JP2000038230A - Paper sheet separation device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a paper sheet separation device capable of preventing injury occurring when the maintenance such as cleaning in the paper sheet separation device is done and performing the maintenance in the paper sheet separation device safely. SOLUTION: This paper sheet separation device 2 is constituted by a plate spring member 10 energizing a plurality of document sheets P toward a separation roller 9 and a cover member 11 attached to a tip part of the plate spring member 10. A swing arm part 10a of the plate spring member 10 is covered with the cover member 11. Consequently, when a panel cover 3 is opened and a picture image reading part 12a of CIS12 and a white tape 13 are cleaned, it is possible to prevent a hand from coming into contact with the swing arm part 10a of the plate spring member 10 directly by the cover member 11. For this reason, since injury by which a cut is caused by scratching the hand in an end part of the swing arm part 10a of the plate spring member 10 is prevented by the cover member 11, the maintenance of a facsimile device 1 such as cleaning of the picture image reading part 12a of CIS12 and the white tape 13 can be done safely.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a sheet separating device for separating a plurality of sheets fed by a feed roller one by one.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art An image forming apparatus such as a facsimile apparatus includes a contact image sensor (hereinafter referred to as CIS (Contact Immunity)).
An age sensor) is provided with a sheet separating device that separates a plurality of original sheets from which an image is read for each sheet and feeds the separated sheets to the CIS. The paper separating apparatus mainly includes a paper feed roller that feeds the original paper to the CIS, a spring member that urges a plurality of original paper sheets toward the paper feed roller, and is urged by the spring member. And a separating piece for separating a plurality of original sheets one by one. According to this paper separating apparatus, the plurality of original sheets are urged toward the paper feed roller by the spring member, and the rotation of the paper feed roller causes a contact portion between the paper feed roller and the separation piece. (Separation point) and are separated one by one when passing through this separation point. The document sheet separated for each sheet is fed to the CIS by a feed roller, and an image is read by the CIS.

[0003]

However, since the above-mentioned spring member for urging the manuscript paper is formed of a metal piece such as a steel material, for example, when maintenance is performed inside a facsimile apparatus or a paper separation apparatus, for example, When wiping and cleaning dirt on a reading unit of a reading device such as a CIS with a cloth or the like, there is a problem in that the end of the spring member scratches a hand and causes an injury such as a cut.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made to solve the above-described problems, and prevents injuries that occur when performing maintenance such as cleaning inside a paper separating apparatus, thereby making maintenance inside the paper separating apparatus safe. It is an object of the present invention to provide a paper separating apparatus that can perform the above operation.

[0005]

In order to achieve the above object, a paper separating apparatus according to claim 1 is provided in which a plurality of sheets fed by a sheet feed roller disposed in a case body are provided one by one. A cover body is attached to the case body so as to be openable and closable, and is provided to face the paper feed roller, and is attached to the cover body and rotates with the rotation of the paper feed roller. A separating member for separating a plurality of sheets one by one, and in order to urge the sheets separated by the separating member toward the surface of the sheet feeding roller, from the cover body side to the surface of the sheet feeding roller. The urging member includes a biasing member extending toward the cover, and a covering member attached to the extending portion of the biasing member and covering the extending portion.

According to the paper separating apparatus of the first aspect, the plurality of sheets are urged toward the surface of the paper feed roller by the urging member, and are rotated by the paper feed roller by the separation member. Each sheet is separated and fed. The urging member for urging a plurality of sheets has its extended portion covered by the covering member, so that the cover is opened to maintain the inside of the sheet separating device or the case body, for example, the inside of the sheet separating device or When cleaning the inside of the case body, direct contact of the hand or the like with the extended portion of the urging member is prevented.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a sheet separating apparatus.
In the paper separating device described above, the cover body is disposed on the case body while being inclined downward from the upstream side in the paper feeding direction to the downstream side, and the downstream side in the paper feeding direction is a center of rotation. It is attached to the case body so that it can be opened and closed freely.

[0008] According to the paper separating apparatus of the second aspect, it operates in the same manner as the paper separating apparatus of the first aspect.
When the cover body is opened, the paper supply direction downstream side of the cover body, that is, the lower part of the cover body is rotated around the rotation center, and the cover body upstream part of the paper supply direction, that is, the upper part of the cover body is turned upward. By doing so, the cover body is opened.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided a sheet separating apparatus.
Or the paper separating apparatus according to 2, wherein the covering member is formed with an engaging member extending toward the cover body, and the cover body is engaged with the engaging member and the covering member is engaged with the covering member. A stopper member is provided to limit the movement in the direction crossing the sheet feeding direction within a predetermined range.

According to the sheet separating apparatus of the third aspect, the sheet separating apparatus operates in the same manner as the sheet separating apparatus of the first or second aspect, and additionally, the engaging member of the covering member is engaged with the stopper member of the cover body. Accordingly, the movement of the covering member in the direction crossing the sheet feeding direction is restricted within a predetermined range. Therefore, when the cover body is opened to maintain the inside of the paper separating apparatus or the case body, for example, when cleaning, the cover member is caught by a hand or the like, and the biasing member is plastically deformed in a direction crossing the paper feeding direction. Is prevented.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a sheet separating apparatus.
3. The sheet separating device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the separating member contacts a sheet fed by the sheet feeding roller and separates a plurality of sheets one by one; A separating member urging member for urging the cover member side toward the paper feed roller side, wherein the covering member is provided so as to protrude toward a contact surface side between the separating member and the paper, and the separation member is provided. A pressing member for pressing the piece toward the separating piece urging member side is provided.

According to the sheet separating apparatus of the fourth aspect, the sheet separating apparatus operates in the same manner as the sheet separating apparatus of any one of the first to third aspects, and the sheet fed by the sheet feeding roller is separated from the sheet by the separating sheet. The urging member comes into contact with the separation piece urged from the cover body side to the paper feed roller side, and is separated and fed one by one. Moreover, the separation piece urged by the separation piece urging member is pressed toward the separation piece urging member by the pressing member protruding from the covering member.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a sheet separating apparatus.
In the paper separating device described above, a pair of the urging members are provided on both sides of the separating member in the paper width direction, and the covering members are respectively attached to extending portions of the pair of urging members. The pressing members protrude from both sides in the sheet width direction, respectively, and are formed symmetrically with respect to the sheet feeding direction.

According to the paper separating apparatus of the fifth aspect, the sheet separating apparatus operates in the same manner as the paper separating apparatus of the fourth aspect.
The plurality of sheets are urged toward the surface of the sheet feeding roller by urging members disposed on both sides of the separation member in the sheet width direction. Moreover, a covering member is attached to each of the pair of urging members, and pressing members are respectively provided on both sides of the covering member in the sheet width direction. By the pressing members protruding from the sides, both side portions of the separation piece of the separation member in the paper width direction are pressed toward the separation piece urging member side.

According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a sheet separating apparatus.
5. The sheet separating apparatus according to any one of 1 to 5, wherein the covering member has a coefficient of friction at a contact portion with a sheet fed by the sheet feed roller, and a friction coefficient at a contact portion with the sheet at the surface of the separating member. It is formed smaller than the coefficient.

According to the sheet separating apparatus of the sixth aspect, the sheet separating apparatus operates in the same manner as the sheet separating apparatus of any one of the first to fifth aspects, and additionally, a plurality of sheets are formed by the rotation of the sheet feeding roller. Then, the urging member slides at a contact portion with the covering member attached to the extension portion of the urging member, is guided to the separation member, and is contacted and caught by the separation member to be separated one by one. .

[0017]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. The sheet separating apparatus according to the present embodiment is for separating a plurality of original sheets one by one, and is used in a facsimile apparatus. The paper separating apparatus mainly includes a separation pad 8 that cooperates with a separation roller 9 to separate a plurality of original sheets P one by one, and separates the original sheet P separated by the separation pad 8 from the separation roller 9. It comprises a leaf spring member 10 for urging toward the surface, and a cover member 11 attached to the tip of the leaf spring member 10.

FIG. 1 is a side sectional view schematically showing the internal structure of a facsimile apparatus 1 having a paper separating apparatus 2 according to an embodiment of the present invention.
Are shown. As shown in FIG. 1, a case body 1a of the facsimile machine 1 has a panel cover 3 covered on an upper part thereof. The panel cover 3 includes, on its surface, an operation panel provided with a plurality of buttons (not shown) and a liquid crystal display (not shown) for displaying the operation status of the facsimile apparatus 1 and the like. By operating a button provided on the panel, the facsimile machine 1 is operated.

The panel cover 3 is inclined downward from the upstream side in the conveying direction of the original sheet P (the direction of the arrow X in FIG. 1) to the downstream side in the conveying direction of the original sheet P, and is covered over the case body 1a. ing. That is, the panel cover 3 is the case body 1
a is covered over the upper part of the case body 1a in a state of being inclined downward from the rear end side (the right side in FIG. 1) to the front end side (the left side in FIG. 1). Is formed integrally with a swing arm 3a extending toward the case body 1a. The swing arm 3a has its lower end portion rotatably (rotatably) mounted on a rotation shaft 4 provided on the front end side of the case body 1a. The panel cover 3 has the rotation shaft 4 as a center of rotation. As a (rotation center), it is rotatably attached to the front end side of the case body 1a. Therefore, the panel cover 3 is moved through the swing arm 3a and the rotation shaft 4
An opening and closing operation can be performed. In addition, the panel cover 3
It is formed by injection molding a synthetic resin material.

At the rear end side of the panel cover 3 (right side in FIG. 1), that is, on the upstream side in the transport direction of the document sheet P, the panel cover 3
The upper part of the case body 1a forms a document insertion portion 5 which is a space in which a plurality of document sheets P can be inserted in a stacked state. A sheet separating device 2 for separating a plurality of original sheets P to be inserted into the original insertion portion 5 is disposed downstream of the original insertion portion 5 in the transport direction. The sheet separating device 2 includes the separation pad 8 for separating the document sheet P one by one, and includes a substantially rectangular pad pressing member 7 attached to the lower surface of the panel cover 3. The pad pressing member 7 is for urging the separation pad 8 toward the separation roller 9 to press the separation pad 8. The pad pressing member 7 is formed of an elastic metal material such as a thin plate-like stainless steel material, and is a screw member such as a screw. 6 is attached to the lower surface of the panel cover 3 so as to be able to swing vertically.

The pad pressing member 7 is formed with an extension 7a extending from the lower surface of the panel cover 3 toward the separation roller 9, and the tip of the extension 7a is located above, ie, the panel cover. 3 Bending portion 7b bent toward the lower surface
Are formed. Bending portion 7b of this pad pressing member 7
A rib member 3b integrally formed on the lower surface of the panel cover 3 is disposed above and separated from the bent portion 7b, and the upper end of the bent portion 7b of the pad pressing member 7 contacts the lower end of the rib member 3b. Thus, the upward swinging operation of the pad pressing member 7 can be limited.

On the lower surface side of the pad pressing member 7, a separation pad 8 made of a synthetic resin material such as silicone rubber having flexibility and formed in a substantially flat shape is attached via a screw member 6. The separation pad 8 is for separating a plurality of original sheets P one by one in cooperation with a separation roller 9 described later, and is formed of a synthetic resin material having a large surface friction coefficient such as silicon rubber. Therefore, a plurality of original sheets P in contact with the surface can be hooked and separated one by one. Further, the leading end portion of the separation pad 8 is urged toward the separation roller 9 by the pad pressing member 7, and comes into contact with (contacts) the upper surface of the separation roller 9 to separate the document paper P. Make up the points.

The separation roller 9 cooperates with the separation pad 8 to separate a plurality of original sheets P one by one and transports the original sheets P downstream in the transport direction. , Is rotatably mounted on the case body 1a. Above the separation roller 9 and on the lower surface of the panel cover 3, a substantially L-shaped leaf spring member 10 is attached via a screw member 6 together with a pad pressing member 7 and a separation pad 8. The leaf spring member 10 is for urging the manuscript paper P toward the separation roller 9 via a cover member 11 described later, and is formed of an elastic metal material such as a thin plate-like stainless steel material. . The leaf spring member 10
Is provided with a swing arm portion 10a that is swingably extended from the lower surface of the panel cover 3 toward the separation roller 9, and the swing arm portion 10a is provided with a sheet width in the pad pressing member 7 and the separation pad 8. 1, that is, on both sides in the direction substantially perpendicular to the plane of the paper of FIG.

FIG. 1 shows only one of the pair of leaf spring members 10 on the back side, that is, only the swing arm portion 10a disposed on the back side in a direction substantially perpendicular to the plane of FIG. I have.

The swing arm 10a of the leaf spring member 10 has a cover member 1 made of a synthetic resin material such as POM (polyoxymethylene) resin having a small surface friction coefficient.
1 is attached. The cover member 11 is a leaf spring member 1.
The plurality of original sheets P are pressed toward the upper surface of the separation roller 9 by covering the swing arm 10a of the first roller and receiving the urging force of the swing arm 10a. Thus, the swing arm 1 of the leaf spring member 10
0a is covered with the cover member 11, so that the panel cover 3 is opened and the image reading unit 12 of the CIS 12 described later is opened.
In cleaning the a and the white tape 13, it is possible to prevent a hand or the like from directly contacting the end of the swing arm 10 a of the leaf spring member 10.

Since the cover member 11 is made of a synthetic resin material such as POM resin, the surface friction coefficient is made smaller than the surface friction coefficient of the synthetic resin material such as silicon rubber constituting the separation pad 8 described above. ing. Therefore, the original paper P can be slid without being hooked at the contact portion with the cover member 11, and the plurality of original papers P can be reliably pressed toward the upper surface of the separation roller 9. .

The cover member 11 has a lower end surface in contact with the upper surface of the separation roller 9 and a substantially rectangular engagement arm portion 11a extending upward from the contact portion toward the downstream side in the transport direction. It has. This engagement arm portion 11
a extends toward a substantially plate-like stopper member 3c integrally formed on the lower surface of the panel cover 3, and a tip end portion of the engagement arm portion 11a is inserted into an opening 3c1 formed in the stopper member 3c. It is fitted. The opening 3c1 of the stopper member 3c is formed wider than the engaging arm 11a of the cover member 11. The engaging arm 11a can be moved up and down in the opening 3c1. Vertical movement can be restricted within a predetermined range. The above-described leaf spring member 10 and cover member 1
Details of 1 will be described later.

Separation roller 9 to which cover member 11 contacts
Downstream of the printer, a CI for reading the image of the original paper P
S12 is provided on the case body 1a. This CIS1
An image reading unit 12a for reading an image is provided on the upper surface of the unit 2, and a white tape 13 which is used as a white reference when reading an image is provided above the image reading unit 12a. . The white tape 13 is disposed on the lower surface of the panel cover 3 and is attached to the lower surface of the document pressing member 14. The document pressing member 14 is urged by the coil spring 15 toward the image reading unit 12a. When the original paper P passes between the white tape 13 and the image reading unit 12a of the CIS 12, the image reading unit 12
The image is read by a.

Further downstream of the CIS 12, the CIS 12
A paper discharge roller 16 rotatably mounted on the case body 1a for discharging the document paper P from which an image has been read to the outside of the facsimile apparatus 1, and presses the document paper P against the paper discharge roller 16. For this purpose, a pressing roller 17 rotatably mounted on the lower surface of the panel cover 3 is provided.
The document sheet P from which the image is read by the image reading unit 12 a of the CIS 12 is nipped by the discharge roller 16 and the pressing roller 17, and is conveyed at a predetermined speed with the rotation of the discharge roller 16. The paper is discharged outside.

Case body 1a on which panel cover 3 is covered
On the rear end side (right side in FIG. 1), a roll paper 2 as a printing paper
1 is provided, and an upper cover 23 that covers above the roll paper 21 is provided above the roll paper tray 22. Upper cover 23
Is rotatably mounted on the case body 1a via the rotation shaft 24. On the other end side of the rotation shaft 24 of the upper cover 23, the roll paper 21 pulled out from the roll paper tray 22 is provided.
And a transfer path forming rib 23a that forms a part of the transfer path. The transport path forming rib 23a is formed continuously in the width direction of the roll paper 21 and has a length slightly longer than the width of the roll paper 21. This transport path forming rib 23
A pair of guide ribs 23b are provided on both sides of the sheet a so as to sandwich the conveyed roll paper 21. The upper cover 23 is formed by injection molding a synthetic resin material, and the transport path forming ribs 23a and the guide ribs 23b are integrally formed with the upper cover 23.

A groove 23c is formed in the upper part of the guide rib 23b, and the metal winding plate 2 is formed in the groove 23c.
5 has been inserted. The winding plate 25 is pivotally attached to the case body 1a on both sides thereof via a pair of pivot shafts 25a. The winding plate 25, together with the transport path forming ribs 23a, bends the transport path of the roll paper 21 in a direction opposite to the curl direction.

The distal end of the bent portion 25b of the winding plate 25 is disposed substantially in an S-shape in opposition to the distal end of the transport path forming rib 23a, so that the transport path of the roll paper 21 is curved in the direction opposite to the curl direction. Is formed. When the roll paper 21 passes through the curved conveyance path, the curl is removed.

Downstream of the winding plate 25, a pair of transport guides 26 for transporting the roll paper 21 transported from the bent portion 25b to the recording section 27 are provided. The recording unit 27 to which the roll paper 21 is sent by the transport guide 26
Is a print head 27a composed of a thermal print head.
And a platen 27b also serving as a feed roller.
The recording unit 27 performs printing by selectively applying heat to the roll paper 21 made of thermal printing paper conveyed to the recording unit 27 by the print head 27a. A pair of paper discharge rollers 28 is provided further downstream of the recording unit 27. The roll paper 21 on which printing has been performed by the recording unit 27 is conveyed at a predetermined speed with the rotation of the platen 27b, and then discharged to the outside of the facsimile apparatus 1 by the discharge rollers 28.

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of the facsimile machine 1 taken along the line II-II of FIG. 1, and is a bottom view of the panel cover 3 provided with the paper separating device 2. As shown in FIG.
The panel cover 3 is formed in a substantially rectangular shape, and the above-described paper separating device 2 is disposed at a substantially central portion thereof. The above-described leaf spring member 10 includes a pair of swing arm portions 1.
The reference numeral 0a is connected to the substantially flat fixing plate 10b, and the fixing plate 10b is attached to the lower surface of the panel cover 3 via the screw member 6. The leaf spring member 10
The pair of swing arms 10a are disposed on both sides of the separation pad 8, respectively, and the above-described cover member 11 is attached to each swing arm 10a.

A substantially triangular plate-like projection 1 is formed on both sides of each cover member 11 outwardly (in the vertical direction in FIG. 2).
1b and 11b are protruded, respectively. The protruding members 11b are for pressing the separation pad 8 against the urging force of the pad pressing member 7, and the protruding portions 11b of the cover member 11 on the separation pad 8 side are formed on both sides of the separation pad 8. Each is provided so as to straddle the portion. Moreover, the projections 11b, 11b straddling both sides of the separation pad 8 are provided so as to sandwich the separation pad 8 in the vertical direction together with the pad pressing member 7 (see FIG. 1).

Therefore, for example, when the original sheet P conveyed by the separation roller 9 is jammed and the original sheet P is pulled out in the opposite conveying direction, that is, in the direction indicated by the arrow X in FIG. The separation pad 8 that has come into contact with the sheet P is pulled together with the original sheet P and tends to be turned up from the lower surface of the pad pressing member 7 toward the upstream side in the transport direction. In such a case, in the sheet separation apparatus 2 of the present embodiment, Since the separation pad 8 is hooked on the protrusion 11b of the cover member 11,
It is possible to prevent the separation pad 8 from rolling up. Moreover, since it is not necessary to separately use a screw member such as a screw for screwing the separation pad 8 to the pad pressing member 7 in order to prevent such a curling, the number of parts of the paper separating apparatus 2 is accordingly reduced. As a result, the manufacturing cost of the entire sheet separating device 2 can be reduced.

FIG. 3 is an enlarged bottom view of the sheet separating device 2 shown in FIG. 2, and shows a cross section of a stopper member 3c provided on the lower surface of the panel cover 3. As shown in FIG.
The engaging arm portion 11a of the cover member 11 is
1 to the stopper member 3c from the end on the stopper member 3c side.
c. Opening 3 of stopper member 3c
c1 is the width W1 of the engaging arm 1 of the cover member 11.
1a is formed to be larger than the width W2 (W1> W
2) The movement of the original paper P in the paper width direction (the vertical direction in FIG. 3) in the engagement arm 11a is limited to a range (predetermined range) within the width W1. Therefore, when the panel cover 3 is opened and the white tape 13 and the image reading section 12a of the CIS 12 are cleaned, a hand or the like is caught by the cover member 11 and the leaf spring member 10 is damaged by plastic deformation in the sheet width direction. Can be prevented.

Next, the details of the leaf spring member 10 and the cover member 11 will be described with reference to FIGS.
FIG. 4A is a plan view of the leaf spring member 10, and FIG.
(B) is a side view thereof. As shown in FIG. 4, the leaf spring member 10 mainly includes a pair of swing arms 10a, and a substantially flat fixed plate 10b to which the pair of swing arms 10a are connected. I have. A circular through hole 10c is formed in a substantially central portion of the fixing plate 10b, and the through hole 10c is formed so that the above-described screw member 6 can be inserted. Therefore, the leaf spring member 10 can be attached to the lower surface of the panel cover 3 by inserting the screw member 6 into the through hole 10c of the fixing plate 10b and screwing it into the lower surface of the panel cover 3. A pair of substantially flat swing arms 1 is provided on one end side (left side in FIG. 4) of the fixed plate 10b.
0a are connected to each other, and each swing arm 10a
Are formed in a substantially rectangular shape with respect to the fixing plate 10b. Further, an engagement hole 10d, which is a substantially rectangular opening, is formed at the tip of each swing arm portion 10a. The thickness of the metal material such as stainless steel constituting the leaf spring member 10 is set to the plate thickness W3.

FIG. 5A is a plan view of the cover member 11, and FIG. 5B is a side sectional view taken along line bb of FIG. 5A. The cover member 11 is made of PO
It is formed of a slidable synthetic resin material such as M resin. As shown in FIG. 5A, the cover member 11 includes a base 11c and a pair of plates 11d formed at both ends of the base 11c. One end side (right side in FIG. 5A) of the pair of plate portions 11d is connected by a base portion 11c, and the above-described engagement arm portion 11a is formed on the other end side of each plate portion 11d.

Each of the plate portions 11d is provided with the above-mentioned protrusion 11b at a substantially central portion on the outer surface thereof, and projects outward. The guide portion is provided at a substantially central portion of the inner surface of each plate portion 11d. Each of the plates 11e is protruded inward. Further, the engagement arm portion 11a of each plate portion 11d
5 (a) (left side), the inner surface of each plate portion 11d has a substantially L-shaped wall section 1 (see FIG. 5 (b)) when viewed from the side.
1f. On the other hand, a portion of the inner side surface of each plate portion 11d from the base portion 11c to each guide plate 11e is connected by a support plate 11g formed in a substantially T-shape in plan view.

As shown in FIG. 5B, the support plate 11g
Is provided below the guide plate 11e, and is formed in an L-shape in a side sectional view (see FIG. 5B). The support plate 11g is spaced from the base 11c and the guide plate 11e by a gap W.
The gap W4 is formed to be slightly larger than the thickness W3 of the swing arm portion 10a of the leaf spring member 10 (W3 <W4). That is, the gap W4 is formed so that the swing arm 10a of the leaf spring member 10 can be inserted. An engaging claw 11h bent upward is formed at an end of the support plate 11g on the wall 11f side (the left side in FIG. 5B).
Is an engagement hole 10d of the leaf spring member 10 inserted into the gap W4.
Is formed so as to be able to engage with.

When the swing arm 10a is inserted into the gap W4 of the cover member 11, the swing arm 10a of the leaf spring member 10 is moved from the base 11c side of the gap W4 (right side in FIG. 5B) to the wall. It is inserted toward the 11f side (the left side in FIG. 5B). When the swing arm 10a is continuously inserted, the engagement hole 10d of the swing arm 10a and the engagement claw 11h of the support plate 11g are engaged, and the leaf spring member 10 of the cover member 11 is engaged.
Attachment work to the is completed. Moreover, in such a case, the cover member 11 attached to the leaf spring member 10 prevents the cover claw 10h from falling off from the leaf spring member 10 because the engaging claw 10h engages with the engaging hole 10d of the leaf spring member 10. can do.

Next, an operation of separating the original paper P by the paper separating device 2 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG.
FIG. 6A is a side sectional view of the sheet separating device 2 in a state where the document sheet P is inserted into the document insertion portion 5, and FIG.
Is a sectional side view of the sheet separating device 2 showing a state in which the document sheet P separated one by one is conveyed by the separation roller 9, and an arrow X in the drawing indicates a conveying direction of the document sheet P. The arrow Y indicates the moving direction of the swing arm 10 a of the cover member 11 and the leaf spring member 10.

First, a plurality of original sheets P are inserted into the original insertion portion 5.
When the leading end of the document sheet P abuts on the upper surface of the separation roller 9 and the lower end of the plate portion 11d of the cover member 11, the plurality of document sheets P are inserted into the document insertion section 5. The insertion is completed. When the separation roller 9 is rotated counterclockwise after a plurality of original sheets P are inserted in the transport direction, the original sheet P is moved in the transport direction (FIG. 6) with the rotation.
It is transported to the downstream side in the direction of arrow X in (a). Manuscript paper P
6B, the cover member 11 urged by the leaf spring member 10 is pushed up in the direction of the arrow Y through the leading end of the original sheet P, as shown in FIG. P penetrates into a portion between the cover member 11 and the separation roller 9.

The document sheet P that has entered the portion between the cover member 11 and the separation roller 9 is conveyed while sliding along the lower end surface of the cover member 11 with the rotation of the separation roller 9, and further rotates the separation roller 9. Then, it reaches a contact portion (separation point) between the separation pad 8 and the separation roller 9. The plurality of original sheets P reaching the separation point are
The lower surface is caught in contact with the lower surface, and its tip is deformed into a wedge shape. When the separation roller 9 is further rotated in such a state, the lowermost original sheet P that comes into contact with the separation roller 9 passes through the separation point by only one sheet, and a plurality of original sheets P are separated one by one. It is.

As described above, in the sheet separating apparatus 2 of the present embodiment, the leaf spring member 10 for urging a plurality of original sheets P toward the separation roller 9 has the swing arm portion 10a provided with the cover member. When the panel cover 3 is opened and the image reading portion 12a and the white tape 13 of the CIS 12 are cleaned by the cover member 11, the hand or the like is directly applied to the swing arm portion 10a of the leaf spring member 10 by the cover member 11. Contact can be prevented. This prevents the cover member 11 from scratching the hand or the like at the end of the swing arm portion 10a of the leaf spring member 10 and causing injuries such as cuts, so that the image reading portion 12a and the white tape 13 of the CIS 12 are cleaned. Thus, maintenance of the facsimile machine 1 can be performed safely.

Further, the upstream side in the transport direction of the document paper P (FIG. 1)
The panel cover 3, which is inclined downward from the right side to the downstream side in the transport direction (left side in FIG. 1), is attached to the case body 1a so as to be openable and closable about a rotation shaft 4 provided at the front end side of the case body 1a. Therefore, the opening / closing operation can be performed with the rear end side (the right side in FIG. 1) of the panel cover 3 as the swing end. Therefore, the panel cover 3 of this embodiment is covered by the case body 1a so as to be inclined downward from the rear end side to the front end side, and is opened and closed about the rotation shaft 4 provided on the front end side of the case body 1a as a rotation center. Therefore, for example, as compared with the case where the panel cover is opened with the rear end side of the panel cover (the right side in FIG. 1) as the center of rotation, the swing end (that is, the rear end side portion of the panel cover 3) is located on the upper side. Can be opened to Therefore, maintenance of the facsimile machine 1 such as cleaning of the image reading unit 12a and the white tape 13 of the CIS 12, which is performed by opening the panel cover 3, can be easily performed.

Further, the panel cover 3 is overlaid on the upper cover 23 rotatably attached to the upper portion of the case body 1a, thereby covering the panel cover 3 and the upper cover 2 with each other.
3, the facsimile machine 1 is moved in the front-rear direction (FIG. 1).
(Left and right directions).

Furthermore, since the cover member 11 is formed such that the friction coefficient at the contact portion with the original paper P is smaller than the friction coefficient at the surface of the separation pad 8, the original paper P is placed at the contact portion with the original paper P. Multiple sheets of original paper P without being caught
Can be guided toward the surface of the separation pad 8 by sliding.

As described above, the present invention has been described based on the embodiments. However, the present invention is not limited to the above embodiments, and various improvements and modifications can be made without departing from the gist of the present invention. Can easily be inferred.

For example, in the present embodiment, the paper separating apparatus is described using the facsimile apparatus 1 using the roll paper 3 as the printing paper. However, the present invention is applied to the facsimile apparatus using the cut sheet as the printing paper. Is also good.

[0052]

According to the paper separating apparatus of the first aspect,
The urging member for urging a plurality of sheets, the extended portion is covered by the covering member, when opening the cover body to maintain the inside of the sheet separating device or the case, for example,
In cleaning, the covering member can prevent a hand or the like from directly contacting the extended portion of the urging member. Therefore, the covering member prevents the hand or the like from being scratched at the end of the extended portion of the biasing member, thereby preventing injuries such as cuts, so that the maintenance inside the paper separating apparatus and the inside of the case can be performed safely. This has the effect.

According to the paper separating device of the second aspect, in addition to the effect of the paper separating device of the first aspect, the cover body that is inclined downward from the upstream side to the downstream side in the paper feeding direction is provided with Since it is openably and closably attached to the case body around the downstream side in the paper direction, that is, around the lower part of the cover body, the upstream side in the paper feeding direction of the cover body, that is, the upper part of the cover body is used as a swing (rotation) end. The cover can be opened and closed. Therefore, when the cover body is rotated and opened by a predetermined amount, for example, the cover body is fed more than when the cover body is rotated and opened by a predetermined amount around the upper part of the cover body. The swinging end of the cover body can be opened upward because of the downward inclination from the upstream side to the downstream side in the direction. For this reason, there is an effect that maintenance, for example, cleaning of the inside of the sheet separating device or the case, which is performed by opening the cover, can be easily performed.

According to the sheet separating device of the third aspect, in addition to the effect of the sheet separating device of the first or second aspect, the stopper member with which the engaging member of the covering member is engaged allows the covering member to be separated. Since the movement in the direction crossing the paper feeding direction is restricted within a predetermined range, when the cover is opened to maintain the inside of the sheet separating device or the case, for example, when cleaning, the cover member is manually moved. For example, it is possible to prevent the urging member from being plastically deformed in a direction crossing the sheet feeding direction. Therefore, in such a case, there is an effect that the urging member can be prevented from being plastically deformed and damaged.

According to the paper separating apparatus of the fourth aspect, in addition to the effect of the paper separating apparatus of the first aspect, a plurality of sheets fed by the sheet feed roller can be used. Since the separation piece that is separated every time is pressed toward the separation piece urging member by the pressing member protruding from the covering member, the paper fed by the paper feed roller becomes jammed in the case body or the like. In this case, even if the sheet is pulled in the direction opposite to the sheet feeding direction, the separation piece can be prevented from peeling off the separation piece urging member and being turned up. Moreover, in order to prevent such a curling, it is not necessary to separately use a screw member such as a screw for screwing the separation piece to the separation piece urging member, so that the number of parts of the paper separating apparatus is reduced accordingly. Thus, there is an effect that the manufacturing cost of the entire sheet separating apparatus can be reduced.

According to the sheet separating apparatus of the fifth aspect, in addition to the effect of the sheet separating apparatus of the fourth aspect, the pair of biasing members disposed on both sides of the separating member in the sheet width direction are provided. Coating members are respectively attached, and pressing members are protrudingly provided on both sides in the sheet width direction of these coating members. Therefore, both side portions of the separating member in the sheet width direction of the separating member are pressed toward the separating member urging member side by the pressing members protruding from the separating member side of each covering member, so that the separating member is There is an effect that it is possible to prevent the separation piece urging member from peeling up and rolling up.

Further, since each covering member is formed symmetrically with respect to the sheet feeding direction, there is no need to manufacture using separate molds, and each covering member can be manufactured with one mold. There is an effect that the manufacturing cost of the entire sheet separating apparatus can be reduced.

According to the paper separating device of the sixth aspect, in addition to the effect of the paper separating device of the first aspect, the coating member has a friction coefficient of a contact portion with the paper. Since it is formed to be smaller than the friction coefficient of the contacting part with the paper on the surface of the separating member, the plural sheets are slid and guided toward the separating member surface without catching the paper at the contacting part with the paper. There is an effect that can be done.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a side sectional view schematically showing an internal structure of a facsimile apparatus equipped with a paper separating apparatus according to one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a sectional view of the facsimile machine taken along the line II-II in FIG.

3 is an enlarged bottom view of the sheet separating device 2 shown in FIG.

FIG. 4A is a plan view of a leaf spring member, and FIG.
Is a side view thereof.

FIG. 5A is a plan view of a cover member, and FIG.
FIG. 2 is a side sectional view taken along line bb in FIG.

FIG. 6A is a side cross-sectional view of the sheet separating device in a state where a document sheet is inserted into a document insertion portion, and FIG.
FIG. 3 is a side sectional view of the sheet separating apparatus showing a state in which document sheets separated one by one are conveyed by separation rollers.

[Explanation of symbols]

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Facsimile machine 1a Case body 2 Paper separation device 3 Panel cover (cover body) 3c Stopper member 4 Rotation shaft (rotation center) 7 Pad pressing member (partial biasing member, part of separation member) 8 Separation pad (separation) 9 Separation roller (feed roller) 10 Leaf spring member (biasing member) 10a Swing arm portion (extended portion of biasing member) 11 Cover member (covering member) 11a Engagement arm Part (engaging member) 11b Projecting part (pressing member) P Original paper (paper)

Claims (6)

[Claims] 1. A sheet separating device for separating a plurality of sheets fed one by one by a sheet feeding roller disposed in a case body, wherein the sheet feeding apparatus is openably and closably attached to the case body, A cover member disposed opposite to the roller, a separating member attached to the cover member and separating a plurality of sheets one by one with the rotation of the sheet feeding roller; and a separating member separated by the separating member. An urging member extending from the cover body toward the surface of the paper feed roller in order to urge the paper to be fed toward the surface of the paper feed roller; and an urging member attached to an extended portion of the urging member. And a covering member for covering the extended portion. The cover body is disposed on the case body so as to be inclined downward from the upstream side to the downstream side in the paper feeding direction, and the case body is pivoted about the downstream side in the paper feeding direction. 2. The sheet separating apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the sheet separating apparatus is attached to the opening so as to be freely opened and closed. 3. The cover member is formed with an engaging member extending toward the cover body side, and the cover body is engaged with the engaging member so that the cover member feeds in a sheet feeding direction. The paper separating apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a stopper member that restricts movement in a crossing direction within a predetermined range. 4. A separating member that contacts a sheet fed by the sheet feeding roller and separates a plurality of sheets one by one, and separates the separating piece from the cover body side. A separating member urging member that urges the roller toward the roller, wherein the covering member protrudes toward a contact surface between the separating member and the sheet, and the separating member is provided with the separating member urging member. 4. The paper separating apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a pressing member that presses toward the side. 5. A pair of said urging members are provided on both sides of said separating member in the sheet width direction, and said covering members are respectively attached to extending portions of said pair of urging members. 5. The sheet separating apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the pressing members are provided on both sides in the sheet width direction, respectively, and are formed symmetrically with respect to the sheet feeding direction. 6. The coating member is formed such that a friction coefficient at a contact portion with the paper fed by the paper feed roller is smaller than a friction coefficient at a contact portion of the surface of the separation member with the paper. The sheet separating apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein: