JP2011101087A - Image reader and image forming apparatus including the same - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an image reader capable of preventing not only the sticking of foreign matters stuck to an original but also the distortion of read images by a simple configuration, and an image forming apparatus including the same. <P>SOLUTION: The image reader 6 includes a second cleaning member 73 which is adjacent to the upstream side of the first image read region R1 of automatic read glass 25a relative to the original conveying direction of an original P. The second cleaning member 73 is formed in such a manner that, by forming an inclination part 73aa at both ends in the original width direction of a downstream side end 73a in the original conveying direction, the width of the downstream side end 73a is narrowed toward the downstream side in the original conveying direction. When reading the original P, the rear end Pa of the original P which passes through the second cleaning member 73 is successively abutted on the automatic read glass 25a from both ends in the original width direction toward the center. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2011,JPO&INPIT

Description

  BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an image reading apparatus used for a digital copying machine, an image scanner, and the like, for scanning and reading an original, and an image forming apparatus including the image reading apparatus. It relates to the device.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, in an image reading apparatus mounted on a copying machine using an electrophotographic process, a document is conveyed so that a sheet-like document is sequentially sent to a document placing table and discharged from the document placing table after reading. Some have a device (Automatic Document Feeder). In such an image reading apparatus, a sheet-through method in which a document is automatically conveyed and read by a document conveying device while the document press is closed, and the document press is opened and closed each time reading is performed on a document placement table (contact glass). Two types of reading methods are possible: a document fixing method that replaces each original document one by one. In the former sheet-through method, the optical system in the image reading apparatus is scanned and moved while being held at a predetermined image reading position. On the other hand, in the latter document fixing method, A reading operation is performed while the optical system scans and moves.

  FIG. 8 is a partial perspective view showing the configuration around the automatic reading glass of a conventional image reading apparatus, and FIG. 9 is a perspective view showing a cleaning member used in the conventional image reading apparatus. As shown in FIG. 8, the image reading device 6 includes an automatic reading glass (transparent member) 25a having a first image reading area (image reading area) R1, and a manually placed original glass having a second image reading area R2. A contact glass 25 made of 25b and a document conveying device 27 are provided.

  In such a sheet-through type reading in the image reading device 6, if dirt (foreign matter) such as glue, correction liquid, or ink of a writing instrument adheres to the original, the original passes through the automatic reading glass 25a. There has been a problem that these foreign substances adhere to the automatic reading glass 25a and appear as streaks on the read image of the original conveyed thereafter.

  Therefore, on the automatic reading glass 25a, on the upstream side of the first image reading region R1 with respect to the document conveyance direction (the direction of the white arrow in the figure), as shown in FIGS. The 1st cleaning member 81 which consists of is provided. The first cleaning member 81 is arranged with the width direction of the document (the direction perpendicular to the white arrow in the drawing) as the longitudinal direction, and the document is rubbed against the upper surface of the first cleaning member 81, whereby the document transport device Before the document transported by 27 comes into contact with the automatic reading glass 25a, the foreign matter adhering to the document is removed.

  However, since there is a step between the first cleaning member 81 and the automatic reading glass 25a, when the document passes through the first cleaning member 81 and contacts the automatic reading glass 25a, the step causes the document. In some cases, the read image may be distorted due to the impact generated when the rear end portion of the glass drops on the automatic reading glass 25a.

  Therefore, a method for preventing such an image defect has been proposed. For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a step forming member (having a predetermined thickness on a transparent member disposed between a document conveyed at a reading position and a reading unit and upstream of the reading position in the document conveying direction ( A cleaning member) and an image correcting unit that corrects an image read when the trailing edge of the document passes through the reading unit through the step forming member, so that an adhesive foreign matter adheres to the transparent member from the document. A method for preventing the occurrence of distortion and density error in the read image at the rear end of the document is disclosed.

  On the other hand, in Patent Document 2, a spacer (cleaning member) is attached on the opposite side of the reading unit in the reading transparent member to the upstream side in the document transport direction from the document reading position, and the end of the spacer on the downstream side in the document transport direction. Discloses a method for preventing the image quality from being deteriorated due to floating dust by making the shape lower in the height in the conveyance direction.

JP 2007-31247 A JP 2004-260246 A

  However, although the method disclosed in Patent Document 1 can eliminate the distortion of the read image due to the vibration of the document, complicated control is required to correct the magnification and density of the read image. Further, in the method of Patent Document 2, although the downstream end portion of the spacer is provided with a downward slope, the rear end portion of the document falls from the spacer to the transparent member all over the width direction. The occurrence of impact due to dropping cannot be sufficiently prevented, and the read image may be distorted.

  SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In view of the above problems, the present invention provides an image reading apparatus and an image forming apparatus provided with the image reading apparatus that can prevent not only the adhesion of foreign matter attached to a document but also distortion of a read image with a simple configuration. Objective.

  In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a transparent member for reading a document, and transports a document to an image reading area of the transparent member in an image reading apparatus that transports the document to the transparent member and reads an image. A cleaning member disposed near the upstream side in the direction along the direction perpendicular to the transport direction and having a cleaning surface capable of cleaning foreign matter adhering to the document above the transparent member; The downstream end portion in the transport direction is formed with an inclined portion so that the width in the vertical direction at the downstream end portion becomes narrower toward the downstream side in the transport direction.

  Further, the present invention is characterized in that the downstream end is formed such that the central portion in the vertical direction protrudes downstream in the transport direction.

  Further, the invention is characterized in that the cleaning member is black.

  The present invention also provides an image forming apparatus including the image reading apparatus.

  According to the first configuration of the present invention, the foreign matter adhering to the document is positioned above the transparent member along the direction perpendicular to the transport direction and close to the upstream side in the transport direction of the document with respect to the image reading area of the transparent member. A cleaning member having a cleaning surface that can be cleaned is provided, and an inclined portion is formed at the downstream end of the cleaning member in the transport direction so that the width in the vertical direction at the downstream end becomes narrower toward the downstream in the transport direction. Thus, when the document is transported from the cleaning member to the transparent member, the rear end portion of the document can sequentially come into contact with the transparent member from both ends in the vertical direction to the central portion.

  As a result, it is possible to suppress the occurrence of an impact due to the contact of the rear end portion of the document with the transparent member. Further, it is not necessary to provide a complicated mechanism or member in order to prevent the occurrence of such an impact. Therefore, with a simple configuration, it is possible to prevent not only the adhesion of foreign matter that has adhered to the document but also the occurrence of distortion in the read image.

  Further, according to the second configuration of the present invention, in the image reading apparatus having the first configuration, the downstream end is formed so that the central portion in the vertical direction protrudes to the downstream side in the transport direction. It becomes possible for the rear end portion to come into contact with the transparent member little by little in order from the vertical end portions to the central portion. Accordingly, it is possible to more effectively suppress the occurrence of an impact at the trailing edge of the document due to contact with the transparent member.

  According to the third configuration of the present invention, in the image reading apparatus having the above first or second configuration, the cleaning member is black, so that the white-based foreign matter attached to the cleaning member by cleaning the document is removed. , More clearly visible. Thereby, it becomes possible to remove foreign matter from the cleaning member before foreign matter accumulates excessively on the cleaning member, and the cleaning performance of the cleaning member can be effectively exhibited.

  Further, according to the fourth configuration of the present invention, an image forming apparatus including the image reading device having any one of the first to third configurations can be used to form a formed image due to distortion of the read image. The occurrence of defects can be prevented.

1 is a side sectional view showing an overall configuration of an image forming apparatus equipped with an image reading apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. 1 is a side sectional view showing an internal structure around a document conveying device used in an image reading apparatus according to a first embodiment of the present invention; Side surface sectional view showing the internal structure of the image reading apparatus according to the present embodiment FIG. 7 is a partial perspective view illustrating a configuration around a cleaning member of the image reading apparatus according to the present embodiment. 5A and 5B are diagrams illustrating a cleaning member used in the image reading apparatus according to the present embodiment, in which FIG. 5A is a perspective view and FIG. 5B is viewed from a direction A in FIG. FIG. 5 (c) is a view as seen from the direction B of FIG. 5 (a). 6A and 6B are diagrams illustrating a state in which an original passes through a cleaning member in the image reading apparatus according to the present embodiment, FIG. 6A is a view as viewed from above, and FIG. 6B is a diagram illustrating FIG. FIG. 6C is a diagram viewed from the D direction of FIG. 6A. The top view which shows the cleaning member used for the image reading apparatus which concerns on 2nd Embodiment of this invention. Partial perspective view showing the configuration around the automatic reading glass of a conventional image reading apparatus The perspective view which shows the cleaning member used for the conventional image reading apparatus.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of an image forming apparatus including an image reading apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. In FIG. 1, in the image forming apparatus 100 (here, a digital multi-function peripheral is shown as an example), when performing a copying operation, image data of a document is read and converted into an image signal by an image reading apparatus 6 described later. On the other hand, in the image forming unit 3 in the MFP main body 2, the photosensitive drum 5 rotating in the direction A in the figure is uniformly charged by the charging unit 4, and is based on the document image data read by the image reading device 6. An electrostatic latent image is formed on the photosensitive drum 5 by a laser beam from an exposure unit (laser scanning unit or the like) 7, and a developer (hereinafter referred to as toner) is attached to the electrostatic latent image by the developing unit 8. An image is formed. The toner is supplied to the developing unit 8 from the toner container 9.

  The sheet is conveyed from the sheet feeding mechanism 10 to the image forming unit 3 via the sheet conveying path 11 and the registration roller pair 12 toward the photosensitive drum 5 on which the toner image is formed as described above. 3, the toner image on the surface of the photosensitive drum 5 is transferred to the sheet by the transfer roller 13 (image transfer unit). The sheet onto which the toner image has been transferred is separated from the photosensitive drum 5 and conveyed to a fixing unit 14 having a fixing roller pair 14a to fix the toner image. The paper that has passed through the fixing unit 14 is sent to a paper conveyance path 15 that branches in a plurality of directions, and is fed by a path switching mechanism 21, 22 having a plurality of path switching guides provided at branch points of the paper conveyance path 15. The transport directions are sorted, and the sheets are discharged as they are (or after being sent to the sheet transport path 16 and double-sided copying) to the sheet discharge section including the first discharge tray 17a and the second discharge tray 17b.

  Although not shown, a static elimination device that removes residual charges on the surface of the photosensitive drum 5 is provided on the downstream side of the cleaning device 18. Further, the paper feed mechanism 10 is detachably attached to the multifunction machine main body 2 and includes a plurality of paper feed cassettes 10a and 10b for storing paper, and a stack bypass (manual feed tray) 10c provided above the paper feed cassettes 10a and 10b. These are connected to the image forming unit 3 including the photosensitive drum 5 and the developing unit 8 by the paper transport path 11.

  An image reading device 6 is disposed on the upper portion of the apparatus main body, and a platen (document pressing member) that holds and holds a document placed on the contact glass 25 (see FIG. 2) of the image reading device 6 on the upper surface of the apparatus main body. ) 24 (see FIG. 1) is provided so as to be openable and closable, and a document conveying device 27 is provided on the platen 24.

  Specifically, the sheet conveyance path 15 first branches into a left and right fork on the downstream side of the fixing roller pair 14a, and one path (a path branching rightward in FIG. 1) communicates with the first discharge tray 17a. It is configured as follows. The other path (the path that branches in the left direction in FIG. 1) is bifurcated via the conveying roller pair 19, and the other path (the path that branches in the left direction in FIG. 1) is the second discharge tray 17b. It is comprised so that it may communicate with. On the other hand, the other path (the path that branches downward in FIG. 1) is configured to communicate with the sheet conveyance path 16.

  FIG. 2 is a side sectional view showing the internal structure around the document conveying device used in the image reading apparatus according to the first embodiment of the present invention. The document transport device 27 includes a document feed tray 29 provided with a document guide 29 a for aligning and stacking a plurality of documents, and a reversing tray 30 provided below the document feed tray 29. Each member of the paper tray 29 and the reverse tray 30 is attached to the frame of the document conveying device 27. Further, a cover member 31 is supported so as to be openable and closable with one end (lower left in the figure) as a rotation fulcrum with respect to the frame of the document conveying device 27, and a document discharge tray 32 is disposed on the side of the cover member 31. It is formed directly on a part of the upper surface. A document transport path d from the document feed tray 29 to the document discharge tray 32 is formed in the cover member 31. By opening the cover member 31, the document transport path d is opened, and jamming can be performed. ing.

  In the cover member 31, a pickup roller 33, a paper feed belt 34 and a separation roller 35, a registration roller pair 36, a conveyance roller pair 37, 38, 39, and 40, a CIS roller 41, a reverse roller along the document conveyance path d. Document conveying means including a pair 42, a discharge roller pair 43 and the like is provided. The paper feed belt 34 is wound around a driving roller 44a and a driven roller 44b, and a separation roller 35 is in contact with the roller at a predetermined pressure from below. The separation roller 35 has a built-in torque limiter, which rotates in the opposite direction to the paper feed belt 34 only when the rotational load is lower than a predetermined torque, and is driven to rotate with the paper feed belt 34 when the rotational load exceeds a predetermined torque. It is supposed to be. Above the pickup roller 33, an upper surface detection sensor 50 for detecting the upper surface position of the document is disposed.

  The contact glass 25 includes an automatic reading glass 25a and a manually placed original glass 25b. A white reference plate for shading correction disposed opposite to the automatic reading glass 25a, and a white reference plate above the white reference plate. A document pressing portion (none of which is shown) for pressing the reference plate toward the automatic reading glass 25a is provided. The document conveyance path d is curved so as to be reversed between the registration roller pair 36 and the automatic reading glass 25a. A plurality of paper detection sensors including a paper feed sensor S1 and a discharge sensor S2 for detecting the presence / absence or passage of a document are provided at appropriate positions on the document conveyance path d.

  Next, a sheet-through type document conveying operation using the document conveying device 27 will be described. In the sheet-through method, after a plurality of documents are set on the document feed tray 29 with the image surface facing upward, when the copy start button on the operation panel of the image forming apparatus 100 (see FIG. 1) is turned on, the sheet is moved up and down. A lift plate 45 lifted by a mechanism (not shown) pushes up the pickup roller 33 through the document, and the weight of a frame (not shown) including the pickup roller 33 is applied to the lift plate 45, whereby the upper surface of the document. Is pressed against the pickup roller 33 with a predetermined pressure (paper feeding pressure).

  Here, the pickup roller 33, the drive roller 44a, the driven roller 44b, and the paper feed belt 34 are arranged in a frame not shown. The pickup roller 33 is connected to a driving roller 44a by a gear (not shown). When the driving roller 44a is rotated by a roller driving motor (not shown), the pickup roller 33 is stretched by the driving roller 44a and the driven roller 44b. The paper belt 34 is driven to rotate, and the pickup roller 33 is also driven to rotate.

  The document set on the document feed tray 29 is normally fed by the pickup roller 33 to the nip portion between the feed belt 34 and the separation roller 35. Only the uppermost one of the plurality of documents is separated by the separation roller 35 and conveyed toward the registration roller pair 36. At that time, after the leading edge of the document is detected by the sheet feed sensor S1, the document is conveyed by a predetermined distance, and then the rotation drive of the pickup roller 33 and the sheet feed belt 34 is stopped by stopping the operation of the roller drive motor. Paper feeding ends. The document that has been primarily fed is stopped in a state where the leading end of the document is bent at the nip portion of the registration roller pair 36.

  Secondary feeding is started after a predetermined time has elapsed since the completion of primary feeding. That is, the registration roller pair 36 is rotationally driven by the operation of a secondary paper feed drive motor (not shown). The original is conveyed by the registration roller pair 36, the conveyance roller pairs 37 to 39, and the CIS roller 41 through the automatic reading glass 25a toward the discharge roller pair 43, and finally the original is discharged by the discharge roller pair 43. It is discharged onto the tray 32. At this time, the completion of image reading of one original is detected by detecting passage of the rear end of the original by the discharge sensor S2.

  Here, the discharge sensor S2 has a count function for counting the number of documents every time the document conveyance is completed. If the paper feed sensor S1 detects a subsequent document, the second and subsequent document conveyance is performed as described above. Will continue as well. The original is conveyed while being pressed lightly toward the automatic reading glass 25a when passing through the automatic reading glass 25a, and the image of the original is read through the automatic reading glass 25a by the image reading device 6 (see FIG. 1). It can be read by.

  When reading a double-sided document, a contact image sensor 51 provided opposite to the CIS roller 41 reads an image on the back side of the document, and an automatic reading glass 25a reads an image on the surface of the document. After reading the image on the surface of the document with the reading glass 25a, the document is distributed to the reversing tray 30 by the branching claws 47a, 47b and 47c, the reversing roller pair 42 is reversed, and again with the back side of the document facing up. There is a two-stage reading method in which the image is conveyed to the upstream side of the registration roller pair 36 and the image on the back side of the document is read by the automatic reading glass 25a.

  Reading by the contact image sensor 51 can shorten the reading time, but is inferior in image quality as compared with reading by the automatic reading glass 25a. For this reason, a one-step reading method using the contact image sensor 51 is used for text originals, and a two-step reading method using the reversing tray 30 is used when high-quality and high-definition reading is required for photo originals. It is preferable.

  When the two-stage reading method is used, when the original after reading is sequentially discharged to the original discharge tray 32 as it is, the discharged original is stacked with the reverse side of the state set on the original feed tray 29. It will be. Therefore, after the image on the back side of the document is read by the automatic reading glass 25 a, the branching claws 47 a to 47 c are swung to introduce the document again onto the reverse tray 30, and the pair of conveyance rollers 40 and the discharge roller pair 43 are used. The document is discharged to the document discharge tray 32. As a result, the front and back of each document are reversed again before being discharged, so that they can be stacked on the document discharge tray 32 while maintaining the state of being set on the document feed tray 29.

  Next, the configuration of the image reading device 6 for reading an image of a document as an electric signal will be described. FIG. 3 is a side sectional view showing the internal structure of the image reading apparatus according to this embodiment. In the frame 6a of the image reading device 6, a lamp (light source) 61 that irradiates light toward the image surface of the document, and a reflecting plate 62 for efficiently applying light from the lamp 61 to the image surface of the document. The first mirror 63 that directly receives and reflects the original reflected light, the second mirror 64 that receives and reflects the reflected light from the first mirror 63, and the reflected light that is received from the second mirror 64 and reflected. A third mirror 65 is disposed.

  Further, a lens barrel 66 holding a lens group (not shown) for introducing and collecting the reflected light from the third mirror 65, and the original reflected light collected by the lens group of the lens barrel 66 are received. A line-type CCD (photoelectric conversion member) sensor 67 having a photoelectric conversion element for converting it into an electrical signal is disposed on the base plate 70. The optical path of the original reflected light is indicated by a one-dot chain line.

  Here, the lamp 61, the reflector 62 and the first mirror 63 are integrally fixed on the first carriage 68, and the second mirror 64 and the third mirror 65 are integrally fixed on the second carriage 69. The first and second carriages 68 and 69 are independent of each other but can be reciprocated in cooperation.

  That is, when the original image reading operation is performed by the sheet through method, the first carriage 68 is moved and held immediately below the first image reading region (image reading region) R1 of the automatic reading glass 25a. At the same time, the second carriage 69 is held at a predetermined position. On the other hand, in the original fixing method, the first carriage 68 and the second carriage 69 maintain the optical path length of the original reflected light with respect to each other for a manually placed original. The glass 25b is reciprocated (scanned) below the second image reading region R2. The first carriage 68 and the second carriage 69 are driven by a carriage drive motor (not shown).

  Under such a configuration, the document reflected light irradiated from the lamp 61 and reflected by the image surface of the document is reflected by the first mirror 63 to the third mirror 65 and introduced into the lens group in the lens barrel 66. The light is condensed by the lens group and formed on the CCD sensor 67. The CCD sensor 67 performs photoelectric conversion processing, and the document image is read as an electrical signal.

  FIG. 4 is a partial perspective view showing the periphery of the cleaning member of the image reading apparatus according to the present embodiment. FIG. 5A is a perspective view showing a cleaning member used in the image reading apparatus of the present embodiment, and FIG. 5B is a view seen from the A direction in FIG. FIG.5 (c) is the figure seen from the B direction of Fig.5 (a). FIG. 6A is a view of the state in which the document passes through the cleaning member in the image reading apparatus according to the present embodiment as viewed from above, and FIG. 6B is the C direction of FIG. FIG. 6C is a view seen from the direction D of FIG. 6A. Portions common to FIGS. 1 and 4 are denoted by common reference numerals, and description thereof is omitted.

  As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the second cleaning member (cleaning member) 73 is formed in a flat, substantially rectangular plate shape, and is perpendicular to the document conveyance direction (the direction of the white arrow) of the document P, that is, The document P is arranged with the document width direction as the longitudinal direction. Further, in the second cleaning member 73, both end portions in the document width direction at the end portion 73a on the downstream side in the document transport direction are inclined, so that an inclined portion 73aa is formed.

  By forming the inclined portion 73aa in this way, the second cleaning member 73 is formed such that the width in the document width direction of the downstream end portion 73a becomes narrower toward the downstream side in the document conveyance direction. The inclined portion 73aa is formed in a straight line when viewed from above (see FIG. 5B), and a leading end portion 73ab parallel to the document width direction is formed between the inclined portions 73aa. .

  This 2nd cleaning member 73 is formed from the thin PET film, The thickness is set to about 0.1 mm-0.2 mm. Although not colored in FIGS. 4 and 5, the second cleaning member 73 is colored black (the same applies to FIGS. 6 and 7 described later). The length of the second cleaning member 73 in the document width direction is set to be larger than the width of the passage region of the document P in the automatic reading glass 25a. In addition, the document conveyance direction length L1 at the center in the width direction of the second cleaning member 73 is set to 12 mm, and the conveyance direction length L2 at both ends in the document width direction is set to 8 mm.

  When the original P is conveyed from the original conveying device 27 (see FIG. 2), the original P is rubbed against the upper surface (cleaning surface) 73b of the second cleaning member 73 when passing through the second cleaning member 73. Foreign matter adhering to P is removed. Then, as shown in FIG. 6, when the rear end portion Pa of the document P reaches the downstream end portion 73a of the second cleaning member 73 in the document transport direction (white arrow in the figure), the document width of the rear end portion Pa is reached. The outer surface of the inclined portion 73aa (on the right and left sides in FIG. 6A) is in contact with the automatic reading glass 25a with respect to the direction (perpendicular to the white arrow in the figure), but the upper surface of the second cleaning member 73 is on the inner side. Since it abuts against 73b, it does not abut against the automatic reading glass 25a.

  Therefore, as the rear end portion Pa of the document P is conveyed to the downstream side while being in contact with the upper surface 73b, it sequentially contacts the automatic reading glass 25a from both ends in the document width direction to the center portion, The contact portion (area) between the end portion Pa and the automatic reading glass 25a gradually increases. As a result, the rear end portion Pa of the original P simultaneously drops in the automatic reading glass 25a simultaneously in the width direction and is in contact with the automatic reading glass 25a (see FIGS. 8 and 9). Generation of impact due to contact with the glass 25a can be prevented.

  As described above, since the inclined portion 73aa is formed at the downstream end portion 73a of the second cleaning member 73 in the document conveyance direction, the document P is cleaned by the second cleaning member 73, and the rear end portion Pa of the document P is the first. 2 When passing from the cleaning member 73 to the automatic reading glass 25a, the automatic reading glass 25a can be sequentially brought into contact with the rear end portion Pa from both ends in the document width direction to the central portion. Thereby, generation | occurrence | production of the impact by contact | abutting with the glass 25a for automatic reading of the rear-end part Pa can be suppressed. Accordingly, it is possible to prevent distortion of the read image as well as adhesion of foreign matter attached to the document P with a simple configuration.

  Note that the inclination angle of the inclined portion 73aa with respect to the document conveying direction or the document width direction is not particularly limited as long as it is possible to suppress the occurrence of an impact at the trailing edge portion Pa of the document P. However, for example, if the inclination angle with respect to the document width direction is increased, the occurrence of impact due to the contact between the rear end portion Pa of the document P and the automatic reading glass 25a can be further suppressed, but the document P of the second cleaning member 73 is reduced. Since the rubbing portion becomes small, the cleaning ability of the original P may be reduced.

  In addition, generally, the conveyance direction length L1 of the second cleaning member 73 at the central portion in the document width direction is set to be substantially uniform according to the size of the apparatus, so that the inclined cleaning capability can be supplemented. If the feeding direction length L1 is increased, the apparatus may be increased in size. On the other hand, if the inclination angle is small, it may not be possible to sufficiently suppress the occurrence of an impact due to contact of the rear end portion Pa with the automatic reading glass 25a. Therefore, for example, in consideration of such a viewpoint, the inclination angle can be appropriately set according to the balance between the impact prevention effect and the cleaning ability, the length L1 of the second cleaning member 73 in the document conveyance direction, and the like.

  Further, in the present embodiment, since the second cleaning member 73 is black, white foreign matters such as correction liquid attached to the second cleaning member 73 by cleaning the document P can be more clearly visually recognized. . Thereby, it becomes possible to remove foreign substances from the second cleaning member 73 before foreign substances accumulate excessively on the second cleaning member 73, and the cleaning performance of the second cleaning member 73 can be effectively exhibited. Become. However, the color of the second cleaning member 73 can be set as appropriate according to the type of foreign matter to be cleaned, and is not particularly limited. Even if it is transparent, other colors are applied. Also good.

  Moreover, in this embodiment, although inclined part 73aa was formed in linear form seeing from upper direction, the shape of inclined part 73aa is not specifically limited. In addition, the shape of the tip end portion 73ab formed between the inclined portions 73aa is not particularly limited, and a sharp tip end portion 73ab can be obtained by connecting the inclined portions 73aa at the center portion in the width direction.

  FIG. 7 is a top view showing a cleaning member used in the image reading apparatus according to the second embodiment of the present invention. Portions common to FIGS. 5 and 6 are denoted by common reference numerals, and description thereof is omitted. In FIG. 7, the inclined portion 73aa in the downstream end portion 73a of the cleaning member 73 in the document conveyance direction (the white arrow in the figure) has a gentle substantially arc shape that protrudes downstream in the document conveyance direction when viewed from above. Is formed.

  In addition, the inclined portions 73aa are connected while drawing a gentle curve when viewed from above, and the connecting portion constitutes a tip portion 73ab. That is, as a whole in the width direction of the downstream end portion 73a, the center portion is formed so as to be curved gently so as to protrude downstream in the transport direction.

  Thus, in the present embodiment, the downstream end portion 73a of the second cleaning member 73 in the document conveyance direction is curved so that the leading end portion 73ab located at the central portion in the document width direction protrudes downstream in the conveyance direction. The rear end portion Pa (see FIG. 6) of the original P can be brought into contact with the automatic reading glass 25a little by little from the both ends in the original width direction to the central portion. Thereby, generation | occurrence | production of the impact of the rear-end part Pa by contact | abutting with the glass 25a for automatic reading can be suppressed more effectively. Here, since the downstream end 73a is gently curved, the occurrence of an impact at the rear end Pa can be more effectively suppressed.

  In addition, this invention is not limited to the said embodiment, A various change is possible in the range which does not deviate from the meaning of this invention. For example, the length, thickness, material, and the like of the second cleaning member 73 shown in the above embodiment are not particularly limited, and can be set as appropriate according to the apparatus configuration and the like.

  In the above embodiment, the second cleaning member 73 is disposed on the automatic reading glass 25a. However, the foreign matter on the document P can be removed before reaching the first image reading region R1, and the foreign matter is removed. In the position where another foreign matter does not adhere to the original P until the first image reading area R1 is reached after the removal of the paper, it is arranged away from the automatic reading glass 25a on the upstream side in the original conveying direction. You can also

  In the above embodiment, the image reading device 6 is a unit in which the pickup roller 33 and the paper feed belt 34 are unitized. However, the pickup roller 33 may be provided separately from the paper feed belt 34. A configuration in which a paper feed roller is disposed in place of the paper feed belt 34 and a configuration in which a separation pad is disposed in place of the separation roller 35 are also possible.

  The present invention provides a cleaning surface capable of cleaning foreign matter adhering to a document above the transparent member, close to the upstream side in the document transport direction with respect to the image reading area of the transparent member and along a direction perpendicular to the transport direction. The cleaning member is provided, and an inclined portion is formed at the downstream end of the cleaning member in the transport direction so that the width in the vertical direction at the downstream end becomes narrower toward the downstream side in the transport direction.

  Accordingly, it is possible to prevent the occurrence of distortion of the read image as well as the adhesion of the foreign matter adhering to the document with a simple configuration, so that the image reading accuracy can be improved. Further, by forming the downstream end portion in the transport direction so that the central portion in the vertical direction protrudes to the downstream side in the transport direction, it is possible to more effectively prevent the impact of the rear end portion of the document due to the contact with the transparent member. Can be suppressed. Moreover, the cleaning performance of the cleaning member can be effectively exhibited by making the cleaning member black. Further, by using the image forming apparatus provided with the image reading apparatus, it is possible to prevent the occurrence of defects in the formed image due to the distortion of the read image.

6 Image reading device 25 Contact glass 25a Automatic reading glass (transparent member)
25b Glass for manually placed document 27 Document transport device 73 Second cleaning member (cleaning member)
73a Downstream end portion 73aa Inclined portion 73ab Tip portion 73b Upper surface (cleaning surface)
100 Image forming apparatus R1 First image reading area (image reading area)
R2 Second image reading area P Document Pa Rear edge

Claims (4)

In an image reading apparatus comprising a transparent member for reading an original, and reading the image by conveying the original to the transparent member,
A cleaning surface that is arranged close to the upstream side in the document conveyance direction with respect to the image reading area of the transparent member and along the direction perpendicular to the conveyance direction, and that can clean foreign matter adhering to the document above the transparent member. A cleaning member having
An inclined portion is formed at the downstream end of the cleaning member in the transport direction so that the vertical width of the downstream end is narrowed toward the downstream side of the transport direction. Image reading device.   The image reading apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the downstream end is formed such that the central portion in the vertical direction protrudes downstream in the transport direction.   The image reading apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the cleaning member is black.   An image forming apparatus comprising the image reading apparatus according to claim 1.

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