Recording material processing apparatus and image forming system

Abstract

The present invention provides a recording material processing apparatus and an image forming system. The recording material processing apparatus includes: a recording material support portion that supports a loaded recording material from below; a contact member that is disposed on a side of the recording material loaded on the recording material support portion and against which an edge portion of the recording material is pressed, the contact member being provided so as to be movable to a side opposite to the side where the recording material is located; an elastic member that bears a load from the contact member against which the edge portion of the recording material is pressed; and a member support portion that is disposed in a state of not contacting the recording material loaded on the recording material support portion and supports the contact member.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a recording material processing apparatus and an image forming system. Background Art

[0002] The following processing is disclosed in Patent Document 1: After a sheet-like medium discharged from a discharge unit is completely loaded on a tray, an alignment member is brought into contact with and separated from an end face of the sheet-like medium parallel to the discharge direction of the sheet-like medium to align the position of the end face.

[0003] Prior Art Documents

[0004] Patent Documents

[0005] Patent Document 1: Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2001-240295 Summary of the Invention

[0006] Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0007] When aligning a recording material, by providing a contact member against which an edge portion of the recording material presses and pressing the recording material against the contact member, the recording material can be aligned.

[0008] However, when aligning the recording material, a load is applied to the recording material. When this load is large, the recording material may be deformed into a wavy shape, and when the load is released, the recording material may bounce up and cause misalignment. In addition, when the load acting on the recording material is large, the edge portion of the recording material may also be folded.

[0009] A first object of the present invention is to reduce the load acting on a recording material when aligning the recording material as compared with a case where a contact member against which the recording material presses does not move.

[0010] In an apparatus for processing a recording material, the position in the extending direction of the recording material may not be aligned. In addition, there may be a bulge in the thickness direction of the recording material. As a method for dealing with these situations, it is considered to provide, in addition to a mechanism for aligning the position in the extending direction of the recording material, a mechanism for applying a load acting in the thickness direction of the recording material to the recording material. However, since the mechanisms acting on the recording material are separately constituted, the number of parts increases, or the order of the mechanisms acting on the recording material needs to be controlled, etc., and the structure becomes complicated.

[0011] A second object of the present invention is to suppress the complication of the structure required for processing a recording material as compared with a case where a mechanism for aligning the position in the extending direction of the recording material and a mechanism for applying a load acting in the thickness direction of the recording material are separately provided.

[0012] Means for Solving the Problems

[0013] A first aspect of the present invention is a recording material processing apparatus, wherein the recording material processing apparatus includes: a recording material support portion that supports the loaded recording material from below; a contact member that is disposed on a side of the recording material loaded on the recording material support portion and against which an edge portion of the recording material presses, the contact member being configured to be movable to a side opposite to the side where the recording material is located; an elastic member that bears a load from the contact member against which the edge portion of the recording material presses; and a member support portion that is disposed in a state of not contacting the recording material loaded on the recording material support portion and supports the contact member.

[0014] A second aspect of the present invention is based on the recording material processing apparatus described in the first aspect of the present invention. The member support portion is disposed on a side opposite to the recording material loaded on the recording material support portion with the contact member therebetween, and the elastic member is provided between the contact member and the member support portion.

[0015] A third aspect of the present invention is based on the recording material processing apparatus described in the second aspect of the present invention. A plurality of the elastic members are provided, and the plurality of elastic members provided are configured such that positions in a direction in which the edge portion of the recording material loaded on the recording material support portion extends are different from each other.

[0016] A fourth aspect of the present invention is based on the recording material processing apparatus described in the first aspect of the present invention. When the edge portion of the newly loaded recording material on the recording material support portion presses against the contact member, the member support portion is disposed at a position opposed to an upper surface of the already loaded recording material, that is, the recording material already loaded on the recording material support portion.

[0017] A fifth aspect of the present invention is based on the recording material processing apparatus described in the fourth aspect of the present invention. The member support portion is located above the upper surface of the already loaded recording material and is disposed in a state of being separated from the upper surface.

[0018] A sixth aspect of the present invention is based on the recording material processing apparatus described in the first aspect of the present invention. The thickness of a lower edge portion of the contact member is smaller than the thickness of an upper edge portion of the contact member.

[0019] Based on the recording material processing apparatus described in the first or sixth aspect of the present invention, the contact member in the seventh aspect of the present invention has: a pressed surface which is a surface against which the edge portion of the recording material loaded on the recording material support portion is pressed; and a reverse surface which is a surface located on the side opposite to the pressed surface, and an inclined surface is provided on the reverse surface, the inclined surface is inclined with respect to the vertical direction, and the distance from the pressed surface gradually increases upward.

[0020] Based on the recording material processing apparatus described in the seventh aspect of the present invention, in the eighth aspect of the present invention, the inclined surface extends upward starting from the lower edge portion of the contact member.

[0021] Based on the recording material processing apparatus described in the first aspect of the present invention, in the ninth aspect of the present invention, the contact member and the member support portion are arranged along the direction in which the edge portion of the recording material loaded on the recording material support portion extends, and when comparing the thicknesses in the direction intersecting with the direction in which the edge portion extends, the thickness of the contact member is different from the thickness of the member support portion.

[0022] Based on the recording material processing apparatus described in the ninth aspect of the present invention, in the tenth aspect of the present invention, the thickness of the contact member is smaller than the thickness of the member support portion.

[0023] Based on the recording material processing apparatus described in the first aspect of the present invention, in the eleventh aspect of the present invention, the recording material processing apparatus further includes: a pressing member which is arranged on the side opposite to the side where the contact member is provided with the recording material loaded on the recording material support portion interposed therebetween, and presses the recording material toward the contact member; and an elastic member which bears the load from the pressing member pressing the recording material.

[0024] Based on the recording material processing apparatus described in the eleventh aspect of the present invention, in the twelfth aspect of the present invention, the elastic member bearing the load from the pressing member and the elastic member bearing the load from the contact member are each constituted by a coil spring, and when the pressing member presses the recording material loaded on the recording material support portion toward the contact member, the central axis of the coil spring bearing the load from the pressing member is located below the central axis of the coil spring bearing the load from the contact member.

[0025] Based on the recording material processing apparatus described in the first aspect of the present invention, the 13th aspect of the present invention further includes a pressing member that is disposed on the side opposite to the side where the contact member is provided with the recording material loaded on the recording material support portion interposed therebetween, and presses the recording material toward the contact member. When the pressing member presses the recording material toward the contact member, a lower edge portion of the pressing member is located at a position lower than a lower edge portion of the contact member.

[0026] Based on the recording material processing apparatus described in the first aspect of the present invention, the 14th aspect of the present invention is configured such that the contact member is movable in the vertical direction.

[0027] Based on the recording material processing apparatus described in the first aspect of the present invention, when newly loading a recording material onto the recording material support portion, the contact member is in contact with and disposed on the upper surface of the recording material already loaded on the recording material support portion, i.e., the already-loaded recording material. When the number of recording materials newly loaded onto the recording material support portion exceeds a predetermined number, the contact member moves upward and / or the recording material support portion descends, and the contact member separates from the already-loaded recording material.

[0028] Based on the recording material processing apparatus described in the first aspect of the present invention, an edge portion of the recording material loaded on the recording material support portion is pressed against a side closer to the lower edge portion of the lower edge portion and the upper edge portion of the contact member.

[0029] Based on the recording material processing apparatus described in the second aspect of the present invention, the 17th aspect of the present invention is configured such that the elastic member disposed between the contact member and the member support portion is constituted by a coil spring, and an edge portion of the recording material loaded on the recording material support portion is pressed against a portion of the contact member located below the central axis of the coil spring.

[0030] Based on the recording material processing apparatus described in the 17th aspect of the present invention, in a state where a lower edge portion of the contact member is in contact with the recording material already loaded on the recording material support portion, i.e., the already-loaded recording material, an edge portion of the recording material loaded on the recording material support portion is pressed against the portion located below the central axis of the coil spring.

[0031] Based on the recording material processing apparatus described in the first aspect of the present invention, in the 19th aspect of the present invention, when a recording material loaded on the recording material support portion is newly loaded on a recording material already loaded on the recording material support portion, i.e., the already-loaded recording material, the recording material newly loaded on the recording material support portion becomes the already-loaded recording material. Thereafter, a new recording material is further loaded on the already-loaded recording material. Each time a new recording material is loaded, the loading position of the new recording material is sequentially shifted, and the loading position is sequentially shifted downstream in one direction.

[0032] The 20th aspect of the present invention provides a recording material processing apparatus, comprising: a support portion that supports a recording material from below; a contact member that advances toward the recording material from the side of the recording material supported by the support portion and has a contact surface that contacts an edge portion of the recording material. When the contact surface contacts the edge portion and presses the edge portion, the contact surface faces obliquely downward.

[0033] Based on the recording material processing apparatus described in the 20th aspect of the present invention, in the 21st aspect of the present invention, on a side opposite to the side where the recording material is located with the contact member interposed therebetween, an advancing portion that advances toward the recording material together with the contact member is provided, and an elastic member is provided between the contact member and the advancing portion.

[0034] Based on the recording material processing apparatus described in the 21st aspect of the present invention, in the 22nd aspect of the present invention, the elastic member is a helical spring, and a portion of the contact member located below the central axis of the helical spring contacts the edge portion of the recording material.

[0035] Based on the recording material processing apparatus described in the 20th aspect of the present invention, in the 23rd aspect of the present invention, on a side opposite to the side where the recording material is located with the contact member interposed therebetween, an advancing portion that advances toward the recording material together with the contact member is provided. The contact member is supported by the advancing portion, and when the contact surface contacts the edge portion and presses the edge portion, the contact member is arranged in a state inclined with respect to the vertical direction, and the advancing portion is arranged in a state along the vertical direction when the contact surface contacts the edge portion and presses the edge portion.

[0036] Based on the recording material processing device described in the 20th aspect of the present invention, on the side opposite to the side where the recording material is located with the contact member interposed therebetween, a forward portion that advances toward the recording material together with the contact member is provided. The contact member is supported by the forward portion. When the contact member advances toward the recording material and contacts the edge portion, the posture changes. Along with this change in posture, the contact surface faces obliquely downward. After the contact surface of the contact member contacts the edge portion, the posture of the forward portion does not change.

[0037] Based on the recording material processing device described in the 20th aspect of the present invention,

[0038] The forward portion is along the vertical direction. After the contact surface of the contact member contacts the edge portion, the posture of the forward portion does not change, and the forward portion maintains a state along the vertical direction.

[0039] Based on the recording material processing device described in the 20th aspect of the present invention, on the side opposite to the side where the recording material is located with the contact member interposed therebetween, a forward portion that advances toward the recording material together with the contact member is provided. The contact member is supported by the forward portion. When comparing the thickness in the advancing direction when the contact member advances toward the recording material, the thickness of the contact member is smaller than the thickness of the forward portion.

[0040] Based on the recording material processing device described in the 20th aspect of the present invention, when the contact member retracts from the recording material, the contact surface is arranged along the vertical direction.

[0041] Based on the recording material processing device described in the 1st aspect of the present invention, when the contact member contacts the recording material, a load acts on the contact member from the recording material. Through this load acting on the contact member, the contact surface faces obliquely downward.

[0042] Based on the recording material processing device described in the 28th aspect of the present invention, the contact member has a lower edge portion and an upper edge portion. At a portion of the contact member located on the side closer to the lower edge portion, the load from the recording material acts.

[0043] Based on the recording material processing device described in the 20th aspect of the present invention, the contact surface of the contact member also faces obliquely downward in a state where it is not in contact with the recording material.

[0044] Based on the recording material processing device described in the 20th aspect of the present invention, in the surface of the contact member facing the recording material side, in addition to the contact surface facing obliquely downward, a surface along the vertical direction is also provided.

[0045] Based on the recording material processing device described in the 20th aspect of the present invention, when the contact surface of the contact member contacts the edge portion of the recording material and presses the edge portion, the upper edge portion of the contact member is located at the opposing position of the upper surface of the recording material.

[0046] The 33rd aspect of the present invention is a recording material processing device, which includes: a support portion that supports the recording material from below; and a contact member that advances from the side of the recording material supported by the support portion toward the recording material and contacts the edge portion of the recording material. In the portion of the contact member that contacts the edge portion, an inclined surface that is inclined with respect to the vertical direction and faces obliquely downward is provided.

[0047] The 34th aspect of the present invention is a recording material processing device, which includes: a support portion that supports the recording material from below; a contact member that advances from the side of the recording material supported by the support portion toward the recording material and contacts the edge portion of the recording material; and a spiral spring that is disposed on the side opposite to the side where the recording material is located with the contact member interposed therebetween and presses the contact member toward the recording material side. The portion of the contact member located below the central axis of the spiral spring contacts the edge portion of the recording material.

[0048] The 35th aspect of the present invention is a recording material processing device, which includes: a support portion that supports the recording material from below; and a contact member that has an upper edge portion and a lower edge portion and advances from the side of the recording material supported by the support portion toward the recording material and contacts the edge portion of the recording material. The side of the contact member close to the lower edge portion among the upper edge portion and the lower edge portion contacts the edge portion of the recording material.

[0049] The 36th aspect of the present invention is a recording material processing device, which includes: a support portion that supports the recording material from below; and a contact member that is disposed on the side of the recording material supported by the support portion. On the surface facing the recording material side, an inclined surface facing obliquely downward and a surface disposed along the vertical direction are provided, and the contact member contacts the edge portion of the recording material.

[0050] The 37th scheme of the present invention is an image forming system, wherein the image forming system comprises: an image forming device that forms an image on a recording material; and a recording material processing device that processes the recording material, and the recording material processing device is constructed as a recording material processing device including any one of the first scheme to the 36th scheme of the present invention.

[0051] Effects of the Invention

[0052] According to the first aspect of the present invention, compared with a case where the contact member against which the recording material is pressed does not move, it is possible to reduce the load acting on the recording material when aligning the recording material.

[0053] According to the second aspect of the present invention, while the contact member can be moved to the side opposite to the side where the recording material is located, the contact member can be urged toward the recording material side.

[0054] According to the third aspect of the present invention, compared with a case where the number of elastic members is single, the support of the contact member by the elastic member can be stabilized.

[0055] According to the fourth scheme of the present invention, compared with the case where the component support portion is detached from the opposing position of the upper surface of the loaded recording material and the component support portion is arranged at a position farther outside than the outer periphery of the loaded recording material, the component support portion is close to the contact component, and the contact component can be supported more stably by the component support portion.

[0056] According to the fifth aspect of the present invention, compared with a case where the component support portion is arranged in contact with the upper surface of the loaded recording material, it is possible to suppress loading disorder of the loaded recording material.

[0057] According to the sixth aspect of the present invention, the contact member can be easily tilted to the side opposite to the side where the recording material is located, compared with a case where the thickness of the lower edge portion of the contact member is larger than the thickness of the upper edge portion.

[0058] According to the seventh embodiment of the present invention, compared with the case where no inclined surface whose distance from the pressed surface gradually increases upward is provided on the opposite surface opposite to the pressed surface, it is possible to easily cause the contact member to tilt toward the side opposite to the side where the recording material is located.

[0059] According to the eighth aspect of the present invention, the contact member can be easily tilted to the side opposite to the side where the recording material is located, compared with a case where the starting point of the inclined surface is located above the lower edge of the contact member.

[0060] According to the ninth aspect of the present invention, compared with a case where the thickness of the contact member is equal to the thickness of the component support portion, it is easier to provide the contact member with a function different from that of the component support portion.

[0061] According to the 10th aspect of the present invention, compared with the case where the thickness of the contact member is larger than the thickness of the member support portion, the load applied to the recording material pressed against the contact member can be reduced, and the damage to the recording material can be decreased.

[0062] According to the 11th aspect of the present invention, the recording material can be pressed by a pressing member that can be retracted from the recording material.

[0063] According to the 12th aspect of the present invention, compared with the structure in which the central axis of the coil spring that bears the load from the pressing member is located above the central axis of the coil spring that bears the load from the contact member, the support by the coil spring of the pressing member disposed below the contact member can be made more stable.

[0064] According to the 13th aspect of the present invention, compared with the case where the lower edge portion of the pressing member is located above the lower edge portion of the contact member, when the contact member is in contact with the loaded recording material, the pressing when pressing the newly loaded recording material with the pressing material can be made more stable.

[0065] According to the 14th aspect of the present invention, the portion of the contact member that presses the recording material can be changed.

[0066] According to the 15th aspect of the present invention, compared with the case where the contact member continues to contact the loaded recording material even when the number of newly loaded recording materials exceeds a predetermined number, the pressing of the recording material against a specific portion of the contact member can be continued.

[0067] According to the 16th aspect of the present invention, compared with the case where the edge portion of the recording material is pressed against the side of the contact member near the upper edge portion, the loading disorder of the recording material can be reduced.

[0068] According to the 17th aspect of the present invention, compared with the case where the edge portion of the recording material is pressed against the portion of the contact member located above the central axis of the coil spring, the loading disorder of the recording material can be reduced.

[0069] According to the 18th aspect of the present invention, compared with the case where the lower edge portion of the contact member does not contact the loaded recording material and the recording material is pressed against the portion of the contact member located above the central axis of the coil spring, the loading disorder of the recording material can be reduced.

[0070] According to the 19th aspect of the present invention, the recording materials can be loaded in such a manner that the recording materials loaded on the support portion are arranged in one direction.

[0071] According to the 20th aspect of the present invention, compared with the case of separately providing a mechanism for aligning the position in the extending direction of the recording material and a mechanism for applying a load acting in the thickness direction of the recording material, the structure required for processing the recording material can be prevented from becoming complicated.

[0072] According to the 21st aspect of the present invention, compared with the case where no elastic member is provided between the contact member and the advancing portion, the load acting on the recording material can be reduced.

[0073] According to the 22nd aspect of the present invention, compared with the case where the portion of the contact member located above the central axis of the coil spring contacts the edge portion of the recording material, the contact surface of the contact member is more likely to face obliquely downward.

[0074] According to the 23rd aspect of the present invention, compared with the case where the advancing portion is arranged in an inclined state instead of in a state along the vertical direction, the contact member can be supported more stably by the advancing portion.

[0075] According to the 24th aspect of the present invention, compared with the case where the posture of the advancing portion changes, the contact member can be supported more stably by the advancing portion.

[0076] According to the 25th aspect of the present invention, compared with the case where the posture of the advancing portion changes to a state other than the state along the vertical direction, the contact member can be supported more stably by the advancing portion.

[0077] According to the 26th aspect of the present invention, compared with the case where the thickness of the contact member is larger than the thickness of the advancing portion, the contact member is more likely to deform, and the load acting on the recording material from the contact member can be reduced.

[0078] According to the 27th aspect of the present invention, compared with the case where, when the contact member retracts from the recording material, the contact surface is arranged in an inclined state instead of along the vertical direction, interference between the newly supplied recording material to the support portion and the contact member is less likely to occur.

[0079] According to the 28th aspect of the present invention, the contact surface of the contact member can be made to face obliquely downward without providing a dedicated drive source for making the contact surface of the contact member face obliquely downward.

[0080] According to the 29th aspect of the present invention, compared with the case where a load from the recording material acts on the portion of the contact member located closer to the upper edge portion, the contact surface of the contact member is more likely to face obliquely downward.

[0081] According to the 30th aspect of the present invention, compared with the structure where the contact surface does not face obliquely downward when the contact surface is not in contact with the recording material, the mechanism for making the contact surface face obliquely downward can be omitted.

[0082] According to the 31st aspect of the present invention, compared with the case where a surface along the vertical direction is not provided on the surface of the contact member facing the recording material side, the surface facing the recording material side can be used to make the degree of alignment of the recording material in the case where the alignment process of the recording material is performed in a better state.

[0083] According to the 32nd aspect of the present invention, compared with the case where the upper edge portion of the contact member does not lie in the opposing portion of the upper surface of the recording material when pressing the contact surface pressing edge portion, the upward movement of the recording material can be restricted.

[0084] According to the 33rd to 36th aspects of the present invention, compared with the case where a mechanism for aligning the position of the recording material in the extending direction and a mechanism for applying a load acting in the thickness direction of the recording material are provided separately, the structure required for processing the recording material can be prevented from becoming complicated.

[0085] According to the 37th aspect of the present invention, compared with the case where the contact member against which the recording material is pressed does not move, the load acting on the recording material during alignment of the recording material can be reduced. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0086] Figure 1 is a diagram showing the overall structure of the image forming system.

[0087] Figure 2 is a diagram for explaining the structure of the first post-processing device.

[0088] Figure 3 is a view from Figure 2 the direction indicated by arrow III of

[0089] Figure 4 is a view from Figure 3 the direction indicated by arrow IV of

[0090] Figure 5 is a view from Figure 4 the direction indicated by arrow V of

[0091] Figure 6 is a view from Figure 3 the direction indicated by arrow VI of

[0092] Figure 7 is a diagram showing another arrangement example of the support portion, the paper, the first advancing member, and the contact member.

[0093] Figure 8 is a view from Figure 7A diagram showing the supporting portion, paper, the first advancing member, the second advancing member, and the contact member when viewed from the direction indicated by the arrow VIII.

[0094] Figure 9 This is a diagram for explaining an example of processing when paper sheets are loaded in a staggered manner.

[0095] Figure 10 is from Figure 9 A diagram showing the supporting portion, paper, the second advancing member, and the contact member when viewed in the direction indicated by the arrow X.

[0096] Figure 11 (A) and (B) are diagrams for explaining the moving mechanism.

[0097] Figure 12 (A) and (B) are diagrams showing other structural examples of contact components, etc.

[0098] Figure 13 It is a diagram showing another example of loading paper in the support section.

[0099] Figure 14 It is a diagram showing another example of loading paper in the support section.

[0100] Figure 15 It is a diagram showing another example of loading paper in the support section.

[0101] Figure 16 It is a diagram showing a state of a contact member and the like retracted from a sheet of paper.

[0102] Figure 17 It is a diagram showing another configuration example.

[0103] Figure 18 It is a diagram showing another structural example of the contact member.

[0104] Figure 19 It is a diagram showing another structural example of the contact member.

[0105] Figure 20 This is a diagram showing a state in which paper is loaded offset. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0106] [First embodiment]

[0107] Hereinafter, a first embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

[0108] Figure 1 It is a diagram showing the overall configuration of an image forming system 1 according to the first embodiment.

[0109] Figure 1The image forming system 1 shown includes an image forming apparatus 2 that forms an image on a sheet P as an example of a recording material, and a sheet processing apparatus 3 that performs a predetermined process on the sheet P on which an image has been formed by the image forming apparatus 2.

[0110] Here, the image forming apparatus 2 forms an image on the sheet P using an electrophotographic method or an inkjet method.

[0111] In the sheet processing apparatus 3 as an example of a recording material processing apparatus, a conveying device 10 that conveys the sheet P output from the image forming apparatus 2 to the downstream side, and a liner supply device 20 that supplies a liner such as a thick paper or a windowed sheet P to the sheet P conveyed by the conveying device 10 are provided.

[0112] In addition, in the sheet processing apparatus 3, a folding device 30 that performs folding processing such as inner three-fold (C-shaped folding) or outer three-fold (Z-shaped folding) on the sheet P conveyed from the conveying device 10 is provided.

[0113] In addition, a first post-processing device 40 is provided in the sheet processing apparatus 3. The first post-processing device 40 is provided on the downstream side of the folding device 30 and performs perforation, edge binding, saddle stitching, etc. on the sheet P.

[0114] Furthermore, a first post-processing device 40 is provided on the downstream side of the folding device 30. The first post-processing device 40 processes a stack of sheets P (an example of a stack of recording materials) formed by a plurality of sheets P on which images have been formed by the image forming apparatus 2, or performs processing on each sheet P for the sheet P.

[0115] In addition, a second post-processing device 500 is provided in the sheet processing apparatus 3. The second post-processing device 500 is provided on the downstream side of the first post-processing device 40 and further processes the stack of sheets that have been folded in half and saddle stitched.

[0116] In addition, a control unit 100 is provided in the sheet processing apparatus 3. The control unit 100 is composed of a CPU (Central Processing Unit) that executes a program and controls each functional unit of the sheet processing apparatus 3.

[0117] In the first post-processing device 40, a perforation unit 41 that perforates (drills holes) the sheet P and an edge binding stapler unit 42 that binds the ends of the stack of sheets are provided.

[0118] In addition, a first loading unit 43 for loading the paper P that has passed through the edge-binding stapler unit 42, and a second loading unit 45 for loading the paper P that has not been processed in the first post-processing device 40 or the paper P that has only been perforated are provided. The first loading unit 43 and the second loading unit 45 are open to the outside of the device, and the operator manually removes the paper P loaded on the first loading unit 43 or the second loading unit 45.

[0119] Moreover, in the first post-processing device 40, a saddle-stitching unit 44 for making a booklet in the form of a double-page by performing saddle stitching on a stack of papers is provided.

[0120] Figure 2 It is a diagram for explaining the structure of the first post-processing device 40.

[0121] In the first post-processing device 40, a receiving port 49 for receiving the paper P conveyed from the folding device 30 is provided.

[0122] Immediately behind the receiving port 49, a perforating unit 41 is provided. The perforating unit 41 performs perforation (punching) such as 2 holes or 4 holes on the paper P conveyed to the first post-processing device 40.

[0123] In addition, a first paper conveyance path R1 is provided, which is provided in the range from the receiving port 49 to the edge-binding stapler unit 42, and is used to convey the paper P received by the receiving port 49 to the edge-binding stapler unit 42.

[0124] Moreover, a second paper conveyance path R2 is provided, which branches from the first paper conveyance path R1 at the first branch portion B1 and is used to convey the paper P to the second loading unit 45.

[0125] In addition, a third paper conveyance path R3 is provided, which branches from the first paper conveyance path R1 at the second branch portion B2 and is used to convey the paper P to the saddle-stitching unit 44.

[0126] In addition, a switching door 70 for switching (setting) the conveyance destination of the paper P to any one of the first paper conveyance path R1 to the third paper conveyance path R3 is provided.

[0127] In the edge-binding stapler unit 42, a paper agglomerating unit 60 for agglomerating a required number of papers P to generate a stack of papers is provided.

[0128] In the paper agglomerating unit 60, a support plate 67 is provided, which is disposed obliquely with respect to the horizontal direction and supports the conveyed paper P from below. In the present embodiment, a stack of papers is generated on the support plate 67.

[0129] Further, in the edge binding stapler unit 42, a binding processing device 50 is provided for binding (edge binding) the end of the stack of sheets generated by the sheet agglomeration unit 60.

[0130] In addition, a discharge roller 61 is provided in the edge binding stapler unit 42. The discharge roller 61 is rotationally driven to send the stack of sheets generated by the sheet agglomeration unit 60 to the first loading unit 43 provided outside the device.

[0131] Also, a movable roller 62 is provided that can move to a position retracted from the discharge roller 61 and a position where it is pressed against the discharge roller 61.

[0132] Here, when processing is performed by the edge binding stapler unit 42, first, the conveyed sheet P is received by the receiving port 49.

[0133] After that, the sheet P is conveyed along the first sheet conveyance path R1 and reaches the edge binding stapler unit 42.

[0134] Then, after the sheet P is conveyed above the support plate 67, it drops onto the support plate 67. In addition, the sheet P is supported from below by the support plate 67, and slides on the support plate 67 due to the inclination given to the support plate 67 and the rotating member 63.

[0135] After that, the sheet P abuts against the end guide 64 provided at the end of the support plate 67. Further, in the present embodiment, an end guide 64 extending upward in the drawing is provided at the end of the support plate 67, and the sheet P moving on the support plate 67 abuts against the end guide 64.

[0136] Thereby, in the present embodiment, the movement of the sheet P stops. Thereafter, this operation is performed each time a sheet P is conveyed from the upstream side, and a stack of sheets P aligned is generated on the support plate 67.

[0137] In addition, in the present embodiment, a sheet width position alignment member 65 for aligning the position in the width direction of the stack of sheets is also provided.

[0138] In the present embodiment, each time a sheet P is supplied to the support plate 67, the end (side portion) in the width direction of the sheet P is pressed by the sheet width position alignment member 65, and the position in the width direction of the sheet P (stack of sheets) is also aligned.

[0139] When a predetermined number of sheets P are loaded on the support plate 67, the binding processing device 50 binds the end of the stack of sheets.

[0140] After that, in the present embodiment, the movable roller 62 advances toward the discharge roller 61, and the stack of sheets is clamped by the movable roller 62 and the discharge roller 61. After that, the discharge roller 61 is rotationally driven to convey the stack of sheets to the first loading unit 43.

[0141] In addition, the binding processing device 50 is arranged so as to be movable toward the depth side and the front side of the paper surface in the drawing, and in the present embodiment, binding processing for the sheet P can be performed at multiple positions.

[0142] In addition, there are cases where the binding process is not performed by the binding processing device 50. In this case, the sheet P in the state where the binding process has not been performed is sent from the sheet gathering unit 60 to the first loading unit 43.

[0143] Figure 3 It is a view when observing the first loading unit 43 from the direction shown by the arrow III of Figure 2 the drawing.

[0144] In the first loading unit 43, a support unit 300 is provided as an example of a recording material support unit. In the present embodiment, the loaded sheet P is placed on the support unit 300. The sheet P is supported from below by the support unit 300. In addition, the support unit 300 is inclined with respect to the horizontal direction.

[0145] And, in the first loading unit 43, an advancing member 600 is provided that advances from the side of the sheet P supported by the support unit 300 toward the sheet P.

[0146] Here, in the present embodiment, a first advancing member 610 and a second advancing member 620 are provided as the advancing member 600.

[0147] The first advancing member 610 advances from one side of the sheet P toward the sheet P, and the second advancing member 620 advances from the other side of the sheet P toward the sheet P.

[0148] As Figure 5 shown, the first advancing member 610 includes a rotating shaft 612, an arm portion 613 that rotates around the rotating shaft 612, and an advancing portion 614 that advances from the side of the sheet P toward the sheet P when the arm portion 613 rotates and is located below. In addition, in the present embodiment, the side of the advancing portion 614 close to the rotating shaft 612 is set as the rotating shaft 610A side, and the front end side is set as the front end 610B side.

[0149] Furthermore, the first advancing member 610 and the second advancing member 620 respectively move in a direction orthogonal to the conveying direction of the sheet P (the width direction of the sheet P), and advance from the side of the sheet P toward the sheet P.

[0150] Here, when loading the sheet P into the first loading unit 43, the sheet P is alongFigure 3 It is conveyed in the direction shown by arrow 3A.

[0151] In the present embodiment, the first advancing member 610 and the second advancing member 620 move in directions orthogonal to the conveying direction respectively.

[0152] Furthermore, in the present embodiment, the first advancing member 610 and the second advancing member 620 move in directions intersecting with the vertical direction respectively, and advance toward the sheet P from the side of the sheet P.

[0153] Moreover, in the present embodiment, contact members 700 that contact the sheet P are respectively mounted on the first advancing member 610 and the second advancing member 620.

[0154] The contact members 700 are mounted on the portions of the first advancing member 610 and the second advancing member 620 on the side of the sheet P, and contact the edge portion PB of the sheet P as the first advancing member 610 and the second advancing member 620 advance toward the sheet P.

[0155] Furthermore, the contact members 700 are disposed at positions closer to the sheet P than the advancing members 600, and contact the edge portion PB of the sheet P as the first advancing member 610 and the second advancing member 620 advance toward the sheet P.

[0156] In addition, in the present embodiment, as will be described later, the contact members 700 can move in directions opposite to the advancing directions of the first advancing member 610 and the second advancing member 620 respectively. In addition, in the present embodiment, the contact members 700 advance toward the sheet P in directions perpendicular to the vertical direction, and after contacting the sheet P, move toward the first advancing member 610 and the second advancing member 620 disposed on the side of the sheet P. The surfaces of the first advancing member 610 and the second advancing member 620 that are located at the same position in the direction perpendicular to the vertical direction of the sheet P block the impact of the contact members 700 via a coil spring KB (refer to Figure 5 ).

[0157] Figure 4 It is from Figure 3 FIG. when observing the first advancing member 610 etc. from the direction shown by arrow IV. In addition, in Figure 4 the illustration of the support portion 300 is omitted.

[0158] The first advancing member 610 and the second advancing member 620 are provided to protrude from the device main body 40A of the first post-processing device 40.

[0159] In addition, in the present embodiment, a moving mechanism 730 for moving the first advancing member 610 and the second advancing member 620 is provided.

[0160] In the present embodiment, by means of the moving mechanism 730, the first advancing member 610 and the second advancing member 620 can Figure 3 rotate about the rotation center shown by the reference numeral 3X in Figure 4 the direction shown by the arrow 4A in

[0161] In other words, in the present embodiment, the first advancing member 610 and the second advancing member 620 can move in the vertical direction.

[0162] The first loading part 43 is open to the outside. When the operator removes the paper P loaded on the support part 300, the first advancing member 610 and the second advancing member 620 are located at the upper position and retract from the paper P to be removed.

[0163] In addition, in the present embodiment, by means of the moving mechanism 730, the first advancing member 610 and the second advancing member 620 can move in the direction shown by the arrow 4X in Figure 4 In other words, in the present embodiment, the first advancing member 610 and the second advancing member 620 can move in the direction shown by the arrow 4X.

[0164] Furthermore, in the present embodiment, as described above, the first advancing member 610 and the second advancing member 620 can move relative to the edge portion PB of the paper P (not shown in Figure 4 ).

[0165] In addition, in the present embodiment, the contact member 700 is configured to be located on the side closer to the paper P (not shown in Figure 4 ) than the first advancing member 610 and the second advancing member 620.

[0166] Figure 5 is a view when observing the first advancing member 610 and the contact member 700 from the direction shown by the arrow V in Figure 4 . In addition, in the present embodiment, the second advancing member 620 side is configured in the same manner as the first advancing member 610 side.

[0167] On the contact member 700, two protrusions 740 protruding toward the first advancing member 610 side are provided. In the present embodiment, the contact member 700 is inclined with the portion where the protrusions 740 are provided as the center (described later).

[0168] In other words, in the present embodiment, the two protrusions 740 form an axis structure, and in the present embodiment, the contact member 700 is inclined with this axis as the center respectively.

[0169] In addition, in the present embodiment, as the protrusions 740, a front-end side protrusion 741 located on the front-end 610B side of the first advancing member 610 and a root-side protrusion 742 located on the root 610A side of the first advancing member 610 are provided.

[0170] Here, the two protrusions 740 provided are configured such that their positions in the long side direction of the contact member 700 are different from each other.

[0171] In addition, on the first advancing member 610, two hole portions 750 are provided into which the protrusions 740 provided on the contact member 700 can enter.

[0172] Moreover, the contact member 700 of the present embodiment has a root side end portion 700A located on the root 610A side of the first advancing member 610, and an opposite side end portion 700B located on the side opposite to the root side end portion 700A (the front end 610B side of the first advancing member 610).

[0173] In the present embodiment, the distance L2 between the front end side protrusion 741 of the protrusion 740, which is the other party, and the opposite side end portion 700B is larger than the distance L1 between the root side protrusion 742 of the protrusion 740, which is one party, and the root side end portion 700A.

[0174] Here, in the present embodiment, the hole portion 750 on the front end 610B side of the first advancing member 610, that is, the front end portion side hole portion 751, is formed of a long hole. Here, the long hole is arranged along the long side direction of the contact member 700.

[0175] On the other hand, the hole portion 750 on the root 610A side of the first advancing member 610, that is, the root side hole portion 752, is formed of a circular hole.

[0176] Here, in the present embodiment, the cross-sectional area (the cross-sectional area of the surface of the hole portion 750 orthogonal to the axial direction) of one of the two hole portions 750, that is, the front end portion side hole portion 751, is larger than the cross-sectional area of the other hole portion 750, that is, the root side hole portion 752.

[0177] In the present embodiment, when the first advancing member 610 advances toward the paper P, a predetermined contact portion (described later) of the contact member 700 contacts the paper P.

[0178] In the present embodiment, the cross-sectional area of the front end portion side hole portion 751, which is one of the two hole portions 750 and is located on the side closer to the contact portion, is larger than the cross-sectional area of the root side hole portion 752.

[0179] Moreover, in the present embodiment, a coil spring KB, which is an example of an elastic member, is provided between the contact member 700 and the first advancing member 610.

[0180] In addition, in this specification, the coil spring KB is described as an example, but as the elastic member, in addition to the coil spring KB, leaf springs, rubber, and other members are also cited.

[0181] In this embodiment, Figure 5 The contact member 700 shown in FIG. Figure 3 ) is located on the side opposite to the side where the contact member 700 is located, and an advancing portion 614 is provided for advancing toward the paper P together with the contact member 700.

[0182] In the present embodiment, a plurality of coil springs KB as an example of an elastic member are provided between the contact member 700 and the forward portion 614 .

[0183] Specifically, in the present embodiment, two coil springs KB are provided, namely, a front end side coil spring KB1 provided on the front end 610B side of the first advancing member 610 and a root side coil spring KB2 provided on the root 610A side of the first advancing member 610 .

[0184] In the present embodiment, a front end side coil spring KB1 is provided around the front end side protrusion 741 , and a root side coil spring KB2 is provided around the root side protrusion 742 .

[0185] Furthermore, in the present embodiment, a restricting screw 220 is provided for restricting the movement of the contact member 700 in the direction away from the first advancing member 610 .

[0186] Furthermore, a restricting screw 220 is provided for restricting the movement of the contact member 700 in a direction away from the first advancing member 610 to prevent the contact member 700 from being separated.

[0187] The restricting screws 220 are attached to the front end portion of the front end side protrusion 741 and the front end portion of the root side protrusion 742 , respectively.

[0188] When the contact member 700 moves in a direction away from the first advancing member 610, the head 221 of the restricting screw 220 comes into contact with the first advancing member 610. Thus, the contact member 700 is prevented from being separated from the first advancing member 610.

[0189] In this embodiment, if Figure 5 As shown, in comparison with the contact member 700 to the paper P (refer to Figure 3 ) In the case of the thickness in the advancing direction when advancing, the thickness W5 of the contact component 700 is smaller than the thickness W6 of the advancing portion 614.

[0190] Here, the thickness refers to the thickness of the main body portion formed in a plate shape, and does not refer to the thickness of a portion where the thickness is locally increased due to the presence of a protrusion, or the thickness of a portion where the thickness is locally decreased due to the presence of a recess.

[0191] For example, in this embodiment, Figure 5As shown, a protrusion 614A is provided on the advancing portion 614. However, the thickness W6 of the advancing portion 614 refers to the thickness of the portion excluding the protrusion 614A.

[0192] Similarly, a protrusion 740 is provided on the contact member 700. However, the thickness W5 of the contact member 700 refers to the thickness of the portion excluding the protrusion 740.

[0193] In other words, in the present embodiment, when comparing the thicknesses in the direction crossing the direction in which the edge portion PB of the sheet P (refer to Figure 3 ) extends, the thickness W5 of the contact member 700 is different from the thickness W6 of the advancing portion 614. In the present embodiment, the thickness W5 of the contact member 700 is smaller than the thickness W6 of the advancing portion 614.

[0194] The contact member 700 and the advancing portion 614 are arranged along the direction in which the edge portion PB of the sheet P loaded on the support portion 300 ( Figure 3 ) extends. When comparing the thicknesses in the direction crossing this extending direction, the thickness W5 of the contact member 700 is smaller than the thickness W6 of the advancing portion 614.

[0195] Here, the thickness refers to the thickness of the plate-shaped main body portion, and does not refer to the thickness of the portion where the thickness is locally increased due to the presence of the protrusion, or the thickness of the portion where the thickness is locally decreased due to the presence of the recess.

[0196] For example, in the present embodiment, as Figure 5 shown, a protrusion 614A is provided on the advancing portion 614. However, the thickness W6 of the advancing portion 614 refers to the thickness of the portion excluding the protrusion 614A.

[0197] Similarly, a protrusion 740 is provided on the contact member 700. However, the thickness W5 of the contact member 700 is refers to the thickness of the portion excluding the protrusion 740.

[0198] Figure 12 (A) and (B) of Figure 12 are diagrams showing other structural examples of the contact member 700, etc. As shown in (A) of

[0199] , in this structural example, a protrusion 614B is also provided on the advancing portion 614. However, the thickness W6 of the advancing portion 614 refers to the thickness of the portion excluding the protrusion 614B. Figure 5 In addition, in this structural example, the protrusion 614A shown in

[0200] is not provided, and the head 221 of the restricting screw 220 abuts against the side surface 614X of the plate-shaped advancing portion 614. Figure 12 In addition, in this structural example shown in (A) ofFigure 5 The protrusion 789 not shown in the figure, but the thickness W5 of the contact member 700 refers to the thickness of the portion excluding the protrusion 789.

[0201] Figure 12 of (B) is from Figure 12 the figure when observing the advancing portion 614 in the direction indicated by the arrow XIIB in (A) of the figure. In this advancing portion 614, a plurality of recesses 700Y are provided on the surface facing the contact member 700 (refer to Figure 12 (A) of the figure).

[0202] The thickness W6 of the advancing portion 614 refers to the thickness of the portion where the recess 700Y is not provided. In other words, the thickness W6 of the advancing portion 614 refers to the thickness of the advancing portion 614 assuming a state where the recess 700Y is not provided.

[0203] Figure 6 is from Figure 3 the figure when observing the support portion 300, the first advancing member 610, and the contact member 700 in the direction indicated by the arrow VI in the figure.

[0204] In the present embodiment, each time a sheet P is conveyed to the support portion 300, the first advancing member 610 advances toward the sheet P, and the contact member 700 is pressed against the edge portion PB of the sheet P.

[0205] In addition, at this time, the second advancing member 620 ( Figure 6 not shown in the figure) also advances toward the sheet P, and the contact member 700 provided on the side of the second advancing member 620 is also pressed against the edge portion PB of the sheet P.

[0206] When the contact member 700 is pressed against the edge portion PB of the sheet P, in the present embodiment, a predetermined contact portion 780 of the contact member 700 comes into contact with the sheet P.

[0207] Here, in the present embodiment, the front-end side hole portion 751 (refer to Figure 5 ) is located on the side closer to the contact portion 780, and in the present embodiment, the cross-sectional area of the front-end side hole portion 751 is larger than the cross-sectional area of the root side hole portion 752.

[0208] Accordingly, in the present embodiment, compared with the case where the cross-sectional area of the front-end side hole portion 751 is smaller than the cross-sectional area of the root side hole portion 752, the contact portion 780 of the contact member 700 (refer to Figure 6 ) is more likely to move.

[0209] Furthermore, the side where the contact portion 780 in the contact member 700 is located is liable to retract toward the first advancing member 610 side. In the present embodiment, the region of the contact portion 780 forms part of the contact member, but it may also be configured such that more regions of the contact member come into contact. In this case, the contact portion 780 is wider than Figure 6 and, when applied to both sides of the hole when viewed from the direction of Figure 6 , the hole portion located at a position closer to the center of the contact portion becomes the side closer to the contact portion.

[0210] In addition, in Figure 6 , a state of observing the first advancing member 610 and the contact member 700 from the upstream side in the advancing direction of the first advancing member 610 is shown.

[0211] Thus, when observing the first advancing member 610 and the contact member 700 from the upstream side in the advancing direction of the first advancing member 610, in the present embodiment, the contact member 700 is larger than the first advancing member 610.

[0212] More specifically, in the present embodiment, in the protruding direction of the first advancing member 610, the end portion 701 of the contact member 700 is located on the downstream side in the protruding direction of the first advancing member 610 compared to the front end portion 611 of the first advancing member 610.

[0213] In addition, in the present embodiment, the width of the contact member 700 is larger than the width of the first advancing member 610.

[0214] More specifically, in the present embodiment, when comparing the widths in the direction orthogonal to the protruding direction of the first advancing member 610, the width W2 of the contact member 700 is larger than the width W1 of the first advancing member 610.

[0215] In addition, in the present embodiment, the lower edge portion 709 of the contact member 700 is located at a position lower than the lower edge portion 610E of the first advancing member 610.

[0216] And, in the present embodiment, the thickness of the first advancing member 610 is larger than the thickness of the contact member 700.

[0217] In addition, in the present embodiment, when the first advancing member 610 advances toward the sheet P, as Figure 6 shown, the plurality of spiral springs KB provided are configured such that the positions in the direction in which the edge portion PB extends are different from each other.

[0218] More specifically, in this case, the root side spiral spring KB2 is located on the upstream side in the sheet conveying direction of the sheet P, and the front end side spiral spring KB1 is located on the downstream side in the sheet conveying direction of the sheet P.

[0219] Further, in the present embodiment, in order to avoid interference between the first advancing member 610, the contact member 700 and the support portion 300, a recess 300B is formed on the upper surface 300A of the support portion 300.

[0220] In addition, in the present embodiment, the position of the sheet P is offset with respect to the first advancing member 610. More specifically, in the present embodiment, relative movement of the sheet P with respect to the first advancing member 610 can be performed, and this relative movement is the movement of the sheet P in the vertical direction.

[0221] The relative movement of the sheet P with respect to the first advancing member 610 is performed, for example, by moving the support portion 300 up and down.

[0222] More specifically, for example, the movement of the sheet P in the vertical direction with respect to the first advancing member 610 is performed by moving the support portion 300 up and down to move the loading position of the sheet P upward or downward.

[0223] In addition, in the present embodiment, an elastic member is provided between the contact member 700 and the first advancing member 610. In addition, on the basis that an elastic member is provided between the contact member 700 and the first advancing member 610, a spring may also be arranged on the rotating shaft 612 (refer to Figure 5 ) to absorb shocks doubly.

[0224] As a comparative example on one hand, even when a spring is only arranged on the rotating shaft 612 and the contact movable portion (not shown) which is integrated is used to form the whole of the contact member 700 and the first advancing member 610, the contact portion can advance with respect to the sheet P. However, in the case of using the integrated contact movable portion, the shock received on the side of the sheet is not absorbed by the side of the sheet, but by the rotating shaft 612 serving as the rotation fulcrum. Therefore, the rigidity of the contact movable portion is required. In this case, a situation where the load on the rotating shaft 612 becomes large occurs, so it is not suitable.

[0225] Figure 7 It is a diagram showing another configuration example of the support portion 300, the sheet P, the first advancing member 610, and the contact member 700.

[0226] In this configuration example, the support portion 300 descends compared to Figure 6 the state shown, and a portion of the contact member 700 closer to the lower edge portion 709 comes into contact with the sheet P.

[0227] More specifically, in this configuration example, a portion of the contact member 700 located below the front side coil spring KB1 comes into contact with the sheet P.

[0228] Furthermore, in this configuration example, the portion of the contact member 700 that is below the central axis C of the front-end side coil spring KB1 contacts the sheet P.

[0229] Figure 8 is a view when observing the support portion 300, the sheet P, the first advancing member 610, the second advancing member 620, and the contact member 700 in the direction indicated by the arrow VIII in Figure 7 .

[0230] In Figure 7 , Figure 8 In the configuration example shown, the portion of the contact member 700 that is below the front-end side coil spring KB1 contacts the sheet P.

[0231] In this case, as shown in Figure 8 , the contact member 700 is inclined, and the contact member 700 covers the edge portion PB of the sheet P.

[0232] When the portion of the contact member 700 that is below the front-end side coil spring KB1 contacts the sheet P, the surface of the contact member 700 that presses the sheet P faces obliquely downward. In this case, the contact member 700 covers the edge portion PB of the sheet P.

[0233] In this case, a load also acts on the sheet P from above the edge portion PB. Furthermore, in this case, not only does a load act from the side of the sheet P, but also a load acts from above the sheet P, and a load pressing the sheet P from above acts on the sheet P.

[0234] The contact member 700 of the present embodiment has a contact surface 760 that contacts the edge portion PB of the sheet P.

[0235] In the present embodiment, as shown in Figure 8 , when the contact surface 760 contacts the edge portion PB and presses the edge portion PB, the contact surface 760 faces obliquely downward. That is to say, the contact surface 760 is inclined with respect to the vertical direction, facing the sheet P side and downward. In other words, the contact surface 760 is arranged to be inclined with respect to the normal line of the contact surface 760 and downward.

[0236] In addition, in the present embodiment, when the contact surface 760 contacts the edge portion PB of the sheet P and the contact surface 760 presses the edge portion PB, the upper edge portion 710 of the contact member 700 is located at a position opposed to the upper surface PU of the uppermost sheet P.

[0237] In addition, in the present embodiment, the portion of the contact member 700 that is below the central axis C of the front-end side coil spring KB1 contacts the edge portion PB of the sheet P.

[0238] In the present embodiment, on the side opposite to the side where the sheet P is located with the contact member 700 interposed therebetween, a spiral spring KB is provided that presses the contact member 700 toward the sheet P side.

[0239] In the present embodiment, a portion of the contact member 700 located below the central axis C of the spiral spring KB contacts the edge portion PB of the sheet P.

[0240] Moreover, in the present embodiment, as described above, on the side opposite to the side where the sheet P is located with the contact member 700 interposed therebetween, an advancing portion 614 that advances toward the sheet P together with the contact member 700 is provided. The contact member 700 is supported by the advancing portion 614.

[0241] In the present embodiment, when the contact member 700 contacts the edge portion PB while pressing it with the contact surface 760, the contact member 700 is arranged in a state inclined with respect to the vertical direction.

[0242] Specifically, in the present embodiment, the contact member 700 is formed in a plate shape, and when pressing the edge portion PB with the contact surface 760, the contact member 700 is arranged in a state inclined with respect to the vertical direction.

[0243] In contrast, when the contact surface 760 presses the edge portion PB, the advancing portion 614 is arranged in a state along the vertical direction as shown in Figure 8 .

[0244] Specifically, the advancing portion 614 is formed in a plate shape, and when the contact surface 760 presses the edge portion PB, the plate-shaped advancing portion 614 is arranged in a state along the vertical direction as shown in Figure 8 .

[0245] When the contact member 700 of the present embodiment advances toward the sheet P and contacts the edge portion PB of the sheet P, the posture thereof changes. Along with this change in posture, the contact surface 760 faces obliquely downward.

[0246] In contrast, even after the contact surface 760 of the contact member 700 contacts the edge portion PB, the posture of the advancing portion 614 does not change.

[0247] More specifically, the advancing portion 614 is along the vertical direction, and even after the contact surface 760 of the contact member 700 contacts the edge portion PB, the posture of the advancing portion 614 does not change, and the advancing portion 614 maintains a state along the vertical direction.

[0248] Further, when the contact member 700 retracts from the sheet P, as shown in Figure 12 (a view showing the state of the contact member 700 and the like retracted from the sheet P), the contact member 700 and the contact surface 760 are arranged along the vertical direction.

[0249] In the present embodiment, when the contact member 700 comes into contact with the sheet P, a load acts on the contact member 700 from the sheet P. In the present embodiment, due to this load acting on the contact member 700, the contact member 700 tilts, and accordingly, the contact surface 760 faces obliquely downward.

[0250] More specifically, in the present embodiment, as Figure 8 shown, a load from the sheet P acts on a portion of the contact member 700 on the side closer to the lower edge portion 709.

[0251] More specifically, the contact member 700 of the present embodiment has an upper edge portion 710 and a lower edge portion 709, but a load from the sheet P acts on a portion of the contact member 700 on the side closer to the lower edge portion 709. In other words, in the present embodiment, the side of the contact member 700 closer to the lower edge portion 709 comes into contact with the edge portion PB of the sheet P.

[0252] Next, a processing example when the sheets P are loaded in a staggered manner will be described. In other words, a processing example when the sheets P are loaded offset will be described.

[0253] In the present embodiment, as Figure 9 (a figure illustrating a processing example when the sheets P are loaded in a staggered manner) shown, each time a predetermined number of sheets P are loaded, the loading positions of the sheets P in the width direction are staggered to load the sheets P, and the sheets P can be loaded in a staggered manner.

[0254] More specifically, it is possible to alternately load the sheet P loaded at the first position and the sheet P loaded at a second position different from the first position in the width direction of the sheet P.

[0255] Furthermore, in the present embodiment, it is possible to load a new sheet P on the sheet PX already loaded on the support portion 300, and it is possible to load the new sheet P in a state where the position is offset with respect to the already loaded sheet PX.

[0256] In this way, when the sheets P are loaded in a staggered manner, as Figure 9 shown, for example, the first advancing member 610 advances toward the sheet P, and the second advancing member 620, which is the other advancing member, receives the sheet P that is pressed and moved by the first advancing member 610.

[0257] Here, on the side of the first advancing member 610 that is the pressing side of the sheet P, the contact member 700 (hereinafter referred to as "pressing-side contact member 700E") is pressed against the edge portion PB of the sheet P.

[0258] In addition, the position on the side of the second advancing member 620, which is the receiving side of the sheet P, is fixed, and the sheet P moves toward the fixed second advancing member 620 side, and the movement of the sheet P stops at the second advancing member 620 side.

[0259] In addition, on the second advancing member 620 side, a contact member 700 provided on the second advancing member 620 side (hereinafter referred to as "receiving side contact member 700G") is arranged in contact with the upper surface of the loaded sheet PX.

[0260] Here, in the present embodiment, the second advancing member 620 side functions as a receiving portion, and in the present embodiment, the second advancing member 620 side receives the sheet P that moves along with the advancement of the first advancing member 610.

[0261] More specifically, the receiving side contact member 700G mounted on the second advancing member 620 receives the sheet P.

[0262] More specifically, in the present embodiment, the edge portion PB of the moving sheet P comes into contact with the receiving side contact member 700G, the movement of the sheet P is restricted, and the sheet P stops at a predetermined position.

[0263] In addition, at this time, in the present embodiment, the receiving side contact member 700G is supported by a front end side coil spring KB1 and a root side coil spring KB2 arranged between the receiving side contact member 700G and the second advancing member 620.

[0264] In the present embodiment, the edge portion PB of the moving sheet P is pressed against the receiving side contact member 700G provided on the second advancing member 620 side.

[0265] More specifically, in the present embodiment, a pressing side contact member 700E, which is an example of a pressing member, presses the sheet P toward the receiving side contact member 700G. As a result, the edge portion PB of the sheet P is pressed against the receiving side contact member 700G.

[0266] In the present embodiment, a pressing side contact member 700E is provided on the side opposite to the side where the receiving side contact member 700G is provided with the sheet P newly loaded on the support portion 300 interposed therebetween.

[0267] In the present embodiment, the pressing side contact member 700E presses the sheet P newly loaded on the support portion 300 toward the receiving side contact member 700G.

[0268] When the pressing side contact member 700E presses the sheet P, a load from the sheet P acts on the pressing side contact member 700E.

[0269] At this time, in the present embodiment, the front end side coil spring KB1 and the root side coil spring KB2 provided behind the pressing side contact member 700E bear the load acting on the pressing side contact member 700E.

[0270] The receiving side contact member 700G is disposed on the side of the newly loaded paper P on the support portion 300. In the present embodiment, the edge portion PB of the paper P is pressed against the receiving side contact member 700G.

[0271] The front end side coil spring KB1 and the root side coil spring KB2 are disposed between the receiving side contact member 700G and the second advancing member 620.

[0272] The front end side coil spring KB1 and the root side coil spring KB2, which are examples of elastic members, bear the load from the receiving side contact member 700G against which the edge portion PB of the paper P is pressed.

[0273] In addition, in the present embodiment, as shown by reference numeral 9G, the pressing side contact member 700E is supported by the advancing portion 614 provided on the first advancing member 610. The advancing portion 614 is an example of a member support portion and supports the pressing side contact member 700E via the front end side coil spring KB1 and the root side coil spring KB2.

[0274] Here, in the present embodiment, the advancing portion 614 provided on the first advancing member 610 is disposed in a state of not contacting the paper P loaded on the support portion 300.

[0275] In addition, similarly, on the side of the second advancing member 620, as shown by reference numeral 9H, the receiving side contact member 700G is supported by the advancing portion 614 provided on the second advancing member 620 side.

[0276] Here, the advancing portion 614 provided on the second advancing member 620 side is also an example of a member support portion, and the advancing portion 614 supports the receiving side contact member 700G via the front end side coil spring KB1 and the root side coil spring KB2.

[0277] And, similarly to the above, the advancing portion 614 provided on the second advancing member 620 side is also disposed in a state of not contacting the paper P loaded on the support portion 300.

[0278] In addition, the receiving side contact member 700G is provided so as to be movable in a direction opposite to the side where the paper P is located. Specifically, the receiving side contact member 700G is provided so as to be movable in the right direction in the figure.

[0279] Thus, for example, even if the paper P is excessively pressed by the pressing side contact member 700E, the receiving side contact member 700G retreats, suppressing deformation of the paper P and the like.

[0280] More specifically, when the contact member 700E on the pressing side of the paper P is pressed excessively, the receiving-side contact member 700G tends to rotate in the direction shown by the arrow 9F with the lower edge portion 709 as the center.

[0281] In other words, the receiving-side contact member 700G tends to tilt in the direction shown by the arrow 9F. As a result, the load applied to the paper P is reduced, and deformation of the paper P is suppressed.

[0282] Furthermore, in the present embodiment, the lower edge portion 709 of the receiving-side contact member 700G is in contact with the loaded paper PX and is difficult to move when receiving a resistance force from the paper P. On the other hand, the portion of the receiving-side contact member 700G located above the lower edge portion 709 is pressed by the new paper P and tends to tilt in the direction shown by the arrow 9F.

[0283] In this case, as described above, the load applied to the paper P is reduced, and deformation of the paper P is suppressed.

[0284] In addition, in the present embodiment, as described above, the lower edge portion 709 of the receiving-side contact member 700G is difficult to move. In this case, the loaded paper PX located below the receiving-side contact member 700G is difficult to move, and positional deviation of the loaded paper PX is not easily caused.

[0285] In addition, in the present embodiment, a conical surface TM is given to the receiving-side contact member 700G, whereby the receiving-side contact member 700G is more likely to tilt.

[0286] Furthermore, in the present embodiment, a conical surface TM is given to the surface of the receiving-side contact member 700G on the side where the receiving-side contact member 700G tilts, and the receiving-side contact member 700G is more likely to tilt.

[0287] In addition, in the present embodiment, the thickness D1 of the lower edge portion 709 of the receiving-side contact member 700G is smaller than the thickness D2 of the upper edge portion 710, and the receiving-side contact member 700G is more likely to tilt than in the case where the thickness D1 of the lower edge portion 709 is larger than the thickness D2 of the upper edge portion 710.

[0288] Here, there are mostly deviations in the size of the paper P, and there are sometimes papers P larger than the specified value.

[0289] In this case, the paper P larger than the specified value is pressed excessively by the first advancing member 610 and the second advancing member 620, and in this case, the paper P may be deformed or the paper P may be disordered.

[0290] On the contrary, in the present embodiment, when there is a sheet P larger than a specified value, the receiving-side contact member 700G retracts.

[0291] Thereby, an excessive load acting on the sheet P is suppressed, and deformation and disorder of the sheet P can be suppressed.

[0292] In addition, in the present embodiment, after the receiving-side contact member 700G retracts, the receiving-side contact member 700G returns to the position before retraction. Thereby, the sheet P is pushed back and stops at a predetermined alignment position.

[0293] More specifically, when the pressing of the sheet P by the pressing-side contact member 700E is released, the receiving-side contact member 700G pressed by the front-end side coil spring KB1 and the root-side coil spring KB2 returns to the position before retraction. Thereby, the sheet P returns to the predetermined alignment position.

[0294] Here, in the present embodiment, the advancing portion 614 provided on the second advancing member 620 side is disposed on the side opposite to the sheet P loaded on the support portion 300 with the receiving-side contact member 700G interposed therebetween.

[0295] Moreover, in the present embodiment, between the advancing portion 614 disposed on the side opposite to the sheet P and the receiving-side contact member 700G, a front-end side coil spring KB1 and a root-side coil spring KB2, which are examples of elastic members, are provided.

[0296] In other words, in the present embodiment, between the receiving-side contact member 700G and the advancing portion 614 disposed at the opposing position of the receiving-side contact member 700G, a front-end side coil spring KB1 and a root-side coil spring KB2 are provided.

[0297] In the present embodiment, as described above, when the receiving-side contact member 700G is pressed by a sheet P larger than a specified value, the receiving-side contact member 700G retracts toward the advancing portion 614 side.

[0298] After that, by the acting force of the front-end side coil spring KB1 and the root-side coil spring KB2 located between the receiving-side contact member 700G and the advancing portion 614, the receiving-side contact member 700G returns to its original position. Thereby, alignment of the sheet P is performed.

[0299] Here, in the present embodiment, when the receiving-side contact member 700G retracts toward the advancing portion 614 side, the pressing-side contact member 700E also retracts toward the advancing portion 614 side provided on the first advancing member 610.

[0300] In addition, in Figure 9The case where the first advancing member 610 advances and the second advancing member 620 supports the sheet P is shown. However, in the case where the loading position of the sheet P is changed to the other loading position and then the sheet P is loaded, the second advancing member 620 advances toward the sheet P, and the first advancing member 610 side supports the sheet P.

[0301] In addition, in the present embodiment, the loading position of the sheet P is changed by moving the support portion 300 in the width direction of the sheet P.

[0302] However, not limited thereto, other methods such as moving the discharge port for discharging the sheet P toward the first loading portion 43 in the width direction of the sheet P may be used to change the loading position of the sheet P.

[0303] Here, in the present embodiment, as Figure 9 shown, the first advancing member 610 that presses one side of the sheet P is disposed at a position lower than the second advancing member 620 that supports the sheet P.

[0304] In addition, the first advancing member 610 that presses one side of the sheet P is disposed in the state as described above Figure 6 or Figure 7 shown.

[0305] In this case, on the side of the first advancing member 610, as described above, the contact portion 780 (see Figure 6 , 7 ) contacts the sheet P.

[0306] On the other hand, as Figure 9 shown, the side of the second advancing member 620 that supports the sheet P is disposed above the already loaded sheet PX.

[0307] More specifically, in the present embodiment, the receiving side contact member 700G provided on the side of the second advancing member 620 is placed on the already loaded sheet PX. More specifically, the receiving side contact member 700G provided on the side of the second advancing member 620 is arranged in contact with the already loaded sheet PX.

[0308] On the other hand, in the present embodiment, the advancing portion 614 provided on the side of the second advancing member 620 is disposed at a position above the already loaded sheet PX and is arranged in a non-contact state with the already loaded sheet PX.

[0309] And, in the present embodiment, when a new sheet P is loaded on the already loaded sheet PX, as shown by the arrow 9A, the first advancing member 610 advances from the side opposite to the second advancing member 620 across the new sheet P toward the new sheet P. As a result, the edge portion PB of the sheet P is pressed against the receiving side contact member 700G.

[0310] In addition, in the present embodiment, as Figure 9 shown, the central axes C of the front-end side coil spring KB1 and the root side coil spring KB2 provided on the side of the pressing-side contact member 700E are located below the central axes C of the front-end side coil spring KB1 and the root side coil spring KB2 provided on the side of the receiving-side contact member 700G.

[0311] More specifically, the central axes C of the front-end side coil spring KB1 and the root side coil spring KB2 that receive the load from the pressing-side contact member 700E are located below the central axes C of the front-end side coil spring KB1 and the root side coil spring KB2 that receive the load from the receiving-side contact member 700G.

[0312] In addition, in the present embodiment, the lower edge portion 709 of the pressing-side contact member 700E is located below the lower edge portion 709 of the receiving-side contact member 700G.

[0313] The pressing-side contact member 700E and the receiving-side contact member 700G are each provided with movement in the vertical direction. In the present embodiment, the pressing-side contact member 700E that becomes the pressing side is arranged below the receiving-side contact member 700G that becomes the receiving side.

[0314] In addition, in the present embodiment, as Figure 9 shown, the edge portion PB of the paper P newly loaded on the support portion 300 is pressed against the side closer to the lower edge portion 709 of the lower edge portion 709 and the upper edge portion 710 of the receiving-side contact member 700G.

[0315] In addition, in the present embodiment, the edge portion PB of the paper P is pressed against the portion of the receiving-side contact member 700G that is located below the central axis C of the front-end side coil spring KB1 and the root side coil spring KB2 (the front-end side coil spring KB1 and the root side coil spring KB2 located on the right side in the figure).

[0316] In addition, in the present embodiment, when the edge portion PB of the paper P is pressed against the receiving-side contact member 700G, the lower edge portion 709 of the receiving-side contact member 700G is in a state of contacting the already loaded paper PX.

[0317] In addition, in the present embodiment, in the state where the lower edge portion 709 of the receiving-side contact member 700G is in contact with the already loaded paper PX, the edge portion PB of the paper P is pressed against the portion of the receiving-side contact member 700G that is located below the central axis C of the front-end side coil spring KB1 and the root side coil spring KB2.

[0318] In this embodiment, when the receiving-side contact member 700G disposed on the second advancing member 620 side contacts the loaded paper PX like this, the lower edge portion 709 of the receiving-side contact member 700G contacts the loaded paper PX.

[0319] In addition, in this embodiment, as described above, the thickness D1 of the lower edge portion 709 of the receiving-side contact member 700G is smaller than the thickness D2 of the upper edge portion 710.

[0320] More specifically, the receiving-side contact member 700G of this embodiment is formed in a plate shape and is arranged along the paper P conveying direction. However, in this plate-shaped receiving-side contact member 700G, the thickness D1 of the lower edge portion 709 is smaller than the thickness D2 of the upper edge portion 710.

[0321] Furthermore, in this embodiment, when comparing the thicknesses in the moving direction of the first advancing member 610 and the second advancing member 620, the thickness of the lower edge portion 709 is smaller than the thickness of the upper edge portion 710.

[0322] Similarly, for the pressing-side contact member 700E, the thickness of the lower edge portion 709 of the pressing-side contact member 700E is smaller than the thickness of the upper edge portion 710.

[0323] In addition, in this embodiment, as described above, a conical surface TM is given to the receiving-side contact member 700G. Thus, as described above, the receiving-side contact member 700G is likely to fall over.

[0324] In this embodiment, as Figure 9 shown, in the lower portion 700F located on the lower side of the receiving-side contact member 700G, the thickness becomes smaller as it approaches the lower edge portion 709.

[0325] Furthermore, in this embodiment, a conical surface is given to the surface of the receiving-side contact member 700G on the side where the second advancing member 620 is located. In the lower portion 700 of the receiving-side contact member 700G, the thickness of the receiving-side contact member 700G gradually becomes smaller as it approaches the lower edge portion 709.

[0326] More specifically, in this embodiment, an inclination that gradually separates from the second advancing member 620 as it goes downward is given to the lower portion of the surface of the receiving-side contact member 700G facing the second advancing member 620 side. Thus, in the above-mentioned lower portion 700F, the thickness of the receiving-side contact member 700G becomes smaller as it approaches the lower edge portion 709.

[0327] More specifically, a conical surface TM is provided at a lower portion of the surface of the receiving-side contact member 700G facing the second advancing member 620 side. In the lower portion 700F, the thickness of the receiving-side contact member 700G decreases toward the lower edge portion 709.

[0328] More specifically, the receiving-side contact member 700G has a pressed surface M1 where the edge portion PB of the paper P presses against, and a counter surface M2 on the side opposite to the pressed surface M1.

[0329] In the present embodiment, a conical surface TM, which is an example of an inclined surface, is provided on the counter surface M2. The conical surface TM is inclined with respect to the vertical direction, and the distance from the pressed surface M1 gradually increases upward.

[0330] In addition, the conical surface TM of the present embodiment extends upward starting from the lower edge portion 709 of the receiving-side contact member 700G.

[0331] In addition, in the present embodiment, the conical surface TM is provided at a portion of the receiving-side contact member 700G that does not contact the root-side spiral spring KB2 and the front-end side spiral spring KB1.

[0332] Furthermore, in the present embodiment, when the conical surface TM, the root-side spiral spring KB2, and the front-end side spiral spring KB1 are projected in the direction of the arrow 9X in the figure, no overlap occurs between the conical surface TM and the root-side spiral spring KB2, and between the conical surface TM and the front-end side spiral spring KB1.

[0333] Furthermore, in the present embodiment, when the conical surface TM, the root-side spiral spring KB2, and the front-end side spiral spring KB1 are projected onto a plane 9Z that is in the thickness direction of the receiving-side contact member 700G and parallel to the receiving-side contact member 700G, no overlap occurs between the conical surface TM and the root-side spiral spring KB2, and between the conical surface TM and the front-end side spiral spring KB1.

[0334] Thus, in the present embodiment, it is possible to give a conical shape to the receiving-side contact member 700G while suppressing deformation of the receiving-side contact member 700G.

[0335] Here, when the above-mentioned conical surface TM exists at a portion of the receiving-side contact member 700G that contacts the root-side spiral spring KB2 and the front-end side spiral spring KB1, the thickness of the receiving-side contact member 700G is small at the portion where the conical surface TM is formed, and thus the receiving-side contact member 700G is likely to deform.

[0336] On the contrary, as described above, when the conical surface TM is present in the portion of the receiving-side contact member 700G that does not contact the root-side coil spring KB2 and the front-end side coil spring KB1, the deformation of the receiving-side contact member 700G is suppressed.

[0337] Figure 10 is a view of the support portion 300, the sheet P, the second advancing member 620, and the receiving-side contact member 700G as viewed from the direction of the arrow X shown in Figure 9 .

[0338] In the present embodiment, as described above, the second advancing member 620, which is on the side that receives the sheet P, is disposed above the loaded sheet PX.

[0339] Moreover, as described above, in the present embodiment, the receiving-side contact member 700G is placed on the loaded sheet PX, and the lower edge portion 709 of the receiving-side contact member 700G contacts the loaded sheet PX.

[0340] Here, in the present embodiment, the lower edge portion 709 is disposed along the surface of the loaded sheet PX, and the lower edge portion 709 is in line contact with the loaded sheet PX.

[0341] In addition, in the present embodiment, when the lower edge portion 709 contacts the loaded sheet PX, the parallelism of the lower edge portion 709 with respect to the loaded sheet PX is higher than the parallelism of the lower edge portion 610E of the second advancing member 620 with respect to the loaded sheet PX.

[0342] Here, in the present embodiment, the first advancing member 610, which is on the side that presses the sheet P, is disposed in the state shown in Figure 6 .

[0343] Moreover, the second advancing member 620, which is on the side that receives the sheet P, is disposed in the state shown in Figure 10 , and the second advancing member 620 is disposed in a state along the loaded sheet PX as compared with the first advancing member 610.

[0344] Furthermore, in the present embodiment, as shown in Figure 6 , the angle formed by the line L11 connecting the central axes C2 of the front-end side coil spring KB1 and the root-side coil spring KB2 provided on the first advancing member 610 side with the edge portion PB of the sheet P becomes the angle α.

[0345] On the contrary, as shown in Figure 10 , the angle formed by the line L21 connecting the central axes C21 of the front-end side coil spring KB1 and the root-side coil spring KB2 provided on the second advancing member 620 side with the edge portion PB of the sheet P becomes the angle β.

[0346] In the present embodiment, the first advancing member 610 and the second advancing member 620 are arranged such that the angle α is greater than the angle β.

[0347] In addition, in the present embodiment, on the side of the second advancing member 620 (see Figure 10 ), the load acting on the second advancing member 620 side from the newly supplied paper P ( Figure 10 not shown) is borne by the coil spring KB. At this time, in the present embodiment, this load is borne by two coil springs KB, namely the front-end side coil spring KB1 and the root-side coil spring KB2.

[0348] On the other hand, on the side of the first advancing member 610 (see Figure 6 ), the load caused by the reaction from the paper P is also borne by the coil spring KB. At this time, in the present embodiment, this load is mainly borne by the front-end side coil spring KB1.

[0349] Here, on the side of the second advancing member 620 (see Figure 10 ) which is the receiving side, as described above, the load is borne by two coil springs KB, so the load acting on each coil spring KB becomes smaller. In this case, the receiving-side contact member 700G provided on the second advancing member 620 side is difficult to move, and the positioning of the paper P achieved based on this receiving-side contact member 700G becomes more stable.

[0350] In addition, when the receiving-side contact member 700G is configured to be difficult to move, the loaded paper PX located below the receiving-side contact member 700G and in contact with the receiving-side contact member 700G becomes difficult to move.

[0351] In addition, in the present embodiment, when the paper P is pressed against the receiving-side contact member 700G that functions as a receiving portion for receiving the paper P, as described above, the receiving-side contact member 700G easily rotates in the direction shown by the arrow 9F with the lower edge portion 709 (see Figure 9 ) as the center.

[0352] Furthermore, in the present embodiment, the lower edge portion 709 of the receiving-side contact member 700G is in contact with the loaded paper PX, and it is difficult to move due to the resistance received from the paper P. On the other hand, the portion of the receiving-side contact member 700G located above the lower edge portion 709 is pressed by the new paper P and is likely to tilt in the direction shown by the arrow 9F.

[0353] In this case, the loaded paper PX located below the receiving-side contact member 700G becomes difficult to move. Moreover, in this case, it is difficult to cause a position shift of the loaded paper PX due to the movement of the lower edge portion 709 of the receiving-side contact member 700G.

[0354] In addition, in the present embodiment, as described above, the tapered surface TM is given to the receiving-side contact member 700G, whereby the receiving-side contact member 700G is more likely to tilt.

[0355] Furthermore, in the present embodiment, the tapered surface TM is given to the surface of the receiving-side contact member 700G on the side where the receiving-side contact member 700G tilts, and the receiving-side contact member 700G is more likely to tilt.

[0356] On the other hand, on the side of the first advancing member 610 (refer to Figure 6 ), the load generated by the reaction from the paper P is mainly borne by the front-end side coil spring KB1.

[0357] In this case, the contraction amount of the front-end side coil spring KB1 becomes larger, and the pressing-side contact member 700E moves significantly. In this case, the load acting on the paper P from the first advancing member 610 side is reduced.

[0358] Here, when the load acting on the paper P is large, the paper P may be deformed in a wavy shape, or when the load is removed, the paper P may bounce up and cause misalignment. In addition, when the load acting on the paper P is large, the edge portion PB of the paper P may also be folded.

[0359] In contrast, in the present embodiment, the load acting on the paper P is reduced, and it is difficult to cause the adverse conditions that occur when a large load acts on the paper P.

[0360] Here, as described above, there are mostly deviations in the size of the paper P, and there are sometimes papers P larger than the specified value.

[0361] In this case, the paper P larger than the specified value is overly pressed by the pressing-side contact member 700E, and in this case, the paper P may be deformed or the paper P may be disordered.

[0362] In contrast, in the present embodiment, when there is a paper P larger than the specified value, the pressing-side contact member 700E and the receiving-side contact member 700G are retracted from the paper P.

[0363] Thereby, excessive load acting on the paper P is suppressed, and deformation and disorder of the paper P can be suppressed.

[0364] In the present embodiment, the movement amount (retraction amount starting from the paper P) of the pressing-side contact member 700E provided on the advancing side is larger than the movement amount of the receiving-side contact member 700G provided on the receiving side.

[0365] In this case, on the receiving side, the positioning of the sheet P can be performed with higher accuracy, and on the advancing side, the load acting from the sheet P is released.

[0366] In addition, in the present embodiment, as Figure 8 shown, even when both the first advancing member 610 and the second advancing member 620 advance relative to the sheet P, the contact members 700 provided on both sides of the sheet P also retract from the sheet P in the same manner, and the load acting on the sheet P is reduced.

[0367] Furthermore, in the present embodiment, a storage unit is provided, and during the process of aligning the sheet P using the first advancing member 610 and the second advancing member 620, the storage unit stores the sheets P conveyed from the upstream side.

[0368] More specifically, in the present embodiment, during the period from the start of the advancement of one or both of the first advancing member 610 and the second advancing member 620 to the return of the advancing member 600 to its original position, new sheets P may be conveyed from the upstream side toward the support portion 300. In this case, in the present embodiment, the new sheets P are temporarily stored in the storage unit.

[0369] Specifically, in the present embodiment, the sheet agglomeration unit 60 (refer to Figure 2 ) functions as the storage unit, and during the period from the start of the advancement of one or both of the above-mentioned advancing members 600 to the return of the advancing member 600 to its original position, a plurality of new sheets P are stored in the sheet agglomeration unit 60.

[0370] Furthermore, in the present embodiment, a plurality of sheets P that reach the sheet agglomeration unit 60 during the period from the start of the advancement of one or both of the advancing members 600 to the return of the advancing member 600 to its original position are stored in the sheet agglomeration unit 60.

[0371] Moreover, in the present embodiment, when the advancing advancing member 600 returns to its original position, the plurality of sheets P stored in the sheet agglomeration unit 60 are sent to the first loading unit 43.

[0372] Here, for example, when it is configured not to store a plurality of sheets P in the sheet agglomeration unit 60, it is necessary to perform processing such as temporarily stopping the image forming process in the image forming apparatus 2 (refer to Figure 1 ).

[0373] More specifically, during the process of aligning the sheet P by the first loading unit 43, the conveyance of the sheet P toward the first loading unit 43 stagnates. Therefore, in this case, the image forming apparatus 2 is affected, and it is necessary to perform processing such as temporarily stopping the image forming process.

[0374] On the contrary, when a plurality of sheets P are accumulated in the sheet accumulation unit 60 as in the present embodiment, the influence on the image forming apparatus 2 is smaller than when no accumulation is performed, and the overall processing efficiency of the image forming system 1 can be improved.

[0375] In addition, in the above, both the first advancing member 610 and the second advancing member 620 have the function of pressing the sheet P and the function of supporting the sheet P, but one advancing member 600 may only have the function of pressing the sheet P, and the other advancing member 600 may only have the function of supporting the sheet P.

[0376] Furthermore, in the above, both the first advancing member 610 and the second advancing member 620 have the function of advancing and retreating with respect to the sheet P. Then, without being limited thereto, the function of advancing and retreating with respect to the sheet P may be given only to one of the first advancing member 610 and the second advancing member 620, and the other advancing member 600 may not be given the function of advancing and retreating, and the other advancing member 600 is provided in a fixed state.

[0377] In addition, on the side that supports the sheet P, a member such as the above-mentioned receiving side contact member 700G may not be provided. For example, a wall portion along the vertical direction may be provided so that the sheet P abuts against the wall portion.

[0378] Figure 13 It is a diagram showing another loading example of the sheet P in the support portion 300.

[0379] In this Figure 13 shown loading example, similar to the Figure 9 shown loading example, the sheet P is loaded with an offset.

[0380] Here, in this loading example, compared with the Figure 9 shown loading method, the offset amount is larger. In other words, the horizontal offset amount between the loading position of the already loaded sheet PX and the loading position of the newly loaded sheet P is larger.

[0381] In this case, as shown by reference numeral 13A, the advancing portion 614 on the receiving side of the sheet P is disposed at a position opposed to the upper surface UM of the already loaded sheet PX.

[0382] In other words, when the edge portion PB of the newly loaded sheet P is pressed against the receiving side contact member 700G, the advancing portion 614 on the receiving side of the sheet P is disposed at a position opposed to the upper surface UM of the already loaded sheet PX.

[0383] Moreover, the advancing portion 614 on the receiving side is arranged in a state of being separated from the loaded paper PX. More specifically, the advancing portion 614 is located above the upper surface UM of the loaded paper PX and is arranged in a state of being separated from the upper surface UM.

[0384] Figure 14 FIG. is a view showing another loading example of the paper P in the support portion 300.

[0385] In Figure 14 it shows a state where the receiving side contact member 700G is separated from the loaded paper PX.

[0386] In this processing example, at the initial stage of mounting a new paper P on the loaded paper PX, the receiving side contact member 700G is arranged in a state of contacting the upper surface of the loaded paper PX in the same manner as above.

[0387] Then, in this processing example, when the number of papers P newly loaded on the support portion 300 exceeds a predetermined number, the support portion 300 descends. As a result, the loaded paper PX also descends, and the receiving side contact member 700G is separated from the loaded paper PX.

[0388] Thereby, it is possible to continuously press the paper P against the portion of the receiving side contact member 700G that is located below the central axis C of the front end side coil spring KB1 and the root side coil spring KB2.

[0389] More specifically, it is possible to continuously press the paper P against the portion of the receiving side contact member 700G that is located below the central axis C of the front end side coil spring KB1 and the root side coil spring KB2 on the right side in the figure.

[0390] Here, for example, consider a case where the paper P is pressed against a portion of the receiving side contact member 700G that is located above the central axis C of the front end side coil spring KB1 and the root side coil spring KB2. More specifically, consider a case where the paper P is pressed against Figure 14 the portion indicated by reference numeral 14A.

[0391] In this case, as shown by the arrow 14B, the lower edge portion 709 of the receiving side contact member 700G moves toward the paper P side, resulting in a disorder in the loading of the paper P.

[0392] In other words, when the support portion 300 does not descend, it is possible to cause a situation where the paper P is pressed against a portion of the receiving side contact member 700G that is located above the central axis C of the front end side coil spring KB1 and the root side coil spring KB2.

[0393] More specifically, as the loading amount of the paper P increases, the paper P is loaded higher up. Without the support portion 300 descending, it may cause the paper P to be pressed against a portion of the receiving-side contact member 700G that is above the central axis C of the front-end side coil spring KB1 and the root-side coil spring KB2.

[0394] In this case, as shown by the arrow 14B, the lower edge portion 709 of the receiving-side contact member 700G moves toward the paper P side, resulting in a disorder in the loading of the paper P.

[0395] In contrast, when the support portion 300 is lowered as in the present embodiment, as described above, it is possible to press the paper P against a portion of the receiving-side contact member 700G that is below the central axis C of the front-end side coil spring KB1 and the root-side coil spring KB2.

[0396] In this case, the disorder in the loading of the paper P caused by the lower edge portion 709 of the receiving-side contact member 700G moving in the direction shown by the arrow 14B is suppressed.

[0397] In addition, in Figure 14 the shown loading example, when a paper P larger than a specified value is pressed against the receiving-side contact member 700G, the lower edge portion 709 of the receiving-side contact member 700G moves in the direction shown by the arrow 14C.

[0398] More specifically, when a paper P larger than a specified value is pressed against a portion of the receiving-side contact member 700G that is below the central axis C of the front-end side coil spring KB1 and the root-side coil spring KB2, the lower edge portion 709 moves in the direction shown by the arrow 14C.

[0399] After that, due to the force acting on the receiving-side contact member 700G from the front-end side coil spring KB1 and the root-side coil spring KB2, the lower edge portion 709 returns to its original position. In other words, the lower edge portion 709 that has moved in the direction shown by the arrow 14C moves to the left direction in the figure. Thus, the paper P stops at a predetermined loading position.

[0400] In addition, although the support portion 300 is lowered in Figure 14 the shown processing example, it is not limited thereto, and the receiving-side contact member 700G may also be raised. In addition, both the lowering of the support portion 300 and the raising of the receiving-side contact member 700G may be performed.

[0401] Figure 15 It is a diagram showing another loading example of the paper P in the support portion 300.

[0402] In Figure 15In [description], it shows a way that when a new sheet P is loaded each time, the loading position of the new sheet P shifts in one direction. More specifically, it shows a way that the loading position shifts in the left direction in the figure.

[0403] More specifically, in this loading method, the sheets P are loaded according to each stack of sheets. However, each time a new stack of sheets is generated, the loading position of the new stack of sheets is shifted, and its loading position shifts to the downstream side in one direction.

[0404] More specifically, in this loading method, when the sheet P newly loaded on the support portion 300 is loaded on the already loaded sheet PX that has been loaded on the support portion 300, the newly loaded sheet P becomes the already loaded sheet PX. After that, a new sheet P is further loaded on the already loaded sheet PX.

[0405] In this loading method, each time a new sheet P is loaded, the loading position of the new sheet P is sequentially shifted, and the loading position sequentially shifts to the downstream side in one direction.

[0406] As a result, in the present embodiment, as Figure 15 shown, the sheets P are loaded in a stepped manner.

[0407] In addition, in Figure 15 , there are coil springs on both the pressing side contact member 700E and the receiving side contact member 700G. However, the receiving side contact member 700G can also be supported only by the coil spring, and the coil spring of the pressing side contact member 700E can be deleted.

[0408] Figure 11 (A) and (B) of [reference] are diagrams for explaining the moving mechanism 730 (refer to Figure 4 ).

[0409] Figure 11 (A) of [reference] is a top view of the moving mechanism 730, Figure 11 (B) of [reference] is a diagram when a part of the moving mechanism 730 is observed from the arrow XIB direction of (A) of Figure 11 (A).

[0410] In the present embodiment, as described above, a moving mechanism 730 for moving the first advancing member 610 and the second advancing member 620 is provided.

[0411] As Figure 11 (A) of [reference] shows, in this moving mechanism 730, a guiding member 910 is provided which is arranged along the advancing and retreating directions of the first advancing member 610 and the second advancing member 620 and guides the first advancing member 610 and the second advancing member 620.

[0412] Further, in the present embodiment, a first moving mechanism 921 for moving the first advancing member 610 is provided. In addition, a second moving mechanism 922 for moving the second advancing member 620 is provided.

[0413] In the first moving mechanism 921, an annular belt member 921A having a portion along the advancing and retreating direction of the first advancing member 610 is provided. And a first drive motor M101 for moving the belt member 921A is provided.

[0414] In the present embodiment, the first advancing member 610 is fixed relative to the belt member 921A. In the present embodiment, by driving the first drive motor M101, the first advancing member 610 advances and retreats along the width direction of the paper P.

[0415] Similarly, in the second moving mechanism 922, an annular belt member 922A having a portion along the advancing and retreating direction of the second advancing member 620 and a second drive motor M102 for moving the belt member 922A are also provided. By driving the second drive motor M102, the second advancing member 620 advances and retreats along the width direction of the paper P.

[0416] In addition, in the present embodiment, as Figure 11 shown in (A), a rotating mechanism 950 is provided.

[0417] The rotating mechanism 950 rotates the first advancing member 610 about the portion of the root 610A of the first advancing member 610 and rotates the second advancing member 620 about the portion of the root 620A of the second advancing member 620.

[0418] A support member 951 is provided in the rotating mechanism 950. The support member 951 extends along the advancing and retreating direction of the first advancing member 610 and the second advancing member 620 and supports the first advancing member 610 and the second advancing member 620 from below.

[0419] And in the rotating mechanism 950, a vertical movement mechanism 952 for moving the support member 951 up and down is provided.

[0420] A third drive motor M103 is provided in the vertical movement mechanism 952. In addition, in the vertical movement mechanism 952, a rotating member 954 that rotates by the third drive motor M103 and has one end 954A moving up and down is provided. In the present embodiment, the one end 954A of the rotating member 954 is mounted on the support member 951.

[0421] In the present embodiment, when the third drive motor M103 is driven as Figure 11When the rotating member 954 is rotated as shown in (B) thereof, the supporting member 951 moves up and down, and accordingly, the first advancing member 610 and the second advancing member 620 move up and down.

[0422] Here, in the present embodiment, as Figure 8 shown, when the first advancing member 610 and the second advancing member 620 press the paper P from both sides of the paper P, the third drive motor M103 is driven to lower the first advancing member 610 and the second advancing member 620 to the side of the paper P supported by the supporting portion 300.

[0423] Next, in the present embodiment, the first drive motor M101 and the second drive motor M102 are driven to move the first advancing member 610 and the second advancing member 620 toward the paper P.

[0424] In addition, when the first advancing member 610 and the second advancing member 620 are arranged as Figure 9 shown, the third drive motor M103 is similarly driven. As a result, the first advancing member 610 is lowered to the side of the paper P supported by the supporting portion 300.

[0425] And, in the present embodiment, during the descent of the first advancing member 610, the movement of the second advancing member 620 is restricted by the loaded paper PX, and the second advancing member 620 is located above the loaded paper PX.

[0426] Then, the first drive motor M101 is driven to advance the first advancing member 610 toward the paper P.

[0427] [Second Embodiment]

[0428] Hereinafter, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. In addition, the description of the same structure as that of the first embodiment will be omitted.

[0429] Figure 17 is a diagram showing another structural example.

[0430] In this structural example, the contact surface 760 of the contact member 700 also faces obliquely downward when not in contact with the paper P. In other words, in this structural example, when the contact member 700 is retracted from the paper P, the contact surface 760 of the contact member 700 also faces obliquely downward.

[0431] In other words, in this structural example, an inclined surface that is inclined with respect to the vertical direction and faces obliquely downward is provided at a portion of the contact member 700 that contacts the edge portion PB of the paper P.

[0432] More specifically, in Figure 17In the illustrated structural example, an inclination is imparted to the entire surface of the contact member 700 facing the paper P side, and the entire surface is inclined with respect to the vertical direction and slopes downward.

[0433] Further, in this structural example, the structure is such that the advancing portion 614 and the coil spring KB are not provided, and the contact member 700 is provided and directly supported by the arm portion 613 of the first advancing member 610 (see Figure 5 ).

[0434] In this structural example, the position in the extending direction of the paper P is also aligned by pressing the contact surface 760 against the edge portion PB of the paper P, and in addition, a load for pressing the paper P from above acts on the paper P.

[0435] Figure 18 , Figure 19 FIG. is a view showing another structural example of the contact member 700.

[0436] In this structural example, as Figure 18 shown, similarly to the above, a contact surface 760 sloping downward is provided on the surface 790 of the contact member 700 facing the paper P side. In other words, an inclined surface sloping downward is provided on the surface 790 of the contact member 700 facing the paper P side.

[0437] And, a surface arranged along the vertical direction, that is, a vertical surface 762, is provided on the surface 790 facing the paper P side.

[0438] In this structural example, it is easy to suppress the bulging of the paper P.

[0439] In this structural example, as Figure 19 shown, the portion of the vertical surface 762 of the contact member 700 is pressed against the edge portion PB of the paper P. Thus, similarly to the above, the alignment of the paper P is performed.

[0440] And, in this structural example, for example, as Figure 18 shown, when the paper P is curled and the paper P bulges upward, as Figure 19 shown, the bulge is pressed from above by the contact surface 760. Thus, in this case, the bulge of the paper P is reduced, and it is not easy to cause loading disorder of the paper P, etc.

[0441] In addition, the Figure 18 , Figure 19 shown contact member 700 may also be directly mounted on the arm portion 613 provided on the first advancing member 610 (see Figure 5 ). Further, similarly to the above, the coil spring KB and the advancing portion 614 may also be provided, and the contact member 700 may be mounted on the advancing portion 614 via the coil spring KB.

[0442] Next, a processing example when the sheets P are loaded in a staggered manner will be described.

[0443] In the present embodiment, the second advancing member 620 side functions as a receiving portion, and in the present embodiment, the sheet P that moves along with the advancement of the first advancing member 610 is received on the second advancing member 620 side.

[0444] More specifically, the contact member 700 attached to the second advancing member 620 receives the sheet P.

[0445] More specifically, in the present embodiment, the edge portion PB of the moved sheet P contacts the contact member 700, the movement of the sheet P is restricted, and the sheet P stops at a predetermined position.

[0446] In addition, at this time, in the present embodiment, the contact member 700 is supported by the front-end side coil spring KB1 and the root-side coil spring KB2 disposed between the contact member 700 and the second advancing member 620.

[0447] And, in the present embodiment, when the contact member 700 provided on the second advancing member 620 side contacts the loaded sheet PX, the lower edge portion 709 of the contact member 700 contacts the loaded sheet PX.

[0448] Here, although not described above, in the present embodiment, the thickness D1 of the lower edge portion 709 of the contact member 700 is smaller than the thickness D2 of the upper edge portion 710 of the contact member 700.

[0449] More specifically, the contact member 700 of the present embodiment is formed in a plate shape and is disposed along the sheet P conveyance direction.

[0450] Furthermore, in the present embodiment, a tapered surface TM is provided at a portion of the contact member 700 that does not contact the root-side coil spring KB2 and the front-end side coil spring KB1.

[0451] Here, there are mostly deviations in the size of the sheet P, and there may be a sheet P larger than the specified value.

[0452] In this case, the sheet P larger than the specified value is excessively pressed by the first advancing member 610 and the second advancing member 620, and in this case, the sheet P may be deformed or the sheets P may become disordered.

[0453] In contrast, in the present embodiment, when there is a sheet P larger than the specified value, the contact member 700 retreats from the sheet P.

[0454] Furthermore, in the case where there is a sheet P larger than the specified value, the contact member 700 moves in a direction opposite to the advancing directions of the first advancing member 610 and the second advancing member 620.

[0455] Thereby, an excessive load acting on the sheet P is suppressed, and deformation and disorder of the sheet P can be suppressed.

[0456] Even when both the first advancing member 610 and the second advancing member 620 advance relative to the sheet P, the load caused by the reaction force from the sheet P is mainly borne by the front-end side coil spring KB1.

[0457] In this case, the contact member 700 moves significantly, and the load applied to the sheet P from the first advancing member 610 and the second advancing member 620 is reduced.

[0458] In addition, it is also possible to use Figure 18 the structure shown to perform the process of loading the sheet P offset.

[0459] When using Figure 18 the structure shown, it is the same as above. For example, as shown in Figure 20 (a diagram showing the state when loading the sheet P offset in the first embodiment), the contact member 700 (the contact member 700 indicated by reference numeral 17A) pressing one side of the sheet P is lowered compared to the contact member 700 (the contact member 700 indicated by reference numeral 17B) on the side bearing the sheet P.

[0460] Moreover, when pressing the sheet P, a part of the contact surface 760 of the contact member 700 pressing one side of the sheet P advances toward the sheet P, and this contact surface 760 comes into contact with the edge portion PB of the sheet P. In other words, a part of the inclined surface in the contact member 700 pressing one side of the sheet P advances toward the sheet P, and this inclined surface comes into contact with the edge portion PB of the sheet P.

[0461] On the other hand, in the contact member 700 on the side bearing the sheet P, the position of the contact member 700 is set such that the vertical surface 762 is on the extension line of the moving sheet P. Thereby, the edge portion PB of the sheet is pressed against this vertical surface 762.

[0462] In addition, in Figure 20 , the inclination angle of the contact surface 760 with respect to the vertical direction is smaller than Figure 18 the inclination angle of the contact surface 760 with respect to the vertical direction shown.

[0463] In this processing example, the surface against which the edge portion PB of the sheet is pressed is along the vertical direction, whereby the positions in the extending direction of each sheet P are aligned.

[0464] In other words, the vertical plane 762 of the contact member 700 provided on the right side in the figure is along the vertical direction, and by pressing the paper P against the vertical plane 762, the positions of the papers P in the extending direction are aligned. In other words, the positions of the papers P in the horizontal direction are aligned.

[0465] In addition, in this structural example, the contact surface 760 facing obliquely downward is located at the position opposed to the upper surface of the newly loaded paper P. When the newly loaded paper P bulges upwardly, similarly to the above, such bulging can be suppressed.

[0466] Moreover, in this structural example, similarly to the above, the newly loaded paper P is pressed from above by the contact surface 760, and a load for pressing the paper P downward acts on the newly loaded paper P.

[0467] One of the advancing members 600 provided in a fixed state does not have an advancing function. Therefore, it is not regarded as an advancing member and can be regarded as a configuration member arranged on the downstream side of the paper P that has moved along the width direction.

[0468] Furthermore, one of the advancing members 600 provided in a fixed state can be regarded as a configuration member arranged on the downstream side in the paper moving direction of the paper P that has been pressed and moved by the other advancing member 600.

[0469] Furthermore, in this case, one of the advancing members 600 on the side pressing the paper P can be regarded as a moving unit for moving the paper P supported by the supported portion 300 in the width direction of the paper P.

[0470] In addition, one of the advancing members 600 provided in a fixed state can be regarded as a configuration member arranged on the downstream side in the paper moving direction of the paper P that has been moved by this moving unit.

[0471] In addition, in this case, on the side of this configuration member, the contact member 700 provided on the side of this configuration member is used to receive the paper P that has been moved by the moving unit.

[0472] Here, in this case, the contact member 700 is arranged between the paper P that has been moved by the moving unit and the configuration member.

[0473] In addition, on the side receiving the paper P, a member such as the above-mentioned contact member 700 may not be provided. For example, a wall portion along the vertical direction may be provided to make the paper P abut against the wall portion.

[0474] The above-described embodiments are provided for illustrative purposes and do not limit the present invention to the above-described embodiments.

[0475] This application claims priority based on Japanese Patent Application No. 2020-057593 filed on March 27, 2020 and Japanese Patent Application No. 2020-057594 filed on March 27, 2020.

Claims

1. A recording material processing apparatus, wherein, the recording material processing apparatus includes: a recording material support portion that supports the loaded recording material from below; a contact member that is disposed on the side of the recording material loaded on the recording material support portion and against which the edge portion of the recording material abuts, and the contact member is provided so as to be movable to the side opposite to the side where the recording material is located; an elastic member that bears the load from the contact member against which the edge portion of the recording material abuts; and a member support portion that is disposed in a non-contact state with the recording material loaded on the recording material support portion and supports the contact member, the thickness of the lower edge portion of the contact member is smaller than the thickness of the upper edge portion of the contact member, the member support portion is disposed on the side opposite to the recording material loaded on the recording material support portion with the contact member interposed therebetween, the elastic member is provided between the contact member and the member support portion.

2. The recording material processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein, a plurality of the elastic members are provided, the plurality of provided elastic members are configured such that the positions of the plurality of elastic members are different from each other in the direction in which the edge portion of the recording material loaded on the recording material support portion extends.

3. The recording material processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein, when the edge portion of the newly loaded recording material on the recording material support portion is abutted against the contact member, the member support portion is disposed at a position opposed to the upper surface of the recording material already loaded on the recording material support portion, i.e., the already loaded recording material.

4. The recording material processing apparatus according to claim 3, wherein, the member support portion is located above the upper surface of the already loaded recording material and is disposed in a separated state from the upper surface.

5. The recording material processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein, the contact member has: a pressed surface that is a surface against which the edge portion of the recording material loaded on the recording material support portion abuts; and a reverse surface that is a surface located on the side opposite to the pressed surface, an inclined surface is provided on the reverse surface, and the inclined surface is inclined with respect to the vertical direction and the distance from the pressed surface gradually increases upward.

6. The recording material processing apparatus according to claim 5, wherein, the inclined surface extends upward starting from the lower edge portion of the contact member.

7. The recording material processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein, the contact member and the member support portion are disposed along the direction in which the edge portion of the recording material loaded on the recording material support portion extends, when comparing the thicknesses in the direction crossing the direction in which the edge portion extends, the thickness of the contact member is different from the thickness of the member support portion.

8. The recording material processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein, the recording material processing apparatus further includes: a pressing member that is disposed on the side opposite to the side where the contact member is provided with the recording material loaded on the recording material support portion interposed therebetween and presses the recording material toward the contact member; and An elastic member that bears the load from the pressing member pressing the recording material.

9. The recording material processing apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the elastic member that bears the load from the pressing member and the elastic member that bears the load from the contact member are each constituted by a coil spring, when the pressing member presses the recording material loaded on the recording material support portion toward the contact member, the central axis of the coil spring that bears the load from the pressing member is located below the central axis of the coil spring that bears the load from the contact member.

10. The recording material processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the recording material processing apparatus further includes a pressing member that is disposed on the side opposite to the side where the contact member is provided with the recording material loaded on the recording material support portion interposed therebetween, and presses the recording material toward the contact member, when the pressing member presses the recording material toward the contact member, the lower edge portion of the pressing member is located below the lower edge portion of the contact member.

11. The recording material processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the contact member is provided so as to be movable in the vertical direction.

12. The recording material processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein when newly loading a recording material onto the recording material support portion, the contact member is in contact with and disposed on the upper surface of the recording material already loaded on the recording material support portion, that is, the already-loaded recording material, when the number of recording materials newly loaded onto the recording material support portion exceeds a predetermined number, the contact member moves upward and / or the recording material support portion descends, and the contact member separates from the already-loaded recording material.

13. The recording material processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the edge portion of the recording material loaded on the recording material support portion is pressed against the side closer to the lower edge portion among the lower edge portion and the upper edge portion of the contact member.

14. The recording material processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the elastic member disposed between the contact member and the member support portion is constituted by a coil spring, the edge portion of the recording material loaded on the recording material support portion is pressed against the portion of the contact member that is located below the central axis of the coil spring.

15. The recording material processing apparatus according to claim 14, wherein in a state where the lower edge portion of the contact member is in contact with the recording material already loaded on the recording material support portion, that is, the already-loaded recording material, the edge portion of the recording material loaded on the recording material support portion is pressed against the portion that is located below the central axis of the coil spring.

16. The recording material processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein When a recording material loaded on the recording material support portion is newly loaded on a recording material already loaded on the recording material support portion, i.e., the already-loaded recording material, the recording material newly loaded on the recording material support portion becomes the already-loaded recording material. Thereafter, a new recording material is further loaded on the already-loaded recording material. Each time a new recording material is loaded, the loading position of the new recording material is sequentially offset, and the loading position is sequentially offset toward the downstream side in one direction.

17. A recording material processing apparatus, wherein the recording material processing apparatus includes: a support portion that supports a recording material from below; a contact member that advances toward the recording material from the side of the recording material supported by the support portion and has a contact surface that contacts an edge portion of the recording material; and an advancing portion that advances toward the recording material together with the contact member, the contact member has a lower edge portion located at a position lower than the lower end portion of the advancing portion, and when the contact surface of the contact member contacts the edge portion and presses the edge portion, the contact surface faces obliquely downward.

18. The recording material processing apparatus according to claim 17, wherein on a side opposite to the side where the recording material is located with the contact member interposed therebetween, there is provided the advancing portion that advances toward the recording material together with the contact member, and an elastic member is provided between the contact member and the advancing portion.

19. The recording material processing apparatus according to claim 18, wherein the elastic member is a helical spring, and a portion of the contact member located lower than the central axis of the helical spring contacts the edge portion of the recording material.

20. The recording material processing apparatus according to claim 17, wherein on a side opposite to the side where the recording material is located with the contact member interposed therebetween, there is provided the advancing portion that advances toward the recording material together with the contact member, the contact member is supported by the advancing portion, when the contact surface of the contact member contacts the edge portion and presses the edge portion, the contact member is disposed in a state inclined with respect to the vertical direction, and when the contact surface of the contact member contacts the edge portion and presses the edge portion, the advancing portion is disposed in a state along the vertical direction.

21. The recording material processing apparatus according to claim 17, wherein on a side opposite to the side where the recording material is located with the contact member interposed therebetween, there is provided the advancing portion that advances toward the recording material together with the contact member, the contact member is supported by the advancing portion, when the contact member advances toward the recording material and contacts the edge portion, the posture of the contact member changes, and along with this change in posture, the contact surface faces obliquely downward, and after the contact surface of the contact member contacts the edge portion, the posture of the advancing portion does not change.

22. The recording material processing apparatus according to claim 21, wherein the advancing portion is along the vertical direction, and after the contact surface of the contact member contacts the edge portion, the posture of the advancing portion does not change, and the advancing portion maintains a state along the vertical direction.

23. The recording material processing apparatus according to claim 17, wherein, on a side opposite to the side where the recording material is located with the contact member interposed therebetween, a forward portion that advances toward the recording material together with the contact member is provided, the contact member is supported by the forward portion, when comparing the thicknesses in the advancing direction when the contact member advances toward the recording material, the thickness of the contact member is smaller than the thickness of the forward portion.

24. The recording material processing apparatus according to claim 17, wherein, when the contact member retracts from the recording material, the contact surface is arranged along the vertical direction.

25. The recording material processing apparatus according to claim 17, wherein, when the contact member contacts the recording material, a load acts on the contact member from the recording material, and through the load acting on the contact member, the contact surface faces obliquely downward.

26. The recording material processing apparatus according to claim 25, wherein, the contact member has the lower edge portion and the upper edge portion, at a portion of the contact member located closer to the lower edge portion, the load from the recording material acts.

27. The recording material processing apparatus according to claim 17, wherein, when the contact surface of the contact member contacts the edge portion of the recording material and presses the edge portion, the upper edge portion of the contact member is located at a position opposed to the upper surface of the recording material.

28. An image forming system, wherein, the image forming system includes: an image forming apparatus that forms an image on a recording material; and a recording material processing apparatus that processes the recording material, the recording material processing apparatus is configured to include the recording material processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 27.

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