JP2010132433A - Equipment - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide equipment including a paper feeder using a paper feed roller for pulling and carrying received paper into a paper passage, the paper feed roller which can easily be mounted and demounted while being stably mounted. <P>SOLUTION: The equipment includes the paper feeder 7 which has an opening 72 formed facing the paper passage, shaft supporting recessed portions 74 arranged at both sides of the opening 72 in a state of being opened to the side of the paper passage, a supporting shaft 75 fitted at both ends to the shaft supporting recessed portions 74 through the side of the paper passage and bridged over the opening 72, the paper feed roller 71 rotatably supported to the supporting shaft 75 and arranged in the opening 72, and a cover body 76 composed of a window 76a provided in the opening 72 so as to be closable for exhibiting part of the paper feed roller 71 to the paper passage in a closed state, and a supporting shaft pressing portion 76b for preventing the removal of the supporting shaft 75 from the recessed portion 74. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&amp;INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a device such as a scanner, a printer, or a facsimile.

  Many devices such as scanners, printers, facsimiles, and the like are configured to draw a plurality of sheets of paper that have been stacked one by one and feed the sheets one by one by a paper feed roller.

  Conventionally, this type of device is provided with a paper feed roller for drawing paper into a front stage portion of the paper path, and a facing pad is disposed on the paper feed roller. A plurality of sheets are introduced into a gap formed in a wedge shape in a side view formed between the scooping pad and the sheet feeding roller, and the sheets contacting the sheet feeding roller are drawn one by one.

  By the way, this type of paper feed roller may have a trouble in pulling in the paper due to a decrease in frictional force between the outer peripheral surface and the paper due to secular change or the like. For this reason, in this type of equipment, it is common that the paper feed roller can be detachably attached to the equipment body.

  Conventionally, as a configuration for enabling the paper feed roller to be removed from the apparatus main body, a bearing that receives the support shaft of the paper feed roller is divided into a normal bearing position and a retracted position from which the support shaft can be removed. There are known ones that can be operated in between, and ones in which the support shaft of the paper feed roller can be inserted into and removed from the bearing using elastic deformation of the members (for example, Patent Documents 1 and 2). reference).

However, the former has a problem that a special mechanism for moving the bearing forward and backward and locking it at a predetermined position is indispensable, and the configuration becomes complicated and it takes time to insert and remove the paper feed roller. . On the other hand, in the latter case, there is a possibility that the support shaft may come off, and if the strength of the elastic engagement is set high in order to prevent this, there is a problem that a large force is required for the operation of inserting and removing the paper feed roller.
JP-A-6-144606 JP 2000-128368 A

  The present invention has a problem that the former, that is, the problem that the structure of the support portion of the paper feed roller is complicated and the operation is complicated, and the problem that the latter has, that is, the paper feeding is attempted to facilitate the insertion / removal operation. The purpose is to solve the problem of unstable roller support at the same time.

  In order to solve the above-described problems, an apparatus according to the present invention includes an apparatus main body formed with a paper path for allowing paper to pass between walls, and is received in the paper path provided in the apparatus main body. A paper feeding device for transporting the paper, wherein the paper feeding device faces the paper path and has an opening for storing a roller formed on one side of the wall. A shaft support recess disposed on both sides of the opening in a state opened to the paper path side, and a support spanned over the opening by fitting both ends from the paper path side into the both shaft support recesses. A shaft, a paper feed roller rotatably supported by the support shaft and disposed in the opening, and a part of the paper feed roller that is provided in the opening so as to be openable and closable in the closed state. Having a window for letting out and the support shaft from the recess Characterized in that the the those formed by and a lid body formed includes a support shaft holding portion to prevent.

  With such a configuration, since the support shaft can be mounted by fitting the support shaft into the shaft support recess, it is possible to facilitate the operation of inserting and removing the paper feed roller. In addition, when the lid is in the closed state, the supporting shaft pressing portion of the lid can prevent the supporting shaft from coming off, so that the structure of the supporting portion of the paper feed roller can be simplified and the feeding can be performed. The paper roller can be stably supported.

  In the case where a rotating roller is provided to be rotatable with respect to the support shaft, in order to easily stop the support shaft, the rotation of the support shaft is engaged with the inner surface of the recess at the end of the support shaft. It is desirable to provide an anti-rotation element for preventing this.

  In order to simplify the structure of the power transmission portion to the paper feed roller, a drive gear is arranged in the opening, and a driven gear that rotates integrally with the paper feed roller is provided at one end of the paper feed roller. It is preferable that the driven gear is set to mesh with the drive gear in a state where both ends of the support shaft are fitted in the recess and the paper feed roller is disposed in the opening.

  In order to simplify the configuration of the part that detects the presence or absence of paper, a sensor for detecting the presence or absence of paper in the paper path is arranged in the opening depending on whether or not the paper touches the tip of the operating lever. Then, it is preferable that the front end side of the operating lever protrudes into the paper path through the window of the lid. This is because it is not necessary to separately provide a space for arranging the sensor and a window for allowing the lever to protrude into the paper path.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a device that can easily attach and detach a paper feed roller with a simple configuration while allowing the paper feed roller to be stably attached.

  Hereinafter, an embodiment in which the device according to the present invention is a scanner will be described with reference to the drawings.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the scanner includes a device main body 1 having a paper feed port 2 and a paper discharge port 3, and a paper feed provided in the device main body 1 to guide the paper P to the paper feed port 2. A paper tray 5 and a paper discharge tray 4 that is provided on the bottom wall 11 side of the apparatus main body 1 and receives the paper P discharged from the paper discharge port 3 are provided.

  The apparatus body 1 includes a stationary housing 1A and an opening / closing housing 1B provided on the front side of the stationary housing 1A so as to be openable and closable. A sheet path T is formed between the stationary housing 1A and the opening / closing housing 1B. Is formed. When a paper jam occurs, the jammed paper P can be removed by opening the open / close housing 1B forward. That is, the opening / closing housing 1B is supported by the stationary housing 1A via the shafts 15 provided on both sides of the lower end so that the opening / closing operation can be performed in the front-rear direction. FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing the stationary housing 1A from the front side with the opening / closing housing 1B removed for convenience of explanation. FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the removed opening / closing housing 1B as observed from the back side.

  More specifically, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the device main body 1 has a paper feed port 2 at the rear of the upper surface and a paper discharge port 3 at the lower part of the front surface. A paper passage T is formed to communicate with the paper discharge port 3. The sheet path T is formed between the pair of wall bodies 13, 14 provided in the apparatus main body 1, in other words, the wall body 13 forming the front surface of the stationary housing 1A, and the opening / closing. It is formed between the wall body 14 which forms the back surface of the housing 1B. A receiving area T1 that can receive a plurality of sheets P that are bundled in a separable manner is provided on the side of the sheet path T of the sheet path T. Further, the paper feeder 6 that scoops the leading end portions of the plurality of paper sheets P received in the receiving area T1, the paper feeder 7 that draws the paper P that is fed by the paper feeder 6 one by one by the paper feed roller 71, A transport device 8 that transports the paper P drawn by the paper feed device 7 in the direction of the paper discharge port 3 by transport rollers 81 and 82, and an image pickup device 9 that captures both sides of the paper P transported by the transport device 8. Are arranged along the paper path T. The sheet P for which imaging has been completed is sent toward the paper discharge port 3 by the transport rollers 81 and 82, and is discharged from the paper discharge port 3 onto the paper discharge tray 4.

  The whirling device 6 includes a whirling pad 61a that is arranged in a whirling area T2 that is continuous with the receiving area T1 and that passes the leading paper P conveyed by contacting the paper feed roller 71 with priority over other paper P. And a pick-up plate 61c that is arranged on the upstream side of the separating pad 61a and guides the leading end portion of the sheet P in the receiving area T1 between the sheet feeding roller 71 and the separating pad 61a. The whirling device 6 is provided on the opening / closing housing 1B side of the device main body 1, and a paper feeding device 7 is provided on the stationary housing 1A side of the device main body 1 so as to face the whirling device 6. .

  The paper feeding device 7 is mainly composed of a paper feeding roller 71 that is rotationally driven by a driving device (not shown), and draws the most advanced paper P pressed by the separating pad 61a downward to the transport device 8. It comes to hand over.

  More specifically, as shown in FIGS. 3, 5, 6, and 7, the sheet feeding device 7 includes a roller storage opening formed in the wall body 13 so as to face the sheet path T. 72, left and right shaft supporting recesses 73, 74 disposed on both sides of the opening 72 in a state opened to the sheet path T side, and the paper path to the both shaft supporting recesses 73, 74. A support shaft 75 that is fitted at both ends from the T side and spans the opening 72, the paper feed roller 71 that is rotatably supported by the support shaft 75 and disposed in the opening 72, and the opening It is provided in the portion 72 so as to be openable and closable, and has a window 76a for allowing a part of the paper feed roller 71 to be exposed to the paper path T in the closed state and prevents the support shaft 75 from coming off from the recesses 73 and 74. And a lid 76 having a supporting shaft pressing portion 76b. It made. Here, FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing the vicinity of the sheet feeding device 7 with the lid 76 opened. FIG. 6 is a perspective view showing the vicinity of the sheet feeding device 7 with the sheet feeding roller 71 and the support shaft 75 removed. FIG. 7 is a front view of the sheet feeder 7 with the lid 76 opened.

  As shown in FIGS. 3, 6 and 7, the opening 72 has a rectangular opening end 72a, a back wall 72b which is provided from the upper side to the lower side of the opening end 72a and curves inward, A left side wall 72c provided from the left side of the opening end 72a to the left side edge of the back wall 72b and having a forward-facing stepped portion 72c1, and a right side wall 72d provided from the right side of the opening end 72a to the right side edge of the back wall 72b; The right side wall 72d is provided with a right intermediate wall 72e provided through a gap 72f. A drive gear 77 that is rotated by a drive device (not shown) faces the inside of the right intermediate wall 72e. Here, the back wall 72 b has a portion formed concentrically with the paper feed roller 71 in the opening 72. A left shaft support recess 73 is provided in the step on the left side wall of the opening 72, and a right shaft support recess 74 is provided in the right intermediate wall.

  As shown in FIG. 6, the left shaft support recess 73 is formed by recessing the stepped portion 72 c 1 in a semicircular cross section and opens toward the paper path T. In addition, a tunnel portion 73a having a semicircular cross section is formed on the outer side of the shaft supporting recess 73. The radius of curvature of the inner peripheral surface of the shaft support recess 73 and the radius of curvature of the inner peripheral surface of the tunnel portion 73a correspond to the radius of the left end portion of the support shaft 75.

  As shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, the right shaft support recess 74 is a recess in the middle portion of the front edge of the right intermediate wall 72 e and opens toward the paper path T. Further, as shown in FIGS. 8 and 9, the right shaft support recess 74 includes a planar portion 74a that forms a pair of upper and lower portions engaged with a rotation preventing portion 75a of a support shaft 75, which will be described later, and a rear portion of the planar portion 74a. It consists of the partial circular arc part 74b which makes end parts continue. The right end portion of the support shaft 75 is fitted into the right shaft support recess 74.

  The support shaft 75 rotatably supports the paper feed roller 71 and is mounted between the left shaft support recess 73 and the right shaft support recess 74. The left end portion of the support shaft 75 has a cylindrical shape, and can be fitted into the left shaft support recess 73 from the front. Then, after the support shaft 75 is fitted, the tip end portion of the left end portion can enter the tunnel portion 73a by sliding slightly to the left. On the other hand, the right end portion of the support shaft 75 is provided with a rotation preventing portion 75a which is a planar anti-rotation element. As shown in FIGS. 8 and 9, the anti-rotation portion 75a is formed with a flat portion parallel to the outer peripheral surface of the support shaft 75. As shown in FIG. When the shaft support recess 74 is inserted from the front, the rotation preventing portion 75a engages with the flat surface portion 74a of the right shaft support recess 74 as shown in FIG. Has come to be demonstrated.

  The paper feed roller 71 is a cylindrical member made of a material having a large friction coefficient on the outer peripheral surface, and is rotatably supported by an intermediate portion of the support shaft 75. A driven gear 71a is provided at the right end of the sheet feeding roller 71 as shown in FIGS. The driven gear 71a is engaged with the drive gear 77 in a state where both ends of the support shaft 75 are fitted in the left and right shaft supporting recesses and the paper feed roller 71 is disposed in the opening 72. Yes. A lid 76 is disposed in front of the paper feed roller 71.

  As shown in FIGS. 3, 5, 6, and 7, the lid 76 has a lower end attached to the lower side of the opening 72 so as to open and close in the front-rear direction. A lid body 76c having the window 76a for exposing the paper feed roller 71 to the paper feed path T, and a left wall 76d protruding rearward from the left edge of the lid body 76c. And a right side wall 76e protruding rearward from the right side edge of the lid body 76c. Elastic claws 76d1 and 76e1 are integrally formed on the left and right side walls 76d and 76e. When the lid 76 is closed, the elastic claws 76d1 and 76e1 are formed in the engagement holes 13a provided in the apparatus main body 1. It is designed to be detachable. The right side wall 76e is provided with the support shaft pressing portion 76b for preventing the support shaft 75 from coming off from the recesses 73 and 74. That is, when the lid 76 is closed, the right side wall 76e is inserted into the gap 72f of the opening 72, and as shown in FIG. 9, the support shaft pressing part 76b provided on the right side wall 76e is It comes into contact with the front end of the support shaft 75 received in the shaft support recess 74. Here, in FIG. 9, the lid 76 is indicated by an imaginary line. When the lid 76 is closed, the distal end side of the operating lever 78 protrudes into the paper path T through the window 76a. That is, a sensor (not shown) for determining the presence or absence of paper is disposed in the opening 72, and the operating lever 78 is for operating the sensor. Specifically, the sensor is switched depending on whether or not the paper P is touching the tip of the operating lever 78.

  The sheet P drawn inside by the sheet feeding device 7 configured as described above is conveyed in the direction of the sheet discharge port 3 along the sheet path T by the conveying device 8.

  The transport device 8 includes a plurality of transport rollers 81 and 82 that are rotationally driven by a driving device (not shown), and driven rollers 83 and 84 that press the paper P against the transport rollers 81 and 82. Reference numeral 85 denotes a sensor for detecting the presence or absence of the sheet P being conveyed, and 86 is an operation lever for operating this sensor. In this embodiment, two conveying rollers 81 and 82 are provided on the stationary housing 1A side, and two driven rollers 83 and 84 are provided on the opening / closing housing 1B side, so that the upstream rollers 81 and 83 and the downstream side are provided. The imaging device 9 is disposed between the rollers 82 and 84.

  The imaging device 9 includes a first scan unit 91 that scans one side of the paper P, and a second scan unit 92 that scans the other side of the paper P. Each of the scanning units 91 and 92 includes transparent plates 91a and 92a with the front surface facing the paper path T, and sensors 91b and 92b and light sources 91c and 92c arranged on the back side of the transparent plates 91a and 92a. The unit housings 91d and 92d are assembled. The first scan unit 91 and the second scan unit 92 are arranged at different positions in the paper transport direction. Each of the scan units 91 and 92 is faced with pressing rollers 91e and 92e for bringing the paper P into close contact with the surfaces of the transparent plates 91a and 92a.

  With such a configuration, the sheet feed roller 71 can be easily replaced. That is, by pulling the upper edge portion of the lid body 76 toward the front with a certain force or more, the elastic claws can be removed from the engagement holes and the lid body 76 can be opened. The constraint on the shaft 75 can be released. Therefore, the paper feed roller 71 and the support shaft 75 can be removed to the front by sliding the paper supply roller 71 and the support shaft 75 slightly to the right and extracting the left end of the support shaft 75 from the tunnel portion 73a. it can. Then, by reversely performing the above operation, the paper feed roller 71 can be attached to the regular position.

  In addition, in such a case, since the sheet feeding roller 71 and the support shaft 75 are prevented from being detached by the lid body 76, a special mechanism for preventing the support shaft 75 from coming off is unnecessary and simple. With this configuration, the support shaft 75 can be reliably held, and the paper feed roller 71 can be stably operated.

  In addition, since the support shaft 75 is supported by the left and right shaft support recesses 73 and 74 that are fixed, a complicated mechanism is not required as compared with the case of operating a bearing for supporting the support shaft. The complexity of the configuration and the complexity of the operation can be eliminated.

  In addition, after a rotating roller 71 is rotatably provided with respect to the support shaft 75, the support roller 75 is engaged with the right end portion of the support shaft 75 in association with the flat surface portion 74 a of the inner surface of the right shaft support recess 74. Since the rotation preventing portion 75a for preventing the rotation of the shaft 75 is provided, the rotation of the support shaft 75 can be prevented by a simple configuration without providing a special mechanism for preventing the rotation of the support shaft 75. it can.

  Further, a drive gear 77 is disposed in the opening 72, and a driven gear 71a that rotates integrally with the paper feed roller 71 is provided at one end of the paper feed roller 71, and both ends of the support shaft 75 are supported by the shaft. Since the driven gear 71a is engaged with the drive gear 77 in a state in which the paper feed roller 71 is disposed in the opening 72 by being fitted in the concave portions 73 and 74, a power transmission portion to the paper feed roller 71 The configuration can be simplified.

  In addition, the sensor for detecting the presence or absence of the paper P in the paper path T depending on whether or not the paper P touches the tip of the operating lever 78 is disposed in the opening 72, Since the leading end is protruded into the sheet path T through the window 76a of the lid 76, the sheet can be formed with a simple structure without providing a space for arranging the sensor and a window for protruding the lever into the sheet path. A portion for detecting the presence or absence of can be formed.

  Further, in the present embodiment, while the lid body 76 is bound, one end portion of the support shaft 75, specifically, the support shaft pressing portion 76b of the cover body 76 is applied to the right end portion, and the support shaft 75 is also provided. Since the other end portion, that is, the left end portion can be stored in the tunnel portion 73a provided on the outer side of the left shaft supporting recess 73, the support shaft and the paper feed roller 71 can be reliably prevented from coming off. .

  Then, the lower end portion of the lid body 76 is attached to the lower side of the opening 72 so as to be opened and closed in the front-rear direction, and the lid body 76 is closed so that the elastic claws 76d1 provided on the upper portions of the left and right side walls 76d, 76e, Since 76e1 is detachably engaged with the engagement hole 13a provided in the apparatus main body 1, no special operation other than the opening / closing operation is required to hold the lid 76 in the closed position. However, it is possible to reduce the labor of attaching and detaching the paper feed roller 71 with a simple configuration.

  In addition, an intermediate wall is provided on one side wall of the opening 72 via a gap, specifically, a right intermediate wall 72e is provided via a gap 72f between the right side wall 72d and the lid A support shaft pressing portion 76b is provided on the side wall of the body 76 on which the intermediate wall 72e is provided, that is, the right side wall 72e, and the right side wall 76e having the support shaft pressing portion 76b is formed in the gap 72f with the lid body 76 closed. Since the insertion is made, the right side wall 76e is guided by the gap 72f, and the support shaft pressing portion 76b can be surely applied to the support shaft 75 to prevent the support shaft 75 from coming off.

  The present invention is not limited to the embodiment described above.

  For example, in the embodiment described above, the support shaft pressing portion is provided only on one end side, but both ends of the support shaft may be restrained by the support shaft pressing portion.

  In the above-described embodiment, the anti-rotation portion is provided only at one end of the support shaft, but the anti-rotation portion may be provided at both ends. Furthermore, instead of forming a flat portion parallel to the outer peripheral surface of the support shaft, a flat surface portion may be formed only on a part of the support shaft, or an end portion of the support shaft may be formed in a polygonal shape in cross section. Good. In addition, a non-rotating hole having a polygonal shape, for example, is formed on the side end surface of the support shaft, and the support shaft is prevented from rotating by another means such as a rotation preventing projection provided on the device body side being engaged with the rotation preventing hole. You may make it show.

  Furthermore, in the above-described embodiment, the arrangement of the tunnel part and the intermediate wall may be reversed.

  In addition, the drive shaft and the drive shaft of the drive mechanism are not supplied through a drive force transmission mechanism such as a belt or a gear train, instead of a gear pair of a drive gear disposed in the opening and a driven gear that rotates integrally with the paper feed roller. A paper roller may be connected, and the driving force from the driving mechanism may be transmitted to the paper feeding roller via such a driving force transmission mechanism.

  In addition to the window for exposing a part of the paper feed roller from the paper path, a window for exposing a part of the operating lever connected to the sensor for detecting the presence of paper from the paper path is provided. You may make it provide in a cover body. In addition, one of the light source and light receiving portion of the optical sensor is provided in the opening, and the other is provided on the opposite side across the window of the lid, and the presence or absence of paper in the paper path is detected by this optical sensor. Various modifications can be made without departing from the spirit of the present invention.

  In addition, the present invention is not limited to the scanner and can be similarly applied to devices such as printers and facsimiles.

The center longitudinal cross-sectional view of the scanner which concerns on this embodiment. The perspective view of the scanner which concerns on the same embodiment. The perspective view which shows the stationary housing of the scanner which concerns on the same embodiment from the front side. The perspective view which observed the opening-and-closing housing of the scanner concerning the embodiment from the back side. The figure which shows the state which opened the cover body of the paper feeder which concerns on the same embodiment. The disassembled perspective view which shows the attachment or detachment aspect of the paper feed roller which concerns on the same embodiment. FIG. 3 is a front view of the sheet feeding device according to the embodiment. Schematic which shows the attachment or detachment aspect of the spindle which concerns on the same embodiment. The schematic side view which shows the attachment aspect of the spindle which concerns on the same embodiment.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Equipment main body 13, 14 ... Wall body 7 ... Paper feed apparatus 71 ... Paper feed roller 71a ... Driven gear 72 ... Opening part 73, 74 ... Left, right shaft support recessed part 75 ... Support shaft 75a ... Non-rotating part ( Anti-rotation element)
76 ... Lid 76a ... Window 76b ... Supporting shaft pressing part 77 ... Drive gear 78 ... Actuation lever P ... Paper T ... Paper path

Claims (4)

  A device comprising a device main body formed with a paper passage for allowing paper to pass between walls, and a paper feeding device provided in the device main body for transporting paper received in the paper passage. The paper feeding device is disposed on both sides of the roller housing opening formed on one side of the wall body so as to face the paper path and opened to the paper path side. Shaft support recesses, both shaft support recesses from both sides of the paper path from the paper path side, and support shafts spanning the openings, and rotatably supported by the support shafts and arranged in the openings. A paper feed roller that is openable and closable at the opening, and has a window for exposing a part of the paper feed roller to the paper path in the closed state, and the support shaft is disengaged from the recess. And a lid having a supporting shaft pressing portion for blocking. Equipment characterized in that it is made of Te.   The device according to claim 1, wherein an end portion of the support shaft is provided with an anti-rotation element for preventing rotation of the support shaft by engaging with the inner surface of the recess.   A drive gear is arranged in the opening, and a driven gear that rotates integrally with the paper feed roller is provided at one end of the paper feed roller, and both ends of the support shaft are fitted into the recesses to be fed. The apparatus according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the driven gear is set so as to mesh with the drive gear in a state where a paper roller is arranged in the opening.   A sensor for detecting the presence or absence of paper in the paper path is arranged in the opening depending on whether or not paper touches the tip of the operating lever, and the paper is passed through the window of the lid through the tip of the operating lever. 4. The device according to claim 1, 2 or 3, wherein the device projects into the passage.

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