JP7086546B2 - Image forming device - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to the structure of a manual paper feed unit provided in an image forming apparatus.

The image forming apparatus is configured to be provided with a door that can be opened and closed for the main body of the apparatus, and the door can be opened to expose the transport path inside the apparatus during jam processing and maintenance / inspection (Patent Document 1). reference). As shown in FIGS. 10 and 11, the conventional image forming apparatus has an opening / closing door 20 mounted on the right side surface of the apparatus main body 1, and when jamming, the opening / closing door 20 is provided at the lower part of the apparatus main body. It rotates around the moving axis as a fulcrum. As a result, the transport path in the image forming apparatus 1 is exposed, and jam processing becomes possible.

The opening / closing door 20 is provided with a manual feeding unit 17 on which paper is loaded. When using the manual paper feed unit 17, the operator grasps the handle provided on the front side of the manual paper feed unit in FIG. 11, opens the opening / closing door 20 to the open position, and feeds the paper to the manual paper feed unit 17. Load. Then, the image forming apparatus feeds the sheets loaded on the manual feeding unit 17 one by one to form an image.

During the jam processing operation, the opening / closing door 20 may be rotated while the unused paper is loaded on the manual feeding unit. In this case, the manual paper feed unit also rotates in conjunction with the rotation of the opening / closing door 20. As a result, the upper end side of the manual paper feed unit 17 may be tilted to an angle located below the center of rotation, and the loaded unused paper may fall to the ground. Therefore, in Patent Document 2, based on the detection of jam, the paper bundle on the manual feed tray is bound by a paper feed roller provided on the downstream side upper side of the manual paper feed unit and a pressing plate provided on the opposite side thereof that can be pressed on and off. Insert it. This prevents the bundle of paper from falling.

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2010-102124 Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2007-70044

According to Patent Document 2, the paper bundle is prevented from falling due to the presence of the pressing plate. However, if such a member for preventing the paper bundle from falling is provided exclusively, new parts, an electric control circuit, etc. are added. It must be provided, which leads to an increase in the size of the device and an increase in cost.

In view of the above problems, it is an object of the present invention to provide an inexpensive image forming apparatus without increasing the size of the apparatus and increasing the cost.

In order to achieve the above object, the image forming apparatus of the present invention is supported by a door which is supported by the apparatus main body and rotates so that the upper end side is separated from the apparatus main body about the axis on the lower end side and the door. The upper end side is rotatable about the axis on the lower end side so as to be separated from the door, and a manual feed tray on which paper is loaded, a feeding unit for feeding the paper loaded on the manual feed tray, and a feeding unit. An image forming unit that forms an image on the paper fed by the feeding unit, a recess provided at the upper end of the manual feed tray, and the recess in the manual feed tray in a width direction orthogonal to the paper feeding direction. It is a wall portion provided at a position overlapping with the door, and the angle of the manual feed tray is displaced in conjunction with the rotation of the door, and the manual feed is performed to an angle at which the upper end of the manual feed tray is located below the center of rotation. The door has a wall portion configured to prevent the paper from falling due to a collision of the paper loaded on the manual feed tray when the tray is tilted, and the door has the manual feed tray. The recess has an inner wall facing the loading surface of the manual feed tray when closed to the door, and the recess exposes a part of the inner wall when the manual feed tray is closed to the door. The wall portion is characterized in that the space between the manual feed tray and the inner wall is shielded from the opening in a state where the manual feed tray is closed with respect to the door. ..

According to the present invention, it is possible to prevent the paper from falling when the manual feed tray is tilted by a simple and inexpensive configuration. Therefore, even if there is paper in the manual feed tray during jam processing, it is possible to open the open / close door without removing it.

Sectional drawing which shows the schematic structure of the image forming apparatus Perspective view showing the right door Perspective view showing the relationship between the extension tray and the manual feed tray cover Perspective view showing the surface of the bypass tray opposite to the loading surface. Perspective view showing the state where the manual feed tray is closed with respect to the right door. Cross-sectional view showing the state where the manual feed tray is closed with respect to the right door. Cross-sectional view showing the state where the manual feed tray is closed with respect to the right door. Sectional drawing which showed the state which the manual feed tray was opened A cross-sectional view showing a state in which the right door is opened with respect to the main body of the device and the manual feed tray is opened with respect to the right door. A cross-sectional view showing a state in which the right door is opened with respect to the main body of the conventional image forming apparatus. A perspective view showing a state in which the manual feed tray is opened with respect to the right door of a conventional image forming apparatus.

〔Example〕
Hereinafter, the best mode for carrying out the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

(Image forming device)
FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view showing the configuration of a color electrophotographic image forming apparatus. The apparatus main body 1 of the image forming apparatus includes four drum-shaped image carriers arranged side by side in a substantially horizontal direction as image carriers, that is, photoconductor drums 2 (2a, 2b, 2c, 2d). .. The photoconductor drum 2 is rotationally driven clockwise in FIG. 1 by a driving means (not shown). The image forming apparatus includes a charging device 3 (3a, 3b, 3c, 3d), a scanner unit 4 (4a, 4b, 4c, 4d), a developing device 5 (5a, 5b, 5c, 5d), and a cleaning device 6 (6a). , 6b, 6c, 6d).

The charging device 3 uniformly charges the surface of the photoconductor drum 2. The scanner unit 4 irradiates a laser beam based on the image information to form an electrostatic latent image on the photoconductor drum 2. The developing apparatus 5 attaches a toner containing a developing material to the electrostatic latent image and develops it as a toner image. The cleaning device 6 removes the transfer residual toner remaining on the surface of the photoconductor drum 2 after transfer.

The image forming apparatus of this embodiment is configured as a cartridge unit in which a photoconductor drum 2, a charging device 3, a developing device 5, and a cleaning device 6 are integrated, and different colors (yellow, cyan, magenta, black) are used depending on the electrophotographic recording method. ) Is formed.

The primary transfer rollers 7 (7a, 7b, 7c, 7d) are in contact with the photoconductor drum 2 via the intermediate transfer belt 8 and transfer the toner image on the photoconductor drum 2 to the intermediate transfer belt 8. The intermediate transfer belt 8 is stretched between the drive roller 9 and the tension roller 10, and is rotated counterclockwise by the drive of the drive roller 9. The secondary transfer roller 11 provided at a position facing the drive roller 9 via the intermediate transfer belt 8 transfers the toner image transferred to the intermediate transfer belt 8 to the paper (sheet) S. Further, there is an intermediate transfer belt cleaning device 12 at a position facing the tension roller 10 via the intermediate transfer belt 8, and the transfer residual toner remaining on the surface of the intermediate transfer belt 8 is removed and recovered.

The image forming apparatus includes a paper feed cassette 13 and a manual paper feed unit 17 as means for feeding the paper S. The manual paper feed unit 17 includes a manual feed tray 21, which will be described later, and is supported by the device main body 1 and rotates in a direction in which the upper end is separated from the device main body with a horizontal axis (not shown) on the lower end side as a rotation center. It is configured to do. The manual paper feed unit 17 will be described in detail with reference to FIGS. 2 to 9.

The paper S loaded on the manual paper feed unit 17 in a predetermined number of sheets is separated one by one by the paper feed belt 18 and the separation roller 19 and conveyed to the paper feed extraction roller 16. Similarly, the paper loaded in the paper feed cassette 13 in a predetermined number of sheets is separated one by one by the CST paper feed roller 14 and the CST separation roller 15 and conveyed to the paper feed extraction roller 16. The paper S conveyed by the paper feed extraction roller 16 is conveyed to the resist roller pair 70, and is conveyed to the contact portion between the intermediate transfer belt 8 and the secondary transfer roller 11. The toner image transferred from the image forming portion of each color to the intermediate transfer belt 8 is transferred to the paper S from the contact portion between the intermediate transfer belt 8 and the secondary transfer roller 11 to form a color image, and then the paper S is fixed. It is transported to the vessel 71. The fuser 71 applies heat and pressure to the toner image transferred to the paper S. As a result, the paper S on which the toner images of the plurality of colors are fixed is guided to the discharge transport path 73 side by the double-sided flapper 72, and is discharged to the paper discharge tray 75 via the paper discharge roller pair 74. The double-sided flapper 72 is a transport path switching means for guiding the paper to the discharge transport path 73 at the time of single-sided printing.

(Bypass paper feed unit 17)
2 to 9 are views showing the configuration of the manual paper feed unit 17. FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing details of the right door 20 including the manual paper feed unit 17. The right door 20 is an opening / closing door that is supported by the main body 1 of the apparatus and rotates in a direction in which the upper end is separated from the right door 20 with a horizontal axis (not shown) on the lower end side as a rotation center. The right door 20 is provided on the right side surface when viewed from the front of the image forming apparatus, and connects the apparatus main body and the right door 20 by a connecting member (not shown). The manual feed tray 21 is a paper loading means that is supported by the right door 20 and rotates about a horizontal axis on the lower end side as a rotation center. In the present embodiment, the angle of the manual feed tray 21 is displaced in conjunction with the rotation of the right door 20. As a result, the upper end side of the manual feed tray 21 may be tilted to an angle located below the center of rotation, and the loaded unused paper may fall to the ground. Therefore, in the present embodiment, a wall member 23W, which will be described later, is provided in the vicinity of the handle portion 23H to prevent the paper bundle from falling when the manual feed tray 21 is tilted.

The manual feed tray 21 has a manual feed tray base 21B, an extension tray 23, and a manual feed tray cover 27, which will be described later. The rotary stopper 26 is a rotary stopper for the manual feed tray 21, one end of which is rotatably supported by the right door 20, and the other end of which is rotatably and slidably supported by the manual feed tray 21. As a result, the maximum opening angle of the manual feed tray 21 is determined. The side regulation plate 22 is provided on the manual feed tray 21, and the width direction orthogonal to the feed direction of the paper S so that the paper S loaded on the manual feed tray 21 can be fed straight to the image forming apparatus main body 1. Regulate the movement of both ends of the. The side restricting plate 22 has a hiss portion 22H, and suppresses the upper curl of the widthwise end portion of the paper. The manual feed tray storage space 24 is a space between the right door 20 and the manual feed tray 21. Specifically, the manual feed tray storage space 24 is a space surrounded by various parts such as the manual feed tray 21, the side regulation plate 22 provided on the manual feed tray 21, and the extension tray 23 when the manual feed tray 21 is closed. be. The paper feed belt unit 25 is a feed unit including the paper feed belt 18, and is held by the right door 20. Further, when the manual feed tray 21 is closed with respect to the right door 20, the manual feed tray 21 is arranged so as not to be visible to the operator. The extension tray 23 has a wall member 23W that protrudes from the paper loading surface (or a virtual surface that is a virtual extension of the paper loading surface). The wall member 23W has a manual feed tray 21 when the angle of the manual feed tray 21 is displaced in conjunction with the rotation of the right door 20 (when the upper end side of the manual feed tray 21 is tilted until it is positioned below the center of rotation). It prevents unused paper loaded in the tray from falling to the ground. The wall member 23W is provided at a position overlapping the handle portion 23H (FIG. 3) in the width direction when viewed from the paper feeding direction. The handle portion 23H is a handle portion that is grasped by the operator when the manual feed tray 21 is released from the right door 20.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing details of the extension tray 23 and the manual feed tray cover 27. The extension tray 23 is used by the operator by grasping the handle portion 23H and pulling it out when using a large size paper such as A3 paper. The extension tray 23 is stored in a box-shaped manual feed tray box having an open opening for inserting and removing the extension tray 23 sandwiched between the manual feed tray base 21B and the manual feed tray cover 27.

In the extension tray 23, the boss 27P of the manual feed tray cover 27 is guided by the groove 23M of the extension tray 23 on the left and right ends of the manual feed tray 21 and slides smoothly with respect to the manual feed tray box. As shown in FIG. 3, the wall member 23W has dimensions a, b, and d set to a = 15 mm, b = 60 mm, and a step d of 1 mm. It is desirable that the dimension a that defines the height of the wall member is set higher than the maximum height of the paper that is allowed to be loaded on the manual feed tray 21. Here, 10 mm set as the value of the dimension a corresponds to 100 sheets of paper having a basis weight of 64 g / m ² . Further, in the present embodiment, by providing a step d on the upper end side of the wall member 23W, the operator can easily grasp the handle portion 23H.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing a surface of the manual feed tray base 21B on the side where the extension tray 23 is stored. The claw portion 23F of the extension tray 23 is fixed to the storage position and the drawer position by engaging with the recess 21K of the manual feed tray base 21B. In this embodiment, it is locked at two stages of locking positions. However, the locking position is not limited to this, and the recess may be increased so that the locking position can be performed in three or more stages.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing a state in which the manual feed tray 21 is closed with respect to the right door 20. The dimensions of the operation port 24T formed in the recess of the manual feed tray 21 were set to X = 70 mm (b + 10 mm), Y = 20 mm, and Z = 25 mm. By setting the above dimensions, the user can easily insert his / her hand into the operation port 24T when opening the manual feed tray 21 and open the manual feed tray 21. In the present embodiment, the recess is formed in the manual feed tray 21, but it may be formed in the right door 20 instead of the manual feed tray 21. The wall member 23W makes it easy for the operator to recognize the location and shape when gripping the handle portion of the manual feed tray 21. Further, the wall member 23W is configured to hide the manual feed tray storage space 24 from the opening so that the operator's finger is not inserted all the way.

FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line AA shown in FIG. 5 and shows a method of locking the manual feed tray 21 with respect to the right door 20. In FIG. 6, the claw member 35 and the claw member urging spring 36 are provided on the right door 20 side, and the locking hole 21H is provided on the manual feed tray 21 side. When the manual feed tray 21 is rotated with respect to the right door 20, the lock is released by pushing up the claw member 35 spring-urged by the claw member urging spring 36 at the edge of the locking hole 21H.

FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line BB shown in FIG. 5, showing a method of locking the right door 20 to the image forming apparatus main body 1. The right door handle 31 rotates counterclockwise in the figure to release the lock. The claw member urging spring 32 has a larger spring force than the claw member urging spring 36 of FIG. This is because the right door 20 is heavier than the manual feed tray 21, and the holding force by the lock must be increased.

When the manual feed tray 21 is stored in the right door 20, the manual feed tray storage space 24 is formed by the inner wall 20C of the right door 20 and the exterior surface of the manual feed tray 21. In FIG. 7, the gap λ between the wall member 23W in the manual feed tray storage space 24 and the inner wall 20C of the right door 20 is set to be 5 mm.

FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view showing a state in which the right door 20 is closed and a bundle of paper is loaded. In the present embodiment, the maximum height Hs of the bundle of paper is set to 10 mm, and the height of the t-plane of the wall member 23W is set to Hw: 15 mm. The allowable height of the bundle of paper is 10 mm, which is equivalent to 100 sheets of paper having a basis weight of 64 g / m ² . The downstream end of the bundle of paper abuts against a guide before feeding, which is not shown, and the position in the width direction is restricted by the side regulating plate 22 in the width direction of the paper, and the stack is in a state of waiting for feeding operation.

FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view showing a state in which the right door 20 is opened for jam processing operation while an unused paper bundle is loaded on the manual feed tray. The upstream end of the paper bundle hits the wall member 23W of the extension tray 23 to prevent the paper bundle from falling to the ground. The closer the value of θ shown in FIG. 9 is to 0 degrees, the easier it is for the paper bundle to fall, but in a normal device, the relationship between the fulcrum and the center of gravity does not make it so small. Further, by providing the hiss portion 22H provided on the side regulation plate 22, the floating of the paper bundle is suppressed, and it is difficult for the paper bundle to get over the wall member 23W.

In this embodiment, the apparatus main body is installed on a dedicated loading platform 101, and as shown in FIG. 9, the manual feed tray is opened to the maximum with respect to the right door 20. However, when the image forming apparatus is placed on the floor, the tilt angle becomes smaller than that in the present embodiment because the upstream end of the manual feed tray remains in contact with the floor.

The structure of the manual feed tray 21 provided in the image forming apparatus of the present embodiment has been described above. In the manual feed tray 21 of the present embodiment, the angle of the manual feed tray 21 is displaced in conjunction with the rotation of the right door 20 supported by the apparatus main body 1, and the upper end of the manual feed tray 21 is below the horizontal with respect to the rotation fulcrum. Tilt to an angle located at. At this time, the wall member 23W provided on the extension tray 23 hits the rear end of the paper on the manual feed tray 21 to prevent the paper from falling. This makes it possible to open the right door 20 without removing the unused paper on the manual feed tray during the jam treatment.

Further, the wall member 23W is used not only for preventing the paper from falling as described above, but also for shielding the manual feed tray storage space 24. That is, since the wall member 23W is located near (or partially constitutes) the handle portion 23H, the operator stores the finger in the tray when the manual feed tray 21 is changed from the closed state to the open state. It prevents it from being inserted into the space 24.

Further, the wall member 23W is also used to make it easier for the operator to recognize the place and shape when gripping the handle portion of the manual feed tray 21. From the operator's point of view, it may be difficult to see the lower part of the back through the opening of the manual feed tray, and psychological anxiety may be felt. It makes it easy to recognize the location and shape of the handle.

Further, since the wall member 23W encourages the operator to grasp the elevation, there is also an effect that the handle shape can be formed so as not to pinch the fingers when closing the manual feed tray 21.

Further, since the wall member 23W is also used as a handle for opening the manual feed tray 21, there is an effect that it is not necessary to additionally provide a dedicated part.

1 Image forming device 13 Paper feed cassette 17 Manual paper feed unit 18 Paper feed belt 19 Separation roller 20 Right door 20C Right door inner wall 21 Manual feed tray 21B Manual feed tray base 21H Locking hole 21K Recess 22 Side regulation plate 22H Hisashi part 23 Extension tray 23f Claw part 23H Handle part 23M Groove part 23W Wall member 24 Manual feed tray storage space 24T Operation port 25 Paper feed belt unit 26 Rotating stopper 27 Manual feed tray cover 27P Boss 31 Right door handle 33 Locking member 35 Claw member

Claims (6)

A door that is supported by the main body of the device and rotates so that the upper end side is separated from the main body of the device with the axis on the lower end side as the center.
A manual feed tray that is supported by the door, is rotatable about the axis on the lower end side so that the upper end side is separated from the door, and is loaded with paper.
A feeding unit that feeds the paper loaded on the manual feed tray, and
An image forming unit that forms an image on the paper supplied by the feeding unit, and an image forming unit.
The recess provided at the upper end of the manual feed tray and
A wall portion of the manual feed tray provided at a position overlapping the recess in the width direction orthogonal to the paper feeding direction, and the angle of the manual feed tray is displaced in conjunction with the rotation of the door to manually feed the manual. When the manual feed tray is tilted to an angle at which the upper end of the tray is located below the center of rotation, the paper loaded on the manual feed tray abuts against the paper to prevent the paper from falling. With a wall,
The door has an inner wall facing the loading surface of the manual feed tray in a state where the manual feed tray is closed with respect to the door.
The recess forms an opening that exposes a portion of the inner wall when the bypass tray is closed to the door.
The wall portion is an image forming apparatus characterized in that the space between the manual feed tray and the inner wall is shielded from the opening in a state where the manual feed tray is closed with respect to the door. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the manual feed tray has a stepped portion between the wall portion and the recessed portion. The manual feed tray has an extension tray that can slide in the paper feeding direction.
The image forming apparatus according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the wall portion is provided on the extension tray. It has a transport path for transporting the paper fed by the feed unit to the image forming unit.
The image forming apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the transport path is exposed when the door is opened. The image forming apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the wall portion protrudes from a virtual surface having an extended loading surface. 6. Image forming device.

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