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(11) | EP 0 942 334 A1 |
| (12) | EUROPEAN PATENT APPLICATION |
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| (54) | Stacker module |
| (57) A portable, post slit, high capacity stacker module for use with a printer/copier
includes a multiple angled sheet supporting surface (51) and a plurality of partitions
(90,91) that separate the angled sheet supporting surface into a plurality of bins. |
[0001] The present invention relates to a stacker for stacking checks which are output from a desktop-size printing machine.
[0002] Generally, commercially available electrophotographic desk-top printers, as disclosed in U. S. Pat. No. 5,553,528 which are available at low cost are designed to output letter size pages. Of course, these printers have been used to make documents much smaller than a full-page size, such as, 6 3/8" x 11" check stock that is slit in three places t to produce four personal size checks. One problem with producing checks with this method is that after the checks are delivered to the output station, the operator must sometimes gather the four sequentially ordered stacks and place one on top of another in order for the numerical sequence to be correct, prior to binding into a checkbook. This is because the checks are free to spill all over, for example, the large, standard, pivoting top output tray of the Xerox® 4220/4230 printer which makes gathering and sequencing the checks very difficult. Miss-stacked checks result in operators having to spend extra time to sort checks into their proper order. Naturally, this is non-productive time which will extend the waiting time a customer will spend in the bank for his/her checks to be printed and bound into personal checkbooks.
[0003] Another major problem is the tendency for checks to have their leading edge "snag" on the surface of the preceding "stacked" check and "tumble" into the output tray. When a check "tumbles", it winds up face-up instead of face-down like the rest of the checks. This tends to happen when the output tray is "flat". It would therefore be desirable to provide, as an add-on to a standard design of an electrophotographic desk-top printer, a device which can take full sheet output from the printer and cut each sheet into check size without the resulting mis-staking.
[0004] One type of device which performs this cutting is called a "slitter". A slitter is a device which accepts a sheet in a process direction, and cuts the sheet being fed therethrough in a direction parallel to the process direction. Various designs of such slitters are well-known in the art, and include such early patents as US-A-244,845; 325,812; 391,750; 393,535; 416,826; and 3,122,040. US-A-4,559,855, or US-A-5,049,929, both assigned to the assignee hereof, can be seen as disclosing "dedicated" slitters, wherein the function of the slitter is built into a relatively large-scale machine.
[0005] According to one aspect of the present invention, there is provided a removable, portable, post slit, high capacity stacker module for use with cut sheets emitted in an output direction toward a slit output nip of a printing machine after they have been slit into check size. The removable, portable, post slit, high capacity stacker module includes a multiple angled check supporting surface and a plurality of partitions that separate the angled check supporting surface into a plurality of bins. The angled tray configuration produces some beam strength in the slit checks without requiring a corrugation nip and the associated cost and impact on the slitting accuracy.
[0006] In the drawings:
Figure 1 is an enlarged, simplified, elevational view showing the basic portions of a desk-top printing machine, with the portions thereof relevant to the present invention;
Figure 2 is an enlarged, partial perspective view showing the post slit, high capacity stacker module according to the present invention positioned within the receiving tray of the printer of Figure 1 and receiving checks;
Figure 3 is an enlarged, simplified, partial end view showing the angled sheet support surface and partitions of the post slit, high capacity stacker module of Figure 2 being twisted as they exit the printer; and,
Figure 4 is an enlarged, simplified, schematic, partial end view showing the angled sheet support surface and partitions of the post slit, high capacity stacker module of Figure 3.
[0007] Figure 1 shows the basic elements of a desktop-size page printer of a general design known in the art, incorporating a conventional slitter. The printing machine, generally indicated as 10, includes, among other image-forming components, a paper supply 12, from which is drawn sheets one at a time for the creation of images thereon. A sheet 13 withdrawn from paper supply 12 is passed through path 14 past an image forming device in the form of, for example, a photoreceptor 16, the function of which is familiar to those skilled in the art of electrophotography. It will be apparent that the photoreceptor 16 could be replaced by, for example, an inkjet printhead or other image forming device which creates images on a selected sheet in accordance with digital image data fed thereto. Also, a "printing machine" as recited in the claims could also refer to a light-lens copier. As shown in Figure 1, the sheets are passed through a fuser 18 useful in electrophotographic printing, and then pushed through what is generally referred to as an output slot 20, which is here intended to mean simply the point along the paper path 14 after which the printed sheet would generally be accessible to a user.
[0008] Also shown in the printing machine of Figure 1 is a slitter generally indicated as 30. Once the desired image is formed on the page-size sheet (such as, 6 3/8 x 11 inch), the sheet can be selectably cut into smaller sheets, such as to form individual checks and stubs, or the like, as would be desired by a user. As used in the specification and claims herein, the word "cutting" and the function of a "slitter" shall also be intended to include all variations of cutting, such as perforating to create separable portions of a sheet, or even embossing and debossing sheets passing therethrough. It will be noted that a portion of the paper path 14, here indicated as 14a, passes from output slot 20 and through the slitter 30, with the cut sheet being deposited in a top output tray 32 as checks 13a. Alternative, sheets which are emitted from output slot 20 may be selectably diverted from slitter 30 by conventionally controlled two positioning diverter 40 as disclosed in U. S. Patent No. 5,553,528 and sent along path 14b to land inside output tray 34.
[0009] Figure 2 is a partial perspective view showing a post slit, high capacity stacker module according to an example of the present invention positioned within receiving tray 32 of the printer of Figure 1. As shown, four slit 24 pound stock checks 13a are emerging without stubbing or tumbling into high capacity module 50 that is positioned within tray 32 of printer 10. At the end of a run, the checks can be removed from module 50 by reaching into the module or by removing module 50 from receiving tray 32.
[0010] When the diverter 40 in Figure 1 is urged by conventional means to remain in a first and down position, a sheet coming through output slot 20 along paper path 14 is guided over the diverter 40, and caused to move along a directing plate here indicated as 44. Although directing plate 44 is here illustrated as a solid curved plate, it will be apparent that the function of directing plate could be performed by, for example, a set of narrow skids or fins, or a set of rollers, or a device applying an air pressure or suction to the sheet, all with the intended function of directing the sheet along path 14a to be properly fed into slitter 30. The slitter generally indicated as 30 includes a first roll 46 and a second roll 48 forming a nip 49 therebetween. As illustrated in Figure 1, different portions of rollers 46 and 48 may overlap slightly in a manner which is familiar in the art of slitters.
[0011] Figure 3 shows a partial, detailed view of the removable, post slit, high capacity stacker module 50 that solves the problem of the leading edge of incoming checks snagging on the surface of the preceding stacked checks of 24 pound check stock that is used to create the checks. The uniqueness of stacker module 50 arises from the fact that prints exiting printer 10 are stacked in an external, post slit, portable, high capacity stacker module which sits in the printer's receiving tray 32 and the fact that the stacker module induces a twisting torque to the checks as they exit the printer in order to increase the beam strength of the checks and thereby avoid snagging the lead edge of the checks against checks already stacked and causing the incoming check to flip. In Figure 3, arrows 19 show the direction of twist to beam of emerging slit checks. This is the operative mechanism by which the individual checks slide freely into angled bins 60, 61, 62, and 63, shown more clearly in Figure 4, instead of tending to stub and flip when under the influence of normal plane forces.
[0012] The angled stacking surface 51 of stacker module 50 is shown in Figure 4 and is configured as W-shaped with a plurality of angled legs 80, 81, 82, and 83. Partitions 90 and 91 are positioned to intersect the junction between legs 80, 81 and 82, 83, respectively. Leg 81 forms an angle θ of about 60° with partition 90 while leg 83 forms an θ of about 30° with a horizontal plane along the bottom of the stacker module. All of the legs of the support surface are symmetrical and partitions 90 and 91 separate support surface 51 into a series of bins 60, 61, 62, and 63. It should be understood that angled stacking surface 51 can provide its function equally well whether in a single, unitary W-shaped piece or a plurality of individual V-shaped bins positioned immediately adjacent to each other underneath the output of slitter 30. That is, bins 60, 61, 62, and 63 can be separate or formed of two individual V-shaped members, if desired.
[0013] According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, a portable, post slit, high capacity stacker module is disclosed for stacking output of printer/copiers. The stacker module includes a passive, angled, tray which is preferably made of sheet metal. The stacker module is configured to include side-angled bins that induce a twisting torque to checks as they enter each bin. This torque imparts a beam reinforcing effect to prevent lead edge stubbing and tumbling mis-stacks. Partitions prevent any checks from crossing into the adjacent bin.
1. A removable, post slit, high capacity stacker module for use with cut sheets emitted
in an output direction toward an output area of a printing machine after they have
been slit, comprising:
a plurality of partitions positioned to separate said sheet support surface into a plurality of bins for receiving the cut sheets, and wherein said sheet support surface is configured to induce a twisting torque to the cut sheets which imparts a beam reinforcing effect to prevent lead edge stubbing and mis-stacking.
a plurality of partitions positioned to separate said sheet support surface into a plurality of bins for receiving the cut sheets, and wherein said sheet support surface is configured to induce a twisting torque to the cut sheets which imparts a beam reinforcing effect to prevent lead edge stubbing and mis-stacking.
2. The stacker module of claim 1, wherein said sheet support surface is multiple angled.
3. A removable, external module which is adapted to sit in a sheet receiving tray of
a printing machine for catching cut sheets of checks after they exit a slitter apparatus
of the printing machine, comprising:
a multiple angled check supporting surface; and
a plurality of partitions that separate said multiple angled check supporting surface into a plurality of bins, and wherein said multiple angled check supporting surface induces a twisting torque to the checks which imparts a beam reinforcing effect to prevent lead edge stubbing and mis-stacking.
4. A stacker module according to claim 2 or claim 3, wherein said multiple angled sheet
support surface is W-shaped.
5. The stacker module of claim 4, wherein said W-shaped multiple angled check supporting
surface includes leg portions with said leg portions forming an acute angle with the
sheet receiving tray of the printing machine.
6. The stacker module of claim 5, wherein said leg portions form an angle with said plurality
of partitions.
7. The stacker module of claim 1, wherein said sheet support surface comprises a series
of V-shaped bins.
8. A stacker module according to any of the preceding claims, wherein said plurality
of partitions are positioned to route the cut sheets into said plurality of bins.
9. A printing machine, comprising:
an image forming device, adapted to create an image on a sheet and output the sheet having the image thereon to a receiving tray;
a slitter, adapted to receive a sheet fed therethrough in a process direction and produce a plurality of cuts in the sheets parallel to the process direction; and
a removable, external stacker module according to any of the preceding claims adapted to sit in a sheet receiving tray of the printing machine for stacking cut sheets after they exit said slitter.