Paper transport device

Abstract

To provide a sheet conveyance device with a simple and compact configuration capable of correcting skew of a sheet easily and reliably even when sheets of different shapes are used.SOLUTION: The sheet conveyance device includes a first skew correction mechanism for correcting skew of a sheet by bringing one side edge of a conveying sheet into contact with a reference plate and a second skew correction mechanism for correcting skew of the sheet by abutting the front edge of the conveying sheet on a stopper.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 11

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a paper transport device, and more particularly to a paper transport device having a mechanism for correcting skew of paper during transport. [Background technology]

[0002] A sheet processing device such as a sheet folding device is usually supplied with sheets from a paper transport device disposed in front of it, or from a sheet transport mechanism provided inside the device to a sheet processing section. Meanwhile, in a sheet processing device such as a sheet folding device, it is necessary to accurately align the paper with respect to a folding knife, folding roller, cutter, etc. For this reason, some sheet transport devices (sheet transport mechanisms) are provided with a function to correct the skew of the paper when it is skewed during transport.

[0003] Patent document 1 discloses a sheet conveying mechanism that includes a guide plate disposed on one side of the conveying path and extending in the conveying direction as a positioning unit that aligns one side edge of the sheet to a predetermined position while conveying the sheet, and a conveying belt that extends obliquely relative to the conveying direction so that one side edge of the sheet is guided by the guide plate.

[0004] Patent Document 2 discloses a sheet conveying mechanism as a positioning unit that aligns the leading edge of a sheet conveyed along a conveying path (corrects skew) by abutting the leading edge of the sheet against a stopper.

[0005] As described above, there are two main types of sheet transport mechanisms that correct the skew of a sheet during transport: one that guides "one side edge" of the sheet to a guide plate as disclosed in Patent Document 1, and one that abuts the "leading edge" of the sheet against a stopper as disclosed in Patent Document 2. However, the position of the reference edge of the sheet that acts during sheet transport to correct the skew differs by 90° from the transport direction. Note that the reference edge of the sheet is the edge that is to be aligned (butted) against the guide plate or stopper among the four outer edges of the sheet.

[0006] In these two configurations, depending on the shape (external shape) of the sheet, when the sheet is transported from the upstream side of the sheet transport mechanism to the sheet transport mechanism, the position of the reference edge of the sheet corresponding to the "one side edge" or "leading edge" of the sheet may not match. In addition, since the reference edge of the sheet needs to be aligned (contacted) with a guide plate or a stopper in order to correct the skew, it is preferable that the reference edge of the sheet remain flat for a predetermined length. Specifically, in a sheet processing device that has processing means such as a crease processing means, a folding processing means, and a glue application means downstream of the sheet conveying mechanism (skew correction section), the combination and arrangement of the processing means provided downstream may restrict the positioning of the reference edge of the sheet for skew correction when the sheet is transported from the paper feed section to the sheet conveying mechanism. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0007] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 9-267966 [Patent Document 2] JP 2005-22820 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0008] Therefore, the object of the present invention is to provide a sheet conveying device that can easily and reliably correct the skew of a sheet even when the shape of the sheet is different, and that has a simple and compact structure. In particular, in a sheet processing device that has processing means such as a crease processing means, a folding processing means, and a glue application means downstream of the sheet conveying mechanism (skew correction unit), even when a sheet with a pre-cut outline is used as the processed sheet, the object of the present invention is to make it possible to correct the skew of paper regardless of the shape of the sheet. [Means for solving the problem]

[0009] In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a sheet conveying device including a skew correction mechanism that acts on a conveyed sheet to correct skew of the sheet, comprising: The skew correction mechanism comprises a reference plate arranged on one side of the sheet transport path and extending in the transport direction, and an auxiliary transport belt arranged at an angle to the sheet transport path with its downstream side closer to the reference plate, and comprises a first skew correction mechanism that corrects the skew of the sheet by abutting one side edge of the sheet being transported against the reference plate, and a second skew correction mechanism that arranges the auxiliary transport belt parallel to the reference plate and has a stopper interposed in the sheet transport path, and corrects the skew of the sheet by abutting the leading edge of the transported sheet against the stopper, and further comprises an installation angle change mechanism that changes the angle at which the auxiliary transport belt is arranged depending on the type of skew correction mechanism selected in advance by an operator based on the shape of the sheet.

[0010] The invention described in claim 2 is characterized in that, in the paper transport device described in claim 1, the stopper is configured to be set to a protruding position or a retracted position depending on the type of the skew correction mechanism pre-selected by the operator.

[0011] The invention described in claim 3 is characterized in that, in the paper transporting device described in claim 1 or claim 2, a drive unit including the auxiliary transport belt is rotatable around a vertical axis relative to the sheet transporting device main body so that the installation angle of the auxiliary transport belt relative to the reference plate can be changed depending on whether the first skew correction mechanism in which the auxiliary transport belt is arranged at an angle relative to the reference plate is selected or the second skew correction mechanism in which the auxiliary transport belt is arranged parallel to the reference plate is selected in the installation angle change mechanism.

[0012] The invention described in claim 4 is a paper transport device described in any one of claims 1 to 3, further comprising an upstream transport roller pair on the upstream side of the auxiliary transport belt for transferring the transported sheet to the auxiliary transport belt, and a downstream transport roller pair on the downstream side of the auxiliary transport belt for receiving the sheet discharged from the auxiliary transport belt, the upstream transport roller pair and the downstream transport roller pair each being configured such that their nip portions can be brought into contact and separated, and when the skew correction mechanism corrects the skew of the sheet, a control means is controlled to separate the nip portions of the upstream transport roller pair and the downstream transport roller pair.

[0013] The invention described in claim 5 is characterized in that, in the paper transport device described in any one of claims 1 to 4, it is provided with one or more pressure rollers that rotate above the auxiliary transport belt while contacting the auxiliary transport belt, the pressure roller is supported for free rotation at the tip of a swing lever, and the other end of the swing lever is supported so as to swing around a pivot axis arranged across the auxiliary transport belt at a right angle.

[0014] The invention described in claim 6 is a sheet processing device comprising a paper feeding means, a sheet conveying device described in any one of claims 1 to 5, and a processing means, characterized in that the processing means comprises at least one of a crease processing means, a folding processing means, and a glue application means, and is configured so that the sheet to be processed is transported from the paper feeding means toward the sheet conveying device, and after skew correction is performed by the sheet conveying device, a predetermined processing is performed by the processing means. Effect of the Invention

[0015] According to the invention described in claim 1, an installation angle changing mechanism is provided that changes the angle at which the auxiliary conveyor belt is disposed depending on the type of skew correction mechanism that the operator has previously selected based on the shape of the sheet, so that the auxiliary conveyor belt is automatically set to the first skew correction mechanism in which it is disposed at an angle to the reference plate, and the second skew correction mechanism in which it is disposed parallel to the reference plate, which is convenient. Also, since the auxiliary conveyor belt is shared between the two types of skew correction mechanisms, the sheet conveying device can be made compact.

[0016] According to the invention described in claim 2, the stopper is configured to be set to a protruding position or a retracted position depending on the type of the skew correction mechanism pre-selected by the operator, so that the sheet transport path can be shared between the first skew correction mechanism and the second skew correction mechanism, resulting in a compact sheet transport device.

[0017] According to the invention described in claim 3, since the drive unit including the auxiliary conveying belt is rotatable around an axis perpendicular to the sheet conveying device main body, the installation angle changing mechanism can be realized inexpensively with a simple configuration.

[0018] According to the invention described in claim 4, the upstream conveying roller pair and the downstream conveying roller pair of the auxiliary conveying belt are each configured so that the nip portions can be brought into contact with and separated from each other, and when the skew correction mechanism corrects skew of the sheet, the nip portions of the upstream conveying roller pair and the downstream conveying roller pair are controlled to be separated from each other, thereby preventing wrinkles from occurring in the sheet.

[0019] According to the invention described in claim 5, one or more pressure rollers are provided above the auxiliary conveying belt and rotate in contact with the auxiliary conveying belt, thereby stabilizing the conveying of the sheet by the auxiliary conveying belt and preventing wrinkles from occurring in the sheet.

[0020] According to the invention described in claim 6, in the sheet processing device, the sheet to be processed is transported from a paper feeding means toward a sheet conveying device, the skew is corrected by the sheet conveying device, and then a specified processing is performed by a processing means.Since the sheet conveying device has a first skew correction mechanism and a second skew correction mechanism as skew correction mechanisms, even when a sheet whose outline has been cut in advance is used as the sheet to be processed, it is possible to correct the skew of the paper regardless of the shape of the sheet. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0021] [Figure 1] 1 is a vertical sectional view showing a schematic configuration of a sheet processing apparatus 1 according to one embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a plan view of the sheet processing apparatus 1 of FIG. [Diagram 3] 1 is a plan view of a sheet S to be processed by a sheet processing apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment. [Figure 4] 1 is a diagram showing how a sheet is processed in a sheet processing device 1. FIG. [Diagram 5] 1 is a diagram showing how a sheet is processed in a sheet processing device 1. FIG. [Figure 6] FIG. 2 is a vertical cross-sectional view showing a schematic configuration of a paper feed unit and a skew correction unit. [Figure 7] 7 is a plan view of the paper feed unit and the skew correction unit in FIG. 6. [Figure 8] 7 is a plan view of the paper feed unit and the skew correction unit in FIG. 6. [Figure 9] 5 is a plan view illustrating an installation angle of a drive unit relative to a sheet conveying device body. FIG. [Figure 10] 5 is a plan view illustrating an installation angle of a drive unit relative to a sheet conveying device body. FIG. [Figure 11] 5A to 5C are schematic diagrams illustrating the operations of a first skew correction mechanism and a second skew correction mechanism. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0022] [Overall configuration of sheet processing device 1] Fig. 1 is a vertical cross-sectional view showing a schematic configuration of a sheet processing device 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention, and Fig. 2 is a plan view of the sheet processing device. The sheet processing device 1 is equipped with a paper feed section 16 and a paper discharge section 17 at both ends of an apparatus body 10. A conveying path 20 is formed from the paper feed section 16 to the paper discharge section 17 by a conveying section 2 consisting of a number of pairs of rollers 19.

[0023] The conveying section 2 conveys the sheet S from the paper feed section 16 toward the paper discharge section 17. A conveying drive section (not shown) is connected to the conveying section 2. On the conveying path 20, from the paper feed section 16 toward the paper discharge section 17, there are provided a skew correction section 4, a vertical crease section 5, a horizontal crease section 6, a first folding section 11, a second folding section 12, a first glue application section 21, a third folding section 13, a second glue application section 22, and a fourth folding section 14. The sheet processing device 1 also includes a control section 9 in the device body 10, which controls the operation of the entire device.

[0024] The paper feed section 16 includes a paper feed tray 94 and a suction conveying section 95. Sheets S are placed on the paper feed tray 94. The paper feed tray 94 is raised and lowered by a lifting section (not shown). The suction conveying section 95 includes a suction box 96 and a conveying belt 97. The suction box 96 is connected to a blower 98 shown in FIG. 2. Negative pressure is generated in the suction box 96 by driving the blower 98, and the topmost sheet S on the paper feed tray 94 is sucked to the underside of the conveying belt 97 and conveyed toward the conveying section 2 on the downstream side.

[0025] The skew correction unit 4 is disposed after the paper feed unit 16, receives the sheet S discharged from the paper feed unit 16 onto the auxiliary conveyor belt 42, and conveys the sheet S diagonally toward the reference plate 44 so that the edge of the received sheet S is aligned with the reference plate 44 shown in Fig. 2, while conveying the sheet S downstream in the conveying direction. Note that above the auxiliary conveyor belt 42, a pressure roller unit 43 is disposed which presses the sheet S conveyed on the auxiliary conveyor belt 42 with a pressure roller.

[0026] The vertical crease section 5 forms a crease C in the sheet S along the conveying direction F. The vertical crease section 5 includes an upper member 51, a lower member 52, a separating section 53, and a lateral movement section 54. The upper member 51 is placed above the conveying path 20. The upper member 51 is formed in a disk shape, and a concave groove is formed on its peripheral surface. The lower member 52 is placed below the conveying path 20 at a position opposite the upper member 51, and is also formed in a disk shape, and its peripheral surface is formed in a convex shape. The separating section 53 separates the upper member 51 from the lower member 52. The lateral movement section 54 moves the upper member 51 and the lower member 52 together in the width direction W perpendicular to the conveying direction F.

[0027] The lateral crease portion 6 forms a fold C in the sheet S along the width direction W. The lateral crease portion 6 includes a recessed member 61, a protruding member 62, and a lifting portion 63. The recessed member 61 is disposed above the conveying path 20, and is raised and lowered by the lifting portion 63. The protruding member 62 faces the recessed member 61, and is disposed below the conveying path 20.

[0028] The first folding unit 11 folds the rear end portion of the sheet S along the width direction W. The first folding unit 11 includes a first folding member 46, a first receiving plate 47, and a first swinging unit 48. The first folding member 46 is swung by the first swinging unit 48 around a first swing shaft 49 as an axis center toward the first receiving plate 47 on the downstream side.

[0029] The second folding unit 12 folds the front end portion of the sheet S along the width direction. The second folding unit 12 includes a second folding member 56, a second receiving plate 57, and a second swinging unit 58. The second folding member 56 swings about a second swinging shaft 59 toward the upstream second receiving plate 57.

[0030] The first glue application unit 21 applies glue to the sheet S along the width direction W. The first glue application unit 21 includes a first nozzle 81, a first glue supply unit (not shown), and a first glue moving unit 82 (not shown). The first nozzle 81 sprays glue G from the first glue supply unit toward the sheet S, applying glue G to the sheet S. The first glue supply unit supplies glue G to the first nozzle 81. The first glue moving unit 82 moves the first nozzle 81 in the width direction W.

[0031] The third folding unit 13 folds the sheet S at a crease C along the conveying direction F. The third folding unit 13 includes a third folding member 66, a third receiving plate 67, and a third swinging unit 68. The third folding member 66 and the third receiving plate 67 are arranged side by side in the width direction W. The third folding member 66 is swung by the third swinging unit 68 toward the third receiving plate 67 around a third swinging shaft 69 extending in the conveying direction F as its axis.

[0032] The second glue applying unit 22 has a similar configuration to the first glue applying unit 21.

[0033] The fourth folding section 14 has a similar structure to the second folding section 12, except that the folding direction is the opposite direction.

[0034] The pressing unit 8 presses the fold C of the sheet S. The pressing unit 8 includes a pair of upper and lower pressing members 85 and a lifting unit 86. The pair of pressing members 85 are disposed opposite each other above and below via the conveying path 20. The lifting unit 86 lifts and lowers the pressing member 85 disposed above the conveying path 20 toward the other opposing pressing member 85.

[0035] The processed sheet S is placed on the discharge section 17. The discharge section 17 includes a discharge tray 99.

[0036] [Operation of sheet processing device 1]

[0037] Next, the processing of the sheet S will be specifically described by taking two examples.

[0038] (1) Processing of pocket folders First, processing of pocket folders will be explained using Figures 3 and 4. A pocket folder is a folder made of paper that has a pocket when opened and can store documents, etc.

[0039] FIG. 3 is a plan view of a sheet S to be processed by the sheet processing device 1 according to this embodiment. The sheet S is cut into a predetermined shape in advance by a die. The sheet S has a main body B, a front glue tab D, a rear glue tab E, a front folded piece H, and a rear folded piece I. Glue G is applied to the front glue tab D and the rear glue tab E. The front glue tab D, the rear glue tab E, the front folded piece H, and the rear folded piece I are folded toward the main body B at a front horizontal fold C1, a rear horizontal fold C2, a front vertical fold C3, and a rear vertical fold C4, respectively. Furthermore, the main body B of the sheet S is folded in half at a center fold C5, thereby forming a processed product J shown in FIG. 3(b).

[0040] 4 is a diagram showing how a pocket folder is processed by the sheet processing device 1. When a sheet S is processed by the sheet processing device 1, the sheet S shown in Fig. 4(a) is placed on a paper feed tray 94. The uppermost sheet S on the paper feed tray 94 is fed by a suction conveying unit 95 to the skew correction unit 4 on the downstream side.

[0041] In the skew correction section 4, the sheet S is conveyed by the movement of the skew belt 42 while aligning the side edge K (reference side of the sheet S) shown on the left side in Fig. 4(a) with the reference plate 44, and the skew is corrected. Note that the specific skew correction operation in the skew correction section 4 will be described later. When the sheet S reaches the vertical crease section 5, a front vertical fold C3 and a rear vertical fold C4 are formed along the conveying direction F, as shown by the two-dot chain line in Fig. 4(b).

[0042] Thereafter, the sheet S is transported to the lateral crease section 6. When the front lateral fold C1 of the sheet S is positioned between the upper member 61 and the lower member 62, the control section 9 (not shown) stops the transport of the sheet S by the transport section 2. Then, the control section 9 drives the lifting section 63 to engage the upper member 61 with the lower member 62 via the sheet S, thereby forming the front lateral fold C1. The rear lateral fold C2 is also formed in the same manner as the front lateral fold C1. As a result, the front lateral fold C1 and rear lateral fold C2 shown in FIG. 4(c) are formed.

[0043] Thereafter, the leading edge of the sheet S passes through the first folding section 11 and reaches the second folding section 12. When the front horizontal fold C1 reaches above the second swing shaft 59 of the second folding section 12, the control section 9 stops the conveyance of the sheet S. The control section 9 drives the second swing section 58 to fold the sheet S at the front horizontal fold C1, and the front glue margin D faces the main body B. This brings the sheet S into the state shown in FIG. 4(d).

[0044] Thereafter, the control unit 9 drives the conveying unit 2 to pass the leading edge of the sheet S through the first glue applicator 21 and the third folding unit 13. When the front glue margin D reaches the second glue applicator 22, the control unit 9 stops the conveying unit 2. The control unit 9 sprays glue G from the second nozzle 91 of the second glue applicator 22 to apply glue G to the top surface of the front glue margin D. This brings the sheet S into the state shown in FIG. 4(e).

[0045] Furthermore, the control unit 9 drives the third swinging unit 68 without moving the sheet S from the position where the glue is applied to the front glue strip D. The third folding member 66 is swung about the third swinging shaft 69 and reaches a position facing the third receiving plate 67. As a result, the sheet S is folded at the front vertical fold C3, as shown in FIG. 4(f). The front folded piece H is positioned above the main body B. At this time, the front glue strip D is already positioned above the main body B, and glue G has been applied to the upper surface of the front glue strip D, so that the upper surface of the front glue strip D and the lower surface of the front end portion of the front folded piece H are bonded to each other.

[0046] Next, the control unit 9 drives the conveying unit 2. The sheet S is conveyed downstream, and then, when the rear fold C2 of the rear part of the sheet S reaches the installation position of the first swing shaft 49 of the first folding unit 11, the control unit 9 stops the conveying unit 2 and drives the first swing unit 48. The sheet S is folded at the rear horizontal fold C2, and the rear glue margin E is positioned above the main body B. As a result, the sheet S is in the state shown in FIG. 4(g).

[0047] The control unit 9 drives the conveying unit 2 and stops the conveying unit 2 when the rear glue flap E reaches the first glue applicator 21. When the control unit 9 sprays glue G from the first nozzle 81, the glue G is applied to the upper surface of the rear glue flap E as shown in FIG. 4(h). Then, the control unit 9 drives the third swinging unit 68 to swing the third folding member 66 about the third swinging shaft 69 and position it opposite the third receiving plate 67. As a result, the sheet S is folded at the rear vertical fold C4 as shown in FIG. 4(i). The glue G on the upper surface of the rear glue flap E located between the main body B and the rear folded piece I bonds the rear glue flap E and the rear end portion of the rear folded piece I.

[0048] The control unit 9 drives the conveying unit 2, and stops the conveying unit 2 when the central crease C5 reaches the fourth folding unit 14. The control unit 9 swings the fourth folding member 76 to fold the sheet S at the central crease C5. As a result, the sheet S is in the state shown in FIG. 4(j). The folded sheet S is conveyed by the conveying unit 2. When the leading edge of the sheet S reaches the pressing unit 8, the control unit 9 stops the conveying unit 2. The control unit 9 drives the lifting unit 86 to press the front crease C1 and the rear crease C2, which are stacked vertically, against the pair of pressing members 85. As a result, the sheet S is firmly folded at the front crease C1 and the rear crease C2. In addition, the applied glue G firmly bonds the front glue margin D to the front folded piece H, and the rear glue margin E to the rear folded piece I.

[0049] The processed product J obtained by the processing is discharged onto a discharge tray 99.

[0050] (2) Box processing

[0051] Next, the processing of a box will be described with reference to Fig. 5. Here, the box is, for example, a box for putting wine bottles in, and the sheet processing device 1 has a function of performing simplified processing to complete the box to a level where assembly can be easily completed by hand after processing the sheet S.

[0052] Fig. 5 is a diagram showing how a box is processed in the sheet processing apparatus 1. Fig. 5(a) is a plan view of a sheet S to be processed by the sheet processing apparatus 1 according to this embodiment. The sheet S is cut out in advance into a predetermined shape using a die. When the sheet S is processed by the sheet processing apparatus 1, the sheet S shown in Fig. 5(a) is placed on a paper feed tray 94. The uppermost sheet S on the paper feed tray 94 is supplied to the skew correction unit 4 downstream by a suction conveying unit 95.

[0053] In the skew correction unit 4, the skew belt 42 is disposed parallel to a reference plate 44, and a stopper 45 is interposed in the conveying path of the sheet S, and the front end edge K' (reference side of the sheet S) of the conveyed sheet S is abutted against the stopper 45 to correct the skew of the sheet S. Note that the specific skew correction operation in the skew correction unit 4 will be described later.

[0054] When the sheet S reaches the vertical crease portion 5, in Fig. 5(a), a first vertical crease f5 and a second vertical crease f6 are formed along the conveying direction F. The vertical crease portions 5 are disposed at two locations in the width direction of the conveying direction.

[0055] Thereafter, the sheet S is conveyed to the horizontal crease unit 6. When the first horizontal fold f1, the second horizontal fold f2, the third horizontal fold f3, and the fourth horizontal fold f4 of the sheet S are positioned between the upper member 61 and the lower member 62, respectively, the control unit 9 sequentially stops the conveyance of the sheet S by the conveying unit 2. Then, the control unit 9 drives the lifting unit 63 to engage the upper member 61 with the lower member 62 via the sheet S, thereby sequentially forming the first horizontal fold f1, the second horizontal fold f2, the third horizontal fold f3, and the fourth horizontal fold f4 of the sheet S shown in Figure 5(a).

[0056] Thereafter, the leading edge of the sheet S reaches the first folding unit 11. When the third horizontal fold f3 of the sheet S reaches above the first swing shaft 49 of the first folding unit 11, the control unit 9 stops conveying the sheet S. The control unit 9 drives the first swing unit 48 to fold the sheet S at the first horizontal fold f3, and make the front glue margin Y face the main body T. This brings the sheet S into the state shown in FIG. 5(b).

[0057] Thereafter, the control unit 9 drives the conveying unit 2 to pass the leading edge of the sheet S through the first glue applicator 21 and the third folding unit 13. When the glue margin Y reaches the second glue applicator 22, the control unit 9 stops the conveying unit 2. The control unit 9 sprays glue G from the second nozzle 91 of the second glue applicator 22, and applies glue G to the upper surface of the glue margin Y of the folded piece V, as shown in FIG. 5(c).

[0058] The control unit 9 drives the conveying unit 2, and stops the conveying unit 2 when the first horizontal fold f1 of the sheet S reaches the fourth folding unit 14. The control unit 9 swings the fourth folding member 77 to fold the sheet S at the first horizontal fold f1, and the glue margin Y and the folded piece W are bonded by the glue G on the upper surface of the glue margin Y of the folded piece V. As a result, the sheet S is in the state shown in FIG. 5(d). The folded sheet S is conveyed by the conveying unit 2. When the leading portion of the sheet S reaches the pressing unit 8, the control unit 9 stops the conveying unit 2. The control unit 9 drives the lifting unit 86 to press the first horizontal fold f1 and the third horizontal fold f3, which are stacked vertically, against the pair of pressing members 85. As a result, the sheet S is firmly folded at the first horizontal fold f1 and the third horizontal fold f3. In addition, the glue margin Y of the folded piece V and the folded piece W are firmly bonded by the applied glue G.

[0059] The processed product J obtained by the processing is discharged onto a discharge tray 99.

[0060] [Operation of the skew correction mechanism] Next, the operation of the skew correction mechanism in the skew correction unit 4 will be specifically described. As shown in Fig. 1, the skew correction unit 4 is disposed after the paper feed unit 16, and is a sheet transport device including a first skew correction mechanism 4a and a second skew correction mechanism 4b that act on the sheet S transported from the paper feed unit 16 to correct the skew of the sheet S. After the skew correction, the sheet S is further transported toward a downstream sheet processing means (a crease processing means, a folding processing means, a glue application means, etc.).

[0061] FIG. 11 is a schematic diagram for explaining the operation of the first skew correction mechanism 4a and the second skew correction mechanism 4b. FIG. 11(a) shows the first skew correction mechanism 4a, and FIG. 11(b) shows the second skew correction mechanism 4b. Although the first skew correction mechanism 4a and the second skew correction mechanism 4b are explained separately, the reference plate 44, the auxiliary conveyor belt 42, and the stopper 45 are common to both in the actual machine. In addition, the auxiliary conveyor belt 42 is provided with an installation angle change mechanism 412 that changes the angle at which the auxiliary conveyor belt 42 is disposed according to the type of skew correction mechanism that the operator has previously selected based on the shape of the sheet S. In the installation angle change mechanism 412, the drive unit 41 including the auxiliary conveying belt 42 is rotatable around a rotation axis 411 perpendicular to the sheet conveying device main body 40 so that the installation angle of the auxiliary conveying belt 42 relative to the reference plate 44 can be changed depending on whether a first skew correction mechanism 4a in which the auxiliary conveying belt 42 is arranged at an angle relative to the reference plate 44 is selected, or a second skew correction mechanism 4b in which the auxiliary conveying belt 42 is arranged parallel to the reference plate 44 is selected.

[0062] When the operator has selected the first skew correction mechanism 4a in advance, as shown in FIG. 11(a), The auxiliary conveying belt 42 is disposed inclined in the conveying path of the sheet S with the downstream side approaching the reference plate 44 with respect to the reference plate 44, and is provided with the reference plate 44 disposed on one side of the conveying path of the sheet S and extending in the conveying direction. When the sheet S is processed by the sheet processing device 1, one side edge K of the sheet S (reference side of the sheet S) is supplied to the skew correction section 4 downstream of the paper feed section 16 with the edge K (reference side of the sheet S) facing upward in the figure, and the sheet S is conveyed while the one side edge K (reference side of the sheet S) is aligned with the reference plate 44, thereby correcting the skew of the sheet S. The sheet S after the skew correction is discharged toward the downstream side from the first skew correction mechanism 4a. In the first skew correction mechanism 4a, the stopper 45 is set to a retreat position so as not to interfere with the sheet S being conveyed.

[0063] 11B, the auxiliary conveyor belt 42 is arranged parallel to the reference plate 44 so that the conveyed sheet S does not contact the reference plate 44, and a stopper 45 is interposed in the conveying path of the sheet S, and the front edge K' (reference side of the sheet S) of the sheet S is supplied to the skew correction section 4 downstream of the paper feed section 16 facing leftward in the figure, and the front edge K' (reference side of the sheet S) of the conveyed sheet S abuts against the stopper 45 to correct the skew of the sheet S. In the second skew correction mechanism 4b, the stopper 45 is set in advance to a protruding position so as to interfere with the conveyed sheet S, and after the front edge of the sheet S abuts against the stopper 45 to correct the skew of the sheet S, the stopper 45 is set to a retracted position so as not to interfere with the conveyed sheet S.

[0064] When an operator processes a sheet S using the sheet processing device 1, in advance, when selecting either the first skew correction mechanism 4a or the second skew correction mechanism 4b as the skew correction mechanism, the operator must take into consideration the shape (external shape) of the sheet S and the combination and arrangement of the processing means (crease processing means, folding processing means, glue application means, etc.) provided downstream of the sheet conveying mechanism (skew correction section).

[0065] As described above, there are two types of sheet conveying mechanisms for correcting the skew of the sheet S during conveyance: the first skew correction mechanism 4a, which guides one side edge of the sheet S to the reference plate 44, and the second skew correction mechanism 4b, which causes the leading edge of the sheet to abut against the stopper 45. The reference side of the sheet S, which acts during sheet conveyance to correct the skew, differs by 90° from the conveyance direction. The reference side of the sheet S is the side that is to be aligned (abutted) against the reference plate 44 or the stopper 45 among the four outer periphery sides of the sheet. To correct the skew, the reference side of the sheet S must be aligned (abutted) against the reference plate 44 or the stopper 45, so it is preferable that the reference side of the sheet S remains flat for a predetermined length. Therefore, when selecting the reference side of the sheet S based on the shape (external shape) of the sheet S, it is preferable to select the side that remains flat for a predetermined length.

[0066] According to the above, since the installation angle changing mechanism is provided to change the angle at which the auxiliary conveyor belt is disposed according to the type of skew correction mechanism selected in advance by the operator based on the shape of the sheet, the first skew correction mechanism in which the auxiliary conveyor belt is disposed at an angle to the reference plate and the second skew correction mechanism in which the auxiliary conveyor belt is disposed parallel to the reference plate are automatically set, which is convenient. Also, since the auxiliary conveyor belt is shared between the two types of skew correction mechanisms, the sheet conveying device can be made compact.

[0067] In addition, since the stopper is configured to be set to a protruding position or a retracted position depending on the type of the skew correction mechanism pre-selected by the operator, the sheet transport path can be shared between the first skew correction mechanism and the second skew correction mechanism, resulting in a compact sheet transport device.

[0068] In addition, in the sheet processing device, the sheet to be processed is transported from a paper feeding means toward a sheet conveying device, and after the skew is corrected by the sheet conveying device, a specified processing is performed by a processing means.Since the sheet conveying device has a first skew correction mechanism and a second skew correction mechanism as skew correction mechanisms, even when a sheet whose outline has been cut in advance is used as the sheet to be processed, it is possible to correct the skew of the paper regardless of the shape of the sheet.

[0069] [Structure of the skew correction mechanism] FIG. 6A is a vertical cross-sectional view showing a schematic configuration of the paper feed unit 16 and the skew correction unit 4. As shown in FIG.

[0070] The paper feed section 16 includes a paper feed tray 94 and a suction conveying section 95. Sheets S are placed on the paper feed tray 94. The paper feed tray 94 is raised and lowered by a lifting section (not shown). The suction conveying section 95 includes a suction box 96 and a conveying belt 97. The suction box 96 is connected to a blower 98. Negative pressure is generated in the suction box 96 by driving the blower 98, and the topmost sheet S on the paper feed tray 94 is sucked to the underside of the conveying belt 97 and conveyed toward the skew correction section 4 downstream.

[0071] The skew correction unit 4 is disposed after the paper feed unit 16, and includes a first skew correction mechanism 4a and a second skew correction mechanism 4b that act on the sheet S conveyed from the paper feed unit 16 to the auxiliary conveyor belt 42 to correct the skew of the sheet S. An upstream conveyor roller pair 192 for transferring the conveyed sheet S to the auxiliary conveyor belt 42 is provided on the upstream side of the auxiliary conveyor belt 42, and a downstream conveyor roller pair 191 for receiving the sheet S discharged from the auxiliary conveyor belt 42 is provided on the downstream side of the conveyor belt 42, and the upstream conveyor roller pair 192 and the downstream conveyor roller pair 191 are each configured such that the nip portions can be brought into contact with and separated from each other, and when the skew correction mechanism corrects the skew of the sheet S, the control means is controlled to separate the nip portions of the upstream conveyor roller pair 192 and the downstream conveyor roller pair 191. In this embodiment, the nip portions are separated by raising the upper roller 192a of the upstream transport roller pair 192 and the upper roller 191a of the downstream transport roller pair 191, respectively.

[0072] According to the above, the upstream conveying roller pair and the downstream conveying roller pair of the auxiliary conveying belt are each configured so that the nip portions can be brought into contact with and separated from each other, and when the skew correction mechanism corrects the skew of the sheet, the nip portions of the upstream conveying roller pair and the downstream conveying roller pair are controlled to be separated from each other, thereby preventing wrinkles from occurring in the sheet.

[0073] Above the auxiliary conveying belt 42, there are provided one or more pressure rollers 431, 432, 433 which rotate while in contact with the auxiliary conveying belt 42, and the pressure rollers 431, 432, 433 are supported for free rotation at the tips of oscillating levers 434, 435, 436, and the other ends of the oscillating levers 434, 435, 436 are supported so as to oscillate around pivot shafts 437, 438, 439 arranged across the auxiliary conveying belt 42 at right angles.

[0074] As a result of the above, since one or more pressure rollers are provided above the auxiliary conveying belt and rotate while in contact with the auxiliary conveying belt, the conveying of the sheet by the auxiliary conveying belt is stabilized, and the occurrence of wrinkles in the sheet can be prevented.

[0075] A protruding and retractable stopper 45 is disposed downstream of the auxiliary conveying belt 42. As described above, when the second skew correction mechanism 4b is selected, the "leading edge" of the conveyed sheet comes into contact with the stopper 45 protruding to the protruding position, and the skew of the sheet is corrected. As shown in Fig. 6(b) and Fig. 6(c), the stopper 45 is integrally attached to a rotating shaft 451 which is rotated by a gear motor (not shown), and is configured to be switchable between the protruding position in Fig. 6(b) and the retracted position in Fig. 6(c) depending on the rotation position of the rotating shaft 451.

[0076] [Drive unit 41] Next, the configuration of the drive unit 41 in the skew correction mechanism (4a, 4b) will be described.

[0077] The drive unit 41 is composed of an auxiliary conveyor belt 42, an auxiliary conveyor belt drive means (not shown), an installation angle change mechanism 412, a pressing roller unit 43, etc. The auxiliary conveyor belt 42 is rotated in the sheet conveying direction F by the auxiliary conveyor belt drive means. The installation angle change mechanism 412 is rotatable so that the installation angle of the auxiliary conveyor belt 42 with respect to the reference plate 44 can be changed depending on whether the first skew correction mechanism 4a in which the auxiliary conveyor belt 42 is disposed at an angle with respect to the reference plate 44 is selected or the second skew correction mechanism 4b in which the auxiliary conveyor belt 42 is disposed parallel to the reference plate 44 is selected.

[0078] 7 and 8 are plan views of Fig. 6(a) seen from above. Fig. 7 shows the installation position when the first skew correction mechanism 4a in which the auxiliary conveyor belt 42 is disposed inclined with respect to the reference plate 44 is selected, and Fig. 8 shows the installation position when the second skew correction mechanism 4b in which the auxiliary conveyor belt 42 is disposed parallel to the reference plate 44 is selected. In this embodiment, five auxiliary conveyor belts 42 are attached to the drive unit 41.

[0079] Next, the rotational operation of the drive unit 41 will be described with reference to Figures 9 and 10. Figure 9(a) shows the installation position when the first skew correction mechanism 4a in which the auxiliary conveyor belt 42 is disposed at an angle to the reference plate 44 is selected, and Figure 10(a) shows the installation position when the second skew correction mechanism 4b in which the auxiliary conveyor belt 42 is disposed parallel to the reference plate 44 is selected. Note that the auxiliary conveyor belt 42 and the reference plate 44 are omitted in both figures.

[0080] In the drive unit 41, the auxiliary conveyor belt 42, the auxiliary conveyor belt drive means (not shown), an installation angle changing mechanism 412 for the auxiliary conveyor belt 42, the pressure roller unit 43, etc. are attached to a rotating frame 413, and the rotating frame 413 is rotatable around a rotating shaft 411 perpendicular to the sheet conveying device main body 40. The rotating shaft 411 is provided perpendicularly between one corner on the upstream side in the conveying direction of the rotating frame 413, which is rectangular in plan view, and a base frame 402 that is stretched between both side frames 401a, 401b of the sheet conveying device main body 40.

[0081] According to the above, since the drive unit including the auxiliary conveying belt is rotatable about an axis perpendicular to the sheet conveying device main body, the installation angle changing mechanism can be realized inexpensively with a simple configuration.

[0082] [Installation angle change mechanism 412] Next, the operation of the installation angle changing mechanism 412 will be described.

[0083] The installation angle change mechanism 412 is a drive mechanism that enables the rotating frame 413 to rotate around a rotation shaft 411 perpendicular to the sheet conveying device main body 40, and is composed of a rotating disk 4121, a rod 4122, etc. Fig. 9(b) is an enlarged view of a main part of the installation angle change mechanism 412 in Fig. 9(a), and Fig. 10(b) is an enlarged view of a main part of the installation angle change mechanism 412 in Fig. 10(a). In Figs. 9(b) and 10(b), the rotating disk 4121 is rotated by a gear motor 414 connected to a rotating shaft 4125 of the rotating disk 4121.

[0084] The rotating disk 4121 is fixed to a rotating shaft 4125 of a gear motor 414 attached to the sheet transport device main body 40 (base frame 402) so as to be rotatable together with the rotating disk 4121. Furthermore, one end of a rod 4122 is rotatably attached to a rotating frame 413 via a pin 4124, and the other end of the rod 4122 is linked and attached to the rotating disk 4121 via a pin 4123 at a position offset from the rotating shaft 4125.

[0085] When the gear motor 414 rotates the rotating shaft 4125 together with the rotating disk 4121, the rotating frame 413 rotates around the rotating shaft 411 due to the action of the link connection between the rotating disk 4121 and the rod 4122. Therefore, the auxiliary conveyor belt 42 attached to the rotating frame 413 can change the installation angle with respect to the reference plate 44.

[0086] Figure 9(a) shows the installation position when the first skew correction mechanism 4a is selected in which the auxiliary conveying belt 42 is arranged at an angle relative to the reference plate 44, and Figure 10(a) shows the installation position when the second skew correction mechanism 4b is selected in which the auxiliary conveying belt 42 is arranged parallel to the reference plate 44.

[0087] The inclination angle of the auxiliary conveyor belt 42 with respect to the reference plate 44 can be detected by optical detection sensors 416 and 417 such as photointerrupters, and the control unit 9 can set the installation position. The detection sensors 416, 417 are attached to the base frame 402 via a mounting plate 418. Also, a light shielding plate 419 is attached integrally to the rotating frame 413, and its position changes with the rotation of the rotating frame 413.

[0088] Fig. 9(b) is an enlarged view of the main part of the installation angle change mechanism 412 in Fig. 9(a), and Fig. 10(b) is an enlarged view of the main part of the installation angle change mechanism 412 in Fig. 10(a). Fig. 9(b) shows the installation position when the first skew correction mechanism 4a in which the auxiliary conveyor belt 42 is disposed inclined with respect to the reference plate 44 is selected, and shows a state in which the detection sensor 417 is detected (shielded) by the light shielding plate 419. Fig. 10(b) shows the installation position when the second skew correction mechanism 4b in which the auxiliary conveyor belt 42 is disposed parallel to the reference plate 44 is selected, and shows a state in which the detection sensor 416 is detected (shielded) by the light shielding plate 419.

[0089] With the configuration described above, by detecting the light-blocking state of the detection sensor 417, the control unit 9 can easily switch between the installation position of the auxiliary conveying belt 42 when the first skew correction mechanism 4a is selected and the installation position of the auxiliary conveying belt 42 when the second skew correction mechanism 4b is selected.

[0090] In the first skew correction mechanism 4a of the present invention, the auxiliary conveying belt 42 is set at a predetermined angle relative to the reference plate 44 determined by the detection sensor 417, but this is not limited to this, and for example, the first skew correction mechanism 4a may be configured so that the set angle can be adjusted to any angle.

[0091] It is clear that the present invention is not limited to the present embodiment, and that the present embodiment can be appropriately modified within the scope of the technical concept of the present invention in addition to the modifications suggested in the present embodiment. Furthermore, the number, position, shape, etc. of the components are not limited to the present embodiment, and the number, position, shape, etc. of the components can be any number, position, shape, etc. suitable for implementing the present invention. [Explanation of symbols]

[0092] F Conveying direction S paper 1 Sheet processing equipment 4 Skew correction section 16 Paper feed section 41 Drive unit 42 Auxiliary conveyor belt 44 Reference Plate 45 Stopper 94 Paper feed tray 402 Circuit Board Frame 411 Rotational axis 412 Setting angle change mechanism 413 Rotating Frame 414 Gear motor 416 Detection Sensor 417 Detection Sensor 419 Shade 4121 Rotating disc 4122 Rod

Claims

1. A sheet conveying device including a skew correction mechanism that acts on a conveyed sheet to correct skew of the sheet, the skew correction mechanism is a first skew correction mechanism that includes a reference plate that is disposed on one side of a conveying path of the sheet and extends in a conveying direction, and an auxiliary conveying belt that is disposed inclined to the conveying path of the sheet with its downstream side approaching the reference plate, and that corrects skew of the sheet by abutting one side edge of the conveyed sheet against the reference plate; a second skew correction mechanism that disposes the auxiliary conveying belt parallel to the reference plate, interposes a stopper in a conveying path of the sheet, and abuts a leading edge of the conveyed sheet against the stopper to correct skew of the sheet, A sheet conveying device further comprising an installation angle change mechanism that changes the angle at which the auxiliary conveying belt is arranged depending on the type of the skew correction mechanism that an operator preselects based on the shape of the sheet.

2. 2. The sheet transport device according to claim 1, wherein the stopper is configured to be set at a protruding position or a retracted position depending on a type of the skew correction mechanism previously selected by the operator.

3. The sheet conveying device of claim 1 or claim 2, characterized in that in the installation angle change mechanism, a drive unit including the auxiliary conveying belt is rotatable around a vertical axis relative to the sheet conveying device main body so that the installation angle of the auxiliary conveying belt relative to the reference plate can be changed depending on whether the first skew correction mechanism in which the auxiliary conveying belt is arranged at an angle relative to the reference plate is selected or the second skew correction mechanism in which the auxiliary conveying belt is arranged parallel to the reference plate is selected.

4. A sheet conveying device as described in any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that an upstream conveying roller pair is provided on the upstream side of the auxiliary conveying belt for transferring the conveyed sheet to the auxiliary conveying belt, and a downstream conveying roller pair is provided on the downstream side of the auxiliary conveying belt for receiving the sheet discharged from the auxiliary conveying belt, and the upstream conveying roller pair and the downstream conveying roller pair are each configured so that their nip portions can be brought into contact with and separated from each other, and when the skew correction mechanism corrects the skew of the sheet, a control means is controlled to separate the nip portions of the upstream conveying roller pair and the downstream conveying roller pair.

5. 5. A sheet conveying device as described in any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that it is provided with one or more pressure rollers that rotate above the auxiliary conveying belt while contacting the auxiliary conveying belt, the pressure roller being rotatably supported at the tip of a swing lever, the other end of which is supported so as to swing around a pivot axis arranged across the auxiliary conveying belt at a right angle.

6. A sheet processing apparatus comprising a sheet feeding means, a sheet conveying device according to any one of claims 1 to 5, and a processing means, A sheet processing device characterized in that the processing means is equipped with at least one of a crease processing means, a folding processing means, and a glue application means, and the sheet to be processed is transported from the paper feeding means toward the sheet conveying device, and after skew correction is performed by the sheet conveying device, a predetermined processing is performed by the processing means.

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