JP4497739B2 - Paper supply device and image forming apparatus - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention is used in a copying machine, a printer, a facsimile, or the like, and a paper supply device that supplies paper to a predetermined part of the device, and an image forming apparatus such as a copying machine, a printer, or a facsimile provided with these paper supply devices. In particular, the present invention relates to a sheet supply apparatus and an image forming apparatus having a function of removing deposits such as paper dust on the sheet surface.
[0002]
[Prior art]
In image forming apparatuses represented by printers and copiers, since images are formed on paper, it is known that deposits such as paper dust and fine dust adhering to the paper adversely affect image formation. It has been. For this reason, conventionally, a method has been adopted in which these deposits are removed directly or indirectly after feeding is started. The direct removal method is, for example, a method of removing the paper being conveyed by applying a brush or blowing air, and the indirect removal method is performed on the surface of the paper feed roller or the conveyance roller. This is a method for removing adhering paper dust and the like.
[0003]
However, these methods are performed after the paper feeding operation is started, and there is no known technique for removing deposits such as paper dust and dust on the paper surface before the paper feeding operation.
[0004]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
By the way, paper is made of fiber and various chemical substances, and the fiber is cut and adhered to the paper surface due to stress during the paper manufacturing process, packaging process, transportation, and loading. This becomes paper dust. In addition, various substances are used for the paper as fillers, dyes, sizing agents, and the like. In particular, it is recognized that calcium carbonate used as a filler has various adverse effects along with paper powder. Moreover, in recent years, many papers that have a large amount of paper dust and calcium carbonate on the surface have been sold.
[0005]
The adverse effects include paper jam, conveyance jam, abnormal image occurrence, fixing failure, and toner recycling failure. For example, paper dust adheres to the surface of a paper feed roller due to a reduction in frictional force. The conveyance jam adheres to the surface of the conveyance roller and occurs due to a decrease in frictional force. Abnormal image generation occurs due to poor cleaning of the photoreceptor surface. The fixing failure occurs due to a decrease in releasability from the toner attached to the surface of the fixing roller. Further, the toner recyclability failure is caused by paper dust or the like mixed in the collected toner.
[0006]
The present invention has been made in view of the actual situation of the prior art, and its object is to remove paper dust, calcium carbonate, and other deposits that are the cause of these adverse effects before the start of a copying operation. It is another object of the present invention to provide a sheet feeding device and an image forming apparatus that are removed from the sheet without causing the adverse effects.
[0007]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
In order to achieve the above object, the present invention includes a first paper feed tray that supplies paper to a portion that performs predetermined processing ;
In a paper supply apparatus comprising a second paper supply tray for supplying paper to the first paper supply tray,
An air jet is formed at a position of one side plate of the second paper feed tray facing the end face of the sheet bundle stacked on the second paper feed tray, and the other side of the second paper feed tray. An air inlet is formed at a position of the side plate facing the air outlet,
A blower fan is installed on one side plate of the second paper feed tray,
A suction duct, a suction pipe, a suction pump for sucking air from the suction duct, and an adhering matter sucked in the air are provided downstream of the air suction port of the second paper feed tray in the air flow direction. A collection device to collect is installed,
By rotating the blower fan, air is blown from the air jet port formed in the one side plate toward the air suction port formed in the other side plate, and the second paper feed tray is fed. The configuration is such that air passes between the stacked sheets .
[0008]
In this case, after the deposit removing operation by the deposit removing means including the blower fan, the air jet port, the air suction port, the suction duct, the suction pipe, the suction pump, and the recovery device is finished, the second paper feeding is performed. The present invention is characterized by further comprising a transfer unit that collectively transfers the sheet bundle loaded on the tray to the first paper feed tray.
[0009]
In addition, the present invention provides image data read from a paper supply device configured as described above and an image reading device provided therein, image data transmitted from another device, or image data read from storage means. Image forming means for forming an image based on the image forming means, wherein the image forming means forms an image on the paper supplied from the paper supply device based on the image data. In the following embodiments, the first paper feed tray corresponds to the paper feed tray 41 and the second paper feed tray corresponds to the spare tray 42, respectively.
[0010]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.
[0011]
FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing the configuration of the entire copying machine. The copying machine 1 basically includes an image reading unit 2, an image writing unit 3, a paper feeding unit 4, and a document feeding unit 5. The image reading unit 2 is a publicly known one that scans in the main scanning direction by a so-called scanner and moves in the sub-scanning direction to read a document. The document is fed onto the contact glass by the document feeding unit 5 also called an automatic document feeder (ADF) and optically read.
[0012]
The image writing unit 3 includes a known optical system using a laser diode, a polygon mirror, an fθ lens, and the like. The optical writing is performed on the surface of the photosensitive member by this optical system, and the latent image formed by the optical writing is developed with toner. Then, the image is visualized and transferred to a sheet to form an image. The formed image is fixed by the fixing unit, and is then discharged to a paper discharge tray by a paper discharge roller.
[0013]
In this embodiment, the paper feed unit 4 is provided in four stages, and one of them, here, the uppermost paper feed stage 40 is divided into a paper feed tray 41 and a spare tray 42 as shown in FIG. The paper can be pulled out in a direction perpendicular to the paper surface (a direction perpendicular to the paper feeding direction). A vertical conveyance path 43 is provided in the paper drawing direction corresponding to the right side in the drawing of the paper feeding unit 4, and the paper drawn from each paper feeding stage is supplied to the image writing unit 3. For this reason, each paper feed stage is provided with a paper feed device 46 comprising a pickup roller 44 and a paper feed roller 45 as shown in FIG. 43 is derived.
In the uppermost paper feed stage 40, the paper feed device 46 is provided on the side of the paper feed tray 41 from which the paper is drawn. On the other hand, the spare tray 42 is provided with a transfer fence 47 in the vicinity of the center of the rear end portion in the paper transport direction. When the paper in the paper feed tray 41 runs out, the transfer fence 47 is driven to The accommodated sheet bundle is collectively transferred to the sheet feed tray 41. Although not particularly illustrated here, a rear end fence is provided at the rear end portion of the paper feed tray 41 in order to regulate the position of the sheet bundle accommodated in the paper feed tray 41. This rear end fence is automatically opened when a sheet bundle is transferred from the spare tray 42 to the sheet feed tray 41, and enables movement of the sheet bundle to the sheet feed tray 41 .
[0014]
Further, as shown in the schematic configuration diagram of FIG. 3, the front plate 421 on the auxiliary tray 42 side of the paper feeding unit 4 is provided with a fan 422 for blowing air and an air outlet 423. The air outlet 423 opens at a position facing the front end face of the sheet bundle stored in the spare tray 42. On the other hand, an air suction port 425 is opened in the rear plate 424 facing the jet port 423 with a sheet bundle interposed therebetween, and a suction duct 426 and an intake pipe 427 are provided on the downstream side in the air flow direction. Further, the intake pipe 427 is provided with a suction pump 428 for sucking air from the suction duct 426 and a collecting device 429 for collecting the adhering matter such as paper dust sucked in the air. .
[0015]
In the copying machine 1 configured as described above, when the uppermost paper feed stage 40 is pulled out, sheets are stacked on the drawn-out spare tray 42, and the spare tray 42 is set in the main body of the paper feeding unit 4, the main body is electrically connected. Connected and energization of the paper feeding unit 4 is started. With this energization, the fan 422 installed on the inner side of the front side plate 21 starts rotating, and air is sent from the front side plate 421 side to the rear side plate 424 as indicated by an arrow. Air is passed between sheets by providing an appropriate amount of airflow. Further, the sheet is vibrated by an appropriate amount of air to make the surface deposits free. Since the particle size of the adhering material itself is as small as several microns, the adhering material that is separated from the paper surface by air blowing is easily carried toward the rear side plate 424. As described above, the suction pump 428 is provided on the main body side of the paper feed unit 4 and sucks the blast in which deposits are distributed through the suction duct 426. The deposits are collected by a filter or the like until exhaust, and the deposits are collected by the collector 429.
By performing such an adhering matter collecting operation for an appropriate time, the adhering matter on the sheet surface can be removed. When the deposit removal operation is completed, the sheet is transferred to the right paper feed tray 41 by the transfer fence 47 after waiting for the right paper feed tray 41 to run out of paper. This operation is repeated every time paper is supplied to the spare tray 42.
[0016]
In this embodiment, after the paper is supplied to the spare tray 42, the attached matter is removed by blowing air for a predetermined time, but this operation is performed at predetermined intervals or when the power is turned on. It is also possible to set. The operation time of the deposit removal operation and the execution time can be appropriately set according to the installation environment of the copying machine and the consumption state of the paper.
[0017]
【The invention's effect】
As described above, according to the present invention, the first paper feed tray that supplies paper to a portion that executes a predetermined process and the second paper feed tray that supplies paper to the first paper feed tray are provided. In the paper supply device provided,
An air jet is formed at a position of one side plate of the second paper feed tray facing the end face of the sheet bundle stacked on the second paper feed tray, and the other side of the second paper feed tray. An air suction port is formed at a position of the side plate facing the air ejection port, a blower fan is installed on one side plate of the second paper feed tray, and an air suction port of the second paper feed tray. A suction duct, an intake pipe, a suction pump for sucking air from the suction duct, and a collector for collecting adhering matter sucked in the air are installed on the downstream side of the air flow direction of
By rotating the blower fan, air is blown from the air jet port formed in the one side plate toward the air suction port formed in the other side plate, and the second paper feed tray is fed. Since the air passes between the stacked paper, the above-mentioned adverse effects may occur by removing the adhering substances such as paper dust and calcium carbonate that have adhered to both sides of the paper by the air. There can be no paper feeder.
In addition, according to the present invention, a collection device that collects the deposits peeled off from the paper surface is provided on the downstream side of the air suction port in the air flow direction. Again, adhesion to the paper surface can be prevented.
[0019]
Further, according to the present invention, after the deposit removing operation by the deposit removing means consisting of the blower fan, the air outlet, the air suction port, the suction duct, the suction pipe, the suction pump, and the recovery device is finished, Since there is a transfer means for collectively transferring a bundle of sheets stacked on the second paper feed tray to the first paper feed tray, it adheres to the surface of the paper when stored in the first paper feed tray. All the adhered matter is removed and supplied from the first paper feed tray to the image forming position, and when the image is formed, the adhered matter does not adversely affect the image formation.
[0022]
Further, according to the present invention, the paper supply device provided with the above-mentioned deposit removing means, the image data read from the image reading device provided in itself, the image data transmitted from another device, or An image forming unit that forms an image based on the image data read from the storage unit, and the image forming unit forms an image based on the image data on a sheet supplied from the sheet supply device. Since image formation is performed on paper that has been removed before paper feeding, which is the start of copying operations, it is possible to produce high-quality products that are free from the effects of such substances. An image can be formed.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing a configuration of an entire copying machine according to an embodiment of the present invention.
2 is a schematic diagram showing the configuration of the uppermost paper feed stage of the copier of FIG. 1. FIG.
FIG. 3 is a schematic configuration diagram of a deposit removing device according to an embodiment of the present invention.
[Explanation of symbols]
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Copier 2 Image reading part 3 Image writing part 4 Paper feed part 40 Paper feed stage 41 Paper feed tray 42 Spare tray 421 Front side plate 422 Blower fan 423 Air side outlet 424 Rear side plate 425 Air inlet 426 Suction duct 427 Intake Piping 428 Suction pump 429 Recovery unit 43 Vertical conveyance path 46 Paper feeder 5 Document feeding section

Claims (3)

A first paper feed tray for supplying paper to a portion for executing predetermined processing ;
In a paper supply apparatus comprising a second paper supply tray for supplying paper to the first paper supply tray,
An air jet is formed at a position of one side plate of the second paper feed tray facing the end face of the sheet bundle stacked on the second paper feed tray, and the other side of the second paper feed tray. An air inlet is formed at a position of the side plate facing the air outlet,
A blower fan is installed on one side plate of the second paper feed tray,
A suction duct, a suction pipe, a suction pump for sucking air from the suction duct, and an adhering matter sucked in the air are provided downstream of the air suction port of the second paper feed tray in the air flow direction. A collection device to collect is installed,
By rotating the blower fan, air is blown from the air jet port formed in the one side plate toward the air suction port formed in the other side plate, and the second paper feed tray is fed. A paper supply device characterized in that air passes between stacked paper. After the deposit removing operation by the deposit removing means consisting of the blower fan, air outlet, air suction port, suction duct, intake pipe, suction pump, and recovery unit is completed, it is loaded on the second paper feed tray. 2. The paper supply apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a transfer unit that collectively transfers the bundle of paper sheets to the first paper feed tray . The paper supply device according to claim 1 or 2,
Image forming means for forming an image based on the image data,
The image forming apparatus forms an image on a sheet supplied from the sheet supply apparatus based on the image data.

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