JP2001139156A - Sheet feeder - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To prevent the number of components from increasing, reduce the production cost, and prevent the tip of a sheet from skewing or double fed. SOLUTION: This sheet feeder sends the sheet P on a sheet feed tray along a movable guide plate 10 by arranging the movable guide plate 10 on the sheet feed tray 7 so as to move along the directions (b), (c) crossing at right angles with the sheet feed direction (a), making a sheet feed roller to abut on the upper face of a sheet P set in a prescribed position on the sheet feed tray 7, and rotating the sheet feed roller. This feeder is provided with an approximately L-shaped extension part 17 extending from the tip of the movable guide plate 10 to the downstream than the sheet P on the sheet feed tray 7 by a prescribed interval β along the bottom plate 8 and a sheet opposite face 17A of the extension part 17 is a little projected to the sheet P side than the sheet opposite face 10A of the movable guide plate 10.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a paper feeder provided in, for example, an ink jet type or laser type printer.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art FIGS. 13 to 15 show an example of a conventional ink jet printer. In this case, a paper feed roller 2, a feed roller 3, a paper discharge roller 4, and a printing unit 5 are provided in a housing 1 having a paper feed port 1a and a paper discharge port 1b, and a paper feed is performed in the paper feed port 1a. The device 6 is provided.

The paper feeder 6 includes a paper feed tray 7 swingably supported by the housing 1 via a support shaft 7a protruding from the upper end of each side surface. Plate 8, a fixed guide plate 9 arranged along one side edge of the paper feed tray 7, and a movable guide plate 10 arranged on the paper feed tray 7. 10, a substantially L-shaped engaging piece 10a extending rearward, a pair of holding pieces 10b and 10c for holding the paper P, and a knob piece 1 extending upward.
0d, and the movable guide plate 10 is configured to be movable in directions b and c orthogonal to the paper feeding direction a by engaging the engaging piece 10a with the upper end edge of the paper feeding tray 7. Have been. In FIG. 13, reference numeral 11 denotes a spring for urging the paper feed tray 7 toward the paper feed roller 2, reference numeral 12 denotes a paper support plate detachably attached to a rear portion of the housing 1, and reference numeral 13 in FIG. Pressing claw for pressing the lower end corner of the.

In the above configuration, the paper P is set at a predetermined position on the paper feed tray 7, and the paper
The paper P is brought into contact with the paper feed roller 2 through the feed roller 2, and the paper feed roller 2 is rotated, so that the paper P is fed out between the feed roller 3 and the press roller 14 beyond the press claw 13. The fed sheet P is printed by the print head 5a of the printing unit 5, and the printed sheet P is discharged from the discharge port 1b by the discharge roller 4 and the pressing roller 15.

[0005]

In the above-mentioned conventional configuration,
The leading end of the movable guide plate 10 is set to be shorter than the leading end of the paper P set on the paper feed tray 7 by a predetermined interval α. The distance H between the fixed guide plate 9 and the paper P
Is slightly larger than the width d.
The paper P sent out may be skewed or sent out in a state where two or more sheets of paper P are superimposed at one time.

In order to solve the above problems, Japanese Patent Laid-Open Publication No.
Based on the technology described in Japanese Patent No. 88287, it is conceivable to arrange a friction pad 15 made of artificial leather, rubber, or the like on the sheet facing surface 10A of the movable guide plate 10, as shown in FIG. Only the frictional resistance is given to the center of the side edge of the paper P by the friction pad 15, and there is no support for the front end of the paper P sent out from the paper feed tray 7. The prevention of feeding is insufficient, and the number of parts is increased by the addition of the friction pad 15, resulting in high manufacturing costs.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned conventional drawbacks, and has as its object to provide a paper feeder which does not increase the number of parts, can be manufactured at a low cost, and can prevent skew and double feed of the leading edge of paper. And

[0008]

In order to achieve the above object, according to the first aspect of the present invention, a movable guide plate is arranged on a paper feed tray so as to be movable in a direction perpendicular to the paper feed direction. The paper feed roller is brought into contact with the upper surface of the paper set at a predetermined position on the paper feed tray, and by rotating the paper feed roller, the paper is sent out from the paper feed tray along the movable guide plate. In the paper feeder described above, an extension is provided that extends from the tip of the movable guide plate to the downstream side of the paper on the paper feed tray.

According to the above configuration, the leading end of the sheet fed from the sheet feeding tray is supported by the extension extending from the tip of the movable guide plate to the downstream side of the sheet on the sheet feeding tray. The skew of the leading edge can be reliably prevented, and the sheet can be fed straight out as predetermined.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect of the present invention, the sheet facing surface of the extension portion is slightly protruded toward the sheet from the sheet facing surface of the movable guide plate. .

According to the above configuration, even if two or more sheets are fed out of the sheet feed tray at a time, the sheets in the double feed state slightly protrude toward the sheet side of the extended portion. Since the sheet is brought into contact with the opposing surface, the double feeding state can be eliminated at an early stage by the frictional resistance generated by the contact, and only one sheet contacting the sheet feeding roller can be sent to the downstream printing section or the like.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect, the sheet facing surface of the extension is formed substantially flush with the sheet facing surface of the movable guide plate. It is characterized in that a number of projections are protrudingly provided on the sheet facing surface.

According to the above arrangement, the leading end of the sheet is brought into contact with a large number of projections projecting from the sheet facing surface of the extension, thereby preventing skew and double feeding of the sheet. By integrally protruding the plurality of protrusions on the extension portion, the number of parts is not increased and the manufacturing cost is reduced.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the third aspect of the present invention, the plurality of convex portions are arranged on the surface of the extension portion facing the sheet at a plurality of rows at predetermined intervals along a direction perpendicular to the sheet feeding direction. It is characterized by being divided into

According to the above configuration, even if two or more sheets of paper are fed out of the paper feed tray at a time, a large number of convex portions in which the leading end of the multiply fed paper is divided into a plurality of rows. Since the paper is forcibly separated by passing the paper, the double feeding state can be eliminated at an early stage, and only one sheet in contact with the paper feed roller can be sent to the downstream printing unit or the like.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the third aspect of the present invention, the plurality of convex portions are provided at random on the sheet facing surface of the extension portion.

According to the above construction, even if two or more sheets of paper are fed out of the paper feed tray at a time, a large number of convex portions protrude at random from the leading end of the multiply fed paper. And the papers are separated from each other by the frictional resistance generated by the contact, so that the double feeding state is eliminated at an early stage, and only one sheet that comes into contact with the paper feed roller is fed to a downstream printing unit or the like. be able to.

[0018]

1 to 3 show an ink jet printer having a paper feeding device 6 according to a first embodiment of the present invention, wherein a movable guide used for the paper feeding device 6 is shown. A substantially L-shaped extended portion 17 is provided from the leading end of the plate 10 to the downstream side of the paper P on the paper feed tray 7 at a predetermined interval β along the bottom plate 8. In the configuration other than the above, the same parts as those of the conventional example shown in FIGS.

According to the above configuration, the leading end of the paper P sent out from the paper feed tray 7 is supported by the extension portion 17, so that the skew of the leading end of the paper P is reliably prevented, and the paper P is transported. It can be sent out linearly as predetermined.

As shown in FIGS. 4A and 4B, the sheet facing surface 17A of the extension portion 17 is located at a predetermined interval t (about 1 mm) closer to the sheet P than the sheet facing surface 10A of the movable guide plate 10.
3, the distance h between the extension 17 and the fixed guide plate 9 is slightly smaller than the distance H between the movable guide plate 10 and the fixed guide plate 9 (FIG. 3).
reference).

According to the above configuration, even if two or more sheets of paper P are fed out of the sheet feed tray 7 at a time, the leading end of the multiply fed state of the sheet P is positioned on the sheet P side of the extension portion 17. The paper contact surface 17A slightly protruding from the paper feed roller 17 is contacted, so that the double feeding state is eliminated at an early stage due to the frictional resistance generated by the contact, and only one sheet P contacting the paper feed roller 2 is printed on the downstream side. It can be sent to the unit 5.

In the above configuration, the sheet facing surface 1 of the extension 17
7A is slightly protruded toward the sheet P, but instead, as shown in FIGS. 5A and 5B, the sheet facing surface 17A of the extension portion 17 is substantially the same as the sheet facing surface 10A of the movable guide plate 10. The extension portion 17 has a sheet facing surface 1
A number of protrusions 18 having a predetermined height t (about 1 mm) may be provided on 7A.

According to the above construction, the leading end of the paper P is brought into contact with a number of projections 18 projecting from the paper facing surface 17A of the extension portion 17 to prevent the paper P from skewing and double feeding. In addition, since a large number of projections 18 are integrally provided on the extension portion 17, the number of parts does not increase and the manufacturing cost is reduced.

Various shapes, such as a triangle as shown in FIG. 5 and a circle as shown in FIG. 6, can be considered as the shape of the convex portion 18. In short, the shape is such that the skew of the sheet P and double feeding can be prevented. Anything is acceptable.

As shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, the arrangement of the plurality of projections 18 may be divided into a plurality of rows at predetermined intervals e along a direction orthogonal to the sheet feeding direction a. As shown in FIG.

In the above configuration, when two or more sheets of paper P are fed out of the paper feed tray 7 at a time, according to the former, the leading edge of the multiply fed paper P is divided into a plurality of rows. According to the latter, when the leading edge of the paper P in the multi-feed state comes into contact with the many protrusions 18 projecting at random, according to the latter, the protrusions 18 are forcedly separated. Forcibly separated by the generated frictional resistance. Accordingly, the double feeding state can be eliminated at an early stage, and only one sheet of paper P contacting the paper feed tray 7 can be fed to the downstream printing unit 5.

FIGS. 8 to 10 show an ink jet printer having a paper feeding device 6 according to a second embodiment of the present invention. A support shelf 19 that supports the paper P is provided, and an extension 17 that extends linearly from the leading end of the movable guide plate 10 to the vicinity of the bottom plate 8 at a predetermined interval β downstream of the paper P on the paper feed tray 7 is provided. , The extension portion 17 and the movable guide plate 1
0 is formed between the movable guide plate 10 and the support shelf 19 so that the recess 20 is loosely fitted to the support shelf 19.
A predetermined interval t (1 m) closer to the sheet P than the sheet facing surface 10A.
m). Structures other than those described above are substantially the same as those of the first embodiment shown in FIGS. 1 to 4, and therefore, the same portions are denoted by the same reference numerals and description thereof will be omitted.

The operation and effect of the above configuration are almost the same as those of the first embodiment, and the description thereof will be omitted. Also,
As in the configuration shown in FIGS. 5 to 7, the sheet facing surface 17A of the extension 17 is formed substantially flush with the sheet facing surface 10A of the movable guide plate 10, and the sheet facing surface 17A of the extension 17 is formed. A number of convex portions 18 having a predetermined height t (approximately 1 mm) may be protruded, and the operation and effect thereof are substantially the same as those of the first embodiment, and therefore, the description thereof will be omitted.

FIGS. 11 and 12 show a laser printer equipped with a paper feeder 6 according to a third embodiment of the present invention. The basic structure of the laser printer is an ink jet printer and a printing unit 5. The paper feed tray 7 is attached to the paper feed port 1a of the housing 1 in a substantially horizontal state, and the paper feed tray 7 is formed in a direction b, c perpendicular to the paper feed direction a formed on the paper feed tray 7. A pair of left and right movable guide plates 10 are engaged with guide grooves 21 formed along the same, and when one of the movable guide plates 10 is moved, the other movable guide plate 10 is also connected to the paper feed tray via an interlocking mechanism. 7 center line O
And an extension portion 17 is provided which extends linearly by a predetermined interval β from the tip of each movable guide plate 10 to the downstream side of the paper P on the paper feed tray 7 from the tip of each movable guide plate 10. The sheet facing surface 17A of each extension 17 is slightly protruded from the sheet facing surface 10A of the movable guide plate 10 toward the sheet P by a predetermined interval t (about 1 mm). In the configuration other than the above, the same parts as those in the first embodiment shown in FIGS. 1 to 4 are denoted by the same reference numerals, and description thereof will be omitted.

The operation and effect of the above configuration are almost the same as those of the first embodiment, and the description thereof will be omitted. Also,
Similar to the configuration shown in FIGS. 5 to 7, the sheet facing surface 17A of the extension 17 is formed substantially flush with the sheet facing surface 10A of the movable guide plate 10 and the sheet facing surface 17A of the extension 17 is formed. A large number of convex portions 18 having a predetermined height t (about 1 mm) may be protruded, and the operation and effect thereof are almost the same as those of the first embodiment, and therefore description thereof will be omitted.

[0031]

According to the first aspect of the present invention, the leading end of the sheet fed from the sheet feed tray is supported by the extension extending from the tip of the movable guide plate to the downstream side of the sheet on the sheet feed tray. Therefore, the skew of the leading edge of the sheet can be reliably prevented, and the sheet can be fed straight out as predetermined.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, even if two or more sheets of paper are fed out of the paper feed tray at a time, the leading edge of the multiply fed paper is directed to the paper side of the extension. Since the sheet is in contact with the slightly protruding sheet facing surface, the double feeding state is eliminated at an early stage due to the frictional resistance generated by the contact, and only one sheet contacting the sheet feed roller is sent to the downstream printing unit or the like. be able to.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, it is possible to prevent the skewing and double feeding of the sheet by bringing the leading end of the sheet into contact with a number of protrusions projecting from the sheet facing surface of the extension. In addition, since the plurality of protrusions are integrally provided on the extension portion, the number of parts is not increased and the manufacturing cost is reduced.

According to the fourth aspect of the present invention, even if two or more sheets of paper are fed out of the paper feed tray at a time, the leading edge of the multiply fed paper is divided into a plurality of rows. Since the paper is forcibly separated by being passed through a large number of convex portions, the double feed state is eliminated at an early stage, and only one sheet that comes into contact with the paper feed roller is sent to a downstream printing unit or the like. Can be.

According to the fifth aspect of the present invention, even if two or more sheets of paper are fed out of the paper feed tray at a time, the leading edge of the double-fed sheet is protruded at random. Since multiple papers come into contact with each other and the papers are separated from each other by the frictional resistance generated by the contact, the double feed state is eliminated at an early stage, and only one paper that comes in contact with the paper feed roller is printed on the downstream side. Can be sent to the department.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a longitudinal sectional view illustrating an ink jet printer including a sheet feeding device according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the sheet feeding device.

FIG. 3 is a front view of the sheet feeding device.

FIG. 4A is a perspective view showing the shape of an extension, and FIG.
FIG.

FIG. 5 (a) is a perspective view showing a modification of the extension,
(B) is the same cross-sectional view.

FIG. 6A is a perspective view showing another modified example of the extension part,
(B) is the same cross-sectional view.

7A is a perspective view showing still another modification of the extension, and FIG. 7B is a cross-sectional view of the same.

FIG. 8 is a longitudinal sectional view illustrating an ink jet printer including a sheet feeding device according to a second embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 9 is a perspective view of the sheet feeding device.

FIG. 10A is a perspective view showing the shape of an extension,
(B) is the same cross-sectional view.

FIG. 11 is a side view illustrating a laser printer including a sheet feeding device according to a third embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 12 is a plan view of the same.

FIG. 13 is a longitudinal sectional view showing a conventional example.

FIG. 14 is a perspective view of the sheet feeding device.

FIG. 15 is a front view of the sheet feeding device.

[Explanation of symbols]

 Reference Signs List 6 paper feeder 7 paper feed tray 10 movable guide plate 10A paper facing surface of movable guide plate 17 extended portion 17A paper facing surface of extended portion 18 convex portion P paper a paper feeding direction

Claims (5)

[Claims] A movable guide plate disposed on a paper feed tray so as to be movable in a direction orthogonal to a paper feed direction;
The paper feed roller is brought into contact with the upper surface of the paper set at a predetermined position on the paper feed tray, and the paper feed roller is rotated to feed the paper from the paper feed tray along the movable guide plate. In the paper device, a paper feed device characterized in that an extension portion extending from a tip of the movable guide plate to a downstream side of the paper on the paper feed tray is provided. 2. The sheet feeding device according to claim 1, wherein the sheet facing surface of the extension portion is slightly protruded to the sheet side from the sheet facing surface of the movable guide plate. 3. A paper-facing surface of the extension portion is formed substantially flush with a paper-facing surface of the movable guide plate, and a number of convex portions are protruded from the paper-facing surface of the extension portion. The sheet feeding device according to claim 1, wherein 4. The apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the plurality of projections are divided into a plurality of rows at predetermined intervals along a direction orthogonal to a sheet feeding direction on a sheet facing surface of the extension. Paper feeder. 5. The paper feeding device according to claim 3, wherein the plurality of convex portions are provided at random on the sheet facing surface of the extension portion.