing surface of the paper storage containers 15a to 15d, and reciprocate. A driven chain or belt-shaped conveyance member 22, a transmission member 23a that suspends both ends of the conveyance member 22,
23b and the conveying member 2 by being attached to the conveying member 22.
Paper storage containers 15a to 15d according to the amount of movement of 2.
a guide member 24 that moves the paper dispensing surface;
A paper storage container 15 is provided on the guide member 24 in a direction substantially perpendicular to the moving direction of the guide member 24.
a guide plate 25 that guides the paper dispensed from any one of a to 15d and sends it out in a certain direction; a motor 26 that rotationally drives the transmission member 23b at a predetermined time;
are arranged at regular intervals at predetermined distance positions parallel to the conveying member 22 on the side where the guide member 24 is attached,
Chargers 27a to 27 generate charges that attract paper discharged from the guide plate 25 using electrostatic attraction force.
d, the paper discharge side of the guide plate 25, and the charger 27a~
27d, a belt-like chargeable conveying member 28 installed in an L-shape as part of a mounting path, rotating rollers 29a to 29d that extend the conveying member 28 at four points and rotate it, and rotating rollers A conveying roller 30 rotates in pressure contact with the conveying member 29a and sends out the paper conveyed by the conveying member 28 toward the photoreceptor side, and a conveying roller 30 that is disposed close to the back surface of the conveying member 28 located between the rotating rollers 29a and 29c. a charge detector 31 that detects the charging state of the rotating roller 2; a static eliminator 32 that is disposed near the rotating roller 29c and removes the electricity from the paper charged by the conveyance member 28;
A conveyance roll 3 that rotates while being pressed against the conveyance roll 9c and sends out the paper conveyed from the conveyance roll 30 to the photoreceptor side.
3, a paper peeling member 34 that is arranged in contact with the rotating roller 29c and prevents the paper that has come out of the conveying roller 33 from being rolled up by the rotating roller 29c, and a charger 2.
A power supply unit 35 that supplies power to each of 7a to 27d.
and supports 36a to 36a on which the upper part of the paper storage container 15a and each of the paper storage containers 15a to 15d are placed.
36e, and a light receiving section 3 mounted on each of the supports 36a to 36e facing the running surface of the guide member 24.
7a to 37d, a light emitting unit 38 that is attached to the storage container side of the guide member 24 and irradiates light to any of the light receiving units 37a to 37d as the guide member 24 moves, and supports 36a to 36e, respectively. Light receiving sections 39a to 39d are attached to the lower surfaces of the feed rolls 20a to 20d and receive light from light emitting sections (described later) provided on the shafts of each of the feed rolls 20a to 20d. A control section 40 controls the power supply section 35 so that the roller 28 is charged to a constant level, and also controls each of the motors 14 and 26, the drive motor for the rotating roller 29c, and the clutches 18a to 18d based on output signals from various sensors. and a console 41 that specifies paper size, instructs to start copying, and causes the control unit 40 to execute processing.

FIG. 3 shows details of the paper feeding section of the embodiment shown in FIG. 2, as seen from the direction of arrow A. Paper storage container 1
Perpendicularly on both sides of the position where 5a to 15d should be placed,
Supports 44 and 45 are provided with grooves 46 (horizontally) provided at regular intervals on the inside. Support body 44
and 46 in the groove 46 at the same height as the support 36
Both sides of the are inserted. A light emitting section 47 is mounted on the feed roll shaft at a position opposite to the light receiving sections 39a to 39d mounted on the lower surfaces of the supports 36a to 36d.
(LED etc.) will be installed. As shown in Figure 4,
The feed roll 20a feeds the paper 5 in the paper storage container.
0 decreases as the paper is dispensed. Since the rotational fulcrum of the feed roll 20a is located at the transmission section 17, the light emitting angle of the light emitting section 47 is shifted clockwise, and the light receiving position of the light receiving section 39a changes depending on the amount of paper stored. Therefore, the light receiving section 39a
The approximate thickness inside the paper storage container can be known from the output status of the detection signal.

The control unit 40 also has an input interface 40b that sends signals from the charge detector 31, the light receiving units 37a to 37d, 39a to 39d, and the console 41 to the data bus 40a; Guide member 2 to the dispensing position of the paper storage container in which paper is set.
4, on/off control of each drive motor, on/off control of the charger, and on/off control of the clutches 18a to 18d, etc., in a certain order or under certain conditions. A ROM 40c that stores a program for copying, a CPU 40d that executes predetermined processing according to the program in the ROM 40c,
A RAM 40e that temporarily stores processing results by the CPU 40d, input data, setting data, etc.
an output interface 40f that sends control commands, etc. in a predetermined format and timing;
It is comprised of a drive section 40g that drives each of the motors 14, 26, the rotary roller 29c drive motor, and the clutches 18a to 18d based on the output signal of the output interface 40f.

In the above configuration, the number of paper storage containers 15a to 15d corresponding to the number of requested paper sizes are fitted and fixed at both sides into the grooves 46 of the supports 44 and 45 with an interval corresponding to the number of sheets stored. Support 3
6b to 36e, respectively. Storage container 15a
Each of the feed rolls 20a to 20d is placed on the uppermost paper surface of the sheets 15d to 15d. In this state, when the paper size is specified by the console 41, the control unit 40 receives the specification and controls the console 41.
The selected paper size display lamp is lit on the display section 1. Further, the motor 26 is driven to rotate the transmission member 23b and move the guide member 24. The drive of the motor 26 is stopped when the guide member 24 reaches the dispensing position of the paper storage container in which paper of a specified size is stored.

For example, if the paper size of the paper storage container 15c is specified, the motor 26 is controlled to rise from the position of the guide member 24A, and the light beam from the light emitting unit 38 attached to the guide member 24 is directed to the light receiving unit 37c. The driving of the motor 26 is interrupted at the same time as the light is received by the light receiving element. On the other hand, a light emitting section 47 provided on the shaft of the feed roll 20c
The amount of paper stored in the paper storage container 15c, that is, the approximate paper dispensing position is calculated from the signal status output from the plurality of light receiving elements of the light receiving unit 39c that receives the light beam from the light receiving unit 39c. The motor 26 is driven again by the control unit 40 by this paper height, and the guide member 24 is moved. When this control is completed, the control section 40 lights up the "Ready to copy" indicator lamp on the display section of the console 41 to notify the operator that preparation is complete.

When the operator presses the copy start button, the motor 14 and the motor for driving the rotary roller 29c are started, the belt 13 and the conveying member 28 rotate, and voltage is applied to the chargers 27a to 27d and the static eliminator 32. be done. Also, clutch 18
c is activated, the rotational force of the roll 16c is transmitted to the feed roll 20c, and the topmost sheet of paper in the paper storage container 15c is discharged by the feed roll 20c and sent to the guide plate 25. The paper guided by the guide plate 25 is sent out to the opposite side, and the leading end hits the surface of the transport member 28, and the paper is sent out to the opposite side.
The sheets are bent in the running direction of the sheet 8 and are successively pulled out from the guide plate 25 while sticking to the surface of the sheet, and finally the entire sheet is conveyed in close contact with the surface of the sheet conveying member 28 . Since the surface of the conveyance member 28 is electrically charged, the electrostatic attraction force prevents the paper from separating (the charged state of the surface of the conveyance member 28 is monitored by a charge detector 31 and is constantly monitored). The chargers 27a to 27 are connected so that a constant charging potential is applied.
d). The paper is sent by the transport member 28 via transport rolls 30 and 33 to a paper transport system for delivering the paper to the transfer section. At the position where the sheet leaves the conveyance roll 33, a static eliminator 32 performs static neutralization to eliminate the electrical charge on the sheet. This static elimination is
This is to prevent toner from not being properly attached due to the charged paper being sent to the transfer section.

When the original is changed or the magnification is changed and the paper size is changed, the control unit 40 drives the motor 26 to guide the paper from the front of the paper storage container before the change to the front of the paper storage container after the change. The member 24 is moved while monitoring the output signals of the light receiving sections 37a to 37d, and at the same time, an indicator light indicating that copying is not possible is lit on the console 41 during the movement, and when the light receiving section at the target paper position outputs a detection signal. Guide member 2
4, the motor 26 is temporarily stopped, and the guide member 24 is slightly moved again according to the detection contents of the light receiving section 39. When the position adjustment is completed, the display indicating that copying is not possible is switched to the display indicating that copying is possible (for example, a lamp displaying "copyable" is lit). After this, if you operate the copy start button,
The above-mentioned operation is repeatedly executed to carry out the paper conveyance.

Further, the control unit 40 controls the light emitting unit 38 based on the signals from the light receiving units 37a to 37d and the rotation speed of the motor 26.
The position levels of the paper feed section support plates 36a to 36e can be calculated from the positions. The storage capacity of each storage container 15a to 15d is calculated based on the calculation result and displayed on a display section (not shown). If the displayed storage capacity is not appropriate depending on the consumption amount, the above-mentioned position level can be changed.

In addition, in the above embodiment, the chargers 27a to 27
d has been shown, however, it is also possible to use a mesh belt as the conveying member 28 to provide an air suction type paper suction device.

(Effects of the Invention) As explained above, according to the paper feeding device used in a copying machine or the like of the present invention, a plurality of storage containers are supported by a support mechanism that can change the level of the support position, and based on the level. Since the capacity is displayed, it is possible to feed the desired type of paper without having to change the paper, and
Usability can be improved by displaying the capacity.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

Fig. 1 is a sectional view showing an example of a conventional paper feeding device, Fig. 2 is a configuration diagram showing an embodiment of the present invention, and Fig. 3 shows details of the paper feeding section of the device shown in Fig. 2. The side view and FIG. 4 are explanatory diagrams for detecting the amount of paper. Explanation of symbols, 11, 12, 16a to 16d...
Roll, 13, 19a-19d, 21a-21d
... Belt, 14, 26 ... Motor, 15a-1
5d...paper storage container, 17a-17d...transmission section, 18a-18d...clutch, 20a-20
d... Feed roll, 22, 28... Conveyance member, 23a, 23b... Transmission member, 24... Guide member, 25... Guide plate, 27a-27d... Charger, 28... Conveyance member, 29a-29d ... Rotating roller, 30, 33 ... Conveyance roll, 31 ...
Charge detector, 32...Static eliminator, 34...Paper peeling member, 35...Power supply unit, 36a-36e...Paper feed unit support plate, 44, 45...Paper feed unit support mechanism, 37
a to 37d, 39a to 39d...light receiving section, 38,
47... Light emitting section, 40... Control section, 41... Console.

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] A plurality of storage containers 15a to 15d that store one type of different paper in an amount corresponding to the consumption amount, and a paper feeding mechanism 20a that feeds paper in a designated paper storage container in a predetermined direction. ~20d; paper storage container support mechanisms 36a to 36e that support the plurality of paper storage containers and adjust the amount of paper stored by changing the space between the paper storage containers by changing the level of the support position; 44-46
and a display section that displays the storage capacity of each of the paper storage containers based on the level of the support position.