Mita Industrial Co., Ltd.

Nobukazu Otsuka

Hiroyuki Nagai

Jun Miyoshi

Haruo Yamamoto

Yasuhiko Kida

Takatoshi Nishimura

Yoshio Sugishima

Toshikazu Matsui

Keiichi Taguchi

Mitsugu Shibanaka

A multiple sorter includes several sorter units disposed in series at a paper discharge outlet of an image forming apparatus. Each of the sorter units includes a paper distributing mechanism for distributing paper to several sort bins, and a first path change-over mechanism for changing over the connection of a paper lead-in path to either a paper feeding path to the paper distributing mechanism or a paper discharging path to a non-sort bin. The sorter also includes several bypass carrying paths, each provided across the paper discharging path of each of the sorter units and the paper lead-in path of another one of the sorter units which is adjacent to the one sorter unit in a serially connecting direction of the sorter units. The non-sort bin is provided on an upper portion of the bypass carrying path of each one of the sorter units so that the non-sort bin serves another one of the sorter units upstream of the one sorter unit. The sorter further includes several second path change-over mechanisms, each for switching the connection between the paper discharging path to the non-sort bin and the bypass carrying path.

Multiple sorter

An automatic document conveying device for use with an image processing machine having a transparent plate on which to place documents. The device includes an opening-closing frame and a document table. A conveyor roller is rotatably mounted in the opening-closing frame. A document delivery device is provided for delivering sheet-like documents from the document table. The document delivered from the document table is introduced into a required position on the transparent plate by the conveyor roller. The rotation of the conveyor roller in the introducing direction is stopped while the introduced document is still between the conveyor roller and the transparent plate. A guiding device which permits advance of the document from the document table to the transparent plate but hampers movement of the document from the transparent plate toward the document table and defects it upwardly, is provided between the document table and the conveyor roller. When the conveyor roller is rotated in the carrying direction, the document on the transparent plate is deflected upwardly by the guiding device and discharged through a discharge opening formed in the opening-closing frame.

Automatic document conveying device

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Osaka, Japan

Nobukazu Otsuka