JP2005104661A - Image reader - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an image reader which is equipped with an automatic document carrying mechanism and ensures the rigidity of a document holding cover pivotably supported by a reading base for placement in an opening/closing manner. <P>SOLUTION: In a copier/facsimile combined machine 100 in which the document holding cover 102 is pivotably supported in an opening/closing manner by a reading base 101 for placement with a CCD reading unit 12 built therein, and the document holding cover 102 is equipped with an ADF 1 which feeds a document on an original tray 2 into a carrying path 3 by a paper feed roller 5 disposed in a vicinity of an inlet of the lateral U-shaped carrying path 3, carries the document to the reading positions P1 and P2 by a carrying roller 6 disposed in the carrying path 3, and discharges the document onto a paper discharge tray 4 by a paper discharge roller disposed in a vicinity of an outlet of the carrying path 3, at least the carrying roller 6 is disposed in a paper guide 30 to constitute an inner guide surface of the carrying path 3, and the paper guide 30 is supported by a hinge member 9 to pivotably support the document holding cover 102. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2005,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to an image reading apparatus in which a document pressing cover is pivotally supported on a reading table in which a reading unit is built in a scanner, a facsimile, a copying machine, and the like, and the document pressing cover is equipped with an automatic document conveying mechanism. Relates to the device.

  Some scanners, facsimiles, copiers, and the like are equipped with an automatic document feeder mechanism such as an auto document feeder (hereinafter referred to as “ADF”) that sequentially feeds a plurality of documents. According to the transport mechanism, a plurality of documents placed on a document tray can be continuously and automatically transported to a reading position to read an image (for example, Patent Document 1, Patent Document 2, etc.).

  FIG. 13 is a schematic perspective view showing the external appearance of the upper part of a conventional copy / facsimile multifunction peripheral 900 equipped with an ADF. As shown in FIG. 13, the copy / facsimile multifunction peripheral 900 places a document to be read. A reading table 902 provided with a platen glass 901, a document pressing cover 903 that presses and fixes the document on the platen glass 901, and an operation panel 904 for inputting reading start of the document. Although not shown in the figure, the main body of the copy / facsimile multifunction peripheral 900 has an image recording unit for recording an image on a recording sheet, a transmission unit for transmitting the image, and a unit for recording the read image. A paper feed cassette for supplying recording paper is provided.

  FIG. 14 shows a cross-sectional structure of the document presser cover 903 of the copy / facsimile multifunction peripheral 900. As shown in FIG. 14, a conveyance path leading from the document tray 905 to the sheet discharge tray 906 through the image reading surface. Is composed of a laterally U-shaped outer guide surface and an inner guide surface, and the outer guide surface is formed by, for example, a housing of a document pressing cover 903, and the inner guide surface is formed in the document pressing cover 903. It is formed by the paper guide 907 arrange | positioned. The paper guide 907 is provided with conveying rollers 908 as appropriate, and each conveying roller 908 nips and conveys the document. When the original fed from the original tray 905 to the conveyance path passes through the reading position P1 in the conveyance process, the original is placed on one side of the original by a reading unit 909 such as a CCD provided in the reading table 902. Image reading is performed, and further, at a reading position P2 downstream thereof, an image of the other side of the document can be read by a reading unit 910 such as a CIS disposed on the document pressing cover 903.

JP-A-1-194658 Japanese Patent Application No. 2002-120074

  The housing of the reading table 902 and the document pressing cover 903 is generally a molded product made of synthetic resin, and the housing of the reading table 902 and the housing of the document pressing cover 903 are connected by a hinge member 911 as shown in FIG. Thus, the document pressing cover 903 is fixed to the reading table 902 so as to be freely opened and closed. However, as described above, the document presser cover 903 is provided with an ADF, that is, an automatic document transport mechanism, and further separates the back side of the document from the reading unit 909 in the reading table 902 for both-side reading. Since the reading unit 910 for reading may be provided, the weight of the document pressing cover 903 is increased by the amount of the automatic document feeding mechanism and the reading unit 910, and when the document pressing cover 903 is opened and closed vigorously, The housing of the document pressing cover 903 may be damaged at the portion where the hinge member 910 is attached.

  When reading an image of a thick document such as a book, a desired book page is opened on the platen glass 901 of the reading table 902, and the reading unit 909 is scanned with respect to the platen glass 901. Although reading is performed, when the document pressing cover 903 is pressed to press the book against the platen glass 901, the document pressing cover 903 is deformed so as to bend in the depth direction, and this is repeated, whereby the housing and paper of the document pressing cover 903 are The guide 907 may be deformed and damaged in the worst case.

  SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made to solve the above-described problems, and an object of the present invention is to ensure the rigidity of a document pressing cover that is equipped with an automatic document conveying mechanism and is pivotally supported by a reading table.

  According to the present invention, a document holding cover is pivotally supported by a reading table having a reading unit built therein so that the document holding cover can be opened and closed, and the document on the document tray is arranged near the entrance of the lateral U-shaped conveyance path. An automatic document that is fed to a conveyance path by a paper feed roller provided, conveyed to a reading position by a conveyance roller disposed in the conveyance path, and discharged to a sheet discharge tray by a discharge roller disposed in the vicinity of the exit of the conveyance path In an image reading apparatus equipped with a transport mechanism, at least the transport roller is disposed on a paper guide constituting an inner guide surface of the transport path, and the paper guide is supported by a hinge member that pivotally supports the document pressing cover. It is characterized by that.

  Further, in the present invention, the paper guide is integrally formed of a synthetic resin with a paper guide main body constituting an inner guide surface and side frames provided on both sides of the paper guide main body and fixed to the hinge member. It is characterized by being.

  According to the present invention, since the paper guide on which at least the conveyance roller is disposed is supported by the hinge member, an excessive load is not applied to the housing of the document pressing cover, and the rigidity of the document pressing cover against the opening / closing operation and pressing is increased. be able to. Further, since the paper guide main body and the side frame are integrally formed in the paper guide, the rigidity of the paper guide is increased and deformation is difficult to occur.

  FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a cross section of an upper part of a copy / facsimile multifunction peripheral 100 which is an image reading apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in the figure, the copy / facsimile multifunction peripheral 100 is provided with a document having an ADF 1 as an automatic document transport mechanism with respect to a reading table 101 functioning as a flat bed scanner (hereinafter referred to as “FBS”). The presser cover 102 is pivotally supported so as to be freely opened and closed. Further, although not shown in the figure, the copy / facsimile multifunction peripheral 100 has an operation panel for inputting the start of reading of an original, an image recording unit for recording an image on a recording sheet, and a transmission for transmitting an image. And a well-known configuration such as a paper feed cassette that supplies recording paper for recording the read image, and these well-known configurations are examples and arbitrary.

  The reading table 101 is provided with a platen glass 11 on the top surface of a substantially rectangular housing (housing) 10, and a CCD reading unit 12 is built in the housing 10. As shown in FIG. 1, the CCD reading unit 12 converges the reflected light R, a light source 13 for irradiating light to the reading position P1, a reflecting mirror 14 for guiding reflected light R from the document in a predetermined direction, and the like. And a charge coupled device (Charge Coupled Device, hereinafter referred to as “CCD”) 16 that converts the convergent light into an electric signal and outputs the electric signal. When the CCD reading unit 12 configured as described above functions as an FBS, it moves horizontally with respect to the platen glass 11 to scan a document on the platen glass 11, and when using the ADF, the reading is performed. The image of the original moved to the position P1 and conveyed on the conveyance path 3 is scanned, and the reflected light R from each original is guided to the CCD 16 to form an image. Although not shown in the figure, the image signal read by the CCD reading unit 12 and converted into an electric signal is subjected to analog / digital conversion, shading processing, etc., and then recorded by an image recording unit such as a printer. It is recorded on paper or transmitted by a transmission unit such as CODEC.

  The document presser cover 102 includes a document tray 2 that holds a plurality of documents in a stacked state, a laterally U-shaped transport path 3, and a paper discharge tray 4 that supports the transported documents in a stacked state. A paper feed roller 5 that feeds the original on the original tray 2 to the conveyance path 3, a conveyance roller 6 that nips and conveys the original in the conveyance path 3, and a paper discharge roller 7 that is provided near the exit of the conveyance path 3. An ADF 1 including a CIS reading unit 8 that reads an image of a document at a reading position P2 is provided as an automatic document transport mechanism. According to the ADF 1, the original fed from the original tray 2 to the conveyance path 3 is reversed so as to make a U-turn from the upper side to the lower side along the horizontal U-shaped conveyance path 3, and reaches the reading position P 1. The image on the front side of the document is read by the CCD reading unit 12 when passing through the reading position P1, and the image on the back side of the document is read by the CIS reading unit 8 when further transported through the transport path 3 and passing through the reading position P2. Is then discharged to the paper discharge tray 4 below the document tray 2. It is to be noted that the double-sided reading of the original by the copy / facsimile multifunction peripheral 100 is arbitrary, and of course, only single-sided reading is possible.

  The document tray 2 is provided on the upper part of the document pressing cover 102 so as to be slightly inclined in the direction in which the document is supplied, and a plurality of documents are stacked on the upper surface of the document tray 2. When the user places a document on the document tray 2, the document is placed so that the leading end of the document is inserted into the entrance of the conveyance path 3 on the inclined lower end side of the document tray 2. Although not shown in the figure, the document tray 2 is provided with a variable guide that regulates the position of the document in the width direction and prevents the document from being obliquely fed.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the conveyance path 3 is formed in a U shape in a lateral direction from the document tray 2 to the paper discharge tray 4, and passes over the platen glass 17 that becomes the reading position P1 immediately downstream of the folded portion. Then, it passes through the reading position P2 on the downstream side of the reading position P1 and communicates with the paper discharge tray 4. In the transport path 3, the paper guide 30 disposed in the document pressing cover 102 constitutes an inner guide surface, and the cover main body 102a and the ADF cover 102b of the document pressing cover 102 constitute an outer guide surface. A thick original can pass through. The outer guide member constituting the conveyance path 3 is not limited to the cover main body 102a shown in the present embodiment, and may take other forms without departing from the gist of the present invention. It is preferable that the cover body 102a and the ADF cover 102b of the presser cover 102 are integrally formed using a plastic material so that the cover body 102a and the ADF cover 102b also serve as an outer guide member.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the paper guide 30 is formed by integrally forming a paper guide main body 31 constituting a laterally U-shaped conveyance path and side frames 32 provided on both sides of the paper guide main body 31 from a plastic material. Thus, a first guide cover 33, a second guide cover 34, and a platen guide 35 are disposed downstream of the folded portion of the paper guide body 31. The paper guide main body 31 is mainly composed of a substantially horizontal surface, and the side frame 32 is mainly composed of a vertical surface. In the paper guide 30, the paper guide main body 31 and the side frame 32 are the main parts. Therefore, by integrally forming the paper guide main body 31 and the side frame 32 without making them separate and independent, they reinforce each other and increase the rigidity of the paper guide 30. Hereinafter, the configuration of the paper guide 30 will be described in more detail.

  The plastic material of the paper guide main body 31 and the side frame 32 is a synthetic resin that can be integrally molded using a mold. For example, ABS, high-impact polystyrene, or a material in which a reinforcing material such as glass fiber is added thereto may be used. it can. The paper guide body 31 has an upper guide surface 310 having a shape in which the upstream side of the upper surface is inclined in the same manner as the document tray 2 and the downstream side is curved downward. An inner guide surface upstream of the folded portion of the U-shaped conveyance path is configured. Paper feeding ribs 311 are arranged in the width direction on the upper guide surface 310, and the frictional force applied to the document is reduced by reducing the contact surface with the document that makes a U-turn while sliding on the upper guide surface 310. It is mitigating.

  As shown in FIG. 4, in the paper guard body 31, the upper guide surface 310 has a conveying direction in consideration of removal from the molding die in order to increase the rigidity of the paper guide 30 integrally formed with the side frame 32. It is preferable to form it as long as possible. That is, if the length of the paper guide main body 31 in the transport direction is increased, the rigidity of the paper guide main body 31 itself is increased and the reinforcing effect on the side frame 32 is also improved. As a result, the rigidity of the paper guide 30 is improved. In addition, a space for disposing the conveyance roller 6 and the like is provided in the inner portion of the paper guide main body 31. Reinforcing ribs 313 are appropriately formed, and the rigidity of the paper guide 30 is also enhanced by these reinforcing ribs 312 and 313.

  A concave groove 314 is formed in the upper guide surface 310 in a direction perpendicular to the document transport direction. The recessed groove 314 is formed integrally with the paper guide 30 together with the upper guide surface 310 in order to accommodate the conveying roller 6 disposed on the upper guide surface 310, and has a cross section U slightly larger than the outer shape of the conveying roller 6. It is a letter-shaped groove. As shown in FIG. 3, the transport roller 6 is formed by fixing a plurality of roller bodies 61 to a roller shaft 60 at a predetermined interval in the axial direction. For example, a silicon roller shaft is made of silicon or EPDM (Ethylene). A roller made of -propylene-diene methylene linkage) is fixed, and in this embodiment, four roller bodies 61 are provided on one roller shaft 60. The number and position of the roller bodies 61 are appropriately set in consideration of the size of the document to be conveyed. At each position of the recessed groove 314 corresponding to the space between the roller bodies 61 of the transport roller 6, the paper feed rib 311 protrudes from the upstream wall and the downstream wall of the recessed groove 314 in the direction of narrowing the groove width. Conventionally, in order to dispose the conveying roller 6 on the upper guide surface 310, a hole is formed in the upper guide surface 310, and a part of the roller body 61 is exposed to the upper guide surface 310 from the hole. However, if a plurality of punch holes are formed in the upper guide surface 310, the rigidity of the paper guide 30 is lowered. Therefore, the concave groove 314 is formed in the upper guide surface 310 instead of the punch hole, and the document width direction is bent. The rigidity of the paper guide 30 against twisting and twisting is increased. In addition, the upstream and downstream walls of the recessed groove 314 in the vertical direction exhibit the same reinforcing effect as that of the reinforcing rib 312 and the rigidity of the paper guide 30 is increased. Further, another conveying roller 6 is disposed at the upstream end of the upper guide surface 310. For the same reason, a stepped portion 315 is formed at the upstream end of the upper guide surface 310 instead of forming a punch hole. The vertical wall 315 a of the stepped portion 315 enhances the rigidity of the paper guide 30 in the same manner as the reinforcing rib 312. Further, by forming the recessed groove 314 and the stepped-down portion 315, the length of the paper guide body 31 in the transport direction is lengthened, and the upper guide surface 310 is curved or bent. As a result, the paper guide 30 Stiffness is increased.

  The side frames 32 are integrally formed on both sides of the paper guide main body 31 and support the conveyance roller 6 and drive gear (not shown) and reinforce the paper guide main body 31. As shown in FIG. 3, reinforcing ribs 320 are provided on the periphery of each side frame 32 so as to protrude outward in the horizontal direction, thereby increasing the rigidity of each side frame 32. Through holes 321 are appropriately formed in the reinforcing rib 320, and a fixing tool such as a screw is inserted into the through holes 321, and the paper guide 30 is screwed to the cover body 102a of the document pressing cover 102. Further, through holes 322 through which the roller shaft 60 of the transport roller 6 is inserted are formed in both side frames 32. Each roller shaft 60 is inserted into the through-hole 322 and is rotatably supported, so that each transport roller 6 is disposed at a predetermined position with respect to the paper guide body 31. Although not shown in the drawing, each of the through holes 322 is rotatably inserted, and a drive gear is provided at one end of each roller shaft 60. The rotation of the motor is transmitted to the drive gear so that each roller shaft 60 is rotated. Will rotate. As shown in FIG. 2, these transport rollers 6 nip a document transported along the upper guide surface 310 in pressure contact with a driven roller 60 disposed at a position opposed to the transport path 3, and remove the document. Further, it is conveyed downstream.

  Further, the first guide cover 33 and the second guide cover 34 disposed on the downstream side of the folded portion of the paper guide main body 31 are also formed of a plastic material, and as shown in FIG. A guide cover 33 is disposed on the paper guide main body 31, and a second guide cover 34 is disposed on the first guide cover 33 to form an inner guide surface downstream from the folded portion of the laterally U-shaped conveyance path. To do. Further, a platen guide 35 is disposed on the first guide cover 33. The platen guide 35 is used as a white reference for the CCD reading unit 12 while restricting the passage position of the original at the reading position P1. The first guide cover 33 can be fitted to the paper guide main body 31 by snap fitting, and the second guide cover 34 can be fitted to the first guide cover 33 by snap fitting. The platen guide 35 is supported by a support shaft formed on the first guide cover 33. Hereinafter, the first guide cover 33, the second guide cover 34, and the platen guide 35 will be described in detail.

  As shown in FIGS. 3 and 5, the first guide cover 33 is disposed on the lower side of the paper guide main body 31, and a lower surface 330 of the first guide cover 33 constitutes an inner guide surface of the conveyance path 3. At the end, claws 331 project at predetermined intervals in the document width direction, and projecting pieces 332 formed with locking holes 332a are projecting outward in the horizontal direction on both side walls. On the other hand, the paper guide main body 31 is provided with a locking hole 316 at a position corresponding to each claw 331 at the downstream end of the guide surface 310 corresponding to the folded portion of the conveyance path 3. As shown in FIG. 5, hook-like locking claws 317 are formed in the vicinity of both sides of the paper guide main body 31 and at positions corresponding to the protruding pieces 332. As shown in FIG. 6, the claw 331 of the first guide cover 33 is inserted into the locking hole 316 of the paper guide main body 31, and the protrusion 332 of the first guide cover 33 is locked as shown in FIG. The first claw cover 317 of the paper guide main body 31 is inserted into the hole 332a and the protruding piece 332 is locked by the flange 317a, whereby the first guide cover 33 is assembled to the paper guide main body 31. The locking claw 317 is made of a synthetic resin integrally formed with the paper guide main body 31, and when inserted into the locking hole 332, it is easy to be deformed so as to incline to the upstream side. The first guide cover 33 can be assembled to the paper guide body 31 without using it.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 8, the first guide cover 33 has a recess 333 formed at a location corresponding to the reading position P <b> 1 on the lower surface 330. The recess 333 is formed across the width direction of the lower surface 330 between the transport rollers 6 immediately upstream and immediately downstream of the reading position P1, and is a two-step recess having a recess on the downstream side larger than the upstream side. Yes. In the upper corners on the upstream side and the downstream side of the concave portion 333, a punch hole 334 is formed at a position corresponding to the roller main body 61 of each of the transport rollers, and the roller of each roller main body 61 extends from each punch hole 334. The surface is exposed. By forming a hole 334 in the recess 333 to expose the roller body 61 of the transport roller 6, the roller guide 61 is accessed from the recess 333 without removing the first guide member 33 after the paper guide 30 is assembled. Therefore, the roller surface of the roller body 61 can be easily cleaned. Further, a punching hole 335 is formed in the lower surface 330 on the upstream side and the downstream side of the reading position P1, and the roller surface of each roller body 61 is exposed from the punching hole 335. As a result, the transport rollers 6 upstream and downstream of the reading position P1 are brought into pressure contact with the driven roller 60 disposed at the opposite position of the transport path 3 as shown in FIG. The document is nipped and conveyed on the downstream side.

  As shown in FIG. 6, the second guide cover 34 is assembled so as to cover the downstream side of the concave portion 333 of the first guide cover 33, and the lower surface 340 together with the lower surface 330 of the first guide cover 33 is a conveyance path. 3 inner guide surfaces are formed. As shown in FIG. 3, a protruding piece 341 having notches 341a formed at predetermined intervals in the document width direction is projected in the horizontal direction at the upstream end of the second guide cover, and the document is formed at the downstream end. Claws 342 are projected at predetermined intervals in the width direction. On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 6, a hook-like locking claw 336 is provided in the upstream portion of the two-step recessed portion 333 of the first guide cover 33, and in the vicinity of the lower corner portion on the downstream side of the recessed portion 333. A recessed portion 337 is formed. As shown in FIG. 6, the claw 342 of the second guide cover 33 is fitted into the recessed portion 337 of the first guide cover 33, and the protruding piece of the second guide cover 34 is formed by the locking claw 336 of the first guide cover 33. When the 341 is locked, the second guide cover 34 is assembled to the first guide cover 33. The locking claw 336 is made of synthetic resin integrally formed with the first guide cover 33, and can be easily deformed so as to be inclined toward the upstream side when being locked to the protruding piece 341. The second guide cover 34 can be assembled to the first guide cover 33 without using.

  As shown in FIG. 6, the platen guide 35 is assembled so as to cover the upstream side of the concave portion 333 of the first guide cover 33, and its lower surface 350 together with the lower surface 330 of the first guide cover 33 Configure the inner guide surface. Further, a white tape 350 a as a white reference for the CCD reading unit 12 is attached to the lower surface 350. As shown in FIG. 9, standing portions 351 are formed on both sides of the platen guide 35, and shaft holes 352 are formed in the standing portions 351. Further, a claw 353 protrudes from the upstream end of the platen guide 35 at a predetermined interval in the document width direction. On the other hand, on both side walls of the first guide cover 33, support pieces 338 are formed by providing notches at predetermined intervals from the lower end in a vertically upward direction, and a support shaft 339 is horizontally disposed inside the support piece 338. Projected to As shown in FIG. 6, a locking hole 354 is formed at a position corresponding to the claw 353 in the vicinity of the lower corner on the upstream side of the recess 333. The pawl 353 of the platen guide 35 is engaged with the locking hole 354 of the first guide cover 33 and the support shaft 339 of the first guide cover 33 is inserted into the shaft hole 352 of the platen guide 35, thereby A platen guide 35 is assembled to the guide cover 33 so as to be swingable within the range of the locking hole 354 around the support shaft 339, and the platen guide 35 is moved downward by a coil spring 356 disposed in the upstream portion of the recess 333. Is being energized. The support piece 338 can be easily deformed so as to be inclined outward when the support shaft 339 is inserted into the shaft hole 352 due to the notches on both sides thereof. The guide cover 33 can be assembled. In addition, convex portions 355 are formed on both sides of the lower surface 350 of the platen guide 35 to keep the distance from the platen glass 17 constant. When the convex portion 355 contacts the platen glass 17 at the reading position P1, the distance between the platen guide 35 and the platen glass 17 is always kept constant, and the document is guided so as to pass the fixed position at the reading position P1. Yes. As described above, since the platen guide 35 is swingable and biased downward, the document pressing cover 102 is not completely closed, and a slight gap is generated between the platen guide 35 and the reading table 101. Even in such a case, the platen guide 35 is swung, so that the distance between the platen guide 35 and the platen glass 17 is kept constant. In the present embodiment, the tape 350a is attached to the lower surface 350 of the platen guide 35 as the white reference of the CCD reading unit 12, but the lower surface 350 of the platen guide 35 is painted white instead of the tape 350a. It can also be a white reference.

  In this way, the first guide cover 33, the second guide cover 34, and the platen guide 35 can be sequentially assembled to the paper guide body 31. Further, when cleaning the roller body 61 of each transport roller 6, if the platen guide 35 and the second guide cover 34 are removed, the roller surface of each roller body 61 is passed through the hole 335 of the recess 333 of the first guide cover 33. Therefore, it is not necessary to disassemble the paper guide 30, and the platen guide 35 and the second guide cover 34 can be easily removed without using a tool or the like. Further, the first guide cover 33, the second guide cover 34, and the platen guide 35 are fixed to the paper guide main body 31 or the first guide cover 33 by a snap fit without using fixing materials such as screws. As a result, the assembling work and the disassembling work are facilitated, and the weight can be reduced and the cost can be reduced.

  The paper guide 30 configured as described above is disposed on the cover main body 102a of the document pressing cover 102 with the conveying rollers 6 and the like assembled thereto. As shown in FIG. 10, the cover body 102 a has an opening 20 formed in the attachment portion of the paper guide 30, and the original conveyed along the paper guide 30 is read on the platen glass 17 in the opening 20. The image is read by the CCD reading unit 12 (not shown) after passing through the position P1. The upstream side and the downstream side of the opening 20 are guide surfaces 21 and 22 that are inclined upward from the opening 20, respectively. These guide surfaces 21 and 22 are formed from the folded portion of the lateral U-shaped conveyance path. An outer guide surface is formed on the downstream side and upstream and downstream of the reading position P1.

  Four cutout portions 23 and 24 are formed in the guide surfaces 21 and 22 at predetermined intervals in the width direction, and driven rollers 60 facing the transport roller 6 are disposed in the cutout portions 23 and 24, respectively. Thus, a part of the roller body is exposed to the guide surfaces 21 and 22 from the notches 23 and 24, respectively. These driven rollers 60 are opposed to the respective conveying rollers 6 disposed on the downstream side of the folded portion of the paper guide 30 and convey the original while niping it upstream and downstream of the reading position P1. In addition, arrangement | positioning of these driven rollers 60 is an example, and it changes with changing suitably the number and position of the said conveyance roller 6 according to the shape and distance of a conveyance path.

  Further, a recessed portion 25 in which the platen roller 60 facing the CIS reading unit 8 is disposed is formed on the downstream side of the guide surface 22. The platen roller 80 presses the conveyed document against a CIS reading unit 8 (not shown) and serves as a white reference for the CIS reading unit 8. Further, four recessed portions 26 are formed at the most downstream end of the guide surface 22, similarly to the notches 23 and 24, and the paper discharge roller 7 is disposed in the recessed portions 26.

  Further, on the back side of the cover main body 102a, a notch 27L is formed on the left side where the paper guide 30 is disposed, and a concave portion 27R is formed on the right side by recessing the bottom surface of the cover main body 102a. The notch 27L and the recess 27R are for attaching a hinge member that pivotally supports the document pressing cover 102 with respect to the reading table 101, and are usually provided in a pair of left and right. Reinforcing ribs 28 are appropriately formed on the back side where the notch 27L is formed and on the front side of the guide surfaces 21 and 22, and screws for fixing the hinge member to the cover body 102a around the notch 27L. A hole 29 is provided, and screw holes 29 for fixing the paper guide 30 to the cover body 102 a are also provided on both sides of the guide surfaces 21 and 22. On the other hand, the recess 27R has a known configuration for attaching a hinge member.

  The paper guide 30 is disposed on the cover main body 102a with the inner guide surface constituted by the first guide cover 33 of the paper guide 30 facing the guide surfaces 21 and 22 of the cover main body 102a thus configured. The ADF cover 102b can be opened and closed on the cover body 102a. In the present invention, the paper guide 30 is fixed to a hinge member. Hereinafter, the fixing structure between the paper guide 30 and the hinge member will be described in detail.

  As shown in FIG. 11, the hinge member 9 rotates the base 90 fixed to the reading table 101, the rotating portion 91 fixed to the document pressing cover 102, and the base 90 and the rotating portion 91. And a shaft 92 that can be connected. Wings 910 protrude from both sides of the rotating portion 91, and holes 911 are formed in the wing portions 910. Further, screw holes 912 and brackets 93 are formed on the upper surface of the rotating portion 91. Protruding portions 913 for positioning are provided at two locations, respectively.

  The bracket 93 is for connecting and fixing the hinge member 9 and the paper guide 30. The bracket 93 is fixed to the upper surface of the rotating portion 91 of the hinge member 9 and is fixed to the side frame 32 of the paper guide 30. The bracket 93 includes a horizontal portion 930 for fixing to the rotating portion 91, an upright portion 931 that stands up along the side surface of the rotating portion 91 from the horizontal portion 930, and a side of the paper guide 30 that extends from the upstanding portion 931. A first fixing portion 932 bent along the frame 32 and a second fixing portion 933 bent along the reinforcing rib 321 of the upright portion 931 side frame 32, for example, a steel plate Can be obtained by punching and bending.

  The horizontal portion 930 has holes 934 and elongated holes 935 at positions corresponding to the screw holes 912 and the convex portions 913 of the rotating portion 91, and the convex portions 913 are formed in the elongated holes 935. The bracket 93 is positioned on the upper surface of the rotating portion 91 and the screw 94 is inserted into the hole 934 and screwed into the screw hole 912, whereby the horizontal portion 930 of the bracket 93 is tightened to tighten the bracket 93. Is fixed to the rotating portion 91. Further, the first fixing portion 932 has holes 936 formed at two locations in the vertical direction, while the side frame 32 of the paper guide 30 has screw receiving portions 324 at positions corresponding to the holes 936. Is formed. The screw 95 is inserted into the hole 936 and screwed into the screw receiving portion 324, whereby the first fixing portion 932 of the bracket 93 is tightened and the bracket 93 is fixed to the side frame 32. Further, the second fixing portion 933 has a hole 937 formed at a position corresponding to the through hole 321 formed in the reinforcing rib 321 of the side frame 32, and a screw 96 is inserted into the hole 937 and further penetrated. The second fixing portion 933 and the reinforcing rib 321 of the bracket 93 are tightened by being inserted into the hole 321 and screwed into the screw receiving portion 29 of the cover main body 102a, so that the bracket 93 is fixed to the side frame 32. In addition, it is also fixed to the cover body 102a.

  As shown in FIGS. 11 and 12, the hinge member 9 is fixed to the paper guide 30 via the bracket 93 and the screw 97 is inserted into the hole 911 of the wing 910 of the rotation unit 91. The paper guide 30 is fixed to the cover main body 102a by the screw 96 together with the bracket 93 by being screwed into the screw receiving portion 29 of the cover main body 102a. The paper guide 30 is also fixed to the cover main body 102a by inserting screws 98 into the through holes 321 of the reinforcing ribs 321 of the side frames 32 and screwing into the screw receiving portions 29 of the cover main body 102a. Generally, a heavy member such as a drive motor is arranged on the back side of the cover body 102a and near the hinge member 9 to reduce the load on the cover body 102a as much as possible. However, the paper guide 30 is arranged in the width direction of the document. The same applies to the respective transport rollers 6 disposed in the paper guide 30. Accordingly, although the load applied to the cover main body 102a by the weight of the paper guide 30 increases, as described above, the hinge member 9 and the paper guide 30 are not only separately fixed to the cover main body 102a, but also the bracket 93 is attached. The paper guide 30 to which a plurality of heavy roller shafts 60 are attached can be directly supported by the hinge member 9 by fixing the rotating portion 91 of the hinge member 9 and the paper guide 30 to the cover main body 102a. Can reduce the load. In this embodiment, the hinge member 9 supports the paper guide 30 via the bracket 93. However, instead of the bracket 93, the side frame 32 of the paper guide 30 corresponds to the horizontal portion 930 of the bracket 93. The fixing wing portion may be integrally formed so as to protrude in the horizontal direction, and the wing portion may be directly fixed to the rotating portion 91 of the hinge member 9. Further, the handle portion for opening and closing the document presser cover 102 is shown in the vicinity of the side frame 32 on the front side of the paper guide 30, that is, in FIG. 10 so as not to give an excessive load to the cover body 102 a when opening and closing. It is preferable to form it in the region X indicated by hatching. The handle portion can be realized by forming a concave portion, a convex portion, or the like on the document presser cover 102 that can be hooked by the user from the front side.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the paper feed roller 5 is disposed near the entrance of the conveyance path 3, and rotates while being pressed against the original fed from the original tray 2 to feed the original into the conveyance path 3. For example, a roller made of silicon or EPDM is fixed to a metal roller shaft. Further, a pickup roller 50 for feeding the uppermost sheet of the document placed on the document tray 2 is disposed on the upstream side of the paper feed roller 5. The pick-up roller 50, like the paper feed roller 5, rotates while being in pressure contact with the original, thereby feeding the original into the transport path, and a swing arm that swings up and down by a paper supply clutch (not shown). 51 is supported. Due to the swinging of the swinging arm 51, the pickup roller 50 is lifted so as to open the transport path 3 in a normal state such as when a document is placed on the document tray 2, and the document is moved when the document is fed. When the pickup roller 50 and the paper feed roller 5 are rotated so as to come into contact with the uppermost sheet, the uppermost sheet of the original is fed into the conveyance path. Since the pickup roller 50 can be lowered until it contacts the inner guide surface of the conveyance path 3, even if the thickness of the bundle of documents changes depending on the number of documents, it can always contact the uppermost sheet. Although not shown in the drawing, the presence or absence of a document on the document tray 2 is detected by a document set sensor, and the control means operates the paper feed roller 5, the pickup roller 50, and the swing arm 51 based on the detection signal. It is intended to control.

  On the other hand, a separation pad 52 is provided below the paper feed roller 5. The separation pad 52 has a friction coefficient with respect to the document lower than that with respect to the document of the paper feed roller 5 and higher than the friction coefficient between documents, and can be formed of, for example, urethane resin. Such a separation pad 52 is stuck on the upper surface of the separation pad holder 53. The separation pad holder 53 is swingably fitted to the inner guide surface of the transport path 3 and is biased upward by a coil spring 54, whereby the separation pad 52 is brought into contact with the roller surface of the paper feed roller 5. It can be turned downward in accordance with the thickness of the original that is in pressure contact and passes through the pressure contact portion.

  On the other hand, the CIS reading unit 8 uses a so-called contact image sensor (hereinafter referred to as “CIS”), which is not shown in detail in the figure, but is reflected from a document irradiated by a light source. This is a fixed reading means that converges and reads light on a photoconductive element with a converging fiber. The CIS reading unit 8 is arranged on the opposite side and the downstream side of the conveyance path 3 where the CCD reading unit 12 is located, thereby reading the image on the back side of the document. In general, the CIS employed in the CIS reading unit 8 has a shallow subject depth, so that the image is read while the original is nipped by the platen roller 80. Although not shown in the figure, the image signal read by the CCD reading unit 12 and the CIS reading unit 8 and converted into an electric signal is subjected to analog / digital conversion, shading processing, etc., and then a printer or the like. Are recorded on a recording sheet by an image recording unit or transmitted by a transmission unit such as CODEC.

  When the ADF 1 is used by the copy / facsimile multifunction peripheral 100 configured as described above, the document on the document tray 2 is sent to the transport path 3 by the paper feed roller 5 and transported to the reading position P 1 by the transport roller 6. Then, the CCD reading unit 12 reads the image on the front side of the document, and further, the image is conveyed to the reading position P2 by the conveying roller 6 and the CIS reading unit 8 reads the image on the back side of the document. It is discharged to the paper tray 4. When used as an FBS, a document is placed on the platen glass 11 of the reading table 101, the document is pressed by the document pressing cover 102, and the image of the document is read by the CCD reading unit 12.

  In the copy / facsimile multifunction peripheral 100, the load on the cover main body 102a is reduced by directly supporting the paper guide 30 with the hinge member 9, and the paper guide main body 31 and the side frame 32 are integrally formed. By using the highly rigid paper guide 30, it is difficult for the paper guide 30 to be deformed such as bending or twisting in the document width direction. As a result, a load such as an impact due to opening and closing of the document presser cover 102 is reduced, and even when the document presser cover 102 is pressed so as to press the document against the platen cover 11 when reading an image of a thick document such as a book, it is deformed. Does not occur.

  It should be noted that the configuration of the copy / facsimile multifunction peripheral 100 shown in the present embodiment is merely one aspect of the image reading apparatus according to the present invention, and it is needless to say that the design can be changed as appropriate without departing from the gist of the present invention. For example, it can be realized as a single machine such as a copying machine, a facsimile machine, or a scanner, and the CIS reading unit 8 can be omitted as a single-side reading machine. It is also possible to provide a document return path in the conveyance path 3 so that both sides of the document are read only by the CCD reading unit 12.

  An image reading apparatus according to the present invention includes a scanner in which a document pressing cover is pivotally supported so as to be openable and closable on a reading table in which a reading unit is built, and an automatic document conveying mechanism is mounted on the document pressing cover. It can be used as a facsimile machine, a copying machine, or the like.

1 is a cross-sectional view showing a schematic configuration of an upper part of a copy / facsimile multifunction peripheral 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention. 2 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of a schematic configuration of an upper portion of the copy / facsimile multifunction peripheral 100. FIG. FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view showing configurations of a paper guide 30 and a conveyance roller 6. It is sectional drawing which shows the AA cross section of FIG. 4 is a bottom view showing the configuration of the paper guide 30. FIG. FIG. 6 is an enlarged cross-sectional view illustrating a part of the BB cross section of FIG. 5. It is an expanded sectional view which shows a part of CC cross section of FIG. It is an expanded sectional view which shows a part of DD cross section of FIG. FIG. 4 is an exploded perspective view showing the assembly of the platen guide 35 to the first guide cover 33. It is a top view which shows the structure of the cover main body 102a. 3 is an exploded perspective view showing a configuration of a hinge member 9. FIG. 4 is a partial plan view showing a fixing structure between the paper guide 30 and the hinge member 9. FIG. FIG. 11 is a perspective view showing an upper appearance of a conventional copy / facsimile multifunction peripheral 900. 2 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a schematic configuration of an upper portion of a copy / facsimile multifunction peripheral 900. FIG.

Explanation of symbols

1 ADF (automatic document feeder)
2 Document tray 3 Conveying path 4 Discharging tray 5 Feeding roller 6 Conveying roller 7 Discharging roller 9 Hinge member 12 CCD reading unit (reading unit)
30 Paper Guide 31 Paper Guide Body 32 Side Frame 100 Copy / Facsimile Multifunction Machine (Image Reading Device)
101 Reading stage 102 Document holding cover

Claims (2)

A document holding cover is pivotally supported by a reading table with a built-in reading unit so that the document pressing cover can be opened and closed. A document on the document tray is placed on the document pressing cover near the entrance of the lateral U-shaped conveyance path. Equipped with an automatic document transport mechanism that feeds to the transport path by paper rollers, transports it to the reading position by transport rollers disposed in the transport path, and discharges it to the paper discharge tray by a discharge roller disposed near the exit of the transport path In the image reading apparatus,
An image reading apparatus characterized in that at least the transport roller is disposed on a paper guide constituting an inner guide surface of the transport path, and the paper guide is supported by a hinge member that pivotally supports the document pressing cover.   In the paper guide, a paper guide main body constituting an inner guide surface and side frames provided on both sides of the paper guide main body and fixed to the hinge member are integrally formed of synthetic resin. The image reading apparatus according to claim 1.

Images