Electrophotography – Document handling – Original
Reexamination Certificate
2000-04-17
2001-09-04
Chen, Sophia S. (Department: 2852)
Electrophotography
Document handling
Original
C358S496000, C399S017000, C399S082000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06285853
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an original document reading-out apparatus in an image forming apparatus such as a copying machine, facsimile device, etc., and in particular, relates to a reading-out apparatus capable of reading out the front and rear surfaces of the original document and an image forming apparatus including therein the reading-out apparatus.
2. Discussion of the Background
In the past, as to the reading-out method of a two-sided reading-out apparatus in the image forming apparatus provided with an automatic document feeding apparatus (ADF), a scanning method of stopping the original document on the contact glass and scanning a portion of the original document and a sheet-through method of stopping the scanner and moving the original document are well known.
In the scanning method, since the original document is stopped in order on the contact glass, it needs a lot of time for the operator to exchange the original document. For this reason, in particular, it needs a lot of time to read out both surfaces of the original document, and therefore productivity is lowered. That is the defect to be solved. On the other hand, as to the sheet-through method, although the original document exchanging time can be shortened to the level not exerting any influence on the productivity, the process of turning over the original document is lengthy in order to arrange properly the page order after discharging the original document in the case of reading out the image of both surfaces of the original document, and therefore the productivity turns out to be lowered after all due to the processing time. That is a defect to be solved.
Furthermore, in the case of using the ordinary image forming apparatus, there exists either one of the scanning method and the sheet-through method as the reading-out method. In such situation, the original document feeding route of the automatic document feeder (ADF) carried in accordance with the reading-out method turns out to be determined.
Here, in the apparatus disclosed in the published specification of Japanese Laid-open Patent Publication No. 5-303246, the reading-out method of the image forming apparatus can be enabled to select, and the reading-out of the image on the original document can be made by changing over the original document feeding path of the ADF in accordance with the operational mode.
Furthermore, in the apparatus disclosed in the published specification of Japanese Laid-open Patent Publication No. 9-46483, because the original document is fed from one paper feeding opening (outlet), the scan reading-out and the sheet-through reading-out can be done.
Furthermore, in the copying system disclosed in the published specification of Japanese Laid-open Patent Publication No. 7-110641, the scan reading-out and the sheet-through reading-out can be done through one paper feeding opening (outlet) in consideration of the reading-out of the image on both sides of the original document.
Moreover, in the two-sided reading-out apparatus disclosed in the published specification of Japanese Published Patent No. 6-26416, the reading-out apparatus is provided with a movable reading-out unit which can be moved along the contact glass and a fixed reading-out unit disposed at the document advancing side or at the document discharging side of the document conveying belt for conveying the document put on the contact glass which is employed for reading out the opposite surface of the original document to the surface of the movable reading-out unit.
Furthermore, the published specification of Japanese Laid-open Patent Publication No. 1-194658 proposes an apparatus in which plural reading-out units are provided in order to improve the productivity in regard to the reading-out of both surfaces of the original document, and thereby the image on the first surface and that on the second surface are read out almost at the same time.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
Heretofore, the background art regarding the two-sided reading-out apparatus and the image forming apparatus including the above apparatus have been described. However, according to such background art, for instance, disclosed in the background-art documents, e.g., Japanese Laid-open Patent Publication Nos. 5-303246, 9-46483, 7-110641, and 1-194658, and Japanese Published Patent No. 6-26416, there exists no advantageous functional effect for improving the two-sided reading-out apparatus and the image forming apparatus including therein the above apparatus.
The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned problems and other problems in order to solve the above-mentioned defects and troublesome matters of the background art. The present invention overcomes the various problems of the background art mentioned heretofore. The present invention provides the improved two-sided reading-out apparatus and the improved image forming apparatus including the above apparatus.
To state it more concretely, the object of the present invention is to solve the aforementioned problems. In the background-art technology disclosed in Japanese Laid-open Patent Publication No. 5-303246, since the direction of feeding the original document differs in accordance with the reading-out method, plural document discharging openings (outlets) have to be provided. As the result, the apparatus based on such technology is obliged to be made large-sized and requires a high cost for manufacturing it. That is a problem to be solved.
In the technology disclosed in Japanese Laid-open Patent Publication No. 9-46483, the reading-out of both surfaces of the original document which has been frequently used in recent years is not taken into consideration, and the improvement of the productivity cannot be intended regarding the reading-out of the image on both surfaces of the original document. That is another problem to be solved.
In the technology disclosed in Japanese Laid-open Patent Publication No. 7-110641, the timing of the turning-over of the original document in order to arrange properly the page order at the time of discharging the document and the additional processing time occurring due to the movement of the scanner turn out to be high. For this reason, there exists a limitation for improving the productivity. That is still another problem to be solved.
In the technology disclosed in Japanese Laid-open Patent Publication No. 1-194658, since the image data on the first surface of the original document and the image data on the second surface of the original document are overlapped on each other, plural image processing circuits have to be provided in order to process each of the respective image data. As a result, the cost of the entire apparatus is raised. That is still another problem to be solved.
In the technology disclosed in Japanese Published Patent No. 6-26416, the state of conveying the original document is constant even in either one of the operational mode of reading out only the surface of the original document and the other operational mode of reading out both surfaces of the original document. Even in the operational mode not required to read out the opposite surface of the original document by use of the fixed reading-out unit, the original document has to be moved so as to optimally read out the image by use of the fixed reading-out unit. Consequently, the productivity of the apparatus cannot be intended to be sufficiently improved. That is still another problem to be solved.
Furthermore, in the image forming apparatus having a size mixture AMS (paper designation magnification/reduction) mode in which original documents of different sizes are mixedly carried and conveyed, and read out with the magnification/reduction corresponding to the previously designated transfer paper size, since the width and the length of the original document are detected in the process of the paper conveyance after separating the original document, even though the transfer paper size is previously designated, the rate of the magnification/reduction at the sheet-through re
Chen Sophia S.
Oblon & Spivak, McClelland, Maier & Neustadt P.C.
Ricoh & Company, Ltd.
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