JPH1160018A - Paper storage device - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Summary] [PROBLEMS] To provide a paper storage device that can easily and continuously stock long paper in a neat manner. SOLUTION: A first stock for stocking the rolled paper P is provided with a discharge unit 110 for discharging the paper P, and paper guide means 9, 10, 11 for guiding the paper P while rolling the paper P into a cylindrical shape. Means 87 and an opening means 89 for moving the stocked paper P by opening the paper guide means 9 and 10 in the first stocking means 87 after the ejection of the paper P from the ejection unit 110 is completed. And a paper storage means 130 for storing the rolled paper P released by the release means 89 at another position. Thus, the long paper P can be handled neatly and continuously stocked.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a paper storage device provided in an image forming apparatus such as a wide-width copying machine, a printer, a facsimile or the like, or a document conveying device.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art An image forming apparatus of this type sometimes handles a long sheet such as a long document or a long recording sheet due to its characteristics. Is 5
Some can reach from 10 m to 10 m.

A paper storage device of this kind is disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. Sho 60-2
No. 04569, JP-A-60-2565, and JP-A-1-78647. In Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. Sho 60-204569, a storage tray is provided detachably with respect to a paper discharge port, and the storage tray has a deep bottom. Also, Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No.
In Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 5 (1999) -197, sheets ejected from a recording device such as a copying machine are inverted and stacked, so that the sheets can be stably stacked regardless of the size of sheets in the stack, but a large installation space is required. . Further, in Japanese Unexamined Utility Model Publication No. 1-78647, the paper discharge tray is constituted by a plurality of trays, and the paper discharge tray can be extended and contracted by using a slide mechanism.

[0004]

However, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No.
The paper storage devices described in JP-A-204569 and JP-A-60-2565 require a deep storage tray, and the paper storage device described in Japanese Utility Model Laid-Open No. 1-78647 discharges long paper. In any case, the long sheet is not stored in a clean state because the sheet P is received in a plane along the direction, and the sheet P is stored in a state where the sheet P is bent many times as shown in FIG. Will be done.

[0005] Therefore, in the conventional paper storage device, if the user tries to take out the long paper that has been bent many times in the waveform after storing the long paper, the paper may be wrinkled or broken. Sometimes. Then, in order to make it easy for the user to carry the stored long paper, it is necessary to perform a cumbersome operation of manually winding the paper into a roll.

Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to solve the above-mentioned problems and to provide a paper storage device capable of neatly rolling long papers and easily stocking them continuously.

[0007]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a sheet storage device for storing a sheet such as a document for forming an image or a recording sheet, and a discharge unit for discharging the sheet, Paper guide means for guiding the paper while rolling the paper into a cylindrical shape, a first stock means for stocking the rounded paper, and a guide means in the stock means after the discharge of the paper from the discharge section is completed. Opening means for moving the stocked paper by opening a part thereof, and the rolled paper opened by the opening means, into the first
Paper storage means for storing the paper at a different position from the stock means.

According to the first aspect of the present invention, after the paper is stocked in the stock means while being rolled into a cylindrical shape, a part of the guide means in the stock means is opened,
Since the stocked paper is moved and stored in the paper storage means, the long paper can be neatly rolled and stocked easily and easily.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect of the present invention, the discharge section is provided with a paper transport path switching guide means, and the paper storage means for rolling and storing the paper is provided with a paper detection means. The paper storage device is further provided with a second stock means for storing paper, and when the paper storage means is full of paper, the switching guide means is operated by a signal from the paper detection means, and the paper storage means is operated. Is stored in the second stock means.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, when the inside of the paper storage means is full of paper, the switching guide means is operated by the signal of the paper detection means to store the paper in the paper storage means. Further, it is possible to prevent the paper from being forced into the paper storage means.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect of the invention, the sheet storage means is provided below the first stock means, and the movement of the sheet from the stock means to the paper storage means is not performed. The paper is dropped into the paper storage means by its own weight.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect of the present invention, the movement of the paper from the stock means to the paper storage means is reduced by utilizing the weight of the paper.
The structure can be manufactured simply and at low cost without using a special moving mechanism.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect of the present invention, the paper storing means has a width for storing the rounded paper substantially equal to a diameter of the rounded paper. The lower end has an opening having a diameter substantially equal to the diameter of the rounded sheet.

According to the fourth aspect of the present invention, since the width of the storage space of the paper storage means is the same as the diameter of the rounded paper, it is possible to prevent the diameter of the rounded paper from increasing. Paper can be stably stocked continuously and reliably in a cylindrical shape. Further, since the lower end of the sheet has an opening having a size corresponding to the diameter, the stored sheets can be easily taken out one by one.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect of the present invention, the discharge unit is provided with a sheet transport path switching guide unit, and when the sheet is short, the switching guide unit is operated. It is stored in the second stock means.

According to the fifth aspect of the present invention, when the paper is short, the switching guide means is operated and stored in another paper storage means, so that the long paper and the short paper can be stocked separately. it can.

According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, in the fourth aspect of the invention, the sheet storage means has a guide, and the guide can be opened with a fulcrum at a position above the lowermost opening. It is characterized by.

According to the present invention, since the guide of the sheet storage means can be opened with the position above the lowermost opening as a fulcrum, the sheet can be easily taken out even if the sheet is caught.

According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect of the invention, a driving roller is mounted on the paper guide means, and the linear speed of the driving roller is at least 10% higher than the linear speed of the discharge roller. % Or less.

According to the seventh aspect of the present invention, a driving roller is mounted on the paper guide means, and the linear speed of the driving rollers is more than ten percent higher than the linear speed of the discharge roller of the discharge portion. The paper can be rolled without being enlarged, and the paper can be stocked while being rolled stably. The reason why the content is set to 10% or more and 20% or less is that a favorable result was obtained in this range as a result of an experiment.

[0021]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. The paper storage device of the present invention is provided in, for example, an image forming apparatus such as a copying machine, a printer, and a facsimile, and continuously stocks long paper such as a document for forming an image or a recording paper in a neat manner. be able to.

As shown in FIG. 1, the paper storage / feed device includes a discharge unit 110, first stock means 87 for stocking a long sheet P, and a sheet for stocking a long sheet P in a rolled state. A storage means 130 and a second stock means 150 for stocking a short sheet PS are schematically provided.

The discharge unit 110 discharges the long sheet 16 guided on the guide plate in the direction E by frictional force. The first discharge rollers 3 and 4 and the second discharge rollers 7 and 8 are used. Having. The discharge rollers 3 and 4 are driven by a motor (not shown), and the long paper 16 switches the conveyance path of the long paper P so as to be sandwiched between the discharge rollers 3 and 4. Can be sent to

This paper transport path switching guide means 6
Is disposed between the first discharge rollers 3 and 4 and the second discharge rollers 7 and 8,
Is positioned at the first position P1 indicated by the solid line, the paper P
Pass under the sheet transport path switching guide means 6 and pass through the sheet guide means 9, 10, 11 of the first stock means 87.
Is wound into a cylindrical shape by the inner peripheral surface. The sheet guide means 10, 11 of the sheet guide means 9, 10, 11 and the solenoid 35 constitute an opening means 89. Further, the paper guide means 9, 10, 11 constitute a first stock means 87.

On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 1, when the paper transport path switching guide means 6 is positioned at the second position P2 shown by the two-dot chain line, the paper P passes over the paper transport path switching guide means 6. The paper is discharged from the second discharge rollers 7 and 8 and sent straight to the second stock means 150 side.

As shown in FIG.
This is a device that rolls a long sheet of paper P into a cylindrical shape, and stocks the rounded sheet of paper P in guides 19, 20, and 21.

As shown in FIG. 1, the second stock means 150 is an apparatus for discharging a short sheet of paper PS in a straight shape, and depositing and stocking it.

The paper guide means 9 of the paper storage means 130,
Each of the paper guides 10 and 11 has an arc shape, and the paper guides 9, 10, and 11 are continuously connected to guide the paper P such that the long paper P is rounded. That is, the long sheet P discharged by the first discharge rollers 3 and 4 is
The paper passes through the paper transport path switching guide means 6 and travels along the circular arc of the paper guide means 9, 10, 11 and makes one round. Further, the long paper P discharged by the first discharge rollers 3 and 4
Travels many times.

Until the trailing end of the paper P comes out of the discharge rollers 3 and 4, the long paper P travels in the paper guide means 9, 10, and 11, and the long paper P is neatly wound into a cylindrical shape. Become. An advantage of the embodiment of the present invention is that a long sheet of paper P can be wound into a cylindrical shape without the need for a core material.
21 can be stocked. If the paper using the core material is to be wound, the core material must be removed from the wound paper, and the work of extracting the core material is very troublesome.

If the length of the long sheet P is, for example, about one hundred and several tens of μm, and the cylindrical diameter of the sheet P is about 60 mm, the diameter becomes several mm if the length of the sheet P is 5 m. If the positions of the paper guide means 9, 10, 11 are fixed, respectively, the paper guide means 9, 1
The long paper P stocked in 0, 11 swells,
While the paper P is rotating, the outer peripheral surface of the paper P and the paper guide means 9,
Since the frictional resistance between the inner peripheral surfaces of the sheets 10 and 11 increases, the long sheet P does not rotate properly in the sheet guides 9, 10 and 11. In this case, the paper P is jammed in the paper guide means 9, 10, 11 or in the vicinity of the discharge rollers 3, 4, or the paper P buckles in the middle, so that the paper cannot be discharged. .

In order to avoid this, as shown in FIGS. 1 to 4, drive rollers 12, 13, 14 are arranged on the paper guide means 9, 10, 11, respectively. As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, these drive rollers 12, 13, and 14 are fixed to shafts 12j, 13j, and 14j, respectively, and can be rotated synchronously by driving a motor 36.

That is, a pulley 37 is fixed to the output shaft of the motor 36, and this pulley 37 is connected to the pulley 38 by a belt 38a. Pulley 38 is shaft 14j
The shaft 14j has a roller 14b. The roller 14b is in pressure contact with the large roller 39. Similarly, the shafts 12j and 13j also have rollers 12b and 13 respectively.
b, and these rollers 12b, 13b, 1
4b rotates synchronously via the large roller 39. on the other hand,
The rollers 12a, 13a, and 14a are also pressed against the large roller 40.

From these, the driving rollers 12, 13,
14 is a large roller 39, 40, axis 12j, 13j, 14j
, And can be rotated synchronously by the operation of the motor 36. The driving rollers 12, 13, and 14 are designed to rotate several tens% (range of 10% or more and 20% or less) faster than the linear velocity of the first discharge rollers 3 and 4, and thereby the diameter of the paper P due to rotation. Is designed to be smaller.

The sheet guide means 9 and 10 facing each other in FIG. 1 open from the position P1 indicated by the solid line in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2 to the position P2 indicated by the two-dot chain line, as shown in FIG. The rising portions 9a and 10a are formed at both ends. Start-up units 9a, 10a, 9b, 10
b has notches 9h and 10h, and the notches 9h and 10h have bearings 41 and 43 and compression springs 42 and 43, respectively.
44 are provided. The compression springs 42 and 44 are
1 and 43 are pressed.

The driving method of the driving rollers 12, 13, 14 will be described. When the paper guide means 9, 10 is in the closed position shown by the solid line position P1 in FIGS. 1 and 2, the motor 36 operates. Then, the pulleys 37 and 39 and the belt 38a
, The non-oscillating rollers 14a, 14b are rotated.
The rotation of the rollers 14a and 14b causes the large rollers 39 and 4 to rotate.
The rollers 12, 13 rotate through the zero.

However, when the paper guide means 9 and 10 are at the open position P2 shown by the two-dot chain line in FIGS. 1 and 2,
Rollers 12a, 13a, 12b, 1 from large rollers 39, 40
The rollers 12, 13, and 14 do not rotate because 3b separates.

As shown in FIG. 1, the second stock means 150 is for straightly depositing and stocking a short sheet of paper PS, and is disposed obliquely downward on the rear side of the second discharge rollers 7, 8. Have been. When the paper transport path switching guide means 6 moves from the position P2 indicated by the two-dot chain line to the position P1 indicated by the solid line by suction of the solenoid 30 in FIG.
The short sheet P1 passes over the sheet transport path switching guide means 6, and is stocked on the sheet ejection tray 50 of the second stock means 150 by the second ejection rollers 7, 8.

The paper transport path switching guide means 6 includes a shaft 5
, And both ends of the shaft 5 are fitted into holes of the front and rear side plates 25 so as to be rotatable. The shaft 5 protrudes from the side plate 25, and a lever 26 shown in FIG. 5 is fixed outside the side plate 25. A concave portion 26a is provided at the tip of the lever 26, and one end of a spring 27 is hooked on the concave portion 26a. The other end of the spring 27 is hooked on a pin 28 of the side plate.

A pin is provided at the tip of the lever 26, and a link 29 is hung thereon. A solenoid 30 is hung at the other end of the link 29. By the operation of the solenoid 30, the sheet transport path switching guide means 6 moves from the position P2 indicated by the two-dot chain line to the position P1 indicated by the solid line. In this state, the short sheet P is discharged straight.

As shown in FIGS. 1, 2 and 4, the paper P rolled into a cylindrical shape is stored in a paper storage means 130 immediately below. To this end, the opening means 89
The paper guides 9 and 10 are supported so as to be swingable about fulcrums 15 and 16, and the closed paper guides 9 and 10 respectively abut against a stopper 30a. The fulcrum 15 protrudes from the side plate 25, and a lever 31 is fixed outside the fulcrum 15. The lever 31 has a recess 31a at the tip thereof, on which a spring 32 is engaged. The other end of the spring 32 is engaged with a pin 33 of the side plate 25.

At the tip of the lever 31, there is a pin 35,
A link 34 is hung on the pin 35. Link 3
A solenoid 35 is hung on the other end of 4. By the operation of the solenoid 35, the guide means 6 is moved from the position indicated by the solid line by 2 degrees.
Move to the position indicated by the chain line. The paper guide means 10 has a similar structure.

When the rolled long paper P is stored in the paper storage means 130 by dropping from the paper guide means 9, 10, 11 by its own weight, the switching solenoid 35 of each paper guide means 9, 10 is used. At the same time, the paper guides 9 and 10 are positioned at the two-dot chain lines, and the paper P falls by its own weight and is stored in the paper storage means 130. Then, when the solenoid 35 is turned off, the paper guide means 9 and 10 return to the original position indicated by the solid line and close by the urging force of the spring. And paper guide means 9, 1
In steps 0 and 11, the next sheet P is stocked while being rounded.

The paper storage means 130 includes the paper guide means 9,
Although located at the lower part of the sheet storage means 13,
The width for storing the rolled paper P at 0
And the guide 20. The width D formed by the guides 19 and 20 is set to be substantially the same as the diameter of the curled paper P. In this way, it is possible to prevent the diameter of the rounded paper P from becoming large, and it is possible to reliably and stably stock the cylindrical paper P in the paper storage means 130 in a serial arrangement.
Reference numeral 24 indicates a plurality of sheets P stocked.

At the lowermost end of the paper storage means 130,
An opening 2 having a size corresponding to the diameter of a rounded sheet P
2a is provided, and the guide portion 22 can be opened and closed at this opening 22a. By opening the guide portion 22, a single bundle of paper P at the lowermost end can be taken out. The guide 20 can be opened from the position indicated by the solid line to the position indicated by the two-dot chain line with the pin 21 as the center. The pin 21 is located immediately above the guide portion 22, and thereby the rolled paper P is placed in the paper storage unit 13.
Even if it gets stuck in 0, it can be easily taken out. In that case, the discharge tray 50 is detached from the main body, but this is performed. For this purpose, the leading end hook portion 50a of the discharge tray 50 is detached from the main body.

When the operation is repeated and the long paper P curled becomes full in the paper storage means 130, the detection member 18 is moved from the paper detection means 17 to the position shown by the two-dot chain line in FIG. After being removed, the paper detecting means 17 detects the full state. This paper detecting means 1
For example, a photointerrupter 7 composed of a phototransistor and a light emitting diode can be employed. By detecting the fullness of the paper, the paper transport path switching guide means 6 is turned on as shown in FIG.
As shown in (2), the sheet P is closed as shown by the solid line to prevent the sheet P from entering the sheet storing means 130 any more.

Incidentally, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and various changes can be made without departing from the scope of the claims. For example, in the illustrated one, three guide means 9,
Although 10 and 11 are provided, it is also possible to arrange two or four or more divided guide members in a circular shape.

Although the sheet storage device of the present invention is used in an image forming apparatus, the present invention is not limited to this, and can be applied to a case where sheets are stored in a document conveying device.

[0048]

According to the first aspect of the present invention, by opening a part of the guide means in the first stock means, the stock paper is moved and stored in the second stock means. Therefore, long paper can be rolled up neatly and can be easily handled and stocked continuously.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, when the inside of the paper storage means is full of paper, the switching guide means is operated to store the paper in the second stock means. It is possible to prevent the forcible entry into the paper storage means.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, the movement of the paper from the stock means to the paper storage means is reduced by utilizing the weight of the paper, so that the structure can be simplified without using a special moving mechanism. It can be manufactured at low cost.

According to the fourth aspect of the present invention, since the width of the storage space of the paper storage means is the same as the diameter of the rounded paper, it is possible to prevent the diameter of the rounded paper from increasing. It is possible to reliably and stably stock paper continuously in a cylindrical shape. Further, since the lower end of the sheet has an opening having a size corresponding to the diameter, the stored sheets can be easily taken out one by one.

According to the fifth aspect of the invention, when the paper is short, the switching guide means is operated and stored in the second stock means, so that the long paper and the short paper are separately stored. Can be.

According to the sixth aspect of the present invention, since the guide of the paper storage means can be opened with the upper position of the lowermost opening as a fulcrum, the paper can be easily taken out even if the paper is caught. it can.

According to the seventh aspect of the present invention, the linear speed of the driving roller rotates faster than the linear speed of the discharge roller in the range of 10% to 20%. The paper can be rolled and the paper can be stably rolled and stocked.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an embodiment of a paper storage device of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an opening and closing mechanism of a guide means in the embodiment of the paper storage device of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing a driving mechanism of a driving roller of a guide unit.

FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating a guide unit, a driving roller, and the like.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a switching mechanism of a switching guide.

FIG. 6 is a view showing a conventional paper stock apparatus.

[Explanation of symbols]

 P Long paper PS Short paper 6 Paper transport path switching guide means 9, 10, 11 Paper guide means 87 First stock means 89 Opening means 110 Discharge unit 130 Paper storage means 150 Second stock means

Claims (7)

[Claims] 1. A paper storage device for storing paper such as a document or recording paper for forming an image, and a discharge unit for discharging the paper, and a paper guide means for guiding the paper while rolling the paper into a cylindrical shape. The first stock means for stocking the rolled paper, and a part of the guide means in the stock means after the discharge of the paper from the discharge section is completed, so that the stock paper is released. A paper storage device, comprising: an opening means for moving; and a paper storage means for storing the rounded paper opened by the opening means in another position from the first stock means. 2. A paper feed path switching guide means is provided in the discharge section, a paper detection means is provided in a paper storage means for rolling and storing the paper, and a second stock for further storing the paper is provided in the paper storage device. Means for activating the switching guide means in response to a signal from the paper detecting means to store the paper in the second stock means when the paper storage means is full of paper. A paper storage device according to claim 1. 3. The paper storage means is provided below the first stock means, and when the paper is moved from the stock means to the paper storage means, the paper is dropped into the paper storage means by its own weight. The paper storage device according to claim 1. 4. The paper storage means, wherein the width for storing the rounded paper is substantially the same as the diameter of the rounded paper, and the lower end thereof has a diameter substantially equal to the diameter of the rounded paper. The paper storage device according to claim 1, further comprising an opening. 5. The paper feeding path switching guide means is provided in the discharge section, and when the paper is short, the switching guide means is operated to store the paper in the second stock means. Paper storage device according to the above. 6. The paper storage device according to claim 4, wherein the paper storage means has a guide, and the guide can be opened by using a position above the lowermost opening as a fulcrum. 7. The paper guide means is provided with a drive roller, and the linear speed of the drive roller is higher than the linear speed of the paper discharge roller of the discharge section within a range of 10% to 20%. The paper storage device according to claim 1.