JP2003063097A - Recording apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To easily perform work for replacing a circuit board, even if a coupling part between two units, which constitute a recording apparatus body, has to be arranged in a position which straddles a pull-out path of the circuit board. SOLUTION: In a printer 100, the apparatus body is equipped with a paper- feeding unit 1 and a carriage unit 20, and one unit coupling device 50 is used for a coupling between the two units 1 and 20. The circuit board 33 is arranged between the units 1 and 20 in a sandwiched manner, and the device 50 is arranged on an insertion/extraction path of the circuit board 33. The device 50 opens the insertion/extraction path of the circuit board 33 in an unlocking state, so that work for uncoupling the units 1 and 20 from each other can be made unnecessary in the work for replacing the circuit board 33.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a recording apparatus for recording on a recording material, which comprises an apparatus main body formed by combining a plurality of units.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A recording apparatus typified by a fax machine, a printer or the like is provided with a main frame which is a base of the apparatus, and each component of the recording apparatus is assembled to the main frame, and the main frame is used for recording. There is one in which the entire device is integrally configured. However, in the case where the entire recording apparatus is integrally configured with the main frame as the core in this way, the assembly work of the apparatus cannot be divided into labor, the assembly cannot be performed efficiently, and the maintainability is deteriorated. Therefore, there is a case in which the recording device is divided into units, the assembly work is performed for each unit, and then the units are finally combined.

[0003]

By the way, when a failure occurs in the printing apparatus or when the control sequence of the printing apparatus is upgraded, the circuit board constituting the control unit of the printing apparatus is replaced. There are cases. Here, when the recording apparatus is configured by combining a plurality of units as described above, and the circuit board is arranged so as to be sandwiched between two units, Depending on the size, there may be a case where the connecting portion that connects the two units has to be arranged at a position straddling the lead-out path of the circuit board. In such a case, it is necessary to separate the two units when exchanging the circuit board, which complicates the exchanging operation of the circuit board.

Therefore, the present invention has been made from the above viewpoint, and its problem is that the connecting portion of two units constituting the main body of the recording apparatus must be arranged at a position straddling the lead-out path of the circuit board. Also in this, it is to facilitate the replacement work of the circuit board.

[0005]

In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, a recording apparatus according to claim 1 of the present application is a recording apparatus for recording on a recording medium, the apparatus main body of which is formed by combining a plurality of units. A first unit removably provided with a circuit board that constitutes a control unit of the recording apparatus; and a second unit connected to the first unit,
And the circuit board is disposed so as to be sandwiched between the first unit and the second unit, and the first unit is provided on the insertion / removal path of the circuit board. And a unit connecting device for connecting the second unit to each other, and the unit connecting device is arranged in a non-locked state in which the first unit and the second unit can be separated from each other. It is characterized in that it is configured to open the insertion / removal path.

According to the first aspect of the present invention, the circuit board constituting the control section of the recording apparatus can be easily removed, and the maintainability of the recording apparatus can be improved. That is, the circuit board that constitutes the control unit of the printing apparatus is arranged so as to be sandwiched between the first unit and the second unit. Where the first unit and the second
The unit refers to any two units that are connected so as to sandwich the circuit board among a plurality of units that configure the recording apparatus. A unit connecting device that connects the first unit and the second unit is disposed on the insertion / removal path of the circuit board, and the circuit connecting board cannot be inserted / removed by the unit connection device. Has become.

[0007] However, the unit connecting device is the same as the above-mentioned 2
Since the insertion / removal path of the circuit board is opened in the unlocked state in which the two units can be separated, the circuit board can be inserted / removed without the need to separate the two units. The circuit board can be replaced easily and quickly without the need for disassembling the main body.

The recording apparatus according to claim 2 of the present application is the recording apparatus according to claim 1.
In the above, the second unit is connected to the back side of the first unit, and the unit connecting device allows the circuit board to be vertically inserted and removed in the unlocked state. According to the invention of claim 2 of the present application, the second unit is connected to the back side of the first unit, and the unit connecting device is capable of vertically inserting and removing the circuit board in the unlocked state. Therefore, the workability of the circuit board can be easily inserted and removed.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided a recording apparatus according to the second aspect.
In, the second unit is connected to the first unit by two connecting portions arranged on upper portions of both sides of the second unit, and the second unit is located apart from the upper portion of the circuit board. The other side to be formed is composed of a hook portion provided on one side of the first unit or the second unit and a hook receiving portion provided on the other side on which the hook portion is hooked. To do.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, the second unit is connected to the first unit by the two connecting portions arranged on both sides of the upper portion, but is arranged apart from the upper portion of the circuit board. One of the connecting portions includes a hook portion provided on one side of the first unit or the second unit and a hook receiving portion provided on the other side on which the hook portion is hooked. Therefore, the connecting portion that does not straddle the extraction path of the circuit board can be configured at a low cost with a simple structure.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a recording apparatus according to the first aspect.
In any one of 1 to 3, the unit coupling device includes a first engagement portion provided in the first unit,
The second engaging portion provided in the second unit, and the first engaging portion and the second engaging portion are arranged so as to straddle the first engaging portion and the second engaging portion. A coupling member that couples the first unit and the second unit by engaging the second engaging portion, and the engagement between the first engaging portion and the coupling member, The connecting member is hooked by the first engaging portion, and the second engaging portion and the connecting member are engaged with each other in the concave portion formed on one side. It is characterized in that the convex portion formed on the side is configured to be performed by snap means that is fitted by elastic means.

According to the invention of claim 4 of the present application, the connecting unit connecting device for connecting the first unit and the second unit includes a first engaging portion provided in the first unit. A second engaging portion provided in the second unit and a connecting member engaging with the first and second engaging portions, and the connecting member includes the first engaging portion. The first engaging portion is engaged with the engaging means that is engaged with the first engaging portion, and the second engaging portion has a concave portion formed on one side and a convex portion formed on the other side. The portion is engaged with the second engagement portion by snap means. Therefore,
The work of connecting and disconnecting the first unit and the second unit can be easily performed without the need for any tools, and thus the circuit board can be pulled out more easily and quickly. be able to.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a recording apparatus according to the fourth aspect.
In the above, the first and second engaging portions are arranged above the first and second units respectively and at substantially the same height position, and the connecting member is A plane formed of a plate-like body that extends substantially horizontally over the first and second engaging portions, and the first engaging portion is orthogonal to the connecting direction of the first and second units. A tongue piece having a substantially T-shape when viewed from the front, and the second engaging portion is in pressure contact with a supporting surface that supports a lower surface of the connecting member and an upper surface of the connecting member. An elastically deformable snap plate as the elastic means, and a fitting projection as the convex portion that projects downward from the snap plate. The connecting member includes the tongue piece upward from the connecting member. The first slot that is inserted so as to project into the And a second slot for locking the connecting member to the tongue, and rotating the connecting member substantially horizontally moves the tongue from the first slot to the second slot. A guide groove hole for moving and a fitting hole as the recess into which the fitting protrusion fits are formed, and the first and second engaging portions and the connecting member are formed. Upon engagement, the tongue is projected from the connecting member by the first slot, and then the connecting member is rotated substantially horizontally, whereby the tongue is moved from the first slot to the second slot. Of the first engaging portion and the connecting member are completed by guiding the connecting member between the supporting surface and the snap plate. A fitting protrusion is fitted into the fitting hole, whereby an engaging operation of the connecting member and the second engaging portion Characterized in that to complete.

According to the fifth aspect of the present invention, since the first engaging portion is a tongue piece having a substantially T-shape when viewed from the front, the connection that is hooked on the first engaging portion. The member can be securely hooked by the T-shape without being disengaged upward, so that the connection state of the first unit and the second unit can be secured.

The recording apparatus according to claim 6 of the present application is the same as claim 1.
5 to 5, the first unit is a carriage unit in which a carriage including an inkjet recording head that ejects ink droplets onto a recording material is provided so as to be capable of reciprocating in the main scanning direction. 2 units are connected to the back side of the carriage unit,
A feeding unit for feeding a recording material to a downstream side, wherein the circuit board has an operation button which constitutes an operation unit of the recording apparatus on an upper portion, and a feeding path of the recording material. A paper detector for detecting the passage of the recording material is provided in the lower portion extending up to, and is arranged substantially vertically on the side of the carriage unit facing the paper feeding unit.

According to the sixth aspect of the present invention, the first unit is a carriage unit including a carriage, and the second unit is a paper feeding unit including a recording material feeding unit. Then, the circuit board disposed so as to be sandwiched between these two units is provided with an operation button which constitutes an operation portion of the recording apparatus at an upper portion, and a paper detector which detects passage of a recording material at a lower portion. Is equipped with. Therefore, the circuit board doubles as a mounting board for the operation buttons and also as a mounting board for the paper detector. Therefore, since such a circuit board can be easily removed, the recording apparatus is further improved. The maintainability of can be improved.

[0017]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. <Structure of Apparatus Main Body of Inkjet Printer> The structure of the apparatus main body of the inkjet printer according to the embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS. 1 to 4. Here, FIG. 1 is an external perspective view of an apparatus main body of the inkjet printer (hereinafter abbreviated as “printer”) 100, FIG. 2 is the same exploded perspective view, FIG. 3 is the same side sectional view, and FIG. It is a figure.

In FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, the printer 100 is divided into a plurality of units, and the plurality of units are combined to form a main unit. In the figure, reference numeral 1 is a paper feeding unit as a paper feeding device capable of feeding a paper P (see FIG. 3) as a recording material or roll paper (not shown), and reference numeral 20 is an inkjet recording head 24 (see FIG. 3)), a carriage unit including a carriage 22 having a carriage 22 having a reference numeral 60, a conveyance unit 60 for conveying a recording material, and a reference numeral 80 an ink system unit for performing maintenance of the inkjet recording head 24. Is divided into these four units as shown in FIG.
It is constructed by combining two units as shown in FIG. Incidentally, in the present embodiment, the carriage unit 20 and the ink system unit 80 are respectively the upper side and the right side of the transport unit 60 (the right side in FIG. 4).
And the paper feeding unit 1 is connected to the carriage unit 20.
The four unit units are configured to be united by being connected to the back side of the sheet feeding unit 1, and the unit connecting device described in detail later is used to connect the sheet feeding unit 1 and the carriage unit 20.

Next, referring to FIG. 3, the printer 100
The paper transporting route will be described. In addition, in the following, FIG.
The left side (rear side of the printer 100) is referred to as “upstream side”, and the right side of FIG. 3 (front side of the printer 100) is referred to as downstream side. The printer 100 is provided with a hopper 6 on the upstream side, and the sheets P as cut sheets are accumulated and stored on the hopper 6 in an inclined posture. The hopper 6 is rotatably provided in a clockwise direction and a counterclockwise direction in FIG. It is designed to be pressed and separated. Further, the hopper 6 is provided with a movable guide 4 that can slide in the width direction of the paper P (see FIG. 1), and a fixed guide 5 (see FIG. 1).
(See reference), the side edge of the accumulated paper P is guided.
Then, the topmost one of the accumulated sheets P is the hopper 6
Performs a pressure contact operation with respect to the paper feed roller 3, and in the pressure contact state, the paper feed roller 3 rotates and is fed to the downstream side. The paper feed roller 3 has a substantially D-shape when viewed from the side, and is controlled so that its flat portion faces the paper P during the printing operation (state of FIG. 3), whereby the paper P
It is designed to prevent the occurrence of transporting load.

Next, a paper guide 67 as a plate-like member is provided substantially horizontally below the paper feed roller 3, and the front end of the paper P fed out by the paper feed roller 3 is the paper guide 67.
It obliquely abuts and is smoothly guided to the downstream side. The transport drive roller 62 that is rotationally driven downstream from the paper guide 67.
And the transport driven roller 6 that is in pressure contact with the transport drive roller 62.
3 is provided, the sheet P is nipped between the conveyance driving roller 62 and the conveyance driven roller 63, and is conveyed to the downstream side at a constant pitch.

The transport driven roller 63 is axially supported on the downstream side of the transport driven roller holder 64, and the transport driven roller holder 64 rotates in the clockwise direction and the counterclockwise direction in FIG. 3 about the rotation shaft 64a. The transport driven roller 63 is rotatably biased in a direction in which the transport driven roller 63 is constantly in pressure contact with the transport drive roller 62 (clockwise direction in FIG. 3) by a torsion coil spring (not shown).

Next, in the vicinity of the conveyance driven roller holder 64 located on the most one-digit side (on the right front side in FIG. 2), the sheet detection consisting of the sensor body 36b and the detector 36a for detecting the passage of the sheet P is detected. A container 36 is provided. Detector 36a
Is formed in a substantially V shape in a side view, and is rotatably provided in a clockwise direction and a counterclockwise direction in FIG. 2 around a rotation shaft 36c near the center thereof. The sensor main body portion 36b located above the detector 36a includes a light emitting portion (not shown) and a light receiving portion (not shown) that receives light from the light emitting portion, and the sensor main portion 36b is placed above the rotating shaft 36c of the detector 36a. The rotation operation blocks and passes the light traveling from the light emitting section to the light receiving section. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 3, when the detector 36a is rotated so as to be pushed upward with the passage of the paper P, the upper side of the detector 36a is disengaged from the sensor body 36b, whereby the light receiving portion is in the light receiving state. Therefore, the passage of the paper P is detected.

Then, downstream of the transport drive roller 62,
The platen 66 and the inkjet recording head 24 are arranged so as to face each other vertically. The platen 66 is long in the main scanning direction (see FIG. 2), and the paper P conveyed below the inkjet recording head 24 by the rotation of the conveyance driving roller 62 is supported from below by the platen 66. The ink jet recording head 24 is an ink cartridge 23.
A carriage guide shaft 2 extending in the main scanning direction is provided at the bottom of a carriage 22 for mounting the carriage.
It reciprocates in the main scanning direction while being guided by 5. In the present embodiment, the ink cartridge 23 is composed of four cartridges as shown in FIG. 4, that is, four cartridges in which four color inks (black, yellow, cyan and magenta) are separately and independently filled. Can be exchanged separately.

Next, a sheet discharge section of the printer 100 is provided downstream from the ink jet recording head 24, and a sheet discharge drive roller 65, a sheet discharge driven roller 31, and a sheet discharge auxiliary roller 32 are arranged. . A plurality of paper ejection drive rollers 65 are attached in the axial direction of the paper ejection drive roller shaft 65a that is rotationally driven (see FIG. 4), and the paper ejection driven roller holder 3
The paper discharge driven roller 31 pivotally supported by 1a is provided so as to be driven to rotate by being lightly pressed against the paper discharge drive roller 65. Therefore, the paper P printed by the inkjet recording head 24 is rotated in a state where it is nipped by the paper ejection drive roller 65 and the paper ejection driven roller 31, so that the paper ejection direction (FIG. Three
Is discharged in the direction of arrow). The paper ejection auxiliary roller 32 pivotally supported by the paper ejection auxiliary roller holder 32a is provided on the slightly upstream side of the paper ejection driven roller 31, and presses the paper P slightly downward from the platen 66 of the paper P. Lifting is prevented and thus the distance between the paper P and the inkjet recording head 24 is regulated.

The hopper 6, the movable guide 4, the fixed guide 5, and the paper feed roller 3 described above are provided in the above-mentioned paper feed unit 1 shown in FIGS. As shown in FIG. 2, the sheet feeding unit 1 includes a mounting portion right 2a and a mounting portion left 2 which are vertically arranged on both sides of a hopper 6 and have a substantially columnar shape.
The base of the paper feeding unit frame 2 is provided with a rotary shaft 3a of the hopper 6 and the paper feeding roller 3.
Etc. are provided in the paper feeding unit frame 2.
Then, the sheet feeding unit 1 is connected to the rear side of the carriage unit 20 at the upper portions of the mounting portions 2a and 2b, as will be described later.

Next, the paper guide 67 and the conveyance drive roller 6
2, transport driven roller holder 64, paper ejection drive roller shaft 65
a is provided in the transport unit 60 shown in FIGS. 1 and 2. As shown in FIG. 2, the transport unit 60 includes a transport unit frame 61 having a substantially U-shaped plan view as a base body, a power supply unit 68 that is a power supply unit of the printer 100 at the rear, and a paper discharge at the front. The drive roller shaft 65a is attached to the transport drive roller 62 in the middle of the main body.
Further, a platen 66 is provided in the upper front part, and a transport driven roller holder 64 is provided in the middle upper part. Further, the transport unit 60 is provided on the lower left side with the paper feed roller 3, the transport drive roller 62, the paper discharge drive roller 65, and a pump device 8 described later.
2, the blade unit 84, and a drive motor 69 (see FIG. 4) that serves as a common drive source for these. The drive motor 69 and the five drive targets driven by the drive motor 69 are connected by a power transmission mechanism whose illustration and description are omitted in a state where the four units are combined as shown in FIG. 1. Moreover, it can be selectively driven.

Connected to the right side of the transport unit 60,
The ink system unit 80 as a maintenance means of the inkjet recording head 24 includes a frame 81, which is connected to the right side surface of the transport unit frame 61 and serves as a base of the unit, as shown in FIG.
Further, a cap device 83, a pump device 82, and a blade unit 84 are provided. The cap device 83 protects the nozzle surface (not shown) by capping the inkjet recording head 24 when the carriage 22 moves to the home position (right side region in FIG. 4), and the pump device 82 is the cap device in the capped state. A negative pressure is supplied to 83 to suck ink from the nozzle openings of the inkjet recording head 24. The blade unit 84 is movable between a position that crosses the reciprocating region of the carriage 22 and a position that retracts from the reciprocating region, moves to a position that traverses the reciprocating region of the carriage 22, and the carriage 22 prints. Cleaning is performed by moving the nozzle surface (not shown) of the inkjet recording head 24 by moving from the area to the home position (right area in FIG. 4) or in the opposite direction.

The carriage guide shaft 25 and the paper detector 36 are provided in the carriage unit 20. As shown in FIG. 2, the carriage unit 20 includes a main frame 21a, a side frame right 21b and a side frame left 21c that are erected on both sides of the main frame 21a. 25 is pivotally supported.

Further, as shown in FIG. 4, the carriage unit 20 is provided with a carriage motor 27 on the left rear surface of the unit, and a drive pulley 28 is attached to the carriage motor 27. A driven pulley 29 is provided on the right side of the unit, a carriage belt 26 is hung between the drive pulley 28 and the driven pulley 29, and a part of the carriage belt 26 is fixed to the carriage 22. . Therefore, the carriage 22 reciprocates in the main scanning direction (left and right direction in FIG. 4) by the rotation of the carriage motor 27.

Although the paper discharge frame 30 is attached to the carriage unit 20 side in FIG. 2, the paper discharge frame 30 can be attached to the carriage unit 20 side or the transport unit 60 side. It is possible to belong to either side.

The above is the configuration of the apparatus main body of the printer 100, and the printer 100 becomes movable by combining and connecting the four units. The carriage unit 20 and the sheet feeding unit 1 are connected by one unit connecting device and one connecting portion described later, and the other units are connected by fixing screws not shown.

<Structure of Unit Connecting Device and Method of Inserting / Removing Circuit Board> Next, the structure of the unit connecting device 50 for connecting the sheet feeding unit 1 and the carriage unit 20 and the method of inserting / removing the circuit board 33 will be described with reference to FIGS. This will be described with reference to FIG. Here, FIG. 5 is an external perspective view of the main body of the printer 100 as seen from the rear, FIG. 6 is an external perspective view showing the state in which the paper feeding unit 1 is separated from the state of FIG. 5, and FIG. 7 is a plan view of the circuit board. 8 is an external perspective view of the printer 100. 9 is an external perspective view of the unit connecting device 50, FIG. 10 is a plan view of the connecting member 37, FIG. 11 is a state transition diagram showing a connecting method by the unit connecting device 50, and FIG.
Is a state transition diagram showing a coupling method by a unit coupling device according to another embodiment, and FIG. 13 is a perspective view of a coupling portion between the sheet feeding unit 1 and the carriage unit 20.

In FIGS. 5 and 6, the paper feeding unit 1 is connected to the rear side of the carriage unit 20 so as to sandwich the circuit board 33 constituting the control section of the printer 100.
The circuit board 33 is a printer 100 as shown in FIGS.
As shown in detail in FIG. 7, the power-on switch 34 and the control switches 35, 35 of the printer 100 are provided on the upper part, and the detecting portion 36b (see FIG. 3) of the paper detector 36 is provided on the lower part as shown in detail in FIG. I have it.

Power-on switch 34 and control switch 3
As shown in FIG. 8, the buttons 5 and 35 can be pressed by a panel button 91 provided on the upper surface of a cover member 90 that forms the exterior of the printer 100. Here, in the printer having the panel button 91 arranged on the front surface of the cover member 90, in addition to the circuit board 33 constituting the control unit, the power-on switch 34 and the control switch 35,
It is necessary to separately dispose a printed circuit board on which the circuit board 35 is disposed on the front back side of the cover member 90, but in the present embodiment, the panel button 91 is disposed on the upper surface of the cover member 90 and the circuit board 33 is mounted on the device. By erected vertically in the vicinity of the center, the power-on switch 34 and the control switches 35, 35 can be arranged on the upper part of the circuit board 33, so that the printed circuit board is unnecessary.

Further, in a printer having a structure in which the circuit board 33 is horizontally arranged at the bottom of the apparatus, for example, a printed board for arranging the detecting portion 36b of the paper detector 36 is separately conveyed and driven roller holder. 64 (see FIG. 3), it is necessary to arrange it above the circuit board 33.
By erected vertically in the vicinity of the center of the apparatus, it is possible to dispose the detection portion 36b of the paper detector 36 below the circuit board 33, thus eliminating the need for the printed circuit board.

The circuit board 33 is attached to the carriage unit 2
By arranging on the back side of the main frame 21a of 0,
The circuit board 33 and the carriage 22 are close to each other, which makes it possible to shorten the cable length of the flat cable 48 (see FIG. 5) that connects the circuit board 33 and the carriage 22.

Next, the paper feeding unit 1 is connected to the main frame 21a of the carriage unit 20 at the upper portions of the mounting portions 2a and 2b. More specifically, the upper portion of the mounting portion 2a is connected by a unit coupling device 50 described in detail later, and the upper portion of the mounting portion 2b is shown in FIG.
As shown in detail in FIG. 1, the hook receiving portion 46 formed in the L-shape provided on the main frame 21a is connected to the hook portion 8 formed in the inverted U-shape provided in the mounting portion 2b by hooking. Has become.

As shown in FIG. 9 (a), the unit connecting device 50 includes a tongue piece 41 as a "first engaging portion", a connecting member 37, and a snap forming a "second engaging portion". It is composed of a plate 44 and a support surface 43. The tongue piece 41 has a substantially T-shape when viewed from the front and is provided along a plane orthogonal to the connecting direction of the sheet feeding unit 1 and the carriage unit 20 (the left-right direction in FIG. 11). ,
The upper surface of the mounting portion 2a has a smooth horizontal surface, and the snap plate 44 is made of an elastically deformable resin material as "elastic means".

The connecting member 37 is made of a plate-like member, and as shown in FIG. 10, a fitting hole 39 as a "recess" and a groove 38 are formed. The fitting hole 39 is fitted with a fitting projection 45 (see FIG. 11) as a “projection” formed so as to project toward the support surface 43 of the snap plate 44. And supporting surface 4
The engagement state with 3 (the second engagement portion) is formed. Further, the groove 38 is for the connecting member 37 to be hooked on the tongue piece 41, and the connecting member 37 being hooked on the tongue piece 41 by the groove 38 allows the tongue piece 41 (first engaging member). The mating portion) and the connecting member 37 are engaged with each other.

The unit connecting device 5 configured as described above
0 can connect the sheet feeding unit 1 and the carriage unit 20 by two methods described below. That is, first, as shown in FIG. 9A, the connecting member 37 is previously inserted between the snap plate 44 and the support surface 43,
The fitting hole 39 is fitted into the fitting protrusion 45, and the connecting member 37
Is attached to the attachment portion 2a of the sheet feeding unit 1. Then, the paper feeding unit 1 is lifted up, and the connecting member 3
7 is hooked to the tongue piece 41 by the slot 38, and as shown in FIG.
As shown in (b), the paper feeding unit 1 and the carriage unit 20 can be connected. Where the tongue 41
10 extends in the width direction of the tongue piece 41 and is denoted by reference numeral 3 in FIG.
After being inserted so as to project upward from the connecting member 37 by the groove hole portion 8b, it extends in parallel with the groove hole portion 38b.
The connecting member 37 moves to the slot portion as the “second slot” indicated by the reference numeral 38 a, and the connecting member 37 is hooked on the tongue piece 41.

Next, the attachment portion 2b and the main frame 21a are only connected by the connecting portion shown in FIG. 13, that is, the paper feeding unit 1 and the carriage unit 20 are united, but the connection is completed. FIG.
As shown in (a) to (c), the mounting member 37 is horizontally rotated to be in a connected state, that is, the unit connecting device 50.
Can be locked. More specifically, FIG.
As shown in FIG. 0, the tongue piece 41 is projected from the connecting member 37 by the groove hole portion as the “first groove hole” indicated by reference numeral 38c, which is formed so as to obliquely intersect the groove hole portion 38b (see FIG. 11).
(State (a)), the connecting member 37 is rotated substantially horizontally to guide the tongue piece 41 from the groove hole portion 38c to the groove hole portion 38a, and the engaging operation between the tongue piece 41 and the connecting member 37 is completed. At the same time (FIGS. 11B and 11C), the connecting member 37 is attached to the support surface 4
3 and the snap plate 44, the fitting protrusion 45 is fitted into the fitting hole 39, and thus the connecting member 37
And the engaging operation of the support surface 43 and the snap plate 44 is completed.

The slot region 38d in FIG. 10 is a guide slot region for guiding the tongue piece 41 from the slot portions 38c to 38a. In order to make the sheet feeding unit 1 and the carriage unit 20 separable, the connecting member 37 is rotated in the reverse order to the above, that is, in the order shown in FIGS. This can be done by removing the connecting member 37.

As described above, in the unit connecting device 50, the connecting member 37 and the tongue piece 41 are engaged by the hooking means, and the engaging projection 39 is fitted in the fitting hole 39 by the snap means. Then, since the paper feeding unit 1 and the carriage unit 20 are connected to each other, a tool such as a driver is not required for connecting or disconnecting the paper feeding unit 1 and the carriage unit 20, so that the paper feeding unit 1 can be easily connected. It is possible to perform connection or disconnection work with the carriage unit 20.

The unit connecting device 50 may be embodied as shown in FIG. In the embodiment of the unit connecting device 50 shown in FIG. 12, the tongue piece 41 provided on the main frame 21a in FIG.
The slot 38a provided on the side of the main frame 21a and the slot 38a provided on the side of the connecting member 37 are provided on the side of the main frame 21a. That is, the connecting member 37 ′ shown in FIG. 12 is a tongue piece 4 provided along a plane orthogonal to the connecting direction of the carriage unit 20 and the paper feeding unit 1 (the left-right direction in FIG. 12).
1 ', and the main frame 21a is similarly formed with a slot 38a' extending in a direction orthogonal to the connecting direction between the carriage unit 20 and the sheet feeding unit 1. Therefore, when connecting the carriage unit 20 and the sheet feeding unit 1, as shown in FIGS. 12 (a) to 12 (b), the connecting member 37 'is engaged while the tongue piece 41' is hooked on the slot 38a '.
By sliding the carriage unit 20 in the direction orthogonal to the connecting direction of the carriage unit 20 and the sheet feeding unit 1 (the direction of the arrow in FIG. 12A), the connecting member 37 'and the slot 38a.
The engaging operation with the fitting projection 45 is completed by inserting the connecting member 37 ′ between the supporting surface 43 and the snap plate 44 by the sliding operation.
Then, the engaging operation of the connecting member 37 'with the support surface 43 and the snap plate 44 is completed. As described above, the same effect as that of the embodiment described above with reference to FIG. 11, that is, the effect that the sheet feeding unit 1 and the carriage unit 20 can be easily connected or disconnected without using a tool such as a driver The effect can be obtained.

Next, a method of inserting and removing the circuit board 33 will be described. First, as shown in FIG. 7, the circuit board 33 has a board receiving portion 49 provided on the back side of the carriage unit 20.
It is positioned in the vertical direction by and is fixed by screws in the substrate receiving portion 49 and the screw fixing portion 47. Note that the fixing of the board receiving portion 49 with the screws is performed from the front side of the printer 100 (the back side of the paper surface of FIG. 7).
Even when connected to 0, the screw fixing work can be performed. Further, the screw fixing in the screw fixing portion 47 is performed from the back side of the printer 100 (the front side of the paper surface of FIG. 7), and this is also in the state where the paper feeding unit 1 is connected to the carriage unit 20. It can be fixed with screws.

Here, in the circuit board 33, the positional relationship between the circuit components arranged on the circuit board 33 and the carriage unit 20 in the state where the paper feeding unit 1 is connected to the carriage unit 20 as shown in FIG. Although it cannot be pulled out laterally (to the left in FIG. 7) and can only be pulled out upward, the connecting member 37 (see FIG. 5) of the unit connecting device 50 is arranged above. Therefore, even when the fixing screws are removed from the board receiving portion 49 and the screw fixing portion 47 shown in FIG. 7, the circuit board 33 cannot be removed in this state.

However, as described above, the unit connecting device 50 connects the carriage unit 20 and the paper feeding unit 1 while the carriage unit 20 and the paper feeding unit 1 are still connected by the connecting portion shown in FIG. It is possible to switch between the locked state and the unlocked state. That is, the connecting member 37 is in the locked state when attached, and the connecting member 37 is in the unlocked state when removed, so that in the unlocked state where the connecting member 37 is removed, the circuit board 33 is inserted and removed. Open the route,
It is possible to pull out the circuit board 33 upward as indicated by reference numeral 33 'and phantom lines in FIG. Therefore, when the circuit board 33 is replaced, it is not necessary to separate the carriage unit 20 from the paper feeding unit 1, and the circuit board 33 can be replaced easily and quickly.

In this embodiment, as described above, the unit connecting device which can connect and disconnect the carriage unit 20 and the sheet feeding unit 1 without using any tool by the latching means and the snapping means as described above. Since 50 is used, the replacement work of the circuit board 33 is further facilitated.

[0049]

As described above, according to the present invention, the circuit board constituting the control section of the recording apparatus is arranged so as to be sandwiched between the first unit and the second unit, and , The first unit and the second unit on the insertion / removal path of the circuit board.
A unit coupling device for coupling the unit to the unit is provided. The unit coupling device opens the insertion / removal path of the circuit board in the unlocked state in which the two units can be separated from each other. The circuit board can be inserted and removed without the need to separate the two units, so that it is possible to easily and quickly replace the circuit board without the need for disassembling the device main body when removing the circuit board. It will be possible.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is an external perspective view of an apparatus main body of an inkjet printer according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of the apparatus body of the inkjet printer according to the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a side sectional view of the inkjet printer according to the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a front view of the apparatus main body of the inkjet printer according to the present invention.

FIG. 5 is an external perspective view of the apparatus body of the inkjet printer according to the present invention as viewed from the rear.

FIG. 6 is an external perspective view of the apparatus main body and the sheet feeding unit as seen from the rear side in a state where the sheet feeding unit is separated from the apparatus main body of the inkjet printer according to the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a plan view of a circuit board of the inkjet printer according to the present invention.

FIG. 8 is an external perspective view of an inkjet printer according to the present invention.

FIG. 9 is an external perspective view of a unit connecting device.

FIG. 10 is a plan view of a connecting member that constitutes the unit connecting device.

FIG. 11 is a state transition diagram (plan view) showing a connecting method by the unit connecting device.

FIG. 12 is a state transition diagram showing a connecting method of a unit connecting device according to another embodiment.

FIG. 13 is a perspective view of a connecting portion between a paper feeding unit and a carriage unit.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 Paper feeding unit 2 Paper feeding unit frame 2a Mounting part right 2b Mounting part left 8 Hook part 20 Carriage unit 21a Main frame 22 carriage 23 ink cartridges 24 inkjet recording head 25 Carriage guide shaft 33 circuit board 34 Power switch 35 Control switch 36 paper detector 37 Connection member 38a-38d Slotted hole 39 Fitting hole 41 tongue 43 support surface 44 snap plate 45 Fitting protrusion 46 Hook receiver 49 Substrate receiving part 50 unit mounting device 60 transport units 61 Transport unit frame 80 ink system unit 81 frames 100 inkjet printer

Continued front page    (72) Inventor Kazuhisa Takeda             Seiko, 3-3-3 Yamato, Suwa City, Nagano Prefecture             -In Epson Corporation F-term (reference) 2C061 AP03 AQ05 AS02 AS06 BB12                       CF01

Claims (6)

[Claims] 1. A recording device for recording on a recording material, comprising a device main body formed by combining a plurality of units, the circuit board constituting a control section of the recording device being detachably provided. A first unit and a second unit connected to the first unit, and the circuit board is arranged so as to be sandwiched between the first unit and the second unit. And a unit connecting device that connects the first unit and the second unit is disposed on the insertion / removal path of the circuit board, the unit connecting device including the first unit and the second unit. Unit and the second
The recording device is configured to open the insertion / removal path of the circuit board in an unlocked state in which the unit can be separated. 2. The first unit according to claim 1, wherein the second unit is connected to a rear surface side of the first unit, and the unit connecting device is capable of vertically inserting and removing the circuit board in the unlocked state. A recording device characterized by: 3. The second unit according to claim 2, wherein the second unit is connected to the first unit by two connecting portions arranged on upper sides of both sides of the second unit, One side located above the circuit board is configured by the unit connecting device, and the other side located outside the circuit board upper part of the two connecting portions is either the first unit or the second unit. A hook portion provided on one side, and a hook receiving portion provided on the other side on which the hook portion is hooked,
A recording device comprising: 4. The unit coupling device according to claim 1, wherein the unit coupling device includes a first engaging portion provided in the first unit and a second engaging portion provided in the second unit. An engaging portion, and the first engaging portion and the second engaging portion are arranged so as to straddle the first engaging portion and the second engaging portion. A coupling member that couples the first unit and the second unit, wherein the first engaging portion and the coupling member are engaged with each other, and the coupling member is the first engaging portion. The second engaging portion and the connecting member are engaged with each other by the engaging means for engaging with the second engaging portion and the convex portion formed on the other side in the concave portion formed on the one side by the elastic means. A recording device, characterized in that it is configured to be carried out by snap-in means to be inserted. 5. The method according to claim 4, wherein the first and second
Engaging parts of the first and second units are respectively arranged so as to be located at substantially the same height position above the first and second units, and the connecting member includes the first and second engaging units. The first engaging portion is formed along a plane orthogonal to the connecting direction of the first and second units, and is formed from a plate-shaped body that extends substantially horizontally over the engaging portion. It is composed of a tongue piece having a T-shape, and the second engaging portion is elastically deformable as the elastic means, being in pressure contact with a support surface supporting the lower surface of the connecting member and the upper surface of the connecting member. A snap plate; and a fitting protrusion that protrudes downward from the snap plate and that serves as the protrusion. The first tongue piece is inserted into the connecting member so as to project upward from the connecting member. And a connecting member having a size smaller than that of the first slot. A second slot for hooking on the tongue and a guide slot for moving the tongue from the first slot to the second slot by rotating the connecting member substantially horizontally. And a fitting hole into which the fitting protrusion fits, as the recess,
And the connecting member is formed after the tongue piece is projected from the connecting member by the first slot when engaging the first and second engaging portions with the connecting member. Is rotated substantially horizontally, whereby the tongue piece is guided from the first slot to the second slot and the engagement operation between the first engaging portion and the connecting member is completed. At the same time, the fitting protrusion is fitted into the fitting hole by sandwiching the connecting member between the support surface and the snap plate, and thus the connecting member and the second engaging portion A recording apparatus, characterized in that the engaging operation is completed. 6. The carriage according to claim 1, wherein the first unit is provided with a carriage equipped with an ink jet recording head that ejects ink droplets onto a recording material so that the carriage can reciprocate in the main scanning direction. A carriage unit that is connected to the back side of the carriage unit and that includes a feeding unit that feeds the recording material to the downstream side, and the circuit board, An operation button that constitutes an operation unit of the recording apparatus is provided in an upper portion, and a paper detector that detects passage of a recording material is provided in a lower portion, and is arranged substantially vertically on a side of the carriage unit facing the paper feeding unit. Has been
A recording device characterized by the above.