JP2000196796A - Facsimile equipment - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To prevent even an operation unit, too, from being opened by reducing the impact to a scan unit when the scan unit is rotated. SOLUTION: One end part of a tension coil spring 20 having elasticity in a tension direction is serially connected to one end part of a belt 21 having flexibility, the other end part of the spring 20 is attached to a main body unit through a plate spring 22, and the other end part of the belt 21 is attached to a scanner unit. Consequently, the spring 20 absorbs impact to the scanner unit when the scanner unit is opened to reduce the impact received by the scanner unit so that an operation unit 10 can be prevented from being also opened.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a facsimile apparatus provided with an opening / closing unit which can rotate with respect to a main body unit having an image recording unit.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art FIG. 10 is a side view showing the internal structure of a conventional facsimile machine. 1 is a main unit having a process cartridge 2 for image recording and a paper feed unit 3, 4 is a pickup roller 5, and a feed roller. 6, a scanner unit 10 having an image reading sensor 7, a driving motor 8 for rotating the feed roller 6, and a lower guide surface 9 for guiding the lower surface of the original, and the like. An operation unit including an upper guide surface 13 and the like for guiding, and further including an operation unit 14 on an upper part;
Reference numeral 15 denotes a document placing portion provided on an upper portion of the main unit 1,
Reference numeral 16 denotes a paper cassette to be mounted on the main unit 1, reference numeral 17 denotes a document tray on which discharged documents are stacked, and reference numeral 18 denotes a recording paper tray on which discharged images after recording are stacked.

The scanner unit 4 is rotatably mounted on the upper end of the main unit 1, and the operation unit 10 is rotatably mounted on the upper end of the scanner unit 4. When the operation unit 10 is closed, the separation pad 11 contacts the feed roller 6 and the white roller 1
2 is located above the image reading sensor 7.

[0006] When processing jammed paper in the process cartridge 2 replacement or image recording operation,
The scanner unit 4 is rotated to open the inside of the main unit 1. Further, when processing a document having a conveyance failure in the cleaning of the image reading sensor 7 or the image reading operation, only the operation unit 10 is rotated in the state of FIG. 10 to open the upper part of the scanner unit 4.

[0005]

By the way, in order to prevent the scanner unit 4 from opening more than necessary with respect to the main unit 1 when the scanner unit 4 is opened, a member for restricting rotation is provided. I have.

However, when the operation unit 10 is configured to be relatively easy to open in consideration of the operability of the operation unit 10, the impact when the scanner unit 4 is opened is transmitted to the operation unit 10, and the operation unit 10 is opened. There is a risk of opening up to ten.

Further, when a belt member having little elasticity is attached between the main unit 1 and the scanner unit 4 to control the rotation of the scanner unit 4, a strong impact is given to the scanner unit 4, The unit 4 may be opened.

[0008] The present invention solves such problems,
It is an object of the present invention to provide a facsimile apparatus in which the impact on the scanner unit when the scanner unit is rotated is reduced to prevent even the operation unit from opening.

[0009]

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a main unit having an image recording means, a sheet conveying means, and an image reading means for reading an image of a sheet conveyed by the conveying means. A facsimile apparatus having an opening / closing unit rotatably attached to the main body unit, a flexible band-shaped member, connected in series to the band-shaped member, and having elasticity in a pulling direction. One end of an opening / closing amount limiting member made of an elastic member is attached to the main unit, and the other end is attached to the opening / closing unit. With such a configuration, the impact applied to the opening / closing unit when the opening / closing unit is opened is absorbed by the elastic member, and the impact transmitted to the opening / closing unit is reduced.

Further, the present invention is characterized in that the opening / closing amount restricting member is attached such that a direction perpendicular to a longitudinal direction of the plane of the belt-shaped member is parallel to a rotation axis of the opening / closing unit. With such a configuration,
When the opening / closing unit is opened / closed, the belt-shaped member can be deformed in a certain direction.

Further, according to the present invention, the opening / closing amount limiting member is attached to one side of the main unit and the opening / closing unit, and the other side is provided with the opening / closing amount limiting member in a state where the elastic member is not elastically deformed. An opening / closing amount limiting member having a flexibility longer than a member and shorter than the opening / closing amount limiting member when the elastic member is maximally extended is attached. According to such a configuration, it is possible to suppress the application of a force in the twisting direction to the opening / closing unit when the opening / closing unit is vigorously opened.

Further, according to the present invention, the elastic member is a tension coil spring having a hook at one end, a hole is provided at one end of the band-shaped member, and the periphery of the hole is thicker than the width of the opening of the hook. A thick portion is formed, and a thin portion thinner than the width of the open portion is formed from the hole to the side portion of the band-shaped member, and the open portion of the hook portion is passed through the thin portion to connect the hook portion to the hole. The belt-shaped member and the elastic member are connected in series, and one of the other end of the band-shaped member and the other end of the elastic member is attached to the main body unit. . With such a configuration, the tension coil spring can be attached only from the side of the hole, and when the opening / closing unit is opened / closed, the tension coil spring does not come off the band-shaped member due to the action of the thick portion.

The present invention also provides a hook unit at the other end of the tension coil spring,
A mounting portion having a hole for inserting the hook portion, and a bent portion formed near the pulling direction side of the tension coil spring with respect to the hole, and having a bent portion longer than the width of the open portion of the hook portion, The thickness of the mounting portion on the side of the hole is smaller than the width of the opening. With such a configuration, the tension coil spring can be attached only from the side of the hole, and when the opening / closing unit is opened / closed, the tension coil spring does not come off the main unit due to the action of the bending portion.

Further, according to the present invention, when the opening / closing unit is opened, the band-shaped member is elastically deformed, and one end of the band-shaped member moves upward, and when the opening / closing unit is closed, the band-shaped member is closed. The extension direction of the band-like member with respect to the opening / closing unit is set so as to return to the shape of FIG. With such a configuration, when the opening and closing unit is closed, the band-shaped member always moves downward,
When the opening / closing unit is closed, the stored state of the band-shaped member is stabilized.

[0015]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the drawings. Note that FIG.
The same reference numerals are given to the same members as those in the prior art shown in FIG. 1 and detailed description is omitted.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing the appearance of the apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing the scanner unit of the apparatus shown in FIG. 1 in an open state, and FIG. FIG. 19 is a perspective view showing an opening / closing amount limiting member, reference numeral 20 denotes a tension coil spring having hook portions 20a and 20b formed at both ends, reference numeral 21 denotes a flexible belt-shaped belt, and reference numeral 22 denotes a V-shaped plate. Shows a spring. Opening / closing amount limiting member 19
Is a tension coil spring 20 and a belt-like belt 21.
Are connected in series, and are installed on one side of the main unit 1 and the scanner unit 4 between the two and at a position radially away from the pivot point. 1 and 2, the illustration of the paper feed cassette 16, the document tray 17, and the recording paper tray 18 is omitted.

As shown in FIG. 3, a hook portion 20a is inserted into one end of the belt 21 and a connection hole 21a is formed, and a fixing hole for fixing the scanner unit 4 to the scanner unit 4 with a screw is formed at the other end. 21b is formed. Also,
A bent portion 22a is formed at one end of the leaf spring 22, and a connection hole 22b into which the hook portion 20b is inserted is formed near the bent portion 22a. Further, the connection hole 2
A fixing hole 22c for fixing the main unit 1 to the main unit 1 with a screw is formed on the same surface as the surface on which 2b is formed. Also, the hook portion 2 of the tension coil spring 20
The open portions 20c and 20d of 0a and 20b are provided in substantially the same direction.

FIG. 4 is an enlarged view of one end of the belt of FIG. The connection hole 21a is a long hole extending in the longitudinal direction of the belt 21, and a hook-shaped thick portion 21 is provided around the connection hole 21a.
c is formed. This thick portion 21c is
It is set to be thicker than the width of the open portion 20c at 0a. A groove 21 d extends from one side of the connection hole 21 a on the front end side of the belt 21 toward one side of the belt 21.
The thickness of the portion of the groove 21d is formed to be the same as the thickness of the belt 21 other than the thick portion 21c. A thick portion 21c is formed from the other side of the connection hole 21a to the other side of the belt 21.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing a belt mounting structure at the end of the scanner unit when the lower guide is removed from the scanner unit. Reference numeral 23 denotes a fixing screw, and reference numeral 24 denotes a mounting portion of the fixing screw 23 in the scanner unit 4. And a hole for protruding the belt 21 from the inside of the scanner unit 4 to the outside. Then, the other end of the belt 21 is fixed to the inside of the scanner unit 4 by passing the belt 21 through the hole 24 and screwing the fixing screw 23 through the fixing hole 21 b and screwing it into the scanner unit 4. At this time, when the scanner unit 4 is opened, the thick portion 21c faces upward as shown in FIG. 6, and the belt 21 projects downward, so that the position of the connecting hole 21a is located below the hole 24. As described above, the projecting direction of the belt 21 is restricted by the holes 24. Further, the direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction in the plane of the belt 21 is parallel to the rotation axis of the scanner unit 4, and the rotation direction of the scanner unit 4 and the rotation direction of the belt 21 plane are the same. The belt 21 is deformed within the range of the plane including the orbital plane drawn when turning.

As shown in FIG. 5, the other end of the belt 21 including the fixing hole 21b is slightly bent.
This bending facilitates attachment of the belt 21 to the scanner unit 4 and stabilizes the protruding state of the belt 21.

Next, the connection operation between the tension coil spring 20 and the belt 21 will be described. First, the open portion 20c of the hook portion 20a is opposed to the groove portion 21d of the belt 21, and in this state, the tension coil spring 20 is moved to the side. At this time, the tip of the hook portion 20a is
It passes through 1d and is guided by the connection hole 21a. And
As shown in FIG. 7, the tip of the hook portion 20a is
a, the tension coil spring 20 is rotated, and the hook portion 20a is inserted into the connection hole 21a.
1 are connected. In addition, it is impossible to connect the tension coil spring 20 and the belt 21 without the tip of the hook portion 20a passing through the groove portion 21d because the thick portion 21c becomes an obstacle.

Since the thick portion 21c faces upward when the scanner unit 4 is opened, when the tension coil spring 20 is connected to the belt 21, the open portion 20c always faces downward. .

Next, the connecting operation between the tension coil spring 20 and the leaf spring 22 will be described. In FIG. 3, the plate thickness of the leaf spring 22 is set to be slightly smaller than the width of the open portion 20d of the hook portion 20b.
The width of “a” is set to be larger than the width of the open portion 20d of the hook portion 20b. Therefore, first, hook part 2
0b is opposed to the end face of the leaf spring 22 on the side of the connection hole 22b, and in this state, the tension coil spring 20 is moved to the side, and the tip of the hook portion 20a is moved to the side of the connection hole 22b. Through the plane of the leaf spring 22. Then, when the tip of the hook portion 20b moves to the connection hole 22b, the tension coil spring 20 is rotated, and the hook portion 20b is inserted into the connection hole 22b. The leaf spring 22 is connected.

Here, the connection between the tension coil spring 20 and the leaf spring 22 may be performed before or after the leaf spring 22 is screwed to the main unit 1 through the fixing hole 22c of the leaf spring 22. This may be performed, but it is necessary to connect the scanner unit 4 so that the opening 20d faces downward when the scanner unit 4 is rotated.

Next, the opening and closing operation of the scanner unit 4 will be described. When the scanner unit 4 is opened, a lever (not shown) provided on the main unit 1 is operated to release the engagement state between the main unit 1 and the scanner unit 4. After being pushed up, the scanner unit 4 is opened by the operation of the user, and the tension coil spring 20 is lifted up as shown in FIG. 9A, and soon, as shown in FIG. 9B. And belt 2
1 is extended, and further rotation of the scanner unit 4 is restricted. At this time, when the belt 21 receives a pulling force from the tension coil spring 20, the belt 21 is elastically deformed and is lifted upward.

When the scanner unit 4 is closed by a user's operation, the belt 21 is elastically deformed before rotating because the belt 21 is released from the tension force received from the tension coil spring 20. The belt 21 returns to the original state. As a result, the belt 21 is automatically lowered, and at the same time, one end of the tension coil spring 20 is also lowered. Then, with the belt 21 lowered, the belt 21 further rotates downward and is housed in the main unit 1.

With this configuration, when the scanner unit 4 is opened, the impact received by the scanner unit 4 is absorbed by the tension coil spring 20, so that even the operation unit 10 is prevented from opening. And the members inside the scanner unit 4 can be protected.

Since the rotating direction of the scanner unit 4 and the rotating direction of the plane of the belt 21 are the same, the belt 2
1 becomes constant, and as a result, the main unit 1
The storage state of the belt 21 in the interior becomes stable.

Since the open portions 20c and 20d face downward, the belt 21 is lowered and the hook portions 20a and 2d are turned down.
Even if the positions of the connection holes 21a and 22b in 0b are changed, the connection holes 21a and 22b are prevented from being located in the open portions 20c and 20d. If the connection holes 21a, 22b
Is located in the open portions 20c and 20d,
As long as 20d does not move in a certain direction, the thick portion 21c and the bent portion 22a become obstacles, so that the tension coil spring 20 can be reliably prevented from coming off.

When the scanner unit 4 is closed,
Since the belt 21 is lowered before the belt 21 rotates, the belt 21 is securely housed in the main unit 1 when the scanner unit 4 rotates.

The apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention has been described above, but the present invention is not limited to the above-described configuration. For example, in the above-described configuration, the main unit 1
And the opening / closing amount limiting member is provided only on one side of the scanner unit 4, but in addition to the configuration, the tension coil spring 20 does not extend on the other side of the main unit 1 and the scanner unit 4. A flexible belt-shaped second belt that is longer than the length of the opening / closing amount restricting member in the state and shorter than the length of the opening / closing amount restricting member when the tension coil spring 20 is fully extended may be attached. Further, with this configuration, when the opening / closing amount limiting member is provided only on one side, when the scanner unit 4 is opened vigorously, the moment acting on the other side of the scanner unit 4 causes 4 is prevented from being deformed and the amount of extension of the tension coil spring 20 is restricted, so that the tension coil spring 20 can be prevented from being permanently deformed.

[0032]

According to the present invention constructed as described above, the impact on the opening / closing unit when the opening / closing unit is opened is absorbed by the elastic member, and the other opening / closing member provided on the opening / closing unit is provided. Are opened by impact.

Further, when the opening / closing unit is opened / closed, the band-shaped member can be deformed in a fixed direction, and the storage state of the band-shaped member when the opening / closing unit is closed can be stabilized.

Further, when the opening / closing unit is vigorously opened, it is possible to suppress the application of a force in the twisting direction to the opening / closing unit, and it is possible to prevent the opening / closing unit from being deformed.

In addition, the tension coil spring can be attached to the hole of the band-shaped member or the hole of the main unit only from a certain direction.
The tension coil spring does not come off the band-shaped member or the main unit due to the action of the thick portion or the bent portion.

Further, when the opening / closing unit is closed, the band-like member always moves downward, so that the stored state of the band-like member in the state where the opening / closing unit is closed is stabilized.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing the appearance of an apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a state where a scanner unit of the apparatus of FIG. 1 is opened.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing a configuration of an opening / closing amount limiting member.

FIG. 4 is a configuration diagram showing a connection portion of a belt with a tension coil spring.

FIG. 5 is a configuration diagram showing a fixing portion of the belt with a scanner unit.

FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram showing a protruding state of a belt fixed to a scanner unit.

FIG. 7 is a perspective view showing a connection operation between a belt and a tension coil spring.

FIG. 8 is a perspective view showing a connection state with a tension coil spring.

FIG. 9 is an explanatory diagram showing the deformation state and operation of the belt when the scanner unit is opened and closed.

FIG. 10 is a side view showing the internal configuration of a conventional facsimile machine.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Main body unit 4 Scanner unit 10 Operation unit 19 Opening / closing amount limiting member 20 Pulling coil spring 20a, 20b Hook part 20c, 20d Opening part 21 Belt 21a Connecting hole 21b Fixing hole 21c Thick part 21d Groove part 22 Plate spring 22a Bend part 22b Connection Hole 22c fixing hole 23 fixing screw 24 hole

Claims (6)

[Claims] A main unit having image recording means;
A facsimile machine having a sheet conveying means and an image reading means for reading an image of the sheet conveyed by the conveying means, and having an opening / closing unit rotatably attached to the main body unit; An end portion of the opening / closing amount limiting member, which is composed of a band-shaped member having an elastic member that is connected in series to the band-shaped member and has elasticity in the pulling direction, is attached to the main unit, and the other end is attached to the opening / closing unit. Facsimile machine characterized by the above-mentioned. 2. The opening / closing amount limiting member is attached so that a direction perpendicular to a longitudinal direction of the plane of the strip-shaped member is parallel to a rotation axis of the opening / closing unit. Facsimile machine. 3. The opening / closing amount restricting member is attached to one side of the main body unit and the opening / closing unit, and the other side is closer to the opening / closing amount restricting member in a state where the elastic member is not elastically deformed. 3. The facsimile apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising an opening / closing amount limiting member which is long and has a flexibility shorter than said opening / closing amount limiting member when said elastic member is maximally extended. 4. The elastic member is a tension coil spring having a hook portion at one end, a hole is provided at one end of the band-shaped member, and a thick portion thicker than the width of an open portion of the hook portion around the hole. Forming a thin portion thinner than the width of the open portion from the hole to the side of the band-shaped member,
The open portion of the hook portion is passed through the thin portion and the hook portion is inserted into the hole to connect the band-shaped member and the elastic member in series, and the other end of the band-shaped member or the elastic member 4. A facsimile apparatus according to claim 1, wherein one of the other ends of said facsimile is attached to said main unit. 5. A hook portion is provided at the other end of the tension coil spring, and a hole for inserting the hook portion is formed in the main body unit, and the hole is formed near the tension direction side of the tension coil spring with respect to the hole. And a mounting portion having a bent portion longer than the width of the opening portion of the hook portion, and the thickness of the mounting portion on the side of the hole is made smaller than the width of the opening portion. Claim 4
A facsimile machine as described. 6. When the opening / closing unit is opened, the band-shaped member is elastically deformed, and one end of the band-shaped member moves upward, and when the opening / closing unit is closed, the band-shaped member assumes a basic shape. 4. The facsimile apparatus according to claim 1, wherein an extending direction of the belt-like member with respect to the opening / closing unit is set so as to return and fall downward.