Post-processing device and image forming device

Abstract

To provide a post-processing device and an image forming device that allow easy work to release sheet jam.SOLUTION: A controller performs a position control of a staple device 11 based on a home position. When sheet jam occurs, the controller determines whether a predetermined retraction condition is met, when a retraction condition is satisfied, the staple device 11 is retracted to a sheet jam release position different from the home position, when the retraction condition is not met, the staple device 11 is not retracted.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a post-processing device and an image forming apparatus.

Background Art

[0002] A certain post-processing device includes a stapling device, performs position control by moving the stapling device with reference to the home position, and retracts the stapling device to the home position when a sheet jam occurs (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] However, in the above-described post-processing device, when the stapling device is retracted to the home position, it may be difficult to perform an operation for releasing a sheet jam.

[0005] The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and an object thereof is to obtain a post-processing device and an image forming apparatus in which an operation for releasing a sheet jam is easy.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0006] The post-processing device according to the present invention includes a processing tray on which a printed sheet to be stapled is placed, a stapler for performing the stapling process, a moving mechanism for moving the stapler within a predetermined movable range, a home position sensor for detecting that the stapler is in the home position within the movable range, and a controller for performing position control of the stapler with reference to the home position. When a sheet jam occurs, the controller determines whether or not a predetermined retraction condition is satisfied. If the retraction condition is satisfied, the stapler is retracted to a sheet jam release position different from the home position. If the retraction condition is not satisfied, the stapler is not retracted.

[0007] The image forming apparatus according to the present invention includes the above post-processing device, and supplies the printed sheet after printing to the post-processing device.

Effects of the Invention

[0008] According to the present invention, a post-processing device and an image forming apparatus that facilitate the operation for releasing a sheet jam can be obtained.

[0009] The above or other objects, features, and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description together with the accompanying drawings.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0010]

Figure 1

Figure 2

Figure 3

Figure 4

Embodiments for Carrying Out the Invention

[0011] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

[0012] FIG. 1 is a side view showing a mechanical configuration of a post-processing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. The post-processing apparatus shown in FIG. 1 may be a single apparatus or may be incorporated in an image forming apparatus such as a multifunction machine. After a printed sheet after printing by a print engine is supplied, a predetermined post-processing (such as stapling for a plurality of printed sheets) is executed on the printed sheet.

[0013] The post-processing apparatus shown in FIG. 1 includes an intermediate roller 1, a stopper guide 2, a processing tray 3, a discharge roller 4, and a discharge tray 5. Further, the post-processing apparatus includes a stapler 11 that performs stapling on the printed sheet on the processing tray 3.

[0014] The intermediate roller 1 conveys a printed sheet to be post-processed to above the processing tray 3. The intermediate roller 1 is driven by a motor (not shown).

[0015] The stopper guide 2 is disposed at one end side of the processing tray 3, and the end of the printed sheet on the processing tray 3 abuts thereon.

[0016] The processing tray 3 is a substantially plate-shaped member that is inclined, and the printed sheet to be post-processed is placed thereon. Post-processing (such as stapling) is executed on one or a plurality of printed sheets placed on the processing tray 3.

[0017] In this embodiment, after the rear end portion of the printed sheet passes through the intermediate roller 1, it is guided to the processing tray 3 by receiving contact from a sheet contact member (not shown), and is brought into contact with the stopper guide 2 by a drawing paddle (not shown) to be aligned.

[0018] The discharge roller 4 is separated from each other until the post-processing is completed so that the printed sheet placed on the processing tray 3 and the printed sheet newly conveyed to the processing tray 3 can move through the gap of the discharge roller 4. After the completion of the post-processing, the printed sheet is nipped and conveyed (discharged) onto the discharge tray 5.

[0019] The discharge tray 5 is a member on which the printed sheet after post-processing is placed, and it can be moved up and down.

[0020] FIG. 2 is a diagram for explaining the movement of the stapling device 11 in FIG. 1. The post-processing device includes a cover that can be opened and closed by the user on the front side of the device, and a moving mechanism 21 that moves the stapling device 11 within a predetermined movable range, and a home position sensor 22 that detects that the stapling device 11 is in the home position within the movable range, as shown in FIG. 2, for example. The home position sensor 22 is, for example, an optical sensor.

[0021] The moving mechanism 21 moves the stapling device 11 in a direction perpendicular to the conveyance direction of the printed sheet 101 within a movable range between the front side and the rear side.

[0022] FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing the electrical configuration of the post-processing device according to an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 3, the post-processing device according to this embodiment further includes a controller 31. The controller 31 controls a motor 21 (not shown) that drives the intermediate roller 1, the discharge roller 4, etc., and controls the stapling device 11 and the moving mechanism 21 to execute the stapling process.

[0023] Further, the controller 31 controls the position of the stapling device 11 with reference to the home position. In particular, in stapling processing, when the controller 31 detects that a sheet jam has occurred in the printed sheet, it determines whether or not a predetermined retraction condition is satisfied. Then, when the retraction condition is satisfied, the controller 31 retracts the stapling device 11 to a sheet jam release position different from the home position (in the direction opposite to the home position as viewed from the stitching position), and when the retraction condition is not satisfied, the controller 31 does not retract the stapling device 11.

[0024] Here, the retraction condition includes at least one of (a) the above-described cover that can be opened to release the sheet jam is closed, (b) the sheet jam is not caused by a needle jam in the stapling device 11, and (c) it is not necessary to remove the sheet guide to release the sheet jam (here, these three are the case). Here, the open / closed state of the cover is detected by the cover sensor 32, the needle jam is detected by the stapling device 11, and whether or not it is necessary to remove the sheet guide is determined based on the position of the sheet jam and the like.

[0025] Note that no sensor is provided to detect that the stapling device 11 is at the sheet jam release position within the above-described movable range. That is, the stapling device 11 is arranged at the sheet jam release position by position control with reference to the home position.

[0026] Further, when the controller 31 retracts the stapling device 11 to the sheet jam release position, (a) when the current position of the stapling device 11 can be specified, the amount of movement from the current position to the sheet jam release position is specified, and the stapling device 11 is moved by that amount of movement by the movement mechanism 21 to retract the stapling device 11 to the sheet jam release position, and (b) when the current position of the stapling device 11 cannot be specified, the stapling device 11 is moved to the home position and then retracted to the sheet jam release position.

[0027] For example, when a sheet jam is detected while the stapling device 11 is stopped at the stitching position, the current position of the stapling device 11 can be specified. On the other hand, when a sheet jam is detected and the stapling device 11 stops while it is moving, the current position of the stapling device 11 cannot be specified.

[0028] Also, when a sheet jam occurs, after the controller 31 determines that the retraction condition is not satisfied, when the above-mentioned cover is closed (that is, when the cover was initially open but is now closed), the controller 31 determines again whether the retraction condition is satisfied. If the retraction condition is satisfied, the stapling device 11 is retracted to the sheet jam release position. If the retraction condition is not satisfied, the stapling device 11 is not retracted continuously. In this case, since the cover was initially open, there is a possibility that the stapling device 11 was moved by the user. Therefore, once the stapling device 11 is returned to the home position and its current position is specified, the stapling device 11 is moved to the sheet jam release position.

[0029] Next, the operation of the post-processing device will be described.

[0030] When receiving a request for stapling processing as a post-processing job, the controller 31 conveys the print sheet 101 from the preceding device (such as a print engine or a separate image forming device) with the intermediate roller 1. After the rear end of the print sheet 101 passes through the intermediate roller 1, the print sheet 101 is placed on the processing tray 3 by a sheet contact member or a retracting paddle.

[0031] In this way, a plurality of print sheets 101 are sequentially placed on the processing tray 3. When a predetermined number of print sheets 101 are placed on the processing tray 3, the controller 31 moves the stapling device 11 from the home position to the stitching position with the moving mechanism 21 and causes the stapling device 11 to perform stitching at the stitching position. If there are multiple stitching positions, the stapling device 11 is sequentially moved to those stitching positions, and the stapling device 11 performs stitching at multiple stitching positions.

[0032] When the stapling process is completed, the printed sheet 101 after the stapling process is discharged onto the discharge tray 5 by the discharge roller 4.

[0033] When a sheet jam is detected while the stapling process is being performed as described above, the controller 31 interrupts the stapling process and resumes the stapling process when the sheet jam is cleared by the user's operation.

[0034] Figure 4 is a flowchart for explaining the operation of the post-processing apparatus shown in FIGS. 1 to 3 when a sheet jam occurs.

[0035] When a sheet jam is detected, the controller 31 determines whether or not to retract the stapler 11 to the sheet jam release position based on the above-described retraction conditions (step S1).

[0036] If it is determined to retract the stapler 11 to the sheet jam release position, the controller 31 determines whether or not the current position of the stapler 11 can be specified (that is, whether it is at a specified position such as the stitching position) (step S2).

[0037] If the current position of the stapler 11 can be specified, the controller 31 calculates the amount of movement of the stapler 11 from its current position to the sheet jam release position (step S3), and moves the stapler 11 by that amount of movement with the movement mechanism 21 to retract the stapler 11 to the sheet jam release position (step S4).

[0038] On the one hand, when the current position of the stapling device 11 cannot be specified, the controller 31 moves the stapling device 11 toward the home position until the stapling device 11 is detected by the home position sensor 22 (step S5). After that, the controller 31 specifies the moving amount of the stapling device 11 from the current position (i.e., the home position) to the sheet jam release position (step S3), and moves the stapling device 11 by that moving amount with the moving mechanism 21 to retract the stapling device 11 to the sheet jam release position (step S4).

[0039] In this way, when the retraction condition is satisfied, the stapling device 11 is retracted to the sheet jam release position. On the other hand, when the retraction condition is not satisfied, the stapling device 11 remains stopped at the position where the stapling process was interrupted.

[0040] Thereafter, the post-processing device waits in a standby state until the sheet jam is released by the user (step S6).

[0041] In the standby state, when the controller 31 detects that the above-mentioned cover is closed by the cover sensor 32 (step S11), it determines whether to retract the stapling device 11 to the sheet jam release position based on the above-mentioned retraction condition (step S12).

[0042] When it is determined to retract the stapling device 11 to the sheet jam release position, the controller 31 moves the stapling device 11 toward the home position until the stapling device 11 is detected by the home position sensor 22 (step S13). After that, the controller 31 specifies the moving amount of the stapling device 11 from the current position (i.e., the home position) to the sheet jam release position (step S14), and moves the stapling device 11 by that moving amount with the moving mechanism 21 to retract the stapling device 11 to the sheet jam release position (step S15).

[0043] On the other hand, when it is determined in step S12 that the stapler device 11 is not retracted to the paper jam release position, the post-processing device continues to be in a standby state (step S6).

[0044] As described above, according to the above embodiment, the controller 31 controls the position of the stapler device 11 with reference to the home position. Then, when a paper jam occurs, the controller 31 determines whether or not a predetermined retraction condition is satisfied. When the retraction condition is satisfied, the stapler device 11 is retracted to a paper jam release position different from the home position. When the retraction condition is not satisfied, the stapler device 11 is not retracted.

[0045] Thereby, when a paper jam occurs, the stapler device 11 is retracted to a position where the paper jam is easily released in a timely manner, so that it is easy for the user to perform an operation for releasing the paper jam.

[0046] It should be noted that various changes and modifications to the above-described embodiment are obvious to those skilled in the art. Such changes and modifications may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the subject matter and without weakening the intended advantages. That is, it is intended that such changes and modifications be included in the claims.

Industrial Applicability

[0047] The present invention is applicable to, for example, a post-processing device of an image forming apparatus.

Explanation of Signs

[0048] 3 Processing Tray 11 Stapler Device 21 Moving Mechanism 22 Home Position Sensor 31 Controller 101 Print Sheet

Claims

1. A processing tray on which a printed sheet to be stapled is placed, A stapling device that performs the stapling process, A moving mechanism that moves the stapling device within a predetermined movable range, A home position sensor that detects that the stapling device is in the home position within the movable range, A controller that performs position control of the stapling device with reference to the home position, When a sheet jam occurs, the controller determines whether a predetermined evacuation condition is satisfied. If the evacuation condition is satisfied, the stapling device is evacuated to a sheet jam release position different from the home position. If the evacuation condition is not satisfied, the stapling device is not evacuated. A post-processing device characterized by the above.

2. The evacuation condition includes at least one of (a) the cover that is opened to release the sheet jam is closed, (b) the sheet jam is not caused by a needle jam of the stapling device, and (c) it is not necessary to remove the sheet guide to release the sheet jam. The post-processing device according to Claim 1.

3. The evacuation condition includes that the cover that is opened to release the sheet jam is closed. When a sheet jam occurs, after the controller determines that the evacuation condition is not satisfied, when the cover is closed, the controller determines again whether the evacuation condition is satisfied. If the evacuation condition is satisfied, the stapling device is evacuated to the sheet jam release position. If the evacuation condition is not satisfied, the stapling device continues not to be evacuated. The post-processing device according to Claim 1.

4. When the controller evacuates the stapling device to the sheet jam release position, (a) if the current position of the stapling device can be specified, the moving amount from the current position to the sheet jam release position is specified, and the stapling device is moved by the moving amount by the moving mechanism to evacuate the stapling device to the sheet jam release position. (b) If the current position of the stapling device cannot be specified, the stapling device is moved to the home position and then evacuated to the sheet jam release position. The post-processing device according to Claim 1.

5. The post-treatment device according to claim 1, characterized in that no sensor is provided for detecting that the stapling device is in the sheet jamming release position within the movable range.

6. Comprising the post-treatment device according to any one of claims 1 to 5, Supplying a printed sheet after printing to the post-treatment device, An image forming apparatus characterized by the above.

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