JP2008260631A - Recorded medium feeder, recording device and liquid injection device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To prevent the degradation of recording paper feeding accuracy by surely preventing the displacement of a recording paper feeding direction component along with the rotation of a rotating shaft. <P>SOLUTION: The rotating shaft 40 of a discharge driving roller 41 for discharging recording paper is borne at both shaft ends by a bearing means. Between two bearing positions, its axial center position is restricted by an intermediate supporting member 45. The intermediate supporting member 45 has a thrust face 45a to be thrust on the upstream side of the rotating shaft 40, and the axial center of the rotating shaft 40 is positioned on the downstream side relative to the axial center position at both shaft ends by the thrust face 45a. Thus, even when the rotating shaft 40 itself has run-out in accuracy of component, it is limited to a narrow range where it is displaceable in a recording paper feeding direction or it is in a zero range, surely preventing the recording paper feeding direction component along with the rotation of the rotating shaft 40. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

The present invention relates to a recording medium feeding apparatus that feeds a recording medium downstream, a recording apparatus including the recording medium, and a liquid ejecting apparatus in a recording apparatus that performs recording on a recording medium.
Here, the liquid ejecting apparatus uses an ink jet recording head, and is not limited to a recording apparatus such as a printer, a copying machine, and a facsimile machine that discharges ink from the recording head to perform recording on a recording medium. And a device that ejects a liquid corresponding to the application from a liquid ejecting head corresponding to the ink jet recording head to an ejected medium corresponding to a recording medium, and adheres the liquid to the ejected medium. .

  In addition to the recording head, as a liquid ejecting head, a color material ejecting head used for manufacturing a color filter such as a liquid crystal display, and an electrode material (conductive paste) used for forming an electrode such as an organic EL display or a surface emitting display (FED) Examples thereof include an ejection head, a bioorganic matter ejection head used for biochip production, and a sample ejection head as a precision pipette.

  A recording apparatus typified by a facsimile or a printer is provided with a recording sheet feeding apparatus for feeding a recording sheet as a recording medium to the downstream side. Usually, this recording sheet feeding apparatus has a driving roller that is rotationally driven and an elastic member for the driving roller. And a driven roller that rotates in contact with the driven roller. When the shaft ends on both sides of the rotating shaft of the driving roller are supported by bearings, the intermediate portion bends downward due to the load received from the driven roller, or the reaction force (pulling force) that the driving roller receives from the recording paper May be bent upstream. For this reason, the structure which supports a rotating shaft between two bearing positions conventionally is employ | adopted (refer patent documents 1-3).

JP 2006-82439 A JP 2001-341911 A JP 2000-281255 A

  Here, when the rotating shaft has “runout” alone in terms of component accuracy, the drive roller is displaced to the upstream side and the downstream side at regular intervals due to the shake during rotation. There is a possibility that the conveyance accuracy is lowered. FIG. 6 shows this phenomenon. Reference numeral 41 denotes a discharge driving roller for discharging the recording paper, reference numeral 42 denotes a discharge driven roller which is driven to rotate by being brought into contact with the discharge drive roller 41, and reference numeral 40 is driven to rotate by a motor (not shown). The rotation shafts of the discharge drive roller are respectively shown, and a plurality of discharge drive rollers 41 are provided at appropriate intervals in the axial direction of the rotation shaft 40 (see, for example, FIG. 1 and the like). 6A is a view of the rotary shaft 40 viewed from the Y direction, and FIG. 6B is a cross-sectional view taken along the line AA of FIG. 6A (viewed from the X direction). The X direction indicates the recording sheet width direction, the Y direction indicates the recording sheet feed direction, and the Z direction indicates the direction orthogonal to the recording surface of the recording sheet.

  In FIG. 6A, the symbol H indicates the bearing position of the rotating shaft 40, and the symbol CL indicates a straight line passing through the shaft centers (indicated by the symbol Ca) at the two bearing positions of the rotating shaft 40. . As shown in the figure, the deflection of the rotating shaft 40 is small at a position close to the bearing position H, and is large between two bearing positions.

  As shown in FIG. 6B, the axial center position of the rotating shaft 40 (indicated by reference numeral 40A) at the bearing position H is Ca, and the axial center position of the rotating shaft 40 (indicated by reference numeral 40B) in the intermediate portion is Cb. Then, the axial center position Cb in the axial direction view of the rotating shaft 40 is displaced on a circle having a radius d centered on the axial center position Ca with rotation. In FIG. 6B, reference numeral 40 'denotes a rotating shaft 40B that is displaced. Since the Y-direction component at the time of the displacement is a component in the recording paper feed direction, therefore, if the rotary shaft 40 has a swing, the recording paper feed accuracy decreases.

  Here, for example, the transport device described in Patent Document 1 is configured to support a transport driving roller as a rotating shaft from below with an intermediate support in view of such problems, but the transport device is transported by the pressing force of the transport driven roller. The axial center position is maintained by pressing the driving roller against the intermediate support. Accordingly, a configuration in which the force with which the driven roller comes into contact with the driving roller needs to be set small, for example, the discharge driven roller 42 as shown in FIG. 6 is a toothed roller having teeth on the outer periphery, and therefore does not damage the recording paper. It is necessary to set the force in contact with the discharge driving roller 41 to be small. In such a configuration, the rotation shaft of the driving roller easily moves upward, and as a result, the displacement of the recording paper feed direction component as described above may occur. .

  Further, particularly in FIG. 4 of Patent Document 2 above, a support member (“intermediate support member 51” in Patent Document 2) that restrains the entire circumference of the rotation shaft (“shaft body 45” in Patent Document 2) is shown. However, even with such a configuration, the clearance between the rotating shaft and the support member may cause the displacement of the recording paper feed direction component as described above, and the entire circumference of the rotating shaft is constrained. In some cases, the rotational load may increase.

  In the configuration in which the rotation shaft is supported at the intermediate portion as in the above-described conventional technique, the recording paper feed direction component is hardly displaced while the rotation shaft is continuously rotating in a certain direction (for example, the forward rotation direction). However, since the roller rotation shaft repeats normal rotation and stop at the time of printing on the recording paper, there is a possibility that the displacement of the recording paper feed direction component occurs when it stops. In particular, in a configuration in which recording paper is sent to the downstream side by two roller pairs separated in the recording paper feeding direction, the recording paper feeding speed by the downstream roller pair is increased in order to prevent the recording paper from loosening between the two roller pairs. In this case, since the downstream roller receives a pulling force from the recording paper, when the recording paper feed is stopped, the downstream roller has a slight reverse tendency, and as a result, the recording paper feed direction as described above. Component displacement will occur.

  As described above, the conventional recording apparatus is not necessarily configured from the viewpoint of reliably preventing the displacement of the recording paper feed direction component accompanying the rotation of the drive roller rotation shaft. Therefore, the present invention has been made in view of such a situation, and an object of the present invention is to reliably prevent displacement of the recording paper feed direction component accompanying rotation of the drive roller rotating shaft and to prevent deterioration of the recording paper feed accuracy. is there.

  In order to solve the above-described problem, a recording medium feeding device according to a first aspect of the present invention is a roller circumference that provides a feeding force to a recording medium in contact with the recording medium around the axis of the rotation shaft. A driving roller configured to have a surface and sending the recording medium downstream by rotating; a driven roller that is driven to rotate in contact with the driving roller; and a bearing means for bearing the rotating shaft at at least two positions. And restricting means for restricting the axial center position of the rotating shaft between two bearing positions by the bearing means, the restricting means from the upstream side or the downstream side of the rotating shaft to the rotating shaft. When the pressing surface is pressed, and the pressing surface presses against the straight line passing through the shaft center at the two bearing positions, the pressing surface presses from the upstream side with the pressing surface. No downstream It is determined, or, wherein the pressing surface is positioned upstream in the case of press against the downstream side.

  According to this aspect, the restricting means for restricting the axial center position of the rotating shaft between the two bearing positions includes the pressing surface that presses against the rotating shaft from the upstream side or the downstream side of the rotating shaft. When the pressing surface is pressed from the upstream side with respect to the straight line passing through the shaft centers at the two bearing positions by the pressing surface, the shaft center at the position of the restricting means of the rotating shaft is positioned downstream. Or, when the pressing surface is pressed from the downstream side, it is positioned on the upstream side. On the other hand, the displaceable range is surely narrowed or disappears reliably, so that the displacement of the recording medium feed direction component accompanying the rotation of the rotating shaft is reliably reduced, or the occurrence is surely prevented. Can do. In addition, since the pressing surface is pressed from one side of the rotating shaft, an increase in the rotational load of the rotating shaft can be suppressed.

  The recording medium feeding device according to a second aspect of the present invention is the recording medium feeding device according to the first aspect, wherein the pressing surface presses against the rotation shaft from the upstream side of the rotation shaft, and the rotation The shaft center of the shaft at the position of the restricting means is positioned downstream with respect to a straight line passing through the shaft centers at the two bearing positions.

  According to this aspect, the pressing surface presses against the rotating shaft from the upstream side of the rotating shaft, and the shaft center of the rotating shaft at the position of the restricting means passes through the shaft centers at the two bearing positions. Since it is positioned downstream with respect to the straight line, even if the rotating shaft is pulled upstream by receiving a reaction force from the recording medium, the pressing surface prevents the rotating shaft from being bent. be able to.

  The recording medium feeding device according to the third aspect of the present invention is the recording medium feeding device according to the first or second aspect, in the position of the restriction means when there is no restriction by the restriction means. When the distance between the shaft center and the straight line passing through the shaft center at the two bearing positions is d, the restricting means sets the shaft center at the position of the restricting means of the rotating shaft at the two positions. It is characterized in that it is positioned at a position separated by a distance d or more in the feeding direction of the recording medium with respect to a straight line passing through the axis at the bearing position.

  According to this aspect, even if the rotating shaft alone has a swing in component accuracy, the range in which the recording medium can be displaced with respect to the feeding direction of the recording medium is completely eliminated during rotation. Generation of displacement of the recording medium feed direction component can be prevented more reliably.

  A recording medium feeding apparatus according to a fourth aspect of the present invention is the recording medium feeding apparatus according to any one of the first to third aspects, wherein the rotary shaft has an outer peripheral surface cut by a lathe process. The rotating shaft is supported at at least two positions at the time of lathe processing, and the bending due to the contact of the cutting tool is regulated between the two bearing positions, and the regulating means However, in the axial direction of the rotating shaft, the axial center position of the rotating shaft is regulated at the same position as the position where the bending due to the contact of the cutting blade is regulated.

  According to this aspect, the rotating shaft is restricted from being bent by the contact of the cutting blade between the two bearing positions during lathe processing. The restriction position at this time and the restriction position by the restriction means Are the same, that is, the support state at the time of processing the rotating shaft is the same as the support state at the time of use. The occurrence of displacement in the feed direction component can be prevented more reliably.

  A recording medium feeding apparatus according to a fifth aspect of the present invention is the recording medium feeding apparatus according to any one of the first to fifth aspects, wherein the restriction means includes the pressing surface and the recording medium is provided. An intermediate support member provided so as to be displaceable in a feed direction and an urging means for urging the intermediate support member in a direction in which the pressing surface presses against the rotation shaft are provided.

  In the case of a configuration in which the pressing surface is fixedly provided, for example, in the case of a configuration in which a member having the pressing surface is fixed by screwing, the position of the pressing surface is likely to shift during fixing, In some cases, the axis of the rotary shaft cannot be positioned at an appropriate position. In addition, when the pressing surface is worn due to friction between the pressing surface and the rotating shaft, the axis of the rotating shaft may be displaced from an appropriate position.

  However, according to this aspect, the pressing surface that presses the rotating shaft is displaceable and elastically presses the rotating shaft by the biasing force of the biasing means. Can be prevented from being positioned at a position deviated from an appropriate position, and the assembling work is facilitated. Further, even if the pressing surface is worn to some extent due to friction between the pressing surface and the rotating shaft, the axis of the rotating shaft is positioned at an appropriate position, so that the rotating shaft can be stably provided over a long period of time. The displacement of the recording medium feed direction component accompanying the rotation of the recording medium can be reduced or prevented.

  A recording medium feeding apparatus according to a sixth aspect of the present invention is the recording medium feeding apparatus according to any one of the first to fifth aspects, wherein the drive roller records on the recording medium. The discharge drive roller is provided on the downstream side and is driven to rotate. According to this aspect, in the discharge drive roller, the effect of any of the first to fifth aspects can be obtained, and the rotation shaft can be moved without causing the driven roller to be strongly elastically contacted with the discharge drive roller. Since displacement of the recording medium feed direction component accompanying rotation can be prevented, it is suitable when a toothed roller having teeth on the outer periphery is used as the driven roller.

  According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, there is provided a recording apparatus comprising: a recording unit that performs recording on a recording medium; and a recording medium feeding apparatus according to any one of the first to sixth aspects. To do. According to this aspect, in the recording apparatus, the operational effects of any of the first to sixth aspects can be obtained.

  A liquid ejecting apparatus according to an eighth aspect of the present invention provides a liquid ejecting unit that ejects liquid onto an ejected medium, and a feed force to the ejected medium in contact with the ejected medium around the axis of the rotation shaft. A discharge driving roller provided on the downstream side of the liquid ejecting means, and a discharge driven follower rotating in contact with the discharge drive roller. A roller, bearing means for bearing the rotating shaft at at least two positions, and regulating means for regulating the axial center position of the rotating shaft between the two bearing positions by the bearing means. The means includes a pressing surface that presses against the rotating shaft from the upstream side or the downstream side of the rotating shaft, and the shaft at the position of the restricting means of the rotating shaft is a shaft at the two bearing positions by the pressing surface. Pass through the heart To line, the pressing surface is positioned downstream when pressed against the upstream side, or, wherein the pressing surface is positioned upstream in the case of press against the downstream side.

  Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 5. FIG. 1 is an external perspective view of an apparatus main body (with an outer case removed) of an ink jet printer (hereinafter referred to as “printer”) 1 according to an embodiment of a “recording apparatus” or “liquid ejecting apparatus” of the present invention. 2 is a sectional view of the same side, FIG. 3 is a side view of the discharge means 5 as a recording medium feeding device according to the present invention, and FIG. 4 shows a method of adjusting the Y-direction position of the intermediate support member 45 (pressing surface 45a). FIG. 5 is a plan view of the apparatus main body of the printer 1.

  In the following, first, an outline of the printer 1 will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 and 2. In the following, the left direction in FIG. 2 (front side of the printer) is referred to as “downstream side” of the recording paper feed path, and the right direction in FIG. 2 is referred to as “upstream side”.

  The printer 1 is provided with a feeding device 2 capable of setting recording paper (mainly cut sheet paper: hereinafter referred to as “recording paper P”) as an example of “recording medium” and “jetting medium” in an inclined posture at the rear part. Then, the recording paper P is fed from the feeding device 2 toward the conveying means 4 on the downstream side. The fed recording paper P is sent to the downstream side by the cooperating action of the conveying means 4 or the discharging means 5 or the conveying means 4 and the discharging means 5, and recording is executed by the recording head 36 (recording means 3). Then, the recording paper P on which recording has been performed by the recording head 36 is discharged to the front of the apparatus by the discharge means 5 on the downstream side.

  Further details will be described below. The feeding device 2 includes a hopper 11, a feeding roller 12, a retard roller 13, and a return lever 14. The hopper 11 is formed of a plate-like body, and is provided so as to be swingable around an upper swing fulcrum 11a. By swinging, the recording paper P supported in an inclined posture on the hopper 11 is fed to the feeding roller 12. The pressure contact posture for pressure contact and the separation posture for separating from the feeding roller 12 are switched.

  The retard roller 13 is provided so as to be able to advance and retreat with respect to the feeding roller 12 and is provided with a predetermined rotational resistance (torque). When only one sheet is fed without feeding, a plurality of sheets of recording paper P exist between the feeding roller 12 and the retard roller 13 while rotating following the feeding roller 12. In this case, the recording paper P is stopped without rotating, thereby preventing double feeding of the recording paper P. The return lever 14 is provided so as to be swingable when viewed from the side of the feeding path of the recording paper P. By swinging the return lever 14, the subsequent recording paper P about to be double fed is placed on the hopper 11. return.

Between the feeding device 2 and the conveying means 4, a detecting means (not shown) for detecting the passage of the recording paper P, a feeding posture of the recording paper P and a feeding roller 12 for the recording paper P are formed. A guide roller 26 is provided to prevent contact with the sheet and reduce the conveyance load.
The transport means 4 includes a transport drive roller 30 that is rotationally driven by a motor (not shown), and a transport driven roller 31 that is driven to rotate while being in pressure contact with the transport drive roller 30. The transport driving roller 30 is in contact with the recording paper P around a rotation axis (for example, a metal shaft) extending in the recording paper width direction (main scanning direction: X direction) and applies a feeding force to the recording paper P. (For example, an outer peripheral surface in which a frictional force with the recording paper P is ensured by using wear-resistant particles or the like), and a plurality of conveying driven rollers 31 are arranged in the axial direction of the conveying driving roller 30 (in this embodiment, 6).

  Two transport driven rollers 31 are pivotally supported at the downstream end of the paper guide top 24 so as to be freely rotatable. In the present embodiment, three paper guide tops 24 are arranged in the recording paper width direction, as shown in FIG. It is installed side by side. The upper paper guide 24 is pivotally supported by the main frame 7 and is urged by a coil spring (not shown) in a direction in which the conveyance driven roller 31 is pressed against the conveyance driving roller 30. The recording paper P that has reached the transport means 4 is sub-scanned and sent downstream by the transport drive roller 30 rotating while being nipped by the transport drive roller 30 and the transport driven roller 31.

  An ink jet recording head (hereinafter referred to as “recording head”) 36 and a pre-paper guide 37 disposed to face the recording head 36 are provided on the downstream side of the conveying means 4. The recording head 36 is provided at the bottom of the carriage 33. The carriage 33 is driven to reciprocate in the main scanning direction by a drive motor (not shown) while being guided by a carriage guide shaft 34 extending in the main scanning direction. A plurality of ribs are formed on the surface facing the recording head 36 on the front surface 37 that defines the distance between the recording paper P and the recording head 36, and the recording paper P is supported from below by these ribs.

  Subsequently, an auxiliary roller 43 and a discharge unit 5 are provided on the downstream side of the recording head 36. The auxiliary roller 43 is provided so as to be driven and rotated in contact with the recording surface of the recording paper P on the recording paper conveyance path from the area where the recording head 36 and the paper guide front 37 are opposed to the discharge means 5. The distance between the recording paper P and the recording head 36 is kept constant by preventing the P from floating before the paper guide 37.

The discharge means 5 is a discharge drive roller 41 having a roller peripheral surface that contacts the recording paper P and applies a feeding force to the recording paper P around the axis of the rotating shaft 40 that is rotated by transmission of the power of a motor (not shown). And a discharge driven roller 42 that is elastically contacted with the discharge drive roller 41 and rotates. In the present embodiment, the discharge drive roller 41 is a rubber roller, and a plurality of discharge drive rollers 41 are provided at an appropriate interval in the axial direction of the rotary shaft 40 extending in the recording paper width direction. A toothed roller having a plurality of teeth on the outer periphery is used for the discharge driven roller 42 (the auxiliary roller 43 is also the same), and a plurality of rollers are provided so as to contact each discharge drive roller 41.
The recording paper P on which recording has been performed by the recording head 36 is rotationally driven in a state where the recording paper P is nipped by the discharge driving roller 41 and the discharge driven roller 42, so that the recording paper P is moved forward (stacker not shown). It is discharged towards.

  By the way, the printer 1 is configured to perform so-called borderless printing in which printing is performed without margins on the upper and lower ends of the recording paper P. When performing borderless recording on the upper end of the recording paper P, the upper end of the recording paper P does not reach the discharge driving roller 41, so that the recording paper P receives a feeding force only from the transport driving roller 30. Next, when the upper end of the recording paper P reaches the discharge drive roller 41, the recording paper P receives a feeding force from both the conveyance drive roller 30 and the discharge drive roller 41.

  When the lower end of the recording paper P is removed from the transport driving roller 30, the recording paper P receives a feeding force only from the discharge driving roller 41. As described above, in borderless printing, the roller that controls the feeding accuracy of the recording paper P is switched according to the position in the feeding direction of the recording paper P. Therefore, the recording paper feeding accuracy by the discharge driving roller 41 is improved in the recording quality. It has come to influence directly.

The above is the general configuration of the printer 1, and the discharge means 5 as a recording medium feeding device will be described in detail below.
As shown in FIG. 1, the rotary shaft 40 of the discharge drive roller 41 is supported (bearing) by the side frame left 7 a and the intermediate frame 8 constituting the “bearing (bearing) means” at the shaft ends on both sides thereof. It is supported by an intermediate support member 45 that constitutes a “restricting means” therebetween. That is, the rotary shaft 40 is supported at two positions of the left side frame 7a and the intermediate frame 8, and the position of the shaft center portion (axial center position) by the intermediate support member 45 between the two bearing positions. ) Is regulated.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the intermediate support member 45 has a pressing surface 45 a and a supporting surface 45 b, and the Y direction of the rotating shaft 40 (feeding direction of the recording paper P) by the pressing surface 45 a that presses against the rotating shaft 40 from the upstream side. The rotational axis 40 is supported from below by the support surface 45b, and the axial position in the Z direction is regulated.

  The intermediate support member 45 is provided on the base 47 so as to be slidable in the Y direction, and is urged upstream (rightward in FIG. 3) by urging means (not shown). The intermediate support member 45 has a contact surface 45c orthogonal to the Y direction, and the contact surface 45c contacts the cam portion 46b of the cam member 46, whereby the intermediate support member 45 (pressing surface 45a). The position in the Y direction is determined.

  The cam member 46 is provided so as to be rotatable about a rotation shaft 46a, and the cam portion 46b is configured to rotate about the rotation shaft 46a. Therefore, when the cam member 46 is rotated, the contact surface 45c (intermediate support member 45) slides in the Y direction, whereby the pressing surface 45a, that is, the position of the rotary shaft 40 in the Y direction can be finely adjusted. Yes.

  FIG. 4 shows a method of adjusting the position in the Y direction of the intermediate support member 45 (pressing surface 45a). Reference numeral Ca denotes two bearing positions of the rotary shaft 40 (in the present embodiment, the side frame) as in FIG. The axial center position at the left 7 a and the position of the intermediate frame 8, and symbol Cb indicate the axial center position at the position pressed by the pressing surface 45 a of the intermediate support member 45.

  As shown in the figure, the pressing surface 45a presses against the rotary shaft 40 from the upstream side, and in FIG. 4, the axial center position Cb passes through the axial center positions Ca (more specifically, the axial center positions Ca and Ca at both ends). It is positioned downstream by a distance d with respect to a straight line (a straight line indicated by reference sign CL in FIG. 6A). As a result, even if the rotary shaft 40 alone has a swing in component accuracy, it is displaced upstream from the position indicated by the line S (position of the pressing surface 45a) at the position pressed by the pressing surface 45a. In other words, the range in which the rotary shaft 40 can be displaced in the Y direction during rotation is reliably narrowed, or the range is surely lost. Thereby, it is possible to prevent the recording paper feed accuracy from being lowered due to the shake of the rotating shaft 40.

  As described above, the axial center position Cb is preferably positioned at a position where the displacement of the Y-direction component due to the shake of the rotating shaft 40 is completely eliminated. Specifically, the axial center position Cb is indicated by a symbol d in FIG. More than the distance, it is preferable that it is separated from the axial center position Ca. That is, when there is no restriction by the pressing surface 45a, the distance between the axial center position Cb at the position of the pressing surface 45a and the straight line passing through the axial center position Ca at the two bearing positions (that is, the rotating shaft 40 itself). It is preferable that the axial center position Cb is positioned on the downstream side of the axial center position Ca by the pressing surface 45a.

  Thereby, the rotating shaft 40 is always in contact with the pressing surface 45a during the rotation, and can hardly be displaced in the Y direction during the rotation. However, even if the distance is equal to or less than the distance d, the amount of displacement in the Y direction accompanying the rotation of the rotating shaft 40 can be kept small.

  In this embodiment, the pressing surface 45a is pressed from the upstream side of the rotating shaft 40. However, even if the pressing surface 45a is pressed from the downstream side, the amount of displacement in the Y direction accompanying the rotation of the rotating shaft 40 can be kept small. It is. However, when the recording paper feed speed by the discharge drive roller 41 is set larger than the recording paper feed speed by the transport drive roller 30 in order to prevent the recording paper from slackening between the transport drive roller 30 and the discharge drive roller 41. The rotation shaft 40 of the discharge drive roller 41 tends to bend because the intermediate portion thereof is pulled upstream. Therefore, if the pressing surface 45a is pressed against the rotating shaft 40 from the upstream side as in the present embodiment, such bending of the rotating shaft 40 can be prevented.

  The axial center position Cb can be positioned by using a dial gauge 50, for example. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 4, the probe 51 of the dial gauge 50 is placed on the downstream side of the rotating shaft 40 (on the opposite side of the portion pressed by the pressing surface 45 a), and the rotating shaft 40 is rotated forward and backward. However, the intermediate support member 45 (pressing surface 45a) is gradually slid from the upstream side toward the downstream side until the change in the reading unit 52 is eliminated (in the direction of the arrow in FIG. 4). By doing so, the position of the axial center position Cb can be easily positioned at a position of a distance d from the axial center position Ca (a position where there is no displacement in the Y direction due to rotation).

  By the way, the rotary shaft 40 is formed by cutting the outer peripheral surface by lathe processing. By making the support state at the time of lathe processing and the support state at the time of mounting on the printer 1 the same, An increase in runout can be prevented. That is, at the time of lathe processing, the rotary shaft 40 is supported at at least two positions by the processing bearing means, and at the position (intermediate support position) between the two bearing positions by the processing restriction means. When the bending due to the contact of the cutting tool is restricted, the position of the pressing surface 45a in the axial direction of the rotary shaft 40 is made coincident with the position where the working restriction means restricts the bending when mounted on the printer 1. Like.

  As a result, the rotary shaft 40 is restricted in its axial position at the same position as the intermediate support position during lathe machining, that is, the support state during processing of the rotary shaft 40 and the support state during use are the same. As a result, the vibration associated with the rotation of the rotary shaft 40 does not increase, and the deterioration of the recording paper feed accuracy can be prevented more reliably. Note that the term “matching” means that, in addition to perfect matching, even if the position where the processing restricting means restricts the deflection of the rotating shaft 40 and the position of the pressing surface 45a deviate to some extent, they generally match. In this case, the above-described effects can be obtained, which means that such a range is included.

  Here, the intermediate support position of the rotary shaft 40 is preferably set to a position as shown in FIG. 5 with respect to the recording paper P that is assumed to have the highest frequency of borderless printing. That is, in FIG. 5, reference numeral Pc indicates, for example, an L size photographic recording sheet, reference numeral X1 indicates the X-direction position of the intermediate frame 8, reference numeral X2 indicates the X-direction position of the pressing surface 45a, and reference numeral X3 indicates the left side frame. Although the X direction position of 7a is shown, as shown in the drawing, the pressing surface 45a and the intermediate frame 8 are located at approximately equal distances w from the side edges of the recording paper Pc. With this configuration, with respect to the recording paper Pc, the bending state of the rotating shaft 40 in the X direction is symmetric with respect to the center position of the recording paper P, and the recording paper Pc is prevented from being skewed. It becomes possible.

  In the above-described embodiment, the example in which the recording medium feeding device according to the present invention is applied to the discharge unit 5 on the downstream side of the recording head 36 has been described. However, the present invention is not limited to this. It is also possible to apply to the upstream conveying means 4. Moreover, although it comprised so that the rotating shaft 40 might be pressed in one place between two bearing positions, it is also possible to press in two or more positions.

  Further, in this embodiment, the pressing surface 45a is pressed against the outer peripheral surface of the rotating shaft 40, but is configured to be pressed directly against the outer peripheral surface (roller peripheral surface) of the discharge driving roller 41, thereby the position of the axial center position Cb. Can also be regulated. In this case, since the roller peripheral surface of the discharge drive roller 41 has a high coefficient of friction, the pressing surface 45a can be replaced with a freely rotatable roller, and the roller can be configured to press against the outer peripheral surface of the discharge drive roller 41. .

  Further, the intermediate support member 45 provided with the pressing surface 45a is not fixedly provided, but is provided slidably and urged by the urging means, and the pressing surface 45a elastically pushes against the rotating shaft 40. It can also be configured to hit. Hereinafter, such an embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. Here, FIG. 7 is a perspective view showing another embodiment of the intermediate support member, and FIG. 8 is a sectional side view thereof.

  7 and 8, reference numeral 53 indicates an intermediate support member that is another embodiment of the intermediate support member 45. The intermediate support member 53 is slidably displaceable in the recording paper feed direction (Y direction: arrow a direction in FIG. 8) in the paper guide lower portion 54 provided at the lower part of the paper guide front 37 (FIG. 1). .

  More specifically, bosses 54a and 54b are formed in the paper guide lower 54 as shown in FIG. 8, and long holes 53c and 53d which are long in the paper feeding direction are formed in the intermediate support member 53. 54b are inserted into the long holes 53c and 53d, respectively. Reference numeral 56 denotes a screw. The screw 56 is screwed into a screw hole (not shown) formed in the boss 54a, so that the intermediate support member 53 is held so as not to be removed upward. It has become. The boss 54a regulates the Z direction of the intermediate support member 53, and the boss 54b regulates the X direction of the intermediate support member 53 and the slide amount in the Y direction.

  On the other hand, a spring holding portion 54c is formed on the front side of the intermediate support member 53 (left side in FIG. 8). A coil spring 55 as an urging means is fitted into the spring holding portion 54c, and the intermediate support member 53 is inserted. Is pressed in a direction in which the pressing surface 53a presses against the rotating shaft 40.

  As a result, it is not necessary to precisely adjust the fixing position of the intermediate support member 53, and the axis of the rotating shaft 40 (axis center position Cb in FIG. 4) can be easily positioned at an appropriate position. Further, even if the pressing surface 53a is worn to some extent due to friction between the pressing surface 53a and the rotating shaft 40, the axis of the rotating shaft 40 is positioned at an appropriate position. The displacement of the recording paper feed direction component accompanying the rotation of 40 can be reduced or prevented. In the description of this embodiment, the intermediate support member 53 is biased in the direction in which the pressing surface 53a presses against the rotating shaft 40 by the coil spring 55 in FIG. Even when the pressing surface 53a is worn to some extent due to friction between the rotating shaft 40 and the spring 40, the elastic force of the coil spring plays a role of positioning the axis of the rotating shaft 40 at an appropriate position. The displacement of the recording paper feed direction component accompanying the rotation of the rotation shaft can be reduced even if the biasing direction is reverse as long as the direction is along the paper transport direction. In other words, by combining the elastic force of the coil spring and fixing the intermediate support member with a long hole in the paper feed direction, the allowable range of the fixing position of the intermediate support member is widened compared to a structure not using the coil spring. Yes.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a printer main body of the present invention. FIG. 3 is a side sectional view of the main body of the printer according to the present invention. 1 is a side view of a recording medium feeding device according to the present invention. Explanatory drawing which shows the method of adjusting the Y direction position of an intermediate | middle support member (pressing surface). FIG. 2 is a plan view of the apparatus main body of the printer according to the present invention. (A) is a figure which shows the state of the swing of a rotating shaft, (B) is an AA arrow line view of (A). The perspective view which shows other embodiment of an intermediate | middle support member. The side sectional view showing other embodiments of an intermediate support member.

Explanation of symbols

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Inkjet printer, 2 ... Feeding device, 3 ... Recording means, 4 ... Conveying means, 5 ... Discharging means as recording medium feeding device, 7 ... Main frame, 7a ... Left side frame, 8 ... Intermediate frame, 11 ... Hopper, 12 ... Feeding roller, 13 ... Retard roller, 14 ... Return lever, 24 ... On paper guide, 26 ... Guide roller, 30 ... Conveyance drive roller, 31 ... Conveyance driven roller, 33 ... Carriage, 34 ... Carriage guide Axis 36 ... Inkjet recording head 37 ... Before paper guidance 41 ... Ejection drive roller 42 ... Ejection driven roller 43 ... Auxiliary roller 45 ... Intermediate support member 45a ... Press surface 45b ... Support surface 46 ... Cam 46a ... rotating shaft 46b ... cam part 47 ... base 50 ... dial gauge 51 ... measuring element 52 ... reading part 53 ... intermediate support member 4 ... under paper guide, 55 ... coil spring, 56 ... screw, P ... recording paper.

Claims (8)

A driving roller configured to have a roller peripheral surface that is in contact with the recording medium and applies a feeding force to the recording medium around the axis of the rotation shaft, and that rotates to feed the recording medium downstream;
A driven roller that rotates in contact with the driving roller;
Bearing means for bearing the rotating shaft at at least two positions;
Regulating means for regulating the axial center position of the rotary shaft between two bearing positions by the bearing means;
The regulating means includes a pressing surface that presses against the rotating shaft from the upstream side or the downstream side of the rotating shaft,
When the pressing surface is pressed from the upstream side with respect to a straight line passing through the shaft centers at the two bearing positions, the shaft center at the position of the restricting means of the rotating shaft is positioned downstream by the pressing surface. Alternatively, when the pressing surface is pressed from the downstream side, the recording medium feeding device is positioned on the upstream side. The recording medium feeding device according to claim 1, wherein the pressing surface presses against the rotating shaft from an upstream side of the rotating shaft,
The recording medium feeding device according to claim 1, wherein an axial center of the rotating shaft at the position of the restricting means is positioned on the downstream side with respect to a straight line passing through the axial centers at the two bearing positions. The recording medium feeding device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein when there is no restriction by the restriction means, a shaft center at the position of the restriction means, and a straight line passing through the shaft centers at the two bearing positions, Where d is the distance of
The restricting means positions the axis of the rotating shaft at the position of the restricting means at a position separated by a distance d or more in the feed direction of the recording medium with respect to a straight line passing through the axes at the two bearing positions. A recording medium feeding device characterized by that. The recording medium feeding device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the rotating shaft is formed by cutting an outer peripheral surface by a lathe process,
At the time of lathe processing, the rotating shaft is supported at at least two positions, and the bending due to the contact of the cutting tool is regulated between the two bearing positions,
The recording means is characterized in that, in the axial direction of the rotating shaft, the axial center position of the rotating shaft is regulated at the same position as the position where the bending due to contact of the cutting blade is regulated. Media feeder. The recording medium feeding device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the restriction means includes the pressing surface and is provided so as to be displaceable in the feeding direction of the recording medium;
An urging means for urging the intermediate support member in a direction in which the pressing surface is pressed against the rotating shaft.   6. The recording medium feeding device according to claim 1, wherein the driving roller is a discharge driving roller that is provided on a downstream side of a recording unit that performs recording on the recording medium and is rotationally driven. A recording medium feeding device characterized by that. Recording means for recording on a recording medium;
A recording apparatus comprising: the recording medium feeding apparatus according to claim 1. Liquid ejecting means for ejecting liquid onto the ejected medium;
The liquid ejecting means configured to include a roller peripheral surface that is in contact with the medium to be ejected and applies a feeding force to the medium to be ejected around the axis line of the rotation shaft, and sends the medium to be ejected downstream by rotating. A discharge drive roller provided on the downstream side of
A discharge driven roller that rotates in contact with the discharge drive roller;
Bearing means for bearing the rotating shaft at at least two positions;
Regulating means for regulating the axial center position of the rotary shaft between two bearing positions by the bearing means;
The regulating means includes a pressing surface that presses against the rotating shaft from the upstream side or the downstream side of the rotating shaft,
When the pressing surface is pressed from the upstream side with respect to the straight line passing through the shaft centers at the two bearing positions, the shaft center at the position of the restricting means of the rotating shaft is positioned downstream by the pressing surface. Alternatively, when the pressing surface is pressed from the downstream side, the liquid ejecting apparatus is positioned on the upstream side.

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