Image forming system having intermediate apparatus that does not have a reverse unit

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9168762-B2
Application number	US-201414215170-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Mar 17, 2014
Priority date	Mar 28, 2013
Publication date	Oct 27, 2015
Grant date	Oct 27, 2015

Abstract

An image forming system of one aspect of the present invention includes a first image forming apparatus arranged on the upstream side in a sheet conveyance direction, a second image forming apparatus arranged on the downstream side in the sheet conveyance direction, and an intermediate apparatus arranged between the first image forming apparatus and the second image forming apparatus. The image forming system includes a sheet conveyance path through which a sheet is conveyed from the first image forming apparatus to the second image forming apparatus through the intermediate apparatus. The sheet conveyance path is formed so that the rear end of a sheet having stopped on the sheet conveyance path is located on the sheet conveyance path within the intermediate apparatus.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. An image forming system comprising:
a first image forming apparatus arranged on an upstream side in a sheet conveyance direction;
a second image forming apparatus arranged on a downstream side in the sheet conveyance direction;
an intermediate apparatus arranged between the first image forming apparatus and the second image forming apparatus, the intermediate apparatus not having a reverse unit to reverse a front side and a back side of a sheet; and
a sheet conveyance path provided in the intermediate apparatus, through which a sheet is conveyed from the first image forming apparatus to the second image forming apparatus, wherein
a rear end of a sheet not having been reversed in the intermediate apparatus and having been stopped on the sheet conveyance path is located on the sheet conveyance path of the intermediate apparatus, and
a tip end of the sheet not having been reversed in the intermediate apparatus and having been stopped on the sheet conveyance path is located on a sheet conveyance path within the second image forming apparatus.

2. The image forming system according to claim 1 , wherein the sheet conveyance path of the intermediate apparatus curves.

3. The image forming system according to claim 2 , wherein on the sheet conveyance path of the intermediate apparatus, a curl straightening unit configured to straighten a curl of a sheet to be conveyed is provided.

4. The image forming system according to claim 2 , wherein the intermediate apparatus includes a density sensor configured to measure a density of an image formed on a sheet to be conveyed, in a vicinity of the sheet conveyance path, and wherein the second image forming apparatus adjusts a density of an image to be formed by the second image forming apparatus based on a measurement result of the density sensor.

5. The image forming system according to claim 2 , wherein the sheet conveyance path of the intermediate apparatus is curved in a downward direction.

6. The image forming system according to claim 1 , wherein a second intermediate apparatus is arranged between the first image forming apparatus and the intermediate apparatus, and wherein in a case where the second intermediate apparatus is arranged, the intermediate apparatus conveys a sheet conveyed from the second intermediate apparatus to the second image forming apparatus, and the sheet conveyance path of the intermediate apparatus has such a length that, in a case where a sheet stop operation is performed on the sheet conveyance path of the intermediate apparatus or a sheet conveyance path of the second image forming apparatus, a rear end of a sheet, to which the sheet stop operation has been performed, is not included in the second intermediate apparatus.

7. The image forming system according to claim 1 , wherein the first image forming apparatus includes a plurality of feed trays, and a rear end of a sheet having been fed from the feed trays and stopped on the sheet conveyance path is located on the sheet conveyance path of the intermediate apparatus.

8. An image forming system comprising:
a first image forming apparatus arranged on an upstream side in a sheet conveyance direction;
a second image forming apparatus arranged on a downstream side in the sheet conveyance direction;
an intermediate apparatus arranged between the first image forming apparatus and the second image forming apparatus, the intermediate apparatus not having a reverse unit to reverse a front side and a back side of a sheet; and
a sheet conveyance path provided in the intermediate apparatus, through which a sheet is conveyed from the first image forming apparatus to the second image forming apparatus, wherein
a rear end of a sheet not having been reversed in the intermediate apparatus and having been stopped on the sheet conveyance path is located on the sheet conveyance path of the intermediate apparatus, and
a tip end of the sheet not having been reversed in the intermediate apparatus and having been stopped on the sheet conveyance path is located on a sheet conveyance path within the second image forming apparatus, and
a tip end of the sheet not having been reversed in the intermediate apparatus and having been stopped on the sheet conveyance path is located on the sheet conveyance path of the intermediate apparatus.

9. The image forming system according to claim 8 , wherein the intermediate apparatus includes a registration roller, and a position of the registration roller is set as a sheet stop position.

10. The image forming system according to claim 8 , wherein the sheet conveyance path of the intermediate apparatus curves.

11. The image forming system according to claim 10 , wherein on the sheet conveyance path of the intermediate apparatus, a curl straightening unit configured to straighten a curl of a sheet to be conveyed is provided.

12. The image forming system according to claim 10 , wherein the intermediate apparatus includes a density sensor configured to measure a density of an image formed on a sheet to be conveyed, in a vicinity of the sheet conveyance path, and wherein the second image forming apparatus adjusts a density of an image to be formed by the second image forming apparatus based on a measurement result of the density sensor.

13. The image forming system according to claim 10 , wherein the sheet conveyance path of the intermediate apparatus is curved in a downward direction.

14. The image forming system according to claim 8 , wherein a second intermediate apparatus is arranged between the first image forming apparatus and the intermediate apparatus, and wherein in a case where the second intermediate apparatus is arranged, the intermediate apparatus conveys a sheet conveyed from the second intermediate apparatus to the second image forming apparatus, and the sheet conveyance path of the intermediate apparatus has such a length that, in a case where a sheet stop operation is performed on the sheet conveyance path of the intermediate apparatus or a sheet conveyance path of the second image forming apparatus, a rear end of the a sheet, to which the sheet stop operation has been performed, is not included in the second intermediate apparatus.

15. The image forming system according to claim 8 , wherein the first image forming apparatus includes a plurality of feed trays, and a rear end of a sheet having been fed from the feed trays and stopped on the sheet conveyance path is located on the sheet conveyance path of the intermediate apparatus.

16. An intermediate apparatus arranged between a first image forming apparatus and a second image forming apparatus and which conveys a sheet conveyed from the first image forming apparatus to the second image forming apparatus, wherein
a sheet conveyance path of the intermediate apparatus is formed so that a rear end of a sheet having stopped on the sheet conveyance path is located on the sheet conveyance path within the intermediate apparatus, and a tip end of the sheet not having been reversed in the intermediate apparatus and having been stopped on the sheet conveyance path is located on a sheet conveyance path within the second image forming apparatus, and
wherein the intermediate apparatus does not have a reverse unit to reverse a front side and a back side of a sheet.

17. The intermediate apparatus according to claim 16 , wherein
the sheet conveyance path of the intermediate apparatus curves.

18. The intermediate apparatus according to claim 17 , wherein
on the sheet conveyance path of the intermediate apparatus, a curl straightening unit configured to straight

Assignees

• Konica Minolta Inc

Inventors

• Nakamura Hajime
• Isohara Hideo

Classifications

• G03G15/00

  Apparatus for electrographic processes using a charge pattern (G03G16/00, G03G17/00 take precedence) · CPC title

• B41J3/54 Primary

  with two or more sets of type or printing elements (B41J3/60 takes precedence) · CPC title

• G03G15/238

  using more than one reusable electrographic recording member, e.g. single pass duplex copiers · CPC title

• G03G15/6529

  Transporting (G03G15/6555 takes precedence) · CPC title

• G03G2215/00021

  Plural substantially independent image forming units in cooperation, e.g. for duplex, colour or high-speed simplex · CPC title