JP2007221335A - Opening/closing apparatus, image reading apparatus and image forming apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To smoothly perform the opening/closing operation of an opening/closing body. <P>SOLUTION: An opening/closing apparatus is provided with: a body case 6 having the supporting shaft 5 and formed on a base body; a cam 4 having an opening/closing body and allowed to rotate integrally with the opening/closing body around the shaft; and a slider 7 movably arranged in the body case 6 and brought into press-contact with the cam 4. The slider 7 can be moved in the body case 6 by the engagement of a slider shaft 8 arranged on either one of the slider 7 and the body case 6 with an oblong hole 10 formed in the other. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an opening / closing apparatus that allows an opening / closing body to open and close smoothly, and an image reading apparatus and an image forming apparatus including the opening / closing apparatus.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, for example, image forming apparatuses such as scanners, facsimile machines, copiers, and multi-function machines that form images on sheets have an image reading device that reads an original on the top. The image reading apparatus is configured to read a document stacked on the upper document stacking surface by a reading unit. The reading unit irradiates the original with light and reads the original with the reflected light. However, of the light from the reading unit, the light that does not strike the document leaks to the outside as it is, which causes annoyance to the surroundings. For this reason, a cover that covers the document is provided on the upper part of the image reading apparatus so as to open and close the document stacking surface so that light does not leak outside. In some cases, an automatic document feeder (ADF) that also serves as a lid and feeds a document to the document stacking surface is provided at the top of the image reading device so as to open and close the document stacking surface. .

  The opening / closing bodies such as the lid and the ADF are provided on the base of the image reading apparatus by an opening / closing device having the same function as that of a hinge. However, the opening / closing body, particularly the ADF, may close suddenly due to its own weight when the reading unit is closed. When the opening / closing body closes abruptly, there are problems such as an impact sound being generated, the opening / closing body being damaged, and the user's fingers and hands being sandwiched between the base and the opening / closing body.

  For this reason, the conventional opening / closing device avoids the above problem by applying braking to the opening / closing body during the closing operation of the opening / closing body so that the opening / closing body does not abruptly close (see Patent Document 1).

  A conventional switchgear is shown in FIG. The opening / closing device 100 includes a case 104 provided on the base 110 with a shaft 106, a protrusion 102 having the opening / closing body 101 and rotating integrally with the opening / closing body 101 around the shaft 106, and moved into the case 104. The slider 103 is provided so as to be pressed against the protrusion 102. The compression coil spring 105 housed in the case 104 serves to press the inclined cam surface 107 formed on the slider 103 against the protrusion 102.

  When the opening / closing body 101 tilts in the closing direction (arrow X direction) due to its own weight, the opening / closing device 100 applies braking to the closing rotation of the opening / closing body 101 by the contact frictional force between the protrusion 102 and the cam surface 107 of the slider 103. Therefore, the opening / closing body is prevented from closing suddenly.

JP 2001-98839 A

  By the way, in the conventional opening / closing device 100, when the opening / closing body 101 is closed by rotating in the direction of the arrow X, the projection 102 pushes the cam surface 107 and pushes down the slider 103 against the compression coil spring 105. Since the cam surface 107 is inclined, the force by which the protrusion 102 pushes the cam surface 107 is distributed to the component force F1 in the moving direction of the slider 103 and the component force F2 in the direction to push the slider 103 against the case 104. As a result, the slider 103 can move while the outer peripheral surface 103a of the slider 103 is received by the inner peripheral surface 104a of the case 104 and the tilt is prevented.

  However, the slider 103 moves while the outer peripheral surface 103 a of the slider 103 is pressed against the inner peripheral surface 104 a of the case 104, so that sliding friction occurs or the component force F <b> 2 is applied to the upper portion, and the slider 103 is inclined and strikes the case 104. Or may not move smoothly.

  For this reason, the conventional opening / closing apparatus 100 cannot open and close the opening / closing body smoothly. In particular, when the opening / closing body 101 is a relatively heavy opening / closing body such as ADF, the sliding friction and the biasing force are increased, and the opening / closing body 101 cannot be opened / closed smoothly.

  In addition, since the image reading apparatus in which the opening / closing body that opens and closes the document stacking surface is supported by the base body by the conventional opening / closing device cannot open and close the opening / closing body smoothly, when the opening / closing body closes the document stacking surface, The position of the original placed on the stacking surface was sometimes shifted. For this reason, the conventional image reading apparatus sometimes reads an original at an angle.

  Further, an image forming apparatus provided with an image reading device that reads an original at an angle copies the original on the sheet at an angle, and the user again causes the image reading apparatus to perform an image reading operation to copy the original. I had to start over.

  An object of the present invention is to provide an opening / closing device capable of smoothly opening and closing an opening / closing body.

  SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to provide an image reading apparatus that includes an opening / closing device that can smoothly open and close an opening / closing body and that can read a document without shifting when the opening / closing body is closed.

  SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to provide an image forming apparatus that includes an image reading apparatus that can read an original without shifting it, and that does not require copying the original again.

  The opening / closing device of the present invention is configured to support the opening / closing body so as to be openable / closable with respect to the base, a case provided on the base with a support shaft, and the support shaft having the opening / closing body. A cam that can rotate integrally with the opening / closing body at the center, a slider that can move in the case and that can contact the cam, and an elastic body that presses the slider against the cam; and the slider, It is characterized in that the inside of the case can be moved by engagement between a pin provided on one of the slider and the case and an elongated hole provided on the other.

  An image reading apparatus according to the present invention includes: an image reading unit that reads a document stacked on a document stacking surface of a substrate; and an opening / closing member that is openably / closably connected to the substrate by the opening / closing device to open and close the document stacking surface. And the switchgear is the switchgear described above.

  An image forming apparatus of the present invention includes an image reading apparatus that reads a document, and an image forming unit that forms an image on a sheet based on image reading information of the image reading apparatus, and the image reading apparatus includes the image described above. It is a reading device.

  In the opening / closing apparatus of the present invention, the slider can be moved in the case by engagement between a pin provided on one of the slider and the case and a long hole provided on the other. For this reason, the slider is in contact with the case via the pin and the long hole, and the contact portion with respect to the case is smaller than in the prior art, and can move smoothly with respect to the case. Therefore, the opening / closing device of the present invention can smoothly open and close the opening / closing body.

  The image reading apparatus of the present invention includes an opening / closing device that can smoothly open and close the opening / closing body. Therefore, when the opening / closing body is closed, the document can be read without being displaced.

  The image forming apparatus according to the present invention includes an image reading apparatus that can read an original without shifting it, so that it is not necessary to copy the original again.

  Hereinafter, an opening / closing device, an image reading device, and an image forming apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. The shapes, dimensions, materials, relative arrangements, and the like of the component parts described in the present embodiment do not limit the present invention unless specifically described in the present invention.

(Image forming device)
FIG. 1 is a side view of an image reading apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention, for example, a copying machine. FIG. 2 is a side view of the copying machine when the automatic document feeder is opened. FIG. 10 is a view of the copier of FIG. 1 as viewed from the right side, and is a cross-sectional view along the sheet conveying direction of the copier.

  The image reading apparatus includes a copying machine, a scanner, a facsimile machine, and a multifunction machine of these, and the present invention is not limited to the copying machine.

  The copying machine 200 includes an image reading device 2 on the upper portion of the apparatus main body 200A. For example, an automatic document feeder (hereinafter referred to as “ADF”) 1 that is an opening / closing member is detachably attached to the upper portion of the image reading device 2 by a hinge 3 that is an opening / closing device. An opening / closing lid (not shown) may be provided instead of the ADF 1. Therefore, the opening / closing body is not limited to the ADF 1.

  The image reading device 2 reads the document D sent from the ADF 1. Further, the image reading device 2 can open the ADF 1 and read a document placed on the upper portion of the image reading device.

  Image information read by the image reading device 2 is formed as a toner image on, for example, the photosensitive drum 201 which is an image forming unit. The toner image is transferred to the sheet P sent out from the cassette 202 by the transfer unit 203, and the sheet P is conveyed to the fixing unit 204 and is fixed to the sheet P by being heated under pressure. That is, the image read by the image reading device 2 is copied on the sheet.

  The sheet on which the image is copied is discharged to the discharge tray 205. When images are formed on both sides of a sheet, the sheet is sent to the reversing path 206, turned upside down by switchback conveyance, and sent again to the photosensitive drum 201. Then, an image is also formed on the back surface of the sheet, and is again discharged to the discharge tray 205 through the fixing device 204.

  The hinge 3 connects the ADF 1 so as to be capable of opening and closing in an arrow A direction with respect to, for example, the frame 2 a which is a base of the image reading apparatus 2. The hinges 3 are provided on the back side of the copying machine 200 at two locations on the left and right in FIG. The hinge 3 is connected to the ADF 1 with a screw or the like, and is inserted into the insertion hole 2b of the frame 2a and attached to the image reading apparatus 2.

  3 to 6 are diagrams for explaining the operation of the cam 4 and the slider 7 when the ADF is opened from the fully closed state to the fully open state. 3A to 6A are cross-sectional views of the hinge. 3 (b) to 6 (b) are external views.

  The hinge 3 has a configuration in which a cam 4 and a case, for example, a main body case 6 are connected by a support shaft 5. The support shaft 5 is provided in the main body case 6. The body case 6 houses a slider 7 having a slider shaft 8 and a compression coil spring 9 which is an elastic body. The main body case 6 is formed with a long hole 10 for guiding the slider shaft 8 so that the slider 7 can linearly reciprocate in the main body case 6 in the vertical direction.

  When the ADF 1 is opened from the fully closed state to the fully opened state in the directions of arrows B, C, and D, the cam 4 rotates about the support shaft 5 in the same direction. The compression coil spring 9 pushes up the slider 7 so that the sliding surface 17 of the slider 7 is always in pressure contact with the sliding surface 14 of the cam 4. The sliding surface 17 of the slider 7 has cam surfaces 14 a, 14 b, in which the distance between the sliding surface 14 of the cam 4 and the support shaft 5 becomes shorter as the cam 4 rotates in the directions of arrows B, C, D. 14c is sequentially contacted, and finally, the cam surface 14d is slightly longer than the cam surface 14c. For this reason, the slider 7 is pushed up by the compression coil spring 9 following the change in the shape of the sliding surface 14 of the cam 4. The force with which the slider 7 is pushed up acts on the cam 4 as a moment in the direction of opening the ADF 1. Therefore, even if the hinge 3 is a heavy ADF 1, the user can easily open the ADF 1 with a small opening operation force. As shown in FIG. 5, when the sliding surface 17 of the slider 7 comes into contact with the cam surface 14c of the cam 4, when the opening operation of the ADF 1 is stopped, the hinge 3 opens the ADF 1 about 60 degrees. Can be held.

  When the ADF 1 is in a fully opened state, the cam stopper 15 formed on the cam 4 abuts on the main body stopper 18 formed on the main body case 6 so that the rotation is restricted so that the ADF 1 does not go too far and fall in the opposite direction.

  Conversely, when the opening / closing body 1 is closed from the fully open state to the fully closed state, the cam 4 and the slider 7 operate in the order shown in FIGS. 6, 5, 4, and 3 in the reverse manner. During this time, the cam 4 pushes down the slider 7 against the compression coil spring 9 and receives the reaction force of the compression coil spring 9. This reaction force acts on the cam 4 as a moment in the direction of opening the ADF 1, and becomes a force against the weight of the ADF 1 or the closing operation force of the user. Therefore, even when the ADF 1 is heavy, the hinge 3 applies braking to the closing operation of the ADF 1 to prevent the ADF 1 from dropping and rotating and suddenly closing.

  For example, a slider sliding surface 17, which is an arc portion where the slider 7 abuts the cam 4, is formed in an arc shape with the slider shaft 8 as the center. As described above, since the slider sliding surface 17 is formed in an arc shape, when the cam 4 slides and rotates on the slider sliding surface 17, the rotational force of the cam 4 is tangent to the slider sliding surface 17. Will join in the direction.

  On the other hand, a through hole 7 a through which the slider shaft 8 passes is formed inside the slider sliding surface 17. For this reason, the portion where the slider 7 receives the elastic force of the compression coil spring 9 and the slider sliding surface 17 where the slider 7 contacts the cam 4 are concentrated in the vicinity of the slider shaft 8 which is a pin, for example.

  For this reason, the force in the tangential direction is received by the slider shaft 8, and the slider 7 is hardly tilted by the rotation of the cam 4. Further, since the slider 7 receives the elasticity of the compression coil spring 9 in the vicinity of the slider shaft 8, the slider 7 hardly receives a rotational moment by the compression coil spring 9 and hardly tilts.

  For this reason, the hinge 3 of the present embodiment can linearly move the slider 7 up and down, and can keep the contact angle to the cam 4 constant regardless of the inclination of the slider 7. Torque can be generated. As a result, the hinge 3 can smoothly open and close the ADF 1.

  FIG. 7 is a diagram of the slider shaft 8. The slider shaft 8 has, for example, sliding surfaces 8a that are flat surfaces parallel to each other at both ends. The intermediate portion 8b of the slide shaft 8 remains a round shaft. The axial length of the sliding surface 8 a is set slightly longer than the thickness of the main body case 6. As shown in FIG. 3B, the width W of the parallel portion 10a of the long hole 10 is formed to be slightly wider than the interval L between the sliding surfaces 8a. At the upper end of the long hole 10, a through portion 10b through which the intermediate portion 8b of the slide shaft 8 passes is formed.

  When the slider shaft 8 is assembled into the main body case 6, the slider shaft 8 is inserted into the through portion 10a and the through hole 7a in a state where the through hole 7a of the slider 7 and the through portion 10a of the long hole 10 are aligned. Then, the slider shaft 8 is configured so that the sliding surface 8 a can enter the parallel portion 10 a of the long hole 10. Finally, the slider shaft 8 is incorporated in the main body case 6 by causing the sliding surface 8a to enter the parallel portion 10a. At this time, the slider shaft 8 is prevented from being detached from the main body case 6 by a step between the sliding surface 8a and the intermediate portion 8b.

  The sliding surface 8a is formed on the slider shaft 8 so that the sliding surface 8a enters the parallel portion 10a of the long hole 10 so that the slider 7 can be moved by the slider shaft 8, the long hole 10 and the guide. This is because the outer periphery 7 b of the slider 7 reduces the contact pressure with the inner periphery 6 a of the main body case 6. Thereby, the slider 7 can move smoothly with respect to the main body case 6.

  8 and 9 are views showing an attachment portion for attaching the hinge 3 to the ADF 1. In FIG. 8, the hinge 3 is positioned on the ADF 1 by fitting the positioning elongated hole 11 to an oval positioning protrusion (not shown) provided on the ADF 1 and screwing the screw into the ADF 1 through the through hole 13. Attached.

  In FIG. 9, the hinge 3 is positioned and fixed to the ADF by the positioning long hole 11 and the screw passing through the through hole 13. In addition, the hinge 3 is connected to the protrusion 1 a of the ADF 1 on the auxiliary hinge fixing portion 19. Combined. As a result, the cam 4 is simply fixed to the ADF 1, and the ratio of the hinge 3 integrated with the ADF 1 can be increased to further improve the overall strength.

  In the configuration described above, the slider shaft 8 is provided in the slider 7 and the long hole 10 is formed in the main body case 6. However, the long hole 10 may be formed in the slider 7 and the main body case 6 may be provided with a shaft. Good. Even in this case, the sliding resistance of the slider 7 with respect to the main body case 6 is reduced, the slider 7 can move smoothly, and the hinge can smoothly open and close the ADF 1.

  Therefore, the structure of the hinge 3 described above is as follows. The slider shaft 8 passes through a through hole 7 a formed in the slider 7 and a vertical long hole 10 formed in the main body case 6, and can move the main body case 6 up and down. The axis of the slider shaft 8 coincides with the center of the arc of the slider sliding surface 17 that contacts the cam 4. Both end portions of the slider shaft 8 are formed with sliding surfaces 8a parallel to each other.

  The hinge 3 of the present embodiment can move the slider 7 up and down linearly without using the inclined cam surface 107 of the slider 103 (see FIG. 11) unlike the conventional structure. The contact angle of the slider 7 can be kept substantially constant.

  Therefore, the hinge 3 can generate a stable hinge torque and can smoothly perform the opening / closing operation even when the opening / closing operation of the relatively heavy ADF is performed.

  In addition, the contact surface pressure between the slider 7 and the cam 4 can be reduced by providing a shaft with both ends being parallel to each other at the center of the arcuate sliding surface 17 of the slider 7. The load that the cam 4 applies to the main body case 6 via the support shaft 5 can be reduced.

  Therefore, the opening / closing apparatus of the present invention can prevent a sudden drop and rotation of the opening / closing body while maintaining a smooth opening / closing operation with a simple and inexpensive structure.

1 is a side view of an image reading apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention, for example, a copying machine. FIG. 3 is a side view of the copying machine when the automatic document feeder is opened. It is a state figure of a hinge when an opening-and-closing body is closed. (A) is sectional drawing. (B) is an external view. FIG. 4 is a state diagram of the hinge when the opening / closing body is slightly opened from the state of FIG. 3. (A) is sectional drawing. (B) is an external view. It is a state figure of a hinge when an opening-closing body is opened about 60 degree | times. (A) is sectional drawing. (B) is an external view. It is a state figure of a hinge when an opening-and-closing body is fully opened. (A) is sectional drawing. (B) is an external view. It is a figure of a slider axis | shaft. It is a figure which shows the attaching part which attaches a hinge to an opening-and-closing body. (A) is the figure which looked at the hinge of FIG. 1 from the left side. (B) is the figure which looked at (a) from the upper part. It is a figure which shows the attaching part which attaches a hinge to an opening-and-closing body. FIG. 2 is a right side view of the copying machine of FIG. It is sectional drawing of the conventional switchgear.

Explanation of symbols

1 Automatic document feeder (ADF) (opening / closing body)
1a Projection piece 2 Image reading device 2a Frame (base)
2b Insertion hole 3 Hinge (opening / closing device)
4 Cam 5 Support shaft 6 Body case (case)
6a Inner circumference of main body case 7 Slider 7a Through hole 7b Outer circumference of slider 8 Slider shaft (pin)
8a Sliding surface of slider shaft (flat surface)
8b Middle part 9 Compression coil spring (elastic body)
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Long hole 10a Parallel part 10b Through part 14 Cam sliding surface 14a, 14b, 14c, 14d Cam surface 17 Slider sliding surface (arc part)
200 Copying machine (image forming device)
200A apparatus main body 201 photosensitive drum (image forming unit)

Claims (7)

In an opening / closing device that supports the opening / closing body to be openable / closable with respect to the base body
A case provided on the base body with a support shaft;
A cam having the opening and closing body and rotatable integrally with the opening and closing body around the support shaft;
A slider capable of moving in the case and contacting the cam;
An elastic body that presses the slider against the cam; and
The slider can be moved in the case by engagement of a pin provided on one of the slider and the case and an elongated hole provided on the other.
A switchgear characterized by that. The slider has the pin, and the case has an elongated hole;
The opening / closing device according to claim 1. The portion where the slider receives elasticity of the elastic body and the portion where the slider contacts the cam are in the vicinity of the pin.
The switchgear according to claim 2. An arc portion is formed in a portion of the slider that contacts the cam.
The switchgear according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the switchgear is provided. The pin has flat surfaces parallel to each other in the support shaft direction at both ends;
The width of the long hole is set to a width for receiving a portion where the flat surface of the pin is formed,
A through portion through which the pin passes is formed in a part of the long hole,
The switchgear according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the switchgear is characterized in that Image reading means for reading a document loaded on the document loading surface of the substrate;
An opening / closing body that is openably / closably connected to the base by the opening / closing device and opens / closes the document stacking surface,
An image reading apparatus, wherein the opening / closing device is the opening / closing device according to claim 1. An image reading device for reading an original;
An image forming unit that forms an image on a sheet based on image reading information of the image reading device,
The image reading apparatus is the image reading apparatus according to claim 6.
An image forming apparatus.

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