JPS6157252B2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a sheet positioning mechanism in a pneumatic sheet feeding device. For details, see how to load multiple sheets stacked on a sheet loading table.
Starting from the top sheet, using negative pressure,
In the pneumatic sheet feeding device that sucks the sheets into the sheet feeding section and feeds the sucked sheets toward the processing section by the sheet feeding means, a plurality of sheets are placed on the sheet loading table. A sheet whose main element is a sheet stopper for aligning the leading edge of the sheet so that it is approximately perpendicular to the sheet loading surface of the sheet loading table when setting (placing) the sheet. It relates to a positioning mechanism.

In facsimile machines, copying machines, etc., recording sheets or original sheets (hereinafter simply referred to as "sheets") are guided to a processing section within the main body of the machine by sheet feeding rollers, and in this processing section, Processing such as recording and reading images or characters is performed on the sheet. The pneumatic sheet feeding device is a sheet feeding means that guides the sheet to the processing section, and rotates a fan to create a negative pressure inside the casing surrounding the sheet feeding roller. , by thinning the air layer between the upper surface of the sheets stacked on the sheet mounting table below the casing and the sheet feeding roller, the topmost sheet of the stacked sheets is This device sucks the sheet onto the lower surface of the casing, and in this state, rotates the sheet feeding roller to feed the sucked sheet toward the processing section. This device separates stacked sheets using negative pressure, so it has the excellent feature that sheet separation is not easily affected by differences in size or rigidity (strength of the seat). Ori,
It is mainly used as a sheet feeding means for facsimile machines. By the way, in such a sheet feeding device, if sheets are sucked with their edges not aligned, the topmost sheet and the sheets protruding from this sheet will be sucked at the same time, causing multiple sheets to be fed. There is a problem with being sent. Further, if a lower sheet is not fed and falls, it may become skewed with respect to its original position, which is undesirable as it may cause sheet jamming.

When setting a plurality of sheets on the sheet loading table, the sheet positioning mechanism adjusts the leading edge of each sheet so that the leading edge of each sheet corresponds to a predetermined position with respect to the sheet feeding roller. As a result, each sheet is stacked starting from the topmost sheet without the edges protruding, which prevents multiple sheet feeding and sheet skew as described above. This is prevented and the topmost sheet is accurately sucked.

A conventional sheet positioning mechanism in a sheet feeding device has a metal fitting, commonly called a sheet stopper, fixed to the end of the sheet loading table near the processing section, which is approximately perpendicular to the sheet loading surface of the loading table. When setting a plurality of sheets on the sheet loading table, the leading ends of each sheet are aligned with this sheet stopper, thereby aligning the leading ends of each sheet. This is what I did.

By the way, in the above-mentioned pneumatic sheet feeding device, as the fan rotates and the inside of the casing becomes negative pressure, the air layer between the upper surface of the set sheet and the casing becomes thinner, and the upper surface of the set sheet becomes thinner. The upper sheet is sucked into the casing, but at this time, outside air flows into the casing through the space between this sheet and the casing.
This flow of outside air may cause the tip of the sucked sheet to become wavy. When the sheet is fed toward the processing section in this state, that is, with the leading edge of the suctioned sheet undulating, the leading edge hits the sheet stopper and its progress is stopped. If the sheet is protected against damage and is relatively stiff, feeding errors (state where the sheet is not fed to the processing section) may occur, and if the sheet is relatively stiff, jamming may occur. There is a risk.

In view of the above-mentioned points, an object of the present invention is to provide a sheet that can be reliably fed without causing any problems even when the leading edge of the sheet contacts a sheet stopper due to the waving phenomenon of the sheet. An object of the present invention is to provide an improved sheet positioning mechanism in a pneumatic sheet feeding device.

The present invention will be explained below with reference to the figures.

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing the principle of this invention. In FIG. 1, the pneumatic sheet feeding device designated by reference numeral 1 is configured to load the sheet 4 with the leading end 4a of the sheet 4 abutting against a sheet stopper 3 that is approximately perpendicular to the sheet loading table 2. A plurality of sheets 4 stacked on top of each other are stacked on the mounting table 2, and the sheets 4 are stacked one on top of the other in the casing 6, using the negative pressure generated inside the casing 6 by the rotation of the fan 5, starting with the uppermost sheet. This device sucks the sheet into the lower part and feeds the sucked sheet toward the processing section 8 by the rotation of the sheet feeding roller 7.

The seat positioning mechanism of the present invention includes, for example,
In FIG. 1, in the above-mentioned pneumatic sheet feeding device indicated by reference numeral 1, the above-mentioned sheet stopper 3 is
A first position (indicated by a solid line A) that is substantially perpendicular to the leading end 4a of the sheet 4 placed on the sheet mounting table 2, and a first position on the processing unit 8 side with respect to the leading end 4a of the sheet 4. , and a second position (indicated by broken line B) where the upper end of the sheet stopper is inclined. first position A of
Furthermore, when the sheet 4 is fed, the sheet stopper 3 is positioned at the second position B by the position selection means 9.

That is, the embodiment shown in FIG. 1 has a configuration in which the seat stopper 3 is selectively placed in two positions, a first position A and a second position B, and the seat stopper 3 is attached to the shaft 10. Therefore, the seat stopper 3 is supported so as to be swingable, and a tension spring 11 is attached to the seat stopper 3.
Then, as shown in FIG.
The pin 12 prevents the sheet stopper 3 from rotating, and the sheet stopper 3 is placed in a first position substantially perpendicular to the sheet tip 4a. In this device, the seat stopper 3 is rotated to the right around the axis 10 in FIG. 1 against its natural habit, and the seat stopper 3 is fixed at the second position B.

According to this device, when setting the sheet 4, the sheet stopper 3 is fixed at the first position, which is substantially perpendicular to the sheet mounting table 2. By setting the sheets 4 on the sheet mounting table 2 with their leading ends abutting each other, each sheet corresponds to the sheet feeding roller at a fixed position. As a result, the distance from the leading edge of each sheet to the processing section 8 becomes equal for each sheet, and each sheet can be fed at the same timing.

Also, when feeding, the sheet stopper 3
is fixed at the second position B, so even if the leading edge of the sheet 4 causes a waving phenomenon and comes into contact with the sheet stopper 3 when the sheet is fed, the leading edge of the sheet stopper 3 will not touch the processing section 8. Since it is inclined toward the side, the leading edge of the sheet 4 is directed upward along this inclination, and is reliably fed toward the processing section 8 without getting caught in the sheet stopper 3.

As described above, according to the present invention, even if the leading edge of the sheet comes into contact with the sheet stopper due to the waving phenomenon of the sheet, the air is used to reliably feed the sheet without causing any problems. A sheet positioning mechanism in a type sheet feeding device can be provided.

The embodiment shown in FIG. 1 has a structure in which the seat stopper is fixed at two positions, and the seat stopper is swingably supported.
For example, as shown in FIG. 2, the sheet stopper 3 is supported so as to be movable up and down, and its upper part is made to be inclined in advance with respect to the sheet mounting table 2, and this inclined part 3a is The state in which the abdomen 3b of the sheet stopper 3, which is substantially perpendicular to the sheet placing table 2, corresponds to the leading end of the sheet 4 by retracting the sheet 4 above the placement position, is as follows:
The seat stopper 3 is set to the first position, and the seat stopper 3 is set to the second position by the fixed position selection means 8.
In the figure, the above-mentioned inclined portion 3a is moved downward.
The second position may correspond to the leading end of the sheet 4.

Further, the above fixed position selection means may be, for example, a sheet feeding roller or a solenoid excited in synchronization with the rotation of the fan 5,
The movement of the arm rod (for example, the support arm of the push-button start button) that moves after the seat is set is used as a trigger.
It may be a lever that swings or slides the seat stopper 3. Hereinafter, specific embodiments of the present invention will be described using a sheet feeding device in a facsimile machine as an example.

FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram showing the principle of this embodiment.

In FIG. 3, reference numeral 1 is a pneumatic sheet feeding device, 2 is a sheet mounting table, 3 is a sheet stopper, 4 is a sheet, 5 is a fan, 6 is a casing,
Reference numeral 7 indicates a sheet feeding roller, 8 a processing section, and 9 a fixed position selection means.

The sheet stopper 3 in this embodiment is used to hold the sheet 4 fed by the sheet feeding roller 7.
The sheet separation plate 21 is placed in pressure contact with the circumferential surface of the sheet separation roller 20 disposed on the sheet path, and the sheet stopper 3 is provided at the bottom of the sheet placement table 2 so as to be able to swing freely. Supported. Further, the fixed position selection means 9 in this embodiment
is the casing 6 at the top of the main body of the sheet feeding device 1
Rotate it to the right around the support shaft 22 in FIG. 3,
The sheet stopper 3 is selectively moved to the above two positions by the sheet separation roller 20, which moves using the action of exposing the upper part of the sheet mounting table 2 as a trigger, through the sheet separation plate 21 that is in pressure contact with the sheet separation roller 20. It is fixed by swinging it.

Figure 4 is based on the schematic diagram shown in Figure 2 above.
1 is a diagram illustrating an example of a specific configuration when the present invention is implemented in a pneumatic sheet feeding device in a facsimile. Briefly explaining this device, in FIG. 4, the sheet 4 is moved into a negative pressure state in the casing 6 surrounding the sheet feeding roller 7 by the rotation of a fan indicated by the reference numeral 5.
Due to this negative pressure, the air layer between the casing 6 and the upper surface of the sheet 4 becomes thinner, and the sheet mounting table 2
The topmost sheet of the sheets 3 stacked on top is attracted to the bottom surface of the casing 6 and floats up, and in this state,
By rotating the sheet feeding roller 7,
The sheet is sent out toward the sheet separation device 23.

After the sheet 4 is prevented from being fed multiple sheets by the cooperation of the sheet separation roller 20 of the sheet separation device 23 and the sheet separation plate 21, only the topmost sheet is separated. The sheet 4 advances as it is fed by the sheet separation roller 20, is guided by the guide roller 24, passes below the auxiliary roller 25 while bypassing it, and the leading end of the sheet 4 comes into contact with the scanner roller 26. It is caught between the presser roller 27 and the driven rotating presser roller 27.
The sheet 4 is conveyed to the processing section 8 by the rotation of the scanner roller 26. In the processing section 8, the sheet 4 is sequentially read or recorded by the scanner 28 or the recording needle 29, and then is read or recorded. The scanner roller 30 and the presser roller 31, which is in pressure contact with the scanner roller 30 and rotates as a result of the scanner roller 30, further transport the paper toward another processing section. The sheet stopper 3 is formed to integrally engage with and extend from the U-shaped base 3A together with the sheet separation plate 21, and the base 3A is connected to the side bent piece 2a of the sheet mounting table 2. Sheet separation device 23
A shaft 10 is fitted to the opposite end, whereby the seat stopper 3 and the
The sheet separating plate 21 is swingable around the shaft 10. The end of the base of the seat stopper 3 extends in a direction opposite to the direction in which the sheet travels, and the end of the coil spring 11 is engaged with this end. The coil spring 11 has a screw 3 that fixes the side bent piece 2a to the side plate 6a of the casing 6.
2, and by elastically engaging the other end with the lower surface of the sheet mounting table 2, the sheet stopper 3 is wound around the shaft 10 as shown in FIG. , giving it a rotational habit of turning to the left. The rotation of the sheet stopper 3 due to this behavior is prevented by the sheet separation plate 21, which is integral with the sheet stopper 3, being pressed against the circumferential surface of the sheet separation roller.

By the way, in this device, the casing 6
As described in FIG. 3, it is rotatably supported around a support shaft 22, and FIG. 4 shows the position during sheet feeding.

The normal position of the sheet stopper 3 during this sheet feeding is the second position described above (the position indicated by the symbol B in FIGS. 1 and 2), that is, the sheet stopper 3 is inclined with respect to the sheet 4. In this state, the forward damage prevention effect of the sheet stopper 3 at the leading end of the sheet 4 as it is fed is avoided. In this device, the sheet 4 is set on the sheet mounting table 2 by rotating the casing 6 to the right around the spindle 22 in FIG. 4 to expose the upper side of the sheet placing table 2. It can be done.
That is, as the casing 6 rotates, the sheet feeding roller 7 and the sheet separating roller 2
Each member disposed on the casing 6, such as 0, moves upward, and the upper part of the sheet mounting table is exposed. The normal position of the sheet stopper 3 when setting the sheet 4 is the above-mentioned first position (the position indicated by the symbol A in FIGS. 1 and 2), that is, the sheet stopper 3 is at the leading edge of the sheet 4. It is approximately perpendicular to the section. That is, as the casing 6 rotates, the sheet separation roller 20
4, the seat separation plate 21, which was in pressure contact with it, is rotated to the left around the shaft 10 in FIG. Par 3 also rotates to the left and is placed in the above-mentioned first position, which is approximately perpendicular to the sheet mounting table. In this way, if a plurality of stacked sheets are set on the sheet mounting table 2 with their leading edges butted against the sheet stopper 3 fixed at the first position, each sheet will be placed on the topmost sheet. They are stacked and placed on top of each other without their edges protruding.

Note that the coil spring 1 in the above first position
Seat stopper 3 given by the elasticity of 1
The rotation of the sheet is prevented by its abdomen coming into contact with the end of the sheet mounting table 2 near the sheet leading end. After setting the sheet 4 as described above, by rotating the casing 6 to the left around the shaft 22 in FIG. By rotating the separating plate 21, the seat stopper 3 is fixed at the above-mentioned second position.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

Fig. 1 is a schematic diagram showing the principle of one embodiment of the present invention, Fig. 2 is a schematic diagram showing the principle of another embodiment of the invention, and Fig. 3 is a schematic diagram showing the principle of another embodiment of the invention. A schematic diagram showing the principle of an embodiment,
FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram of the facsimile machine. 2... Sheet mounting table, 3... Sheet stopper, 4... Sheet, 5... Fan, 6... Casing, 7... Sheet feeding roller, 8... Processing section, 9... Fixed position selection means , A...first position, B
...Second position.

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] 1. The sheets 4 are stacked and placed on the sheet placing table 2 with the leading end portions 4a of the sheets abutted against the sheet stopper 3 which is substantially perpendicular to the sheet placing table 2. A plurality of sheets 4 are suctioned into the sheet feeding section 6 in order from the topmost sheet using negative pressure, and the sucked sheets are transferred to the processing section by the sheet feeding means 7. In the pneumatic sheet feeding device that feeds the sheet toward the sheet 8, a first position A that is approximately perpendicular to the leading end 4a of the sheet 4 placed on the sheet mounting table 2 is provided.
and a second position B that is entirely inclined toward the processing section 8 side with respect to the tip end 4a of the sheet 4; When setting the sheet 4 on the sheet mounting table 2, after setting the sheet 4 on the sheet mounting table 2 at the first position A,
A seat positioning mechanism comprising fixed position selection means 9 for holding the seat stopper 3 in place at the second position B.