JP2010168164A - Paper feeding cassette - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a paper feeding cassette capable of accurately and easily mounting a paper restriction plate to a paper size position previously determined in every various paper sizes. <P>SOLUTION: The paper feeding cassette is provided with a plurality of keys 30 arranged on the paper restriction plate; an biasing means 33 for applying biasing force interlocked with key operation of the key 30 in every plurality of keys 30; a projection 34 inserted to a hole for positioning the paper restriction plate with click feeling by the biasing force of the biasing means 33; and a lock lever 40 intruded into a recession 5 for locking the paper restriction plate and locking movement of the paper restriction plate. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

The present invention relates to a paper feed cassette that supplies paper to an image forming apparatus such as a printer, a facsimile machine, or a copying machine, and more particularly to a paper feed cassette that stores and stores a large number of cut sheets as paper.

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, in order to supply paper to an image forming apparatus such as a printer, a facsimile machine, or a copying machine, a paper feed cassette that stores a large number of sheets (cut sheets) is used.

  On the other hand, the cut sheets used have various sizes having different lengths and widths, and these various sizes of cut sheets are stacked and accommodated in one cassette corresponding to the sizes. A paper feed cassette (hereinafter simply referred to as a cassette) as disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 8-12096 or Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2006-56636 is provided.

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 8-12096 JP 2006-56636 A

  By the way, in the above-described cassette, a paper regulation plate is used for positioning (setting) the paper in the cassette corresponding to the paper size to be used. It is necessary to accurately attach to a predetermined position (set position) every time.

  However, in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 8-12096, the sheet regulating plate is moved to the set position while looking at the indicator. However, there is no preventive measure against a slight misalignment of the set position. There is a possibility that the actual mounting position in the cassette does not coincide with the position determined in advance for each paper size.

  Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2006-56636 prevents missetting of the lock position of the paper restricting plate, but is limited to A4 size and letter size, and the paper restricting plate is domestic size or overseas size. There is a possibility that it cannot be easily and accurately set at a position corresponding to various sizes of paper.

Note that various problems will occur as will be described below if the sheet regulating plate cannot be accurately mounted at a predetermined set position for each sheet size.

  For example, if the mounting position of the paper restricting plate does not match the paper size of the paper to be set in the cassette, the print image size set in advance by the control device of the image forming apparatus and the paper cassette mounting portion are provided. Therefore, the control unit of the image forming apparatus enlarges or reduces the image so that it can be printed within the paper size automatically detected by the paper size detecting means. There is a risk of printing.

  In addition, if the paper regulation plate is not accurately attached at a predetermined position for each paper size, the paper feed control becomes inaccurate by the paper size detection means provided in the paper conveyance path in the image forming apparatus, There is also a possibility that problems such as inappropriate paper jam detection and paper jam detection cannot occur.

  Furthermore, if the paper regulating plate is not accurately attached to the paper size position predetermined for each paper size, the paper is supplied without being accurately positioned in the cassette, so that the positional accuracy of the printed image with respect to the paper is improved. It becomes unstable and also causes the paper to be transported obliquely and cause a paper jam.

  In view of the above-described circumstances, an object of the present invention is to provide a paper feed cassette in which a paper regulation plate can be accurately and easily attached to a paper size position predetermined for each paper size.

  In order to solve the above-described problem, the invention of the paper feed cassette described in claim 1 includes a paper restricting plate for restricting positioning of paper disposed in the cassette, and a guide groove for slidably supporting the paper restricting plate. A plurality of paper restricting plate positioning holes for positioning the paper restricting plate at a predetermined position for each paper size, and a size notation for displaying a stop position of the paper restricting plate predetermined for each paper size A recess for locking the sheet restricting plate that locks the movement of the sheet restricting plate, a plurality of keys disposed on the sheet restricting plate, and a plurality of keys that are attached in conjunction with a key operation of the key. An urging means for applying an urging force; a projection that enters the paper restricting plate positioning hole with a click feeling by the urging force of the urging means; and a recess that is disposed on the paper restricting plate and is disposed on the paper restricting plate locking recess. Before entering It is characterized in that comprises a locking lever for locking the movement of the sheet regulating plate.

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the paper feed cassette according to the first aspect, the protrusion is spherical at the tip, and the diameter thereof is larger than the diameter of the paper restricting plate positioning hole. It is a feature.

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the paper feed cassette according to the first aspect, the size notation is a size of paper used in Japan and overseas.

  According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the paper feed cassette according to the first aspect, the paper restricting plate locking recess for locking the movement of the paper restricting plate has a cross-sectional rack shape.

The invention described in claim 5 is characterized in that, in the invention described in claim 1, the plurality of keys are a key described as domestic on the surface and a key described as overseas on the surface. .

  The invention described in claim 6 is characterized in that, in the paper feed cassette described in claim 1, the urging means for applying the urging force in conjunction with the key operation of the key is a coil spring.

  According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect of the present invention, the lock lever that enters the paper restricting plate lock recess and locks the movement of the paper restricting plate is provided by the biasing force of the biasing means. The movement of the paper restricting plate is locked by always entering the paper restricting plate locking recess.

  According to the first aspect of the present invention, since the protrusion that has obtained the biasing force enters the paper restricting plate positioning hole with a click feeling by the key operation by the operator, the operator sets the paper restricting plate for each paper size in advance. If the lock lever is inserted into the paper restricting plate locking recess to lock the movement of the paper restricting plate at the position where the click feeling is obtained, the paper restricting plate Each paper size is locked at a predetermined position so that the paper can be accurately and easily attached to a predetermined paper size position for each paper size in the paper feed cassette. It is possible to provide an image forming apparatus that prevents the occurrence of jamming, the occurrence of paper skew, and the like and forms a stable printed image.

    According to the second aspect of the present invention, since the protrusion is spherical at the tip and the diameter thereof is larger than the diameter of the paper restricting plate positioning hole, the protrusion has a click feeling in the paper restricting plate positioning hole. When the paper restricting plate is moved, the protrusion easily escapes from the paper restricting plate positioning hole and does not hinder the sliding movement of the paper restricting plate.

  According to the invention described in claim 3, since the size notation is each size of the paper used domestically and overseas, when the operator moves the paper regulating plate, either the domestic or overseas is previously stored. After that, it is only necessary to move the sheet restricting plate to the target size notation position, so that the operation of moving the sheet restricting plate becomes simple.

  According to the invention described in claim 4, the recess for locking the sheet restricting plate for locking the movement of the sheet restricting plate has a cross-sectional rack shape, so that not only the structure is simple but also the sheet restricting plate is accurately The positioning and the movement can be reliably locked.

  According to the invention described in claim 5, since the plurality of keys are a key described as domestic on the surface and a key described as overseas on the surface, when the operator moves the paper restricting plate in advance, By selecting either the domestic key or the overseas key and operating the selected key, the paper restricting plate can be easily moved to the target paper size position.

  According to the sixth aspect of the present invention, since the biasing means for applying the biasing force in conjunction with the key operation of the key is the coil spring, the structure thereof can be provided simply and inexpensively.

According to the seventh aspect of the present invention, the lock lever that enters the paper restricting plate lock recess and locks the movement of the paper restricting plate is always in the paper restricting plate lock recess by the biasing force of the biasing means. Since it enters and locks the movement of the paper restricting plate, it is possible to prevent the paper restricting plate from moving by mistake.

FIG. 1 is a conceptual perspective view of a main part fracture of a paper feed cassette according to the present invention. FIG. 2 is a conceptual perspective view of the sheet regulating plate shown in FIG. FIG. 3 is a conceptual cross-sectional view of a main part showing a bottom portion of a paper feed cassette in which a paper regulation plate is disposed. FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view showing the structure of the paper restricting plate, and particularly the AA conceptual cross-sectional view of FIG. FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view showing the structure of the paper restricting plate, and particularly the AA conceptual cross-sectional view of FIG. 2 showing the structure near the paper restricting plate positioning hole. FIG. 6 is a conceptual cross-sectional view of the sheet restriction plate showing the operation of the sheet restriction plate according to the present invention. FIG. 7 is a conceptual cross-sectional view of the sheet restriction plate showing the operation of the sheet restriction plate according to the present invention. FIG. 8 is a conceptual cross-sectional view of the sheet restriction plate showing the operation of the sheet restriction plate according to the present invention. FIG. 9 is a conceptual cross-sectional view of the sheet restriction plate showing the operation of the sheet restriction plate according to the present invention. FIG. 10 is a conceptual cross-sectional view of the sheet restriction plate showing the operation of the sheet restriction plate according to the present invention.

  Hereinafter, an embodiment of the paper feed cassette according to the present invention will be described in detail.

  FIG. 1 is a fragmentary perspective view of a principal part of a paper feed cassette 1 according to the present invention.

  The paper feed cassette 1 (hereinafter simply referred to as a cassette) is provided on a cassette main body 2 for storing and storing a large number of sheets (cut paper) 2b of various sizes, and a bottom surface 2a of the cassette main body 2. The cassette bottom surface 2a The sheet regulating plate 3 is slidably supported along a guide groove 4 formed along the longitudinal direction.

  As shown in FIG. 3, a main portion fracture sectional view of the cassette bottom surface 2 a is configured such that the bottom portion 3 a of the sheet regulation plate 3 is inserted into the guide groove 4 and does not come out of the cassette bottom surface 2 a. It is configured.

    On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 1, on the bottom surface 2a of the cassette body 2, the paper regulating plate 3 is positioned along the guide groove 4 at a predetermined position for each paper size of the paper 2b to be accommodated. A plurality of paper restricting plate positioning holes 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, and 18 are formed.

  Of the paper restricting plate positioning holes 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, the paper restricting plate positioning holes 10, 11, 12, 13, 14 are domestic paper sizes. For example, the paper restricting plate positioning hole 10 has a paper size of A5, the paper restricting plate positioning hole 11 has a paper size of B5, and the paper restricting plate positioning hole 12 has a paper size of A4. The restricting plate positioning hole 13 is for positioning the paper restricting plate 3 at the B4 paper size, and the paper restricting plate positioning hole 14 is at the A3 paper size.

    Similarly, among the paper restricting plate positioning holes 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, the paper restricting plate positioning holes 15, 16, 17, 18 correspond to foreign paper sizes. For example, the paper restricting plate positioning hole 15 has a paper size of 17 ″, the paper restricting plate positioning hole 16 has a paper size of 14 ″, and the paper restricting plate positioning hole 17 has 8.5 ″. The sheet regulating plate positioning hole 18 is used for positioning the sheet regulating plate 3 to the sheet size of 7.25 ″.

    Further, as shown in FIG. 1, the paper restriction is provided at a position along the guide groove 4 and adjacent to the paper restriction plate positioning holes 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18. Paper restricting plate locking recesses 5 and 6 for locking the movement of the plate 3 are formed. The sheet regulating plate stop recesses 5 and 6 are specifically formed in a cross-sectional rack shape as shown in FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 1, a stop position of the sheet restricting plate 3 predetermined for each sheet size is provided at a position along the guide groove 4 and adjacent to the recesses 5 and 6 for stopping the sheet restricting plate. Displayed size notations 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, and 28 are described.

  Among these, the size notations 20, 21, 22, 23, and 24 that indicate the stop position of the sheet restricting plate 3 described at the position adjacent to the sheet restricting plate stop recess 6 describe domestic sheet sizes. , Size notation 20 is A5 size paper, size notation 21 is B5 size paper, size notation 22 is A4 size paper, size notation 23 is B4 size paper, size notation 24 is A3 size paper is shown.

  The size notation 25, 26, 27, and 28 for indicating the stop position of the paper restricting plate 3 described in the position adjacent to the paper restricting plate stopping recess 5 are the foreign paper sizes. 25 is 17 ″ size paper, size notation 26 is 14 ″ size paper, size notation 27 is 8.5 ″ size paper, and size notation 28 is 7.25 ″ size. Each paper is shown.

  On the other hand, as shown in the conceptual enlarged perspective view of FIG. 2, the paper regulating plate 3 according to the present application is provided with a pair of keys 30 and 31 in the paper regulating plate main body 3a, and the front of the paper regulating plate main body 3a. 3b is provided with a lock lever 40 that enters the paper regulating plate lock recesses 5 and 6 (FIG. 1) and locks the movement of the paper regulating plate 3. Of the pair of keys 30, 31, the letter “overseas” indicating the overseas size is written on the upper surface of one key 30, and the letter “domestic” showing the domestic size is written on the upper surface of the other key 31. ing.

  Next, the structure of the keys 30 and 31 of the sheet regulating plate 3 will be described. Since the structures of the keys 30 and 31 are the same, the structure of the key 30 will be described in detail on behalf of one key 30. The description of the structure of the other keys 31 is omitted.

  The key 30 faces the key guide hole 3b formed in the upper part of the paper restricting plate main body 3a as shown in FIG. 4 which is a conceptual cross-sectional view of FIG. It is arranged freely.

  A cylindrical base 32 is disposed in the key 30, and a guide protrusion 32 a protruding from the peripheral surface of the base 32 is fitted into a guide groove 30 a formed on the side of the key 30. An urging means 33 comprising a coil spring that applies an urging force in conjunction with the operation of the key 30 is disposed at the lower end of the base 32, and the urging means 33 is disposed at the lower end of the urging means 33. Protrusions 34 are provided to enter the paper regulating plate positioning holes 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18 (FIG. 1) with a click feeling by the urging force.

  The guide groove 30a of the guide protrusion 32a described above is formed in a substantially reverse shape, and as shown in FIG. 8, when the key 30 enters the key guide hole 3b of the paper restricting plate body 3a, 32 is moved downward, thereby compressing the coil spring and applying an urging force to the urging means 33 so that the projection 34 is moved to the paper restricting plate positioning holes 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17 and 18 are formed so as to enter into one hole (hole 18 in FIG. 8) with a click feeling.

  The protrusion 34 has a spherical shape so that when it enters the paper regulating plate positioning holes 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18 (FIG. 1), it can easily escape from the holes. Thus, the diameter is formed larger than the diameter of the sheet regulating plate positioning holes 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18.

  On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 4, when the key 30 escapes from the key guide hole 3b of the sheet regulating plate body 3a, the base 32 moves upward by the urging force of the urging means 33 and the guide groove 30a of the guide protrusion 32a. As a result, the coil spring of the urging means 33 is returned to its natural length, so that the urging means 33 comprising the coil spring no longer has a downward urging force. It does not enter the holes 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18 (FIG. 1) with a click feeling.

  On the other hand, the lock lever 40 is rotatably supported in the left-right direction with respect to the sheet regulating plate main body 3a via the shaft 41, and always rotates counterclockwise by a biasing means such as a spring (not shown). The front end 40a of the lock lever 40 enters the paper restricting plate lock recess 5 having a cross-sectional rack shape to lock the movement of the paper restricting plate body 3a.

  5 is the same cross-sectional view as FIG. 4, but particularly shows a cross-section cut at the cassette bottom surface 2a in the portion where the paper regulating plate positioning holes 15, 16, 17, 18 shown in FIG. 1 are formed. Thus, the sheet regulating plate positioning hole 18 can be seen on the left side of the drawing.

  Next, the operation of the cassette 1 according to the present invention described above will be described, and the configuration will be described in more detail.

  First, the operator determines whether or not to position the paper restricting plate 3 corresponding to each domestic paper size or whether to position corresponding to each foreign paper size.

  In the embodiment, the case where the paper restricting plate 3 is positioned corresponding to each foreign paper size will be described. However, the same operation is performed when the paper restricting plate 3 is positioned corresponding to each domestic paper size. Since the sheet regulating plate 3 is positioned corresponding to each domestic paper size, the description thereof is omitted.

  Further, in the following description, among the size notations 25, 26, 27, and 28 (FIG. 1) of the overseas sizes, the sheet restriction plate 3 is placed at the stop position corresponding to the size notation 28, that is, the 7.25 ″ size sheet. The case of moving will be described.

  In this case, as shown in FIG. 6, the operator simultaneously pinches the key 30 and the lock lever 40, which are described as “overseas” on the upper surface, as indicated by arrows. In this case, the key 31 described as “domestic” on the upper surface is not pinched.

  Then, the key 30 enters the key guide hole 3b of the sheet regulating plate main body 3a, thereby pushing down the base 32 downward to give a biasing force to the biasing means 33 made of the coil spring and press the protrusion 34 downward. It becomes.

  At the same time, the lock lever 40 rotates clockwise about the shaft 40, so that the tip 40 a of the lock lever 40 escapes from the rack-shaped paper restricting plate locking recess 5. The lock is released, and the sheet regulating plate 3 can be slid in the horizontal direction of the drawing.

  As shown in FIG. 6, the operator visually grasps the lock lever 40 and the key 30 from both sides at the same time to release the movement lock of the restricting plate body 3a and presses the projection 34 downward. As shown by the arrow D in FIG. 7, the sheet restricting plate 3 is moved toward the stop position of the sheet restricting plate 3 corresponding to the 7.25 ″ size sheet indicated by reference numeral 28 in FIG.

  Then, when the sheet restricting plate 3 reaches the stop position of the sheet restricting plate 3 corresponding to the 7.25 ″ size sheet indicated by reference numeral 28 in FIG. 1, it corresponds to the position as shown in FIG. 8. Since the protrusion 34 pressed downward by the urging means 33 enters the paper restricting plate positioning hole 18 formed at the position with a click feeling, the operator has 7.25 indicated by the reference numeral 28 on the paper restricting plate 3. It is possible to easily and accurately recognize that the paper restricting plate 3 corresponding to the “size” paper has reached the stop position.

  At that time, when the knob of the lock lever 40 is released, as shown in FIG. 9, the tip 40a of the lock lever 40 enters the rack-shaped paper restricting plate locking recess 5, so that the paper restricting plate 3 is The movement is locked, so that the sheet regulating plate 3 is easily and accurately positioned and locked at the stop position of the sheet regulating plate 3 corresponding to the 7.25 ″ size sheet indicated by reference numeral 28 in FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 10, when the knob of the key 30 is released, the key 30 is pressed by the urging force of the urging means 33 made of a coil spring and the guide groove 30a of the guide protrusion 32a, so that the key 30 is the key guide of the sheet regulating plate body 3a. The initial state of escape from the hole 3b is restored.

  In the above embodiment, the case where the sheet restricting plate 3 is easily positioned and locked at the stop position of the sheet restricting plate 3 corresponding to the 7.25 ″ size sheet indicated by reference numeral 28 has been described in detail. , The stop position of the paper restricting plate 3 corresponding to the 17 ″ size paper indicated by the size notation 25, the stop position of the paper restricting plate 3 corresponding to the 14 ″ size paper indicated by the size notation 26, Needless to say, it is possible to easily and accurately stop the positioning of the sheet restricting plate 3 corresponding to the 8.5 ″ size sheet indicated by the size notation 27.

  As described above, in the above-described embodiment, the case where the paper restricting plate 3 is positioned corresponding to each foreign paper size has been described. However, the paper restricting plate 3 is located corresponding to each domestic paper size. In this case, the operator may perform the same operation. In this case, the operator simultaneously holds the key 31 and the lock lever 40, which are described as domestic on the upper surface shown in FIG. By performing the same operation as above, the sheet restriction plate 3 corresponds to the B5 size paper indicated by the size notation 21 at the stop position of the paper restriction plate 3 corresponding to the A5 size paper indicated by the size notation 20. At the stop position of the plate 3, the stop position of the paper restricting plate 3 corresponding to the A4 size paper indicated by the size notation 22, and the stop position of the paper restricting plate 3 corresponding to the B4 size paper indicated by the size notation 23. The stop position of the paper regulating plate 3 corresponding to A3 paper size indicated by the size notation 24, respectively may be locked precisely cut easily positioned.

  In the above embodiment, the number of keys is two keys indicating the domestic and overseas paper sizes. However, the number of keys is not limited to the above embodiment, and the number of keys is 2 corresponding to various paper sizes. More than one key may be used.

  The present invention is suitable for a paper feed cassette in which a paper regulation plate can be accurately and easily attached to a paper size position predetermined for each paper size.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Paper feed cassette 2b ... Paper 3 ... Paper control board 4 ... Guide groove 5, 6 ... Paper control board lock dent 10,11,12,13,14,15,16,17,18 ... Paper control board positioning Holes 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28 ... size notation 30, 31 ... key 33 ... biasing means 34 ... projection 40 ... lock lever

Claims (7)

A paper restricting plate for restricting positioning of the paper disposed in the cassette;
A guide groove for slidably supporting the paper regulating plate;
A plurality of paper restricting plate positioning holes for positioning the paper restricting plate at a predetermined position for each paper size;
A size notation for displaying a stop position of the paper restricting plate determined in advance for each paper size;
A paper regulation plate locking recess for locking the movement of the paper regulation plate;
A plurality of keys disposed on the paper regulating plate;
For each of the plurality of keys, a biasing unit that applies a biasing force in conjunction with a key operation of the key, and a protrusion that enters the paper regulating plate positioning hole with a click feeling by the biasing force of the biasing unit,
A paper feed cassette comprising a lock lever disposed on the paper restriction plate and entering the paper restriction plate locking recess to lock the movement of the paper restriction plate.
The paper feed cassette according to claim 1, wherein the protrusion has a spherical shape at the tip, and has a diameter larger than a diameter of the paper restricting plate positioning hole.
2. The paper feed cassette according to claim 1, wherein the size notation is a size of paper used in domestic and overseas.
The paper feed cassette according to claim 1, wherein the recess for locking the paper restricting plate that locks the movement of the paper restricting plate has a cross-sectional rack shape.
The paper feed cassette according to claim 1, wherein the plurality of keys are a key described as domestic on the upper surface and a key described as overseas on the upper surface.
2. The paper feed cassette according to claim 1, wherein the biasing means for applying a biasing force in conjunction with the key operation of the key is a coil spring.
The lock lever that enters the paper restricting plate locking recess and locks the movement of the paper restricting plate always enters the paper restricting plate lock recess and locks the movement of the paper restricting plate by the urging force of the urging means. The sheet feeding cassette according to claim 1, wherein:

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