Untaken sheet notification device, document feeder, and image forming apparatus

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11601563-B2
Application number	US-202016826784-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Mar 23, 2020
Priority date	Apr 2, 2019
Publication date	Mar 7, 2023
Grant date	Mar 7, 2023

Abstract

An untaken sheet notification device to notify that the sheet is untaken from an ejection tray if an ejection tray sensor that detects presence or absence of the sheet on the ejection tray detects presence of the sheet, after a sheet is ejected, a document feeder, and an image forming apparatus include a counter that counts the number of the ejected sheets and a notification controller that performs a specific notification control to notify that the sheet is untaken if the number of the sheets counted by the counter is equal to or less than a predetermined reference number.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. An untaken sheet notification device to notify that a sheet is untaken from an ejection tray if an ejection tray sensor that detects presence or absence of the sheet on the ejection tray detects presence of the sheet, after the sheet is ejected, the untaken sheet notification device comprising:
a counter that counts a number of sheets to be ejected from a start to an end of a job; and
a notification controller that performs a specific notification control to notify that the sheet is untaken if the number of the sheets counted by the counter is equal to or less than a predetermined reference number and furthermore if a predetermined waiting time has elapsed from the ejection of a last one of the sheets after the end of the job.

2. The untaken sheet notification device according to claim 1 , further comprising a mode setter that sets, in a selectively switchable manner, either one of a normal mode for a sheet within a predetermined reference thickness range or a special mode for a sheet below a lower limit of the predetermined reference thickness range,
wherein the notification controller performs the specific notification control when the special mode is set by the mode setter.

3. The untaken sheet notification device according to claim 1 , further comprising a bent state detector that detects a predetermined bent state of the sheet,
wherein the notification controller performs the specific notification control when a bent state of the sheet is detected by the bent state detector.

4. The untaken sheet notification device according to claim 1 , wherein if the number of the sheets counted by the counter exceeds the predetermined reference number, the notification controller notifies that the sheet is untaken when the ejection tray sensor detects presence of the sheet, and meanwhile further performs a normal notification control that does not notify that the sheet is untaken when the ejection tray sensor detects absence of the sheet.

5. The untaken sheet notification device according to claim 4 , wherein the notification controller makes a notification pattern for the sheet untaken different between the specific notification control and the normal notification control.

6. The untaken sheet notification device according to claim 4 , wherein the notification controller performs the normal notification control regardless of the number of the sheets counted by the counter if the ejection tray sensor detects presence of the sheet, at least before start of a job or during the job.

7. The untaken sheet notification device according to claim 1 , wherein the notification controller resets a number of counts of the sheets counted by the counter if the ejection tray sensor detects presence of a sheet and then detects absence of the sheet, during a job.

8. A document feeder comprising the untaken sheet notification device according to claim 1 , wherein the sheet includes a document.

9. An image forming apparatus comprising the untaken sheet notification device according to claim 1 .

10. The untaken sheet notification device according to claim 1 , wherein,
in the specific notification control, even when the number of the sheets counted by the counter is equal to or less than the predetermined reference number, if the ejection tray sensor detects the presence of the sheet after the last one of the sheets is ejected and furthermore if the ejection tray sensor detects the absence of the sheet before the predetermined waiting time elapses, the notification controller does not perform a notification operation to notify that the sheet is untaken.

11. The untaken sheet notification device according to claim 1 , wherein,
in the specific notification control,
if a predetermined operation time has not elapsed after a start of a notification operation to notify that the sheet is untaken, and furthermore if the ejection tray sensor detects the presence of the sheet, the notification controller repeatedly performs the notification operation, and
if the predetermined operation time has elapsed, or if the predetermined operation time has not elapsed and the ejection tray sensor detects the absence of the sheet, the notification controller ends the notification operation.

12. A document feeder comprising: an ejection tray; and an ejection tray sensor provided on the ejection tray so as to detect presence or absence of a sheet on the ejection tray; wherein
the document feeder further includes an untaken sheet notification device to notify that the sheet is untaken from the ejection tray if the ejection tray sensor detects the presence of the sheet, after the sheet is ejected,
the sheet includes a document, and
the untaken sheet notification device includes: a counter that counts a number of sheets to be ejected; and a notification controller that performs a specific notification control to notify that the sheet is untaken if the number of the sheets counted by the counter is equal to or less than a predetermined reference number.

Assignees

• Sharp Kk

Inventors

• Hiro Hideyuki

Classifications

• H04N1/00631 Primary

  Ejecting or stacking (H04N1/00641 takes precedence) · CPC title

• H04N1/121

  Feeding arrangements (transporting sheets to or from the scanning position H04N1/0057; control or error compensation of sub-scanning velocity H04N1/0473) · CPC title

• H04N1/00663

  Indicating relating to handling of media · CPC title

• G03G15/607 Primary

  for detecting size, presence or position of original · CPC title

• H04N1/0049 Primary

  providing a visual indication to the user, e.g. using a lamp (H04N1/00408 takes precedence) · CPC title