Source: http://www.google.com/patents/US7216863?dq=5,579,517
Timestamp: 2017-10-18 07:46:49
Document Index: 609757266

Matched Legal Cases: ['art 300', 'art 300', 'art 100', 'art 322', 'art 300', 'art 300', 'art 310', 'art 312', 'art 311', 'art 312', 'art 310', 'art 310', 'art 310', 'art 312', 'art 311', 'art 312', 'art 100', 'art 410', 'art 410', 'art 410', 'art 410', 'art 100', 'arts 323', 'arts 323', 'art 323', 'art 125', 'art 323', 'art 323']

Patent US7216863 - Sheet processing apparatus above image forming means and image forming apparatus - Google Patents
A sheet processing apparatus, which is configured in a simple construction and at low cost, includes a first sheet stacking portion for temporarily stacking a sheet discharged thereon, an alignment member for aligning the sheet discharged on the first sheet stacking portion, a sheet processing member...http://www.google.com/patents/US7216863?utm_source=gb-gplus-sharePatent US7216863 - Sheet processing apparatus above image forming means and image forming apparatus
Publication number US7216863 B2
Application number US 10/420,732
Also published as CN1222844C, CN1330299A, DE60136312D1, EP1168091A1, EP1168091B1, US6581922, US20010052666, US20030178761
Publication number 10420732, 420732, US 7216863 B2, US 7216863B2, US-B2-7216863, US7216863 B2, US7216863B2
Inventors Takashi Kuwata, Yasuyoshi Hayakawa, Kaoru Sato
Patent Citations (35), Referenced by (2), Classifications (24), Legal Events (3)
US 7216863 B2
1. A sheet processing apparatus mountable on an upper surface of an image forming apparatus which forms an image on a sheet, comprising:
a first sheet stacking portion, which temporarily stacks sheets discharged from said image forming apparatus;
an alignment member, which supports and aligns the sheets discharged on said first sheet stacking portion, movable in a direction perpendicular to the sheet discharging direction;
a sheet processing unit which performs a predetermined process on the sheets stacked and aligned on said first sheet stacking portion; and
a second sheet stacking portion which receives the sheets from said first sheet stacking portion,
wherein said second sheet stacking portion is located substantially vertically below said first sheet stacking portion,
wherein said alignment member drops the supported sheets to said second sheet stacking portion by movement of said alignment member in the direction apart from the supported sheets, and
wherein the sheet processing apparatus is mounted on the upper surface of the image forming apparatus and is substantially within an area of installation of the image forming apparatus.
2. A sheet processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said first sheet stacking portion is composed of said alignment member.
3. A sheet processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said alignment member supports both end sides of the sheets in a width direction thereof, and does not support a middle portion of the sheets.
4. A sheet processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein an angle which a support part of said first sheet stacking portion for supporting a fore end side, in a discharging direction, of the sheets discharged on said first sheet stacking portion makes with a horizontal plane is equal to or larger than an angle which a support part of said first sheet stacking portion for supporting a rear end side, in the discharging direction, of the sheets makes with the horizontal plane.
5. A sheet processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said first sheet stacking portion has a sheet return member arranged to abut on a fore end side, in a discharging direction, of the sheets discharged on said first sheet stacking portion so as to perform an alignment action on the sheets in the discharging direction.
6. A sheet processing apparatus according to claim 5, wherein said sheet return member has such an urging force as to return the sheets in a direction reverse to the discharging direction.
7. A sheet processing apparatus according to claim 5, wherein said sheet return member is arranged to return, with weight of said sheet return member, the sheets in a direction reverse to the discharging direction.
8. A sheet processing apparatus according to claim 5, wherein said first sheet stacking portion has a wall member arranged to abut on a rear end side, in the discharging direction, of the sheets discharged on said first sheet stacking portion, so as to align a rear end of the sheets returned to an upstream side in the discharging direction by said sheet return member.
9. A sheet processing apparatus according to claim 8, wherein said wall member is provided with projection parts which are disposed separate from each other at an interval larger than a width of the sheet and are arranged to abut on an end part of the sheets discharged on said first sheet stacking portion so as to drop the sheets to a predetermined position of said second sheet stacking portion.
10. A sheet processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said alignment member includes a guide member arranged to abut on a side surface of the sheets, in a width direction thereof, discharged on said first sheet stacking portion and to be movable in the width direction of the sheet, and driving unit which drives said alignment member.
11. A sheet processing apparatus according to claim 10, wherein said guide member is provided with a plurality of projections arranged to align the sheets to a prescribed position by abutting on the side surface of the sheet.
12. A sheet processing apparatus according to claim 11, wherein each of said plurality of projections is made of material of high abrasion resistance.
13. A sheet processing apparatus according to claim 10, wherein said guide member includes a pair of guide members disposed respectively on right and left sides in the width direction of the sheet, and wherein said pair of guide members are provided on said first sheet stacking portion in such a way as to be movable in the width direction of the sheet.
14. A sheet processing apparatus according to claim 10, wherein said guide member includes a pair of guide members disposed respectively on right and left sides in the width direction of the sheet, and wherein one of said pair of guide members is fixed to said first sheet stacking portion and the other of said pair of guide members is arranged to be movable in the width direction of the sheet.
15. A sheet processing apparatus according to claim 13, wherein said guide member is provided on said first sheet stacking portion and is restrained from moving in the width direction of the sheet by a guide pin arranged to guide the movement of said guide member.
16. A sheet processing apparatus according to claim 14, wherein said guide member is provided on said first sheet stacking portion and is restrained from moving in the width direction of the sheet by a guide pin arranged to guide the movement of said guide member.
17. A sheet processing apparatus according to claim 10, wherein said driving unit includes a motor arranged to generate a driving force, a transmission gear provided on said first sheet stacking portion and arranged to be rotated by the driving force, and a rack member provided on said guide member and arranged to change rotation of said transmission gear to a moving force in the width direction of the sheet.
18. A sheet processing apparatus according to claim 14, wherein, after a predetermined number of sheets are aligned by said pair of guide members, one or both of said pair of guide members move in such a direction as to widen the interval between said pair of guide members so as to cause the predetermined number of sheets, which have been stacked on said first sheet stacking portion, to drop to said second sheet stacking portion.
19. A sheet processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a plurality of sheet processing apparatuses each of which corresponds to said sheet processing apparatus are disposed vertically in piles, and an upper surface of a frame body of each of said plurality of sheet processing apparatuses is used as said second sheet stacking portion.
20. A sheet processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising change-over member which selectively changes over between said first sheet stacking portion and said second sheet stacking portion to which the sheet is to be conveyed.
21. A sheet processing apparatus according to claim 20, wherein said change-over member acts in such a way that after the sheets processed by said sheet processing unit is dropped on said second sheet stacking portion, the next sheet is discharged on said first sheet stacking portion.
22. A sheet processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said sheet processing unit is a stapler which staples a predetermined position of the sheets stacked on said first sheet stacking portion.
23. A sheet processing apparatus according to claim 22, wherein said stapler is disposed at an end part on a fore end side in a discharging direction of the sheet on said first sheet stacking portion.
24. A sheet processing apparatus mountable on an upper surface of an image forming apparatus which forms an image on a sheet, comprising:
a first sheet stacking portion which temporarily stacks the sheets discharged from said image forming apparatus;
an alignment member, which supports and aligns the sheets discharged on said first sheet stacking portion, movable in a direction perpendicular to the sheet discharging direction; and
a sheet processing unit which performs a predetermined process on the sheets stacked and aligned on said first sheet stacking portion,
wherein said alignment member drops the supported sheets to a second sheet stacking portion which is located below said first sheet stacking portion and provided on the upper surface of said image forming apparatus, by movement of said alignment member in the direction apart from the supported sheets, and
25. A sheet processing apparatus according to claim 24, wherein said first sheet stacking portion is composed of said alignment member.
26. A sheet processing apparatus according to claim 24, wherein said alignment member supports both end sides of the sheets in a width direction thereof, and does not support a middle portion of the sheets.
27. A sheet processing apparatus according to claim 24, wherein said alignment member includes a guide member arranged to abut on a side surface of the sheets, in a width direction thereof, discharged on said first sheet stacking portion and to be movable in the width direction of the sheet, and driving unit which drives said alignment member.
This is a divisional of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/791,775, filed Feb. 26, 2001now U.S. Pat. No. 6,581,922, and allowed on Jan. 28, 2003.
FIGS. 2( a) and 2(b) are sectional views for explaining the operation of the sheet processing apparatus according to the embodiment.
FIGS. 3( a) and 3(b) are sectional views for explaining the operation of slide guides in the embodiment, showing the state in which the slide guides are located at their standby positions.
FIGS. 4( a) and 4(b) are sectional views for explaining the operation of the slide guides in the embodiment, showing the state in which sheets have been aligned by the slide guides.
FIGS. 5( a) and 5(b) are sectional views for explaining the operation of the slide guides in the embodiment, showing the state in which the slide guides are located at their home positions and the sheets are dropping.
FIGS. 6( a) and 6(b) are sectional views for explaining the arrangement and operation of a slide guide and a fixed guide in another embodiment of the invention, showing the state in which the slide guide is located at its standby position.
FIGS. 7( a) and 7(b) are sectional views for explaining the operation of the slide guide in the embodiment shown in FIGS. 6( a) and 6(b), showing the state in which sheets have been aligned by the slide guide and the fixed guide.
FIGS. 8( a) and 8(b) are sectional views for explaining the operation of the slide guide in the embodiment shown in FIGS. 6( a) and 6(b), showing the state in which the slide guide is located at its home positions and the sheets are dropping.
FIGS. 11( a) and 11(b) are sectional views for explaining the operation of a sheet processing apparatus in which side wall parts are provided at the reference wall, showing the state in which the slide guides are located at their standby positions.
FIGS. 12( a) and 12(b) are sectional views for explaining the operation of the sheet processing apparatus in which the side wall parts are provided at the reference wall, showing the state in which sheets have been aligned by the slide guides.
FIGS. 13( a) and 13(b) are sectional views for explaining the operation of the sheet processing apparatus in which the side wall parts are provided at the reference wall, showing the state in which the sheets abut on the side wall part and are then dropping.
First, the outlines of the invention will be described with reference to FIG. 1 to FIGS. 5( a) and 5(b). FIG. 1 is a sectional view showing in outline the whole arrangement of a sheet processing apparatus and an image processing apparatus (printer) according to the embodiment of the invention.
Further, the sheet processing apparatus 300 is provided with a casing part 300A, which contains the various members of the sheet processing apparatus 300. The casing part 300A of the sheet processing apparatus 300 is detachably attached to a casing part 100A of the printer body 100, which will be described later.
Next, the arrangement of the sheet processing apparatus 300 and the operation of each part of the sheet processing apparatus 300 in a case where the sheet S transported by the discharge roller 130 is conveyed to the sheet processing apparatus 300 will be described with reference to FIGS. 2( a) and 2(b) and FIGS. 3( a) and 3(b).
Here, FIGS. 2( a) and 2(b) show the sections of the discharge roller 130 and the sheet processing apparatus 300. FIG. 3( a) shows the section A—A of the sheet processing apparatus 300 shown in FIG. 1. FIG. 3( b) shows the section B—B of the sheet processing apparatus shown in FIG. 3( a).
In FIGS. 2( a) and 2(b), reference numeral 320 denotes a conveying roller, reference numeral 321 denotes a discharge sensor, reference character M denotes a jogger motor, reference numeral 322 denotes a sheet return member, and reference numeral 323 denotes a reference wall for abutting thereon the rear end of the sheet. These members will be described later.
As shown in FIGS. 2( a) and 2(b), the conveying roller 320 is disposed above the flapper 301, which serves as a switching means as mentioned above, on the downstream side in the sheet conveying direction, and is arranged to be driven to rotate by a driving motor (not shown). The discharge sensor 321 is disposed near the conveying roller 320 on the downstream side in the sheet conveying direction, and is arranged to detect the passage of the front end and rear end of the sheet as conveyed by the conveying roller 320. The jogger motor M is a motor capable of rotating forward and backward for driving slide guides 310 and 311, which serve as guide members, and is a stepping motor in the case of the present embodiment.
The sheet return member 322 is disposed, as shown in FIGS. 2( a) and 2(b), on the most downstream side in the sheet conveying direction in the sheet processing apparatus 300, and is arranged to be swingable around a pivot shaft part 322 a. FIG. 2( a) shows the initial position of the sheet return member 322. FIG. 2( b) shows a state in which the sheet return member 322 is pushed up by the sheet S which has been conveyed up to the sheet return member 322.
The sheet return member 322 has a predetermined value of weight. When having being pushed up counterclockwise, as viewed in FIG. 2( b), by the sheet S, the sheet return member 322 is caused to swing in the direction of an arrow shown in FIG. 2( b) (clockwise) by being urged by a spring (not shown). Such a swinging force of the sheet return member 322 causes the rear end in the sheet conveying direction of the sheet S to abut on the reference wall 323, so that the alignment action in the sheet conveying direction is performed on the sheet S.
Subsequently, as shown in FIGS. 3( a) and 3(b), the sheet processing apparatus 300 is provided with the slide guide (R) 310 and the slide guide (L) 311, which will be described later, as guide members for aligning the sheet S in the width direction thereof.
In a case where a control means (not shown) performs control over a stapling operation in response to a command outputted beforehand from a computer or the like, the sheet processing apparatus 300 performs the stapling operation in the following manner. Before the sheet to be stapled is discharged by the discharge roller 130, the fore end side of the flapper 301 is made to be located at a lower position than that of a nip portion of the discharge roller 130 by a solenoid (not shown) through a link mechanism (not shown). Accordingly, as shown in FIG. 2( a), the sheet S discharged outside from the discharge roller 130 is led upward along the flapper 301, and is conveyed to the inside of the sheet processing apparatus 300. Then, the sheet S is transported to the first sheet stacking portion 300B, which is arranged to temporarily stack sheets.
In this instance, in the sheet processing apparatus 300, as shown in FIG. 3( a), the slide guide (R) 310 and the slide guide (L) 311, which are disposed respectively on the right-hand side and the left-hand side with respect to the sheet discharging direction (an arrow T shown in FIG. 3( a)), retreat to their respective positions each of which is located outside by a predetermined amount with respect to the end of the width of the sheet S, so as not to interfere with the sheet S being conveyed, thus, waiting for the sheet S to come in.
The guide surface of the first sheet stacking portion 300B is, as shown in FIG. 2( a), inclined by a predetermined angle with respect to the horizontal direction, and the angle of inclination differs with the upstream side and the downstream side of the guide surface of the first sheet stacking portion 300B in the sheet discharging direction. More specifically, there is formed a bend part 300C which is bent by an angle of inclination α between a predetermined section on the upstream side and a predetermined section on the downstream side.
Then, when detected by the discharge sensor 321 disposed near the discharge roller 320 on the downstream side, a fore end of the sheet S conveyed to the inside of the casing part 300A of the sheet processing apparatus 300 causes a flag 321 a of the discharge sensor 321 to swing counterclockwise as viewed in FIG. 2( a).
Subsequently, when a rear end of the sheet S passes through the discharge roller 320, as shown in FIG. 2( b), the flag 321 a swings, by its own weight, clockwise as viewed in FIG. 2( b), and the rear end of the sheet S is pushed downward by the flag 321 a, so that the sheet S can be surely dropped to the guide surface composed of the slide guide (R) 310 and the slide guide (L) 311. At this time, the discharge sensor 321 turns off.
Further, as mentioned in the foregoing, although the fore end of the sheet S stacked on the first sheet stacking portion 300B tries to push up the sheet return member 322 counterclockwise as viewed in FIG. 2( b), the sheet return member 322, which is caused to swing in the direction of the arrow shown in FIG. 2( b) (clockwise) by being urged by the spring (not shown) causes the rear end of the sheet S to abut on the reference wall 323. Accordingly, the alignment action in the sheet conveying direction (in the longitudinal direction) is performed on the sheet S stacked on the first sheet stacking portion 300B.
More specifically, the slide guide (R) 310 is driven by the jogger motor M to move in the direction of an arrow L shown in FIG. 3( a), so that reference pins (R) 330 which are projections provided on the slide guide (R) 310 abut on the right side surface of the sheet S. Then, the slide guide (R) 310 pushes the sheet S, with the reference pins (R) 330, toward the slide guide (L) 311.
Here, the construction of the slide guides 310 and 311 will be described further in detail. FIGS. 3( a) and 3(b) show the section A—A of the sheet processing apparatus 300 shown in FIG. 1. FIGS. 4( a) and 4(b) and FIGS. 5( a) and 5(b) are sectional views for explaining the operation of the slide guides 310 and 311. In addition, FIG. 3( a) shows the sheet processing apparatus 300 as viewed from the side of the jogger motor M shown in FIG. 3( b), with a frame F shown in FIG. 3( b) removed.
The slide guides 310 and 311 are arranged to move to the right and to the left in FIG. 3( a) (in the width direction of the sheet), i.e., in directions perpendicular to the sheet conveying direction (the arrow T shown in FIG. 3( a)), by receiving a driving force transmitted from the jogger motor M, while being guided by guide pins 314 a, 314 b, 314 c and 314 d provided on the frame F of the sheet processing apparatus 300.
Further, in the state shown in FIG. 3( a), the slide guide (L) 311 is restrained from moving further in the direction of the arrow R because of abutting on the guide pin 314 c. The position of the guide pin 314 c is decided with respect to the position of the stapling part H. Since the stapling part H in the present embodiment is fixed to the sheet processing apparatus 300, it is necessary to perform the alignment action on the sheet S with the stapling part H always used as a point of reference. The reason for this is that, if the slide guide (L) 311 is moved to the side in the direction of the arrow R beyond the stapling part H at the time of the alignment action, the stapling operation becomes impossible.
Therefore, the moving range of the guide slide (L) 311 is restricted by the guide pin 314 c.
As shown in FIG. 3( b) when viewed from the sheet conveying direction, each of the slide guides 310 and 311 is composed of a wall part arranged to guide each side surface of the sheet S and a guide part arranged to support the upper and lower surfaces of the sheet S. Since the sheet S is supported by the lower surface of the guide part of each of the slide guides 310 and 311, a middle portion of the sheet S in the width direction thereof is not supported.
When a power source of the sheet processing apparatus 300 is turned on, the discharge roller 320 is driven by the driving motor to start rotating. Subsequently, when the jogger motor M is rotated to cause the stepped gear 317 to rotate, a driving force is transmitted to the rack part 310 a of the slide guide (R) 310, so that the slide guide (R) 310 retreats outside (in the direction of the arrow R in FIG. 3( a)).
Further, similarly, the slide rack 312 is moved in the direction of the arrow L. when the embossed part 312 a of the slide rack 312 abuts on the left-side end surface (as viewed in FIG. 3( a)) of the rectangular hole part 311 a of the slide guide (L) 311, the slide guide (L) 311 is pushed by the embossed part 312 a to retreat outside (in the direction of the arrow L in FIG. 3( a)).
The slide guide (R) 310 is provided with a flag part 310 f. When the flag part 310 f is moved up to a predetermined retreat position, as shown in FIG. 5( a), the flag part 310 f blocks light incident on a photo-sensor 316, thereby turning off the photo-sensor 316. At this point of time, the jogger motor M comes to a stop. This position is referred to as the “home position” of the sheet processing apparatus 300.
After the above-stated initial operation is performed on the sheet S, when a signal indicating that the sheet S enters the sheet processing apparatus 300 is inputted from the printer body 100 to the sheet processing apparatus 300, the jogger motor M rotates in the direction reverse to the direction employed for the initial operation, so that the slide guide (R) 310 and the slide guide (L) 311 move inward. Then, each of the slide guide (R) 310 and the slide guide (L) 311 comes to a stop at such a position as to be wider by a predetermined amount “d” than the width of the sheet S discharged to the first sheet stacking portion 300B, as shown in FIGS. 3( a) and 3(b). In this position, the slide guide (L) 311 abuts on the guide pin 314 c and is thus prevented from moving further in the direction of the arrow R. In the present embodiment, the position shown in FIGS. 3( a) and 3(b) is referred to as the “standby position”. In the standby position, the reference pins (L) 331 of the slide guide (L) 311 are used as the reference position for the alignment action.
In this instance, after the fore end of the sheet S is detected by the discharge sensor 321, the sheet S is conveyed along the supporting surfaces of the slide guides 310 and 311 (the lower surface parts of guide parts), so that the left-side corner part of the fore end (the left and bottom end part shown in FIG. 3( a)) of the sheet S enters an opening part of the stapling part H.
In the alignment action, first, with the slide guide (R) 310 moving in the direction of the arrow L, the reference pins (R) 330 abut on the right-side end surface of the sheet S, and then push the sheet S toward the slide guide (L) 311. Then, when the left-side end surface of the sheet S abuts on the reference pins (L) 331, there is obtained the state shown in FIGS. 4( a) and 4(b). Incidentally, in consideration of any bending of the sheet S, etc., the slide guide (R) 310 may be moved up to a position where the interval between the reference pins (R) 330 and (L) 331 becomes narrower than the length of the sheet S in the width direction thereof.
The jogger motor M temporarily stops when there has been obtained the state shown in FIGS. 4( a) and 4(b) in which the both side end parts of the sheet S abut on the slide guides 310 and 311. After that, the jogger motor M starts rotating reversely and then stops when the slide guides (R) 310 and (L) 311 have come again to the standby position shown in FIGS. 3( a) and 3(b). The control action on the amount of movement of the slide guide (R) 310 in such a series of operations is managed on the basis of the number of driving pulses for the jogger motor M, being a stepping motor, with the home position, where the photo-sensor 316 is light-blocked, taken as a reference point.
In addition, during the operation in which the slide guide (R) 310 returns to the standby position, while the slide rack 312 also moves in such a direction as to expand the spring 313, the slide guide (L) 311 itself does not move, being kept in the standby position. Accordingly, the left-side end part of the sheet S, as viewed in FIG. 4( a), is kept in the state of abutting on the slide guide (L) 311.
The above operation is performed until the last sheet Sn (for the n-th time) in one job is aligned. Then, in the state in which the reference pins (R) 330 provided on the slide guide (R) 310 cause the left-side end surfaces of the sheets to abut on the reference pins (L) 331 of the slide guide (L) 311, i.e., in the state in which the alignment action has been performed as shown in FIGS. 4( a) and 4(b), the sheets are stapled by the stapling part H, which is located on the left side of the fore end of the sheet bundle.
Subsequently, when the stapling action is completed as described above, the jogger motor M is driven to rotate, so that the slide guide (R) 310 and the slide guide (L) 311 move in the direction of the arrow R and in the direction of the arrow L, respectively, from the state shown in FIG. 4( a). Incidentally, since, at the time of start of rotation of the jogger motor M, the slide rack 312 first moves to the left as viewed in FIG. 4( a), the slide guide (L) 311 itself does not immediately move.
When the slide guide (R) 310 passes over the standby position shown in FIG. 3( a), the embossed part 312 a of the slide rack 312 abuts on the end surface of the rectangular hole part 311 a of the slide guide (L) 311. Then, the slide guide (L) 311 starts moving in the direction of the arrow L by being pushed by the embossed part 312 a, so that both the slide guides 310 and 311 move.
When the interval between the slide guides 310 and 311, which are supporting the sheet bundle as stapled, becomes equal to or wider than the sheet width, the sheet bundle drops downward as shown in FIGS. 5( a) and 5(b). Accordingly, the sheet bundle drops to the face-down discharge part (the second sheet stacking portion) 125, which is provided on the upper surface of the casing part 100A of the printer body 100, and is stacked there.
Next, a sheet processing apparatus according to another embodiment of the invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 6( a) and 6(b) to FIGS. 8( a) and 8(b). FIG. 6( a) shows the sheet processing apparatus 300 as viewed from above, and FIG. 6( b) shows the section C—C of the sheet processing apparatus 300 shown in FIG. 6( a).
The slide guide (R) 410 is arranged to be movable to the right and to the left as viewed in FIG. 6( a), i.e., to be capable of making a reciprocating motion in the sheet width direction which is perpendicular to the sheet conveying direction. The slide guide (R) 410 is driven to move by the jogger motor M. Further, the slide guide (R) 410 has its position in the height direction regulated by the stepped gear 317 and a height regulating member 415.
Next, the operation of the slide guides (R) 410 will be described. When a power source of the sheet processing apparatus 300 is turned on, the discharge roller 320 is driven by a conveying motor (not shown) to start rotating. Subsequently, when the jogger motor M is rotated to cause the stepped gear 317 to rotate, a driving force is transmitted to the rack part 410 a of the slide guide (R) 410, so that the slide guide (R) 410 retreats outside (in the direction of the arrow R in FIG. 6( a)).
The slide guide (R) 410 is provided with a flag part 410 f. When the flag part 410 f is moved up to a predetermined retreat position, as shown in FIG. 8( a), the flag part 410 f blocks light incident on a photo-sensor, thereby turning off the photo-sensor. At this point of time, the jogger motor M comes to a stop. This position is referred to as the “home position” of the sheet processing apparatus 300.
After the above-stated initial operation is performed on the sheet S, when a signal indicating that the sheet S enters the sheet processing apparatus 300 is inputted from the printer body 100 to the sheet processing apparatus 300, the jogger motor M rotates in the direction reverse to the direction employed for the initial operation, so that the slide guide (R) 410 moves inward (in the direction of the arrow L in FIG. 6( a)). Then, the slide guide (R) 410 comes to a stop at such a position as to be wider by the predetermined amount “d” than the width of the sheet S discharged to the first sheet stacking portion 400B, as shown in FIGS. 6( a) and 6(b).
In this instance, after the fore end of the sheet S is detected by the discharge sensor 321, the sheet S is conveyed along the supporting surfaces of the slide guides (R) 410 and the fixed guide (L) 411 (the lower surface parts of guide parts), so that the left-side corner part of the fore end (the left and bottom end part shown in FIG. 6( a)) of the sheet S enters an opening part of the stapling part H.
The state obtained after the alignment action has been performed is shown in FIGS. 7( a) and 7(b). In this instance, in consideration of any bending of the sheet S, etc., the slide guide (R) 410 may be moved up to a position where the interval between the reference pins (R) 430 and (L) 431 becomes narrower than the length of the sheet S in the width direction thereof.
The jogger motor M temporarily stops when there has been obtained the state shown in FIGS. 7( a) and 7(b). After that, the jogger motor M starts rotating reversely and then stops when the slide guide (R) 410 has come again to the standby position. The control action on the amount of movement of the slide guide (R) 410 is managed on the basis of the number of driving pulses for the jogger motor M, similarly to the first-mentioned embodiment.
In the present embodiment, when the stapling action is completed, the jogger motor M is driven to rotate, so that the slide guide (R) 410 moves in the direction of the arrow R from the state shown in FIG. 7( a). Then, when the end part of the supporting surface of the slide guide (R) 410 has moved in the direction of the arrow R beyond the position of the right-side end part of the sheet bundle as stapled, the sheet bundle drops downward as shown in FIGS. 8( a) and 8(b). Accordingly, the sheet bundle drops to the face-down discharge part (the second sheet stacking portion) 125, which is provided on the upper surface of the casing part 100A of the printer body 100, and is stacked there.
Next, an operation for causing a sheet to drop, which is characteristic of the invention, will be described in detail with reference to FIG. 10 to FIGS. 13( a) and 13(b). FIG. 11( a) shows the sheet processing apparatus 300 as viewed from above, and FIG. 11( b) shows the section D—D of the sheet processing apparatus 300 shown in FIG. 11( a).
FIG. 10 is an enlarged sectional view showing parts around the reference wall 323 in the present embodiment. The reference wall 323 is provided with side wall parts 323 a, which are projections indicated by hatching. As is understandable from FIG. 11( a), the side wall parts 323 a are disposed in a protruded manner at the respective positions of the surface of the reference wall 323, which are separate from each other at an interval wider than the width of the sheet.
However, as shown in FIG. 13( a), the rear end part of the sheet which is in the state of sticking to the slide guide 311 abuts on the side wall part 323 a, so that the sheet is prevented from following the movement of the slide guide 311. Accordingly, it becomes possible to cause the sheet to drop to the face-down discharge part 125 at an appropriate location. Since there is the possibility that the sheet sticks to either one of the slide guides 310 and 311, the side wall part 323 a is provided on each side of the reference wall 323.
In addition, in a case where only one of the guide members is arranged to move as described with reference to FIG. 6( a), etc., the above-stated advantageous effect can be obtained if the side wall part 323 a is provided only on the side of the guide member arranged to slide.
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EP1151949A1 * Nov 18, 1999 Nov 7, 2001 Omron Corporation Binding device
GB1576947A Title not available
US8290414 * Jun 18, 2009 Oct 16, 2012 Canon Kabushiki Kaisha Image forming apparatus
US20090317145 * Jun 18, 2009 Dec 24, 2009 Canon Kabushiki Kaisha Image forming apparatus
U.S. Classification 270/58.11, 270/58.18, 270/58.08, 270/58.16
International Classification B65H31/38, B65H29/26, B65H31/30, B65H31/36, B65H37/04, B65H31/00, B41J13/26, B42C1/12, G03G15/00
Cooperative Classification B65H2301/4213, G03G2215/0089, B65H2403/411, B65H31/3009, B42C1/12, G03G15/6547, B65H2301/4222, B65H2301/42261
European Classification B65H31/30A, G03G15/65K4, B42C1/12