JP5286799B2 - Paper processing device - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a paper processing apparatus for processing paper.

  There has been proposed a sheet post-processing apparatus that aligns a plurality of sheets on which images are formed with reference to one end edge, and binds the end edges of the aligned sheets by stapling means (for example, Patent Document 1). reference.). This sheet post-processing apparatus is a member for mounting a plurality of sheets on which images are formed and is mounted on the sheet post-processing apparatus main body in an inclined state, and a plurality of sheets on which images are formed A reference fence for aligning the sheet in the opening of the stapling means with respect to one end edge, a sheet holding means for holding the sheet aligned by the reference fence, a retracting means for retracting the reference fence, and the stapling means for the sheet. Moving means for moving along the edge.

Japanese Patent No. 3277805

  In recent years, due to a demand for downsizing of an apparatus, it has been proposed to convey a sheet on which an image is formed, for example, with an end face having a smaller sheet width at the top. Even in such a device, it may be desired to bind the end face having the larger sheet width. In addition, when the configuration in which the binding unit is moved and bound to the paper is employed, the apparatus is generally increased in size, complicating the mechanism and increasing the cost.

According to the first aspect of the present invention, a plurality of sheet bundles are conveyed, the conveyance unit conveying the sheet bundle with the end surface having the smaller sheet width at the top, and the conveyance direction of the sheet bundle conveyed by the conveyance unit. A sheet bundle binding means for binding the end face in the direction to be bound at a fixed binding position, and the sheet bundle binding means for conveying and stopping the sheet bundle so that the first binding position of the sheet bundle reaches the binding position. Then, the first binding portion is bound, and then, the sheet bundle is conveyed and stopped so that the second binding portion of the sheet bundle reaches the binding position, and the second bundle binding means is used to stop the second binding portion. Control means for controlling the conveying means and the paper bundle binding means so as to bind the binding location, and a pressing means for pushing the paper bundle in a direction intersecting the conveyance direction after the paper bundle binding means has bound the paper bundle. And the sheet bundle binding A stacking unit for stacking the sheet bundle is disposed below the stage, wherein the sheet bundle stapling means when binding the bundle of sheets is disposed at a predetermined position of the sheet bundle conveyance path to support the sheet bundle, the push means A sheet processing device including sheet bundle supporting means for retreating from the predetermined position when the sheet bundle is pushed .
According to a second aspect of the present invention, the sheet bundle binding means binds one end surface in a direction intersecting the transport direction, and the pushing means is located downstream of the sheet bundle binding means in the transport direction. 2. The sheet processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the sheet processing apparatus is disposed and pushes the sheet bundle from the one end face side to the other end face side in a direction intersecting the transport direction.

According to the first aspect of the present invention, the size of the apparatus in the sheet bundle conveyance direction can be reduced , and the sheet bundle binding process and stacking process can be realized with a simple configuration .
According to the second aspect of the present invention, the sheet bundle can be appropriately stacked after the sheet bundle is bound.

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.
FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an overall configuration of a sheet processing system 1 to which the exemplary embodiment is applied. A sheet processing system 1 shown in FIG. 1 is used for an image forming apparatus 2 such as a printer or a copier that forms a color image by an electrophotographic method and a sheet on which a toner image is formed by the image forming apparatus 2 And a sheet processing device 3 that performs processing. The paper processing device 3 includes a transport device 10 that transports the paper output from the image forming device 2 further downstream, a first post-processing device 30 that includes, for example, a compile tray that collects and bundles paper, and the like. The second post-processing device 40 is provided on the further downstream side of the first post-processing device 30 and includes, for example, a stapler. Further, the sheet processing apparatus 3 includes a stacker tray 80 as a stacking unit that stacks the post-processed sheet bundle so that the user can easily take it. The sheet processing apparatus 3 includes a control unit 20 as a control unit that controls the entire sheet processing apparatus 3, and the control unit 20 is provided in the first post-processing apparatus 30, for example.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the conveyance device 10 of the paper processing device 3 includes an entrance roller 11 that is a pair of rollers that receive printed paper that is output via the discharge roller 9 of the image forming device 2, and It has the 1st conveyance roller 12 which is a pair of roller which conveys a sheet | seat downstream, and the 2nd conveyance roller 13 which is a pair of roller which conveys a sheet | seat toward the 1st post-processing apparatus 30.

  The first post-processing device 30 of the paper processing device 3 includes a receiving roller 31 that is a pair of rollers that receive paper from the transport device 10 and an exit sensor 33 that is provided downstream of the receiving roller 31 and detects the paper. I have. The first post-processing device 30 includes a compile tray 35 that collects and stores a plurality of sheets, and an exit roller 34 that is a pair of rollers that discharge the sheets toward the compile tray 35. In addition, a main paddle 36 and a sub paddle 37 configured by paddles that rotate to push the rear end of the sheet toward an end guide (described later) of the compilation tray 35 are provided. Further, an eject roller 38 is provided as a conveying means for conveying the sheet bundle accumulated on the compile tray 35 to the second post-processing device 40 on the downstream side.

  The second post-processing device 40 of the paper processing device 3 performs a staple process on the conveyed paper bundle (binding the paper bundle), a stapler unit 50 as a paper bundle binding means, and a staple process by the stapler unit 50. In this case, a sheet bundle supporting unit 60 (see FIG. 3) is provided as a sheet bundle supporting means for supporting the sheet bundle. Further, the second post-processing device 40 includes a discharge unit 70 (see FIG. 3) that drops the stapled paper bundle onto a stacker tray 80 provided below the second post-processing device 40.

FIG. 2 is a diagram for explaining the configuration of the first post-processing device 30 in further detail. The compile tray 35 described with reference to FIG. 1 is formed with a surface extending in a direction orthogonal to the bottom surface of the compile tray 35, and has an end guide 35a for aligning the rear ends of the sheets when generating a sheet bundle. Yes. The end guide 35a can be formed, for example, by bending the bottom surface of the compile tray 35 when the compile tray 35 is formed of sheet metal or the like.
Further, in the direction orthogonal to the paper conveyance direction of the compile tray 35, a horizontal direction alignment unit (not shown) for aligning the paper in the direction orthogonal to the paper conveyance direction (the horizontal direction of the paper) is provided. The horizontal alignment portion is provided with a horizontal reference wall on the front side of the apparatus. A tamper (not shown) that moves from the back side to the near side and presses the side edge of the sheet toward the horizontal reference wall is provided on the back side of the apparatus. In the horizontal alignment unit, a driving motor (not shown) that applies a driving force to the tamper rotates in accordance with the timing of sheet conveyance with respect to the compilation tray 35. The tamper moves from the back side to the near side as the drive motor rotates from the standby position corresponding to the paper size. By this operation, the paper that is carried into the compilation tray 35 is horizontally aligned.

The sub-paddle 37 moves in the U1 direction in the figure to contact the paper, and moves away in the U2 direction in the figure to move away from the paper. The main paddle 36 and the sub paddle 37 rotate in the R direction in the figure to push the paper conveyed in the S1 direction in the figure onto the compile tray 35 in the S2 direction.
Further, as shown in FIG. 2, the eject roller 38 includes a first eject roller 38a and a second eject roller 38b. When the sheet bundle is generated (compiled), the second eject roller 38b is lifted (moved in the Q2 direction), and the first eject roller 38a and the second eject roller 38b are separated from each other. Then, when the sheet bundle is conveyed toward the second post-processing device 40 (in the direction S3), the first eject roller 38a is lowered (moved in the Q1 direction) to come into contact with the sheet bundle. The eject roller 38 rotates in the T1 direction while being in contact with the sheet bundle, thereby conveying the sheet bundle to the second post-processing device 40 on the downstream side. Further, the eject roller 38 has a registration function for aligning the sheet bundle by, for example, stopping / conveying the sheet when delivering the sheet bundle to the stapler unit 50.

Next, the second post-processing device 40 and the stapler unit 50, the sheet bundle support unit 60, and the discharge unit 70 provided in the second post-processing device 40 will be described.
FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the discharge port of the second post-processing device 40 as viewed from the upper rear side on the paper discharge side (right side in FIG. 1). FIG. 3 shows a state in which the sheet bundle support unit 60 is positioned on the sheet conveyance path. Note that the X direction shown in FIG. 3 is the conveyance direction of the sheet bundle. The Y direction is a direction orthogonal to the paper surface of the paper to be conveyed. Sometimes referred to as the vertical direction. The Z direction is parallel to the paper surface of the paper to be transported and is orthogonal to the transport direction of the paper bundle. FIG. 4 is a top view of the stapler unit 50, the sheet bundle support unit 60, and the discharge unit 70, which are shown in a perspective view in FIG. 3, as viewed from above in the direction orthogonal to the sheet surface of the sheet to be conveyed. .

As shown in FIG. 3, the second post-processing device 40 includes a transport chute 41 that guides the sheet bundle discharged from the first post-processing device 30 to the downstream side in the sheet bundle transport direction. Then, the second post-processing device 40 staples the paper bundle (binding the paper bundle) on the front side of the conveyance chute 41 on the downstream side in the paper bundle conveyance direction, and stapler unit 50 as a paper bundle binding means. It has.
The stapler unit 50 is fixedly disposed in the second post-processing device 40 so that staple needles are driven in parallel with the sheet bundle conveyance direction on the front surface of the sheet bundle to be conveyed. The stapler unit 50 includes a unit upper part 51 that includes staple needles for stapling and various mechanism units for stapling, and a unit lower part 52 that supports a bundle of sheets during the staple operation by the unit upper part 51. The unit lower part 52 is fixed to the apparatus main body of the second post-processing apparatus 40, and the unit upper part 51 is supported by the apparatus main body of the second post-processing apparatus 40 so as to be movable in a direction perpendicular to the paper surface of the conveyed paper. Has been. Then, the unit upper portion 51 moves in a direction orthogonal to the paper surface of the paper, thereby stapling the paper bundle at a fixed binding position.

  The sheet bundle support unit 60 is located at the stapling position, which is the position shown in FIG. 3, during staple operation by the stapler unit 50, and supports the sheet bundle. The sheet bundle support unit 60 has a surface that is in contact with the lowermost surface of the conveyed sheet bundle. doing. The sheet bundle support unit 60 is supported by the apparatus main body so as to be movable in a direction (Z direction) orthogonal to the sheet bundle conveyance direction. The sheet bundle support unit 60 is a position at which the sheet bundle is discharged after the staple process from the staple position where the stapler unit 50 supports the sheet bundle when performing the staple process. It is configured to be movable to a home position that is a position inside the apparatus housing. As a means for moving the sheet bundle support unit 60, for example, a drive motor (not shown), a gear (not shown) that transmits the rotational driving force of the drive motor to the sheet bundle support unit 60, and this A mechanism composed of a spur gear (not shown) that converts the rotational driving force transmitted by the gears into a driving force for movement in a direction perpendicular to the sheet bundle conveying direction, a solenoid, and a shaft thereof are provided. A mechanism for moving the sheet bundle support unit 60 in the direction orthogonal to the sheet bundle conveyance direction by the action of a spring can be exemplified, but the invention is not particularly limited to such a mode. In addition, when a drive motor or a solenoid is provided as means for moving the sheet bundle support unit 60, it is preferable to control the operation by the control unit 20 (see FIG. 1).

  The sheet bundle support unit 60 includes an upstream shelf tray 61 that is deployed upstream from the sheet bundle support unit 60 and a downstream shelf tray 62 that is deployed downstream. The upstream shelf type tray 61 is configured to be rotatable about a shaft 63 and is biased by a spring 64. The downstream shelf tray 62 is configured to be rotatable about a shaft 65 and is biased by a spring 66. When the sheet bundle supporting unit 60 moves from the staple position to the home position (when moving in the direction W1 in FIG. 4), the upstream shelf tray 61 and the downstream shelf tray 62 are separated from each other by the sheet bundle supporting unit 60. It abuts against the beam 42 of the second post-processing device 40 by the movement of the main body, and rotates around the shafts 63 and 65 while being urged by the springs 64 and 66 in the X1 direction of FIG. When the sheet bundle support unit 60 is housed inside the housing of the second post-processing device 40 and is positioned at the home position, the upstream shelf tray 61 and the downstream shelf tray 62 are separated from each other by the sheet bundle support unit 60. It is stored inside the main body. On the other hand, when the sheet bundle support unit 60 shifts from the home position to the stapling position (when moving in the direction W2 in FIG. 4), the upstream shelf tray 61 and the downstream shelf tray 62 have springs 64 and 66. As a result of the reaction force, the paper bundle support unit 60 protrudes from the main body and expands, and as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the paper bundle can be supported.

  The discharge unit 70 moves from the front side to the back side of the apparatus in order to drop the stapled bundle of sheets onto the stacker tray 80, and supports the pushing member 71 as pushing means for pushing the bundle of sheets. And a supporting member 72. A protrusion 71 a provided on the push member 71 is inserted into a notch 72 a provided on the support member 72 and extends downward, and is connected to the shaft 73 a of the solenoid 73. The shaft 73a of the solenoid 73 is provided with a spring 74. When the shaft 73a of the solenoid 73 is moved from the front side of the apparatus to the back side by the action of the solenoid 73 and the spring 74, the push member 71 is moved from the front side of the apparatus to the back side. Move to. As a result, the sheet bundle moves from the position where the sheet is pressed by the pressing member 71 to the back side. The solenoid 73 is controlled by the control unit 20 (see FIG. 1).

Next, the operation of the sheet processing system 1 will be described.
As shown in FIG. 1, the sheet on which the toner image is formed by the fixing process in the image forming apparatus 2 is supplied to the sheet processing apparatus 3 one by one through the discharge roller 9 of the image forming apparatus 2. Is done. In the transport device 10 of the paper processing device 3, the paper received by the entrance roller 11 under the control of the control unit 20 is sent to the downstream side first post-processing device by the first transport roller 12 and the second transport roller 13. It is conveyed on the paper conveyance path toward 30.

  In the first post-processing device 30, the sheet received by the receiving roller 31 is detected by the exit sensor 33 as shown in FIG. 2 and conveyed in the S 1 direction by the exit roller 34. The sheet conveyed in the S1 direction is conveyed toward the compilation tray 35 from between the first eject roller 38a of the eject roller 38 and the main paddle 36. The sheet that has reached the compilation tray 35 is rotated (in the U1 direction in FIG. 2) by the sub paddle 37 rotating in the R direction shown in FIG. 2 and the main paddle 36 in the R direction shown in FIG. Pushed in the S2 direction, the rear end of the paper comes into contact with the end guide 35a and is aligned. Then, in accordance with the timing when the paper is received by the compile tray 35 and reaches the end guide 35a in this way, the above-described tamper (not shown) moves from the back side of the apparatus to the front side in the direction orthogonal to the paper transport direction. It moves and aligns both ends of the stacked sheets one by one.

  Thereafter, the compile tray 35 stores and aligns a preset number of sheets to form a sheet bundle. When a sheet bundle is formed on the compile tray 35, the first eject roller 38a of the eject roller 38 is lowered (moved in the Q1 direction in FIG. 2). Then, as the first eject roller 38a and the second eject roller 38b rotate in the T1 direction in FIG. 2, the sheet bundle is conveyed in the S3 direction in FIG. 2 toward the stapler unit 50 on the downstream side. .

  When the staple processing job starts, the sheet bundle support unit 60 moves from the home position position inside the housing of the second post-processing device 40 to the staple position, and stands by at that position. Then, the sheet bundle conveyed by the eject roller 38 is guided to the sheet bundle support unit 60 and the conveyance chute 41 and conveyed to the stapler unit 50. As described above, the eject roller 38 has a registration function for aligning the sheet bundle by the stop / conveyance control of the sheet bundle, and the sheet bundle is determined according to the stapling job. Is conveyed so that the binding position of the first position reaches a predetermined binding position.

  Then, after the sheet bundle is conveyed to a predetermined binding position and stopped, staple processing is performed by the stapler unit 50. If a job of binding at a plurality of places, for example, two places, is given, after the stapling process is performed on the first binding place, the sheet bundle is transported again by the eject roller 38 and the second binding is performed. It is conveyed and stopped so that the binding location reaches a predetermined binding position. Then, the stapling process is performed on the second binding location at the predetermined binding position. When the sheet bundle is conveyed from the compilation tray 35 toward the stapler unit 50, the sheet bundle support unit 60 is located at the stapling position, and at this position, the upstream shelf tray 61 and the downstream shelf tray 62 are located. Since the sheet is unfolded, the sheet bundle is stapled without sagging or dropping.

  Thereafter, the sheet bundle support unit 60 moves from the staple position to the home position, and the push member 71 of the discharge unit 70 moves from the front side of the apparatus to the back side. As a result, the sheet bundle subjected to the stapling process is pushed by the pushing member 71, moves from the stapling position to the back side, falls, and is stacked on the stacker tray 80.

Next, the stapling process will be described.
FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing the stapling process performed under the control of the control unit 20. First, at the start of a job, the control unit 20 positions the sheet bundle support unit 60 at a staple position on the sheet conveyance path (step 101). When the sheet alignment process is completed on the compile tray 35, the first eject roller 38a is lowered (moved in the Q1 direction) and brought into contact with the sheet bundle (step 102). Then, the rotation of the eject roller 38 (first eject roller 38a and second eject roller 38b) in the T1 direction shown in FIG. 2 is started (step 103). Then, the sheet bundle is conveyed between the unit upper part 51 and the unit lower part 52 of the stapler unit 50, and the rotation of the eject roller 38 is stopped at the timing when the binding position of the sheet bundle reaches a predetermined binding position. Stop (step 104). Then, a stapling process is executed (step 105).

  Thereafter, it is determined whether or not the stapling process has been completed (step 106). This is to determine whether or not all the stapling processes for this sheet bundle have been completed. When an instruction is given to bind a plurality of locations, it is determined whether or not all locations have been bound. . If a negative determination is made, the processing after step 103 is executed again. If an affirmative determination is made, the process proceeds to step 107. For example, when a two-point binding job is given, a negative determination is made in the determination process in the first step 106, the process proceeds to step 103, rotation of the eject roller 38 is started, and the second binding position of the sheet bundle is determined. The rotation of the eject roller 38 is stopped at the timing when the predetermined binding position is reached, and the sheet bundle is stopped (step 104). Then, the second staple processing is executed (step 105).

  If it is determined in step 106 that the stapling process has been completed, the eject roller 38 in the T1 direction shown in FIG. 2 is rotated (step 107). Then, after the sheet bundle passes through the eject roller 38, the first eject roller 38a is raised (step 108). Thereafter, the sheet bundle support unit 60 is moved from the staple position to the home position, and the push member 71 of the discharge unit 70 is moved from the front side of the apparatus to the back side. (Step 109). As a result, the stapled sheet bundle is dropped and stacked on the stacker tray 80. Thereafter, it is determined whether or not there is a next sheet bundle (step 110). If there is a sheet bundle, the process of step 101 is executed again. On the other hand, if there is no sheet bundle, the process ends.

  The timing of moving the push member 71 of the discharge unit 70 from the back side of the apparatus to the near side (returning after pushing out the sheet bundle) is the same as when the sheet bundle support unit 60 is positioned at the staple position on the sheet conveyance path. Alternatively, after a negative determination is made in step 110, this processing may be provided before the processing is terminated.

  According to the sheet processing apparatus 3 according to the embodiment configured as described above, the stapler unit 50 is disposed so as to drive the staple needle in parallel with the sheet bundle conveyance direction with respect to the sheet bundle to be conveyed. Therefore, even in an apparatus that transports with the end surface having the smaller paper width as the head, the end surface having the larger paper width can be stapled. Further, since the stapler unit 50 is fixed to the apparatus main body and the sheet bundle is aligned by stopping / conveying control of the eject roller 38 as the conveying means, the apparatus configuration can be simplified. Further, by repeating the conveyance and stop of the sheet bundle a plurality of times with respect to the fixed stapler unit 50, it is possible to perform stapling processing on a plurality of binding locations of the sheet bundle without providing a plurality of stapler units.

  In the above-described embodiment, the sheet bundle is transported to the stapler unit 50 by the eject roller 38 of the first post-processing device 30. However, the sheet bundle of the stapler unit 50, for example, in the second post-processing device 40. A conveyance roller as a conveyance unit may be further provided on the upstream side in the conveyance direction, and the sheet bundle may be aligned by stopping / conveying control of the conveyance roller.

  In the above-described embodiment, the sheet processing apparatus is exemplified as the sheet processing apparatus including the stapler unit 50 in the second post-processing apparatus 40. However, instead of the stapler unit 50, a puncher for punching a bundle of sheets is provided. May be. As a result, even in an apparatus that transports with the end face having the smaller sheet width as the head, the punching process can be performed on the end face having the larger sheet width. Further, by aligning the sheet bundle by stopping / conveying control of the eject roller 38, an arbitrary number of holes can be formed at an arbitrary position.

1 is a diagram illustrating an overall configuration of a sheet processing system according to an exemplary embodiment. It is a figure for explaining the structure of the 1st post-processing apparatus which concerns on this Embodiment in detail. It is a perspective view of the 2nd post-processing apparatus concerning this embodiment. FIG. 4 is a top view of a stapler unit, a sheet bundle support unit, and a discharge unit according to the present embodiment. It is the flowchart which showed the staple process which concerns on this Embodiment.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Paper processing system, 2 ... Image forming apparatus, 3 ... Paper processing apparatus, 10 ... Conveyance apparatus, 20 ... Control part, 30 ... 1st post-processing apparatus, 35 ... Compile tray, 36 ... Main paddle, 37 ... Sub paddle, 38 ... Eject roller, 40 ... Second post-processing device, 50 ... Stapler unit, 60 ... Paper bundle support unit, 70 ... Discharge unit, 80 ... Stacker tray

Claims (2)

Transport means for transporting a bundle of multiple sheets, with the end face with the smaller paper width at the top,
A sheet bundle binding unit that binds an end surface in a direction orthogonal to the conveyance direction of the sheet bundle conveyed by the conveyance unit at a fixed binding position;
The sheet bundle is conveyed and stopped so that the first binding position of the sheet bundle reaches the binding position, and the first binding position is bound by the sheet bundle binding means, and then the first binding position of the sheet bundle is reached. The conveying unit and the sheet bundle binding unit are controlled such that the sheet bundle is conveyed and stopped so that the second binding point reaches the binding position, and the second binding unit is bound by the sheet bundle binding unit. Control means to
A pressing unit that pushes the sheet bundle in a direction intersecting the transport direction after the sheet bundle binding unit has bound the sheet bundle;
A stacking unit disposed below the sheet bundle binding unit and stacking the sheet bundle;
When the paper bundle binding means binds the paper bundle, the paper bundle support means is disposed at a predetermined position on the paper bundle conveyance path to support the paper bundle, and when the pushing means presses the paper bundle, the paper bundle support means retracts from the predetermined position. When,
Paper processing device including The sheet bundle binding means binds one end surface in a direction intersecting the transport direction,
The pushing means is disposed downstream of the sheet bundle binding means in the transport direction, and pushes the sheet bundle from the one end face side in the direction intersecting the transport direction to the other end face side. Item 2. A sheet processing apparatus according to item 1.

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