Device and method for controlling a sorter

Abstract

A device and a method for controlling a sorter. The device comprises a central control unit, an interface unit connected between a control unit of the copy machine and the central control unit, an one third rotation sensor for controlling operation of transfer wheels, a home position sensor for sensing home positions of bin trays and outputting a sensed signal to the central control unit, and a bin motor driving circuit adapted for controlling normal and reversed rotations of a bin motor. The method comprises the steps of initializing by setting up bin tray numbers, uniformly arranging the bin trays at a home position, setting up a mode state of the sorter into a non-sort mode, sensing a signal representing whether a copy sheet is ejected and a signal representing whether a mode state is changed, transferring the uppermost bin tray to a waiting position and receiving the copy sheets upon sensing a signal representing that the copy sheets are ejected, transferring upwards the uppermost bin tray to the waiting position and successively transferring upwards or downwards the bin trays in response to the copy sheet ejecting signal, transferring upwards the uppermost bin tray to the waiting position and receiving the copy sheets of a document, then transferring upwards another bin trays one by one in order to receive new copy sheets, and repeating the procedure upon sensing a signal representing that the mode state is changed into a non-sort mode.