JP2002211814A - Automatic document conveyance device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an automatic document conveyance device (ADF) capable of neatly stacking even a document having a curl at a tip and a rear end. SOLUTION: A guide 5 is attached to a bottom part of a document tray 2 so as to turn vertically. The guide 5 is constituted such that a short presser 7 is attached to a terminal side of a long presser 8 and a terminal of the long presser 8 is attached to the bottom part of the document tray 2 to suspend them so as to turn in the vertical direction due to self-weight respectively and operate independently from each other. If the document 9 has the curl 10, the curl 10 bumps against the presser 7 to discharge the document while a tip side is pressed and further discharge it while guided by the presser 8, and when the document is completely discharged on a document delivery part 3, the tip side and a rear end side are pressed by the presser 8 and the presser 7, respectively, so that the document is stacked in the document delivery part 3 in a substantially flat condition even if it has a curl 11 on a rear end side.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an automatic document feeder (hereinafter referred to as an ADF unless otherwise required) used as a document feeder in an image forming apparatus such as a scanner, a copier, a facsimile, a printer, or a multifunction peripheral thereof. In particular, the present invention relates to a curled document having improved stackability.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, in an image forming apparatus, an ADF having a document feeder on the upper side and a document discharger on the lower side has been used as a document feeder. In this type of ADF, when a curled document is handled, there is no method for stacking the document cleanly after the document is discharged to a document discharge unit.

That is, even if it is possible to discharge the original having a curl at the leading end or the rear end in the discharging direction to the original discharging portion without any problem, the first original is discharged when the second original is discharged. If the second original hits the curled part of the original and the first original is pushed out of the original discharge section and the original cannot be stacked, or if the second original has curl, the curled parts When the document hits, the document may be curled up, resulting in a messy stack. When such a state occurs, the operator takes out the document and arranges it, but since the page order is scattered, a troublesome sorting operation is required. Also,
Messy stacks can also cause transport jams.

Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide an ADF that can neatly stack originals having curls at the leading and trailing ends in view of the above-mentioned conventional problems.

[0005]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided an automatic document feeder having an automatic document feeder having a document feeder at an upper stage and a document ejector at a lower stage. A conveying device, wherein a pair of guide members which vertically hang from the document discharge source side to the document discharge side on the document discharge section are vertically rotated on a lower surface of a member which vertically separates the document feed section and the document discharge section. Provided so that the leading end of one guide member is provided to hang down from the other guide member toward the document discharge source, so that both guide members can press the document on the document discharge section at different positions. Features.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the automatic document feeder according to the first aspect, a base end of the one guide member is attached to a base end side of the other guide member.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the automatic document feeder according to the first or second aspect, the distal end of the guide member is curled upward.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the automatic document feeder according to any one of the first to third aspects, the guide members are respectively urged downward to rotate.

[0009]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a side view (A to D) of an embodiment of an ADF according to the present invention. In the illustrated embodiment, a document feeder 4 is formed on a document discharge unit 3 by a document tray 2 protruding from an ADF main unit 1, and a base end is turned on the bottom of the document tray 2 in a vertical direction. The guide 5 is attached so as to be movable. In the drawing, reference numeral 6 denotes a side guide provided in the document feeding section 4.

The guide 5 is composed of two guide members, namely, holding plates 7 and 8. The base end of the holding plate 7 having a short length is attached to the base end side of the holding plate 8 having a long length.
Are attached to the bottom of the document tray 2 so as to hang down on the document discharge unit 3 with their own weight with a slight gap. Both the base end of the short holding plate 7 and the base end of the long holding plate 8 are vertically rotatable and can operate independently of each other.

Next, the operation of the present embodiment will be described. The document is fed from the document feeder 4 to the ADF main unit 1, the image is read by a scanner unit (not shown) of the image forming apparatus, and then discharged onto the document discharge unit 3. If the original has no curl, the original is discharged neatly along the upper surface of the original discharge section 3 from the leading end side, and the second and subsequent originals are similarly stacked neatly.

On the other hand, when there is a curl 10 at the leading end of the discharged original 9, as shown in FIG.
0 is discharged in a state where it hits the holding plate 7. Then, the lower surface of the holding plate 7 serves as a guide, and the original 9 is ejected while being pressed at the leading end, and the lower surface of the holding plate 8 serves as a guide, and is further ejected while being held at the leading end. This state is shown in FIG. The holding plates 7 and 8 hold the original 9 by its own weight. The arrows in the figure indicate the holding of the holding plates 7 and 8 by their own weight.

When the document 9 is completely discharged onto the document discharge section 3, the front end is pressed by the pressing plate 8, the rear end is pressed by the pressing plate 7, and not only the curl 10 on the front side but also the rear end side. Even if the curl 11 is present, the front and rear ends are firmly pressed, and the sheet is stacked on the document discharge unit 3 in a substantially flat state. The same applies to the second and subsequent originals. The pressing plates 7 and 8 hold the bundle of originals P stacked by their own weight, keep the original bundle P flat as a whole, and easily stack the original to be discharged next. (Figure 1
(D)).

Although not shown in the drawings, a suitable urging means may be provided on the support portions of the holding plates 7 and 8 so as to urge downwardly. In this case, if the urging force is too strong, the document may not be discharged smoothly. Therefore, it is necessary to set an appropriate urging force.

[0015]

As described above, the automatic document feeder according to the present invention is provided on the lower surface of the member that vertically separates the document feed section and the document discharge section from the document discharge section toward the document discharge section. A pair of guide members that hang down are provided so as to be rotatable in the vertical direction, and the leading end of one guide member is provided so as to hang down toward the document discharge source side from the other guide member. Because the original can be held at different positions, even if there are curls at the leading edge or the front and rear ends, the stack after ejecting the original can be cleaned neatly, eliminating the work of correcting the stack disorder and improving workability In addition, there is an effect that the conveyance jam caused by the turbulence of the stack can be eliminated.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a side view (A) of an embodiment of an ADF according to the present invention.
~ D).

[Explanation of symbols]

 REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 1 ADF main body 2 Document tray 3 Document discharge section 4 Document feed section 5 Guide 6 Side guide 7, 8 Pressing plate 9 Document 10 Curl of document front 11 Curl of rear end

Claims (4)

[Claims] An automatic document feeder having a document feeder on an upper side and a document discharger on a lower side, wherein the document discharger is disposed on a lower surface of a member that vertically separates the document feeder and the document discharger. A pair of guide members that hang down from the document discharge source side to the tip side are provided rotatably in the vertical direction, and the tip of one guide member is provided so as to hang down to the document discharge source side more than the other guide members. An automatic document feeder, wherein both guide members can press the document on the document discharge section at different positions. 2. The automatic document feeder according to claim 1, wherein
An automatic document feeder wherein the base end of the one guide member is attached to the base end side of the other guide member. 3. The automatic document feeder according to claim 1, wherein a tip of said guide member is curled upward. 4. The automatic document feeder according to claim 1, wherein each of said guide members is biased downward.