JP3215909B2 - Sheet post-processing equipment - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a sheet post-processing apparatus for automatically binding and discharging a recording sheet (sheet) on which an image is recorded by an image forming apparatus by a stapler, and more particularly, to a sheet size and a binding position. The present invention relates to a sheet post-processing apparatus which can correspond to a high-speed image forming apparatus that performs a binding process to a predetermined position and discharges the sheet based on the designation of the image forming apparatus.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A sheet post-processing device called a finisher is used as a device for collating and stapling a plurality of image-recorded sheets discharged from an image forming apparatus by the number of copies by a stapler.

The finisher has a function connected to the image forming apparatus main body, and is driven in accordance with a sequence operation of a copy process.

Therefore, for an image forming apparatus capable of processing a copy process at a high speed, a finisher capable of performing a function following the speed is required.

A finisher capable of such high-speed processing has already been disclosed in JP-A-60-142359 and JP-A-60-158463.
Nos. 62-239169 and 62-288002, 63-267
No. 667, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2-76691, and Japanese Patent Publication No. 5-41991 are disclosed.

In the sheet post-processing apparatus, the image-recorded sheets carried out from the main body of the image forming apparatus are sequentially stacked while being aligned in an intermediate stacker, and after storing a set of sheet bundles, a sheet such as a stapler is stored. The post-processed and bound sheet bundle is conveyed on a discharge belt provided at the bottom of the intermediate stacker, and is further sandwiched between a pair of upper and lower discharge rollers and discharged to a discharge tray.

The image forming post-processing apparatus disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. H2-276691 has a configuration in which two fur brushes are rotatably provided, and the tips of the fur brushes are brought into contact with a guide plate. . Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 1-214565 discloses a paper storage device in which a paddle wheel on which a plurality of blade members are radially mounted is rotationally driven to align sheets. In the sheet post-processing apparatus disclosed in JP-A-63-116168, a part of a belt whose lower end is in contact with an intermediate tray is wound around a lower roller of a pair of discharge rollers, and the belt rotates together with the lower roller. The sheet conveyed onto the intermediate tray is brought into contact with the stopper. JP-A-2-
The image forming post-processing device disclosed in Japanese Patent No. 279389 shifts a binding position based on a sheet size and an image forming direction, and further, a first control mode for binding an upper left corner of the sheet and a second control mode for binding an upper right corner of the sheet. It is set automatically.

[0008] The image forming apparatus disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No.
In the first staple mode, the vicinity of one edge of the sheet is bound at one place, and in the second staple mode, the vicinity of the center of the sheet is bound at two places, and the first and second staple dimensions are optionally set in advance. It can be set.

[0009]

The sheets conveyed from the image forming apparatus are stacked and placed on the intermediate stacker section of the sheet post-processing apparatus, and after the sheet bundle is aligned, the sheets are stapled. The direction perpendicular to the sheet conveyance of the sheet bundle before the staple processing does not shift since the side edge of the sheet is pressed and held by the alignment plate of the alignment means. However, if there is a variation in the thickness direction near the staples of the sheet bundle, if the stapling is performed as it is, a shift occurs in the sheet conveying direction, resulting in an irregular sheet bundle. According to the present invention, it is possible to prevent the sheet from shifting in the sheet conveyance direction by performing staple binding by pressing the vicinity of the staple of the sheet bundle by the sheet pressing unit before the staple processing. Further, when the staple unit can be moved in a direction orthogonal to the sheet conveying direction in accordance with the sheet size, the position of the discharge belt of the discharge unit is fixed. Sheet transfer means for guiding the trailing end of the sheet bundle to the sheet bundle catching unit is provided. When the staple unit and the sheet transfer means are driven by separate motors, the structure becomes complicated and the size of the apparatus increases.

Furthermore, since the binding position and the transfer position differ depending on the sheet size, it is necessary to move the staple unit and the sheet transfer means. If the sheet holding means and the sheet transfer means are fixed and the two staple units can be moved separately, a plurality of motors are required, the structure becomes complicated, the control becomes complicated, and the number of parts increases. It also increases costs.

The present invention is intended to simplify the structure and reduce the size of the apparatus by driving the sheet pressing operation of the sheet pressing means and the transfer operation of the sheet transfer means with one motor.

Further, the object of the present invention is to solve and improve the above-mentioned problems, and as a result, the structure of the sheet holding means, the sheet transfer means, and the driving means is simplified, and the apparatus is downsized, An object of the present invention is to staple one or more sheets at a predetermined position on a sheet bundle having a different size, align the sheets, and reliably discharge the sheet bundle. Also, it can fully cope with an image forming apparatus that prints at high speed of about 90 to 100 sheets per minute, and can stapling and discharging many sheets of various sizes accurately according to the designated stapling position. It is to provide a sheet post-processing device (finisher).

[0013]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to provide a method in which sheets conveyed from an image forming apparatus are stacked on an intermediate stacker, aligned, stapled by stapling means, and then discharged to a discharge tray by discharge means. In the processing apparatus, a sheet pressing unit that releases a binding side of a sheet bundle stacked on the intermediate stacker, a sheet passing unit that sends a sheet bundle after the binding process to a discharging unit, the sheet pressing unit, and a sheet passing unit And a drive source for driving the same through a transmission means.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a sheet post-processing apparatus in which sheets conveyed from an image forming apparatus are stacked on an intermediate stacker, aligned, stapled by stapling means, and then discharged to a discharge tray by discharge means. There is provided a moving unit that forms one staple unit and a sheet delivery unit that feeds the sheet bundle after the binding process to the discharging unit, and that can move the unit in a direction orthogonal to the sheet conveying direction. The sheet post-processing apparatus is characterized in that the unit can be moved to a predetermined position by moving means based on designation of a sheet size and a binding position.

[0015]

Next, an embodiment of a sheet post-processing apparatus according to the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 1 is an overall configuration diagram of a copying machine provided with a sheet post-processing apparatus. 100 is a copying machine main body, 200 is a paper feeding unit (PFU apparatus), and 300 is a circulating automatic document feeder (RDH apparatus). ), 400 is a sheet post-processing apparatus (finisher, hereinafter also referred to as FNS apparatus).

The copier main body 100 includes a scanning exposure unit 110, an image forming unit 120, a paper supply unit 130, a conveyance unit 140, a fixing unit 150, a paper discharge switching unit 160, a plurality of paper supply cassettes 170, and a sheet for double-sided recording. A paper feed unit (ADU device) 180 is provided.

In the figure, the dashed line indicates the conveying path of the sheet P. The sheet P accommodated in the paper feed cassette 170 at the lower part of the copying machine main body 100 or the paper feed unit (PFU device) 200 is
After the image is formed by the image forming unit 120, the conveying unit 140
And a main route accommodated in the FNS device 400 via the fixing unit 150 and the paper discharge switching unit 160, and the sheet P branched from the paper discharge switching unit 160 is temporarily stocked in the ADU device 180, and then re-fed. And a circulation route to the paper feeding section 130 of the copying machine main body 100.

The document D loaded on the document mounting table of the RDH apparatus 300 starts to be fed by operating a copy button on an operation panel of the copying machine main body 100, and is fed by a transport belt 302 through a feeding section 301. It is conveyed on the platen glass 111 and set at the exposure position.

The original D is read by receiving the exposure scan of the original image by the operation of the operation exposure unit 110, and after the reading is completed, the transport belt 302 rotates again and is fed. The document is stored in the lowermost layer of the document bundle on the document mounting table via the document tray.

Although the circulation feeding of the document D has been described above, the RDH device 300 is an automatic document feeding device (AD).
F), the original D having finished reading the image goes straight ahead and passes through the discharge tray 30 via the discharge rollers.
Discharged on 4 and laminated.

A copy image of the document D obtained by the exposure scanning is processed by a sheet P fed from the sheet feed cassette 170 or the PFU 200 through the image processing process of the copier main body 100.
Will be recorded.

The sheet P on which an image is recorded is the same as the above-mentioned ADU.
The sheet is once fed to the apparatus 180, turned upside down, and discharged from the sheet discharge switching section 160 with the image surface facing downward.
The sheet is fed to the S device 400.

FIG. 2 is a sectional view showing the structure of the FNS apparatus 400. The FNS apparatus 400 is installed with its position and height adjusted so that the sheet P receiving roller 401 coincides with the paper discharge port of the copier main body 100, and is controlled to be driven in accordance with the operation of the copier main body 100. Connected to the system.

The conveying path of the sheet P connected to the rear of the receiving roller 401 is the upper offset conveying path 410 (first
The sheet P is fed to any one of the transport paths by selecting the angle occupied by the switching gates G1 and G2. It is to be sent. U1 is the first
The first unit forming the transport path, U2 is the second unit configuring the second transport path, and U3 is the third unit configuring the third transport path.
Unit.

The above-described second transport path 420 and third transport path 430
Has auxiliary conveyance belt members (guide belts) 422 and 432 at each end on the downstream side of the conveyance, and feeds the rear end of the sheet P to the stapler section. Further, at positions facing the guide belts 422 and 432, discharge belts (timing belts) 425 and 435 provided with discharge claws 425A and 435A, respectively, and a first position at a position sandwiching these discharge belts 425 and 435. Intermediate stacker
426 and a second intermediate stacker 436 are each installed at a predetermined inclination angle. Of the three rollers each of which winds the guide belts 422 and 432, the transport lowering rollers (impellers) 424 and 434 are adjacent to the lowermost roller.
When the sheet P switches back, the sliding action of the impellers 424 and 434 ensures that the sheet P abuts against stopper members 441 and 451 described later.

Further, a first stapler ST1 and a second stapler ST2 are disposed at positions facing the lower ends of the first intermediate stacker 426 and the second intermediate stacker 436, respectively.

A first sheet discharging means 470 comprising a pair of upper and lower sheet discharging rollers is provided near the sheet discharging portion of the FNS device 400 on the downstream side of the first intermediate stacker 426 for sheet conveyance. Similarly, on the downstream side of the second stacker 436,
Paper ejection means 480 is provided.

Further, on the right side of the FNS device 400, a paper discharge tray elevating means 480 is arranged. The paper ejection tray elevating means 490 is provided with a pair of support members 492 before and after moving up and down while engaging with the plurality of guide rollers 491,
The first discharge tray T1 and the second discharge tray T2 are sandwiched by the support member 492 and move up and down separately.

The staplers ST1 and ST2, the intermediate stackers 426 and 436, the discharge belts 425 and 435, and the like are supported by the substrates of the units U2 and U3, respectively, via a pair of guide rails R1 and R2 provided respectively. Since it is structured to be detachable inside the FNS device 400, if the front side of the device in the figure can be opened by a door, the stapler etc. can be removed in a unit state, and maintenance such as jam clearance etc. Can be easily performed.

The pair of support members 492 are formed by elevating wires 494 stretched between individual dedicated motors M1 and M2 and pulleys 493.
The first discharge tray T1 and the second discharge tray T2 are individually moved in parallel in the vertical direction by the rotation of the motors M1 and M2.

The control circuit built in the copier body 100 and the FNS device 400 is composed of a basic circuit as shown in the block diagram of FIG. Prior to the start of the copy operation, a paper discharge mode (staple mode or non-sort mode) is selected, and the number of documents and the number of copies are set.

When the non-sort mode in which the binding is unnecessary is set, the switching gates G1 and G2 are kept in the initial state, the sheet P goes straight, and the receiving roller 40
1. The sheet is discharged out of the apparatus via a first transfer path (offset transfer path) 410 including an intermediate roller 402, a transfer belt 403, and a discharge roller 405, and is placed and stored on an upper first discharge tray T1.

When the offset mode is selected as the sheet discharging mode, the switching gates G1 and G2 are held in the initial state, the sheet P is fed upward and the first conveying path
The paper is fed to 410 and the conveyor belt 403, offset roller pair 40
The sheet is discharged onto the first discharge tray T1 via the discharge roller 4 and the discharge roller 405. The pair of offset rollers 404 including a driving roller and a driven roller has an offset driving unit that can reciprocate in the direction perpendicular to the drawing, and is shifted after the trailing edge of the discharged sheet P is detected (S4). Then, the sheets P are alternately shifted left and right with respect to the sheet discharging direction according to the number of copies to be stacked and easily sorted.

When the binding mode is selected as the paper discharging mode, the switching gate G2 rotates, and the sheet P fed by the receiving roller 401 goes straight and is fed to the second conveying path 420. The sheet P is nipped by the pair of conveying rollers 421 in the second unit U2 and is once pushed up and placed on the first intermediate stacker 426, but the rear end of the sheet P continues to rotate due to the rotation of the belt 422 and the weight of the sheet P. The first stapler ST slides down on the inclined surface of the first intermediate stacker 426.
The sheet is guided to the first binding portion (stopper member 441 of the sheet transfer means 440).

The first sheet P corresponding to the number of originals D
After the last sheet is detected by the sensor S1, the switching gate G1 rotates, and the second sheet P is fed downward and fed to the third conveyance path 430, and guided as described above. Belt 4
By the action of 32, pushing up and placing on the second stacker 436 is started. The transfer unit 450 of the third unit U3
Has the same structure as the sheet transfer section 440 of the second unit U2.

On the other hand, during the feeding of the second sheet P,
The sheets P of the first set after the lamination are stapled by the operation of the first stapler ST1, and then pushed back on the first intermediate stacker 426 by the push-back operation of the transfer lever 442 against a predetermined force. It is pushed up to the position and held.

The first discharge belt 425 is released from rotation by the motor drive via power transmission means by gears and belts, and is pushed up by the discharge claw 425A to make a full rotation after stopping the sheet P until it stops. 1 stitched in between
The bundle of sheets P of the set is discharged onto the first discharge tray T1.

During this time, the lamination of the second sheet P is completed, the switching gate G2 is returned again, and the second sheet P is bound by the operation of the second stapler ST2. The bundle of sheets P of the set is discharged onto the second discharge tray T2.

As described above, the plural sheets of the sheet P on which the images are recorded can be collated and bound at two upper and lower portions in parallel without any particular time difference, so that the post-processing of the sheet P can be performed quickly. Will be

Further, the motors M1 and M2 are operated in accordance with the discharge amount of the sheet P, and the first and second discharge trays T1 and T2 are lowered by a number corresponding to the number of processing plates. Sheets P can be discharged and stacked.

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of the sheet receiving section and the sheet discharging section, FIG. 5 is a view taken in the direction of arrow A, and FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the vicinity of the conveying auxiliary belt member and the conveying auxiliary rotating member. These figures show sheet conveying means in the second conveying path 420. Since the third conveying path 430 has the same structure, the second conveying path 420 will be described below as a representative.

The sheet P conveyed from the guide plate of the second conveying path 420 is nipped by a conveying roller pair composed of a driving and rotating driving roller 421A and a driven roller 420B, and is pushed up onto the surface of the first intermediate stacker 426. It is put so that it can be done. The drive shaft 421C of the drive roller 421A is connected to a drive source (not shown) via a coupling 421E and rotates. The drive shaft 421C has a plurality of drive pulleys 421D.
Has been fixed. The guide belt 422 wound around the drive pulley 421D is composed of a plurality of driven pulleys 423A provided above the bottom surface of the sheet mounting inclined surface of the first intermediate stacker 426 and the stopper member 441, and a tension pulley 423B. It is an endless belt that is wound. The guide belt 422
Are arranged at predetermined positions corresponding to sheets of various sizes to be conveyed (about seven types of B5 size to A3 size shown in FIG. 5).

The plurality of driven pulleys 423A have a rotating shaft 423A.
C is supported and fixed. An auxiliary transport rotation member (impeller) 424 is fixed on the rotation shaft 423C adjacent to the driven pulley 423A, and is rotatable integrally with the rotation shaft 423C. The transport assisting rotation member 424 includes a hub portion 424A fitted and fixed to the rotation shaft 423C, and one thin plate-like elastic piece portion 424B protruding from the hub portion 424A. The elastic piece 424B has, for example, a width of about 2 mm, a thickness of about 0.7 mm, and a length of about 12 mm.
It is thin and long, and can be easily elastically deformed. The transport assisting rotary member 424 is manufactured by injection molding a resin material such as polyamide (eg, nylon 66).

By the rotation of the transport assisting rotary member 424,
The tip of the elastic piece 424B draws a circular locus. The distance (gap) d between the circular locus and the sheet placement surface of the first intermediate stacker 426 is set to be smaller than the maximum thickness of the sheet bundle stacked and stored on the first intermediate stacker 426 (d = About 7mm). That is, when the number of sheets P stacked on the first intermediate stacker 426 is small, the sheets P conveyed from the second conveyance path 420 via the conveyance roller pair 421
Moves backward on the first intermediate stacker 426, easily slides down on the sheet bundle by the inclination angle of the first intermediate stacker 426 and the weight of the sheet P, and the rear end of the sheet P has a U-shaped stopper. The sheet easily enters the frame of the member 441 and abuts against the stopper surface to perform sheet rear end alignment. When the number of sheets P stacked on the first intermediate stacker 426 becomes large and the sheet bundle becomes thick (about 30 to 50 sheets), the sheet P which switches back on the sheet bundle and slides down The rear end part of the stopper member 441 does not jump into the frame of the stopper member 441, but comes in contact with the vicinity of the entrance to be turned up, which may cause a jam.

The auxiliary conveyance belt member 422 guides and conveys the rear end of the sliding sheet P in the direction of the stopper member 441 along the rotating belt surface. Further, the transport assisting rotation member 424 of the present invention taps the rear end of the sliding sheet P with the rotating elastic piece portion 424B, thereby forming a sheet bundle bulky stacked on the first intermediate stacker. The sheet is conveyed by being pressed lightly and securely brought into contact with the stopper surface 441A of the stopper member 441.

It is most effective to rotate the transport assisting rotary member 424 near the entrance of the stopper member 441 immediately before the stapler. Therefore, the thickness of the sheet bundle is reduced at a position where it does not hit the stapler opening. The position exceeding 30 sheets is set at a position where the rotation trajectory of the elastic piece 424B is close to about 7 mm above the upper surface of the first intermediate stacker 426.

The sheet P described on the first intermediate stacker 426 is aligned and regulated within the space between the reference surface 426A of the first intermediate stacker 426 and the movable alignment plate 4274.

The sheet P conveyed on the first intermediate stacker 426 has a minimum size of B5 and A, as shown in FIG.
In the case of the 4th format, the trailing end paper is aligned by being brought into contact with the stopper member 441 by three transport auxiliary belt members 422 and three transport auxiliary rotating members 424. B4 size sheet P
The trailing end papers are uniformly aligned by four sets of each of the transport auxiliary belt members 422 and the transport auxiliary rotation members 424 for four sets of A3 size sheets P.

FIG. 7 shows a unit comprising stapler ST1 _R , ST1 _L and sheet transfer means 440, and a moving means 460.
FIG. 8 is a detailed perspective view of the unit, FIG. 9 is a side view of the unit and the moving means 460, FIG. 10 is a plan view of the unit and the moving means 460, FIG.
12A is a view of the moving means 460 in FIG.
(B) is a view of the moving means 460 viewed from the arrow B. The above-described unit and moving means provided on the downstream side of the second conveying path 420 and the unit and moving means provided on the lower third conveying path 430 have almost the same structure.
The structure and operation of a unit and a moving unit provided downstream of the transport path 420 will be described.

The sheet transfer means 440 and the staplers ST1 _R and ST1 _L are formed as an integral unit on a movable substrate 461, and can be slid on a fixed substrate 464 by a slide rail 462 and a slide roller 463. It is.
464A is a tight bar for reinforcing the fixed substrate 464. The fixed substrate 464 has a driving pulley TP1 connected to a driving source (stepping motor M6) and a driven pulley TP2.
It is fixed to a part of a rotatable timing belt TB1 stretched therebetween by a locking member 466. The driving pulley TP1 is driven by a stepping motor M as a driving source through a gear train 465 including gears Z1, Z2, Z3, Z4, Z5, and Z6.
6 is connected. And the sheet transfer means 440
The unit including the stapler ST1 _R and the stapler ST1 _L is driven by a stepping motor M6 and controlled by control means. S44 is a home position sensor for detecting the initial position of the unit.

FIG. 13 is a front view of the sheet transfer means 440.
FIG. 14 is a plan view thereof.

The sheet transfer means 440 is connected to the second conveying path 420
From the first discharge belt 425 by the guide belt 422.
The sheet P slides on the first intermediate stacker 426 and rises, and after being discharged, descends and temporarily holds and stops the rear end thereof. At this stop position, a binding process (staple process) is performed, and then the sheet P is sent out and discharged again. Discharge claw 4 for belt 425
It is a mechanism to send out by 25A.

The sheet delivery means 440 is provided with the sheet P
A stopper 441 for abutting reference for abutting and aligning the rear end, a pair of movable left and right transfer levers 442 for sending the sheet P to the discharge belt 425 side, and a pair of movable left and right movable levers 442 for holding the sheet P during stapling. And a paper holding lever 443.

The transfer lever 442 has a guide surface portion 442A for introducing the sheet P and an abutment surface portion 442B for pushing out the rear end of the sheet P. The pair of right and left transfer levers 442 includes two connecting bars 4421 and 4422. Are connected and integrated. The transfer lever 442 is a sheet transfer unit 440.
And is movable in sliding contact with a guide groove 444A formed in the frame body 444 (broken lines shown in FIGS. 13 and 14). The delivery lever
442 is urged in one direction by a spring 4423. The transfer lever 442 is moved by a first link member 4451 and a second link member driven by a motor M6 as a drive source.
Via 4452. That is, the driving force of the motor M5 is reduced through the gear train including the worm Z7 and the worm wheel Z8 to rotate the drive shaft 446. A cam 4461 is fixed near the center of the drive shaft 446. At one end of the first link member 4451, a roller-shaped cam follower 4462 is rotatably supported, and the rotation of the cam 4461 causes the cam follower 4462 to follow the pressure contact.
It is movable in the left-right direction shown in FIG.
The left end of the first link member 4451 is rotatably connected to the second link member 4452 by a pin 4453. The second link member 4452 is swingably supported about a fulcrum pin 4454. The other end of the second link member 4452 is connected to the transfer lever 442 by a pin 4455.

13 and 14, the solid lines indicate the initial position and the stop position at the time of stapling, and the broken lines indicate the state where the stapled sheet P is sent to the discharge belt 425 side. FIG. 15 is a cross-sectional view showing a stopped state and a standby state of the paper pressing lever 443, and FIG. 16 is a cross-sectional view showing a state where the paper pressing lever 443 is raised to press the sheet bundle. FIG. 17 is a cross-sectional view showing a standby state of the transfer lever 442, and FIG. 18 is a cross-sectional view showing a state in which a stapled sheet bundle is sent out. The drive shaft 446 is rotated by the drive rotation of the motor M5 via the worm Z7 and the worm wheel Z8, and the cam follower 4462 is pressed against the cam follower 4462 by the rotation of the cam 4461 which is integral with the drive shaft 446, so that the first link member 4451 which is integrated therewith is moved. It is moved rightward, the second link member 4452 is pivoted clockwise in the figure around the fulcrum pin 4454, and the transfer lever 442 is moved rightward in the figure. By the movement of the transfer lever 442, the abutting surface portion 442B of the transfer lever 442 pushes the rear end of the sheet P and sends it to the discharge belt 425 side.

Next, prior to the stapling operation, the sheet P
The paper pressing operation by the paper pressing lever 443 that presses is described.

Two cams 4463 and 4644 of the same shape are fixed near both ends of the drive shaft 446 and are in pressure contact with a cam follower 4331 fixed below the paper holding lever 443. Due to the drive rotation of the drive shaft 446, the cam follower 4431 pressed against the cams 4463 and 4644 rises together with the paper pressing lever 443 in the biasing direction of the spring 4342, and the U-shaped stopper 441 is formed.
Of the sheet bundle is pressed against the inside upper surface of the sheet bundle.
In this sheet holding state, the stapling by the stapler ST1 is performed. The sensor S16 is a photo-interrupter-type optical sensor that detects the paper pressing by the paper pressing lever 443, and generates a signal by turning on and off the optical path by an optical path blocking unit provided in the cam 4463.

FIG. 19 is a schematic view showing stapling positions on sheets P of various sizes. FIG. 19A shows a state in which staples SP are driven into at least one position of sheets P of various sizes and stapled at positions aligned on a single-side basis. In the figure, the sheets P of various sizes can be stapled in common by the right staple SP _R. Left staple SP _L is susceptible driving the sheet P of B5 size or size, by instructing the copying machine main body side of the operation panel on one side beating optionally, both sides beating can be selected.

FIGS. 19 (B1) to (B4) show the positions of the staples SP _R and SP _L which are driven by the central distribution of the sheet widths of the sheets P of various sizes aligned on one side basis.
That is, FIG. 19 (B1) shows the initial position by driving the left and right staples SP _R and SP _L into a sheet P1 of B5 size. FIG. 19B2 shows two staples S on the left and right at the center of the paper width (C2) of an A4 size sheet P2.
P _R, for driving the SP _L, the stapler ST1 _R,
The mounted units and ST1 _L and the sheet transfer means 440 on the moving substrate 461 is moved from the center line C1 in C2 by a motor M6.

In FIG. 19 (B3), the unit is moved from the position C1 to the position C3 in order to drive the staples SP _R and SP _L into the sheet P3 of B4 size. FIG.
In (B4), the unit is moved from the C1 position to the C4 position in order to staple the staples SP _R and SP _L on the A3 size sheet P4.

FIG. 20A is a plan view of the sheet discharging portion, and FIG.
20B is a sectional view taken along line AA, and FIG. 20C is a sectional view taken along line BB.

The delivery lever 442 of the sheet delivery means 440 reciprocates only when the bound sheet bundle is discharged.

The first discharge belt 425 is driven by the motor M3 to drive the gears Z10, Z11, the timing pulley TP10,
The rotation of the sheet P of the first set, which is started while rotating in the direction of the arrow through the TP11 and the timing belt TB10 and pushing up the rear end face of the sheet P by the discharge claw 425A and stopping once, stops. The paper is discharged onto the first paper discharge tray T1.

In the meantime, the stacking of the second sheet P is completed and the switching gate G2 is returned again,
The binding of the second sheet P is performed by the operation of the second stapler ST2, and the binding is performed by the protrusion of the stopper member 451 and the rotation of the second discharge belt 435 as described above.
The sheet P of the set is discharged onto the second discharge tray T2.

As described above, according to the FNS apparatus 400 of the present invention, a plurality of sheets P on which images have been recorded can be collated and bound at two places in parallel without any particular time difference. Post-processing of P will be performed quickly.

The motor M3 operates in accordance with the amount of sheet P discharged, and the first discharge tray T corresponds to the number of sheets to be processed.
By lowering the first and second discharge trays T2, the sheets P can be discharged.

The first stapler ST1 and the second stapler ST2 are both provided on the front side of the first intermediate stacker 426 and the second stacker 436 respectively in the drawing, so that when the sheet P is placed vertically and discharged, one upper left position Can be stapled, but if a stapler is additionally installed on the back side of the drawing, stapling by two staples is also possible. It can also be stapled.

Hereinafter, the alignment step of the present invention will be described.

The first set provided in the upper second transfer path 420
Since the aligning means 427 of the intermediate stacker 426 and the aligning means of the second intermediate stacker 427 provided in the lower third transport path have the same structure, the aligning means 427 in the upper stage will be described below as a representative.

The loading position of the sheet P discharged onto the first intermediate stacker 426 in the width direction (the direction perpendicular to the conveying direction) is
A reference surface (rising surface) 426A of the first stacker 426, and a rising surface 4274A of a movable alignment plate 4274 engaged with a timing belt 4273 wound around a driving pulley 4271 and a driven pulley 4272 rotated by driving the motor M4. Is regulated within the interval. The bearing portion 4274B of the movable alignment plate 4274 is fitted on a guide shaft 4275 provided on the machine frame of the second unit U2, and the movable alignment plate 4274 is supported so as to be able to reciprocate in a direction orthogonal to the sheet conveying direction. . A guide 4276 made of resin is integrated with the other end of the movable alignment plate 4274, and is fitted to a guide member 4277 fixed to the unit machine frame and movably supported.

The bearing 4274B side of the movable alignment plate 4274 is locked to the timing belt 4273, and is rotated by the rotation of the stepping motor M4.
Reciprocates with 4273. An optical path shielding plate part 4274C protrudes near the bearing part 4274B, and detects a predetermined home position position of the movable matching plate 4274 by turning on and off a detection optical path of a photo interrupter type home position sensor S14.

The number of copies to be copied and the set value (N1) of the number of sheets for each copy are sent from the copying machine body by communication.

The number of sheets P passing through is counted sequentially by the sensor S42 provided near the entrance of the first intermediate stacker 426 of the sheet post-processing apparatus 400 (N2).

The sheet P is conveyed onto the first intermediate stacker 426, slides down the inclined surface, comes into contact with the stopper member 441, and stops.

At this stop position, the movable alignment plate 4274 of the alignment means 427 moves toward the side edge of the sheet P from a position about 20 mm away from the outside in the width direction of the sheet P, and
To the reference surface 426A, and about 3 m from the width of the sheet P.
m Invert and return to the original position.

The first intermediate stacker 42 is provided with the sheets P one by one.
Each time the movable alignment plate 4274 is conveyed onto the carriage 6, the movable alignment plate 4274 makes one reciprocation to perform the paper alignment operation. When the subsequent sheet P slides down on the first intermediate stacker 426, the preceding sheet P slides down to the stopper member 441 side due to its own weight and sliding contact of the subsequent sheet P.

The number of sheets P conveyed on the first intermediate stacker 426 is counted by the sensor S42, and when it is detected that the set value N1 is met (N2 = N1), the last sheet P is removed. The movable alignment plate 4274 performs one reciprocating movement by the paper alignment operation on the stacked sheet bundle, and then moves again to the side end of the sheet bundle to press the sheet bundle side end into pressure (final alignment operation). .

In this state of pressing the sheet bundle, a paper pressing lever 443 described later is raised to press the rear end of the sheet bundle, and the stapling operation is performed.

When the number of sheets N2 is 25 or less, the above-described paper alignment operation for each sheet and the final alignment operation after the last sheet is stopped are performed.

When the number of sheets N2 is 25 or more,
After the above-described paper aligning operation is performed and the final sheet P is placed on the sheet bundle on the stacker 426, the final aligning operation is performed about 1 second later, and the paper pressing is performed with the side edges of the sheet bundle pressed against each other. The raising of the lever 443 and the stapling operation are performed. This means that when a large number of 25 or more sheets are stacked on the first intermediate stacker 426, the final sheet stops without abutting on the stopper. On the other hand, by providing a margin of about one second after paper alignment for the final alignment operation, the final sheet P slides down on the preceding sheet P by its own weight, advances toward the stopper member 441, and stops. I do. In this manner, the final sheet P can slide down to a predetermined stop position without fail. Particularly when the sheet is conveyed at a high speed, the result of the sheet alignment is large. The margin time of about 1 second is not limited to this, and the sheet conveyance speed, the surface friction of the sheet, the weight of the sheet, the first
It depends on the inclination angle of the intermediate stacker 426 and the like, and the optimum margin time is determined by these setting conditions.

FIG. 21 is a sectional view of the sheet discharging means 470. The sheet bundle P placed on the discharge belt 425 is
After the sheet A is held at the rear end by the sheet A and rises obliquely on the rotating discharge belt 425 and the surface of the first intermediate stacker 426, the leading end of the sheet bundle P passes through the sheet discharging means 470, It is placed on one tray T1.

The paper discharging means 470 includes a lower roller 471, an upper roller 472 which is connected to a driving source (motor M3) and is driven to rotate, an arm 473 for supporting the upper roller 472 in a swingable manner, and a swingable arm. It comprises a support shaft 474 for supporting the 473, a spring 475 for urging the arm 473, and a guide plate 476 for sheet introduction provided near the peripheral surface of the lower roller 471. The lower roller 471 is rotatably supported at a predetermined position of the frame of the FNS device 400. The upper roller 472 has its own weight and the spring 475
Is pressed against the lower roller 471 by a predetermined urging force. The lower surface of the arm 473 also serves as an upper guide plate 473A for introducing a sheet.

Incidentally, the sheet discharging means 4 at the most downstream of the third transport path 430
80 is substantially the same structure as the paper discharging means 470.

FIG. 22 is a flowchart of the above-mentioned sheet post-processing step, and FIG. 23 is a timing chart.

In these figures, the sensors S16, S17
Is the paper holding lever 44 of the upper sheet transfer means 440.
(3) The levers 443 and 4 are detected by optically detecting the protrusions provided on the operation cam 4463 and the transfer lever 442.
The position of 42 is detected.

When the stepping motor M5 for driving the sheet transfer and the sheet press is operated, the sheet press sensor S16 and the sheet transfer sensor S17 are installed so that the sheet press position and the sheet bundle transfer position can be detected. I have. That is, the setting and release of each position can be recognized by the paper holding sensor S16. Further, the sheet is being delivered by the sheet delivery sensor S17 (while the delivery lever 442 is protruding, the stapler ST1,
This is a state in which the unit composed of ST2 and the sheet transfer means 440 cannot move.

FIG. 24 shows a sheet post-processing apparatus 400 according to the present invention.
FIG. 4 is a configuration diagram showing the sensor arrangement and the movement of the paper discharge tray.

First, a sheet passage sensor S1 is provided near the sheet introduction opening of the FNS device 400, and detects the presence of a sheet in the FNS device 400 when the sheet P passes. On the upstream side of the discharge roller 405 of the offset conveyance path 410, there is a sheet trailing end detection sensor S4. During the conveyance in the offset mode, the discharge roller 405 is shifted in the direction perpendicular to the sheet by the detection of the trailing end passage. Further downstream discharge rollers 405
Downstream of the sheet discharge sensor S5, detects the presence of a sheet.

Sheet passing sensors S6 and S42 are provided on the upstream side of the transport roller 421 of the second transport path 420 below the offset transport path 410, and detect the passage of the sheet P.
The sensor S8 detects the absence of a sheet on the upper first intermediate stacker 426. S16 is a sensor for detecting the paper pressing position of the upper transfer section. S24 is a home position sensor for the discharge belt 425. S9 is a paper ejection sensor.

Similarly, the third conveyance path 430 is also provided with paper passage sensors S11 and S43, a paper absence detection sensor S12, a paper holding position detection sensor S18, and a paper ejection sensor S13.

Next, an offset upper detection sensor S69 and an offset paper removal detection sensor S70 are arranged near the discharge port of the uppermost offset conveyance path 410 in the lifting drive section of the discharge trays T1 and T2. A tray upper limit detection sensor S27 and a tray paper removal detection sensor S for controlling the elevation of the first discharge tray T1 near and below the discharge port of the second transport path 420.
29, a tray collision detection sensor S63 and a tray lower position detection sensor S28 are provided, and a tray upper limit position detection sensor S65 for controlling the elevation of the second discharge tray T2 near the discharge port of the lower third conveyance path 430; A tray paper ejection detection sensor S30 is provided, and a tray lower limit position detection sensor S66 for controlling the lowering of the second paper ejection tray T2 is provided at the lowest stage.

In FIG. 24, T1A is the first discharge tray T
1) Initialize position (initial setting position) at the time of stapling, T1B is the lower limit position at the time of stapling by loading up to 1500 sheets, and T1C is the offset lower limit position at the time of loading up to 2000 sheets. , And T1D indicates the offset initialization position.

T2A is an initializing position for stapling operation, and T2B is a second discharge tray 2 when a maximum of 2000 sheets are stacked on the first discharge tray T1. Indicates the lower evacuation lower limit position. At the lower limit position T2B of the second paper discharge tray T2, paper discharge from the second stacker 436 as well as the first stacker 426 is prohibited.

In this embodiment, the sheet post-processing apparatus connected to the copying machine is shown. However, the sheet post-processing apparatus may be connected to an image forming apparatus such as a printer or a facsimile or a light printing machine.

[0096]

In a sheet post-processing apparatus for aligning and binding a recorded sheet bundle carried out from the image forming apparatus, a sheet pressing means for holding the sheet bundle before the binding processing and a sheet bundle after the binding processing are used. By driving the sheet delivery means to be fed to the discharge means by one drive source, the structure can be simplified and the size can be reduced. In addition, since the above-mentioned unit and the driving unit are unitized to form an integrated structure, the unit can be easily moved to each predetermined position corresponding to a sheet bundle having a different sheet size to perform a desired stapling process. Was.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is an overall configuration diagram of a copier including a sheet post-processing apparatus of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a sectional view of a sheet post-processing apparatus.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing the basics of a control system.

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of a sheet receiving unit and a sheet discharging unit.

FIG. 5 is a view of a sheet receiving unit and a sheet discharging unit as viewed from an arrow A.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the vicinity of a conveyance auxiliary belt member and a conveyance auxiliary rotation member.

FIG. 7 is a perspective view of a unit including a stapler and a sheet transfer unit and a moving unit.

FIG. 8 is a perspective view of a unit including a stapler and sheet transfer means.

FIG. 9 is a side view of the unit and moving means.

FIG. 10 is a plan view of the unit and moving means.

FIG. 11 is a rear view of the unit and moving means.

FIG. 12 is a view of the moving means as viewed from the direction of the arrows A and B.

FIG. 13 is a front view of the sheet delivery means.

FIG. 14 is a plan view of a sheet transfer means.

FIG. 15 is a cross-sectional view showing a standby state in which the paper press lever is stopped.

FIG. 16 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a sheet bundle pressing state in which the paper holding lever is raised.

FIG. 17 is a cross-sectional view showing a standby state in which the delivery lever stops.

FIG. 18 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a state in which a stapled sheet bundle is sent out.

FIG. 19 is a schematic view showing stapling of sheets of various sizes.

FIG. 20 is a plan view, an AA cross-sectional view, and a BB cross-sectional view of the sheet discharge unit.

FIG. 21 is a cross-sectional view of a sheet discharging unit.

FIG. 22 is a flowchart of a sheet post-processing process.

FIG. 23 is a timing chart of a sheet post-processing step.

FIG. 24 is a configuration diagram illustrating sensor arrangement and movement of a paper discharge tray of the sheet post-processing apparatus.

[Explanation of symbols]

400 Sheet post-processing device (FNS device, finisher) 420 (430) Second (third) transport path 421 Transport roller pair 422,432 Transport auxiliary belt member (guide belt) 424 Transport auxiliary rotating member (impeller) 425 (435) ) First (second) discharge belt 425A, 435A Discharge claw 426 (436) First (second) intermediate stacker 427 (437) Alignment means 4274 Movable alignment plate 440, 450 Sheet delivery means 441, 451 Stopper member 442 Delivery lever 443 Paper press lever 4461, 4463, 4644 Cam 4462, 4431 Cam follower 460 Moving means 461 Moving board 462 Slide rail 463 Slide roller 464 Fixed board 465 Gear train 466 Locking member 470,480 Paper discharging means M3 Motor for driving discharge belt M5 Stepping motor (sheet delivery for cum paper pressing drive motor) M6 motor P sheet (recording paper), sheet bundle SP, SP _R, SP _L staple ST1 ST2) first (second) stapler (stitching means)

Continuation of front page (56) References JP-A-63-300067 (JP, A) JP-A-1-313261 (JP, A) JP-A-64-34861 (JP, A) JP-A-6-219626 (JP) , A) JP-A-60-142359 (JP, A) JP-A-60-158463 (JP, A) JP-A-62-239169 (JP, A) JP-A-62-288002 (JP, A) 63-267667 (JP, A) JP-A-2-276691 (JP, A) JP-A-1-214565 (JP, A) JP-A-63-116168 (JP, A) JP-A-2-279389 (JP, A A) JP-A-3-277591 (JP, A) JP-A-6-32442 (JP, U) JP-B-5-41991 (JP, B2) (58) Fields investigated (Int. Cl. ⁷ , DB name) ) B65H 37/04 B65H 39/11

Claims (4)

(57) [Claims] 1. A sheet post-processing apparatus, in which sheets carried out from an image forming apparatus are stacked on an intermediate stacker, aligned, stapled by stapling means, and then discharged to a paper discharge tray by discharging means. A sheet pressing unit for releasing the binding side of the stacked sheet bundle to release the sheet, a sheet passing unit for feeding the sheet bundle after the binding process to the discharging unit, and the sheet pressing unit and the sheet passing unit are driven via a transmission unit. A sheet post-processing apparatus comprising: 2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the one driving source is provided with a first cam unit connected to a sheet pressing unit and a second cam unit connected as a sheet transferring unit. 2. The sheet post-processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the sheet pressing lever and the sheet transfer lever are driven with a time difference provided by a cam unit and a second cam unit. 3. A sheet post-processing apparatus in which sheets conveyed from an image forming apparatus are stacked on an intermediate stacker, aligned, stapled by stapling means, and discharged to a discharge tray by discharging means. Means, and a sheet transfer means for feeding the sheet bundle after the binding process to the discharge means, formed in an integrated unit, and a moving means for moving the unit in a direction orthogonal to the sheet conveying direction. A sheet post-processing apparatus wherein the unit can be moved to a predetermined position by a moving means based on designation of a size and a binding position. 4. The apparatus according to claim 3, wherein said moving means has one drive source, and said driving source enables said staple means and sheet transfer means to be moved to a predetermined position by said moving means. Sheet post-processing equipment.