JP2009067542A - Sheet processing device and image forming device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To prevent an excessive approach of a sheet to a width regulation plate when the sheet is made to abut on the width regulation plate and moved by processing rollers in the case that a sheet alignment movement distance of the processing rollers is constant. <P>SOLUTION: The sheet processing device is provided with a processing tray 205 on which sheets discharged from pairs of carrying rollers 203 for discharging the sheets are stacked, and the processing rollers 204 for moving the sheets stacked on the processing tray 205 to a direction intersecting with the sheet discharge direction. The sheet processing device is further provided with the width regulation plate 243 for receiving and aligning side ends of the sheets moved to the intersecting direction by the processing rollers 204, and bundle delivery grippers 241 for holding the sheets stacked on the processing tray 205 to prevent their positional shifts. The processing rollers 204 are further moved with the sheets abutting on the width regulation plate 243, and the bundle delivery grippers 241 hold the sheets when the processing rollers 204 are moved for a predetermined distance with the sheets abutting on the width regulation plate 243. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a sheet processing apparatus for aligning edges of a sheet bundle formed by stacking sheets on a processing tray, and an image forming apparatus provided with the sheet processing apparatus connected to or built in the apparatus main body.

  The image forming apparatus is an apparatus that forms an image on a sheet. Examples of the image forming apparatus include a copying machine, a printer, a facsimile, and a complex machine of these. 2. Description of the Related Art Image forming apparatuses include a type that includes an apparatus main body that forms an image on a sheet and a sheet processing apparatus that processes the image-formed sheet.

  The sheet processing apparatus is built in the apparatus main body of the image forming apparatus or connected to the apparatus main body as a purchase option (so-called option) and used to process the sheet. The sheet processing apparatus performs at least one process such as a process for aligning the edges of the sheet bundle (hereinafter referred to as “alignment”), a staple process for binding the sheet bundle, and a folding process for folding the bound sheet bundle. . Among these processes, Patent Document 1 discloses a sheet processing apparatus that performs an alignment process for aligning the edges of a sheet bundle.

  The offset roller of the sheet processing apparatus described in Patent Document 1 moves up and down, rotates, and moves in the sheet width direction. The lifting and lowering operation of the offset roller is performed when a sheet is received in the processing tray. The rotation operation of the offset roller is performed when the rear end alignment is performed by bringing the upstream end (rear end) of the sheets stacked on the processing tray into contact with the rear end stopper. The operation of moving the offset roller in the sheet width direction is performed when the side edges (edges along the sheet conveying direction) of the sheets stacked on the processing tray are brought into contact with the positioning wall to perform side edge alignment. The sheet width direction is a direction that intersects the sheet conveyance direction.

JP 2007-153465 A

  However, in the sheet processing apparatus of Patent Document 1, the alignment moving distance by which the offset roller as the moving unit moves in the sheet width direction is constant regardless of the sheet width size. Therefore, the conventional sheet processing apparatus cannot adjust the moving distance after the sheet is brought into contact with the positioning wall as the aligning means. As a result, in the conventional sheet processing apparatus, when the moving distance of the offset roller after contacting the positioning wall is long, the sheet may be wrinkled or misaligned due to excessive movement of the sheet.

  In addition, an image forming apparatus provided with a sheet processing apparatus that causes wrinkles, misalignment, etc., must form an image on the sheet again by the number of sheets in which wrinkles, misalignment, etc. occur. The formation efficiency was low.

  In the present invention, when the alignment movement distance of the sheet of the moving unit is constant, when the moving unit abuts the sheet on the alignment unit and further moves the sheet, the holding unit holds the sheet, An object of the present invention is to provide a sheet processing apparatus that prevents the sheets from being moved too much.

  SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to provide an image forming apparatus that is provided with a sheet processing apparatus that is less likely to cause wrinkles, misalignment, and the like on a sheet and that improves image forming efficiency.

  The sheet processing apparatus according to the present invention includes a discharging unit that discharges a sheet, a sheet stacking unit on which the sheet discharged by the discharging unit is stacked, and a discharge direction of the sheet stacked on the sheet stacking unit. Moving means for moving the sheet in a direction intersecting the sheet, alignment means for receiving and aligning a side edge along the sheet discharge direction of the sheet moved in the intersecting direction by the moving means, and the sheet stacking Holding means for holding the sheets stacked on the means to prevent positional deviation of the sheets, and the moving means further moves in a state where the sheets are in contact with the aligning means. The holding means holds the sheet when the moving means moves a predetermined distance in a state where the sheet is in contact with the aligning means. It is characterized by a door.

  An image forming apparatus according to the present invention includes an image forming unit that forms an image on a sheet, and a sheet processing device that aligns the sheet on which an image is formed by the image forming unit, wherein the sheet processing device is the above-described sheet processing device. It is characterized by that.

  In the sheet processing apparatus of the present invention, the holding means holds the sheet when the moving means moves a predetermined distance with the sheet in contact with the aligning means, and thereafter the moving means continues to move. Even if the sheet is moved, the movement of the sheet can be prevented. As a result, the sheet processing apparatus according to the present invention can prevent the sheet from being excessively moved, reduce the wrinkle of the sheet, and reduce the damage to the sheet. In addition, it is possible to prevent misalignment of the sheet and improve sheet alignment accuracy.

  The image forming apparatus according to the present invention includes a sheet processing apparatus that reduces the occurrence of wrinkles and misalignment on the sheet. Therefore, the image forming efficiency is improved by reducing the formation of an image on the sheet again. Can be made.

  A sheet processing apparatus of the present invention and an image forming apparatus provided with the sheet processing apparatus in the apparatus main body will be described with reference to the drawings.

(Image forming device)
FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view of the image forming apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention along the sheet conveyance direction. The image forming apparatus 150 is an apparatus that forms an image on a sheet. Examples of the image forming apparatus 150 include a copying machine, a printer, a facsimile machine, and a complex machine of these. The image forming apparatus 150 includes an apparatus main body 150A that forms an image on a sheet, and a sheet processing apparatus 300 that processes the sheet on which the image is formed.

  The sheet processing apparatus 300 is connected as a purchase option (so-called option) to the apparatus main body 150A of the image forming apparatus. Note that the sheet processing apparatus 300 may be incorporated in the apparatus main body 150A. The sheet processing apparatus 300 performs processing for aligning the edges of the sheet bundle (hereinafter referred to as “alignment”).

  The apparatus main body 150A of the image forming apparatus 150 forms an image on a sheet based on information from the outside. The apparatus main body 150A is equipped with a sheet cassette 151 containing sheets in a lower part so that the sheet cassette 151 can be pulled out in the right direction in FIG. The sheet S of the sheet cassette 151 is sent out from the sheet cassette 151 by the pick-up roller 261 and sent between the conveying roller pair 262 and the registration roller pair 263 between, for example, the photosensitive drum 264 and the transfer roller 265 as image forming means. . A toner image is formed on the photosensitive drum 264 in advance. Therefore, the toner image on the photosensitive drum 264 is transferred to the sheet. The sheet S to which the toner image has been transferred is fixed to the toner image by the fixing device 266 and then sent to the sheet processing apparatus 300 by the paper discharge roller pair 153.

  The apparatus main body 150A of the image forming apparatus 150 is configured to form images on both sides using a double-side reversal path. When a sheet on which an image has been formed through the above process passes through the double-sided reverse flapper 155, the paper discharge roller pair 153 reverses and feeds the sheet to the double-sided pass roller pair 156 and 157. Then, the sheet is joined to the printing path before the registration roller pair 263, and a toner image is printed on the back surface.

  The apparatus main body 150A and the sheet processing apparatus 300 are activated when a user operates an operation panel 152 provided on the apparatus main body 150A. The control of the apparatus main body 150A is performed by the control unit 140.

(Initialization of image forming device)
The initialization of the image forming apparatus main body 150A, such as when the power is turned on, causes the control unit 140 to rotate the conveyance roller pair 262, the registration roller pair 263, the photosensitive drum 264, and the like by a motor (not shown), Perform cleaning etc. At this time, before the motor is started, any of the registration sensor in front of the registration roller pair 263, the paper discharge sensor behind the fixing device 266, and the double-sided conveyance sensor between the double-sided pass roller pairs 156 and 157 detects the sheet. There is something to do. In such a case, the control unit 140 causes the operation panel 152 to display that a jam sheet has occurred, and prompts the user to remove the jam sheet. Further, after driving, for example, there is a residual sheet that can be conveyed in front of the registration sensor, and when the registration sensor is turned on by being driven, the control unit 140 determines that the residual sheet can be conveyed. , And discharged from the apparatus main body 150A.

(Sheet processing equipment)
FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of the sheet processing apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention along the sheet conveyance direction. FIG. 3 is a view as seen from the tray 154 side of the apparatus main body 150A of the sheet processing apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention.

  In the description of the embodiment, the sheet conveyance direction is the left-right direction in FIG. The sheet discharge direction refers to a direction from left to right in FIG. The rear end of the sheet is an edge on the upstream side in the sheet conveying direction, and may be referred to as an upstream end. The leading edge of the sheet is an edge on the downstream side in the sheet conveying direction, and may be referred to as a downstream end. The side edge of the sheet is an edge along the sheet conveyance direction. The width direction of the sheet is a direction along the surface of the sheet perpendicular to the sheet conveyance direction. The vertical direction refers to the vertical direction in FIG. In each figure, an arrow X indicates the sheet conveyance direction. An arrow Y indicates the width direction of the sheet. The arrow Z direction indicates the vertical direction.

  The sheet processing apparatus 300 bundles the sheets S received from the apparatus main body 150A on the processing tray 205, aligns the rear ends and side ends of the sheets S, and sets the tray 154 ( 1).

  In FIG. 2, a sheet receiving unit 201 is a part that receives the sheet S discharged from the discharge roller pair 153 (FIG. 1) of the apparatus main body 150A. After the sheet S discharged to the sheet receiving unit 201 is detected by the entrance sensor 202, the sheet S is conveyed to the conveying roller pair 203 and the processing roller 204, and is discharged onto, for example, the processing tray 205 which is a sheet stacking unit. .

  For example, the conveying roller pair 203 that is a discharging unit that discharges the sheet to the processing tray 205 includes a driving roller 203a and a driven roller 203b. The driving roller 203a is driven to rotate by obtaining a rotational force from the conveying motor 206 via a conveying pulley gear and a conveying belt.

  In order to transfer the sheet to the reverse path 292 shown in FIG. 2, the reverse flapper 290 is switched. The reversing flapper 290 obtains driving force through a conveying motor gear (not shown) and a reversing flapper gear that are attached to the conveying motor when a conveying motor (not shown) rotates in a direction opposite to the discharge side direction of the processing tray 205. It is designed to rotate.

  For example, the processing roller 204 which is a moving means is formed of a cylindrical member, and an outer peripheral portion is formed of an elastic body having elasticity close to rubber such as rubber or foam. The processing roller 204 is held by the processing roller holder 211.

  The processing roller 204 and the processing roller holder 211 are rotated in the directions of arrows D and E by the TD motor, the alignment motor gear, the paper pressing cam, the rear end alignment slider, the side end alignment slider, and the alignment cam. It moves in the H and J directions. That is, the processing roller 204 and the processing roller holder 211 rotate in the directions of arrows D and E around the shaft 212 of the processing roller holder 211. Further, the sheet S is moved in the directions of arrows F and G (arrow X) to move the sheet S upstream and downstream. Further, the sheet is moved in the directions of arrows H and J (arrow Y) to align the side edges of the sheet.

  The bundle gripper 241 opens and closes the clamp solenoid 240 to hold the sheet bundle, and discharges the sheet bundle to the tray 154 by a TD motor and a slider gear. The bundle gripper 241 is opened by a spring (not shown) when the clamp solenoid 240 is turned off and closed against the spring when the clamp solenoid 240 is turned on to press the sheet against the processing tray 205.

  The operation of the processing roller 204 and the processing roller holder 211 is performed by forward rotation of a TD motor. The bundle gripper 241 is moved by the reverse drive of the TD motor.

  The tray paper presser 251 holds the sheet bundle previously stacked on the tray 154 until the sheet bundle aligned on the processing tray 205 is pressed against the processing tray 205 by the bundling gripper 241 and slides and is discharged to the tray 154. This is a member that presses the tray 154.

(Sheet alignment operation)
The processing roller 204 and the processing roller holder 211 can perform a series of sheet alignment operations by driving a TD motor. 4 to 8 show a series of sheet alignment operations and the operations of gears, sliders, and cams associated therewith.

  First, when the TD motor starts driving, the flag 230a of the position gear 230 passes through the home position sensor 234, and the paper pressing cam 232 moves away from the cam receiving lever 236 (FIGS. 4 and 5). Then, the processing roller holder 211 and the processing roller 204 evacuated upward fall by their own weight (rotate in the direction of arrow D in FIGS. 2 and 5), and the processing roller 204 presses the sheet S against the processing tray 205.

  Next, when the rear end alignment cam 231 pushes the rear end alignment slider 235 (FIG. 5), the processing roller 204 and the processing roller holder 211 move downstream (in the direction of arrow F in FIGS. 2 and 5), The sheet S is pulled out from the conveyance roller pair 203. Then, the sheet S is pulled out to the processing tray 205 and is conveyed only by the processing roller 204 and the processing roller holder 211 (FIG. 5).

  Next, when the trailing edge alignment cam 231 pulls the trailing edge alignment slider 235, the processing roller holder 211 moves upstream (in the direction of arrow G in FIG. 6) and pushes the trailing edge of the sheet against the trailing edge regulating plate 242. Hit it. Thereby, the trailing edge of the sheet S is aligned (FIG. 6).

  Next, when the side-end alignment cam 233 pushes the side-end alignment slider 237, the processing roller 204 and the processing roller holder 211 move in the sheet width direction (the direction indicated by the arrow H in FIGS. 2 and 7), and the width of the sheet S is increased. Abutting width alignment (side edge alignment) is performed on the regulating plate 243 (FIG. 7). For this reason, the processing roller 204 functions as a so-called offset roller for offset-moving the sheet. Further, for example, the width regulating plate 243 serving as an aligning unit receives the side end along the sheet discharge direction and aligns the side end of the sheet. When the processing roller 204 and the processing roller holder 211 finish the abutting width alignment in the sheet width direction, the paper pressing cam 232 pushes down the cam receiving lever 236, so that the processing roller 204 and the processing roller holder 211 rotate upward (rotation in the direction of arrow E in FIGS. 2 and 8). To release the sheet.

  When the side end alignment cam 233 pulls the side end alignment slider 237, the processing roller 204 and the processing roller holder 211 move in the direction away from the width regulating plate 243 (in the direction of arrow J in FIGS. 2 and 8). Finally, when the flag 230a of the position gear 230 is detected by the home position sensor 234, the TD motor stops rotating, thereby completing the alignment operation for one sheet.

  In FIG. 2, the processing roller 204 is retracted upward when the transport roller pair 203 transports the sheet S to the processing tray 205. For this reason, the sheet S is discharged onto the processing tray 205 without being obstructed by the processing roller 204.

(Control block diagram)
FIG. 9 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a control unit in the sheet processing apparatus 300 of the present embodiment. For example, the CPU 100 as the control means has a ROM 110 therein. The ROM 110 stores a program corresponding to the control procedure shown in FIGS. The CPU 100 controls each unit while reading this program.

  The CPU 100 also has a RAM 121 in which work data and input data are stored. The CPU 100 performs control with reference to data stored in the RAM 121 based on the above-described program and the like. Furthermore, an inlet sensor 202 (FIG. 2), a processing roller position sensor 238, and a TD slider position sensor 248 for detecting the position of a TD slider (not shown) are connected to the input port of the CPU 100.

  Further, the transport motor 206 (FIG. 2), the TD motor 216, and the clamp solenoid 240 are connected to the output port of the CPU 100. Based on these sensor states, the CPU 100 controls loads of various motors and solenoids connected to the output port in accordance with the aforementioned program and the like.

  The CPU 100 includes a serial interface unit (I / O) 130. The CPU 100 exchanges control data with the control unit 140 of the apparatus main body 150A via the serial interface unit (I / O) 130, and controls each unit based on the control data sent from the control unit 140. To do. Either one of the CPU 100 and the control unit 140 may be incorporated into the other, and may be integrated.

(Description of overall operation of sheet processing apparatus)
Next, the initial operation, the sheet post-processing operation, and the reversal operation of the sheet processing apparatus 300 of the present embodiment configured as described above are illustrated in the configuration diagrams of FIGS. 1 to 8, the control block diagram of FIG. This will be described based on the flowcharts shown in FIGS.

(Selection of sheet post-processing operation)
An image forming operation is started in the apparatus main body 150A of the image forming apparatus. Then, the CPU 100 (FIGS. 1 and 9) of the sheet processing apparatus 300 does not need to align the sheet to the tray 154 with width alignment, or does not need to align the width (whether only the rear end is aligned and discharged). Whether to discharge to 154 is determined (FIG. 6, S10). When performing sheet width alignment, the CPU 100 (FIGS. 1 and 9) performs alignment processing according to the flowchart shown in FIG. When the sheets are discharged in a bundle without being subjected to width alignment, the CPU 100 (FIGS. 1 and 9) performs processing according to the flowchart shown in FIG.

  The CPU 100 (FIGS. 1 and 9) finishes the processing according to the flowchart shown in FIG. 11 or FIG. 12 for each job, and if there is a job, makes a determination in S10 again and repeats the processing operation. When there are no more jobs, the process ends. Therefore, the sheet processing apparatus 300 can discharge the sheet to two positions on the tray 154.

(Sheet post-processing operation (when the position where the processing roller abuts the sheet with the width regulating plate is used as the alignment position))
When the image forming operation is started in the apparatus main body 150A of the image forming apparatus, the CPU 100 (FIGS. 1 and 9) of the sheet processing apparatus 300 checks whether a sheet discharge signal is received from the apparatus main body 150A (FIG. 1). 11, S100). When the sheet discharge signal is received (YES in S100), the CPU turns on the conveyance motor 206 (FIG. 2) (S110), and the conveyance roller pair 203 installed in the conveyance path 268 is in the apparatus main body 150A. The sheet can be conveyed in the sheet discharge direction.

  Then, the leading edge of the first sheet turns on the entrance sensor 202 (FIG. 2) (YES in S120). Thereafter, the sheet reaches the conveyance roller pair 203. Then, the sheet is conveyed to the conveyance roller pair 203 and is separated from the paper discharge roller pair 153 (FIG. 1) of the apparatus main body 150A. This completes the delivery of the sheet.

  The conveyance roller pair 203 (FIG. 2) conveys the sheet to the processing tray 205. The CPU 100 conveys the sheet by a predetermined amount by the conveying roller pair 203 (YES in S130), and rotates the TD motor 216 before the sheet is completely removed from the conveying roller pair 203. Then, the position gear 230 passes through the home position sensor 234, and the paper pressing cam 232 moves away from the cam receiving lever 236. As a result, the processing roller holder 211 and the processing roller 204 evacuated upward are lowered by the weight of the processing roller holder 211 and the rotation of the TD motor (rotated in the direction of arrow D in FIG. 2), and the processing roller 204 is placed on the processing tray 205. S is pressed down (S140).

  Next, when the rear end alignment cam 231 pushes the rear end alignment slider 235, the processing roller 204 and the processing roller holder 211 move downstream (in the direction of arrow F in FIG. 2), and the sheet S is pulled out from the conveying roller pair 203. . When the trailing end of the sheet S is pulled out to the processing tray 205, the sheet S is conveyed only by the processing roller 204 and the processing roller holder 211 (FIG. 5).

  The CPU 100 turns on the clamp solenoid 240 (S160) and opens the bundle gripper 241 immediately before the sheet starts to be pulled back upstream (S150).

  Next, when the trailing edge alignment cam 231 pulls the trailing edge alignment slider 235, the processing roller holder 211 moves upstream (in the direction of arrow G in FIG. 2) and pushes the trailing edge of the sheet against the trailing edge regulating plate 242. Hit (S170). Thereby, the trailing edge of the sheet S is aligned (FIG. 6). Note that the moving distance of the processing roller 204 when the trailing edge of the sheet abuts against the trailing edge regulating plate 242 is set in consideration of the skew of the sheet S generated when the sheet is fed from the apparatus main body 150A. That is, the movement distance of the processing roller 204 is from the maximum movement point where the conveyance of the sheet S sent from the apparatus main body 150A is stopped and the switchback conveyance (conveyance to the upstream side) is started to the rear end regulating plate 242. The sheet is set to be conveyed slightly more than the distance. For this reason, the sheet S is conveyed for a predetermined time after being conveyed by the processing roller 204 by a distance that is abutted against the trailing edge regulating plate 242, so that the sheet S is surely brought into contact with the trailing edge regulating plate 242. The processing roller 204 moves even after the sheet is brought into contact with the rear end regulating plate 242, and slides on the sheet.

  Next, the CPU 100 continues the rotation of the TD motor, and the side end alignment cam 233 pushes the side end alignment slider 237, whereby the processing roller 204 and the processing roller holder 211 are moved in the sheet width direction (the arrow H direction in FIG. 2). Move (S180). The side edge of the sheet S is abutted against the width regulating plate 243.

  The CPU determines from the width direction length according to the sheet width size information received by the serial I / O 130, the length from the conveyance center of the sheet processing apparatus to the width regulating plate 243, and the alignment margin after abutting against the width regulating plate. The off timing of the clamp solenoid 240 is calculated. Then, the CPU 100 turns off the clamp solenoid 240 at the calculated off timing (S190, S200). The sheet width size information is obtained from the apparatus main body 150A or a sheet size detection sensor (not shown).

  The calculation is performed by the following equation 1.

(Clamp solenoid off timing)
= (Length from the conveyance center of the sheet processing apparatus to the width regulating plate)-(Length of the sheet size in the width direction / 2) + (Alignment margin after abutting against the width regulating plate (predetermined distance)) Equation 1

  Note that [(length from the conveyance center of the sheet processing apparatus to the width regulating plate) − (length of the sheet size in the width direction / 2)] is discharged based on the size information in the direction in which the sheets intersect. The distance between the side edge of the sheet and the width regulating plate 243 is calculated.

  The clamp solenoid off timing is preferably set according to the sheet characteristics (applicable to OHP sheets as well as sheets) such as the friction coefficient and thickness of the sheets. For example, as the friction coefficient is larger, it is preferable to shorten the predetermined distance, which is the alignment margin after abutting against the width restricting plate, by earliering the clamp solenoid off timing.

  Furthermore, a sensor for detecting the side edge of the sheet is provided beside the width regulating plate 243 without setting the clamp solenoid off timing based on the distance between the side edge of the sheet of Formula 1 and the width regulating plate, It may be set based on the detection of the sheet by the sensor.

  When the clamp solenoid 240 is turned off (S190, S200), the bundle gripper 241 is closed and the aligned sheet S is pressed against the processing tray 205. The processing roller 204 continues to move toward the width regulating plate 243, slides on the sheet pressed by the processing tray 205, and approaches the width regulating plate 243 and stops. As a result, the side edges of the sheet S are aligned and alignment is not disturbed (FIG. 7). That is, for example, the bundling gripper 241 serving as a holding unit holds the sheets stacked on the processing tray 205 to prevent the positional deviation of the sheets.

  As a result, since the abutting amount is optimized, it is possible to prevent disorder of alignment and occurrence of sheet wrinkles. Further, it is possible to prevent the sheet S discharged first from being carried along by the sheet discharged next. Furthermore, by setting the alignment margin after abutting against the width regulating plate 243 for each paper type, it is possible to prevent alignment failure due to the rigidity of the paper (stretch strength) and the friction coefficient.

  When the processing roller 204 and the processing roller holder 211 finish moving in the sheet width direction, the paper pressing cam 232 pushes down the cam receiving lever 236. Then, the processing roller holder 211 rises and rotates in the direction of arrow E (FIG. 2) to release the sheet pressing against the processing tray 205.

  Then, when the side end alignment cam 233 pulls the side end alignment slider 237, the processing roller 204 and the processing roller holder 211 are moved away from the width regulating plate 243 in the sheet width direction (direction of arrow J in FIG. 2). Return to the retracted position (S210). Thereafter, when the flag 230a of the position gear 230 is detected by the home position sensor 234, the rotation of the TD motor stops. This completes a series of alignment operations for the first sheet S (FIG. 7).

  If the CPU 100 determines in step S220 that the sheet size is a stapleable size, the CPU 100 checks whether the sheet is the last page (S230). When the CPU 100 determines that the sheet is not the final sheet based on the information sent from the apparatus main body 150A (NO in S230), the CPU 100 returns to the process S100. Then, the CPU 100 receives the sheet discharge signal sent from the apparatus main body 150 </ b> A, and repeats the processes S <b> 100 to S <b> 230 until the final sheet S is stored in the processing tray 205.

  In the process S230, when the CPU 100 determines that the sheet is the final sheet (YES in S230), a sheet bundle is formed on the process tray 205. Therefore, the CPU 100 checks whether or not staple processing is selected (S240). If it is selected (YES in S240), the CPU 100 drives the stapler unit 254 (FIGS. 1 and 3) and executes the staple process at the staple position (S250).

  When the stapling process is not selected (NO in S240), or when the stapling process is completed, the CPU 100 rotates the TD motor in the reverse direction and presses the sheet bundle SA from above with the bundling gripper 241. Move to the tray 154. Then, the sheet bundle SA is discharged to the tray 154 (S260).

  Finally, the CPU 100 continues the rotation of the TD motor so that the bundling gripper 241 returns to the home position (S270), and when the bundling gripper 241 returns to the home position, the transport motor 206 is stopped (S280). Thus, the sheet processing apparatus 300 has finished a series of processes.

(Sheet post-processing operation (when the position when the trailing edge alignment is completed is set as the loading position))
When the image forming operation is started in the apparatus main body 150A of the image forming apparatus, the CPU 100 (FIG. 9) of the sheet processing apparatus 300 checks whether or not a sheet discharge signal is received from the apparatus main body 150A (FIG. 12, S300). ). When the sheet discharge signal is received (YES in S300), the CPU 100 turns on the conveyance motor 206 (FIG. 2) (S310), and the conveyance roller pair 203 installed in the conveyance path 268 is in the apparatus main body 150A. The sheet can be conveyed in the sheet discharge direction.

  Then, the leading edge of the first sheet turns on the entrance sensor 202 (FIG. 2) (YES in S320). Thereafter, the sheet reaches the conveyance roller pair 203. Then, the sheet is conveyed to the conveyance roller pair 203 and is separated from the paper discharge roller pair 153 (FIG. 1) of the apparatus main body 150A. This completes the delivery of the sheet.

  The conveyance roller pair 203 (FIG. 2) conveys the sheet to the processing tray 205. The CPU 100 conveys the sheet by a predetermined amount by the conveyance roller pair 203 (YES in S330), and rotates the TD motor before the sheet is completely removed from the conveyance roller pair 203. Then, the position gear 230 passes through the home position sensor 234, and the paper pressing cam 232 moves away from the cam receiving lever 236. As a result, the processing roller holder 211 and the processing roller 204 evacuated upward are lowered by the weight of the processing roller holder 211 and the rotation of the TD motor (rotated in the direction of arrow D in FIG. 2), and the processing roller 204 is placed on the processing tray 205. S is pressed down (S340).

  Next, when the rear end alignment cam 231 pushes the rear end alignment slider 235, the processing roller 204 and the processing roller holder 211 move downstream (in the direction of arrow F in FIG. 2), and the sheet S is pulled out from the conveying roller pair 203. . When the trailing edge of the sheet S is pulled out to the processing tray 205, the sheet S can be conveyed only by the processing roller 204 and the processing roller holder 211 (FIG. 5).

  The CPU 100 turns on the clamp solenoid 240 (S360) and opens the bundle gripper 241 immediately before the sheet starts to be pulled back upstream (S350).

  Next, when the trailing edge alignment cam 231 pulls the trailing edge alignment slider 235, the processing roller holder 211 moves upstream (in the direction of arrow G in FIG. 2) and pushes the trailing edge of the sheet against the trailing edge regulating plate 242. Hit (S370). Thereby, the trailing edge of the sheet S is aligned (FIG. 6). Note that the moving distance of the processing roller 204 when the trailing edge of the sheet abuts against the trailing edge regulating plate 242 is set in consideration of the skew of the sheet S generated when the sheet is fed from the apparatus main body 150A. That is, the moving distance of the processing roller 204 is the distance from the maximum movement point where the conveyance of the sheet S sent from the apparatus main body 150A is stopped and the switchback (conveyance to the upstream side) is started to the rear end regulating plate 242. It is set to convey a little more sheet than the distance. For this reason, the sheet S is conveyed for a predetermined time after being conveyed by the processing roller 204 by a distance that is abutted against the trailing edge regulating plate 242, so that the sheet S is surely brought into contact with the trailing edge regulating plate 242. The processing roller 204 moves even after the sheet is brought into contact with the rear end regulating plate 242, and slides on the sheet.

  Next, when the CPU 100 turns off the clamp solenoid 240 (S380), the bundle gripper 241 closes and presses the aligned sheet S against the processing tray 205. As a result, the trailing edge of the sheet S is aligned and alignment is not disturbed. That is, for example, the bundling gripper 241 serving as a holding unit holds the sheets stacked on the processing tray 205 to prevent the positional deviation of the sheets.

  Next, the CPU 100 continues the rotation of the TD motor, and when the side end alignment cam 233 presses the side end alignment slider 237, the processing roller 204 and the processing roller holder 211 are moved in the sheet width direction (the arrow H direction in FIG. 2). . Since the sheet S is held by the bundling gripper 241, only the processing roller 204 and the processing roller holder 211 slide on the sheet S toward the width regulating plate 243 (S390).

  When the processing roller 204 and the processing roller holder 211 finish moving in the sheet width direction, the paper pressing cam 232 pushes down the cam receiving lever 236. Then, the processing roller holder 211 rises and rotates in the direction of arrow E (FIG. 2) to release the sheet pressing against the processing tray 205.

  Then, when the side end alignment cam 233 pulls the side end alignment slider 237, the processing roller 204 and the processing roller holder 211 are moved away from the width regulating plate 243 in the sheet width direction (direction of arrow J in FIG. 2). Return to the retracted position (S400). Thereafter, when the flag 230a of the position gear 230 is detected by the home position sensor 234, the driving of the TD motor is stopped. This completes a series of alignment operations for the first sheet S (FIG. 7).

  In process S410, the CPU 100 checks whether the sheet is the last page (S410). If the CPU 100 determines that the sheet is not the final sheet based on the information sent from the apparatus main body 150A (NO in S410), the CPU 100 returns to the process S300. The CPU 100 receives the sheet discharge signal sent from the apparatus main body 150 </ b> A and repeats the processes S <b> 300 to S <b> 410 until the final sheet S is stored in the processing tray 205.

  When the CPU 100 determines that the sheet is the final sheet in the processing S410 (YES in S410), a sheet bundle is formed on the processing tray 205.

  The CPU 100 rotates the TD motor in the reverse direction to move the sheet bundle SA toward the tray 154 with the bundle gripper 241 pressing the sheet bundle SA from above. Then, the sheet bundle SA is discharged to the tray 154 (S420).

  Finally, the CPU 100 continues to drive the TD motor until the bundle gripper 241 returns to the home position (S430). Further, the transport motor 206 is stopped (S440). Thus, the sheet processing apparatus 300 has finished a series of processes.

  As described above, in the sheet processing apparatus 300, the moving distance by which the sheet is moved by the processing roller 204 in the sheet width direction is constant, and the moving distance after contacting the width regulating plate 243 is adjusted. Can not be. However, the sheet processing apparatus 300 can change the timing of pressing the sheet by operating the bundle gripper 241 based on the sheet size obtained from the sheet width size information. As a result, the sheet processing apparatus 300 can adjust the movement distance after being brought into contact with the width restricting plate 243, and can avoid wrinkling of the sheet, misalignment, and the like due to excessive movement.

  This sheet processing apparatus can combine the case where the sheet width is aligned for each job and the case where the sheet is aligned by the trailing edge without discharging the width and discharged by the bundling gripper 241. The tray 154 can be selectively discharged to two places.

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of the image forming apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention along the sheet conveyance direction. It is sectional drawing along the sheet conveyance direction of the sheet processing apparatus in embodiment of this invention. FIG. 3 is a view of the sheet processing apparatus of FIG. 2 as viewed from the sheet discharge side. FIG. 4 is a diagram of a state before a sheet is fed into the sheet processing apparatus of FIG. 3. FIG. 5 is an operation explanatory diagram subsequent to FIG. 4, illustrating a state in which a sheet is fed into the sheet processing apparatus. FIG. 6 is an operation explanatory diagram subsequent to FIG. 5, illustrating a state in which the sheet processing apparatus performs rear end alignment of the sheet. FIG. 7 is an operation explanatory diagram subsequent to FIG. 6, illustrating a state in which the sheet processing apparatus performs sheet width alignment. FIG. 8 is an operation explanatory diagram subsequent to FIG. 7, illustrating a state in which the processing roller returns to the retracted position. It is a control block diagram of a sheet processing apparatus. 6 is a flowchart for explaining an operation in which the sheet processing apparatus determines whether or not to perform sheet width alignment. FIG. 10 is a flowchart for explaining an operation when the sheet processing apparatus performs sheet width alignment. FIG. 10 is a flowchart for explaining an operation when the sheet processing apparatus does not perform sheet width alignment.

Explanation of symbols

S sheet 100 CPU (control means)
140 Apparatus main body control unit 150 Image forming apparatus 150A Image forming apparatus main body 154 Apparatus main body tray 203 Conveying roller pair (discharge means)
204 Processing roller (moving means)
205 Processing tray (sheet stacking means) of sheet processing apparatus
211 Processing roller holder 241 Bundle gripper (holding means)
242 Rear end regulating plate 243 Width regulating plate (alignment means)
H.264 photosensitive drum (image forming means)
300 Sheet processing device

Claims (5)

Discharging means for discharging the sheet;
Sheet stacking means on which the sheets discharged by the discharge means are stacked;
Moving means for moving the sheets stacked on the sheet stacking means in a direction crossing the discharge direction of the sheets;
Alignment means for receiving and aligning side edges of the sheet moved in the intersecting direction by the moving means along the sheet discharge direction;
Holding means for holding the sheets stacked on the sheet stacking means and preventing positional deviation of the sheets,
In the sheet processing apparatus in which the moving unit further moves in a state where the sheet is in contact with the aligning unit,
The holding means holds the sheet when the moving means moves a predetermined distance in a state where the sheet is in contact with the alignment means.
A sheet processing apparatus. Control means for controlling movement of the moving means and operation timing at which the holding means holds the sheet;
The control means calculates a distance between a side edge of the discharged sheet and the alignment means based on size information in a direction in which the sheets cross each other, and the moving means calculates the distance between the distance and the predetermined distance. Actuate the holding means when moving
The sheet processing apparatus according to claim 1. The predetermined distance is set shorter as the friction coefficient of the sheet is larger.
The sheet processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the sheet processing apparatus is a sheet processing apparatus. The holding means can convey the sheet from a position stacked on the sheet stacking means to a downstream side in the sheet discharging direction when the sheet does not need to align side edges of the sheet; and The sheet aligned with the alignment means can be conveyed downstream from the alignment position in the sheet discharge direction.
The sheet processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the sheet processing apparatus is a sheet processing apparatus. Image forming means for forming an image on a sheet;
In the sheet processing apparatus for aligning the sheet on which the image is formed by the image forming unit,
The sheet processing apparatus is the sheet processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4.
An image forming apparatus.

Images