JP2006248661A - Sheet stacking device, sheet feeder and image forming device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a sheet stacking device, a sheet feeder and an image forming device capable of reliably preventing skew of a sheet, and enhancing the usability. <P>SOLUTION: A rack 13a is provided on side regulation members 9, 10 which are abutted on side ends of the sheet to regulate the side end positions of the sheet, and a pinion 16 to be engaged with the rack 13a is provided on a bottom side of a sheet stacking part in an elevating/lowering manner. The pinion 16 is elevated/lowered in a rotating manner as the side regulation member 10 is moved. The elevating/lowering motion of the pinion 16 is regulated by slidably abutting the elevating/lowering pinion 16 in the rotating manner on a regulating means. When the pinion 16 is slidably abutted on the regulating means, the resistance between the regulating means and the pinion 16 is decreased if the side regulation member 10 is moved in the abutting direction on the side end of the sheet, or increased if the side regulation member 10 is moved in the direction opposite to the abutting direction on the side end of the sheet. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a sheet stacking apparatus, a sheet feeding apparatus, and an image forming apparatus, and more particularly, to a sheet stacking apparatus, a sheet feeding apparatus, and an image forming apparatus that include a side regulating member that regulates the side end position of stacked sheets.

  In a conventional image forming apparatus such as a copying machine, a facsimile, or an image reading apparatus such as a scanner, the sheets placed on a sheet feeding tray as a sheet stacking apparatus are sequentially sent out one by one, and then the image forming unit or A sheet feeding device that feeds the image reading unit is provided.

  Here, for example, in a sheet feeding apparatus that is provided in the image forming apparatus and feeds sheets to the image forming unit, the sheet is moved in the width direction, which is a direction orthogonal to the sheet feeding direction, to the sheet stacking unit of the sheet feeding tray. A possible side regulating member is provided, and the position in the width direction of the sheet stored in the sheet feeding tray is regulated by the side regulating member.

  As a sheet feeding tray of such a sheet feeding device, there is one in which a spring portion is provided to hold the position of the side regulating member at an arbitrary position (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

  FIG. 12 is a top view of the sheet feeding tray of such a conventional sheet feeding apparatus. In FIG. 12, 2 is a sheet feeding tray, and 19 and 20 are sheet stacking portions 2 a of the sheet feeding tray 2. These are a pair of side regulating members that are respectively movable in the width direction. The pair of side restricting members 19 and 20 are provided with side restricting portions 21 and 22 that are in contact with the side edges of the sheets set on the sheet feeding tray 2. Reference numeral 1 denotes a feeding roller that feeds a sheet set on the sheet feeding tray 2.

  Further, in addition to the side restricting portions 21 and 22, the side restricting members 19 and 20 each include a rack portion 23 having a flat tooth rack 23a on one side and a spring portion 25 on the other side as shown in FIG. ing. The pair of side regulating members 19 and 20 are a central gear that is a pinion provided at the center of the bottom surface of the paper feed tray 2 as shown in FIG. 27, the spur racks 23 a of the rack portion 23 are engaged with each other and attached to the paper feed tray 2.

  Accordingly, for example, when one side regulating member 19 is moved in the width direction, the central gear 27 is rotated, and the other side regulating member 20 is opposite to the one side regulating member 19 simultaneously with the rotation of the central gear 27. It is designed to move in the direction. For example, when one side restricting member 19 is moved toward the center, this movement is transmitted to the other side restricting member 20 via the central gear 27, whereby the other side restricting member 20 is also moved toward the center. It is like that.

  With this configuration, when one of the side regulating members 19 and 20 is moved away from the center when setting a sheet on the sheet feeding tray 2, the other side regulating member also moves away from the center. The distance between the side restricting members 19 and 20 is increased and the sheet is easily set. On the other hand, when one of the side restricting members 19 and 20 is moved in the central direction to restrict the positions of both ends of the set sheet, the other side restricting member is also moved in the central direction. , 20 is narrowed, whereby the side restricting portions 21 and 22 are brought into contact with both ends of the sheet, thereby restricting the positions of both ends of the sheet.

  The central gear 27 that meshes with the spur rack 23a of the side restricting members 19 and 20 is also a spur gear, and as a result, when the side restricting members 19 and 20 move, as shown in FIG. No thrust force is applied to the central gear 27 meshing with 23a, and as a result, the central gear 27 rotates without being raised or lowered.

  On the other hand, in FIG. 14, reference numeral 26 denotes a slide groove formed on the bottom surface of the paper feed tray 2 and extending in the width direction, and the rack portion 23 of the side regulating members 19 and 20 can slide in the slide groove 26 in the width direction. Is attached. The side regulating members 19 and 20 are moved along the slide groove 26 in the direction in which the sheet is set or the side end position of the sheet is regulated while sliding the rack portion 23 in the width direction. Yes.

  By the way, when the rack portion 23 is attached to the slide groove 26, the above-described spring portion 25 shown in FIG. 13 comes into pressure contact with the wall surface 26a of the slide groove 26, whereby the side regulating members 19 and 20 are in a semi-fixed state. . As a result, when the side regulating members 19 and 20 are moved according to the size of the sheet stored in the sheet feed tray 2 so as to regulate the both side positions of the sheets, the side regulating members 19 and 20 are semi-fixed by the spring portion 25. Therefore, when the side regulating members 19 and 20 are moved, a certain amount of force is required.

  With this configuration, when the sheet is fed out, the sheet roller is subjected to a force that causes the sheet to be skewed by the wear of the feeding roller 1 or the roller shaft 1a of the feeding roller 1 (see FIG. 12). Even if the end portion presses the side restricting portions 21 and 22, the side restricting members 19 and 20 are held at the restricting positions without increasing the distance between the side restricting members. As a result, the sheet is guided by the side restricting portions 21 and 22 even when a skewing force is applied, so that the skewing is prevented and the straightness is improved.

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 7-101561

  By the way, in such a conventional paper feed tray, when the side regulating members 19 and 20 are set in a semi-fixed state by the spring portion 25 in this way, the side regulating members 19 and 20 are also closed in the opening direction. The same pressure comes to be applied.

  For this reason, for example, if the spring force applied to the wall surface 26a of the slide groove 26 is increased so that the distance between the side restricting members does not increase during sheet conveyance for improving straightness, a large force is applied to the movement operation of the side restricting members 19 and 20. Therefore, when the sheet is set in the sheet feed tray 2 or when the side edge position of the sheet is regulated, the resistance of the operation of the side regulating members 19 and 20 may be resisted, and the usability may be deteriorated.

  In addition, it is difficult to make the width of the slide groove 26 extending in the width direction, which is the sheet feeding direction indicated by the arrow in FIG. If the width of the side is not constant, it is difficult to always make the side regulating members 19 and 20 that move over the entire width in a semi-fixed state with a constant spring force, and there is a difference in the ability to prevent skew.

  Further, when the distance between the central gear 27 and the spring portion 25 is increased depending on the size of the seat, the side restricting member itself is distorted and the amount of deflection of the spring portion 25 is changed. It is difficult to always make a semi-fixed state with a constant spring force, and depending on the size of the sheet to be used, the side regulating members 19 and 20 are likely to move, resulting in a difference in the ability to prevent skew.

  Therefore, the present invention has been made in view of such a current situation, and can reliably prevent skew feeding of sheets and improve usability, and a sheet tray (sheet stacking device) and a sheet. An object of the present invention is to provide a feeding device and an image forming apparatus.

  The present invention provides a sheet stacking unit for stacking sheets, and is provided in the sheet stacking unit so as to be movable in a width direction perpendicular to the sheet feeding direction, and is in contact with a side edge of the sheets stacked on the sheet stacking unit. A sheet stacking apparatus including a side regulating member that regulates a side edge position of a sheet, a rack provided on the side regulating member, and a seat stacking unit that is provided so as to be movable up and down. A pinion that moves up and down while rotating in accordance with the movement of the side regulating member, and a regulating means that slidably contacts the pinion that moves up and down while rotating and regulates the raising and lowering of the pinion. When the pinion is slidably contacted, the resistance between the restricting means and the pinion is reduced when the side restricting member moves in a direction to contact the side edge of the sheet. It is characterized in that the side regulating member is set to be larger when moving in a direction opposite to the direction in contact with the side edge of the sheet.

  As in the present invention, when the pinion that moves up and down while rotating with the movement of the side regulating member abuts the regulating means in a slidable manner, the resistance between the regulating means and the pinion is reduced by the side regulating member. By reducing the side regulating member when moving in the direction opposite to the direction of contact with the side edge of the sheet, the sheet feeding is reduced. Sometimes the skew of the sheet can be surely prevented and the usability can be improved.

  The best mode for carrying out the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a schematic configuration of a laser printer that is an example of an image forming apparatus including a sheet stacking apparatus and a sheet feeding apparatus according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

  In FIG. 1, reference numeral 50 denotes a laser beam printer, and 51 denotes a laser beam printer main body. The laser beam printer main body (hereinafter referred to as printer main body) 51 is irradiated with laser light L based on the photosensitive drum 3 and image information. A laser scanner unit 4 that forms an electrostatic latent image on a photosensitive drum that rotates at a constant speed, and a transfer unit that transfers the toner image formed on the photosensitive drum to a sheet P by developing the electrostatic latent image. An image forming unit 53 having a transfer roller 3a and a fixing device 5 are provided. Reference numeral 8 denotes a process cartridge including the photosensitive drum 3 and a developing device (not shown). The process cartridge 8 is detachably attached to the printer main body 51.

  In FIG. 1, reference numeral 52 denotes a sheet feeding apparatus. The sheet feeding apparatus 52 includes a sheet feeding tray 2 that is a sheet stacking apparatus for stacking and storing sheets P, and a sheet P stacked on the sheet feeding tray 2. Is provided with a feeding roller 1 which is a sheet feeding means for feeding the sheet.

  In the laser beam printer (image forming apparatus) 50 having such a configuration, when an image is formed on the sheet P, the laser beam L is irradiated onto the photosensitive drum 3 from the laser scanner unit 4 together with the print command. As a result, an electrostatic latent image is formed on the photosensitive drum 3, and a toner image is formed on the photosensitive drum 3 by developing the electrostatic latent image with a developing device.

  Further, the sheets P stacked and stored in the paper feed tray 2 together with the print command are separated and fed one by one by the feeding roller 1 and the separation pad 1b. Thereafter, the sheet P is transferred to the transfer roller 3a and the photosensitive drum. The toner image formed on the photosensitive drum 3 is transferred to this nip.

  The sheet P onto which the toner image has been transferred in this way is sent to the fixing device 5 where it is heated and pressurized to fix the toner image semi-permanently. Further, the sheet P on which the toner image is fixed in this manner is discharged and stacked on the sheet discharge stacking unit 7 formed on the upper surface of the printer main body 51 by the discharge roller 6.

  2 is a view of the sheet feeding tray 2 of the sheet feeding apparatus 52 according to the present embodiment as viewed from above. In FIG. 2, numerals 9 and 10 denote the sheet stacking unit 2a of the sheet feeding tray 2. These are a pair of side restricting members provided so as to be movable in the width direction. The pair of side regulating members 9 and 10 are respectively provided with side regulating portions 11 and 12 that come into contact with the side edges of the sheets set on the sheet feeding tray 2.

  Further, in addition to the side regulating portions 11 and 12, each of the side regulating members 9 and 10 includes a rack portion 13 having a helical tooth rack 13a on one side as shown in FIG. The pair of side regulating members 9 and 10 are provided at the center of the bottom surface of the sheet feeding tray 2 as shown in FIG. The central gear 15 which is a pinion to be linked and the helical gear rack 13a of the rack portion 13 are engaged with each other and attached to the paper feed tray 2.

  Thus, for example, when one side regulating member 10 is moved in the width direction, the central gear 15 rotates, and the other side regulating member 9 simultaneously reverses the one side regulating member 10 as the central gear 15 rotates. It is designed to move in the direction. For example, when one side restricting member 10 is moved toward the center, this movement is transmitted to the other side restricting member 9 via the central gear 15, whereby the other side restricting member 9 is also moved toward the center. It is like that.

  Further, the rack portion 13 of the side regulating members 9 and 10 is attached to a slide groove 26 formed on the bottom surface of the paper feed tray 2 so as to be slidable in the width direction. Thus, the side regulating members 9 and 10 move in the direction of setting the sheet or the direction of regulating the side edge position of the sheet while sliding the rack portion 13 in the width direction along the slide groove 26. It has become.

  By the way, in the present embodiment, the center gear 15 is a helical gear. Further, since the rack of the rack portion 13 of the side regulating members 9 and 10 meshing with the central gear 15 is also a helical tooth rack 13a having teeth formed in a helical shape, when one side regulating member 10 moves, Since the gear 15 rotates while receiving a thrust force from the side regulating member 10, the gear 15 tends to move upward or downward.

  However, since the helical gear 13a of the rack portion 13 of the other side regulating plate 9 is meshed with the central gear 15, the central gear 15 rotates and is driven to the rack portion 13 of the other side regulating plate 9. At the time of transmission, the thrust force in the reverse direction is received from the side regulating member 9, so that the thrust force is offset. For this reason, the central gear 15 rotates without moving up and down.

  In FIG. 4, reference numeral 16 denotes a resistance helical gear that is a pinion provided on the bottom surface of the paper feed tray 2, and the resistance helical gear 16 is one of the pair of side regulating members 9 and 10. It meshes with the side regulating member 10.

  Here, as shown in FIG. 7 to be described later, the resistance helical gear 16 is suspended from the bottom surface of the paper feed tray 2 and is rotatable about a rotary shaft 17 having a lower stopper 17a formed at the lower end portion. And it is attached so that it can move up and down (movable up and down). In the present embodiment, the rotating shaft 17 is snap fit.

  Then, in order to set the sheet on the sheet feed tray 2 by meshing the resistance helical gear 16 configured as described above with one of the side regulating members 10, the side regulating members 9 and 10 as shown in FIG. When one side regulating member 10 is moved as shown in FIGS. 5 and 6 so as to regulate the position of the side edge of the sheet from the state where the interval is widened, the resistance helical gear 16 becomes a rack of the side regulating member 10. Since the driving force is transmitted from the portion 13 to rotate and receive a thrust force, it tends to move downward due to the inclination of the helical teeth of the helical tooth rack 13a.

  At this time, unlike the central gear 15, the resistance helical gear 16 is not meshed with the helical rack 13a of the other side regulating plate 9, so that this thrust force is not canceled out. As shown in FIG. 7, it descends along 17 and eventually comes into slidable contact with a lower stopper 17a which is a restricting means formed at the lower end of the rotating shaft 17.

  Here, since the lower surface of the resistance helical gear 16 and the surface of the lower stopper 17a are formed smoothly so as to make the sliding resistance as small as possible, the user can adjust the distance between the side regulating members 9, 10 to the size of the sheet. In addition, even when the side regulating members 9 and 10 are closed inward, the resistance helical gear 16 rotates smoothly, so that the operation can be performed smoothly without any particular resistance.

  By the way, after the side regulating members 9 and 10 are moved to a position for regulating the side edge position of the sheet as shown in FIG. 5, an image forming operation is started, and the sheet is fed by the feeding roller 1 accordingly. However, when such a sheet is fed, if the force for skewing the sheet is applied, the sheet presses the side regulating portions 11 and 12.

  When the side restricting portions 11 and 12 are pressed by the sheet in this way, a force is applied to the side restricting members 9 and 10 to increase the interval. The gear 16 rotates as a result of driving being transmitted from the helical gear rack 13a of the side regulating member 10, and this time, the gear 16 rises upon receiving a thrust force in the opposite direction from the helical gear rack 13a, and eventually rotates as shown in FIG. The upper stopper 18 which is a restricting means formed on the base portion 17 is slidably contacted.

  Here, at least one of the upper surface of the resistance helical gear 16 and the surface of the upper stopper 18 of the paper feed tray 2 has a rough surface so that the sliding resistance is increased, so that the upper stopper 18 can slide. The resistance helical gear 16 that abuts rapidly loses the rotational force received from the helical rack 13a of the side regulating member 10. In addition, in order for the sliding resistance between the resistance helical gear 16 and the upper stopper 18 to increase, the contact portion of the upper stopper 18 with the resistance helical gear 16 and the upper stopper 18 of the resistance helical gear 16 are increased. A member having a high friction coefficient such as rubber may be provided on at least one of the contact portions.

  Further, this sliding resistance is set larger than the force that the side regulating members 9, 10 receive by the sheet and moves in the expanding direction, and is pressed by the skewed sheet, thereby moving the side regulating member 10. The resistance helical gear 16 hardly slides and rotates due to the sliding resistance between the resistance helical gear 16 and the upper stopper 18, and eventually the resistance helical gear 16 stops sliding rotation.

  Then, when the resistance helical gear 16 stops sliding rotation in this way, the movement of the side regulating members 9 and 10 stops, and the interval between the side regulating members 9 and 10 does not increase. As a result, even if a skewing force acts on the seat, the distance between the side regulating members 9 and 10 (the side regulating portions 11 and 12) does not increase by a predetermined amount or more. , 12 are fed while the side edges are guided, thereby ensuring the straightness of the sheet.

  As described above, when the resistance helical gear 16 slidably contacts the upper stopper 18 as the side regulating member 10 moves in the direction opposite to the direction of contact with the side edge of the sheet, Since the sliding resistance between the upper stopper 18 and the upper stopper 18 is increased, the distance between the side restricting members 9 and 10 (the side restricting portions 11 and 12) is maintained even when a skewing force is applied to the sheet. Since the sheet can be prevented from spreading, the sheet can be prevented from skewing by striking against the side regulating members 9 and 10 in which the side edges of the sheet are maintained at regular positions.

  Further, when the resistance helical gear 16 slidably contacts the lower stopper 17a by moving the side regulating member 10 in the direction of contacting the side edge of the sheet, the resistance helical gear 16 and the lower stopper 17a By reducing the frictional resistance between the sheets, the operation of regulating the side end position of the sheet set on the sheet feeding tray can be performed with a small force, and the usability is improved.

  That is, when the resistance helical gear 16 that moves up and down while rotating with the movement of the side regulating member 10 contacts the upper stopper 18 or the lower stopper 17a slidably as in the present embodiment, The side regulating member 10 is arranged so that the resistance between the stopper 18 or the lower stopper 17a and the resistance helical gear 16 is reduced when the side regulating member 10 moves in a direction in contact with the side edge of the sheet. By increasing the size when moving in the direction opposite to the direction of contact with the side edges of the sheet, it is possible to reliably prevent the skew of the sheet and improve usability.

  Further, as the side regulating member 10 moves in this manner, the resistance helical gear 16 is brought into contact with the upper stopper 18, and the side regulating member 10 reduces the friction between the resistive helical gear 16 and the upper stopper 18. When the side regulating member 10 moves in the direction opposite to the direction in contact with the side edge of the paper feeding tray 2, the sliding resistance is different at any position in the width direction of the paper feed tray 2. As a result, the sliding resistance is stabilized without increasing the reliability of preventing the skew of the sheet regardless of the sheet size.

  As shown in FIG. 9, a spring member 28 is provided as an example of an elastic member between the resistance helical gear 16 and the lower stopper 17 a, and the resistance helical gear 16 is pressed against the upper stopper 18 by the spring member 28. When the side regulating member 10 moves, in addition to the thrust force, the spring member 28 presses the resistance helical gear 16 against the upper stopper 18 to increase the sliding resistance between the resistance helical gear 16 and the upper stopper 18. Accordingly, the skew of the sheet can be prevented more stably.

  In the description so far, the sheet feeding tray 2 is based on the center, and therefore the side regulating members 9 and 10 are configured to regulate the positions of both side ends of the sheet. 16 is provided as a separate body, but if the paper feed tray 2 is based on one side, one side regulating member is movable, and the other side regulating member is fixed, the central gear 15 is unnecessary, and a resistance lotion The same effect can be obtained with only the tooth gear 16.

  Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described.

  FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional view illustrating the configuration of the central portion of the paper feed tray according to this embodiment. In FIG. 10, the same reference numerals as those in FIG. 7 denote the same or corresponding parts.

  In FIG. 10, reference numeral 29 denotes a central gear which is a pinion, and the central gear 29 is a step gear including a helical gear portion 30 and a spur gear portion 31. The rack 13 of one side restricting member 10 includes a helical tooth rack 13a, and the other side restricting member (not shown) includes a rack having a flat tooth rack. That is, one of the pair of racks 13 in the first embodiment is a helical tooth rack 13a, the other is a flat tooth rack, and the helical tooth rack and the flat tooth rack are arranged on different planes in the vertical direction. .

  The helical gear portion 30 of the central gear 29 meshes with the helical gear rack 13a of the side restricting member 10, and the spur gear portion 31 meshes with the flat tooth rack of the other side restricting member (not shown). ing.

  Here, in the sheet feeding tray 2 including the central gear 29 and the side regulating members 10 and 11 having such a configuration, for example, the side regulating members 10 and 11 are arranged to regulate the side end position of the sheet set by the user. When the gap is moved in the direction of narrowing the distance, the central gear 29 is rotated by receiving a driving force transmitted from the helical gear rack 13a of the one side regulating member 10 to the helical gear portion 30, and receives a thrust force.

  At this time, since the spur gear rack of the other side regulating member is engaged with the spur gear portion 31 of the central gear 29, the thrust force by the other side regulating member is not generated in the central gear 29. Accordingly, the central gear 29 descends along the rotation shaft 17 by the thrust force of the one side regulating member 10 and eventually comes into contact with the lower stopper 17a formed at the lower end of the rotation shaft 17 so as to be slidable.

  Here, since the lower surface of the central gear 29 and the surface of the lower stopper 17a are formed smoothly so as to minimize the sliding resistance, in order for the user to adjust the distance between the side regulating members 9, 10 to the size of the sheet, Even when the side regulating members 9 and 10 are closed inward, the central gear 29 rotates smoothly, so that the operation can be performed smoothly without any particular resistance.

  On the other hand, after the side regulating members 9 and 10 are moved to a position for regulating the side edge position of the sheet in this way, an image forming operation is started, and the sheet is fed by the feeding roller 1 along with this. When such a sheet is fed, if the force for skewing the sheet is applied, the sheet presses the side regulating portions 11 and 12.

  When the side restricting portions 11 and 12 are thus pressed by the seat, a force is applied to the side restricting members 9 and 10 to increase the interval. As a result, when the side restricting member 10 moves, the central gear 29 is moved. Is rotated by the driving force transmitted from the helical gear rack 13a of the side regulating member 10, and this time receives a thrust force in the reverse direction from the helical gear rack 13a.

  At this time, the spur gear portion 31 of the central gear 29 is engaged with the spur rack of the other side regulating member, so that no thrust force is generated in the central gear 29. Accordingly, the central gear 29 rises upon receiving the thrust force from the helical gear rack 13a of the side regulating member 10 and eventually comes into contact with the upper stopper 18 formed at the base of the rotating shaft 17 so as to be slidable.

  Here, at least one of the upper surface of the central gear 29 and the surface of the upper stopper 18 has a rough surface so as to increase the sliding resistance, whereby the central gear 29 slidably contacting the upper stopper 18 is The rotational force received from the helical gear rack 13a of the side regulating member 10 is rapidly lost. A member having a high coefficient of friction such as rubber is provided at least one of the contact portion of the upper stopper 18 with the central gear 29 and the contact portion of the central gear 29 with the upper stopper 18 so as to increase the sliding resistance. May be.

  Further, this sliding resistance is set larger than the force that the side regulating members 9, 10 receive by the sheet and moves in the expanding direction, and is pressed by the skewed sheet, thereby moving the side regulating member 10. Due to the sliding resistance between the central gear 29 and the upper stopper 18, the central gear 29 becomes difficult to slide and rotate, and eventually the central gear 29 stops sliding rotation.

  When the central gear 29 stops sliding and rotating in this way, the movement of the side regulating members 9 and 10 stops, and the interval between the side regulating members 9 and 10 does not increase. As a result, even if a slanting force is applied to the sheet, the distance between the side restricting members 9 and 10 (the side restricting portions 11 and 12) does not widen, so that the sheet is maintained at the normal position. The sheet is fed while the side edges are guided by the restricting portions 11 and 12, thereby ensuring the straightness of the sheet.

1 is a diagram illustrating a schematic configuration of a laser printer that is an example of an image forming apparatus including a sheet stacking apparatus and a sheet feeding apparatus according to a first embodiment of the present invention. The figure which looked at the paper feed tray which is the said sheet stacking apparatus from the top. The perspective view of the side control member provided in the said paper feed tray. The figure which looked at the paper feed tray from the bottom. FIG. 4 is a view of the sheet feeding tray as viewed from above when the side regulating member is moved to a position for regulating the side edge position of the sheet. FIG. 4 is a diagram of a sheet feeding tray viewed from below when the side regulating member is moved to a position for regulating the side edge position of the sheet. Sectional drawing around the rack part when the said side control member is moved to the position which controls the side edge position of a sheet | seat. Sectional drawing of the rack part periphery at the time of the said side control member moving to the direction which expands a space | interval. FIG. 6 is a partial cross-sectional view illustrating another configuration of the paper feed tray. Sectional drawing of the center part of the paper feed tray which is a sheet | seat stacking apparatus which concerns on the 2nd Embodiment of this invention. Sectional drawing of the rack part periphery at the time of the said side control member moving to the direction which expands a space | interval. The figure which looked at the conventional paper feed tray from the top. The perspective view of the side control member provided in the conventional paper feed tray. The figure which looked at the conventional paper feed tray from the bottom. The fragmentary sectional view around the rack part of the conventional side regulating member.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Feed roller 2 Paper feed tray 2a Sheet | seat stacking part 9,10 Side restriction member 11,12 Side restriction part 13 Rack part 13a Lotus tooth rack 15 Central gear 16 Resistance helical gear 17 Rotating shaft 17a Lower stopper 18 Upper stopper 26 Slide Groove 28 spring member 29 central gear 30 helical gear portion 31 spur gear portion 52 sheet feeding device P sheet

Claims (8)

A sheet stacking section for stacking sheets; and a sheet stacking section provided in the sheet stacking section so as to be movable in a width direction orthogonal to the sheet feeding direction, and in contact with the side end of the sheet stacked on the sheet stacking section In a sheet stacking apparatus provided with a side regulating member that regulates the position,
A rack provided on the side regulating member;
A pinion that is provided in the sheet stacking portion so as to be movable up and down, and meshes with the rack and moves up and down with the movement of the side regulating member;
A regulating means for slidably abutting the pinion that moves up and down while rotating and regulating the raising and lowering of the pinion;
With
When the pinion comes into slidable contact with the restricting means, the resistance between the restricting means and the pinion is reduced when the side restricting member moves in a direction to contact the side edge of the sheet. Thus, when the side regulating member moves in the direction opposite to the direction in which the side regulating member comes into contact with the side edge of the sheet, the sheet stacking apparatus is configured to be large.   The rack has a helical shape, the pinion has a helical gear, and when the rack moves integrally with the side regulating member, the pinion moves up and down in a direction perpendicular to the moving direction of the rack. The sheet stacking apparatus according to claim 1, wherein A pair of the side regulating members are arranged so as to regulate the positions of both side edges of the seat, a rack having a lotus tooth shape is provided on each of the side regulating members, and meshes with the racks of the pair of side regulating members, respectively. It has a pinion for linking that uses a helical gear that links a pair of members,
2. The seat according to claim 1, wherein the pinion is lifted and lowered as a helical gear that meshes with a rack of one side regulating member of the pair of side regulating members while rotating as the side regulating member moves. Loading device.   A pair of the side regulating members are arranged so as to regulate the positions of both side ends of the seat, the one side regulating member is provided with a helical toothed rack, the other side regulating member is provided with a rack using a spur gear, A side gear having a helical gear portion that meshes with a helical gear portion that meshes with the helical tooth rack and a spur gear portion that meshes with a rack that uses the spur gear, and the side that has the helical tooth rack. 2. The sheet stacking apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the pinion moves up and down while rotating as the regulating member moves.   When the side regulating member moves in a direction opposite to the direction in which the side regulating member abuts on the side edge of the sheet, the abutting portion of the regulating means with the pinion so as to increase the resistance between the regulating means and the pinion; 5. The sheet stacking apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a friction coefficient of at least one of contact portions of the pinion with the restricting unit is increased.   Provided is an elastic member that presses the pinion against the restricting means so that the resistance between the restricting means and the pinion increases when the side restricting member moves in a direction opposite to the direction in which the side restricting member abuts against the side edge of the sheet. The sheet stacking apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the sheet stacking apparatus is a sheet stacking apparatus.   7. A sheet feeding apparatus comprising: the sheet stacking apparatus according to claim 1; and a sheet feeding unit configured to feed sheets stacked on the sheet stacking apparatus.   An image forming apparatus comprising: the sheet feeding device according to claim 7; and an image forming unit that forms an image on a sheet fed from the sheet feeding device.

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