JPS6259028B2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention is a collator used in connection with a copying machine or a printing machine, which comprises a plurality of sheet storage bins,
a movable deflection device for distributing sheets to these bins, a sheet reception detector at the inlet of the collator, a deflector sheet discharge detector and a sheet reception detector at the sheet discharge section of the deflection device; The present invention relates to a device having a receiving guide plate which is located further rearward in the sheet conveyance direction and switches the sheet conveyance path from the deflection device side to the temporary tray side.

As the processing speed of copying machines used in conjunction with collators has recently become faster and faster, this type of collator is designed to prevent malfunctions caused by paper jams when machine abnormalities occur, such as paper jams. It has become almost impossible to restore normal operation. The reason for this is that usually the damaged, torn, or jammed paper is removed and the machine is restarted, but the actual number of copies fed or dispensed up to that point depends on the copy program and the machine is restarted. This is because simply restarting the program will disrupt the program. That is, in order to satisfy the desired program, it is necessary to make up for the number of copies that have been discarded.

An object of the present invention is to provide a collator control method that automatically compensates for the number of sheets lost as a result of clearing a paper jam when a jam occurs, and does not disturb subsequent programs.

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

In FIG. 1, a first collator 2 and a second collator 3 are arranged adjacent to a copying machine main body 100.

The copying machine main body 100 includes a static elimination charger 102 and a charging charger 10 around the photoreceptor drum 101.
3. Static elimination lamp 104, exposure device 105, developing device 106, transfer charger 107, separation charger 108, separation claw 109, cleaning device 11
has 0. A toner image formed on the photoreceptor drum 101 through normal charging, exposure, and development is transferred onto a sheet sent out from a sheet feeding section 111 by a feeding roller 112. The transferred sheet is separated from the photoreceptor drum 101 and transferred to the transport tank 113.
The image is sent to the fixing device 114, and after fixing, it is ejected through the ejection roller 115. Note that a paper feed unit sheet detector 1 is provided in the paper feed unit 111 of the copying machine main body 100, and the feeding of sheets from the paper feed unit is monitored.

A copy made and ejected from the copying machine main body 100 is supplied to the first collator 2 and, if necessary, to the second collator 3 via the first collator 2.

The first collator 2 according to the present invention includes a paper arrangement section 4, a feeder section 5 located below it, a vertically movable deflection device 6 for feeding copies into a required bin, and a first collator 2 that carries this deflection device and supports the above-mentioned paper. It drives each part of the conveyance section 7 that conveys the copies from the alignment section 4 or the feeder section 5 to the deflection device, the bin row 8 in which a large number of bins are arranged in parallel to store the copies sent from the deflection device 6, and the collator. It is equipped with a motor 9 for this purpose. The second collator 3 can also be configured in the same manner as the first collator 2, but each of the above-mentioned parts of the first collator will be explained below.

In FIGS. 2 and 3, the copying machine main body 100
The copy ejected from the first collator 2 enters the first collator 2 in the direction of arrow A, is gripped by a pair of receiving rollers 10, 10 while being monitored by a sheet receiving detector 23, and then passes through a receiving guide plate 12 which is controlled by a guide plate solenoid 11. Depending on the position, the paper is discharged to the temporary tray 14 via a pair of discharge rollers 13, 13, or when collating or sorting is performed, it is directly advanced horizontally to the diagonal roller section 15 (Fig. 3).
sent to. In this case, the method of storing copies of the same original in the same pin one after another, storing the copies in the next bin when this bin is full, and repeating this one after another is called "sorting". One copy of one original is stored in each bin in sequence, and then the second
One copy of the original is stored in each bin in sequence,
The method of repeating this is called "collation." The collator of the present invention is capable of both collating and sorting storage modes based on operational commands.

Two sets of four diagonal rollers 17a, 17b, 17c, and 17d are arranged in the diagonal roller section 15, and these diagonal rollers are rotated by a common belt 20 at a higher speed than the receiving roller pair 10, 10. . Due to this action, the copy P is brought to the reference plate 16, placed in a fixed position and posture by the reference plate, and sent to the pair of intermediate rollers 18, 19. Reference plate 1
6, the copy advances along intermediate rollers 18,
When the collator branch plate 21 in the feeder section 5 (FIG. 4) is in the solid line position in FIG. Roller pair 22, 22
It is then sent to the second collator 3. An intermediate roller sheet detector 24 is arranged behind the intermediate roller pair 18, 19. In the case of a copy jam or failure in the portion after the diagonal roller section, the rotation of all other rollers is stopped except for the rotation of the receiving roller pair 10, 10 and the ejection roller pair 13, 13.
In addition, since the receiving guide plate 12 is at the position shown by the solid line in FIG.

This solves some of the troubles between the copying machine main body and the collator. Furthermore, if more copies are sent than the capacity of the collator, the paper discharge tray 14 can be used as an overflow tray in the same manner as described above.

The dot-dash line section shown in FIG. 2 is a manual feeding section, in which paper is inserted in the direction of arrow B along the lower guide plates 91, 92. When the manual feed paper detection sensor 95 detects paper, the manual feed rollers 93 and 94 start rotating by actuating a clutch (not shown) provided on the manual feed roller 94 under conditions that allow manual feed. . As the paper advances further, it reaches the manual feed rollers 94 and 93, and the manual feed rollers 94 and 93 move the paper to the receiving rollers 10 and 93, respectively.
Send it to 10.

In FIG. 4, the feeder section 5 is an assembly separate from the paper arrangement section 4, and can be attached to and detached from the collator main body frame. The feeder section 5 and the paper arrangement section 4 are hinged to each other on the rear side, and the paper arrangement section 4 can be lifted upward from the front. Thereby, paper jammed on the conveyance path can be easily removed and a copy stack can be easily set on the paper feed table 25 provided with the pivoting portion 26.

When it is desired to reverse the copy and send it to the conveying section 7, a solenoid (not shown) is energized, so that the reversing branch plate 28 rotates around the shaft 29 and assumes the position shown by the solid line. The copy is this reversal branch plate 28
Then, it is sent out onto the reversing table 32 via the first reversing unit roller pair 30, 31. A rotating return roller 33 is arranged in the middle of the reversing table to return the copy, and the copy that has come off the first reversing section roller pair 30, 31 is moved to the return roller 33.
Due to the rotation of the paper and the inclination of the reversing table 32, the paper is again sent to the second reversing unit roller pair 31, 34, and is returned to the conveying unit 7 in the same way as when it was received by the feeder unit 5.

Next, when collating or sorting copies stored in the paper output tray 14 or copies made with another copying machine, set these copies on the paper feed tray 25 and issue a paper feed start command. The paper roller clutch is connected and the paper feed roller 35 begins to rotate, feeding out one copy of the copy stack 36 starting from the topmost copy. When the leading edge of the copy reaches the pair of intermediate rollers 18 and 19 and is detected by the intermediate roller sheet detector 24, the paper feed roller clutch is disconnected and the paper feed roller 3
The rotation of 5 is interrupted, and the copy is then sent out by the pair of intermediate rollers 18, 19. In this case, the paper feed roller 35 is brought into contact with the paper feed roller 35 with an appropriate pressing force.
A separating roller 37, which rotates in the opposite direction or is fixed, is provided, which ensures single copy feeding by the feed roller 35.

A pressure lever 39 pivotably mounted on a shaft 38 is disposed below the paper feed tray 25, and when a paper feed command is issued, the pressure lever 39 is activated via an arm fixed to the shaft 38 by the urging of a solenoid (not shown). 39 pivots clockwise to lift the paper feed table 25 and bring the uppermost copy into contact with the paper feed roller 35 with appropriate pressure. 40 is
This is an optical sensor for detecting the presence or absence of paper on the paper feed tray 25.

In FIG. 5, the copies sent to the deflecting device 6 by the conveying belt 41 of the conveying section 7 are transferred to the bin whose ejecting section is stopped to feed the copies among the deflecting cams 42 attached to each bin. Since the deflection cam corresponding to the cam is located at a position protruding from the conveyor belt 41, the curved surface of this deflection cam is separated from the surface of the conveyor belt 41, and the guide plate 4 carried by the discharge section
3 and 44, is gripped by a pair of discharge rollers 45 and 45, and discharged into a bin. The deflection cam 42 is activated by locking the deflection cam drive lever 46 provided on the deflection device 6 at the solid line position.
It is held in a position that protrudes from the surface of the When the deflection device is lowered, this deflection cam drive lever 46 is at the position shown by the solid line, causing the required deflection cam to protrude from the surface of the conveyor belt, but when the deflection device is raised, it moves to the position shown by the broken line, and comes into contact with each deflection cam. be prevented from doing so. This lever 46 is controlled by a lifting solenoid 63, which will be described later.

Reference numeral 48 denotes a sheet discharge detector that detects the trailing edge of the copies discharged from the deflection device into the bin, and confirms the discharge timing, discharge position, quantity, etc. Next, a mechanism for raising and lowering the discharge section 6 will be explained.

As shown in FIG. 6, the conveyor belt 41 is wound around a drive roller 49 and a driven roller 50, and a sprocket 51 is fixed to the shaft of the drive roller 49 and a sprocket 5 is loosely attached to the shaft of the driven roller 50.
2 is hung by a first chain 53. In this case, since the diameter of the sprocket 51 is smaller than the diameter of the drive roller 49, the speed of the chain 53 is slower than that of the conveyor belt. Furthermore, the chain 53 is connected to each sprocket 54 provided in the conveying section 7,
55, 56, 57 and sprockets 58, 59, 60, 61 provided on the deflection device 6.

The deflection device 6 is designed to rise when fixing the ascending chain 53 and the sprocket of the deflection device, and to descend when fixing the descending chain and deflection device. For this reason, the spring clutch 6 is attached to the sprocket 58 attached to the fixed shaft of the discharge section.
2 is attached. This clutch 62 is controlled by a lifting solenoid 63 via a lever 64. By energizing the solenoid 63, the clutch 62 is released and the sprocket 58 becomes free, so that only the chain 53 rotates and the deflection device 6 does not move. When the lifting solenoid 63 is deenergized, the lever 64 is spring-backed and the sprocket 58 is locked onto its fixed shaft via the clutch 62, so that the sprocket 58 and therefore the deflection device 6 are entrained in the lifting chain 53. Ru. When the deflection device rises to the highest position where it should stop, the home position switch 77 (FIG. 9) is actuated, which energizes the lifting solenoid 63, and when the clutch 62 is released, the deflection device 6 moves to the chain 53. The connection is severed and the ascent stops.

The downward movement of the discharge part 6 is basically the same as the above-mentioned upward movement, but the important point is that it must descend by a precisely determined amount. For this purpose, as shown in FIG. 7, a sprocket 61 that meshes with the chain 53, a spring clutch 65 attached to this sprocket, and an electromagnetic clutch 4 provided between this spring clutch 65 and a shaft 66 are used.
7. A lowering solenoid 67 for connecting and disconnecting the spring clutch, a lever 68 connected to the plunger of the lowering solenoid, and a notch 69a for engaging and disengaging with one end of the lever. Cam sleeve 6 that controls the connection and disconnection of
9 is provided. A further sprocket 70 is fixed to the shaft 66, as shown in FIG. 8, and this sprocket 70 is fixed to the conveyor 7 and is therefore meshed with a stationary second chain 71.

When the lowering solenoid 67 is deenergized, the engaging end of the lever 68 engages with the notch 69a of the cam sleeve 69 and disconnects the spring clutch 65. Therefore, even if the sprocket 61 is rotated by the chain 53, the shaft remains unchanged. 66 does not rotate, and the deflection device 6 is stopped. When the lowering solenoid 67 is energized, the engaging end of the lever 68 is disengaged from the notch 69a of the cam sleeve, the spring clutch 65 is brought into contact, and the rotation of the sprocket 61 by the chain 53 turns on the electromagnetic clutch 47, which is normally ON. is transmitted to the shaft 66 through the sprocket 70, so that another sprocket 70 rotates together with the shaft 66;
0 rolls along the stationary second chain 71, and the deflection device 6 eventually descends. The lowering solenoid 67 is deenergized again immediately after the engaging end of the lever 68 comes out of the notch 69a of the cam sleeve, so the engaging end of the lever 68 moves around the cam sleeve 69 while maintaining the engaged state. sliding along the surface,
After half a turn, the cam sleeve 69 is stopped by engaging with another notch 69a. Therefore, the spring clutch 65 is disengaged again, and the shaft 66 and the sprocket 70 fixed thereto, as well as the deflection device 6, are stopped. In this way, when the discharge part 6 is lowered, it is accurately lowered by a distance corresponding to half the circumference of the cam sleeve 69, and this distance corresponds to the distance between adjacent bins.

Instead of chains 53, 71 it is also possible to use belts, in particular timing belts.

In FIG. 9, the driving roller 49 and the driven roller 5
A vacuum chamber 72 is disposed between both running sides of the conveyor belt 41, which is stretched over the conveyor belt 41, and is constantly maintained at a negative pressure by a blower 73. A large number of suction holes are provided in a row in a wall portion of the vacuum chamber 72 that faces the bottle row 8 and is in contact with the conveyor belt, and the conveyor belt 41 is also provided with suction holes. When the copy comes to the point where the suction hole of the vacuum chamber and the suction hole of the conveyor belt match, the copy is attracted by the conveyor belt and is carried along with its movement to reach the discharge section 6, where it is removed by the deflection cam 42. It is deflected and fed into a predetermined bin. Drive roller 49
is rotationally driven by the motor 9 via a belt 74, a pulley 75 and an electromagnetic clutch 76.

Note that 79a and 79b shown in FIG. 1 are a pair of light emitting/receiving elements as the bin sheet detector 79, and when there is a sheet in one of the bins, it optically detects this and outputs an output. Occur.

FIG. 10 is a block diagram showing the control circuit of the collator. CPU is the central processing unit, 80 is the I/0 port, timer, and random access memory
Indicates a device consisting of RAM. ROM is a read-only memory, and 81 is a timer circuit that is controlled by the CPU and monitors the sheet conveyance time in each bin. The timer circuit 81 functions as a jam detection time generating circuit that generates a jam detection signal when the end of the sheet is not detected within a predetermined conveyance time. 1', 23', 24', and 48' are I/O devices of the paper feed section sheet detector 1, sheet acceptance detector 23, intermediate roller section sheet detector 24, and deflection section sheet discharge detector 48, respectively, and 77'
is the I/O device of the home position detector 77. 11' is a drive circuit for the receiving guide plate solenoid 11, 67' is a deflection device moving circuit including a drive control circuit for the ascending solenoid 63 and the descending solenoid 67, and 76' is a drive circuit for moving the conveyor belt, that is, driving the electromagnetic clutch 76. This is a conveyor belt control circuit.

The control operation of the circuit shown in FIG. 10 is explained in the first section.
This will be explained according to the flowchart in Figure 1.

In FIG. 11a, first, an operator inputs collation information or sorting information from an input device (not shown), such as a keyboard. The CPU loads this information into internal registers or RAM of device 80. In this embodiment, internal registers of the CPU are used.

In collation mode, the CPU handles the specified number of copies N.
is set in the number of copies register _R1 , and the number of distributed sheets S (=1) to be stored in one bin at a time is set in the number of distributed sheets register _R2 (step). In the sorting mode, that is, when S≧2 is the specified number of sheets S
into the distributed number of copies register R ₂ , and the specified number of copies N.
is set in the number of copies register _R1 (step 〓).

In addition, in the case of collation mode, it is usually rare for the operator to check the total number of pages of the original to be copied before starting collation, and collation ends when all pages of the original are copied. In this embodiment, the number of pages is not taken into consideration because the determination can be made based on the point in time when copying is completed.

When the above collation information or sorting information is input,
The CPU specifies the I/0 port of the home position detector 77 to determine whether the deflection device 6 is at the home position (in this embodiment, the highest position). (Step in Figure 11). If the home position detector 77 does not detect the deflection device 6, the CPU controls the I/O of the deflection device movement circuit 67'.
Specify port 0 and send a signal to turn off the lift solenoid 63 and electromagnetic clutch 47. As a result, the deflection device 6 is fixed to the chain 53 via the spring clutch 62, and the deflection device 6 is raised (step).

When the deflection device 6 moves upward and the home position detector 77 detects the deflection device, that is, when the deflection device reaches the topmost bin, the CPU sends a signal to turn on the lifting solenoid 63 and the electromagnetic clutch 47. This causes the deflection device 6 to come to rest in the uppermost bin (step).

Next, the CPU specifies the I/0 port of the bin sheet detector 79 to check whether there is a sheet in the bin (step). When there are sheets in any bin, the presence of sheets in the bin is displayed externally. If it is confirmed that there are no sheets in the bin, a message indicating that copying can be started is output to the outside (step).

Here, by pressing a copy start key (not shown), paper feeding operation in the copying machine main body 100 is started, and a series of copying processes is executed.

Therefore, the sheet is sent out from the paper feed section 111 of the main body of the copying machine, undergoes a transfer and fixing process, and is then ejected from the ejection roller 115 to the collator 2.

Paper Feeding Operation In FIG. 11b, when the CPU starts feeding paper into the main body of the copying machine, it first determines whether the information input by the operator is a collation mode or a sorting mode (step).

(1) In case of collation mode First, the CPU specifies the I/0 port of the sheet detector 1 of the paper feed section to detect the presence or absence of sheets (step). When the leading edge of the sheet is detected, that is, when the output of the detector 1 changes from OFF to ON, the CPU adds 1 to the paper feed total counter _C1 (step).

Next, the CPU checks a jam detection flag, which will be described later (step). The jam detection flag is zero unless a jam occurs on the sheet on the collator side. When the jam detection flag is confirmed to be zero, the CPU starts the paper feed total counter.
By comparing _C1 with the contents of the specified number of copies register, it is determined whether the feeding of a predetermined number of sheets N has been completed (step). If the feeding of the predetermined number N of sheets has not yet been completed, the process returns to step 8 and the above series of operations is repeated. Then, when the predetermined number of sheets N is fed and the contents of the paper feed total counter _C1 match the contents of the specified number of copies register _R1 , paper feeding is temporarily stopped and the paper feed total counter
Reset C ₁ (step).

The operator replaces the original with the next page and presses the copy start key again.
The above paper feeding operation is repeated for each new document, and the paper feeding is completed when there are no more documents to be copied.

(2) In the case of sorting mode When it is determined in step that the mode is in sorting mode, the CPU first performs a sheet check in the paper feed section as in the case of collating mode (step).

When the paper feed section sheet detector 1 detects a sheet,
The CPU adds +1 to the paper feed total counter C1, and then adds +1 to the paper feed counter C2 (step 〓,).

This paper feed counter C2 is the number of sheets stacked in the same bin of the collator (the number of sheets to be sorted).
is counted from the copying machine main body side.

Next, the CPU checks the jam detection flag (step 〓). When the jam detection flag is zero, that is, when normal sorting is performed, the CPU next checks the paper feed counter C2 to determine whether the predetermined number S of sheets to be sorted has been stored in the current bin. The contents are compared with the contents S of the allocated sheet number register R2 (step). If the contents of the two sheets are not equal, return to step 〓 and check the next sheet. Paper feeding therefore continues.

S sheets are fed and the paper feed counter C2
When the contents of the sheet match S sheets, the CPU resets the paper feed counter C2 in preparation for feeding the sheet to the next bin (step). Then the copies register
₁ is subtracted from the content N of R1, and it is checked whether the subtraction result is zero, that is, whether paper feeding to all bins corresponding to the total number N has been completed (step). If the subtraction result is not zero, the process returns to step ⓓ, performs the above series of operations, and continues paper feeding. When the subtraction result is zero,
Stops paper feeding (step). At this time, the paper feed total counter _C1 is reset. In this way, the feeding of the total number of sheets to be sorted is completed.

Operation of the collator main body When the passage of the trailing edge of each sheet is confirmed in the paper feed section sheet check (step) of the paper feed flow described above, the CPU proceeds to step or 〓 each time, and at each paper feed timing of each sheet, Look at the jam detection flag, which will be described later. If no jam has occurred, and therefore the jam detection flag is zero, the CPU enters the collator operation indicated by number 201 (FIG. 11c).

The sheet sent out from the copying machine main body passes through a sheet acceptance detector 23, and then passes through a pair of acceptance rollers 10, 10.
transported by. Further, the sheet passes through the intermediate roller section sheet detector 24 and is transported by the conveyor belt 41. Initially, the deflecting device 6 is in the first bin at the top, so unless the sheet jams on the way, the sheet is first discharged to the first bin by the pair of discharge rollers 45, 45, which is detected by the sheet discharge detector 48 of the deflection unit. will be confirmed.

In FIG. 11c, the CPU first specifies the I/0 port of the acceptance detector 23 and determines the presence or absence of an acceptance sheet (step 〓). Sheet acceptance detector 2
3 detects the leading edge of the sheet, the CPU specifies the timer circuit 81 and calculates the scheduled conveyance time T _N (including reserve time) until the sheet discharge detector 48 of the deflection unit in the first bin detects the sheet. ) starts measuring. (Step〓).

The timer time of the timer circuit 81, ie, the scheduled conveyance time T _N of the sheet, is expanded or contracted depending on the rest position of the deflection device, ie, the position of the bin into which the sheet is fed.

Next, after the CPU has confirmed the detection of the trailing edge of the sheet by the acceptance detector 23, the CPU increments the content of the sheet acceptance counter ₃₃ inside the CPU by +1 (step 〓). Next, the CPU controls the deflection unit sheet ejection detector 4.
The I/O port of No. 8 is designated and it is checked whether the detector 48 detects a sheet (step 〓). If the sheet is not detected even after the scheduled time T _N created by the timer circuit 81 has elapsed, the CPU performs a jam processing operation (11th
Enter Figure d) (step 〓, ).

There is no occurrence of jam in the conveyance path between the sheet receiving detector 23 and the sheet discharge detector 48 of the deflection section, and therefore the sheet discharge detector 48 of the deflection section
When the leading edge of the sheet is detected, the CPU then determines the time T ₀ (including margin time) required for the sheet to finish passing through the deflection section sheet discharge detector 48 in order to determine whether there is a jam around the deflection section. The timer circuit 81 is started to generate (step).

The CPU confirms that the sheet has been completely discharged into the bin when the sheet discharge detector 48 of the deflection unit detects the trailing edge of the sheet (step). Therefore, if the trailing edge of the sheet is still not detected by the deflection section sheet discharge detector 48 even after the timer time _T0 has elapsed, the CPU enters the jam processing operation as in the previous case (step, 〓). The timer time T ₀ for jam detection around the deflection section is changed to a corresponding time length if the size of the sheet to be conveyed changes.

When the CPU confirms that the sheets have been completely ejected, it increments the content of the ejected sheet counter _C4 inside the CPU by +1, and then increases the content of the ejected sheet total counter _C5 by +1 (steps 〓,〓 ). Next, the CPU checks the content S of the distributed sheet number register and the content of the ejected sheet counter C4 in order to check whether or not the number S of sheets set in the sheet distribution number register R2 described above has been ejected into the same bin. Compare with C4 (Step 〓). Since S=1 in collation mode, the comparison result immediately becomes S=C4.
When the CPU obtains this result, it specifies the I/0 port of the deflection device moving circuit 67' and outputs a signal for driving the lowering solenoid 67. As a result, the lowering solenoid 67 is turned ON, the lever 64 is disengaged from the notch 69a of the cam sleeve, the cam sleeve 64 rotates half a turn, and the deflection device 6
moves down one bin (step 〓).

In preparation for feeding sheets to the next bin, the CPU
resets the ejected sheet counter C4 (step 〓). Next, the CPU subtracts 1 from the content N of the specified number of copies register R1 (step 〓), and as a result,
It is checked whether the contents of the specified number of copies register R1 have become zero (step 〓). If it is not zero, that is, if the distribution of sheets to the total number of bins corresponding to the predetermined number of copies N has not yet been completed, the process returns to the step and repeats the above series of operations (steps ≦ to ≦).
Accompanying this, the deflection device sequentially descends to the lower bins while discharging S sheets (S=1 sheet in the collation mode) to each bin. Finally, at step <<, the contents of the specified number of copies register _R1 reach zero (N=0). Therefore, in step 〓, it is determined whether or not the mode is collation mode, and if it is in sorting mode, sorting is now complete (step 〓).

If the mode is collation mode, the CPU returns the deflection device 6 to the home position in order to collate the second page. That is, first, the CPU determines whether or not the deflection device is at the home position by specifying the I/0 port of the home position detector 77 (step 〓). At this point, the deflection device is in the Nth bin, so the CPU outputs a deflection device up signal (step 〓). When the deflection device is returned to the topmost first bin, the CPU newly sets the specified number of copies N to the specified number of copies register R1 (step 〓), and sets the ejected sheet total counter.
Reset _C5 . (Step〓). Next, the process returns to step 202 and outputs to the outside that copy start is possible. The collator is thus prepared for copying the next document in collation mode.

Therefore, if the operator continues copying a new page of the original and copy sheets of the new original are sent in, the collator repeats the above operations (steps 〓 to 〓) and copies each of them. Sort into bottles. The same applies to sheets for subsequent pages, and collation is completed when there are no more originals to copy.

The sheets stacked in each of the N bins by the above collation or sorting are taken out by the operator.

Jam Processing Operation As already mentioned, there are two jam detection locations in this embodiment. One is sheet acceptance detector 2
3 to the deflection unit sheet discharge detector 48, and the other is jam detection around the deflection device while passing through the pair of discharge rollers 45, 45 of the deflection device. If the sheet jams in the middle of the sheet conveyance path in the former case or around the deflection device in the latter case, it is detected in step 31 or 34, respectively.

If a jam is detected, the process proceeds to step 48 in FIG. 11d, as indicated by numeral 203, where the CPU sets a jam detection flag. Next, in order to stop the conveyor belt, the I/0 port of the conveyor belt control circuit 76' is designated and a signal is output to turn off the electromagnetic clutch 76 (FIG. 9) (step 〓). As a result, the conveyor belt 41 is stopped, and therefore the conveyance of the sheet is also stopped.

Next, the CPU operates the receiving guide plate drive circuit 11' in order to urgently discharge the sheets sent after the jam occurs to the temporary tray 14 (FIGS. 1 and 2).
Specify the I/0 port of , and output a signal to turn on the receiving guide plate solenoid 11 (step 〓). The solenoid 11 is energized and the receiving guide plate 12 is switched to open the passage toward the temporary tray 14, that is, moved from the dotted line position to the solid line position in FIG. Therefore, all the sheets that enter the collator after the jam occurs are discharged onto the temporary tray 14, and these sheets are later sent to the conveyance section 7 using the feeder section 5.

In this embodiment, the number n of sheets to be discarded due to jamming (number of jammed sheets) is determined as follows. That is, regarding one cycle of sheet feeding of the copying machine main body 100 during normal operation without jamming, it is confirmed that the total number of sheets passed to the collator 2 from the beginning to the time when the jamming occurred and that they were actually stored in the bin. The difference between the total number of sheets and the number of jammed sheets is called the number of jammed sheets. Note that one cycle of paper feeding is defined as the period in which sheets corresponding to the specified number of copies N are fed in the case of collation mode, and the period in which sheets corresponding to the number of sorted sheets S are fed in the case of sorting mode. means the interval.

In order to know the number of jammed sheets n, the CPU subtracts the contents of the discharged sheet total counter C5 from the contents of the sheet reception counter C3 (step 〓). The subtraction result (that is, the number of jammed sheets n) and the jammed location are displayed externally (step 〓). Furthermore, it is determined whether the mode is collation mode (step 〓), and if the mode is collation mode, the number n of jams is added to the content N of the specified number of copies register R1 (step 〓), and if the mode is sorting mode, it is added. Adds the number of jams n and the number of distributed sheets S (step 〓). That is, here the specified number of copies N in collation mode
In addition, the number of sheets to be sorted S in the sorting mode is changed to a new specified number of copies N+n and a new number of sheets to be sorted S+, respectively, by supplementing the number n of sheets lost due to jamming.
It is determined as n.

The copier itself usually has N sheets (when in collation mode)
Or, it feeds N x S sheets (when in sorting mode) and stops, but if a jam occurs and the jam detection flag becomes 1, it feeds N x S sheets (when in sorting mode), but if a jam occurs and the jam detection flag becomes 1, it feeds the n sheets that would be missing due to the jam. Feed extra paper and stop.

In FIG. 11b, since the jam detection flag is 1, the step--
It cycles through number 205-step - number 200-step, and when in sorting mode -
-205-=-200--, it is expected that the paper will be fed. When paper feeding is performed and the leading edge of the sheet is detected, the paper feeding total counter C1 is incremented by 1 (step, 〓).
In the case of sorting mode, the paper feed counter C2 is also incremented by 1 (step).

Next, in the case of collation mode, since the jam detection flag is 1, the process proceeds from step 1, and here the paper feed total counter C is set to the new specified number of copies N+n.
Determine whether the contents of 1 match. If they do not match, return to the step and continue feeding paper.
When N+n sheets have been fed, the feeding is stopped, the total feeding counter C1 is reset, and the jam detection flag is reset (step 15). In the case of the sorting mode, the process proceeds from step 〓, and the number of sheets stacked in the same bin, that is, the content of the paper feed counter C2, becomes the new number of sorted sheets S.
Determine whether it is equal to +n. If they are not equal, return to step 〓 and perform the next sheet check.
The CPU does. When paper feeding continues and S+n sheets, which are supplemented by the number of jams n, are fed to the bin, the CPU resets the paper feeding counter C2 in preparation for normal paper feeding to the next bin. death,
Reset the jam detection flag (step 〓,
〓). If the jam occurs during the paper feeding operation to the final bin, then the feeding of the sheets to be sorted is now complete. So the CPU
checks whether the contents of the specified number of copies register R1 have become zero (step). If it is zero, it means that paper feeding in the sorting mode is complete (step 〓). If the paper is not zero, stop the paper feed and load the paper into the relevant bin.
After the feeder section 5 has actually fed the sheet, the user expects the copy start key to be pressed again (step <).

Even after a jam occurs, sheets continue to be sent to the collator unless the sheet feeding operation of the copying machine main body for one predetermined cycle is completed.
The CPU checks the acceptance of these sheets by specifying the I/0 port of the sheet acceptance detector 23 (step 〓). One sheet is the sheet acceptance detector 23
Each time the sheet passes through, the content of the sheet acceptance counter C3 is incremented by +1 by detecting the leading edge of the sheet (step). Therefore, the sheet acceptance counter C3
Even when a jam occurs, the number of received sheets is counted in the same way as during normal operation, and all sheets that have entered the collator 2 after the jam occurs are discharged to the temporary tray 14. The CPU compares the contents of the sheet reception counter C3 with the contents of the paper feed total counter C1 (step 〓), and if the two are not equal, the process returns to step 〓, and if the two are equal, that is, the paper is fed from the copying machine main body. When the number of sheets equal to the number of jam sheets n has been received, a temporary ejection end signal indicating that ejection to the temporary tray 14 has been completed is outputted to the outside (step 〓).

The number of sheets n lost due to the jam is compensated for by the above CPU operation. The operator removes the jammed sheet. When the operator receives an external indication that the sheets have been discharged to the temporary discharge tray 14, he or she sets the sheet bundle on the discharge tray on the paper feed table 25 of the feeder section 5 and collates or sorts the sheets.

In FIG. 11e, paper feeding in the feeder section is started. The CPU specifies the I/0 port of the intermediate roller section sheet detector 24 and checks the sheet feeding (step 〓). When a sheet is detected, the timer circuit 81 is designated to start measuring the scheduled conveyance time T (including allowance time) from the intermediate roller section sheet detector 24 to the deflection section sheet discharge detector 48 (step 〓). Emission detector 4
When the leading edge of the sheet is detected at step 8, a timer time T ₀ around the deflection section is started. Step〓、
The method of detecting a jam in the detectors 24 to 48 by step 1 and detecting a jam around the deflection section by step 1 is the same as before. If no jam occurs, the ejected sheet counter C4 and the ejected sheet total counter C5 are incremented by 1 (steps 〓, 〓). The initial values of both counters indicate the number of sheets stored in the bottle at the time of jamming. Next, the value of the ejected sheet counter C4 is compared with the number of sorted sheets S (1 in collation mode) (step 〓),
The above operation is repeated until the two become equal, and when they become equal, the ejected sheet counter C4 is reset (step 〓) and the deflection device is lowered by one bin (step 〓). Next, it is determined whether the value obtained by subtracting the number of jams n from the contents of the sheet receiving counter is equal to the value of the discharged sheet total counter C5 (step 〓). Now, if the number of sheets discharged to the temporary tray 14 is 5, in the collation mode, the deflection device needs to distribute the remaining 4 sheets to separate bins, so the process returns from step 〓 to 〓. Repeat the above operation. The value obtained by subtracting the number of jammed sheets from the contents of the sheet receiving counter is the discharged sheet total counter C.
If the value is equal to 5, paper feeding from the feeder section is stopped (step 〓). If the paper feed of the main body has already started feeding out the sheets of the next bin, it will feed out the number of sheets equal to the number of sheets stored in the next bin plus the number of jammed sheets, and then stop. Therefore, in the collation mode, the jammed page has been distributed to the N bins, and in the sorting mode, the jammed page has finished being stored in the jammed bin and the next bin position is reached. The operation ends when the deflection device moves to .

If a jam is detected at intermediate steps 〓 and 〓, as shown by number 203,
Proceeding to step 〓, the missing sheets are additionally fed from the copying machine main body as described above, and are ejected to the temporary tray. The jam detection flag is reset, and the sheets are distributed to predetermined bins by the feeder section or by manual feeding.

This means that all errors in the number of distributed sheets for one paper feeding cycle in which a jam occurred have been corrected. Therefore, if the operator is in the middle of collating or sorting and has not yet completed it, he or she can continue normal collating or sorting by pressing the copy start key.

As described above, according to the present invention, when a jam occurs in the collator, the number of sheets lost due to the jam is compensated for in one cycle of continuous paper feeding, so that the program for subsequent paper feeding cycles is Collation or sorting is performed correctly without any disturbance. If it is in collation mode, the number of sheets equal to the specified number N minus the number of sheets that have already been sorted will be ejected to the temporary tray, and if it is jammed in sorting mode, the number of sheets that should be stored in the same bin will be ejected to the temporary tray. The number of sheets equal to the number S minus the number of sheets already stored in the same bin is discharged to the temporary tray. Therefore, the total number of sheets ejected to the temporary tray is relatively small, and since the collator does not have a paper feeding mechanism like the feeder section 5, the sheets ejected to the temporary tray are manually fed into a predetermined position. It is possible to dispense into bins, and the invention is not limited to collators with a feeder part 5.

It is desirable that the number of sheets manually fed be as small as possible. In the example above, the total number of bins is 20.
If a jam occurs in the first bin, in the collation mode, the number of jammed sheets is set to 1, and 19+1 sheets are discharged to the temporary tray. In addition, in the case of sorting mode, if the maximum number of sheets that can be stored in one bin is 100 sheets, if a jam occurs when the first sheet is fed into the same bin, 100 sheets will be placed in the temporary tray. Paper is ejected. In the sorting mode, it is not necessary to arrange the sheets in page order, and it is sufficient to simply transfer the ejected sheet bundle to the bin.
Therefore, in the case of manual feeding, a problem arises in the collation mode, and in the above example, the number of manual feedings is 20 times in total.

To further reduce the number of manual feeds, follow the following two steps.
There are two possible methods. One is to separate the paper feed flow during normal operation from the paper feed flow when a jam occurs, and when a jam occurs, the copying machine's paper feed is immediately stopped, and then the paper feed is stopped for the calculated number of jammed sheets n. The system additionally feeds paper and then stops feeding the paper. That is, in this method, the number n of sheets and jams in the main body of the copying machine are automatically discharged to the temporary tray (without the operator operating the copy start key). Another method is to immediately stop the paper feeding of the copying machine when a jam occurs, and then remove the paper that is in the middle of conveyance of the copying machine, that is, between the paper feed section 111 and the discharge roller 115. After the jam is removed, the temporarily ejected sheets are distributed manually or by the feeder section, and then the paper feeding of the copying machine is restarted by pressing the copy start key. Ru. An advantage of these methods is that the number of jammed sheets can be automatically compensated for by pressing the next copy start key without manually feeding the sheets ejected to the temporary tray or using a feeder section.

FIG. 12 shows a specific example of the former.

FIG. 12a shows the paper feeding flow during normal operation, but since it is the same as that in FIG. 11b, the explanation will be omitted. In FIG. 12b, when a jam occurs, a jam detection flag is set, the conveyor belt stops (steps 〓, 〓), paper feeding from the main body of the copying machine is stopped, and a guide plate is set so that a passage to the temporary tray 14 is opened. 12 is switched (steps 〓, 〓). Therefore, after paper feeding is stopped, the sheets that have already been conveyed through the copying machine begin to be discharged onto the temporary tray 14. The content of the ejected sheet total counter C5 is subtracted from the sheet acceptance counter C3 to calculate the number of jammed sheets n (step 〓), and the jammed number n and the jam location are displayed (step 〓). The jam number n is set in the jam number register R3, and paper feeding is restarted (steps 〓, 〓). The paper feed unit sheet check is performed again, and the jam number register R3 is decremented by 1 each time the leading edge of the sheet is detected (steps 〓, 〓). It is determined whether the content of the jam number register R3 has become zero (step 〓), and unless it is zero, steps 〓 to 〓 are repeated, and when it becomes zero, paper feeding is stopped (step 〓). At this time, the jam detection flag is also reset. When the trailing edge of the sheet is detected in step 〓, a sheet acceptance check is performed on the collator side (step 〓), and the sheet acceptance counter C3 is incremented by one each time sheet acceptance is confirmed (step 〓).

In this way, sheets of jam number n are stored in temporary tray 1.
It is discharged at 4. After removing the jam and distributing the copies from the temporary tray to the bins by hand or by the feeder unit 5, if the copy start key is pressed, collation or sorting will continue automatically thereafter.

FIG. 13 shows a specific example of the latter mentioned above. In FIG. 13a, when the copy start key is pressed, the CPU first checks the jam detection flag (step 〓). When the flag is 0, paper feeding during normal operation is performed as in FIG. 12a or FIG. 11b.

When a jam occurs, the jam detection flag is set in FIG. 13b, the conveyor belt is stopped, paper feeding is also stopped, and the guide plate 12 switches the path to the temporary tray side (steps 〓, 〓, 〓,
〓). Then, a sheet acceptance check is performed (step 〓). Since the output of the detector 23 is OFF while the sheet is received, that is, the leading edge of the sheet is not detected, the timer circuit 81 immediately starts measuring the timer time Tn (step 〓). This timer time Tn is calculated from the paper feed section 111 to the discharge roller 115 in the main body of the copying machine.
This is set to the time required to send all remaining sheets in the copying machine out of the machine. The sheet acceptance check continues until this time elapses. Therefore, only the copies in the copying machine are delivered to the temporary tray 14, and the sheet receiving counter C is
The contents of 3 are incremented by 1 (step 〓). When the timer time Tn has elapsed, the sheet conveyance system of the main body of the copying machine is stopped (step 〓).

Distribute usable copies in the temporary tray and collator to bins by a feeder unit or manual feed,
After removing the jam, paper feeding is resumed by the operator's operation of the copy start key. If the jam detection flag is 1 at this point, the number of jammed sheets n is calculated by subtracting the content of the total discharge counter C5 from the total paper feed counter C1 (step 〓), and the number of jammed sheets is calculated from the paper feed counter at the time of the jam. Subtract the value and start feeding paper (step 〓).

In this way, the number of sheets that need to be redistributed and delivered to the temporary tray is considerably reduced. Therefore, the time and effort required for manual feeding can be reduced.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is an overall view showing the collator according to the present invention connected to a copying machine, FIG. 2 is a longitudinal cross-sectional view of the paper arrangement section, and FIG. 3 is a plan view showing the diagonal roller section.
FIG. 4 is a sectional view of the feeder section, FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram showing the cooperation between the deflection device and the deflection cam, FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram showing the cooperation between the conveyance section and the deflection device, and FIG. The figure shows the clutch control mechanism, Figure 8 is an explanatory diagram of the stepwise feed of the deflection device, Figure 9 is an explanatory diagram of the conveying section, Figure 10 is a block diagram of the control device, and Figure 11 is an illustration of filling the number of jams. FIG. 12 is a flowchart showing a first modification thereof, and FIG. 13 is a flowchart showing a second modification thereof. 1... Paper feed section sheet detector, 2, 3... Collator, 5... Feeder section, 6... Deflection device, 8...
Bin row, 12...Acceptance guide plate, 14...Temporary tray, 23...Sheet acceptance detector, 24...Intermediate roller section sheet detector, 25...Paper feed tray, 48...
... Deflection section sheet discharge detector, 63 ... Solenoid for raising, 67 ... Solenoid for lowering, 76 ... Electromagnetic clutch, 77 ... Home position detector,
79...Bin sheet detector.

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] 1. A collator used in connection with a copying machine or a printing machine, which comprises a plurality of sheet storage bins, a movable deflection device for distributing sheets to these bins, and a collator. A sheet reception detector installed at the entrance, a deflection section sheet discharge detector installed at the sheet discharge section of the deflection device, and a sheet reception detector located behind the sheet reception detector in the sheet conveyance direction, temporarily detecting the sheet conveyance path from the deflection device side. In a device having a receiving guide plate that is switched to the tray side, the occurrence of a jam is detected from the time when a sheet passes between the sheet receiving detector and the sheet discharging detector or the time when the sheet passes through the sheet discharging detector, When a jam occurs, the receiving guide plate is switched to the temporary tray side, and based on the number of sheets that have passed through the sheet receiving detector until the jam occurs, the number of sheets that have actually passed through the deflecting section sheet discharge detector and is stored in the bin is determined. Calculate the number of jammed sheets by subtracting the number of sheets, and feed the copier or printer with this number of jammed sheets as extra paper. In that case, if a jam occurs during collation mode, in one cycle of paper feeding in which the jam occurred. , after increasing the total number of sheets in one cycle corresponding to the specified number of copies by the number of jammed sheets, stop the paper feed of the copying machine or printing machine, and if a jam occurs during sorting mode, the jam occurs. A control characterized in that, in one cycle of paper feeding, the total number of sheets in one cycle corresponding to the number of sheets sorted into the same bin is increased by the number of jammed sheets, and then the paper feeding of the copying machine or the printing machine is stopped. Method. 2. The control method according to claim 1, wherein the number of jams is ejected to the temporary tray. 3. The control method according to claim 1, wherein when a jam occurs, the number of sheets that have already been delivered to the copying machine or printing machine is ejected to the temporary tray.