JP2005349648A - Printer - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a printer which is equipped with a mechanism for locking an easily assemblable cover. <P>SOLUTION: A lock lever 10 is sandwiched between a pair of guide rails 3a and 3b which are provided inside the cover 2, and attached to the cover 2 in such a manner as to be slidable along a longitudinal direction. The lock lever 10 is provided with a wall 12 for housing a compression spring 9, and a pair of lever-side ribs 13a and 13b. A cover-side rib 4 is formed in the cover 2 in such a manner as to be sandwiched between the pair of lever-side ribs 13a and 13b. Pawls 11 are provided near both the ends of the lock lever 10. In a normal use state, the pawl 11 is locked to a receiving part which is provided in a printer body, so that the cover 2 can be locked. An operation part 15, which is provided at one end of the lock lever 10, is pushed in in the direction of compressing the compression spring 9, so that the pawl 11 can be put into an unlocked state. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a printer apparatus, and more particularly to a printer apparatus having an openable / closable cover for maintenance or the like.

  The printer device is provided with an openable / closable cover for maintenance such as a paper jam or toner replacement. Such a cover is opened during maintenance, and the cover is locked to the printer body in normal use.

  As an example of a mechanism for locking such a cover to a printer main body, there is Patent Document 1. Patent Document 1 proposes a mechanism for locking a cover to a printer body using the force of a spring. As another example of the locking mechanism using the force of the spring, a mechanism for locking the printer device using a tension spring has been proposed. For example, as shown in FIG. 11, one end of the tension spring 114 is held by a hook 113 provided in a lock lever 110 extending in one direction, and the other end of the tension spring 114 is connected to a hook 112 provided in the cover 102. Is retained. An operation unit 115 provided at one end of the lock lever 110 is inserted through an opening 103 provided in the printer main body 101a.

  The lock lever 110 is urged to the right by a tension spring 114 toward the paper surface. In a normal use state, the claw 111 provided on the lock lever 110 is locked to the receiving portion 116 provided on the printer main body 101a of the printer apparatus 101, and the cover 102 is locked to the printer main body 101a.

When opening the cover 102, the operation portion 115 of the lock lever 110 is pushed in the direction indicated by the arrow 132 against the urging force of the tension spring 114, so that the claw 111 of the lock lever 110 is moved to the receiving portion 116 of the printer main body 101a. The locked state is released. The mechanism for locking the cover of the conventional printer device is configured as described above.
JP 2001-98823 A

  However, the conventional printer apparatus has the following problems. In any printer apparatus, since a spring is handled when assembling a mechanism for locking the cover, the assembly has to be performed against the elastic force of the spring, which makes it difficult to assemble.

  In particular, as shown in FIG. 12, in the mechanism for locking the cover 102 using the tension spring 114, one end of the tension spring 114 is hooked to the lock lever 110 when the lock lever 110 is attached to the cover 102 as indicated by an arrow 131. In this state, the other end is hooked to the hook 112 of the cover 102 while pulling the tension spring 114, and there is a problem that it is difficult to hang on the hook and difficult to assemble.

  The present invention has been made to solve the above-described problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a printer apparatus having a mechanism for locking a cover that can be easily assembled.

  The printer device according to the present invention includes a printer main body, a cover, a lock lever, a claw portion, an operation portion, a pair of guide rails, a compression spring, a spring accommodating portion, and a cover side rib. The cover is attached to the printer body so as to be openable and closable for maintenance. The lock lever extends in one direction and is attached to the inside of the cover, and locks the cover to the printer body. The claw portions are provided at both ends of the lock lever, and are locked to the printer body. The operating portion is provided on one end side of the lock lever, and the lock is released by sliding the lock lever in the extending direction. The pair of guide rails are provided on the cover so as to face each other with a space therebetween, and allow the sliding operation in the extending direction of the lock lever with the lock lever interposed therebetween. The compression spring is attached to the lock lever and applies a predetermined urging force for maintaining the locked state. The spring accommodating portion is provided in the lock lever, accommodates the compression spring, and has a U-shaped cross section in a direction substantially orthogonal to the direction in which the lock lever extends. The cover-side rib is provided on the cover and supports the other end of the compression spring in a state where the lock lever is released. In particular, the spring accommodating portion is configured to include a wall portion, a flange portion, and a pair of lever side ribs. The wall portion holds one end side of the compression spring. The collar portion is provided on the wall portion and is formed so as to cover one end side portion of the accommodated compression spring. The pair of lever-side ribs are provided at a distance from the wall along the extending direction of the lock lever, and hold the other end of the compression spring. By pushing the operating part along the direction in which the lock lever extends, the cover-side rib approaches the wall side between the pair of lever-side ribs, and the other end of the compression spring is on the cover side. The state in which the claw portion is supported by the rib and locked to the printer main body is released.

  According to this configuration, when the compression lever is attached in advance to the spring accommodating portion formed between the wall portion provided on the lock lever and the pair of lever side ribs, The lock lever may be attached to the pair of guide rails with the compression spring mounted, and it is not necessary to work against the elastic force of the compression spring, and the lock lever can be easily attached to the cover.

  Another printer apparatus according to the present invention includes a printer main body, a cover, a lock lever, an elastic body, an elastic body accommodating portion, and a first support member. The cover is attached to the printer body so that it can be opened and closed. The lock lever is slidably attached to the cover and locks the cover to the printer body. The elastic body is attached to the lock lever and holds the lock lever in a locked state by an urging force. The elastic body accommodating portion is provided in the lock lever and supports the one end side and the other end side of the elastic body to accommodate the elastic body. The first support member is provided on the cover, and supports the other end side of the elastic body accommodated in the elastic body accommodating portion by sliding the lock lever. By sliding the lock lever, the other end side of the elastic body is supported by the first support member, and the cover is unlocked from the printer body.

  According to this configuration, by attaching the compression spring to the spring accommodating portion provided in the lock lever in advance, when the lock lever is attached to the cover, the lock lever is attached to the cover with the compression spring attached. It is not necessary to work against the elastic force of the compression spring, and the lock lever can be easily attached to the cover.

  The elastic body accommodating portion is provided on the lock lever so that the other end side of the elastic body is supported by the first support member by sliding the lock lever, and a wall portion that supports one end side of the elastic body, The lever includes a pair of second support members that are provided at a distance from the wall and support the other end of the elastic body. The first support member is configured to slide the lock lever to 1 It is preferable that the second support members are disposed so as to move relative to each other.

  Moreover, it is preferable that the wall part of an elastic body accommodating part has the collar part which covers the part of the one end side of an elastic body so that the spring accommodated in the spring accommodating part may not remove | deviate from a spring accommodating part.

  Furthermore, it is preferable that the cover has a pair of guide rails facing each other in order to slide the lock lever.

  Further, in order to lock the cover to the printer main body, it is preferable that the lock lever has a claw portion that is locked to the printer main body.

  A compression spring is preferable as the elastic body having a predetermined urging force.

  A printer apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described. As shown in FIG. 1, in the printer device 1, a tray 7 that accommodates a sheet of a predetermined size is disposed. A sheet (not shown) accommodated in the tray 7 is unloaded from the tray and printed in the printer apparatus 1, and then discharged from the discharge port 8 to the outside of the printer apparatus 1.

  In such a series of printing operations, the paper may be jammed in the middle of the printer apparatus 1 or the toner for printing may run out. The printer apparatus 1 is provided with a cover 2 for maintenance in order to eliminate such troubles. When trouble occurs, as shown in FIG. 2, the cover 2 is opened and necessary measures are taken.

  The cover 2 is normally locked in a closed state, and the printer apparatus 1 cannot perform a printing operation when the cover 2 is open. Next, a mechanism for locking such a cover 2 to the printer main body 1a will be described.

  As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, a pair of guide rails 3 a and 3 b are provided inside the cover 2, and a lock lever 10 is sandwiched between the guide rails 3 a and 3 b. The lock lever 10 is provided with a long hole 14 along the longitudinal direction. The lock lever 10 is attached to the cover 2 so that a screw 20 is inserted through the long hole 14 and is slidable along the longitudinal direction of the lock lever 10. ing.

  The cross section of the lock lever 10 in a direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction is a U-shape, and a wall 12 and a pair of lever-side ribs 13a and 13b are provided in an inner portion of the U-shape. The pair of lever-side ribs 13 a and 13 b are disposed at a distance from each other and are formed along the longitudinal direction of the lock lever 10.

  A space for accommodating the compression spring 9 is formed between the wall 12 and the pair of lever-side ribs 13a and 13b. In the locked state, one end of the compression spring 9 is supported by the wall 12, and the other end is supported by the pair of lever side ribs 13a and 13b. The cover 2 is formed with a cover-side rib 4 so as to be sandwiched between a pair of lever-side ribs 13a and 13b. The cover 2 comes into contact with the other end of the compression spring 9, and the lock lever 10 rattles to release the lock. Is blocking.

  On the wall 12, a flange 12 a is provided so that the compression spring 9 does not come out of the space in which the compression spring 9 is accommodated. The pair of lever-side ribs 13a and 13b and the cover-side rib 4 can be slid relative to the pair of lever-side ribs 13a and 13b when the lock lever 10 is slid. It is arranged.

  Claws 11 are provided in the vicinity of both ends of the lock lever 10. In a normal use state, as shown in FIG. 5, the cover 2 is locked by the claw 11 being locked to the receiving portion 21 provided in the printer main body 1a. An operation portion 15 is provided at one end of the lock lever 10, and the locking state of the claw 11 is released by pushing the operation portion 15 in the direction in which the compression spring 9 is compressed (left side as viewed in the drawing), as will be described later. Is done.

  Next, a procedure for attaching the above-described lock lever 10 to the cover 2 will be described. First, as shown in FIG. 6, a compression spring 9 is mounted in advance in a space formed between the wall 12 of the lock lever 10 and the pair of lever side ribs 13a and 13b. Next, as shown in FIG. 7, the lock lever 10 to which the compression spring 9 is attached is attached between the guide rail 3 a and the guide rail 3 b of the cover 2 as indicated by an arrow 31, and the operation unit 15 is installed. The cover 2 is inserted through the opening. In this state, the screw 20 is inserted into the long hole 14 of the lock lever 10 and screwed into the female screw portion provided in the cover 2 so that the lock lever 10 is slidably attached to the cover 2. In this way, the attachment of the lock lever 10 to the cover 2 is completed.

  Next, the operation of the lock lever 10 attached to the cover 2 will be described. First, in a normal state, as shown in FIG. 8, the claw 11 of the lock lever 10 is locked to a receiving portion 21 provided in the printer main body. Next, when it is necessary to open the cover 2 during maintenance or the like, first, the operation unit 15 is pushed in the direction indicated by the arrow 32. As a result, as shown in FIG. 9, the lock lever 10 slides in the direction indicated by the arrow 32, and instead of the pair of lever side ribs 13 a and 13 b that substantially support the other end side of the compression spring 9. The cover-side rib 4 provided on the cover 2 supports the other end side of the compression spring 9.

  When the operating portion 15 is further pushed in, the compression spring 9 is contracted and the lock lever 10 is slid in the direction indicated by the arrow 32, and the claw 11 is released from the state of being locked to the receiving portion 21 and locked as shown in FIG. Will be canceled. The cover 2 can be opened by releasing the lock. In order to lock the cover 2 after opening the cover 2 and performing maintenance or the like, the cover 2 can be locked by performing an operation reverse to the above-described operation.

  In the mechanism for locking the cover 2 of the printer 1 described above, the compression spring 9 is mounted in advance in a space formed between the wall 12 provided on the lock lever 10 and the pair of lever side ribs 13a and 13b. When the lock lever 10 is attached to the cover, the lock lever 10 may be attached to the guide rails 3a and 3b with the compression spring 9 being attached, and it is necessary to work against the elastic force of the compression spring 9. As a result, the lock lever 10 can be easily attached to the cover 2.

  In the above-described printer apparatus, the compression spring 9 has been described as an example of the means for urging the lock lever 10. However, if the lock lever can be urged with an appropriate elastic force, the compression spring 9 is limited. I can't.

1 is a perspective view of a printer apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a state where a cover of the printer device shown in FIG. 1 is opened in the embodiment. In the same embodiment, it is a fragmentary perspective view which shows the state where the lock lever was attached to the cover. FIG. 4 is a partial top view of the lock lever shown in FIG. 3 in the same embodiment. In the embodiment, it is a fragmentary sectional view which shows the state in which the cover was locked. In the embodiment, it is a fragmentary perspective view which shows one process of the attachment procedure of a lock lever. FIG. 7 is a perspective view showing a step performed after the step shown in FIG. 6 in the same embodiment. FIG. 6 is a partial cross-sectional view for explaining the operation of the lock lever in the same embodiment. FIG. 9 is a partial top view showing a state next to the state shown in FIG. 8 in the same embodiment. FIG. 10 is a partial cross-sectional view of the state shown in FIG. 9 in the same embodiment. It is a fragmentary sectional view which shows the state in which the lock lever was mounted | worn with the cover in the conventional printer apparatus. In the conventional printer apparatus, it is a fragmentary perspective view which shows 1 process of the attachment procedure of a lock lever.

Explanation of symbols

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Printer apparatus, 1a Printer main body, 2 Cover, 3a, 3b Guide rail, 4 Cover side rib, 5 Opening part, 6 Female thread part, 7 Tray, 8 Outlet, 9 Compression spring, 10 Lock lever, 11 Claw, 12 Wall , 12a 庇, 13a, 13b Lever side rib, 14 long hole, 15 operation part, 20 screw, 21 receiving part.

Claims (7)

The printer itself,
A cover that is attached to the printer body so as to be openable and closable, and for maintenance,
A lock lever attached to the inside of the cover and extending in one direction for locking the cover to the printer body;
Claw portions that are respectively engaged with the printer body provided at both ends of the lock lever;
An operation portion provided on one end side of the lock lever, for releasing the lock by sliding the lock lever in an extending direction;
A pair of guide rails provided on the cover so as to be opposed to each other with a space therebetween, and allowing the sliding operation in a direction in which the lock lever extends by sandwiching the lock lever;
A compression spring that is attached to the lock lever and applies a predetermined urging force to hold the locked state;
A spring accommodating portion provided in the lock lever, accommodating the compression spring, and having a U-shaped cross section in a direction substantially orthogonal to a direction in which the lock lever extends;
A cover-side rib provided on the cover and supporting the other end of the compression spring in a state of releasing the lock lever;
The spring accommodating portion is
A wall for holding one end of the compression spring;
A collar portion provided on the wall portion and formed to cover one end side portion of the accommodated compression spring;
A pair of lever-side ribs that are provided at a distance from the wall along the direction in which the lock lever extends and hold the other end of the compression spring;
By pushing the operation portion along the direction in which the lock lever extends, the cover-side rib relatively approaches between the pair of lever-side ribs toward the wall portion, and the compression spring The other end side of the printer is supported by the cover-side rib, and the state where the claw portion is locked to the printer body is released. The printer itself,
A cover attached to the printer body so as to be openable and closable;
A lock lever that is slidably mounted on the cover and locks the cover to the printer body;
An elastic body attached to the lock lever and for holding the lock lever in a locked state by an urging force;
An elastic body accommodating portion that is provided on the lock lever and supports the one end side and the other end side of the elastic body to accommodate the elastic body;
A first support member provided on the cover and supporting the other end side of the elastic body housed in the elastic body housing portion by sliding the lock lever;
With
The printer device in which the state where the other end side of the elastic body is supported by the first support member and the cover is locked to the printer body is released by sliding the lock lever. The elastic body container is
A wall provided on the lock lever and supporting one end of the elastic body;
A pair of second support members that are provided on the lock lever at a distance from the wall and support the other end side of the elastic body, facing each other;
The printer device according to claim 2, wherein the first support member is disposed so as to relatively move between the pair of second support members by sliding the lock lever.   The printer apparatus according to claim 3, further comprising a flange portion provided on the wall portion of the elastic body housing portion and covering a portion on one end side of the elastic body.   5. The printer apparatus according to claim 2, further comprising a pair of guide rails that are provided on the cover and that allow the lock lever to slide.   The printer apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the lock lever has a claw portion that is locked to the printer main body.   The printer device according to claim 2, wherein the elastic body is a compression spring.

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