JPH0468366A - Copying machine with sorter - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To sort copied sheets in an order of pages without aligning originals in the order of pages beforehand by providing a means to read the page number of the originals and an intermediate container bin temporarily housing the copied sheets and controlling the movement of the copied sheets between the intermediate housing bin and a final bin. CONSTITUTION:When the originals are placed in a copying part 10 and the copying operation is started, the originals are copied onto the sheets at the copying part 10 and the page number written on the original is read by a page number reading means, and the copied sheets are housed in the order of pages to the final bin 22 of the sorter part 12 by a control means 15. Then, when the copied originals are not in the order of pages, the intermediate housing bin 13 is utilized temporarily as a temporary setting place. Thus, as long as the page numbers are written in the originals, it is not necessary for an operator to sort out the originals beforehand.

Description

[Detailed description of the invention] of The present invention relates to a copying machine equipped with a sorter.

When a sorter is connected to a copying machine, set to sort mode, and copies n copies of m originals, each of the n pins on the sorter has the same configuration as the originals. A stack of m copies of paper is stored. In the stable mode, a similar bundle of copy paper is obtained in a stapled state.

In addition, if you attach an automatic document feeder (ADF) to the copier and set multiple originals in the ADF,
The DF feeds the set originals one by one onto the contact glass (original reading section) of the copying machine, and after the copying machine copies that original, it ejects the original and feeds the next original. It automatically copies multiple manuscripts one after another.

When you use an ADF to automatically copy multiple sheets of originals in sort mode (or stable mode), the copied sheets are stacked according to the originals using each pin of the sorter. Therefore, if a stack of originals whose pages are not stacked in the correct order is set in the ADF, the stack of copy papers held together (or stabilized) by each pin will also not be arranged according to the page numbers. That is, in order to finally obtain a stack of copy papers stacked according to the page numbers, it is necessary to rearrange the originals in the correct page order in advance at the stage of setting the originals in the ADF.

The present invention improves this point and provides a copying machine with a sorter that has the function of sorting and bundling copy sheets (sheets) copied by a copying machine in the order of page numbers without having to arrange the pages of the original in numerical order in advance. The purpose is to provide.

□ In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a copying machine with a sorter that includes a copying section that copies M documents onto sheets and a sorter section that separately stores the copied sheets. , a page number reading means for reading the page number of the original; an intermediate storage pin located in the sorter section for temporarily storing the copying section sheet; and a final pin located in the sorter section for finally storing the copying section sheet; Based on the read page number, the copies are placed between the copying unit, the intermediate storage pin, and the final pin so that the sheets copied in the copying unit are stored in the final pin in a bundle arranged in the order of page numbers of the original. and a control means for controlling movement of the sheet.

One month to make - When a document is placed in the copying section and a copying operation is started, the copying section copies the document onto a sheet and reads the page number written on the document using a page number reading means. The control means finally stores the sheets copied in the copying section in the final pin of the sorter section as a bundle arranged in the order of page numbers. At this time, if the order of the originals to be copied in the copying section is not in the order of page numbers, the intermediate storage pin is sometimes used as a temporary storage place in order to change the order of the copy sheets on the final pin.

Note that it is not always necessary to have a plurality of final pins, and all the copy sheets may be stored on one pin by holding them together with staples or by sandwiching something between each bundle (of course, it is also possible to simply stack them).

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of the copying machine with a sorter according to this embodiment. In the rearrangement sorting described later, the copying machine 10
The copy paper discharged from the -H sorter 12 is stored in each pin 14 of the intermediate storage section 13, and then discharged from each intermediate storage pin 14 and stored in each pin 22 of the final storage section 20. The copy machine is equipped with ADFII,
The document feeding operation of the DFll, the copying operation of the copying machine main body 10, and the sorting operation of the sorter 12 are all controlled by a microcomputer control device 15 provided inside the copying machine 10.

First, all original copy sheets are stored in the intermediate storage section 13, and then they are ejected from each pin 14 of the intermediate storage section 13 to the final storage section 20 in the order of page numbers. (Sort mode) will be explained according to the flowchart in FIG.

After setting a plurality of originals in the ADF II, selecting the main processing mode, and inputting the number of copies (set number of sheets), when the copy start button is pressed, the routine shown in FIG. 1 is executed. At this time, although consecutive page numbers are stamped on each original, it is assumed that the originals are not necessarily arranged in the order of page numbers in the bundle of originals set in the ADFll.

First, in step #10, the value of the counter N is reset to 0, and in step #12, a sheet of original is fed from the ADF II onto the contact glass of the copying machine 10. At this time, the value of the counter N is increased by one. That is, counter N
is for counting the number of copies of original documents. In step #14, the original reading device 16 of the copying machine main body 10
By scanning the side of the document, the page number written on it is read.

The page number can be read, for example, in the following manner. As shown in FIG. 3, predetermined locations on the surface of the document (for example, the margins between the upper part 32 and the lower part 34, or more specifically, the upper center 38, the left and right 3
6.40), and the document reading device 16 reads only that location. The image data created by the document reading device 16 is sent to the control device 15, where it separates the image of each character from the overall image, and uses a well-known pattern recognition method to match each character with one of the numbers O to 9. Recognize whether or not to do so. When there are two or more numbers, they are interpreted as decimal notation, and the page value is recognized by carry processing. The predetermined position may be input in advance by the operator by looking at the position where the page number of the manuscript is stamped.

The read page number is assigned to variable M and stored. Thereafter, in step #16, the Mth pin 14 of the intermediate storage section 13 is designated and a command signal is issued to the sorter 12 so that the copy paper is stored there.

Then, in step #18, copies of the original are made for the set number of copies, and all of them are stored in the intermediate storage pin 14 specified in step #16. When the copying of the set number of sheets of the original is completed, it is checked in step #2o whether or not the original is the last original in the ADF 11. If the original remains in the ADF 11, step Return to #12, feed the next original onto the contact glass, and repeat steps #12 to #20.

By repeating steps #12 to #20, each pin 14 of the intermediate storage section 13 stores a set number of copy sheets in the order of page numbers of the original from the top.

When the final set number of original documents has been copied, the process proceeds to step #22, where the set number is substituted into the first loop variable, and at step #24, the total number of original sheets N is substituted into the second loop variable J. And step $128. #28, #
30 loops, the lowest (Nth) pin 14 (among the pins in which copy paper is stored) of the intermediate storage section 13
From there, the topmost copy paper of each pin 14 is discharged one by one to the first pin 22 of the final storage section 20 toward the top pin 14. As a result, only one copy of the original copy paper stack rearranged in the order of page numbers is stored in the work number pin 22 of the final storage unit 20. When the transfer of N sheets of copy paper is completed, the variable I is set to 1 in step #32.
Then, the process returns to step #24. This step #24
~ By repeating the loop of #34 several times,
All the copy sheets on each intermediate storage pin 14 are transferred to the final pin 22, and the final storage section 20 stores a stack of copy sheets in the correct page number order of the set number of originals from the top.

In addition, in the first embodiment, the final storage section 20 is prepared,
The originals are stored in the individual pins 22 of the final storage section 20 in the order of their page numbers, but if the copy sheets ejected in step #26 are collectively stapled between steps #30 and #32, the final storage section 20 is no longer necessary. Further, as in the above example, the intermediate storage section 13 stores the originals in the order of page numbers, instead of storing them in the order in which they were placed, and a memory is provided to store the page numbers of each pin 14. It's okay. In this case, when finally storing the copy sheets in the final storage section 20, it is sufficient to take out the copy sheets from the intermediate storage section 13 in the order of the page numbers stored in the memory.

Next, an example is shown in FIG. 4 (a) in which when the page numbers of the original are consecutive, the document is ejected to the final storage section 20 without being stored in the intermediate storage section 13, and the intermediate storage section 13 is used only when the page numbers are not consecutive. ) to (C) will be explained using flowcharts.

When this process is started, various variables are first initialized in step #40 (FIG. 4(a)). Specifically, the variable number representing the order of storage in the final storage section 20 is set to 1, the variable N representing the number of original sheets + 1 is set to 1, and the page number of the copy paper stored in each intermediate storage pin 14 is represented. Vector variable K(
The number of elements of K is the total number B of pins 14 in the intermediate storage section 13). Next, one original is fed from the ADF 11 onto the contact glass of the copying machine 10, and the variable N is increased by 1 (step #42). In the next step #44, the page number of the manuscript is read and substituted into variable M. Page number reading is performed in the same manner as in the first embodiment.

Then, in step #46, it is determined whether the read page number M is equal to the variable number. If they are equal, the variable number is increased by 1 in step #48, the destination of the copy paper is specified as each pin 22 of the final storage section 20 in step #50, and the number of copies is copied in step #52 for final storage. One sheet is stored in each pin 22 of the section 20.

At this time, the copy paper is stored in the final pin 22 face down (with the copied side facing down).

In step #54, it is checked whether the current document is the final one, and if there are still documents remaining in the ADFII, the process returns to step #42. If all originals have been copied, the process advances to step #82 (FIG. 4(C)).

If the read page number M is not equal to the current variable value (the last page number stored in the final storage section 20 + 1) in step #46, step #56 in FIG. 4(b) Proceed to and assign 1 to variable J.

Then, in step #58, K[J] (5 in the vector variable
It is determined whether the value of the th element) is equal to the variable I.

If they are not equal, the process proceeds to step #60, where it is determined whether the value of the variable J is equal to the total number B of intermediate pins. If they are not equal, the variable J is increased by 1 in step #62, and step #58 Return to That is, steps #58 to #6
2, all elements in the vector variable (K[1-K[B]
) is searched to see if there is a variable equal to the variable I (the page number to be stored next in the final storage section 20).

At step #58, when it is discovered that there is an element equal to the variable ■ in the vector variable, step #6
Proceed to step #4, increase variable engineering by 1, then step #6
6, one sheet of copy paper is discharged from the (fifth) intermediate storage pin 14 corresponding to the element number J to each pin 22 of the final storage section 20. Then, in step #68, the value of the fifth element in the vector variable is set to O (this is because the intermediate storage pin 14 corresponding to this element is empty), and the process proceeds to step #70.

In step #60, the search for each element value in the vector variable is performed up to the final element (Bth), and even if no element equal to the variable is found, the process proceeds to step #70.

In step #70, the variable J is reset to 1 again, and in step #72, it is determined whether K[J] is O.

If K[J]≠O (the fifth intermediate storage pin 14 is not empty), the process advances to step #74, and it is checked whether the variable J exceeds B. If J is less than or equal to B, J is increased by 1 in step #76 and the process returns to step #72. That is, in steps #72 to #76, empty intermediate storage pins 14 are searched for in order from the top.

When J>B in step #74, there is no longer an empty intermediate storage pin 14, but the page number does not match the predetermined page number (that is, following the final page number of the copy already stored in the final storage section 20). This means that the original is about to be copied, and error processing is performed in step #75. For example, the copying operation is stopped and a message such as "Intermediate storage section is full" is displayed on the display panel.

If an empty intermediate storage pin 14 is found in step #72, the process advances to step #78 and the intermediate storage pin 14 is found.
4 as the destination for all copies of the original, and in step #80, store the read page number M of the original in the (fifth) element corresponding to that pin in the vector variable, and step #52. (Proceed to Figure 4(a)). In step #52, copies of the original are made for the set number of sheets, but all of these copy sheets are stored in the fifth intermediate storage pin 14 through the process of step #78.

When it is determined in step #54 that the copying of the last original is completed, the process proceeds to step #82 and subsequent steps in FIG. 4(C).
Processing is performed to transfer the copy paper stored in the intermediate storage section 13 to the final storage section 20. In step #82, it is checked whether the variable value is equal to the variable N (currently the total number of original sheets + 1). ■When ≠N, the variable J is reset to 1 in step #84, and the variable J is reset to 1 in step #86.
In ~#90, a search is made to see if each element in the vector is equal to variable 1.

This search process is similar to steps #58 to #62 or steps #72 to #76. Again, if there is no element in the vector variable that has a value equal to the variable value, error processing is performed in step #89. When an element K[J] equal to the variable force is found in step #86, the process proceeds to step #92, where the variable force is increased by 1, and in step #94, the set stored in the fifth intermediate storage pin 14 One sheet of copy paper is stored face down in each final pin 22. and step #
At step 96, the value of the element K[J] is reset to O, and the process returns to step #82.

In this way, the copy paper is stored in the final storage section 20 in the order of the pages of the original according to the variable 1, and step #82
When I=N, the processing of this routine ends.

In the second embodiment, the processing of the control device is somewhat complicated, but if the originals are relatively well arranged in page number order, the number of copy sheets stored in the intermediate storage section 13 is reduced. Therefore, the total sorting time is much shorter. Additionally, the number of intermediate storage pins can generally be reduced.

Although ADFII is used in all of the above embodiments, this is not essential to the present invention, and the present invention is equally applicable even when documents are manually placed one after another on a contact glass. It is possible.

As explained above, according to the present invention, even if the originals are not lined up according to the page numbers, the copy sheets are sorted and stored according to the page numbers when they are stored in the final sorter. Therefore, as long as page numbers are stamped on the originals, there is no need for the operator to rearrange the originals in advance, which relieves the operator of troublesome operations and reduces the time required for rearranging.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

Fig. 1 is a flowchart of the processing performed in the first embodiment of the present invention, Fig. 2 is a schematic configuration diagram of a copying machine with an intermediate sorter according to the embodiment, and Fig. 3 is an explanatory diagram showing the position of reading the page number of a document. , FIGS. 4(a), 4(b), and 4(c) are flowcharts of the processing performed in the second embodiment.

Claims (1)

[Claims] (1) In a copying machine with a sorter, which is equipped with a copying section for copying originals onto sheets, and a sorter section for separately storing the copied sheets, the copying section includes a page number reading means for reading the page number of the original. , an intermediate storage pin in the sorter section for temporarily storing copied sheets; a final pin in the sorter section for finally storing the copied sheets; and a copying section for copying based on the read page number. control means for controlling the movement of the copied sheets between the copying unit, the intermediate storage pin, and the final pin so that the copied sheets are stored in the final pin in a bundle arranged in the order of the page numbers of the original. A copying machine with a sorter characterized by: