JPH0627954B2 - Image forming device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To accurately align and store paper by making the reciprocative action of a guide member for width alignment of the paper so that every time this action hour is passed for a specified time, the guide member is returned to the reference position, correcting the position and again returned to the former paper aligning position. CONSTITUTION:Whenever a multiple number of image formed paper is carried one by one to be loaded and stored for carrying out both-surface copying or multiple copying, a pair of guide members 186 and 187 are each moved back and forth by separate driving sources 188 and 189, aligning the paper. Then they are adjusted to the central position between a pair of guide members 186 and 187, in the direction which crosses orthogonally with the carrying direction of the paper, based on data inputted by an adjustment data inputting means. Thus the paper to be stored in a middle tray 180 can be appropriately aligned, and the image formation can be accurately carried out without misalignment on the opposite surface or the same surface.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION (a) Field of Industrial Application The present invention relates to a double-sided and multiplex image forming apparatus such as a double-sided copying machine.

(B) Conventional technology In a double-sided and multi-image forming apparatus of a copying process apparatus, an image is formed on both sides or the same side for each sheet, and after storing a certain number of temporary sheets in the apparatus. In some cases, the sheet is sent to the copying process section again and an image is formed on the opposite surface or the same surface. In the latter case, if the sheets are stored in a misaligned state on one side or in an intermediate tray for storing the sheets on which the first image is formed, it is possible to obtain accurate results when the sheets are fed to the copying process section. No image is formed at the position. For this reason, means for aligning the sheets are disclosed in JP-A-56-162760 and JP-B-6.
No. 2-42823. The former arranges width-shifting members on both sides to align the paper in the width direction,
By reciprocating this, the width is aligned, and in the latter, the width-adjusting member of the paper can be displaced according to the paper size, and the width-adjusting member on one side reciprocates the width at regular intervals with the same stroke. It is done by.

(C) Problems to be Solved by the Invention In the known example as described above, the amount of movement of the guide member due to the accuracy of the drive source itself of the guide member for aligning the sheets, that is, the sheet alignment, or the transmission system thereof The stroke cannot always be kept constant due to the error of. In order to keep this constant, a home position of the guide member is provided, and it is conceivable to perform reciprocating operation at each time starting from that position. However, in that case, reciprocating operation takes time and is inefficient. In addition, providing the home position for each paper size increases the cost and requires an extra space for installing the sensor. Further, if many mechanical parts are used, the structure becomes complicated and not only the cost is increased, but also high precision is required to perform the paper alignment accurately.

The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and with a simple configuration, the widths of the sheets to be stored in the intermediate tray are accurately aligned, and the formation of an image on the opposite surface or the same surface is displaced. It is an object of the present invention to provide an image forming apparatus that can be accurately performed.

(D) Means for Solving the Problem The present invention, in order to form an image again on a plurality of sheets on which an image has been formed, temporarily stacks and stores these, and reciprocates a plurality of times in a direction orthogonal to the sheet conveying direction. In the image forming apparatus for aligning the paper by the guide member, each drive source for reciprocating the pair of guide members facing each other across the paper transport area and a direction orthogonal to the paper transport direction. Adjustment data input means for inputting adjustment data for adjusting the center position, storage means for storing the data input by the adjustment data input means, and storage data for storing paper based on the data stored by the storage means. An image forming apparatus comprising: a position adjusting unit for periodically moving the position of the guide member to adjust the center position.

(E) Action In the image forming apparatus, when the sheets are conveyed one by one so that a plurality of sheets on which images have been formed are stacked and stored in order to perform double-sided or multiple copying, a pair of guide members are driven by individual drive sources. Reciprocate by each to align the paper.

Then, the center position of the pair of guide members in the direction orthogonal to the sheet conveyance direction is adjusted based on the data input by the adjustment data input means.

(F) Examples Hereinafter, the present invention will be specifically described with reference to the drawings showing the examples.

FIG. 1 is a left side external perspective view of an image forming apparatus according to the present invention (hereinafter referred to as an apparatus of the present invention).
The intermediate tray section 180 is placed on the paper feed tray 1 having the inside.

As shown in the internal structure diagram of FIG. 2, an original table 7 made of a transparent glass plate is fixedly provided on the upper surface of the copying apparatus main body 2. An automatic document feeder 301 is attached to the upper part of the document table 7 by a hinge at its end. The automatic document feeder 301 includes a plurality of rollers 30 for taking in and conveying a document 303 placed on a document table 302.
4 and the endless belt 305. The copied document that has passed through the automatic document feeder 301 is sent to the document tray 306.

The original 303 is exposed below the original table 7 in the main body 2,
A light source 8 is provided as a scanning means for scanning.
The light source 8 is movable from one end side of the document table 7 to the other end side thereof and in the opposite direction. The movement of the light source 8 in the left-right direction is achieved by driving by a servo motor (not shown). A reflective mirror 307 having an elliptical cross section is provided in relation to the light source 8, and a first movable mirror 308 is fixed to the reflective mirror 307. When the light source 8 is moved in the direction of arrow a by the servo motor, the document 303 placed on the document table 7 is slit-exposed.

In relation to the first movable mirror 308, a pair of second movable mirrors 1
0 and 11 are provided. A pair of movable mirrors 10 and 11
Is for reflecting the original image reflected by the first movable mirror 308 toward the imaging lens 12 again. The second movable mirrors 10 and 11 are moved in the same direction as the light source 8 at a moving speed of 1/2 of the light source 8. The image forming lens 12 is composed of a zoom lens, so that the copying magnification of this embodiment can be changed.

In front of the imaging lens 12, a fixed reflecting mirror 13 for reflecting the original image transmitted through the lens 12 toward the photosensitive drum 6 rotated in the arrow b direction is provided. Fixed reflector 1
An infrared absorption filter 30 is provided between the photosensitive drum 6 and the photosensitive drum 6.
9 is installed.

A partial erase lamp 310 is provided upstream of the exposure position of the photosensitive drum 6, that is, the position where the document image is formed by the reflecting mirror 13. Partial erase lamp 310
Is for removing an unnecessary electrostatic latent image on the photosensitive drum 6. On the further upstream side of the partial erase lamp 310, a charging corotron 15 for charging the photosensitive drum 6 with a uniform charge of a specific polarity is provided.

A developing device 16 is provided on the downstream side of the exposure position of the photosensitive drum 6. The developing device 16 includes a charging corotron 15,
The electrostatic latent image formed on the photosensitive drum 6 by the light source 8 and the imaging lens 12 is developed with toner. The developing device 16 includes a stirring roller 311 for stirring the toner.
And a supply roller 312 for supplying the charged toner to the photosensitive drum 6.

A paper feed unit is formed on the right side of the copying apparatus main body 2, and two paper feed cassettes 3 and 4 are detachably attached to the paper feed unit in the figure. Papers 313 of different sizes are stacked in the paper feed cassettes 3 and 4, respectively. A compression spring 314 and a support plate 31 for pressing the stacked papers 313 upward are provided on the inner bottoms of the respective paper feed cassettes 3 and 4.
5 is provided. The compression spring 314 and the support plate 315
Thus, the uppermost one of the papers stored in the paper feed cassettes 3 and 4 is pressed toward the paper feed rollers 28 and 29. One of the two paper feed rollers 28 or 29 is
By the rotation, the pressed paper 313 is sequentially fed from the paper feed cassette 3 or 4 to the register roller 30 one by one. Paper 3 is placed in front of the register roller 30.
A paper feed sensor 53 is provided to detect that 3 has been conveyed. A manual paper feed tray 316 is provided in association with the upper paper feed roller 28.

A transfer corotron 17 and a separation corotron 18 are integrally provided on the downstream side of the developing device 16.

When the paper 313 is supplied from the paper feed cassette 3 or 4, the toner image formed on the photosensitive drum 6 is transferred to the paper 313 by the transfer corotron 17. At the time of transfer by the transfer corotron 17, the paper 313 is sucked by the photosensitive drum 6 and tries to move together with the photosensitive drum 6, but the paper 313 is separated by the separation corotron 18 and is moved toward the vacuum conveyor 19.

A cleaning device 25 is provided downstream of the separating corotron 18 along the photosensitive drum 6. The cleaning device 25 removes toner remaining on the photosensitive drum 6 without being transferred to the paper 313. The cleaning device 25 includes a rubber blade 26 for scraping off the residual toner on the photosensitive drum 6. The residual toner scraped off by the blade 26 is sent to a waste toner container (not shown) by the screen conveyor 317.

The photosensitive drum 6 is provided on the further downstream side of the cleaning device 25.
A charge eliminating lamp 14 is provided for removing the above residual charge. The charging corotron 15 described above is disposed further downstream of the static elimination lamp 14.

The paper 313 separated from the photosensitive drum 6 by the separating corotron 18 is sent to the fixing device 20 by the bakume conveyor 19. The fixing device 20 includes a heating roller 21 having a built-in heater 318 and a pressure roller 22 for pressing the paper to the heating roller 21, and the toner image transferred onto the paper 313 is divided into two rollers 21 and It is heated and pressurized by 22 and is fixed on the paper 313. The fixed paper 313 is sent from the roller pair 23 into the reverse unit 200, which will be described later, and is discharged onto the paper discharge tray 203 by the roller pair 206 and the paper discharge roller pair 202, or double-sided copying or multiple copying is performed. In the case of performing, the pair of rollers 206 is guided to the side of the paper feed tray 1.

A control box 319 is formed above the fixing device 20. In the control box 319, circuit components 320 for the control system shown in FIG.

On the front side upper surface of the copying apparatus main body 2, an operation panel 321 as shown in FIG. 9 provided with execution mode display means is provided. A ten-key 325 for setting the number of copies and the like is provided on the right side of the operation panel 321, and the number of copies set by the ten-key 325 is provided on the left side of the ten-key 325, which is a number display section 325a including, for example, a 7-segment display. Is displayed. When the start key 323 is operated, the start of the copying process is instructed.

Reference numeral 324 is a clear / stop key for instructing the cancellation of the number input in the number display section 325a or the stop of the copying process.
Reference numeral 325b is a copy density up / down key, 325c is a level display thereof, 325d is a status display portion inside the copying machine such as a jam and toner, 325e is an original size input portion, 32
5f is a transfer paper size input section, 325g is a 1: 1 input section,
Reference numeral 325h is a display unit of the size input units 325f and 325g. Also, 322a is a magnification input key, 322b
Is a 7-segment display section for displaying the magnification, 322c is a page continuous shooting key, 322d is its display unit, 322e is a margin key and its shift key, 322f is a frame eraser and its shift key, 322g is its respective display unit, 32
2h is a double-sided, multiple copy selection key, and 322i is its display.

Now, the paper feed tray 1, that is, the paper refeed mechanism will be described. The paper tray 1 is provided on the upper left side thereof with the main body 2 of the copying machine.
The roller pair 206 of the roller pair 23 of the fixing device 20
And a reverse section 200 in which the sheets are opposed to each other, and a sheet front / back reversing section 27 having an intermediate tray section 180 inside the gantry, and an additional cassette section 34 detachably provided with a third sheet cassette 5 on the right side thereof. I am doing it. The reverse unit 200, the paper front / back reversing unit 27, and the additional cassette unit 3
As shown in the perspective view on the right side of FIG. 3, 4 is configured to project and open to the left, front, and right of the gantry body, respectively, so that paper jam processing and the like can be easily performed. .

In the reverse unit 200, the paper carried out from the roller pair 23 of the fixing device 20 of the copying apparatus main body 2 is the roller pair 2.
It is introduced internally by 06. A switching claw 201 is provided immediately after the roller pair 206, and the switching claw 20 is provided.
When 1 is driven by a solenoid (not shown) and is switched in the direction of arrow e, the paper is conveyed between the paper guides 208 and 204 as described above, and is discharged from the paper discharge roller pair 202 to the paper discharge tray 203. .

On the other hand, when the switching claw 201 is switched in the arrow d direction, that is, when double-sided copying or multiplex copying is performed, the sheet is conveyed between the paper guides 201 and 211 by the conveying roller pair 205, and the bottom of the reverse section 200 is conveyed. From the paper to the paper front / back reversing unit 27 in the gantry body, and through the paper guides 151 and 152, the conveyance rollers 154 and 15
Guided between 5. Here, when the paper is discharged to the paper discharge tray 203, a paper discharge sensor 212 provided near the paper guide 209 and a sensor provided near the paper guide 211 when sent to the paper feed tray 1. 213 detects the conveyance of each sheet.

As shown in FIG. 3, the paper front / back reversing unit 27 is provided with a sliding member 12.
0 and 121 are provided on a base 150 that supports both left and right sides in the width direction of the base 150.
An intermediate tray section 180 is attached on the upper side, and a lower side conveying section 195b having the conveying rollers 155 on the upper side thereof.
And an upper transport unit 195a having the transport rollers 154.
It is provided.

As shown in FIG. 2, the upper transport unit 195 a includes transport rollers 156, 158, 160, 162 whose rotation axes are located on the same plane in parallel with the rotation axes of the transport rollers 155 in the width direction of the paper feed rack 27. Further, a conveying roller 164 is provided near the left end portion while being separated according to the sheet size.

The lower transport unit 195b is in contact with each of the rollers provided in the upper transport unit 195a separately, and a plurality of rollers forming a pair of transport rollers, that is, the transport rollers 155, 15 are provided.
7, 159, 161, 163 and 165.
That is, the upper and lower conveying roller pairs 154 and 155, 15
6 and 157, 158 and 159, 160 and 161,
A sheet conveyance path is formed by 162 and 163, 164 and 165, and the fixing device 2 of the copying apparatus main body 2 is formed.
When the paper discharged from 0 is passed through the transport passage, the front and back are reversed, that is, the sheet on which the toner is fixed is transported downward. These upper and lower transport units 195a and 195b are
As shown in the perspective view on the right side of FIG. 4, it passes through the vicinity of each left end in the depth direction, and is moved upward of the intermediate tray section 180 by a support shaft 153 which also serves as a drive shaft of each roller of the lower conveyance section 195b. The upper and lower rollers can be opened in each of the conveying units so that the paper jam processing can be easily performed.

On the right side of the upper and lower transport units 195a and 195b, the intermediate tray unit 18 is provided below the lower transport unit 195b for the sheets discharged from the transport roller pairs 164 and 165.
Reversing rollers 166, 167, 16 for reversing the front and back to 0, that is, for feeding with the toner fixing surface facing upward.
8 and a paper guide therefor are provided. Also,
Each of the transport rollers 155, 157, 1 of the lower transport unit 195b
Switching claws 171, 172, 173, 1 are provided at positions 59, 161 and 163 on the downstream side in the sheet conveying direction, respectively.
74 and 175 are provided, and when performing multiple copying, that is, when copying is performed on the same side of the paper, either arrow f
Direction, and the switching claw on the upstream side of the conveying direction is indicated by arrow g.
By laying it down in the same direction, the sheet is fed to the intermediate tray section 180 only once with its front and back reversed, that is, with the toner fixing surface facing downward, in accordance with the size of the sheet, as shown below.

That is, when the switching claw 171 is switched, A3 size paper is set, and when the switching claw 172 is switched, B4 is set.
Size paper is A4 vertical size paper when the switching claw 173 is switched, B5 vertical size paper when the switching claw 174 is switched, and A4 or B5 size when the switching claw 175 is switched. The respective sheets of paper are accumulated in the intermediate tray section 180, whereby the leading edge positions of the sheets accumulated in the intermediate tray section 180 are aligned at a fixed position regardless of the size of the sheets.

When carrying out double-sided copying, these switching claws are all laid down in the direction of arrow g to form the above-mentioned transport passage.

Next, the structure of the intermediate tray section 180 according to the main part of the present invention will be described. 5 is an arrow view taken along the line VV in FIG. 2, FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the right side of the intermediate tray portion, and FIG. 7 is an enlarged perspective view showing the paper alignment mechanism. Intermediate tray section 18
0 is orthogonal to the tray bottom portion 194 in which the longitudinal direction is aligned with the width direction of the central portion of the base 150 and the plane parallel to the base 150 is higher than the upper surface of the base 150, and the longitudinal direction thereof. A pair of L-shaped guide members 1 in cross section, which are provided so as to be reciprocally movable with their longitudinal directions orthogonal to each other.
86 and 187, and the sheet is placed with the longitudinal direction thereof as the sheet conveying direction. That is, the central portion of the sheet is placed on the tray bottom portion 194, and both side edge portions of the sheet protruding from the tray bottom portion 194 are placed on the guide members 186 and 187 to be width-aligned.
It is arranged to be arranged.

The guide shaft 186 (or 187) has its longitudinal direction aligned with the direction orthogonal to the longitudinal direction of the guide shaft 186 (or 187).
90 (or 191) is attached to this rack shaft 19
Pinion shaft 19 that meshes with 0 (or 191) rack teeth
By rotating 2 (or 193) by a stepping motor 189 (or 188) provided on the lower surface side of the base 150, the guide member 186 (or 187) approaches or separates from the tray bottom 194. Move in the direction. A light shielding plate 400 (or 401) is provided below the guide member 186 (or 187), and the light shielding plate 400 (or 401) is provided in the guide member 186 (or 18).
When the position 7) moves to a position farthest from the tray bottom 194, that is, a position wider than the width of the maximum size sheet, the home position sensor 40 provided at this position.
2 (or 403) by the guide member 186 (or 18
7) is detected to be on the home position. The movement of the guide members 186 and 187 for aligning the sheets will be described in detail using a flow chart described later.

The paper fed into the Chinese tray section 180 has the tray bottom 194 at a position higher than the bottoms of the guide members 186 and 187 on both sides as shown in the longitudinal sectional view of FIG. The bowing of the central portion in an upward direction improves the straightness when entering the intermediate tray portion 180.

On the left side portion of the tray bottom portion 194, the intermediate tray portion 180 from the reversing rollers 166, 167 and 168.
Stopper 1 for aligning the leading edge of paper sent to
81, 182, 183, 184, and 185 are provided so as to project in the sheet transport area in accordance with each sheet size by using a solenoid (not shown). As in the case, it is aligned at a fixed position regardless of the size of the paper.

Now, when the storage of sheets in the intermediate tray section 180 configured as described above is completed, the operator replaces the originals, and the copying is started again, as shown in FIG. Pick roller 170 provided on the left side
Is rotated about the shaft 176 as a spindle in the direction of arrow h, and the pick roller 170 is pressed onto the accumulated paper. The driving roller 3 is provided on the lower right side of the reversing roller 168.
1 and a friction roller 70 are provided, and the sheets accumulated by the rotation of the pick roller 170 are fed between these rollers one by one.

At the exit side of the paper of the drive roller 31 and the friction roller 70, a conveying path by the paper guides 43 and 44 is provided upward, and at the end of this, a pair of conveying paths provided on the upper surface of the paper feed tray 1 are provided. An intermediate roller 33 is provided.

The intermediate roller pair 33 also faces the end portions of the paper guides 41 and 42 provided in the additional cassette portion 34. Between the paper guides 41 and 42, the paper 313 in the paper feeding cassette 5 is fed. It is configured to be fed by 32 and fed to the intermediate roller pair 33.

The sheet fed from the intermediate tray section 180 or the additional cassette section 34 to the intermediate roller pair 33 is fed into the copying apparatus main body 2 from a paper feed port 52 formed in the lower portion of the copying apparatus main body 2,
The paper is conveyed between the paper guides 50 and 51 which stand upright from the paper feed port 52 and whose end faces the registration roller 30. A sensor 404 is provided at the end of each of the paper guides 50 and 51 to detect the conveyance of the paper.

That is, the register roller 30 is fed with the paper 313 in the paper feed cassette 5 of the additional cassette 34 as well as the paper feed cassettes 3 and 4, and the paper stored in the intermediate tray unit 180 is copied or copied. It is sent again for double-sided copying.

FIG. 10 is a block diagram of the control system of the device of the present invention. A copying machine main body (hereinafter referred to as a main body) and a re-feeding mechanism are controlled by a micro computer system having MPUs 326 and 328, respectively. This microcomputer system has a ROM 32 for storing a control program connected to the MPU 326 or 328.
7 or 329, RAM 330 or 331 that temporarily stores data during control by the MPU 326 or 328, and has various flag areas necessary for control, and MP
U326 or 328 is a 1/0 interface 332 or 3 for controlling input / output of the main body or internal device for refeeding.
33. Further, the main body MPU 326 has a D / A converter 334 for controlling output values such as exposure voltage.
Are connected. The key matrix 337 of the operation panel 321 is connected to the input port of the main body 1/0 interface 332.
Circuit 33 including the data of the sheet and the paper size sensor, etc.
The output of 5 is input.

A drive device 338 such as a motor or a solenoid is connected to the output boat of the main body 1/0 interface 332. In particular, the output voltages of the light source 8, the charging corotron 15, the developing bias, the transfer corotron 17, and the separation corotron 18 are set by the MPT 326 via the D / A converter 334.

A back-up circuit 339 is connected to the main body RAM 330 so that the written data is retained even when the main body is powered off.

Further, a servo motor controller (LSI) 341 is connected to the main body MPU 326, and the controller 3
A DC servomotor 342 for reciprocatingly scanning the exposure lamp 8 is connected to the input / output terminal of 41. The input / output port of the I / O interface 333 of the re-feeding mechanism is connected to the input of a sensor circuit 336 including a paper size sensor and a driving device 340 such as a motor or a solenoid.
Furthermore, the main unit MPU 326 is an I / O interface 332.
The re-feed mechanism is controlled by exchanging data with the re-feed mechanism MPU 328 through 333.

FIG. 11 is a circuit diagram of the backup circuit, and the operation thereof is such that 5 V is supplied to the power supply line 343 when the main body power is first turned on. Then, a current flows into the base of the transistor 345 through the Zener diode 344 and the transistor 345 is turned on. As a result, a current flows through the base of the transistor 346, the transistor 346 is also turned on, and the power supply line 343 is connected to the RAM3.
It is connected to the power supply terminal Vcc of 30. At the same time, the backup battery 347 is connected to the power line 34 by the diode 348.
Shut off from 3.

Transistor 345 when main body power is off
Does not turn on, the transistor 346 also turns off and the power supply line 343 is disconnected from the power supply terminal Vcc of the RAM. At this time, the diode 348 becomes conductive, the backup battery 347 is connected to the power supply terminal Vcc of the RAM 330, and the data written in the RAM 330 is held.

Next, referring to FIG. 10, twelfth, thirteenth and fourteenth
The operation or operation of the copying apparatus main body will be described based on the flow chart shown in the figure.

When the operator first operates the power switch 349 to turn on the power, the MPU 326 first sets the I / O interface 3
32 is initialized, and the D / A converter outputs the set value to the above-mentioned output device based on the adjustment data (described later) held in the RAM 330.

Next, the operator opens the automatic document feeder 301 and places the document 303 on the document table 7 made of a transparent glass plate. Then, the automatic document feeder 301 is closed to fix the document 303 on the document table 7. It should be noted that the automatic document feeder 301 can also be used to set the original 303. Then, the operator operates the start key 323 to start the copying operation.

When the start key 323 is operated, in the first step S111 in FIG. 12, a main motor (not shown) for driving the photosensitive drum 6 etc. is turned on. When the rotation of the main motor becomes stable, that is, when 0.5 seconds elapses after the main motor is turned on, the solenoid of the cleaning device 25 is turned on and the tip of the blade 26 is brought into contact with the photosensitive drum 6. After a lapse of a predetermined time from the turning on of the solenoid, that is, when 100 msec elapses so that the power is not simultaneously loaded, the next step S113 is performed.
Proceed to.

In step S113, the microcomputer 326
Seeing the signal from the sensor circuit 335 (FIG. 10),
It is determined whether the exposure lamp 8 is at the home position, that is, whether the exposure lamp 8 is located on the left side of the main body 2. If the exposure lamp 8 is in the home position,
The process proceeds to the next step S117, and if not, step S11
5, the servo motor 342 (FIG. 10) is reversed to return the exposure lamp 8 to the home position. The turning off of the servo motor 342 is performed by an interrupt process described later.

In step S117, the transfer corotron 17 is turned on. After the transfer corotron 17 is turned on, the process proceeds to the next step S123.

In step S123, the paper feed clutch is first turned on,
The paper feed roller 28 (or 29) starts to rotate and the paper 313
Are conveyed toward the register roller 30. When the feeding is completed, the process proceeds to step S125.

In step S125, it is determined whether or not the exposure lamp 8 is in the home position, and if the home position is reached, the process proceeds to the next step S151.

In step S151, the exposure lamp 8 for irradiating (exposing) the original with light is turned on. Since the exposure lamp 8 rises slowly, after 200 msec, the process proceeds to the next step S153, where the first copy is performed. Determine whether If it is the first copy, the previous step S151
Since the rise of the exposure lamp 8 turned on in step S11 is slow, after the stabilization time of 300 msec has elapsed, step S15
Go to 5.

In step S155, the charging corotron 15 is turned on and the servo motor 342 is turned on.

In the next step S157, it is determined whether the exposure lamp 8 has been fed to the image position.

If it is determined in step S157 that the image position has been reached, the process proceeds to the next step S161.

In step S161, the standard count value of the resist clutch on timer pre-written in the ROM 327 is read out, and the adjusted value of the resist clutch on timer is read out from the adjustment data table held in the RAM 330, and both are added, and the step is added. In step S162, the resist classification timer in the RAM 330 is set. When the resist clutch on timer is set, the resist clutch is turned on after a predetermined time by an interrupt routine described later. The timing at which the resist clutch is turned on is determined by the data set in the resist clutch on timer, which can be changed by rewriting the adjustment data table in the RAM 330 in the adjustment mode described later.

When step S162 ends, the process proceeds to step S177.

When it is detected in step S177 that the exposure lamp 8 has been fed to the return position, the process proceeds to the next step S179, in which the servo motor 342 is reversely rotated and the exposure lamp 8 is turned off.

At step S181 thereafter, the microcomputer 326 looks at the number counter and judges whether or not continuous copying is performed. If it is continuous copying, the paper feed sensor 53 is turned off in the next step S183, and then the process returns to the previous step S123. That is, for the second and subsequent copies, the process is started from this step S123.

If it is determined in step S181 that the copy is not continuous,
The process proceeds to step S185, and the servo motor 342 reversed in the previous step S179 is turned off. After that, after the electrostatic latent image on the photosensitive drum 6 is transferred to the paper 313, for example, 200 msec, the charging corotron 15 is turned off. Then, the process proceeds to step S187, and step S1
At 87, it is detected that the paper discharge sensor 212 is turned off by the paper discharge of the paper 313, and the process proceeds to the next step S189. In step S189, the main motor is turned off after a time of 200 msec required for discharging the paper 313. Then, the copying machine goes into a standby state.

Next, another interrupt routine of this embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. This interrupt routine is called by the internal timer of the microcomputer 326 at regular intervals. First step S200
, The microcomputer 326 displays the pressed states of various keys on the operation panel 321 in the key matrix 33.
7 is read through I / O 332, and processing is performed according to the pressed key.

In step S201, the microcomputer 3
26 determines whether the exposure lamp 8 is at the home position. If it is not home position, the process proceeds directly to step S205. If it is at home position, the servo motor 3 is sent at step S203.
After turning off 42, the process proceeds to step S205.

In step S205, it is determined whether or not the paper feed sensor 53 is on, that is, the paper 313 up to the register roller 30.
To determine if the item has been transported. Then, when the conveyance of the paper 313 is confirmed, in the next step S207,
The paper feed clutch is turned off. After that, the process proceeds to step S211. If the preceding paper is being conveyed, the paper feed sensor 5
Microcomputer 326 because 3 is off
After turning off the resist clutch in the next step S209, the process proceeds to step S211. Step S21
1, the above-mentioned resist contact timer is RAM
Judge whether or not the timer has been set. If "YES" is determined in this step S211, the microcomputer 326 determines whether or not the on-timer has timed up in the following step S213. Then, when the registration clutch-on timer times up through several interrupt routines, in step S215, the microcomputer 326
Turn on the resist clutch. That is, the paper feed timing for adjusting the leading edge of the image is determined at this point. Thereafter, as in the case where it is determined to be "NO" at steps S211 and S213, respectively, the process proceeds to the twelfth step.
The process returns to the main routine shown in the figure.

Next, prior to the explanation of the operation in the adjustment mode, FIG.
The outline of the adjustment mode will be described with reference to FIGS. 10, 10 and 15. FIG. 15 is an explanatory diagram of the operating panel 7-segment display state. First, when the adjustment mode is entered by the method described below, the magnification display section 322b and the number display section 325a are respectively as shown in FIG. 15 (b). Here, the operator (that is, not a general user, but a serviceman or an equipment assembly worker who adjusts the equipment to an appropriate state) operates the ten-key 325 to input the two-digit number of the item to be adjusted.
Now, it is assumed that there are eight kinds of adjustment items 01 to 08 in this embodiment, and the numbers and the adjustment items correspond as follows.

01 Exposure voltage 02 Charging voltage 03 Development bias voltage 04 Transfer voltage 05 Separation voltage 06 Image leading edge adjustment (at upper cassette) 07 Image leading edge adjustment (at lower cassette) 08 Refeed mechanism center adjustment 01 to 05 are the above-mentioned D / A The items for setting the voltage by the converter 334 are 06 and 07 for adjusting the registration clutch on timer, and 08 for adjusting the center of the re-feeding mechanism which will be described later. These adjustment values have a standard value of 0 and have a plus or minus adjustment range. That is, standard D /
The A output data or the resist clutch on timer count value output pulse number (described later) is stored in the ROM 327 in advance, and when these data are used, the corresponding adjustment data is read out from the RAM 330 and added before the D / A output. Alternatively, the resist clutch on timer set output pulse number set is performed. The adjustment data is RA in the order of item numbers.
It is stored in M (adjustment data table).

FIG. 15 (c) shows the display when 0 is input with the numeric keypad, and when 1 is further input with the numeric keypad 325, (d)
become that way. At this time, the adjustment item 01
That is, the adjustment data of the exposure voltage currently stored in the RAM 330 is displayed.

Next, the operator presses the zoom key 322a to change the adjustment data on the magnification display section. For example, when the zoom key 322a is operated once to reduce the adjustment data by 1 in the state of (d), the display becomes as shown in (e), and at the same time, the head data of the adjustment data table in the RAM 330 is reduced by 1, and the ROM
-1 is added to the exposure voltage standard data in 327, and this is output from the D / A converter 334 as analog data.

Here, when the operator presses the start key 323, the 12th
The copy operation shown in the figure is performed on a trial basis. The operator repeats the above-mentioned operations while making adjustments while viewing the obtained image. When it is desired to change the adjustment item, the ten keys 325 are operated in the states of (d) and (e) to input a new adjustment item number, and the display states of (c) and (d) are immediately changed.

In addition, when the clear / stop key (hereinafter referred to as a clear key) 324 is pressed in the display states of (c) to (e), the state of (b) is brought about, and when the clear key 324 is further pushed, the state of (a) is returned to.
The numbers that can be input to the number display portion 325a by the ten keys 325 are only 01 to 08, and other numbers are not accepted.

Next, based on the flow chart of the adjustment mode shown in FIG. 14, an adjusting method or operation by inputting numerical values will be described.

First, the operator turns on the service switch (not shown) and then operates the power switch 349 (see FIG. 1) to turn on the power. As a result, the main body of the copying machine enters the service mode and the magnification display section and the number display section are shown in Fig. 15 (a).
become that way. Here, when the operator inputs "99", for example, from the ten keys 325 and presses the start key, the adjustment mode is entered and the display is as shown in (b).

However, the value entered to enter the adjustment mode is "9
It does not need to be 9 ", and may be set to some numerical value in advance.

When entering the adjustment mode, the digit counter is reset and set to 0.
To This is a counter provided in the RAM 330 and is used to remember the number of digits displayed on the number display section 325a in the adjustment mode. In other words, it is used to identify which of (b) to (d) the current display state corresponds to. Then, the zoom key inhibition flag is set to inhibit acceptance of the zoom key 322a by the key scan in step S200 of FIG. This is to avoid erroneous display on the magnification display section 322d when the display state is (b) or (c). After that, the magnification display section 322b
Also, the number display section 325a is changed to the initial display (b) and the process proceeds to step S303. Numeric keypad 32 in step S303
5 is pressed, and if not, the process proceeds to step S304 to determine whether the clear key 324 is pressed. If the clear key 324 is not pressed here, the process returns to step S303, but if it is pressed, the process proceeds to step S305 to determine whether the digit counter is zero. If it is zero, the current display state is the initial state (b) of the adjustment mode, so the display is returned to the state of (a), the zoom key inhibition flag is reset, and the normal service mode is returned. If the digit counter is not zero in step S305, it is determined that the current display state is as shown in (c) or (d), and the process returns to step S302 to enter the adjustment mode initial state.

If it is determined in step S303 that the numeric keypad has been pressed, the flow advances to step S307 to determine whether the digit number counter is 1, that is, whether the current display state is as shown in FIG. 19 (c). If NO is determined here, the display state is
Since it is (b), it is judged in the next step S308 whether or not the numeric keypad pressed is 0, and if YES, it is displayed on the number display section 325a and the digit number counter is set to 1
After that, the process returns to step S303. 01 to NO
Since it does not fall within the range of 08, the process returns to S303 without doing anything.

If YES is determined in step S307, the display state is (c), and therefore it is determined in step S311 whether the numeric keypad pressed is 0 or not. In the case of YES here, the process returns to step S303 without accepting. If NO is determined, the first digit display is 1, so only 0 to 8 are accepted next, so it is determined at step S312 whether the numeric keypad pressed is 8 or less, and if YES, then If it is NO, the process proceeds to step S313.
Return to 03.

In step S313, the first digit display is first shifted to the second digit, the ten-key number is displayed in the first digit, and the digit counter is set to 2. Then, the data corresponding to the display of the number display 325a is read from the adjustment data table and displayed on the magnification display section (FIG. 15 (d)). After that, when the zoom key inhibition flag is reset, the zoom key 322a is received by the key scan in step S200 in FIG.

Next, in step S314, it is determined whether the start key 323 is pressed. If YES, the copy operation shown in FIG. 12 is performed in step S316, and then the process returns to step S314. If NO, step S3
18 and it is determined whether the clear key 324 has been pressed. If YES, the process returns to step S302, that is, the initial state of the adjustment mode. If NO, step S319
If it is YES, the process returns to step S303, and if NO, the process returns to step S314.

Now, the operation or operation of the re-feeding mechanism according to the main part of the present invention will be described based on the flow charts shown in FIGS.

First, the operator fixes the original on the original table 7 with the side to be copied on the first side facing downward. Next, after operating the double-sided / multiplex key 322h on the operation panel 322, the start key 3
Press 23 to start the copying operation for the first side. When the copying operation is started, a signal notifying that there is double-sided or multiplex copying is output from the output port of the main body side I / O port 332 in FIG.
Receive through 33. The re-feeding mechanism side MPU 328 waits for a signal from the main body while constantly circulating steps S401, S405, S409 and S416.

Steps S401 to S404 indicate the state of sheet feeding from the additional cassette section 34. When a sheet feeding start signal of the sheet feeding cassette 5 is detected, the feeding roller 32 is turned on, and the sheet in the cassette is paired with the intermediate roller pair. 33 through copying machine main body 2
Paper feed sensor 404
Is turned on, the rotation of the paper feed roller 32 is stopped.

When the MPU 328 detects the double-sided copy start signal in step S409, the process proceeds to the next step S410, and the reverse unit 20 guides the copied sheets to the intermediate tray unit 180.
The switching claw 201 of 0 is switched. And I / O port 3
The paper size data is received from the main body through 33, and one of the stoppers 181 to 185 is set according to the data, and the transport rollers 206, 205, 155, 157, 15 are set.
The rotation of 9, 161, 163, 165, 166 is started. Here, in the case of multiple copy, the stoppers 181 to 185
Instead of the above set, one of the switching claws 171 to 175 is set (step S417). And step S41
In step 1, the guide members 186 and 187 for aligning the sheets sent to the intermediate tray are moved to a position of a predetermined sheet size width. In the case of double-sided copying, the paper is conveyed by rollers 155, 1.
57, 159, 161, 163, 165, 166, and then stored in the intermediate tray section 180. In the case of multiple copy, the path is switched by one of the switching claws 171 to 175 and the sheet is stored in the intermediate tray section 180 as it is.

When the guide pair moves to the position of the paper size width, the paper counter that counts the number of paper stored in step S412 is cleared to zero. A sensor for detecting paper is provided in the paper path (not shown), and waits for the paper to be stored in the intermediate tray section 180 in step S413. When the paper is stored, the paper counter is set to 1 in step S414. Then, the value of the paper counter is compared with 10 in step S415. If the value of the paper counter is not 10, the process proceeds to step S434, the widths of the papers are aligned by the guide members 186 and 187, and it is determined in step S436 whether the paper just stored is the final paper. This judgment is MP
This is performed by a signal sent from the U326 through the I / O ports 332 and 333.

If NO is determined here, the process returns to step S413,
When YES is determined, the process proceeds to step S438, and the transport rollers 206, 205, 155, 157, 159, 1
After stopping the rotation of 61, 163, 165, 166 and returning the switching claw 201 of the reverse section 200 to the normal state, that is, the state of carrying out to the paper discharge tray 203 in the direction of arrow e, the process returns to step S401 and is removed from the main body. Waiting for a signal.

If the value of the paper counter is 10 in step S415,
In step S435, it is determined whether the sheet is the final sheet.
If it is the last sheet, the process proceeds to step S438. If it is not the final sheet, the process proceeds to step S437, and guide members 186, 1
87 is returned to the home position by the method described later. Then, returning to step S411, the guide members 186, 18 are again provided.
7 is moved from the home position to the paper size width position. In this way, by the guide members 186 and 187,
The width of the paper is aligned for each sheet, and the home return and the paper size width movement are repeated for every 10 sheets.

Next, referring to FIGS. 17 and 18, the guide members 186, 1
The operation of 87 will be described. First, step S4 in FIG.
In the case of the driving operation 1 in 11, the light shielding plates 400 and 401 of the guide pairs 186 and 187 are processed in step S418.
Determines whether or not it is within the detection range of the home position sensors 402, 403. In the case of NO here, in step S419, the stepping motors 188 and 189 are driven in the reverse rotation direction (the guide members are brought closer to each other to close and close, and the opening direction is reverse rotation).
At step 20, the stepping motors 188 and 189 are rotated in the reverse direction until it detects that the shading plates 400 and 401 enter the home position sensors 402 and 403. When it is detected that the home position sensor is turned on, the stepping motor is further reversed by 5 pulses in step S421, the rotations of the stepping motors 188 and 189 are stopped, and the process proceeds to step S422. On the other hand, if the light blocking plates 400 and 401 of the guide members 186 and 187 have already entered the home position sensors 402 and 403 in step S418, the process immediately proceeds to step S422.

In step S422, the stepping motor is driven in the normal direction. Then, in step S423, the shading plate 400,
It is detected that 401 goes out of the detection range of the home position sensors 402, 403, that is, it is turned off. When it is detected that the sensor is off, the process proceeds to step S424, but the position of the sensor-off guide member becomes the reference position, that is, the home position of the guide member. MP in step S424
The U328 stores the standard number of steps for each paper size stored in the ROM 329 in advance, and the step number adjustment data held in the main body RAM 330 to the I / O interface 33.
Read through 2 and 333 and correct. At this time, for the front guide member 186, the step number adjustment data is added to the standard step number, and the rear guide member 187 is added.
The center position is corrected by subtracting. Then, in steps S425 and S426, the guide pairs 186 and 18
7 is driven by the stepping motors 188 and 189 in the forward direction by the number of steps set in step S424 and then stopped.

Next, the width aligning operation in step S434 will be described with reference to FIG. In this case, the guide members 186, 187
Since it is originally located at a position suitable for the paper size, it is not necessary to return it to the home position, and it is sufficient to move the paper stored in the intermediate tray section 180 by the amount necessary for alignment. Therefore, first, in step S428, the number of steps for 5 mm is set, and in the next steps S429 and S430, the stepping motors 189 and 188 are reversed to open the guide members 186 and 187 by the number of steps. And step S4
At 31, the number of steps for 5 mm is set again and step S4 is performed.
32, S433 drives in the forward direction.

When the storage of the paper in the intermediate tray is completed, the operator replaces the original to copy the second side (or the same side) and operates the start key 323. When the copying operation on the second side (or the same side) is started, the main body MPU 326 outputs a refeed start signal from the output port of the I / O interface 332.

The MPU 328 of the re-feed mechanism is the I / O interface 3
When this signal is received at step S405 through 33, the pick roller 170 is lowered at step S406 and pressed against the paper in the intermediate tray section 180, and the pick roller 1
By rotating 70, the paper in the intermediate tray is sent out one by one from the uppermost one, and is sent to the registration roller pair 30 through the drive roller 31 and the intermediate roller pair 33.
When the paper feed sensor 404 is turned on in step S407, the rotation of these rollers is stopped and the pick roller 170 is raised in step S408.

After that, the operations after the above-described step S125 are performed, and the sheet exiting the fixing device 20 is the roller pair 206 and the switching claw 201.
It is guided to the pair of paper discharge rollers 202 and further discharged to the paper discharge tray 203.

Here, when the paper center line parallel to the re-feeding direction of the placed paper due to the predetermined position of the width alignment guide members 186 and 187 is different from the corresponding document center line, the guide member 186 is operated by operating the panel input. , 187 to change the predetermined positions so that the center line of the original and the center line of the paper can be easily matched.

In other words, in the duplex mode and the multiplex mode, the first
The standard step number for each paper size stored in the ROM 329 shown in FIG. 0 is input from the operation panel in the adjustment mode and the step number adjustment data held in the main body RAM 330 is used as the I / O interface 332, 333
Read through and corrected by the MPU 328. Then, the width adjusting members 186 and 187 add and subtract the step number adjustment data to and from the standard step number, respectively,
Correct the center position of the intermediate tray.

(G) Effects of the Invention As described above, in the apparatus of the present invention, the position of each of the drive members for reciprocating the pair of guide members and the position of the guide members are periodically moved to adjust the central position of the stored paper. Since the position adjusting means is provided, it is possible to prevent the error of the movement amount of the guide member due to the motor or its transmission system from being accumulated and increasing. As a result, the sheets can be accurately aligned and stored, the sheet can be smoothly fed to the main body of the image forming apparatus, and copy misregistration does not occur during image formation on both sides or the same side. Images can be formed at precise positions.

Further, since the center of the intermediate tray can be adjusted by operating the keys on the operation panel of the main body, the adjustment work becomes very easy.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a left side external perspective view of an image forming apparatus according to the present invention,
2 is a cross-sectional view showing the internal structure, FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the right side showing the opened state, FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the right side of the sheet front and back reversing unit, and FIG. 5 is a V- of FIG. FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the right side of the intermediate tray section, FIG. 7 is an enlarged view of an essential part of the intermediate tray section, FIG. 8 is a vertical cross-sectional view showing a state where sheets are placed, and FIG. Panel layout diagram, FIG. 10 is a block diagram of the control system, FIG. 11 is a back-up circuit diagram, 1st
2 to 14 are flow charts showing the control procedure of the copying apparatus main body, FIG. 15 is an explanatory view of the 7-segment display state of the operation panel, and FIGS. 16 to 18 are the control procedures of the paper feed tray (refeed mechanism). It is a flow chart. 1 ... Paper feeding stand, 2 ... Copying device main body, 27 ... Paper reverse side, 34 ... Additional cassette part, 180 ... Intermediate tray part, 186, 187 ... Guide member, 194 ... Tray bottom part, 200 …… Reverse part

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. An image in which, in order to form an image again on a plurality of sheets on which an image has been formed, these are temporarily stacked and stored, and a sheet is aligned by a guide member that reciprocates a plurality of times in a direction orthogonal to the sheet conveying direction. In the forming apparatus, each drive source that reciprocates the pair of guide members facing each other across the sheet transport area, and adjustment data for adjusting the center position in the direction orthogonal to the sheet transport direction. Adjustment data inputting means for inputting the data, storage means for storing the data input by the adjustment data inputting means, and the guide for adjusting the central position of the storage sheet based on the data stored by the storage means. An image forming apparatus comprising: a position adjusting unit for periodically moving the position of a member.