JP2006251055A - Image reader - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an image reader, wherein a mirror is easily detached from a traveling body in order to clean or wash the mirror, so that the staining of the mirror is inexpensively perfectly removed. <P>SOLUTION: By providing a notch larger than the height of the 1st mirror 3 in the traveling body at the same horizontal position as the 1st mirror 3 on the reinforcing part 308 of a 1st rail 306, space where the 1st mirror 3 is slid is secured, so that the mirror is easily detached when cleaning the mirror. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to an image reading apparatus that reads a document by reflecting and irradiating light with a mirror such as a copying machine, a facsimile machine, or a scanner.

  A conventional image reading apparatus irradiates light on a document to be read from a light source, irradiates the reflected light on a CCD via a reflection mirror and a lens, and irradiates a photoconductor.

  However, if dust or dirt adheres to the surface of the reflecting mirror, the optical path from the original is obstructed, and an abnormal image such as a black vertical stripe is generated in the copy image.

  Therefore, an image forming apparatus is disclosed in which a cleaning member that removes dust and dirt adhering to the reflecting mirror surface is detachably installed on the traveling path of the traveling body and outside the effective image area (see, for example, Patent Document 1). .

JP-A-11-133526

  However, in such a conventional image forming apparatus, even when the mirror is not dirty, the cleaning member comes into contact with the mirror, so that the dust removed by the cleaning member again adheres to the mirror. was there.

  Further, since the dirt cannot be removed unless it is wiped by applying a certain pressure, the above method has a problem that the dirt cannot be completely removed.

  Furthermore, since the inside of the scanner has a relatively high degree of sealing, dust and dirt are rarely generated at all times. However, in the conventional image forming apparatus, it is necessary to always attach a cleaning member to the apparatus itself, which increases the cost. There was a problem of becoming.

  Therefore, the present invention has been made to solve such a conventional problem, and since the mirror is cleaned or washed, the mirror can be easily detached from the traveling body, and the contamination of the mirror can be reduced without cost. It is an object of the present invention to provide an image reading apparatus capable of completely removing the image.

  The image reading apparatus of the present invention is incident on a light source for exposing a document, a reflection unit having a plurality of mirrors that reflect reflected light reflected from the document, and reflected light reflected by the reflection unit, A reading means for reading the original; a specific mirror of the reflecting means for scanning the original; and a traveling body that travels in a main scanning direction; and a slide rail that the traveling body travels. The rail has a configuration in which a notch is provided at the same horizontal position as the specific mirror in the traveling body including the height of the mirror and larger than the height.

  In the image reading apparatus of the present invention, the slide rail has a rail sliding surface on which the traveling body travels, and a mirror in the traveling body is installed at a position lower than the rail sliding surface, The slide rail has a configuration characterized in that the notch is located to a position higher than the upper end of the mirror in the traveling body and lower than the rail sliding surface.

  Furthermore, the image reading apparatus of the present invention has a configuration in which the traveling body includes the light source and a mirror that directly reflects the reflected light from the document.

  Furthermore, in the image reading apparatus of the present invention, the reflecting means includes a first mirror that directly reflects the reflected light from the document, and a second mirror that further reflects the reflected light reflected by the mirror. And the said traveling body has the structure characterized by mounting the said 2nd mirror.

  With the above configuration, the slide rail has a notch in the horizontal position with the mirror, so space is secured, the mirror can be slid, and the mirror can be easily removed when cleaning the mirror where it is difficult to wipe As well as the risk of mirror breakage. Furthermore, since the mirror can be easily removed only when it is dirty, it is not necessary to collect the cleaning member at all times, which leads to cost reduction.

  Furthermore, the image reading apparatus of the present invention is characterized in that the notch is provided avoiding the vicinity of a position intersecting the slide rail in a direction substantially perpendicular to the scanning direction from the home position position of the traveling body. It has a configuration.

  With this configuration, there is no slide rail cutout directly beside the position where the traveling body is normally stopped, so the mirror will not move and come off due to vibration or dropping during transportation. Since the space for sliding the mirror is secured at the place, it can be easily removed.

  Furthermore, the image reading apparatus of the present invention has a configuration characterized in that the notch is a hole larger than a cross-sectional area perpendicular to the sub-scanning direction of the mirror in the traveling body.

  With this configuration, since the periphery of the hole for sliding the mirror is connected by the slide rail portion, the rail strength can be ensured and the image is not deteriorated due to the vibration of the notch portion. Furthermore, since the rail strength can be ensured, sufficient strength can be maintained without increasing the machine weight and extra cost by increasing the plate thickness of the slide rail or using a reinforcing member.

  Furthermore, in the image reading apparatus of the present invention, the slide rail is located near a position where the slide rail intersects the slide rail in a direction substantially perpendicular to the scanning direction from the home position of the traveling body. It has a configuration characterized in that the notch is located at a position lower than the upper end and higher than the upper end of the mirror in the traveling body in other regions.

  With this configuration, there is at least a part of the slide rail right next to the position where the traveling body is normally stopped, and it is small in other areas. Therefore, the amount of bending of the reinforcing portion of the slide rail can be set to an optimum minimum value, the extra weight is not increased, and the mirror can be easily removed.

  Further, the image forming apparatus of the present invention includes the image reading device and an image forming unit that forms an image on an image forming medium based on image information read by the image reading device. have.

  With this configuration, a space for sliding the mirror is secured, the mirror can be easily detached from the traveling body, and the mirror can be completely removed without cost.

  The present invention includes a height of the mirror in the traveling body, and a notch larger than the height is provided in the slide rail, so that a space for sliding the mirror is secured, and the mirror can be easily removed when cleaning the mirror. As well as the risk of mirror breakage. Furthermore, since the mirror can be easily removed only when it is dirty, it is not necessary to provide a cleaning member at all times and it is possible to provide an image reading apparatus that has the effect of reducing costs.

  Hereinafter, an image reading apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

(First embodiment)
First, a schematic diagram of an image reading apparatus according to a first embodiment of the present invention is shown in FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the image reading apparatus includes a contact glass (original support portion) 1 made of transparent glass, a lamp 2 that irradiates an original 10 placed on the contact glass 1, and a reflected image of the original 10. The first mirror 3, the second mirror 4, the third mirror 5, the lens 8 that collects the light reflected by each of the mirrors, and the CCD 9 that photoelectrically converts the collected light, The lamp 2 and the first mirror 3 are held by a first carriage (first traveling body) 6, and the second mirror 4 and the third mirror 5 are held by a second carriage (second traveling body) 7, respectively. Then, while the lamp 2 and the first mirror 3 held by the first carriage 6 advance by L in the A direction, the second mirror 4 and the third mirror 5 held by the second carriage 7 advance by L / 2. Thus, the entire length of the original 10 is scanned while keeping the optical path length to the lens 8 constant.

  The lens 8 is held by a lens block stay (a sectional view in the present embodiment) 801. Although not shown, the lens 8 is fixed to the lens block stay 801 by a lens spring-like lens band that fixes the lens 8. Further, the CCD 9 is bonded by adhesive layers 802a and 803a at the tip portions of the protrusions 802 and 803 of the lens block stay 801. As a matter of course, the lens 8 and the CCD 9 are fixed after adjusting the positions of the lens 8 and the CCD 9 so as to satisfy various lens characteristics such as the distance of the lens incident surface from the contact glass 1 and the distance from the lens exit surface to the CCD light receiving surface. Is glued.

  FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a drive system for explaining a drive system of the image reading apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the first carriage 6 including the lamp 2 and the first mirror 3 is attached to the drive wire 11, and the second carriage 7 including the second mirror 4 and the third mirror 5 is connected to the pulley 12. The drive wire 11 is wound through the wire. Further, the drive wire 11 is wound around a wire pulley 15 connected to the drive shaft 14, and the drive of the motor 18 is transmitted by the timing pulley 16 and the timing belt 17. Further, a position where one end of the first carriage 6 returns a certain distance after crossing the home position sensor 13 is defined as a home position.

  Next, a sectional view of the first traveling body and the slide rail is shown in FIG. 3 and described.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the first mirror 3 is held by left and right mirror brackets (holding members) 303 and 304. The document irradiation lamp 2 and the left and right mirror brackets 303 and 304 are attached to the first traveling body base 302.

  Furthermore, slide shoes (sliding members) 310 and 311 that slide on the left and right first rails 306 and 307 are attached to the first traveling body, which becomes a sliding portion when the traveling body moves. The slide shoes 310 and 311 are plastic sliding members in consideration of wear resistance. Further, the first mirror 3 is disposed below the rail sliding surface.

  Further, the left and right first rails 306 and 307 are bent at the reinforcing portions 308 and 309 indicated by the alternate long and short dash lines for reinforcing the rail.

  In this state, if there is dirt on the end of the first mirror 3 (near the mirror brackets 303 and 304) or on the upper side in the short side of the mirror (near the first traveling body base 302), when the dirt is wiped off, The body base 302 and the left and right mirror brackets 303 and 304 get in the way and cannot be wiped off properly.

  Therefore, it is necessary to remove the first mirror 3 from the first traveling body and clean it. However, in the conventional machine, when removing the mirror from the traveling body, as shown in FIG. 4, the first mirror 3 hits a part (reinforcing part 308) of the first rail 306 and may be removed from the mirror brackets 303 and 304. Can not. In this case, the first traveling body must be taken out of the scanner solid, and the work becomes enormous. Even if the first mirror 3 can be removed from the mirror brackets 303 and 304 with the first traveling body as it is, the space with the first rails 306 and 307 is narrow, it is difficult to work, and the first rails 306 and 307 are hit. There is a problem that the first mirror 3 is missing or broken.

  Therefore, as shown in FIG. 5, for example, a notch is provided in the longitudinal center of the first rail 306 so that the height A from the sliding surface is low. Further, assuming that the distance from the apex in the height direction of the first mirror 3 to the sliding surface is B, the relationship of A <B is established.

  With such a configuration, when the first mirror 3 is removed, a space for sliding the first mirror 3 is ensured, and the mirror removal at the time of cleaning the mirror which is difficult to wipe can be performed more easily than the conventional machine. The risk of breakage of one mirror 3 is also eliminated. Furthermore, since it can be easily removed only when it is dirty, it does not have to be provided with a cleaning member at all times, leading to cost reduction.

  In the present embodiment, the slide rail provided with the notch is provided in the reinforcing portion 308 of the right first rail 306, but may be provided in the reinforcing portion 309 of the left first rail 307.

  Next, a sectional view of the second traveling body and the slide rail is shown in FIG. 6 and will be described.

  As shown in FIG. 6, the second mirror 4 is held by left and right mirror brackets (holding members) 603 and 604, and the third mirror 5 is held by left and right mirror brackets (holding members) 605 and 606. . The left and right mirror brackets 603 and 604 and the left and right mirror brackets 605 and 606 are attached to the second traveling body base 607.

  Further, shafts 608 and 610 are caulked and pulleys 609 and 611 are attached to the left and right ends of the second traveling body base 607. A driving wire is wound around the pulleys 609 and 611. Furthermore, slide shoes (sliding members) 612 and 613 that slide on the left and right second rails 614 and 615 are attached to the second traveling body.

  In addition, the left and right second rails 614 and 615 are bent at the portions indicated by alternate long and short dash lines to form reinforcing portions 616 and 617, and the third mirror 5 is positioned lower than the upper surfaces of the second rails 614 and 615. Are arranged.

  In this configuration, a notch is provided in the reinforcing portion 617 of the second rail 615, and the positional relationship between the second rail 615 and the vertex of the third mirror 5 is as shown in FIG. The same relationship between the first mirror 3 and the first rail 306 can be obtained, and similar effects can be obtained.

  In this case as well, a slide rail provided with a notch may be provided in the reinforcing portion 616 of the second rail 614 on the left side. In the following description, unless otherwise noted, only the first rail 306 on the right side and the second rail 615 on the right side will be described, but the same applies to the first rail 307 on the left side and the second rail 614 on the left side. .

  Furthermore, in the present embodiment, the above-described notch position is generated avoiding the vicinity of the home position of the traveling body, and can be provided at a position where the traveling body does not stop at the time of transportation, for example, by using the center portion of the rail. .

  In FIG. 1, when the traveling body scans an original toward the right side of the drawing, the home positions of the first and second traveling bodies are usually the positions indicated by the dotted lines. Therefore, the above-mentioned notch is provided to avoid this home position position.

  After the assembly at the factory is completed, an energization check, a characteristic check, and a defect check are performed. Therefore, at the end of normal machine operation, the traveling body is stopped at the home position. Further, after the machine is shipped and transported, the traveling body is stopped at this position.

  Therefore, with the above-described configuration, the mirror can be safely transported without the movement stroke of the mirror becoming longer due to vibration / dropping during transportation, and the mirror will not come off.

(Second Embodiment)
Next, a slide rail of the image reading apparatus according to the second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 7, a hole larger than the first mirror 3 (the mirror projection area because the mirror is inclined at 45 ° with respect to the rail sliding surface) is formed in the central portion of the reinforcing portion 308 of the first rail 306. Provide. Then, when the first mirror is removed, the first mirror is slid and removed.

  With such a configuration, compared to the notch structure as described above, the bottom side of the hole is connected by the rail portion, so that the rail strength can be ensured. In addition, the vibration of the notch is increased and the image is not deteriorated. Here, in order to maintain sufficient strength, the thickness of the rail can be increased or a reinforcing member can be provided at that portion, but the weight of the machine is increased, and extra cost is generated as the reinforcing member. Things happen.

  Further, the same effect as described above can be obtained by providing a hole larger than the third mirror 5 in the reinforcing portion 617 of the second rail 615 as well.

  Further, the positions of the holes provided in the first rail 306 and the second rail 615 are set so as to avoid the vicinity of the home positions of the first traveling body and the second traveling body. Thereby, the same operation effect as the above-mentioned embodiment can be obtained.

(Third embodiment)
Next, the slide rail of the image reading apparatus according to the third embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 8, the bent one-dot chain line portion inside the first rail 306 is the home position position of the first traveling body, and this portion is below the upper end of the first mirror 3 in the vertical direction.

  Further, the other bent portion has a height C from the sliding surface and is higher than the uppermost part of the mirror (D> C). In general, when the rail is made of sheet metal or aluminum, about 3 mm is sufficient as a bending or shape for reinforcement, so that C = 3 and D = 4.

  At this time, since the first traveling body is at the home position during transportation as described above, the bent portion is lowered (E> D) in order to keep the fluctuation stroke of the first mirror 3 due to vibration / dropping during transportation small. The other portions define the bending height of the first rail 306 up to a higher position (C <D) than the first mirror 3 for removing the first mirror.

  As a result, the first rail 306 can be reinforced, the first mirror 3 can be prevented from falling during transportation, and the amount of bending can be set to an optimum minimum value. Since the space for sliding the first mirror 3 is secured when the mirror 3 is removed, the first mirror 3 can be removed more easily than when the conventional machine is removed. The risk of breakage of one mirror 3 is also eliminated. Furthermore, since it can be easily removed only when it is dirty, it does not have to be always provided with a cleaning member, leading to cost reduction.

  In addition, the second rail 615 and the third mirror 5 that are rails for the second traveling body also have the same operational effects by the same configuration as described above.

  Further, by using the above-described image reading device as the image reading unit of the image forming apparatus, the same operational effects can be obtained.

  As described above, the image reading apparatus according to the present invention has an effect that the mirror can be easily removed at the time of mirror cleaning, and the light is reflected and irradiated by the mirror of a copying machine, a facsimile, a scanner, or the like. Therefore, it is useful as an image reading device or the like.

1 is a schematic diagram of an image reading apparatus showing an embodiment of the present invention. It is a perspective view of a drive system for explaining a drive system of an image reading device in an embodiment. It is sectional drawing which shows the position of the 1st traveling body and slide rail in one Embodiment. It is sectional drawing which shows the condition which slides the 1st mirror in one Embodiment. It is a perspective view which shows the notch of the 1st rail in one Embodiment. It is sectional drawing which shows the position of the 2nd traveling body and slide rail in one Embodiment. It is a perspective view at the time of providing a hole in the 1st rail in one embodiment. It is a perspective view at the time of changing the notch width of the 1st rail in one embodiment.

Explanation of symbols

1 Contact glass (document support)
2 lamp 3 first mirror 4 second mirror 5 third mirror 6 first carriage (first traveling body)
7 Second carriage (second traveling body)
8 Lens 9 CCD
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Document 11 Drive wire 12 Pulley 13 Home position sensor 14 Drive shaft 15 Wire pulley 16 Timing pulley 17 Timing belt 18 Motor 302 First traveling body base 303, 304 Mirror bracket (holding member)
306, 307 First rail 308, 309 Reinforcement part 310, 311 Slide shoe (sliding member)
603, 604 Mirror bracket (holding member)
605, 606 Mirror bracket (holding member)
607 Second traveling body base 608, 610 Shaft 609, 611 Pulley 612, 613 Slide shoe (sliding member)
614, 615 Second rail 616, 617 Reinforcement part

Claims (8)

A light source for exposing the document;
Reflecting means having a plurality of mirrors for reflecting the reflected light reflected from the original;
A reading unit that receives the reflected light reflected by the reflecting unit and reads the original;
A traveling body mounted with a specific mirror of the reflecting means for scanning the document and traveling in the main scanning direction;
A slide rail on which the traveling body travels;
With
An image reading apparatus characterized in that a notch that includes the height of the mirror and is larger than the height is provided at the same horizontal position as the specific mirror in the traveling body of the slide rail. The image reading apparatus according to claim 1,
The slide rail has a rail sliding surface on which the traveling body travels,
The mirror in the traveling body is installed at a position lower than the rail sliding surface,
Furthermore, the slide rail has the cutout to a position higher than the upper end of the mirror in the traveling body and lower than the rail sliding surface. The image reading apparatus according to claim 1 or 2,
The image reading apparatus, wherein the traveling body includes the light source and a mirror that directly reflects reflected light from the document. The image reading apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3,
The reflecting means includes a first mirror that directly reflects the reflected light from the document, and a second mirror that further reflects the reflected light reflected by the mirror,
The image reading apparatus, wherein the traveling body includes the second mirror. The image reading apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein:
2. The image reading apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the cutout is provided to avoid a vicinity of a position intersecting the slide rail in a direction substantially perpendicular to the scanning direction from a home position position of the traveling body. The image reading apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 5,
The image reading apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the notch is a hole larger than a cross-sectional area perpendicular to a sub-scanning direction of a mirror in the traveling body. The image reading apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein:
The slide rail is lower than the upper end of the mirror in the traveling body in the vicinity of the position intersecting the slide rail in a direction substantially perpendicular to the scanning direction from the home position position of the traveling body. An image reading apparatus having the notch up to a position higher than an upper end of a mirror in a traveling body. An image reading device according to any one of claims 1 to 7,
Image forming means for forming an image on an image forming medium based on image information read by the image reading device;
An image forming apparatus comprising:

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