LEAF DEFLECTOR APPARATUS, SELF-ADJUSTABLE
DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates generally to a leaf path deflector for an electrophotographic printing machine and more particularly to a self-adjusting sheet guide and deflector for removal of binding for a sheet path. In a typical electrophotographic printing process, a photoconductive member is charged to a substantially uniform potential, to sensitize its surface. The loaded portion of the photoconductive member is exposed to a light image of an original reproduced document. Exposure of the charged photoconductor member selectively dissipates the charge in the irradiated areas. This records a latent electrostatic image in the photoconductive member that corresponds to the information areas contained within the original document. After the latent electrostatic image is recorded on the photoconductive member, the latent image is revealed by bringing a developing material into contact. In general, the developer material comprises organic pigment particles that adhere triboelectrically to carrier granules. The organic pigment particles are attracted from the carrier granules to the latent image forming a REF: 26950 image of organic pigment powder in the photoconductive member. The organic pigment powder image is then transferred from the photoconductive member to a copy sheet. The organic pigment particles are heated to permanently attach the powder image to the copy sheet. In printing machines such as those described above, during the fusing process, the organic pigment images are fixed to papers by a heated roll that removes moisture from the paper and as a result causes the paper to curl due to moisture and temperature gradients. through the thickness of the paper. Many copying machines are equipped with mounts for reduction of curvature, to improve the reliability of paper handling as well as for customer satisfaction. The direction of curvature of an input sheet to a curvature reduction assembly depends on the direction of curvature created by a merger under the effect of a coverage of image area, paper weight basis and humidity. It also depends on the control of the system of a copying machine that can change the orientation of an input sheet in the assembly for reduction of curvature, due to the requirement of an output device. For example, on some machines, the simple feed sheets for a mailbox are the downward image (upward curvature) while a disk terminator has an upward image (downward curvature) as a result of reversing output sheets by a inverter before leaving IOT and before entering the disk terminator. Therefore, the input deflector structure of a curvature reduction assembly positioned at the output of an IOT requires guiding both TI and AI curvature reduction, and any of the aforementioned output devices can be interchangeably connected to the IOT . For ease of releasing a jammed sheet at the entrance of the assembly for reduction of curvature, which can very often occur due to severely curved sheets entering the assembly for reduction of curvature, the feeding device (a fusion or an inverter) that supplies Leaves to the assembly for reduction of curvature, is designed to make sliding module that can be pulled out by an operator, for release of binding or for service. To have enough release between the two devices, a physical space between the modules needs to be designed in a machine for robustness, to avoid any possibility of interference due to manufacturing tolerances of the two devices and its support frame. This interface space however is a cause for binding of curled sheets if they can not be closed or reduced during the operation of the machine to prevent the sheets from entering the space. It is convenient to have a deflector for auto-adjustable input, which is pivotally mounted to the two side plates of the assembly for reduction of curvature. The inlet baffle has a lower guide surface and an upper guide surface that form a converging channel for lightly pushing papers at the bend clamping point. In addition, it is convenient to have a baffle that will cause the jammed sheets to move outward from a fastening point for easy release of the jam. The following descriptions may relate to various aspects of the present invention. US-A-5,326,093 Holder: Sollitt Issue Date: July 5, 1994 Xerox Disclosure Journal Inventors: Kurtz et al., Vol. 8, No. 4, Page 297 Some portions of the foregoing descriptions can be briefly summarized as follows: The patent of the USA No. 5,326,093 discloses a universal interface for operatively connecting and feeding the sequential copy sheet output of various widely varying gamut reproduction machines at heights with sheet output level to various independent copy sheet processing units, which have heights of Widely variable blade feed level with a mobile interface module freely positioned anywhere in a narrow narrow width. A sheet feeding path extends from one side of the module to the other to transport the copy sheets. This path of sheet feeding is preferably bidirectional and reversible to feed through copy sheets from either side. It is repositionable by vertically relocating over a full-length path of vertical height range that opens on opposite sides of the interface module, a retention system retains the blade path ends in a selected height position corresponding to a level of sheet output in the selected reproduction apparatus and a sheet feed level of the selected copy sheet processing unit. The described sheet feed path varies in length automatically with this path end relocation, however it remains substantially linear and can use automatically telescoping deflectors. Xerox Disclosure Journal, Vol. 8, No. 4, discloses a baffle for paper exposure that curves a sheet that becomes jammed as a transport is removed from a machine. The curvature formation allows a blade to move past frame members without tearing or binding further. According to one aspect of the present invention, there is provided a self-adjusting leaf deflector apparatus, for bridging a space in a sheet path, comprising a pair of elongate members, located adjacent and substantially parallel to each other, to form a throat blade guide between them, a support member that connects the members in parallel at each end to form a guide structure and a retainer member, located on the support member for movably connecting the support member within the path of the members. sheets, wherein the guide structure is mobile from a first position that bypasses a space in the sheet path, to a second position that opens the space. According to another aspect of the invention, a self-adjusting leaf deflector is provided for connecting a plurality of subsystem modules in an electrophotographic printing machine, comprising a pair of elongated members located adjacent and substantially parallel to each other, in order to form a sheet guide throat therebetween, a support member connecting the parallel members at each end, to form a guide structure and a retainer member, located on the support member for movably connecting the support member to a first module of subsystem, wherein the guide structure is mobile from a first position that bridges a space between the subsystem modules to a second position that opens the space. Other features of the present invention will be apparent as discussed in the following description and with reference to the drawings in which: Figure 1 is a schematic elevation view of a typical electrophotographic printing machine, which utilizes the clogging release characteristics of the present invention; Figure 2 is a side view illustrating the space between the two machine subsystem modules; Figure 3 is a perspective view of the self-adjusting mobile entry guide of the present invention; Figures 4 and 5 are side views illustrating the self-adjusting inlet guide mounted on a mounting system module for reduction of curvature in the extended and retracted positions, - Figure 6 is a side view of the mounting module for curvature reduction , which illustrates the self-adjusting guide in the operative position, - and Figures 7 to 10 inclusive, illustrate the function of the guide for removal of jamming located at the outlet of the mounting module for reduction of curvature. While the present invention will be described in connection with a preferred embodiment thereof, it will be understood that it is not intended to limit the invention to that embodiment. On the contrary, it is intended to cover all alternatives, modifications and equivalents that may be included within the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims. For a general understanding of the features of the present invention, reference is made to the drawings. In the drawings, similar reference numbers have been used throughout the same to identify identical elements. Figure 1 schematically illustrates an electrophotographic printing machine, which incorporates the features of the present invention. It will be apparent from the following discussion that the clogging release characteristics of the present invention can be employed in a wide variety of devices and is not specifically limited in its application to the particular embodiment illustrated herein. With reference to Figure 1 of the drawings, an original document is placed in a document handler 27 on a scanning feed digitizer (RIS = raster input scanner) generally indicated by reference number 28. The RIS contains lamps for illumination of document, optical components and a mechanical digitizing unit and a load-coupled device set (CCD = charge coupled device). The RIS captures the entire original document and converts it to a series of scan lines. This information is transmitted to an electronic subsystem (ESS = electronic subsystem) that controls a digitizer with scanning output (ROS = raster output scanner) described below. Figure 1 schematically illustrates an electrophotographic printing machine that generally employs a photoconductive strip 10. Preferably, the photoconductive strip 10 is made from a photoconductive material coated in a layer of earth, which in turn is coated in a layer Backrest anti-curvature formation. The band 10 moves in the direction of the arrow 13, to advance successive portions sequentially through the various processing stations arranged with respect to their movement path. The web 10 is trapped with respect to the stripping roller 14, tension roller 20 and drive or displacement roller 16. As the roller 16 rotates, the web 10 advances in the direction of the arrow 13. Initially, a portion of the photoconductive surface passes. through the charging station A. At the charging station A, a corona generating device generally indicated by the reference number 22 charges the photoconductive band 10 to a relatively high substantially uniform potential. In an exposure station B, an electronic controller or subsystem (ESS), indicated generally by the reference number 29, receives the image signals representing the desired output image and processes these signals to convert them to a continuous tone or representation in grayscale of the image that is transmitted to a modulated output generator, for example the digitizer with scanning output (ROS), usually indicated by the reference number 30. Preferably, ESS 29 is a dedicated self-contained mini-computer. The image signals transmitted to the ESS 29 may originate from an RIS as described above or from a computer, thus allowing the electrophotographic printing machine to serve as a remotely located printer for one or more computers. Alternatively, the printer can serve as a dedicated printer for a high-speed computer. The ESS 29 signals, corresponding to the continuous tone image to be reproduced by the printing machine, are transmitted to the ROS 30. The ROS 30 includes a laser with rotating polygonal mirror blocks. The ROS will expose the photoconductor band to record a latent electrostatic image corresponding to the continuous tone image that is received from ESS 29. As an alternative, ROS 30 can use a linear array of light emitting diodes (LEDs), arranged to illuminate the charged portion of the photoconductive band 10 in a sweep-by-sweep base. After the latent electrostatic image has been etched onto the photoconductive surface 12, the web 10 advances the latent image to a developing station C, where the organic pigment, the dried or liquid particle form is electrostatically attracted to the latent image , using commonly known techniques. The latent image attracts particles of organic pigment from the carrier granules that form an image of organic pigment powder. As the successive latent electrostatic images are revealed, the organic pigment particles become depleted of the revealing material. An organic pigment particle dispenser, indicated generally by reference numeral 39, discharges organic pigment particles in the developing housing 40 of the developing unit 38. With continuous reference to FIG. 1, after the latent electrostatic image is revealed , the organic pigment powder image present in the band 10 advances to the transfer station D. A printing sheet 48 is advanced to the transfer station D, by means of a sheet feeding apparatus 50. Preferably, the apparatus of sheet feed 50 includes a pusher roller 51, which feeds the uppermost sheet of stack 54 to the fastening point 55 formed by feed roller 52 and retard roller 53. Feed roller 52 rotates to advance the sheet from the stack 54 to the vertical transport 56. The vertical transport 56 directs the advancing sheet 48 of the support material to the record transport 120 of the invention. The device, described in detail below, passes to the image transfer station D to receive an image from the photoreceptor band 10 in a synchronized sequence such that the image of organic pigment powder formed there contacts the advancing sheet. in the transfer station D. The transfer station D includes a corona generating device 58 that sprays ions on the back side of the sheet 48. This attracts the organic pigment powder sheet from the photoconductive surface 12 to the sheet 48. The sheet is then detached from the photoreceptor by a corona generating device 59 which sprays opposite charged ions on the back side of the sheet 48, to assist in removing the sheet from the photoreceptor. After the transfer, the sheet 48 continues to move in the direction of the arrow 60 by the web transport 62 advancing the sheet 48 to the fusing station F. The fusing station F includes a fusing structure, to generally indicate by the reference number 70 which permanently fixes the image of organic pigment powder transferred to the copy sheet. Preferably, the fusing structure 70 includes a heated fusing roll 72 and a pressure roller 74 with the powder image on the copy sheet contacting the fusing roll 72. The pressure roller is cammed against the fusing roll, to provide the necessary pressure to fix the image of organic pigment powder to the copy sheet. The fuser roller is heated internally by a quartz lamp (not shown). The release agent stored in a tank (not shown) is pumped to a dosing roller (not shown). A cutting blade (not shown) trims the excess release agent. The release agent is transferred to a donor roll (not shown) and then to a fuser roll 72. The sheet then passes through the merger 70 where the image is permanently fixed or fused to the sheet. After passing through the merger 70, a gate 80 either allows the sheet to move directly through the outlet 16 to a terminator or stacker, or deflects the sheet to a duplex path 100, specifically, first in the single sheet inverter 82 present. That is, if the sheet is any of a single sheet, or a full duplex sheet having both side one and side two images formed, the sheet will be transported via a gate 80 directly to the output 84. However, if the sheet is doubled and then only printed with an image on side one, gate 80 will be placed to divert that sheet to inverter 82 and to duplex loop path 100, where that sheet will be reversed and then fed to the point acceleration clamp 102 and belt conveyors 110, to recirculate again through the transfer station D and fuse 70 to receive and permanently fix the image of side two to the back side of that duplex sheet, before it leaves the exit path 84. The path of the blade 84 includes the bi-directional curvature reduction assembly of single path 200 of the present invention, described more fully below. After the printing sheet is separated from the photoconductive surface 12 of the web 10, the residual organic pigment / developer and the paper fiber particles adhering to the photoconductive surface 12 are removed therefrom in the cleaning station. E. The cleaning station E includes a rotatably mounted fibrous brush, in contact with the photoconductive surface 12, to disturb and remove paper fibers and a cleaning blade to remove non-transferred organic pigment particles. The blade can be configured in either a cleaner or scalpel position, depending on the application. Subsequent to cleaning, a discharge lamp (not shown) floods the photoconductive surface 12 with light, to dissipate any remaining electrostatic charge remaining therein, prior to being charged for the next successive image formation cycle. The various machine functions are controlled by the controller 29. The controller of preference is a programmable microprocessor which controls all the machine functions previously described. The controller provides a comparison account of the copy sheets, the number of documents that are recirculated, the number of copy sheets selected by the operator, time delays, clogging corrections, etc. The control of all exemplary systems described to date can be achieved by conventional control switching feeds from the consoles of a printing machine selected by the operator. Conventional blade path detectors or switches can be used to track document position and copy sheets. With reference to Figure 2, for ease of releasing a jammed sheet in a mounting post for bending reduction 201, which can very often occur due to severely curved papers 48 entering the bending reduction assembly 200, the power 150 (such as a merger or inverter) that supplies paper to the bending reduction assembly 200, is designed to be a slidable module that can be removed by an operator for jamming or service release. To have enough spacing between the two devices, a typical space represented by the arrows 180 between the two devices as illustrated in Figure 2, needs to be designed for robustness, in order to avoid any possibility of interference due to manufacturing tolerances of the two devices and their supporting structure. This interface space 180, however, is a cause for clogging of curved papers if it can not be closed or reduced during the operation of the machine to prevent paper from entering the space. In order to bypass space 180, Figure 3 shows a self-adjusting inlet baffle 220 which is pivotally mounted to the two side plates 205 (Figure 4) of the bending reduction assembly 200. The inlet baffle 220 has a surface lower guide 226 and upper guide surface 228, which form a convergent channel 229 for pushing sheets at the attachment point of the assembly for reduction of curvature. The two guide surfaces are connected by end members 222 at the ends of the inlet baffle 220 as illustrated in Figure 3, which also has pivoting rods 224 for insertion in the corresponding slots 207, 208 in the side plates 205 (Figure 4 ) that provide structural support for the elements of assemblies for reduction of curvatures. The end member 222 at the outer end of the machine has an angled ramp feature 230 to be pushed inward by the sliding action of the feeding device 150. All of these functional characteristics and the inlet baffle can be molded in one piece as shown in FIG. illustrated in Figure 3. The mounting of the inlet deflector can be tilted slightly so that it can be extended outwards by gravity to reach the outlet wall 151 (Figure 6) of the feeding device 150 to bridge or close the path space. of paper 180 between the two devices. Figures 4 and 5 show an extended position and one pushed inward from the inlet baffle 220. Figure 6 shows the contact between the inlet baffle 220 and the outlet wall 151 of the slidable feed module 150 which eliminates the space 180 between the two devices. Optional springs (not shown) or the resilience of a molded plastic material can also be used to push out the inlet baffle 220 to bypass space 180. For ease of assembly, a molded inlet baffle is preferred since its flexibility allows the pivoting rods 224 are fitted by quick coupling in the slots 207, 208 in the side plates 205. Now with reference to Figures 7 to 10, to avoid jams unable to be released, the outlet deflector 240 of the bending reduction assembly includes a J-shaped cavity 242, for capturing a jammed sheet, which is illustrated in Figure 7. With reference to Figure 8, when a paper jam occurs, a jammed sheet 48 may stop between the clamping point of the mounting for curvature reduction 303 and the entry displacement clamping point 260 of the output device. This first jammed sheet 48 as illustrated in Figure 8, can create a blockage and the proximity stucture of the output device can become a barrier for the second subsequent sheet 49 to go somewhere. In the worst case, the second sheet clogged 49 of the following sheets may be forced to wrap around the displacement roller 304 of the bending reduction assembly 200, such that the sheet 49 becomes unable to be released. Non-releasable binding can be prevented by the J-shaped cavity 242. As illustrated in Figure 9, when a blade 49 is deflected by the jammed leading sheet 48, its leading edge is forced to enter the J-shaped cavity. 242. As the beam force of the blade 49 prevents its leading edge from adhering to the surface of the small impulse roller 304, the tangential movement of the leading edge causes it to trip on the elbow of the cavity in the form of J 242. This tripping action causes the paper to form a loop, forcing the previous stuck sheet to jump upward, and as a result, makes easier to release the jammed leaves. Figure 10 shows the presence of the folded sheets at the outlet of the curvature reduction assembly 244, available for removal as the jam release deflector 250 of the output device opens. For a detector-controlled copying machine, a paper detector can detect jamming of a sheet in the interface area of a bending reduction assembly and an output device. Once a jam is detected, the machine system turns off the impulse motor. Due to the inertia of the motor, the drive system can still cause the next or second leaf to move in the jammed area. However, the machine control software can deflect the third and subsequent sheets away from the jamming area, to avoid stacking jammed sheets in that area. This jam release strategy allows the effectiveness of the J-shaped cavity baffle 242 capture the second stuck sheet and avoid wrapping or winding subsequent sheets in the mounting impulse roll for 304 curvature reduction. Note that the focus of the detaching fingers used for a fusing roller is not appropriate to avoid jamming at the outlet of the assembly for reduction of curvature. The use of detaching fingers is not reliable for the small roller assembly for reduction of curvature (with approximate diameter of 22 mm) and are a source of paper jams. While the present invention has been described in the context of a black and white electrophotographic printing machine, it will be readily apparent that the device can be employed in any printing machine that involves the transport of cut sheets. In recap, a baffle is provided to avoid self-adjusting jam and jam release guidance for a printing machine. A mobile guide is connected to a machine subsystem module and is mobile from a first position to a second position. In the first position, the guide bridges a space between the machine subsystem module and a preceding subsystem module. In the second position, the guide is retracted from the space to allow easy separation of one of the modules of the subsystem. An auxiliary for release of jamming is also connected to the output of the machine subsystem module. The release aid uses a J-shaped channel to cause a sheet fed to a jammed sheet to form a loop and causes both the first jammed sheet and the subsequent sheets to be partially ejected from the paper path for easy removal therefrom . Therefore, it is apparent that a self-adjusting sheet release and deflector assistant has been provided in accordance with the present invention that fully satisfies the previously established objects and advantages. While this invention has been described in conjunction with a specified embodiment thereof, it is evident that many alternatives, modifications and variations will be apparent to those skilled in the art. Accordingly, it is intended to cover all these alternatives, modifications and variations that are within the spirit and broad scope of the appended claims. It is noted that in relation to this date, the best method known by the applicant to carry out the aforementioned invention, is the conventional one for the manufacture of the objects to which it relates. Having described the invention as above, the content of the following is claimed as property: