JP4835981B2 - Image forming apparatus - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus provided with a knob for operating a shaft.

Some conventional image forming apparatuses are provided with a knob 102 for rotating a metal shaft 100 as shown in FIG. The end of the shaft 100 is machined to have a D shape, and the end of the shaft 100 is inserted into a D-shaped lateral hole 104 formed in the knob 102 from the lateral direction.
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 10-105266 JP 2005-126202 A

  By the way, in the image forming apparatus, since only the end portion of the shaft can be assembled to the knob, the operation of assembling the shaft to the knob cannot be smoothly performed. Further, since the direction in which the shaft is assembled to the knob is limited from the lateral direction of the knob, it is more difficult to assemble the shaft, particularly in a relatively narrow interior of the image forming apparatus.

  In view of the above circumstances, an object of the present invention is to provide an image forming apparatus in which a shaft can be easily assembled to a knob.

The invention according to claim 1 is a shaft, a knob to which the shaft is connected and operating the shaft , a U-shaped groove formed in the knob and having an open portion opened in a predetermined direction, and the shaft An image forming apparatus having a pair of plane portions that are inserted into the groove from the open portion and face each other, wherein the groove of the knob is formed on the shaft. A planar first side surface portion that contacts one of the planar portions, and a planar second side surface portion that contacts the other of the planar portions of the shaft, and the first side surface portion or the second side surface portion. One of the portions is formed to be longer in the shaft insertion direction than the other, and a longer one of the first side surface portion or the second side surface portion is formed with a rib extending in the shaft insertion direction. In front of the shaft In a state where the flat portion is inserted into the groove of the knob, the contact portion of the rib that is in contact with the flat portion of the shaft is bent and deformed, and the non-contact of the rib that is not in contact with the flat portion of the shaft. The contact portion is not bent and deformed .

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the image forming apparatus according to the first aspect, a separation dimension between the flat surface portions of the shaft is a separation dimension between the first side surface portion and the second side surface portion of the knob. Or is set to be slightly larger than the distance between the first side surface portion and the second side surface portion so that the shaft can be press-fitted into the groove .

  According to the first aspect of the present invention, flat portions facing each other are formed at the connecting portion of the shaft to the knob, and the knob has a U-shaped groove having an open portion opened in a predetermined direction. Therefore, even in a relatively narrow image forming apparatus, the shaft can be easily assembled to the knob by inserting the flat portion of the shaft into the groove of the knob from the open portion. In particular, by forming each planar portion over the longitudinal direction of the shaft, all parts of the shaft can be inserted into the groove of the knob, so that the assembly work of the shaft can be performed smoothly.

  Moreover, since it is not necessary to form a horizontal hole in the knob, the problem of undercut does not occur. Thereby, it is not necessary to make the structure of the metal mold | die which forms a knob complicated (for example, slide structure), and a knob can be shape | molded easily and at low cost.

The groove of the knob has a first side portion flat in contact with one flat surface of the shaft, and a second side portion flat in contact with the other planar portion of the shaft, a first side surface One of the part and the second side part is formed to be longer along the insertion direction of the shaft than the other. Thereby, when inserting a shaft into the groove | channel of a knob, a shaft can be easily guide | induced to the groove | channel of a knob by putting a shaft along the long side part of a 1st side part or a 2nd side part. it can. Thereby, the assembly | attachment property of a shaft can be improved significantly.
Further, a rib extending in the shaft insertion direction is formed on the longer side of the first side surface portion or the second side surface portion, and the flat surface portion of the shaft contacts with the flat surface portion of the shaft inserted into the groove of the knob. The contact portion of the rib that is being bent is deformed and the non-contact portion of the rib that is not in contact with the flat portion of the shaft is not deformed. As a result, a predetermined pressing force acts on the flat portion of the shaft that comes into contact with the contact portion of the deformed rib from the contact portion of the deformed rib to fix the shaft, and the deformed portion is deformed. Since the non-contact portion of the ribs that are not in contact with the shaft prevents the shaft from slipping out, it is possible to synergistically prevent the shaft from slipping out of the knob groove.

According to the invention of claim 2, second on the degree spacing dimension between the planar portion of the shaft, a substantially equal or shaft and spaced distance between the first side portion and second side portion of the knob can be pressed into the groove It is set to be slightly larger than the distance between the first side surface portion and the second side surface portion. For this reason, it is possible to prevent the shaft from coming out of the groove after the shaft is inserted into the groove of the knob.

  Next, an image forming apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the image forming apparatus 10 includes an apparatus main body 12 including an image forming unit (not shown) that forms an image on a sheet. A paper cassette 14 for storing paper is provided at the lower part of the apparatus main body 12. An automatic document feeder 16 is provided on the upper part of the apparatus body 12.

  As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, an image forming apparatus 10 in which a metal shaft 18 is assembled to a resin knob 20 is often used. The shaft 18 assembled to the knob 20 is rotated by the knob 20.

  Here, as shown in FIG. 4, the shaft 18 has an axial shape, and a planar first planar portion 22 and a planar second planar portion 24 are formed on the side surfaces thereof. The first plane part 22 and the second plane part 24 are formed at positions so as to face each other. Further, shaft-side through holes 26 penetrating in a direction (thickness direction) orthogonal to the axial direction are formed in the vicinity of both axial ends of the shaft 18.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 3, the knob 20 is formed with a groove 28 into which the shaft 18 is inserted. The groove 28 is a U-shaped groove having an opening 30 that opens in a predetermined direction (the insertion direction of the shaft 18). Further, in the groove 28, the planar first side surface portion 32 that comes into contact with the first flat surface portion 22 of the shaft 18 and the second flat surface portion 24 of the shaft 18 that are in surface contact with the shaft 18 inserted in the groove 28. A planar second side surface portion 34 is formed.

  Here, the length X along the shaft insertion direction of the first side surface portion 32 is formed to be longer (X> Y) than the length Y along the shaft insertion direction of the second side surface portion 34.

  Further, the separation dimension L between the first planar portion 22 and the second planar portion 24 of the shaft 18 is substantially the same as the separation dimension M between the first side surface portion 32 and the second side surface portion 34 of the groove 28, or the shaft 18. Is set to be slightly larger than the separation dimension M between the first side surface portion 32 and the second side surface portion 34 to such an extent that can be press-fitted into the groove 28.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the knob 20 is formed with a knob side through hole 38 through which the fixing screw 36 passes. Further, the second side surface portion 34 of the groove 28 is formed with a screwing portion 40 into which the fixing screw 36 is screwed. Therefore, the fixing screw 36 is inserted into the knob side through hole 38 and the shaft side through hole 26 in a state where the shaft 18 is inserted into the groove 28 of the knob 20 and the shaft side through hole 26 and the knob side through hole 38 are communicated with each other. The shaft 18 is firmly fixed to the knob 20 by being inserted and screwed into the screwing portion 40.

  Next, the operation of the image forming apparatus 10 of this embodiment will be described.

  As shown in FIGS. 2 to 4, the shaft 18 is formed with flat portions 22 and 24 facing each other, and the knob 20 has a U-shape having an open portion 30 opened in a predetermined direction. Since the groove 28 is formed, the planar portions 22 and 24 of the shaft 18 are inserted into the groove 28 of the knob 20 from the opening 30, so that the shaft 18 can be moved even in the relatively narrow image forming apparatus 10. The knob 20 can be easily assembled. In particular, since the flat portions 22 and 24 are formed over the longitudinal direction (axial direction) of the shaft 18, all parts of the shaft 18 can be inserted into the groove 28 of the knob 20, so that the assembly work of the shaft 18 is performed. Can be performed smoothly.

  Moreover, since it is not necessary to form a horizontal hole in the knob 20, the problem of undercut does not arise. Thereby, it is not necessary to make the structure of the metal mold | die which molds the knob 20 complicated (for example, slide structure), and the knob 20 can be shape | molded easily and at low cost.

  Here, in the groove 28 of the knob 20, a planar first side surface portion 32 that contacts the first planar portion 22 of the shaft 18 and a planar second side surface portion that contacts the second planar portion 24 of the shaft 18. 34, and the first side surface portion 32 is formed to be longer in the insertion direction of the shaft 18 than the second side surface portion 34, so that the shaft 18 is formed in the groove 28 of the knob 20. When inserting the shaft 18 into the groove 28 of the knob 20, the shaft 18 can be easily guided to the groove 28 of the knob 20 by placing the shaft 18 along the longer first side surface portion 32. Thereby, the assembly | attachment property of the shaft 18 can be improved significantly.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 3, the separation dimension L between the planar portions 22 and 24 of the shaft 18 is substantially the same as the separation dimension M between the first side surface portion 32 and the second side surface portion 34 of the groove 28, or Since the shaft 18 is set to be slightly larger than the separation dimension L between the first side surface portion 32 and the second side surface portion 34 to such an extent that the shaft 18 can be press-fitted into the groove 28, the shaft 18 is inserted into the groove 28 of the knob 20. After that, the shaft 18 can be prevented from coming out of the groove 28.

  Next, a modified example of the knob 20 will be described.

  As shown in FIG. 5, a rib 42 extending in the insertion direction of the shaft 18 is formed on the first side surface portion 32 of the groove 28 of the knob 20. A plurality of ribs 42 are formed along the extending direction of the groove 28. The rib 42 is made of resin like the knob 20 and is integrally formed with the knob 20. The knob 20 may be made of metal, the rib 42 may be made of resin, and the rib 42 may be bonded to the first side surface portion 32 of the groove 28 with an adhesive or the like.

  According to this modification, as shown in FIGS. 5A and 5B, when the shaft 18 is inserted into the groove 28 of the knob 20, the shaft 18 extends along the first side surface portion 32 of the groove 28. In this way, it is guided to the groove 28. Then, the shaft 18 is inserted into the groove 28 as shown in FIG. At this time, the first flat surface portion 22 of the shaft 18 is in contact with the contact portion 42A of the rib 42 formed on the first side surface portion 32 of the groove 28, and the rib 42 is caused by the pressure from the first flat surface portion 22 of the shaft 18. The contact portion 42A is bent and deformed. Further, the second flat surface portion 24 of the shaft 18 is in contact with the second side surface portion 34 of the groove 28. Furthermore, the non-contact part 42B which is the rib 42 formed in the 1st side part 32 of the groove | channel 28, and is not contacting with the 1st plane part 22 of the shaft 18 inserted in the groove | channel 28 is a state which is not bending-deformed. It becomes.

  As described above, in the state where the shaft 18 is inserted into the groove 28 of the knob 20, the contact portion 42 </ b> A of the rib 42 that is in contact with the first flat portion 22 of the shaft 18 is bent and deformed, and the shaft 18 is not in contact. The non-contact part 42B of the rib 42 is not bent and deformed. As a result, a predetermined pressing force acts on the first flat portion 22 of the shaft 18 in contact with the contact portion 42A of the rib 42 deformed and deformed from the contact portion 42A of the rib 42 deformed and deformed. Fixed. At the same time, the non-contact portion 42B of the rib 42 that has not been bent and deformed protrudes toward the second flat surface portion 24 rather than the first flat surface portion 22 of the shaft 18, thereby preventing the shaft 18 from coming off. Thus, the shaft 18 can be prevented synergistically from slipping out of the groove 28 of the knob 20. Further, it is possible to prevent the shaft 18 from moving in the axial direction and coming out of the extending direction of the groove 28 without providing the knob 20 with the fixing screw 36 (see FIG. 2).

  In particular, the second side surface portion 34 of the groove 28 also has a rib (not shown) similar to the rib 42 formed on the first side surface portion 32, and when the shaft 18 is inserted into the groove 28, The pressure may interact with the second flat portion 24. As a result, the shaft 18 can be prevented from coming off from the groove 28 more strongly.

1 is a front view of an image forming apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 3 is a plan view showing a state where a shaft is attached to a knob provided in the image forming apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention. 1 is a side view showing a state where a shaft is attached to a knob provided in an image forming apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. It is a side view of the shaft attached to the knob provided in the image forming apparatus which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention. FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram showing a state where a shaft is inserted into a groove of a knob that is a modification of the knob provided in the image forming apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention. It is a side view which shows the state in which the shaft was attached to the knob provided in the conventional image forming apparatus.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Image forming apparatus 18 Shaft 20 Knob 22 1st plane part (plane part)
24 2nd plane part (plane part)
28 Groove 30 Opening portion 32 First side surface portion 34 Second side surface portion 42 Rib 42A Contact portion 42B Non-contact portion

Claims (2)

A shaft,
A knob to which the shaft is connected to operate the shaft;
A U-shaped groove formed in the knob and having an open portion opened in a predetermined direction;
A pair of flat portions formed at a connection portion of the shaft to the knob, and inserted into the groove from the open portion and facing each other;
An image forming apparatus having
The groove of the knob has a planar first side surface portion that contacts one of the planar portions of the shaft, and a planar second side surface portion that contacts the other of the planar portions of the shaft. ,
One of the first side surface portion or the second side surface portion is formed to be longer along the insertion direction of the shaft than the other,
A rib extending in the insertion direction of the shaft is formed on the longer side of the first side surface portion or the second side surface portion,
In a state where the flat portion of the shaft is inserted into the groove of the knob, the contact portion of the rib that is in contact with the flat portion of the shaft is bent and deformed, and the flat portion of the shaft is not in contact. An image forming apparatus, wherein a non-contact portion of the rib is not bent and deformed . The distance between the flat portions of the shaft is substantially the same as the distance between the first side surface and the second side surface of the knob, or the first side surface portion can be press-fitted into the groove. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the image forming apparatus is set to be slightly larger than a separation dimension between the first side surface portion and the second side surface portion .

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