JP3924118B2 - Paper processing device - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention is provided integrally or separately in a so-called image forming apparatus such as a copying machine, a printer, a facsimile machine, a printing machine, etc., and after sorting, stacking, punching, etc. for paper output through an image forming process. The present invention relates to a sheet processing apparatus that performs processing.
[0002]
[Prior art]
As this type of paper processing apparatus, for example, inventions disclosed in (1) Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 4-185940, (2) Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 9-48554, and the like are known.
[0003]
Among them, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 4-185940 (1) discloses an image forming post-processing apparatus in which, when the stapler moves, the movement locus is set so as to avoid interference with the drive belt that drives the discharge claw. ing. In this prior art, the stapler slider is positioned upward on both sides along the movement path defined by the cam groove, and is positioned downward in the center. That is, in order to avoid the restriction member at the end where the sheet bundle is bound when the stapler is moved, in this conventional technique, the stapler is moved up and down.
[0004]
Also, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 9-48554 (2) discloses a configuration in which a retracting means for turning the post-processing means to a position that does not hinder the movement of the post-processing means when the stapler is moved is disclosed in the end regulating member to which the sheet bundle is bound. Has been.
[0005]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
When the stapler slider is moved horizontally in the prior art (1), the center part is positioned downward, as described above, the drive belt of the discharge claw is arranged at the center part, and the interference with the drive belt. Is to avoid. However, when moving the stapler horizontally like this conventional example,
(1) Since a cam and a vertical slider, which are mechanical parts for performing the vertical sliding motion, are added, the cost increases.
[0006]
(2) Since the stapler is a relatively heavy component, a large drive source is required to raise it, and the cost is further increased.
[0007]
{Circle around (3)} The time for horizontal movement is delayed because the load increases when the temperature is raised.
[0008]
There were problems such as.
[0009]
Further, in the prior art (2), when the stapler moves to the binding position, the stapler is not moved in two directions, and the rear end fence is retracted. However, there is a mechanism part for retracting the rotation. Many were necessary, and there was room for improvement in terms of complexity and cost of the mechanism.
[0010]
The present invention has been made in view of the actual situation of the prior art, and a first object of the invention is to provide a low-cost sheet processing apparatus that can move at high speed with a simplified mechanism.
[0011]
The second object is to provide a sheet post-processing apparatus that can move the stapler with a simple structure without being obstructed by the trailing edge fence.
[0012]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
In order to achieve the above object, the present invention is aligned with a staple tray that receives and temporarily stacks sheets discharged from the sheet output device side, and a trailing edge fence that aligns the trailing ends of the stacked sheet bundle in the transport direction. a stapler for performing binding processing on the rear end of the sheet bundle, a moving mechanism for moving in the direction perpendicular to the sheet conveyance direction relative to the staple tray stapler, parallel to the sheet conveyance direction along the stay-flop Rutorei Paper processing comprising a drive belt that is installed and rotates in the paper transport direction, and a discharge claw that is fixed to the drive belt and that transports and discharges a bundle of papers bound on the staple tray to the discharge tray side in the device, the moving mechanism includes a means for moving linearly said stay-flop la, with the drive belt and stapler moved by the moving mechanism , Respectively provided at a position that does not interfere during the movement of the stapler, the relative position of the moving locus of the release pawl and the rear end fence so as to pass through the surface to align the sheet bundle of the rear end fence the release pawl defining It is characterized by being.
[0014]
Furthermore, the present invention provides a staple tray that receives and temporarily stacks paper discharged from the paper output device side, a rear end fence that aligns the rear end portion in the transport direction of the stacked paper bundle, and the rear of the aligned paper bundle. In a sheet processing apparatus including a stapler that performs binding processing at an end portion and a moving mechanism that moves the stapler in a direction orthogonal to the sheet conveyance direction with respect to the staple tray, the moving mechanism moves the stapler linearly. The stapler is provided with an opening for allowing the trailing edge fence to enter and to bind the sheet bundle , and the trailing edge enters the opening when the stapler is moved. . At that time, when the rear end fence comes into contact with the guide member during the movement of the stapler, a retracting means that enables smooth insertion into the opening of the rear end fence is provided as either the stapler or the rear end fence. while the result may be provided to or.
[0015]
In this case, the retracting means can be constituted by supporting means for swingably supporting the rear end fence. Moreover, it can also be comprised from the support means which supports the said stapler so that rocking is possible, and the elastic biasing means which elastically biases the said stapler to the initial position side.
[0016]
In the embodiment described later, the retracting means corresponds to the support shaft 71 and gravity acting on the rear end fence, and the shaft 73 supporting the bracket 55 and the spring 72, respectively.
[0017]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.
[0018]
<First Embodiment>
FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram showing the entire sheet processing apparatus according to the first embodiment of the present invention.
The sheet processing apparatus (post-processing apparatus) 1 is attached to a sheet discharge side of an image forming apparatus 100 as a sheet output apparatus, and a sheet feeding port is connected to the sheet discharge port of the image forming apparatus 100, and the image forming apparatus the discharged deflect the sheet nail 2 from 100, is configured to direct to the conveying path B for performing mass stack and staple binding and conveying path a that leads to a proof tray 3. Is led paper conveyance path B, by further deflection claw 4, it is configured to direct to the conveying path D for performing the conveyance path C and stapling leading to mass discharge tray 5, even paper that has been stay pull- Eventually, they are stacked on the mass discharge tray 5 located on the most downstream side.
[0019]
A conveyance roller 6 for receiving the sheet discharged from the image forming apparatus 100 is disposed at the sheet feeding port, and an inlet sensor S1 is provided at a position close to the upstream side in the sheet conveyance direction. Is detected. The deflection claw 2 is disposed on the downstream side of the conveyance roller 6 in the sheet conveyance direction, and the deflection claw 2 is driven by a solenoid and a spring (not shown).
[0020]
Flop to the roof tray conveying path A, the sheet discharge roller 7 and a driven roller 8 that follows the discharge roller 7 of Toko is disposed, guides the sheet discharged from the image forming apparatus 100 to the proof tray 3. In the conveyance path B, a conveyance roller 9 and a driven roller 10 driven by the conveyance roller 9 are arranged. A shift roller 11 that performs sorting, a driven roller 12 that is driven by the shift roller 11, a discharge roller 13, and a driven roller 14 that is driven by the discharge roller 13 are disposed on the conveyance path C for the large volume discharge tray 5. Yes. The conveying path D for performing the stay pull-binding, a plurality of conveying rollers 14, 15, 16 and the driven roller 17, 18, 19 have been arranged, the paper by these conveying rollers to stay flop Ruyunitto E Lead.
[0021]
In the staple unit E, jogger fences 20 and 21 for aligning the paper in the horizontal direction, return rollers 22 and rear end fences 23 and 24 for aligning the paper in the vertical direction, and the size and binding position of the paper are matched. a stapler 25 is movable in the horizontal direction, are provided release pawl 26 for pushing the bundle of sheets is stay pull-to mass discharge tray 5. Further, a paper surface detection sensor S2 is provided at the lower portion of the paper discharge port following the paper discharge roller 13 so that the height of the large volume paper discharge tray 5 can be lowered according to the amount of paper discharged.
[0022]
2 is a perspective view of the staple unit E, and FIG. 3 is a front view. Release pawl 26 is fixed to a timing belt 52 which is wound around the stay flop Rutorei 41 central portion as shown in FIG. 2 and FIG. 3, by rotation of the drive motor 51, the timing belt 52 and the release pawl 26 is stay-flop Move along the surface of the tray 41. Timing pulleys 53a and 53b for winding the timing belt 52 are arranged as shown in the figure, and in particular, the lower timing pulley 53a is arranged at a position that does not hinder the stapler 25 when it moves horizontally. Accordingly, the discharge claw 26 has a long shape from the fixing portion to the timing belt 52 to the fence surface so as to be positioned below the rear end fence surfaces 23 and 24 in the lowermost part. FIG. 4 shows an operation trajectory at the bottom of the discharge claw 26. The home sensor 54 is disposed on the rear portion of the stay flop Rutorei 41 as shown in FIG. 3, the release pawl 26 is normally on standby at the position where the home sensor 54 detects (position of FIG. 1).
[0023]
As shown in FIG. 2, the stapler 25 is fixed to the bracket 55, and is fixed to the slider 56 via the bracket 55. The slider 56 is supported by a guide rod 58 fixed to the stapler table 57, and a roller 59 supported by the slider 56 rolls on the stapler table 57. On the other hand, a timing belt 45 is stretched in the horizontal direction by a timing pulley 61 and an idler pulley 62 attached to the drive motor 60 shaft, and a stapler base 57 is fixed to the timing belt 45. As a result, when the drive motor 60 rotates, the timing belt 45 rotates, and the stapler table 57 moves horizontally in a straight line according to this rotation.
[0024]
If the stay-flop Rumodo is specified, the stapler 25 moves horizontally to a designated stay pull-position. At this time, as shown in FIG. 4, the opening 25 a of the stapler 25 is set so as to straddle the rear end fences 23 and 24. Since the discharge claw 26 has to reliably roll the bundle of sheets stacked on the rear end fences 23 and 24, it must be set wider than the width of the rear end fences 23 and 24 (the dimension in the thickness direction of the sheet bundle). If the discharge claw 26 stands by at the position of the rear end fences 23 and 24 during the stapler movement, it interferes with the stapler opening 25a. For this reason, the discharge claw 26 stands by at a position (FIG. 1) that is not on the path of the stapler movement as described above.
[0025]
The sheets are stacked one by one on the staple tray 41. When a predetermined number of stacks are completed, the stapler 25 performs a needle driving operation. Thereafter, the discharge claw 26 moves from the home position, scoops the rear end of the paper bundle and discharges it upward, and finally discharges it onto the large volume discharge tray 5 by the discharge rollers 13.
[0026]
During the paper discharge operation from the staple tray 41, paper discharge from the image forming apparatus is in a standby state. Therefore, when configured as the first embodiment, when instructed stay pull-positions of two points binding, after binding operation of 1 places, stapler 25 (horizontal) is without vertical movement quickly two places th Thus, it is possible to shorten the waiting time for copying or printing of the image forming apparatus, thereby improving productivity.
[0027]
<Second Embodiment>
Next, the second embodiment will be described.
Since the second embodiment is configured in the same manner as the sheet processing apparatus shown in FIGS. 1 to 3 in the first embodiment, a description of different components is added, and the same components are the same. The description which attaches | subjects the reference symbol of and overlaps is abbreviate | omitted.
[0028]
FIG. 5 is an enlarged front view of the stapler 25, and FIG. 6 is a plan view thereof. As shown in these drawings, in this embodiment, guide members 70 are attached to two positions on the fixed side of the opening 25a of the stapler 25 in the horizontal movement direction. In this case, the guide surface of the guide member 70 protrudes 0.5 mm from the binding surface of the stapler opening 25a, and as shown in FIG. 6, surfaces 70a inclined in the direction away from the opening 25a of the stapler 25 are provided at both ends. ing. The stapler 25 is arranged such that the guide surface of the guide member 70 and the outer surfaces of the rear end fences 23 and 24 are substantially the same surface. Further, the rear end fences 23 and 24 support the support shaft 71 in a direction away from the guide member 70 (in the direction of arrow F in FIG. 3) so that it does not become a resistance when the stapler 25 moves even if it interferes with the guide member 70 when the stapler 25 moves. It has a back so that it can be swung around.
[0029]
In order to avoid the interference between the guide member 70 and the stapler 25, the stapler 25 is connected to the guide member 70 as shown in FIG. It can also be configured to retract when it interferes. In this embodiment, the lower end side of the bracket 55 to which the stapler 25 is attached is pivotally supported by the shaft 73 with respect to the slider 56, and the spring 72 is disposed between the upper end side bracket 55 and the slider 56 in the drawing. It can also be configured to be movable counterclockwise (in the direction of arrow G) in the figure about the shaft 73. With this configuration, the rear end fences 23 and 24 do not move as in the above example, that is, the position of the paper does not move, so that the stapling position does not shift. Highly accurate stapling is possible.
[0030]
The reason why the guide member 70 having such a shape is provided is as follows. In other words, in the sheet processing apparatus according to the present embodiment, when the stapler 25 is moved to the binding position, the opening of the stapler 25 straddles the rear end fences 23 and 24 in order to simplify the structure and reduce the cost. At that time, the stapler 25 is ready-made and the opening width of the opening 25a is 16 mm, and the width of the rear end fences 23 and 24 is 12.6 mm from the relationship between the number of sheets that can be stapled and the inclination angle of the staple tray 41. It is said. Therefore, the gap when the opening 25a of the stapler 25 straddles the rear end fences 23, 24 is one side (16-12.6) /2=1.7 [mm] when the center is used as a reference.
However, it is not a sufficient gap in consideration of variations in component dimensions. Therefore, if the one-side reference is used, a gap of 3.4 mm (16-12.6 mm) can be secured, and a sufficient gap can be obtained even if variations in parts are taken into consideration. When the one-side reference is used, the opening of the stapler 25 and the rear end fences 23 and 24 interfere with each other. However, if the guide member 70 is provided on the stapler 25 at that time, the stapler 25 can be 24 can be straddled in a manner that crawls 24, and movement of the stapler 25 is not hindered.
[0031]
【The invention's effect】
As described above, according to the present invention, it is possible to reliably convey and discharge the sheet bundle while preventing the occurrence of interference during the linear movement of the stapler moving by the moving mechanism and the stapler of the driving belt that drives the discharge claw. Can do. Further, the stapler and the rear end fence can be prevented from being caught when the stapler is moved, thereby simplifying a mechanism for moving the stapler to the binding position.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram illustrating an entire sheet processing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.
2 is a perspective view of a stay-flop Ruyunitto the sheet processing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.
3 is a front view of the stay-flop Ruyunitto the sheet processing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 4 is a front view showing a positional relationship between an operation locus and a stapler opening in the lowermost part of the discharge claw according to the embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 5 is a front view of the staple unit according to the embodiment provided with the guide member of the present invention.
FIG. 6 is a plan view of FIG.
FIG. 7 is a front view showing a swinging mechanism of the staple unit according to the embodiment provided with the guide member of the present invention.
[Explanation of symbols]
23, 24 Rear end fence 25 Stapler 25a Opening 26 Release claw 41 Staple tray 45 Timing belt 51 Drive motor 52 Drive belt 55 Bracket 56 Slider 57 Stapler stand 58 Guide rod 59 Roller 60 Drive motor 61 Timing pulley 62 Idler pulley 70 Guide member 70a Inclined surface 71 Support shaft 72 Spring 73 shaft

Claims (5)

The staple tray that receives and temporarily stacks the paper discharged from the paper output device side, the rear end fence that aligns the rear end of the stacked paper bundle in the transport direction, and the rear end of the aligned paper bundle are bound. a stapler carried out, and a moving mechanism for moving in the direction perpendicular to the sheet conveying direction stapler against the staple tray, disposed parallel to the sheet conveying direction along the stay-flop Rutorei drive belt that rotates the sheet conveying direction And a paper discharge device fixed to the drive belt and having a discharge claw that conveys and discharges a bundle of sheets bound on the staple tray to the discharge tray side,
The moving mechanism includes a means for moving linearly said stay-flop la,
The stapler that is moved by the moving mechanism and the drive belt are provided at positions that do not interfere with the movement of the stapler ,
The paper processing apparatus , wherein a relative position of the rear end fence and the discharge claw is defined so that a movement locus of the discharge claw passes through a surface of the rear end fence that aligns the paper bundle . The staple tray that receives and temporarily stacks the paper discharged from the paper output device side, the rear end fence that aligns the rear end of the stacked paper bundle in the transport direction, and the rear end of the aligned paper bundle are bound. In a paper processing apparatus comprising: a stapler to be performed; and a moving mechanism that moves the stapler in a direction orthogonal to the paper transport direction with respect to the staple tray.
The moving mechanism includes means for moving the stapler linearly;
The stapler is provided with an opening that allows the rear end fence to enter and bind a bundle of sheets.
The rear end fence the for you, characterized in that entering the opening sheet processing apparatus during movement of the stapler. When the rear end fence comes into contact with the guide member during the movement of the stapler, a retracting means that allows smooth insertion into the opening of the rear end fence is provided on either the stapler or the rear end fence. sheet processing apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the provided. 4. A sheet processing apparatus according to claim 3, wherein said retreating means comprises support means for swingably supporting said rear end fence . 4. The paper processing apparatus according to claim 3 , wherein the retreating means includes a supporting means for swingably supporting the stapler and an elastic biasing means for elastically biasing the stapler toward the initial position .

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