JP2002114434A - Paper discharging tray of recording device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a paper discharging tray of a recording device to certainly accumulate sheets without dropping out the sheets. SOLUTION: A wire tray 20 on which a stopper part 24 inclined diagonally upward relative to the paper discharging direction is formed is provided on a head end in the paper discharging direction of the paper discharging tray 14. Consequently, the sheet A discharged, from a paper discharging port 12 is stored in the paper discharging tray 14 without colliding with the stopper part 24 and dropping. It is possible to prevent a paper jam as a head end pf the sheet runs off in the paper discharging direction along the stopper part 24 since the stopper part 24 is inclined diagonally upward in the case when drawing of the paper discharging tray 14 is insufficient.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a paper discharge tray provided in a recording device such as a printer or a facsimile.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, a recording apparatus such as a printer or a facsimile is provided with a tray on a side surface for stacking recorded sheets discharged from the apparatus body. That is, a sheet discharge port (hereinafter, referred to as a sheet discharge port) is provided on a side surface of the recording apparatus main body.
Is provided, and a substantially horizontal discharge tray is protrudingly arranged below the discharge port on the side surface. Therefore, the recording paper discharged from the paper discharge port stops on the paper discharge tray and is stacked.

[0003] By the way, there is a demand for reducing the installation space of a recording apparatus, and the like, and a reduction in the size of a paper discharge tray is required.
However, if the size of the paper discharge tray is reduced to a value close to the paper size, the force of the paper discharged from the paper discharge port cannot be stopped, and the paper may fall off the paper discharge tray.

As a measure for preventing such a drop, Japanese Patent Laid-Open Publication No.
Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 293256 discloses a configuration in which a support member having high frictional resistance is provided on a discharge tray to prevent the paper from dropping from the discharge tray by frictional force.

However, high frictional resistance acts between the supporting member and the sheet only on the first sheet, and thereafter, the sheet discharged onto the sheet stored on the sheet discharge tray is applied to the sheet. Has no effect. Therefore, there is a possibility that the second and subsequent sheets of the stack may fall off the sheet discharge tray.

On the other hand, there has been proposed a configuration in which a stopper bent at a right angle is provided at the leading end (discharge direction) of the paper discharge tray to prevent the paper from falling off. In this case, the momentum of the discharged sheet can be reliably suppressed by the leading edge of the sheet hitting the stopper, and the dropping of the sheet from the discharge tray can be reliably prevented.

[0007]

In the above-described paper discharge tray, a portion provided with a stopper is extended and retracted (pulled out) with respect to the paper discharge tray main body in order to reduce the size of the packaging when the printer is shipped. ) It has a flexible configuration, and is shipped with the paper ejection tray compact.

In this case, if the discharge tray is not sufficiently pulled out from the printer body during use, the leading edge of the paper abuts against a stopper bent at a right angle before the paper is completely discharged from the paper discharge port, and the paper is discharged. The paper nipped by the discharge roller near the paper opening bends, and when the trailing end of the paper separates from the discharge roller, the paper enters the inside of the discharge outlet conversely due to the rigidity (reaction force of the bending) of the paper itself, causing a paper jam. Inconveniences such as this may occur.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, it is an object of the present invention to provide a sheet discharge tray of a recording apparatus capable of reliably stacking sheets without falling off.

[0010]

According to the first aspect of the present invention,
A discharge tray on which recorded paper discharged from a discharge port provided on a side surface of the recording apparatus main body is placed, and a tray main body protruding and disposed substantially horizontally below the discharge port on the side surface; A linear tray formed so as to be able to be pulled out in the paper discharging direction with respect to the tray body, and a stopper portion inclined obliquely upward with respect to the paper discharging direction at a leading end of the linear body tray in the paper discharging direction. It is characterized by having.

The operation of the first aspect of the present invention will be described.

When not in use, by storing the linear body tray in the tray body, it is possible to reduce the size of packing and the like at the time of shipment. On the other hand, at the time of printing, the linear body tray is pulled out from the tray body in the sheet discharging direction and used.
At this time, the momentum of the sheet ejected from the sheet ejection port is suppressed by the tip of the sheet abutting on a stopper portion formed to be inclined obliquely upward at the tip of the linear tray in the sheet ejection direction, and the sheet is ejected from the tray. It is housed in the horizontal part of the main body and the linear body tray. At this time, the leading end of the sheet is guided to the horizontal portion by the inclined stopper portion. Therefore, the second and subsequent sheets ejected from the sheet ejection port abut against the stopper section of the linear tray without being covered by the ejected sheet, and are similarly well accommodated in the sheet ejection tray. .

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect of the present invention, the linear body tray is detachably attached to the tray body.

The operation of the invention described in claim 2 will be described.

At the time of shipment from the factory, the packing can be made compact by removing the linear tray. In addition, when it is unnecessary depending on the paper size, the installation space can be reduced by removing and using the linear body tray.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect of the present invention, the tray main body includes a drawer tray which can be pulled out in a sheet discharging direction, and the linear body tray is discharged with respect to the drawer tray. It is characterized by being provided so that it can be pulled out in the direction.

The operation of the invention will be described.

At the time of shipment from the factory, the packing can be made compact by storing the linear body tray and the drawer tray. If the drawer tray is not required depending on the paper size, the installation space can be reduced by using the drawer tray in a stored state, for example.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect of the present invention, the stopper has an inclination angle of 60 ° ± 10 ° with respect to a sheet discharging direction. And

The operation of the invention will be described.

If the inclination angle of the stopper portion is less than 50 degrees, when the leading end of the paper discharged from the paper discharge port collides with the stopper portion, the contact angle becomes too small, and the momentum of the discharged paper is reduced. It cannot be suppressed and may fall from the paper discharge tray. On the other hand, if the inclination angle of the stopper portion exceeds 70 degrees, the leading end abuts against the stopper portion and is bent when the length of the ejected paper tray pulled out is insufficient for the length of the sheet to be ejected. Due to the reaction force of the paper, the paper may enter the paper discharge port and cause a paper jam. Therefore, the inclination angle of the stopper is preferably 60 degrees ± 10 degrees with respect to the sheet discharging direction.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect of the present invention, the length of the horizontal portion of the drawn out tray does not reach the length of the sheet to be discharged. In this case, the stopper portion is formed at a predetermined inclination angle with respect to the sheet discharging direction so that the sheet discharged from the printer main body is discharged without being jammed.

The operation of the fifth aspect of the present invention will be described.

With such a stopper,
Even if the length of the output tray that is pulled out is not enough for the length of the paper to be discharged, the inclination angle of the stopper is appropriate when the leading edge of the discharged paper hits the stopper. , The leading edge of the sheet escapes in the sheet discharging direction along the inclination of the stopper portion. Therefore, the rear end of the sheet is ejected from the sheet ejection outlet while the leading end of the sheet abuts against the stopper portion, and the sheet enters the sheet ejection port reversely due to the reaction force of the bending of the sheet to cause a paper jam. Can be prevented.

According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, in the invention according to any one of the first to fifth aspects, the position of the paper discharge port of the printer body is higher than the height of the stopper portion of the linear tray. It is characterized by the following.

The operation of the invention according to claim 6 will be described.

When the height of the stopper portion is higher than the position of the paper discharge port formed on the side surface of the printer main body, the height of the sheets stacked on the paper discharge tray becomes higher than the position of the paper discharge port. As a result, there is a risk that the paper discharged from the paper discharge port collides with the paper stacked on the paper discharge tray to cause a paper jam, or the stacked paper may be pressed and fall off the paper discharge tray. . However, in the present invention, since the height of the stopper portion is lower than that of the sheet discharge port,
The above-mentioned inconvenience can be reliably avoided.

[0028]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS A discharge tray of an ink jet printer according to one embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.

The ink jet printer 10 is shown in FIG.
As shown in FIG. 1A, a paper outlet 12 for discharging recorded paper is provided on a side surface 11A of the printer main body 11. As shown in FIG. 1C, a star wheel 40 and a paper discharge roll 42 for discharging paper from the paper discharge port 12 are provided inside the printer main body 11, and the star wheel 40 and the paper discharge roll 42 are provided. 42 sandwiched between side 1
The paper is discharged from the paper discharge port 12 in a direction perpendicular to 1A (horizontal direction, hereinafter referred to as a paper discharge direction).

Further, on the side surface 11A of the printer main body 11, a paper discharge tray 14 is provided below the paper discharge port 12 and extends vertically to the side surface 11A.

The paper discharge tray 14 can be stored in the side surface 11A of the printer main body 11 and is formed so as to be able to be pulled out in the paper discharge direction. It is composed of a drawer tray 18 formed so as to be able to be pulled out in the paper direction, and a wire tray 20 which can be stored in the drawer tray 18 and is formed so as to be drawn out in the paper discharge direction.

Therefore, the plate-shaped tray main body 16 and the drawer tray 18 extend in a vertical sheet discharging direction from the side surface of the printer main body 11. A wire tray 20 formed by bending a wire as a linear body is shown in FIG.
As shown in (B), a pair of horizontal portions 22 extending in the paper discharge direction from the front end of the drawer tray 18 and a predetermined angle θ (0) formed at the front end of the horizontal portion 22 in the paper discharge direction.
Stopper part 2 bent obliquely upward at an angle <θ <90 °)
4 and a horizontal portion 2 to which the tips of the stopper portions 24 are connected.
6.

As shown in FIG. 1C, when the leading end of the sheet A discharged from the sheet discharge port 12 abuts, the stopper portion 24 suppresses the momentum of the sheet A to be discharged. This serves as a so-called stopper function for storing sheets on the tray body 16, the drawer tray 18, and the horizontal portion 22) of the wire tray 20. Further, as will be described later, even when the tray is not sufficiently pulled out, the paper is satisfactorily discharged without causing a paper jam or the like. In addition, in order to ensure that these functions are exhibited,
It is preferable that the inclination angle θ of the stopper portion 24 is 50 degrees ≦ θ ≦ 70 degrees.

When the ink jet printer 10 is used, as shown in FIGS. 1A and 1C, the tray main body 16, the drawer tray 18, and the wire tray 20 are all drawn out in the sheet discharging direction and used. In this case, the tray body 16, the drawer tray 18, and the wire tray 20
The length L formed by the horizontal portion 22 is in the range of Mcm to (M + 5) cm with respect to the length Mcm of the discharged sheet. This is because if the length L is not longer than the sheet length Mcm, the sheets to be stacked will be located on the stopper section 24, and the stopper section 24 will be in a predetermined position for the second and subsequent sheets to be discharged. This is because there is a possibility that the function of the paper tray 14 may not be exhibited, and if the length L is longer than (M + 5) cm, the size of the paper discharge tray 14 cannot be sufficiently reduced.

When not in use, for example, at the time of shipment from a factory, the horizontal portion 22 of the wire tray 20 is stored in the drawer tray 18 (see FIG. 2B), and the drawer tray 18 is flush with the tray body 16 in end face. The tray main body 16 can be housed in the tray main body 16 until the printing is completed (see FIG. 2C), and finally the tray main body 16 can be housed inside the printer main body 11 (see FIG. 2D). Therefore, at the time of shipment from the factory, most of the paper discharge trays 14 are housed inside the printer main body 11, so that the package can be reduced in size and shipped.

It should be noted that, as shown in FIG.
0 height of the horizontal portion 26 (maximum height of the stopper portion 24)
Is lower than the paper discharge port 12. Therefore, the height of the paper stacked on the paper output tray 14 is
As a result, it is possible to prevent the paper discharged from the paper discharge port 12 from hitting the stacked paper and causing a paper jam, or to prevent the stacked paper from dropping from the paper discharge tray 14.

The operation of the discharge tray 14 of the ink jet printer 10 having the above-described structure will be described with reference to first to third examples.
A description will be given in comparison with a comparative example.

First, when recording is performed by the ink jet printer 10, the tray main body 16, the drawer tray 18,
The entire wire tray 20 is pulled out in the sheet discharging direction and used.

The paper A recorded by the ink jet printer 10 is nipped by the star wheel 40 and the paper discharge roller 42 and discharged from the paper discharge port 12 to the paper discharge tray 14.
The front end collides with the stopper portion 24 formed at the front end.
As a result, the momentum of the discharged sheet A is suppressed, and the sheet A
Is stored in the paper discharge tray 14 (see FIG. 1C).
At this time, since the leading end of the sheet A is guided to the horizontal portion 22 by the inclined stopper 24, the sheet A does not cover the stopper 24. Therefore, the second sheet and subsequent sheets A discharged from the sheet discharge port 12 are similarly suppressed from being discharged by the stopper portion 24, and the sheets A are stacked on the sheet discharge tray 14 in an excellent manner.

Therefore, the stopper portion 24 (horizontal portion 2)
Paper can be stacked up to the height of 6).

Hereinafter, the operation of this embodiment will be described in comparison with the first to third comparative examples. Here, the first comparative example to the third comparative example are different from the present embodiment (hereinafter, may be referred to as examples) only in the shape of the wire tray. As shown in FIG. 4, the first comparative example has only a horizontal portion without a stopper portion in the wire tray, and the second comparative example has
The third comparative example is similar to the first comparative example in that the horizontal portion is formed of a high friction member, and the third comparative example is provided with a stopper that is substantially perpendicular to the sheet discharging direction as in the example. is there. In the first to third comparative examples, the same components as those in the example are denoted by the same reference numerals, and detailed description thereof is omitted.

In the first comparative example in which the horizontal wire tray 20 is simply provided, as shown in FIG. 4, there is no means for suppressing the momentum of the discharged paper. The paper may fall off as the number of sheets increases, and there is a problem that sheets cannot be stacked properly.

In the second comparative example in which the wire tray 20 is covered with a high friction member such as urethane rubber, the force of the sheet discharged by the frictional force of the wire tray 20 is suppressed for the first sheet discharged. However, since the second sheet is discharged on the first sheet stacked after the second sheet, there is no action by the high friction member, and when about 4 or 5 sheets are stacked, Has the disadvantage of dropping out.

On the other hand, in the third comparative example in which the stopper portion 24 in which the tip of the wire tray 20 is bent at a right angle is provided, sheets can be satisfactorily stacked up to the height of the stopper portion 24 as in this embodiment. In this regard, the present embodiment and the comparative example have the same operation and effect.

However, there is a remarkable difference between the embodiment and the comparative example when the tray withdrawal amount is insufficient. For example, as shown in FIG. 2C, only the tray body 16 is pulled out from the printer body 12 and the drawer tray 18 and the horizontal portion 22 of the wire tray 20 are stored. This will be described in detail with reference to FIG.

In this case, in the third comparative example, the leading end of the paper A discharged by the star wheel 40 and the paper discharge roller 42 hits the stopper 24 of the wire tray 20. In the third comparative example, since the stopper portion 24 is formed at right angles to the sheet discharging direction, the paper A cannot escape along the stopper portion 24, and the paper A Bend. If the trailing end of the sheet A is discharged from between the star wheel 40 and the discharge roller 42 in this state, the sheet A enters the lower side of the discharge roller 42 due to the reaction force of the bending of the sheet A.

On the other hand, in the embodiment, the leading end of the sheet A escapes along the stopper 24 inclined upward in the sheet discharging direction.
There is no paper jam.

That is, in the case of glossy paper, the leading end of the sheet A collides with the stopper portion 24, but the sheet A is hard and does not easily bend. The sheet A moves along the inclined stopper portion 24 and the sheet A is discharged satisfactorily without jamming.

In the case of thick plain paper, the amount of flexure of the sheet A slightly increases, but when the amount of flexure increases similarly to glossy paper, the leading end of the sheet A escapes along the stopper portion 24 due to the reaction force. Therefore, the paper A can be discharged without paper jam.

Further, in the case of thin plain paper, the rigidity of the paper is low, and the paper is largely bent upward as in the third comparative example, but the stopper portion 24 is inclined upward in the paper discharging direction. Before the trailing end of the paper A is discharged from between the star wheel 40 and the paper discharge roll 42, the leading end of the paper A that has hit the stopper 24 due to the reaction force of the bending is obliquely upward along the stopper 24. Because of the escape, no paper jam occurs.

As described above, in the paper discharge tray of the printer according to the present embodiment, the stopper portion 24 inclined upward in the paper discharge direction is provided at the leading end of the wire tray 20, so that a plurality of papers can be reliably formed with a simple configuration. You can stock. Further, even when the tray is not sufficiently pulled out, the paper A can be reliably discharged without causing a paper jam.

It is also possible to provide a bent hook portion 22 A on the extension tray side of the horizontal portion 22 of the wire tray 20 so as to be detachable from the drawer tray 18.

In this embodiment, the paper ejection tray provided in the ink jet printer has been described. However, it goes without saying that the present invention can be applied to other recording apparatuses.

[0054]

According to the present invention, the paper discharged from the recording apparatus can be reliably stacked on the paper discharge tray, and the paper jam can be reliably prevented even if the length of the drawn paper discharge tray is insufficient.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1A is a schematic perspective view showing an ink jet printer according to an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 1B is a side view of a wire tray, and FIG. FIG.

FIGS. 2A to 2D are storage state diagrams of a discharge tray of the inkjet printer according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a side view illustrating a relationship between a paper discharge port and a stopper in the inkjet printer according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a sheet discharge performance comparison chart of the first to third comparative examples and an example according to the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a performance comparison diagram of a third comparative example and an example.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of a wire tray according to another embodiment of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Ink-jet printer (recording apparatus) 12 ... Discharge port 14 ... Discharge tray 16 ... Tray main body 18 ... Drawer tray 20 ... Wire tray (linear body tray) 24 ... Stopper part

Claims (6)

[Claims] 1. A discharge tray on which recorded paper discharged from a discharge port provided on a side surface of a recording apparatus main body is placed, and is disposed substantially horizontally below a discharge port on the side surface. And a linear body tray formed so as to be able to be pulled out in the paper discharging direction with respect to the tray main body. A paper ejection tray for a recording apparatus, comprising a sloped stopper portion. 2. The paper output tray according to claim 1, wherein said linear tray is detachably attached to said tray body. 3. The apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the tray body includes a drawer tray that can be pulled out in a paper discharge direction, and the linear body tray is provided so as to be able to be drawn out in the paper discharge direction with respect to the drawer tray. Item 2. A discharge tray of the recording device according to Item 1. 4. The stopper according to claim 6, wherein the stopper is disposed at a position
The discharge tray of a recording apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the discharge tray has a tilt angle of 0 degree ± 10 degrees. 5. When the length of the horizontal portion of the drawn-out paper discharge tray does not reach the length of the paper to be discharged, the paper discharged from the printer body is discharged without being jammed. The stopper portion is formed at a predetermined inclination angle with respect to a sheet discharging direction.
4. The paper discharge tray of the recording device according to claim 3. 6. The discharge device according to claim 1, wherein a position of a discharge port of the printer main body is higher than a height of a stopper portion of the linear body tray. Paper tray.