JP2006335506A - Sheet delivering device and image forming device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a sheet delivering device and an image forming device capable of appropriately selecting a paper delivery tray fitting position in response to a difference of size and sort of paper of a used sheet, capable of stacking the sheets neatly, and capable of loading the sheets as much as possible. <P>SOLUTION: In the sheet delivering device for delivering sheets to the paper delivery tray from a delivery opening, a plurality of fitting parts are provided near the paper delivery opening of a device main body so as to be selectively fitted to one of at least two positions in the vertical direction. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a sheet discharge device for stacking sheets, and an image forming apparatus such as a copying machine, a printer, and a facsimile machine including the sheet discharge device.

  In general, an image forming apparatus includes a sheet discharge device that stacks sheets discharged from the inside of the apparatus, and the image-formed sheets are stacked on a discharge tray of the sheet discharge device.

  The types of sheets used include plain paper, cardboard, thin paper, OHP sheet, recycled paper, etc. Some of the sheets are easy to curl like thin paper, recycled paper, and are also like plain paper, cardboard Some are hard to curl. The sheet size includes A3 size, A4 size, A5 size, and the like.

  In the case of a sheet discharge device in which the discharge tray mounting position is fixed at one place, if the mounting position of the discharge tray is provided downward from the discharge outlet with respect to the discharge outlet, a sheet that tends to curl will be discharged. The paper may curl up on the tray and cause page misalignment, and the sheet may block the paper discharge port, making it impossible to discharge the paper. In order to solve these problems, if the attachment position of the paper discharge tray is brought close to the paper discharge outlet with respect to the paper discharge outlet, these problems are solved, but this time the number of sheets stacked is reduced. There is.

  Therefore, as an improvement, a sheet discharge device is known that can support the mounting position of the discharge tray with respect to the discharge port so as to be movable in the vertical direction. Some examples will be described with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 5 is a schematic configuration diagram of a conventional sheet discharge apparatus. In FIG. 5, the auxiliary member 72 is supported on the paper discharge tray 71 by at least two rotating members 73, and the rotating member 73 is rotated to receive an upper curled sheet (the position shown in FIG. 5). And a technology that enables movement to a lower position that receives a sheet P with less curl (Patent Document 1). However, since the auxiliary member 72 and the rotating member 73 are provided, the structure is complicated, and there is a problem that when a sheet is stacked on the auxiliary member 72, the sheet is easily displaced from the auxiliary member 72.

  FIG. 6 is a schematic configuration diagram of another conventional sheet discharge apparatus. In FIG. 6, the auxiliary member 82 is supported by a fixed discharge tray 81, and the auxiliary member 82 is driven in the vertical direction by the tray driving means 83, so that an upper position for receiving a sheet with a large curl and a sheet with a small amount of curl are obtained. A technique is disclosed that enables movement to a receiving lower position (Patent Document 2). However, since the tray driving means 83 for driving the auxiliary member 82 so as to be continuously movable between the upper position and the lower position is provided, the structure becomes complicated, and when the sheets are stacked on the auxiliary member 72, the sheet P becomes the auxiliary member. There is a problem that it is easy to slip off 72.

FIG. 7 is a schematic configuration diagram of another conventional sheet discharge apparatus. In FIG. 7, a moving mechanism for moving the paper discharge tray 91 that receives the image-formed sheet P in the vertical direction is provided, and a paper type detection member (not shown) is further provided. A technique is disclosed in which a paper discharge tray 91 is moved up and down by a wire 93 using a cam 92 due to the difference in paper type (Patent Document 3). However, even if the position of the paper discharge tray 91 is determined only by detecting the paper type of the sheet, the optimal vertical position of the paper discharge tray 91 differs depending on the curl or the like due to the size of the sheet P even with the same paper type. In addition, there is a problem that the structure becomes complicated when a paper type detection member is provided.
JP 2001-72303 A JP 2002-87682 A JP-A-8-188322

  The present invention solves the above-mentioned problems of the background art, and can easily and appropriately set the paper discharge tray at the position in the vertical direction selected according to the difference in the paper type, size, etc. of the sheet to be used. An object of the present invention is to provide a sheet discharge device capable of orderly stacking sheets and stacking as many sheets as possible, and an image forming apparatus to which the sheet discharge device is applied.

The above object can be achieved by the following means. That is,
(Claim 1) In a sheet discharge apparatus that discharges a sheet from a discharge outlet to a discharge tray, a plurality of attachments that are selectively attached to one of at least two positions in the vertical direction near the discharge outlet of the apparatus main body A sheet discharge device comprising a section.
(2) The sheet discharge device according to (1), wherein the attachment portion has different inclination angles with respect to the apparatus main body of the discharge tray.
(Claim 3) The sheet discharge apparatus according to claim 1 or 2, further comprising display means for displaying a method for selecting a discharge tray mounting position.
(Claim 4) In the image forming apparatus which has an image forming means for forming an image on a sheet and discharges the image-formed sheet to a discharge tray, the sheet according to any one of claims 1 to 3. An image forming apparatus comprising a paper discharge device.

  According to the first aspect of the present invention, the plurality of attachment portions that are selectively attached to one of at least two positions in the vertical direction are provided in the vicinity of the paper discharge port of the apparatus main body. The attachment position of the paper discharge tray can be selected at appropriate times according to the difference in size and the like, so that sheets can be stacked in an orderly manner and as many sheets as possible can be stacked.

  According to the second aspect of the invention, since the inclination angle of the paper discharge tray with respect to the apparatus main body is different, the optimum inclination angle can be set for each position.

  According to the third aspect of the present invention, since the display means for displaying the selection method of the discharge tray attachment position is provided, it is possible to appropriately attach the discharge tray according to the difference in paper type and size of the sheet to be used. The position can now be selected properly.

  According to the image forming apparatus of the fourth aspect, since the above-described sheet discharge device is provided, the sheet can be selected in a timely manner according to the difference in the paper type, size, etc. of the sheet to be used. It is possible to stack as many sheets as possible.

(Embodiment 1)
First, a schematic configuration of an image forming apparatus to which the sheet discharge apparatus of the present invention is applied will be described. FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a schematic configuration of an image forming apparatus.

  In FIG. 1, 21 is a photoconductor as an image forming body, 22 is a charging device as a charging means, 23 is an exposure optical system, 24 is a developing device, 25 is a cleaning device for cleaning the surface of the photoconductor 21, 26 Is a cleaning blade, 27 is a developing sleeve, 28 is a transfer pole, 29 is a separation pole for separating the sheet from the photoreceptor 21, and 30 is a separation claw for preventing the sheet from being wound around the photoreceptor 21. The photosensitive member 21, the charging device 22, the exposure optical system 23, the developing device 24, the transfer electrode 28, the separation electrode 29, the separation claw 30, the cleaning device 25, and the like constitute the image forming unit 31.

  The photosensitive member 21 is formed with a photosensitive layer, and is rotated in a clockwise direction indicated by an arrow in the drawing with the conductive layer grounded.

  32 is a conveying belt having a plurality of holes, 33 is a driving roller, 34 is a driven roller, and 35 is a suction box. A plurality of holes are formed on the surface contacting the conveying belt 32, and a duct (not shown) It is connected to a suction fan or the like and functions to suck the sheet P onto the traveling conveyor belt 32. A conveying means 36 is formed by the conveying belt 32, the driving roller 33, the driven roller 34, the suction box 35, and the like.

  37 is a cassette in which sheets are stored, 38 is a feed roller, 39 a and 39 b are a pair of transport rollers, 40 is a pair of rollers, 41 is a manual feed roller, 42 is a transfer material stacking unit for manual feeding, 43 is a fixing device, 44 Denotes a heat fixing roller, 45 denotes a pressure roller, and 46 denotes an image reading unit. A sheet discharge device 50 is disposed on the left side when the image forming apparatus is viewed from the front, and the discharge tray 61 is selectively mounted at two positions in the vertical direction (upper mounting position 52 and lower mounting position 53). It is done.

  Next, the image forming process will be described with reference to FIG. When a drive motor (not shown) starts rotating due to the start of image formation, the photosensitive member 21 rotates in the clockwise direction indicated by an arrow. At the same time, application of a potential to the photosensitive member 21 is started by the charging device 22.

  Image writing of an electrical signal corresponding to the image data from the image reading device 46 is started on the photosensitive member 21 after the potential is applied through the exposure optical system 23, and corresponds to the document image on the surface of the photosensitive member 21. An electrostatic latent image is formed, and the electrostatic latent image is reversely developed by the developer conveyed by the developing sleeve 27 of the developing device 24 to become a toner image.

  On the other hand, when the sheet P is supplied from the accommodated cassette 37, the sheet P is sent out by the feed roller 38, passed through the transport roller pair 39 a, transported to the roller pair 40, sent out by driving of the roller pair 40, and the transfer pole 28. And the photosensitive member 21. Even in the case of manual sheet feeding, the sheet P on the manual sheet feeding tray 42 is fed by the manual feed roller 41, is conveyed to the roller pair 40 through the conveying roller pair 39b, is fed by driving of the roller pair 40, and is transferred to the transfer pole. The sheet is fed to an area between the photosensitive member 28 and the photosensitive member 21.

  The toner image is transferred onto the sheet P by the transfer pole 28 to which a voltage having a polarity opposite to that of the toner is applied. Thereafter, the photoreceptor 21 continues to rotate and is cleaned by the cleaning device 25.

  On the other hand, the sheet P on which the toner image is placed is subjected to a neutralizing action by the AC voltage at the separation electrode 29, the adsorption force with the photosensitive member 21 is weakened, and the sheet P is separated from the photosensitive member 21 by curvature.

  The sheet P is sent to the conveyance unit 36, sucked by the conveyance belt 32 by the suction box 35, and conveyed to the fixing device 43. Thereafter, the toner image is melted and fixed on the sheet P by applying heat and pressure while the sheet P is nipped and conveyed at the nip portion T between the heat fixing roller 44 and the pressure roller 45. The fixed sheet P is sent from the paper discharge port 47 by the paper discharge roller 46, and then the sheet is discharged to the paper discharge tray 61 at the attachment position selected by the sheet discharge device 50.

  Next, the sheet discharge apparatus in FIG. 1 will be described in detail. FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the sheet discharge apparatus according to the first embodiment, and FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a cross-sectional configuration of the sheet discharge apparatus in a state where the discharge tray according to the first embodiment is attached to the upper mounting position. It is.

  As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the sheet discharge device 50 </ b> A is a device that is provided on the left side surface of the image forming apparatus and stacks the sheets P on which the images are formed. The sheet discharge device 50A includes a discharge tray 61, a mounting portion 54, a display unit 58, and the like.

  The paper discharge tray 61 is integrally configured with a stacking surface 61a on which the discharged sheets P are stacked, a side wall 61b on the side surface, a locking claw 61c for attaching the paper discharge tray 61 to the apparatus main body 51, and a contact portion 61d. Yes.

  The attachment portion 54 is an attachment portion that can selectively attach the paper discharge tray 61 to one of an upper attachment position 52 and a lower attachment position 53 that are two positions in the vertical direction of the apparatus main body 51.

  At the upper mounting position 52, a locking claw 61 c formed on the paper discharge tray 61 is locked in a hole 56 a formed on the apparatus main body 51, and a contact portion 61 d formed on the paper discharge tray 61 is attached to the apparatus main body 51. The paper discharge tray 61 is detachably attached to the upper attachment position 52 in contact with the formed receiving surface 55a. The upper mounting position 52 is a position where the paper discharge tray 61 is close to the paper discharge port 47 in the downward direction of the paper discharge port 47. At the upper mounting position, the sheet stacking amount is suppressed, and priority is given to curling of paper discharge and jam prevention. Examples of the sheet used at the upper mounting position include thin paper, recycled paper, and a large size (A3 size or larger) of thick paper and plain paper. Since thin paper and recycled paper are easily curled, they are used at the upper mounting position where the sheet is easily discharged.

  Next, at the lower mounting position 53, the locking claw 61c formed in the paper discharge tray 61 is locked in the hole 56b formed in the apparatus main body 51, and the contact portion 61d formed in the paper discharge tray 61 is the apparatus main body. The paper discharge tray 61 is detachably attached to the lower attachment position in contact with the receiving surface 55b formed in the above. The lower mounting position 53 is at a position where the paper discharge tray 61 is away from the paper discharge port 47 in the downward direction to the paper discharge port 47. At this lower mounting position, it is possible to further increase the sheet stacking amount while preventing curling and jamming. As the sheet used at the lower mounting position, thick paper, plain paper, a small OHP size (A4 size or less), or the like is used.

  The display means 58 is a means for displaying a method for selecting a discharge tray mounting position. The display unit 58 includes a label 58 a attached to the exterior of the image forming apparatus and a label 58 b attached to the side wall of the paper discharge tray 61. The label 58a displays “upper” and “lower” as identification symbols that can identify the upper attachment position 52 and the lower attachment position 53 of the discharge tray, and the label 58b shows the difference in the paper type, size, etc. of the sheet to be used. Which mounting position should be selected accordingly is described using the aforementioned identification symbol.

  Here, a method for selecting a mounting position of the paper discharge tray and a method for mounting the paper discharge tray will be described. First, by looking at the label 58b as the display means 58, it is selected to check whether the paper discharge tray is to be mounted at the upper mounting position 52 or the lower mounting position 53.

  When the paper discharge tray 61 is attached to the upper attachment position 52, the paper discharge tray 61 is moved in the direction of arrow A (see FIG. 2) and attached to the upper attachment position 52. When the paper discharge tray 61 is attached to the lower attachment position 53, the paper discharge tray 61 is moved in the direction of arrow B (see FIG. 2) and attached to the lower attachment position 53.

  As described above, the paper discharge tray can be easily and appropriately set at the mounting position selected according to the difference in the paper type, size, etc. of the sheet to be used, so that the sheets can be stacked in an orderly manner and as many as possible. Sheets can be stacked. Since the paper discharge tray is detachable, the outer size of the image forming apparatus can be reduced by removing the paper discharge tray when the image forming apparatus is transported, and the transportability is improved.

(Embodiment 2)
The second embodiment is a modification of the first embodiment, and will be described with a focus on differences from the first embodiment. FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating a cross-sectional configuration of the sheet discharge device in a state in which the discharge tray according to the second embodiment is mounted at the lower mounting position.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the sheet discharge device 50 </ b> B is a device that is provided on the left side surface of the image forming apparatus and stacks sheets P on which images are formed. The sheet discharge device 50B includes a discharge tray 61, a mounting portion 54, a display unit 58, and the like.

  Since the paper discharge tray 61 and the display means 58 are the same as those in the first embodiment, description thereof is omitted.

  The attachment portion 54 is an attachment portion that can selectively attach the discharge tray 61 to one of the upper attachment position 52 and the lower attachment position 53.

  At the upper mounting position 52, a locking claw 61c formed on the paper discharge tray 61 is locked in a hole 56a formed on the apparatus main body 51, and a contact portion 61d formed on the paper discharge tray 61 is a receiving surface formed on the apparatus main body 51. It comes into contact with 57a. The inclination angle θ1 formed by the horizontal direction of the apparatus main body 51 and the sheet stacking surface 61a of the sheet discharge tray 61 is experimentally obtained with priority given to the fact that sheets using the upper mounting position can be stacked cleanly without jamming.

  At the lower mounting position 53, the locking claw 61 c formed on the paper discharge tray 61 is locked to the hole 56 b formed on the apparatus main body 51, and the contact portion 61 d formed on the paper discharge tray 61 is a convex shape formed on the apparatus main body 51. The contact surface 57b is in contact with each other. The inclination angle θ2 formed by the horizontal direction of the apparatus main body 51 and the sheet stacking surface 61a of the sheet discharge tray 61 allows sheets using the lower mounting position to be stacked neatly without jamming, and increases the sheet stacking amount as much as possible. The optimum tilt angle that can be obtained is experimentally determined.

  As described above, the second embodiment can obtain the same effects as those of the first embodiment. Further, the inclination angle of the attachment of the discharge tray is an optimum angle, and the stacking is easy and orderly. As many sheets as possible can be stacked.

  Note that the present invention is not limited to the first and second embodiments. For example, it is not intended to change the discharge tray to have three stages of the upper mounting position, the center position, and the lower mounting position.

  Further, as a method for attaching the discharge tray, for example, a structure in which a locking claw is locked in the concave groove does not change. Further, as a display method, for example, even if the selection method is directly displayed at the upper mounting position and the lower mounting position of the apparatus main body 51, the intention is not changed. Furthermore, the same applies to an image forming apparatus such as a printer.

1 is a diagram illustrating a schematic configuration of an image forming apparatus according to a first embodiment. 1 is a perspective view of a sheet discharge device according to Embodiment 1. FIG. FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a cross-sectional configuration of the sheet discharge device in a state where the discharge tray according to the first embodiment is attached to the upper mounting position. FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating a cross-sectional configuration of a sheet discharge device in a state in which a discharge tray according to Embodiment 2 is attached to a lower attachment position. It is a figure which shows schematic structure of the conventional sheet discharge apparatus. It is a figure which shows schematic structure of the other conventional sheet discharge apparatus. It is a figure which shows schematic structure of the other conventional sheet discharge apparatus.

Explanation of symbols

47 Paper discharge port 50, 50A, 50B Sheet paper discharge device 51 Main body 52 Upper mounting position 53 Lower mounting position 54 Mounting portion 58 Display means 61 Paper discharge tray θ1, θ2 Inclination angle P Sheet

Claims (4)

In a sheet discharge device that discharges a sheet from a discharge port to a discharge tray,
A sheet discharge apparatus comprising a plurality of attachment portions that are selectively attached to one of at least two positions in the vertical direction in the vicinity of a discharge port of the apparatus main body. The sheet discharge device according to claim 1, wherein the attachment portion has different inclination angles with respect to the main body of the discharge tray. 3. A sheet discharge apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising display means for displaying a method for selecting a discharge tray mounting position. 4. An image forming apparatus having image forming means for forming an image on a sheet and discharging the image-formed sheet onto a paper discharge tray, comprising the sheet discharge device according to claim 1. An image forming apparatus.

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