JP2007161377A - Sheet feeding device and recording device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To prevent cutting of roller rubber on the outer periphery of feed rollers and increase in load of a drive source of the feed rollers in a recording device having the feed rollers arranged in a plurality of portions in the sheet width direction, even if the paper feed roller which does not contact sheets contacts a platen when the sheets are carried only by part of the feed rollers. <P>SOLUTION: The feed rollers 5r, 7r for sending out sheets P stacked on the platen 2, and pressure contact/separation means (release cam 31 and projection part 21c) for making the sheets P stacked on the platen 2 brought into pressure contact with/separated from the feed rollers 5r, 7r are provided. The paper feed rollers 5r, 7r are provided at least two portions in the sheet width direction, and independent operation and synchronous operation of at least the feed roller 7r in one portion are switchable with respect to the other feed roller 5r. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention includes: a feeding unit that abuts against a sheet stacked on the stacking unit and sends the sheet; and a press-contacting / separating unit that presses or separates the sheet stacked on the stacking unit with respect to the feeding unit. The present invention relates to a sheet feeding apparatus and a recording apparatus.

  A recording apparatus having functions such as a printer, a copier, and a facsimile apparatus records an image (including characters and symbols) on a recording medium such as paper, cloth, a plastic sheet, and an OHP sheet based on image information. It is configured. There are two types of recording systems in this recording apparatus: a serial type and a line type. The serial type is a method of recording an image while alternately repeating main scanning for moving the recording head along the recording medium and paper feeding (sub scanning) of the recording medium. On the other hand, in the line type, by using a long recording head extending in the width direction of the recording medium, an image is recorded only by paper feeding (sub scanning) of the recording medium while recording one line at a time. It is a method.

The recording apparatus is provided with a sheet feeding device for separating sheets fed as recording media stacked and stored in a cassette or the like one by one and feeding them to the image forming unit. As this sheet feeding device, a type is used in which the sheets stacked on the pressure plate are urged by a spring to the feeding roller and the feeding roller is rotated to separate and feed one sheet of the uppermost layer. Yes. In this type of sheet feeding apparatus, feeding rollers may be disposed at two positions in the sheet width direction in order to make it difficult to skew the sheet during feeding (see, for example, Patent Document 1).
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 07-165338

  However, in a conventional automatic feeding apparatus having a configuration in which feeding rollers are arranged at two locations, a wide sheet such as an A4 size can be fed while being brought into contact with the two feeding rollers. However, in the case of a small-sized sheet such as a postcard or L size, only one feeding roller is in contact with the sheet, and there is a case where the sheet is fed by only this one feeding roller. If a small number of small sheets are stacked and fed, for example, if the sheet is fed by only one feeding roller, the feeding roller that is not in contact with the sheet easily comes into contact with the pressure plate. When the feeding roller comes into contact with the pressure plate, the rubber constituting the outer peripheral surface of the feeding roller is scraped, and there is a disadvantage that a large load is applied to the motor.

  The present invention has been made in view of such technical problems. The object of the present invention is to remove the rubber of the feed roller that does not come into contact with the sheet even when feeding the sheet with only a part of the feed rollers when the feed rollers are arranged at a plurality of positions in the width direction of the sheet. Another object of the present invention is to provide a sheet feeding apparatus and a recording apparatus that can prevent an increase in load of a driving source.

  In order to achieve the above-described object, the present invention provides a feeding unit that abuts against a sheet stacked on the stacking unit and feeds the sheet, and a sheet stacked on the stacking unit is pressed against or separated from the feeding unit. A pressure contact / separation means for causing the sheet feeding device to be provided at at least two places in the width direction of the sheet, and at least one of the feeding means is the other feeding means. Independent operation and synchronous operation can be switched with respect to the feeding means.

  According to the sheet feeding apparatus of the present invention, at least one feeding means among the plurality of feeding means is configured to be able to switch between independent operation and synchronous operation with respect to the other feeding means. Even when the sheet is fed by only a part of the feeding rollers, it is possible to prevent the rubber of the feeding roller not coming into contact with the sheet and the load of the driving source from being increased.

  Embodiments of the present invention will be specifically described below with reference to the drawings. Note that the same reference numerals denote the same or corresponding parts throughout the drawings. FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an embodiment of a recording apparatus provided with a sheet feeding apparatus to which the present invention is applied. FIG. 2 is a side sectional view of the recording apparatus of FIG. 1 in a standby state. FIG. 3 is a front view of the first embodiment of the sheet feeding apparatus according to the present invention. FIG. 5 is a side view of the sheet feeding apparatus according to the first embodiment of FIG. 4 in a standby state. FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the feeding roller unit in the first embodiment of the sheet feeding apparatus according to the present invention. In this embodiment, a case where the recording apparatus is an inkjet recording apparatus that performs recording by discharging ink from a recording head to a sheet will be described as an example.

  1 to 4, a recording apparatus 100 records an image on a sheet as a recording medium by a recording head based on image information. The recording apparatus includes a sheet feeding device 10, a paper feeding unit 50, a paper discharge unit 60, an image forming unit 70, a recovery system 80, and the like. Each of these components is incorporated in the apparatus main body 2. The sheet feeding device 10 is attached to the main body 2 at an angle of 30 to 60 degrees, a pressure plate 21 that is rotatably attached to the base member, and a slidable attachment to the pressure plate. The movable side guide 19 and the feeding roller unit 30 are provided. The pressure plate 21 constitutes a stacking unit that stacks sheets P that are recording media. The feeding roller unit 30 separates and feeds the sheets P one by one. The feeding rollers of the feeding roller unit 30 (each of a plurality of feeding rollers 5r and 7r described later) feed the sheet P. Configure the means.

  The movable side guide 19 can slide with respect to the pressure plate 21 in a direction intersecting the sheet feeding direction. Even when the sheets to be stacked are different in size, the movable side guide 19 abuts against the sheet reference surface 13 constituted by the inner wall surface of one side wall portion 12A of the base member 11. The pressure plate 21 is rotatably supported around a rotation shaft 21b (FIG. 3) provided on the upper side (or the tip portion) of the both side walls 12A and 12B of the base member 11, and the feeding roller unit 30. Is biased toward the feeding roller unit by a spring 22 provided at a position opposite to the feeding roller unit.

  1 to 5, the feeding roller unit 30 includes a left feeding roller 5r and a right feeding roller 7r that are arranged at two positions at predetermined intervals in the sheet width direction. A protruding portion 21 c that protrudes toward the feed roller unit is provided at a portion of the pressure plate 21 that faces the feed roller unit 30. The feed roller unit 30 is provided with a release cam 31 that rotates integrally with the feed roller 5r. The pressure plate 21 can be pushed down (separated) against the pressure plate spring 22 by pressing the projection 21c with the tip 31a of the release cam as the feed roller 5r rotates. The release cam 31 and the pressure plate spring 22 constitute pressure contact / separation means for pressing or separating the sheets P stacked on the pressure plate 21 with respect to the left feeding roller 5r and the right feeding roller 7r.

  3 and 4, a fixed separation claw 17 is provided at the end of the base member 11 on the downstream side in the conveyance direction, and the sheets fed by the feeding roller can be separated one by one. In addition, a separation pad 23 made of a material having a relatively large friction coefficient, such as an artificial skin, is provided at a portion of the pressure plate 21 that faces each feeding roller. The separation pad 23 is provided at a position facing the thick portions 32 of the feeding rollers 5r and 7r, and prevents the occurrence of double feeding or the like during sheet feeding.

  In FIGS. 1 and 2, the sheets P separated and fed one by one from the sheet feeding apparatus 10 are conveyed to the paper feeding unit 50, and are conveyed to the image forming unit 70 by this paper feeding unit. The paper feeding unit 50 includes a conveyance roller 36, a pinch roller 37 pressed against the conveyance roller by a pinch roller spring 40, and a PE (paper edge) sensor 42. The PE sensor 42 is fixed to the chassis 3. A PE sensor lever 41 urged in the direction of arrow E by a weak force by the PE sensor spring 43 is attached to the chassis 3. The PE sensor 42 detects the movement of the PE sensor lever 41 in the direction opposite to the arrow E direction.

  When the sheet P sent from the sheet feeding apparatus 10 is conveyed along the platen 46 and the leading edge of the sheet pushes the PE sensor lever 41 in the direction opposite to the arrow E, the PE sensor 42 detects this. Then, this detection signal is input to a control means (not shown). This control means detects the leading edge of the sheet P based on a detection signal from the PE sensor 42, rotates the conveyance roller 36 based on this, and conveys the sheet to the recording start position accurately. The recording head 49 constituting the image forming unit 70 is mounted on a carriage 48 that is guided and supported so as to reciprocate along the carriage shaft 51. The carriage 48 is reciprocally driven by a carriage motor 53 attached to the chassis 3 via a timing belt 55 stretched between the carriage motor and the idle pulley 56.

  When forming an image, the recording head 49 is moved in the paper width direction together with the carriage to perform recording for one line. After the recording for one line is completed, the conveying roller 36 is rotated to feed the paper at a predetermined pitch. Do. An image is formed on the entire sheet P by alternately repeating such recording for one line and paper feeding at a predetermined pitch. The sheet on which the image is formed is discharged out of the apparatus main body by the paper discharge unit 60. The paper discharge unit 60 holds the sheet between the paper discharge roller 59 and the spur 61 and rotates the paper discharge roller 59 with the driving force of the conveyance roller 36 transmitted via the transmission roller 62, thereby removing the sheet from the apparatus main body. It is transported and discharged.

  The recording apparatus of the present embodiment is an ink jet recording apparatus that performs recording by ejecting ink from fine ejection ports of the recording head 49. For this reason, a recovery system 80 is provided at a desired position outside the recording area (for example, the home position of the recording head) to prevent or clog the recording head. The recovery system 80 includes a cap that covers the discharge port, a wiper for cleaning the discharge surface, a suction pump for sucking ink from the discharge port in a capped state and refreshing the ink in the discharge port.

  3, 4, and 5, the feeding roller unit 30 includes a roller shaft portion 5 and a roller holder portion 7. The roller shaft portion 5 is integrally provided with a roller shaft 5c, a left feed roller 5r, and a shaft gear 5g. The roller holder portion 7 is integrally provided with a hollow shaft 7c, a right feeding roller 7r, and a holder gear 7g. The right side portion of the roller shaft 5c penetrates the inside of the hollow shaft 7c of the roller holder and protrudes from the right side of the roller holder. A shaft gear 5g is fixed to the protruding end of the roller shaft 5c. The roller shaft portion 5 and the roller holder portion 7 are fitted in a concentric relationship with each other, and the roller holder portion 7 is configured to be able to rotate independently of the roller shaft portion 5. The release cam 31 for fixing the pressure plate 21 in pressure contact with the pressure plate spring 22 is fixed to the right protruding end of the roller shaft 5c (the left adjacent portion of the shaft gear 5g).

  The roller shaft portion 5 is rotatably supported by bearing holes provided in both side wall portions 12A and 12B of the base member 11 at both ends of the roller shaft 5c. With the above configuration, the left feeding roller 5r provided in the roller shaft portion 5 and the right feeding roller 7r provided in the roller holder portion 7 are coaxially rotatable independently. Further, the left feeding roller 5r and the right feeding roller 7r have the same cross section and the same shape, and have substantially the same configuration. That is, each of the feeding rollers 5r and 7r is formed with a notch 5a (7a is not shown) on the outer peripheral surface to which the sheet P is pressed. A roller rubber 67 that is an elastic body is wound around the outer peripheral surface of each of the feeding rollers 5r and 7r. By mounting such roller rubber, an elastic body layer is formed on the outer peripheral surface of each feeding roller.

  Further, the shaft gear 5g of the roller shaft portion 5 and the holder gear 7g of the roller holder 7 are coaxial and can be independently rotated, and these gear shapes have similar essential specifications. Accordingly, both the gears 5g and 7g complete the feeding / separating operation in one rotation. A roller roller 75 having a smaller diameter than the roller rubber 67 and capable of freely rotating is provided near the side surface of each of the feeding rollers 5r and 7g. This roller roller is intended to prevent image disturbance or misalignment of the feeding rollers 5r and 7g due to the sheet P coming into contact with the roller rubber 67 of the sheet feeding roller other than during sheet feeding. Further, the position where the release cam 31 that presses the projection 21c of the pressure plate 21 against the pressure plate spring 22 is attached is also in the vicinity of the holder gear 7g. By rotating the release cam 31 together with the left feeding roller 5r and the right feeding roller 7r, the pressure plate 21 can be pressed and separated in conjunction with the rotation of the feeding roller.

  FIG. 6 is a perspective view showing a state in which the drive transmission mechanism of the sheet feeding apparatus in FIG. 4 transmits the drive only to the holder gear. FIG. 7 is a perspective view showing a state in which the drive transmission mechanism of the sheet feeding apparatus of FIG. 4 transmits drive to both the shaft gear and the holder gear. The feed rollers 5r and 7r of the feed roller unit 30 are rotationally controlled by a single drive source (feed motor 47 in FIG. 1). 4, 6, and 7, the rotational drive from the feeding motor is transmitted to the sun gear 28 that is pivotally supported at the swing center of the pendulum holder 29. Sanitary gears 25 and 26 that mesh with the sun gear 28 are pivotally supported on both side portions of the pendulum holder 29.

  In the present embodiment, one satellite gear 25 can mesh with both the shaft gear 5g of the roller shaft portion 5 and the holder gear 7g of the roller holder portion 7, and the drive from the sun gear 28 is driven by the shaft gear 5g and the holder gear 7g. Can communicate to both. The other satellite gear 26 is the same as the satellite gear 25 and can mesh with the idler gear 27. The idler gear meshes with the holder gear 7 g of the roller holder 7. Therefore, the satellite gear 26 can transmit the drive from the sun gear 28 only to the holder gear 7g via the idler gear 27. The left feeding roller 5r, the right feeding roller 7r, and the release cam 31 of the feeding roller unit 30 are driven by the feeding motor 47 through such a drive transmission mechanism.

  FIG. 8 is a first embodiment of the sheet feeding apparatus according to the present invention, and shows a state when the release cam starts moving along the protrusion of the pressure plate by the rotation of the feeding roller unit from the standby state of FIG. FIG. FIG. 9 is a side view showing a state where the feeding roller unit is rotated from the state of FIG. 8 and the release cam is detached from the protruding portion of the pressure plate. FIG. 10 is a side cross-sectional view showing a state where the sheet stacked on the pressure plate is pressed against the feeding roller in the recording apparatus of FIG. FIG. 11 is a side cross-sectional view showing a state in which the sheet is fed toward the paper feeding unit as the feeding roller rotates from the state of FIG. FIG. 12 is a side cross-sectional view showing a state where the release cam pushes down the protrusion of the pressure plate again as the feeding roller rotates from the state of FIG. FIG. 13 shows a state in which the feeding roller unit makes one rotation from the state of FIG. 2 and returns to the standby state, the pressure contact between the sheet on the pressure plate and the feeding roller is released, and the fed sheet is fed to the paper feeding section. FIG. 5 is a side cross-sectional view illustrating a state where the sheet is conveyed through the image forming unit.

  Next, with reference to FIGS. 1 to 13, the operation from the sheet feeding start to the sheet feeding end of the sheet feeding apparatus 10 having the above-described configuration will be described. First, the width of the sheet P on the pressure plate 21 is determined by a recording operation command from the host operated by the user. That is, it is determined whether the width of the sheet P extends over both of the two feeding rollers of the left feeding roller 5r and the right feeding roller 7r, or the width does not reach the left feeding roller 5r. When straddling both feeding rollers 5r and 7r, the driving force in the forward direction of the feeding motor 47 is transmitted to the sun gear 28, and the pendulum holder 29 swings counterclockwise as shown. As a result, the satellite gear 25 meshes with both the shaft gear 5g and the holder gear 7g, and the drive is transmitted to both of these gears, so that both the left feeding roller 5r and the right feeding roller 7r operate synchronously (synchronous rotation). Driven).

  When the release cam 31 rotates with the rotation of the roller holder 7, the tip 31a of the release cam 31 moves along the protrusion 21c of the pressure plate 21 as shown in FIG. 8, and eventually as shown in FIG. Detach from the protrusion 21c of the pressure plate 21. When the release cam 31 is thus disengaged from the protrusion 21c of the pressure plate 21, the pressure plate 21 is rotated clockwise (in the direction of arrow C) around the rotation shaft 21b by the urging force of the pressure plate spring 22. As a result, as shown in FIG. 10, the sheet P stacked on the pressure plate 21 is brought into pressure contact with the corner portions 5A and 7A of the left feeding roller 5r and the right feeding roller 7r. Thereafter, the left feeding roller 5r and the right feeding roller 7r rotate in the direction of the arrow B, and are generated between the left feeding roller 5r and the right feeding roller 7r and the sheet P by the urging force of the pressure plate spring 22. The sheet P is fed in the direction of arrow D by the frictional force. At this time, the leading edge of the sheet P is caught by the fixed separation claw 17 (FIG. 9), so that the sheets P are separated one by one.

  Next, as shown in FIG. 11, when the left feeding roller 5r and the right feeding roller 7r further rotate in the direction of arrow B, the sheet P is fed by the frictional force between the roller rubber 67 on the outer periphery of the feeding roller and the sheet P. It is conveyed toward the paper part 50 in the direction of arrow D. The sheet sent to the paper feeding unit is conveyed through the image recording unit 70 by the conveying roller 36 and the pinch roller 37. When the left feeding roller 5r and the right feeding roller 7r send out the sheet and rotate nearly one rotation, the leading end 31a of the release cam 31 presses the projection 21c of the pressure plate 21 again as shown in FIG. As a result, the pressure plate 21 is rotated counterclockwise in the figure (the direction opposite to the arrow C direction) while resisting the spring force of the pressure plate spring 22 and pushed down in a direction away from the feeding roller. That is, as shown in FIG. 13, by moving the pressure plate 21 in the separating direction, the pressure contact between the sheet P on the pressure plate and the left feeding roller 5r and the right feeding roller 7r is released.

  At this time, as shown in FIG. 13, the leading edge of the sheet P1 separated into one sheet is already sandwiched between the conveying roller 36 and the pinch roller 37 of the sheet feeding unit 50, and the image forming unit 70 is rotated by the rotation of the conveying roller. It has moved to the recording start position. In the state shown in FIG. 13, the sheet feeding apparatus 10 is in the same state as the standby state shown in FIG. This state is maintained until the feeding motor 47 is operated thereafter and the sheet feeding apparatus 10 starts the feeding operation again. In this state, the pressure plate 21 is pushed down against the urging force of the pressure plate spring 22, so that the sheet P can be easily replenished.

  On the other hand, when the width of the sheet P on the pressure plate 21 is determined by a recording operation command from the host by the user's operation and the width of the sheet P on the pressure plate 21 is narrow and does not straddle both feeding rollers 5r and 7r, To work. That is, when feeding can be performed without using the left feeding roller 5r, the feeding motor 47 is driven in reverse. When the driving force in the reverse direction of the feeding motor 47 is transmitted to the sun gear 28, the pendulum holder 29 swings clockwise as shown in the drawing. As a result, the satellite gear 26 meshes with the idler gear 27, the drive in the same direction (arrow B direction) is transmitted only to the holder gear 7g via the idler gear 27, and only the right feed roller 7r operates independently in the feed direction (rotation drive). )

  At this time, the pendulum holder 29 is provided with a gear stopper, and the reverse rotation of the feed motor 47 causes the satellite gear 26 and the idler gear 27 to engage with each other, and at the same time, the rotation of the shaft gear 5g is prevented. For this reason, even when there is an unexpected rotation, the roller shaft portion 5 and the left feeding roller 5r do not rotate. As described above, in this embodiment, the independent operation and the synchronous operation of the right feeding roller 7r with respect to the left feeding roller 5r are switched by switching the rotation direction of the feeding motor 47 which is a driving unit. .

  In the embodiment described above, the left feeding roller 5r and the right feeding roller 7r, which are feeding units, are provided at two positions in the width direction of the sheet P, and the other feeding unit 7r is provided with respect to one feeding unit 5r. Are configured to be able to switch between independent operation and synchronous operation. According to such a configuration, even when the sheet is fed by only one feeding roller 7r, the inconvenience that the roller rubber 6 mounted on the outer periphery of the feeding roller 5r that is not in contact with the sheet rubs against the pressure plate and is scraped away is eliminated. be able to. Further, since the feeding roller 5r is rotatable even when it does not come into contact with the sheet, even if it comes into contact with the pressure plate 21, the load on the feeding motor 47 as a driving source does not increase.

  In the present embodiment, one (at least one) feeding unit 5r is configured to be able to release driving when the other feeding unit 7r is rotating. According to the above-described embodiment, when a small sheet having a small width is fed in a small stack, even if the roller rubber 67 of the left feeding roller 5r that is not used contacts the pressure plate 21, the feeding roller 5r only freely follows rotation (or rolling) without slipping or rubbing. For this reason, it is possible to prevent the roller rubber 67 from being scraped. Furthermore, even if it contacts the pressure plate 21, the required torque does not increase, and the load on the feeding motor 47 does not become excessive. Further, since the two feed rollers 5r and 7r are rotationally controlled by a feed motor 47 which is one drive means, the sheet feeding which can realize the above-described effects with a simple and inexpensive configuration. A feeding device is obtained.

  In the configuration in which this embodiment is actually implemented, the position of each feeding roller in the paper width direction is selected to be 165 mm from the sheet reference surface 13 for the left feeding roller 5r, and the sheet reference surface 13 for the right feeding roller 7r. To about 45 mm. In this case, the size over which the width of the sheet P extends over both the feeding rollers 5r and 7r is wide A3 paper (297 mm width), A4 paper (210 mm width), or the like. On the other hand, the size of the paper having a small width and fed by only one feeding roller 7r is A5 paper (148 mm width), postcard (100 mm), or the like.

  FIG. 14 is a perspective view showing a second embodiment of the sheet feeding apparatus according to the present invention as viewed obliquely from the front. In FIG. 14, two bins 91 and 92 partitioned by a partition plate 90 are formed on the pressure plate 21. Each of these bins constitutes a simple sheet stacking unit. The bin 92 closer to the pressure plate 21 than the partition plate 90 is a stacking unit for stacking sheets P having the same size as the pressure plate 21 in the first embodiment. On the other hand, the bin 91 on the side of the feeding rollers 5r and 7r (front side) from the partition plate 90 is a stacking unit capable of stacking sheets having a size smaller than that of the bin 92. The partition plate 90 is attached to be rotatable about a rotation shaft (not shown). The sheet feeding apparatus of the present embodiment is different from that of the first embodiment in the above points, and has the same configuration in other points.

  In the configuration of FIG. 14, the sheets stacked in the bin 91 are preferentially fed, and the sheets stacked in the bin 92 are fed after all the sheets in the bin 91 are exhausted. The pressure contact force of the pressure plate 21 to the feeding roller necessary for feeding the sheet P1 in the bin 91 is transmitted to the sheet P1 via the leading end portion P2S of the sheet P2 stacked on the bin 92. When nothing is loaded on the bin 92, the pressure plate 21 directly presses the leading end portion P1S of the sheet P1 of the bin 91 to obtain a pressure plate pressure. The feeding of the sheets P2 stacked in the bin 92 is performed when there are no sheets in the bin 91. The length of the partition plate 90 is selected such that when the uppermost sheet of the sheets P2 stacked on the bin 92 is fed, the sheet does not contact the partition plate 90.

  For example, when a small number of postcards are stacked on the bin 91 and a large number of A4 size sheets are stacked on the bin 92, the postcard of the bin 91 should be fed first. On the other hand, when the uppermost sheet of A4 size sheets stacked on the bin 92 contacts the left feeding roller 5r, there is a possibility that the A4 size sheet is also fed. Therefore, in consideration of such a case, the feeding motor 47 is reversely rotated to swing the pendulum holder 29 clockwise in FIG. Accordingly, it is possible to prevent erroneous feeding of feeding the sheet of the bin 92 by transmitting the rotational drive only to the holder gear 7g via the satellite gear 26 and rotating only the right feeding roller 7r.

  There are the following two cases in which the feeding motor 47 is reversely fed to feed only the right feeding roller 7r. One is a case where the sheets stacked in the bin 91 are fed. The other is a case where no sheets are stacked on the bin 91 and the sheets stacked on the bin 92 are fed only by the right feeding roller 7r. That is, the command of the recording operation from the host by the user's operation is a command to record on a sheet having a small sheet width fed by only the right feeding roller 7r.

  Here, it is desirable to provide two sheet width sensors in order to prevent a sheet feeding failure due to an erroneous setting by the user. One sensor in that case is a sensor (optical sensor) that determines whether or not the sheet stacked on the bin 91 has a width to be fed using both the left feeding roller 5r and the right feeding roller 7r. Etc.). The other sensor is a sensor that determines whether or not a sheet is stacked on the bin 92. By providing such two sensors, it is possible to prevent poor feeding and to ensure good sheet feeding.

  Also according to the second embodiment described above, the left feeding roller 5r and the right feeding roller 7r are provided at two positions in the width direction of the sheet P, and the other feeding unit 7r is arranged with respect to one feeding unit 5r. The independent operation and the synchronous operation can be switched. Accordingly, also in the second embodiment, when a small sheet having a small width is fed in a small amount of stacked state, even if the roller rubber 67 of the left feeding roller 5r that is not used contacts the pressure plate 21, this feeding is performed. The feed roller 5r is merely driven and rotated (or rolled) freely without sliding or rubbing. For this reason, it is possible to prevent the roller rubber 67 from being scraped. Furthermore, even if it contacts the pressure plate 21, the required torque does not increase, and the load on the feeding motor 47 does not become excessive. Further, since the two feed rollers 5r and 7r are rotationally controlled by a feed motor 47 which is one drive means, the sheet feeding which can realize the above-described effects with a simple and inexpensive configuration. A feeding device is obtained.

  Even in the configuration in which the second embodiment is actually implemented, the position of each feed roller in the paper width direction is selected to be 165 mm from the sheet reference surface 13 for the left feed roller 5r, and the sheet reference for the right feed roller 7r. The position was selected in the vicinity of about 45 mm from the surface 13. In this case, the size over which the width of the sheet P extends over both the feeding rollers 5r and 7r is wide A3 paper (297 mm width), A4 paper (210 mm width), or the like. On the other hand, the size of the paper having a small width and fed by only one feeding roller 7r is A5 paper (148 mm width), postcard (100 mm), or the like.

  In the above embodiments, the case where two feeding rollers are provided has been described as an example. However, the present invention can be similarly applied to a case where three or more feeding rollers are used. The effect of this is achieved. For example, the number of feeding rollers provided in the roller shaft portion 5 and the number of feeding rollers provided in the roller holder portion 7 in the above-described embodiment can be freely selected as necessary. Therefore, according to the present invention, at least two feeding rollers are provided in the width direction of the sheet, and at least one (one) of these feeding rollers operates independently of the other feeding rollers. Also included within the scope is a configuration that enables switching between the synchronous operation and the synchronous operation.

  As described above, even when three or more feeding rollers are used, it is possible to similarly realize a configuration in which the rotation of each feeding roller is controlled by one driving means (feeding motor). Further, a configuration in which driving of at least one feeding roller can be released when the other feeding rollers are rotating can be realized in the same manner. Furthermore, a configuration in which at least one feeding roller can be switched between an independent operation and a synchronous operation with respect to the other feeding rollers by switching the rotation direction of the driving unit can be similarly realized.

  In the above embodiment, the serial type recording apparatus that forms an image while moving the recording head mounted on the carriage with respect to the sheet has been described as an example. However, the present invention can be similarly applied to a line type recording apparatus that forms an image only by feeding a sheet using a recording head extending in the sheet width direction. In the above embodiment, the case where the recording apparatus is an ink jet recording apparatus has been described. However, the present invention is applicable to a recording apparatus using other recording methods such as a wire dot type, a thermal transfer type, a thermal type, and a laser beam type. The same applies to the case. Further, the present invention can be similarly applied regardless of the structure of the recording head, the scanning method, the number of recording heads, the arrangement state of the ejection ports on the ejection surface, the number of ink types and the properties, and the like. There is an effect.

1 is a perspective view of an embodiment of a recording apparatus including a sheet feeding apparatus to which the present invention is applied. FIG. 2 is a side sectional view of the recording apparatus of FIG. 1 in a standby state. 1 is a front view of a first embodiment of a sheet feeding apparatus according to the present invention. 1 is a side view of a sheet feeding apparatus according to a first embodiment of the present invention in a standby state. FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a feeding roller unit in the first embodiment of the sheet feeding apparatus according to the present invention. FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing a state in which the drive transmission mechanism of the sheet feeding apparatus in FIG. 4 transmits drive only to the holder gear. FIG. 5 is a perspective view illustrating a state in which the drive transmission mechanism of the sheet feeding device in FIG. 4 transmits drive to both the shaft gear and the holder gear. FIG. 4 is a side view showing a state when the release cam starts moving along the protrusion of the pressure plate by the rotation of the feeding roller unit from the standby state of FIG. 4 in the first embodiment of the sheet feeding device according to the present invention. It is. FIG. 9 is a side view showing a state when the feeding roller unit is rotated from the state of FIG. 8 and the release cam is detached from the protrusion of the pressure plate. FIG. 3 is a side cross-sectional view illustrating a state when a sheet stacked on a pressure plate is pressed against a feeding roller in the recording apparatus of FIG. 2. FIG. 11 is a side cross-sectional view illustrating a state in which a sheet is fed toward a sheet feeding unit by rotating a feeding roller from the state illustrated in FIG. 10. FIG. 5 is a side cross-sectional view illustrating a state in which the release cam pushes down the protrusion of the pressure plate again when the feeding roller rotates from the state of FIG. From the state of FIG. 2, the feeding roller unit makes one rotation and returns to the standby state, the pressure contact between the sheet on the pressure plate and the feeding roller is released, and the fed sheet is fed by the paper feeding unit to the image forming unit. It is side surface sectional drawing which shows the state conveyed through. FIG. 6 is a perspective view showing a second embodiment of the sheet feeding apparatus according to the present invention as viewed obliquely from the front.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 2 Apparatus main body 3 Chassis 5 Roller shaft part 5a Notch part 5c Roller shaft 5g Shaft gear 5r Left feed roller 7 Roller holder part 7a Notch part 7c Hollow shaft 7g Holder gear 7r Right feed roller 10 Sheet feeding apparatus 11 Base member 13 Sheet Reference Surface 17 Fixed Separation Claw 19 Movable Side Guide 21 Pressure Plate 21b Rotating Shaft 21c Projection 22 Pressure Plate Spring 25, 26 Satellite Gear 27 Idler Gear 28 Sun Gear 29 Pendulum Holder 30 Feeding Roller Unit 31 Release Cam 31a Tip 36 Transport Roller 37 Pinch roller 46 Platen 48 Carriage 49 Recording head 50 Paper feed part 51 Carriage shaft 53 Carriage motor 55 Timing belt 67 Roller rubber 70 Image forming part 75 Roller roller 90 Partition plate 91 Bin on the feed roller side (sheet stack) Part)
92 Pressure plate side bin (sheet stacking section)
100 recording device P sheet (recording medium)
P1 sheet (bin 91)
P2 sheet (Bin 92)

Claims (5)

A sheet that includes a sheet feeding unit that abuts against the sheet stacked on the stacking unit and sends the sheet, and a pressure contact / separation unit that presses or separates the sheet stacked on the stacking unit with respect to the sheet feeding unit. In the feeding device,
The feeding means is provided in at least two places in the width direction of the sheet,
The sheet feeding apparatus according to claim 1, wherein at least one of the feeding units is capable of switching between an independent operation and a synchronous operation with respect to the other feeding units.   The sheet feeding apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the feeding unit is rotationally controlled by a single driving unit.   3. The sheet feeding apparatus according to claim 1, wherein at least one of the feeding units can release driving when the other feeding unit is rotating. 4.   4. The sheet feeding apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the independent operation and the synchronous operation are switched by switching a rotation direction of the driving unit. 5. 5. A recording apparatus that records an image on a sheet by a recording head based on image information, comprising the sheet feeding apparatus according to claim 1.

Images