JP2014157272A - Image forming apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an image forming apparatus capable of generating a high-quality, non-directional sound as a masking sound for a notification sound or an operation sound from the image forming apparatus, without causing an increase in size of the apparatus.SOLUTION: An image forming apparatus has a configuration in which: a speaker unit 11 including an enclosure 20 is arranged inside an exterior cover 65 of an apparatus body, so that a high-frequency wave emitted from a front face of the speaker unit 11 and a low-frequency wave emitted from a rear face of the speaker unit 11 can be spatially separated.

Description

  The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus, and more particularly to an image forming apparatus that forms an image by an electrophotographic method such as a printer or a copying machine.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, in an image forming apparatus that forms an image by an electrophotographic method such as a printer or a copying machine, a sound that informs a user of completion of printing is generally a simple buzzer. However, recent high-function and multi-functional image forming apparatuses can emit various sound information such as voice guidance for operation and environmental sound (music). It has also been attempted to generate a masking sound that cancels the operation sound of the image forming apparatus (for example, to synchronize music with the operation sound).

  For this reason, a speaker as a sound source is provided inside the main body of the device, but the speaker unit alone interferes with the sound before and after the vibrator, and in particular, the low frequency sound is attenuated, resulting in high quality sound quality. Can't hope. Further, a speaker having a large diameter is advantageous in order to make the bass sound well, but this requires an installation space and leads to an increase in the size of the apparatus main body.

  In addition, when the image forming apparatus is installed in a wide space such as an office, sound information is transmitted only to a user in a limited place if the sound to be emitted has directivity. Therefore, a non-directional sound source is preferable. Further, if the structure is such that sound is transmitted from the speaker installed inside the image forming apparatus to the outside through the opening of the exterior cover, there is also a problem that the sound can be heard only from the direction of the opening.

  Patent Document 1 describes that when a speaker is mounted on an image forming apparatus, the speaker holding member is provided with an anti-rotation means and a means for shielding magnetic flux. However, downsizing, sound quality, and directivity are also described. Is not considered.

JP 2008-5130 A

  SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to provide an image forming apparatus capable of generating high-quality and omnidirectional sound without increasing the size of the apparatus.

  An image forming apparatus according to an aspect of the present invention is characterized in that a speaker unit including an enclosure is disposed inside an exterior cover of the apparatus main body.

  In the image forming apparatus, since the speaker unit is provided with the enclosure, high-quality sound quality can be ensured even with a small speaker unit. In addition, since the speaker unit is disposed inside the exterior cover, the exterior cover vibrates and emits sound outside the apparatus, and becomes a non-directional sound source.

  According to the present invention, high-quality and omnidirectional sound can be generated without increasing the size of the apparatus.

1 is an external perspective view illustrating an image forming system according to an embodiment. It is an external appearance perspective view which shows a speaker apparatus. It is a perspective view which shows the said speaker apparatus in cross section. It is a perspective view which shows the attachment state of the said speaker apparatus. It is an external appearance perspective view which shows the state which has arrange | positioned the said speaker apparatus inside the exterior cover. It is sectional drawing which shows the attachment state of the speaker apparatus shown in FIG. (A), (B) is a graph which shows the frequency characteristic inlined.

  Embodiments of an image forming apparatus according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

  As shown in FIG. 1, an image forming system according to one embodiment is discharged from an electrophotographic image forming apparatus 1, an image reading apparatus 2 installed on the upper part of the image forming apparatus 1, and the image forming apparatus 1. And a post-processing device 3 that performs punching processing, binding processing, and the like on the printed paper.

  The image forming apparatus 1 forms a color toner image by a conventionally known tandem method. The sheet on which the image is formed is sent from the intermediate conveyance unit 4 to the post-processing device 3. In addition, the image forming apparatus 1 includes a circulation conveyance unit 30 for executing double-sided printing, and a manual sheet feeding unit 35 for feeding a postcard or the like.

  The post-processing device 3 has a conveyance path for discharging the paper straight to the tray 51, a conveyance path for stapling a plurality of sheets at the end and discharging them to the tray 52, and stapling a plurality of sheets at the center. A conveyance path for folding and discharging to the tray 53 is provided.

  The image reading apparatus 2 reads the image with a reading optical system (not shown) while curving and conveying the document from the tray 41 and discharges the image onto the tray 42. The document reading device 2 moves the reading optical system in one direction and reads an image of a document placed on a platen glass (not shown).

  Here, the speaker device 10 that emits various kinds of sound information will be described with reference to FIG. As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the speaker device 10 includes a speaker unit 11 having a small diameter (for example, an effective vibration radius of 2 cm) housed in an enclosure 20. The speaker unit 11 is screwed to the front baffle plate 21 of the enclosure 20, and the diaphragm 12 is exposed from an opening 21 a provided in the baffle plate 21. The enclosure 20 is formed of a resin material such as ABS or polycarbonate.

  The enclosure 20 has a structure that spatially separates the high frequency radiated from the front surface (the diaphragm 12) of the speaker unit 11 and the low frequency radiated from the back surface of the speaker unit 11. Specifically, the rear casing 22 is fixed to the back of the baffle plate 21 to form a first vibration chamber 23 a and a second vibration chamber 23 b that communicate with each other, and sound emitted from the surface of the vibration plate 12 of the speaker unit 11. Is emitted from the opening 21a, and the sound emitted from the back surface of the diaphragm 12 is guided from the first vibration chamber 23a to the second vibration chamber 23b, and the baffle plate 21 is vibrated and emitted to the outside. That is, the enclosure 20 is a sealed type, and the front and back spaces of the speaker unit 11 are partitioned by the baffle plate 21 to prevent the vibrations that are in opposite phases on the front and back from canceling each other out. Compared with the operation of the unit 11 alone, the sound of a frequency in a wide range from high to low is generated.

  The enclosure 20 may have a small capacity, and the resonance frequency decreases as the capacity increases. Therefore, even when the small-diameter speaker unit 11 is used, a bass enhancement effect can be expected.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the enclosure 20 has a structure that completely partitions the back space. However, in order to obtain a predetermined frequency characteristic, the enclosure 20 communicates with the space before and after the diaphragm 12. An opening may be provided.

  In the image forming apparatus 1, since the operation sound in the low frequency range of 100 Hz to 600 Hz is likely to be generated during the operation, when the masking sound for making the operation sound difficult to hear from the speaker device 10 is generated by the user, the enclosure 20 itself As the frequency characteristic, it is preferable that the frequency characteristic of about 100 Hz to 600 Hz is enhanced with respect to the frequency characteristic of the speaker unit 11 alone.

  Further, when the enclosure 20 itself cannot obtain a predetermined frequency characteristic, frequency correction (equalizing) is performed so that the sound emitted outside the apparatus 1 is optimized with respect to the sound signal input to the speaker unit 11. It is preferable that 7A and 7B show the characteristics after correction. FIG. 7A shows a characteristic B that is enhanced by equalizing the low frequency range with respect to the frequency characteristic A of the speaker unit 11 alone. FIG. 7B shows a characteristic C obtained by equalizing and attenuating the high frequency range with respect to the frequency characteristic A of the speaker unit 11 alone.

  Since the enclosure 20 is vibrated from the speaker unit 11, it is necessary to be firmly held in order to prevent generation of unnecessary noise due to resonance. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 4, the speaker device 10 is imaged by a protruding piece 25a (not shown) provided with a plurality of protruding pieces of a rigid bracket 25 to which a drive circuit (not shown) is attached. The structural member 9 (see FIG. 6) constituting the main body of the forming apparatus 1 is coupled via a screw 26. If the rear housing 22 has sufficient rigidity, the structural member 9 may be screwed through the rear housing 22.

  As shown in FIG. 5, the speaker device 10 is installed inside the exterior cover 65 immediately below the operation panel 60. The installation position of the speaker device 10 may be in the vicinity of the image reading apparatus 2 in addition to the vicinity of the operation panel 60, or may be in the vicinity of the paper feed unit or the paper discharge unit of the image forming apparatus 1. Further, the speaker device 10 may be disposed not only in the main body of the image forming apparatus 1 but also in an optional unit of a paper feed system when the optional unit is installed. Further, when a paper discharge option unit such as the post-processing device 3 is installed, it may be arranged in the option unit (post-processing device 3).

  When voice guidance for supporting the operation of the image forming apparatus 1 is played from the speaker device 10, the speaker device 10 is preferably arranged in a place where the user can easily hear, and is directly below the operation panel 60 or the front surface of the image reading device 2. It is preferable to arrange in. In addition, when a masking sound that makes it difficult to hear the operation sound of the image forming apparatus 1 from the speaker device 10 is generated, it is preferable that the speaker device 10 be disposed in the vicinity of a portion where the operation sound is generated, such as a paper feed unit or a paper discharge unit. In addition, since an optional unit for a paper feed system or a paper discharge system also generates an operation sound, a masking effect can be expected if the speaker device 10 is arranged in these optional units.

  As shown in FIG. 5, the speaker device 10 is disposed in close proximity to the inside of the exterior cover 65, so that the sound pressure emitted from the speaker device 10 is transmitted to the exterior cover 65 and the cover 65 itself vibrates. Thus, the exterior cover 65 becomes a sound source. The sound emitted from the exterior cover 65 to the outside of the image forming apparatus 1 as a sound source is omnidirectional and can be heard in a wide range.

  Further, when the speaker device 10 is disposed inside the exterior cover 65, it is preferably disposed in a non-parallel state inclined with respect to the inner surface of the exterior cover 65 (see FIG. 6). It is possible to eliminate the occurrence of standing waves in the space between the speaker device 10 and the exterior cover 65. At the same time, the sound waves are randomly reflected inside the image forming apparatus 1 and are radiated to the outside of the apparatus 1 through the gaps of the outer cover 65, so that the non-directional effect is enhanced.

(Other examples)
Note that the image forming apparatus according to the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and can be variously modified within the scope of the gist thereof.

  In particular, the detailed configuration of the enclosure of the speaker device is arbitrary, and the installation location is also arbitrary. Of course, the present invention can be applied to various types and forms of image forming apparatuses.

  As described above, the present invention is useful for an image forming apparatus, and is particularly excellent in that high-quality omnidirectional sound can be generated without increasing the size of the apparatus.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Image forming apparatus 2 ... Image reading apparatus 3 ... Post-processing apparatus 9 ... Structural member 10 ... Speaker apparatus 11 ... Speaker unit 12 ... Vibration plate 20 ... Enclosure 21 ... Baffle board 21a ... Opening 60 ... Operation panel 65 ... Exterior cover

Claims (10)

  An image forming apparatus, wherein a speaker unit including an enclosure is disposed inside an exterior cover of the apparatus main body.   The said enclosure is equipped with the structure which isolate | separates the high frequency radiated | emitted from the front surface of the said speaker unit, and the low frequency radiated | emitted from the back surface of this speaker unit spatially. Image forming apparatus.   2. The image according to claim 1, wherein a surface of the enclosure other than the front opening of the speaker unit is coupled to a structural member constituting the apparatus main body via the enclosure itself or a rigid bracket. Forming equipment.   The front vibration portion of the speaker unit is disposed to face the inside of the exterior cover and is disposed in a non-parallel state with respect to the inner surface of the exterior cover. Image forming apparatus.   The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the enclosure has a frequency characteristic that enhances a frequency band of about 100 Hz to about 600 Hz with respect to a frequency characteristic of the speaker unit alone.   The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the enclosure is disposed in the vicinity of an operation panel provided in the apparatus main body or an image reading apparatus.   The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the enclosure is disposed in the vicinity of a sheet feeding unit or a sheet discharging unit of the apparatus main body.   The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the enclosure is arranged not only in the apparatus main body but also in a paper feed system option apparatus, a paper discharge system option apparatus, or an image reading apparatus.   2. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a masking sound and / or an environmental sound for canceling an operation sound of the apparatus main body is emitted from the speaker unit in addition to an operation guidance sound of the apparatus main body.   The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the sound signal input to the speaker unit is subjected to frequency correction that optimizes a sound emitted outside the apparatus main body.

Images