JP2015193449A - Image recording apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide means with which a guide member can be held in a predetermined position and also an apparatus can be downsized.SOLUTION: A composite machine comprises: an enclosure having a transport path 80 extending from a feed cassette which supports sheets; a recording unit for recording images on a sheet transported along the transport path 80; a guide member 22 rotatable between a standing state to determine the transport path 80 and an open state to open the transport path 80; an outer guide member 18 for determining the curved inner side of the transport path 80; a bypass tray 70 for supporting a sheet; a guide member 97 coming into contact with the leading edge of the sheet supported by the bypass tray 70; and a bypass path 66 extending from the bypass tray 70 and connected to the transport path 80. Ribs 77 determine a part of the transport path 80, and ribs 78 determine a part of the bypass route 66. The guide member 22 is held in the standing state when the ribs 78 engage projection pieces 51 projecting from the guide member 97.

Description

  The present invention relates to an image recording apparatus that performs image recording by conveying a sheet along a conveyance path.

  There is known an image recording apparatus in which a conveyance path is provided inside an apparatus housing and an image is recorded on a sheet conveyed along the conveyance path. Some image recording apparatuses have a paper feed cassette that supports a plurality of sheets. In addition to the paper feed cassette, there is an image recording apparatus having a manual feed tray for guiding a sheet to a conveyance path (Patent Document 1).

  For maintenance and paper jam elimination, the guide member that defines the U-turn conveyance path is composed of a non-rotating (fixed) guide member and a guide member that can rotate around a rotation axis. There is an image recording device. This rotatable guide member is substantially L-shaped in a side view along the rotation center direction of the rotation shaft. According to this configuration, the user accesses the U-turn conveyance path in the image recording apparatus from the outside by rotating a part of the rotatable guide member to open the U-turn conveyance path. It becomes possible (Patent Document 2).

JP 2013-166623 A JP 2010-173841 A

  The above-described guide member (a guide member that constitutes a part of the U-turn conveyance path and can be rotated) is a part other than the guide surface that contacts the sheet as the conveyance path, for example, the apparatus housing on both sides in the left-right direction. By being engaged, it is held in a predetermined position. However, when the sheet is conveyed, a load is particularly applied to the guide surface near the center in the left-right direction of the sheet. This is because when the sheet is conveyed, the entire area in the left-right direction of the sheet is not guided by the guide surface, but in order to reduce conveyance resistance as much as possible and to reduce skew during sheet conveyance, This is because the vicinity of the center in the direction is guided by the guide surface. Therefore, the position where the load is generated in the guide member and the position where the guide member is engaged with the apparatus housing are different in the left-right direction. As a result, the guide member may be bent or twisted.

  In order to further reduce this possibility, it is conceivable to provide an engaging portion with the apparatus housing at a position where a load is generated in the guide member. Specifically, an engaging portion that engages with the apparatus housing is provided near the center in the left-right direction of the guide member. However, since the engaging portion cannot be provided on the guide surface where the sheet is to be guided, the engaging portion is further provided on the guide member at a place other than the guide surface. As a result, the outer dimension of the guide member increases, which may increase the size of the apparatus. In addition, when the outer dimension of the guide member is increased, a space for rotating the guide member must be increased.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide means capable of stably holding a guide member at a predetermined position and realizing downsizing of the apparatus.

  (1) An image recording apparatus according to the present invention includes a first tray that supports a sheet, a first conveyance path that includes a curved portion curved upward from the first tray, and an extending portion continuous to the curved portion. A housing, a feeding roller that feeds the sheet from the first tray along the first conveying path, and a downstream side of the feeding roller in the conveying direction of the first conveying path. A conveying roller that conveys, a recording unit that is disposed downstream of the conveying roller in the conveying direction in the first conveying path, and that records an image on a sheet conveyed through an extended portion of the first conveying path; It is arranged on the upstream side in the transport direction with respect to the transport roller, defines the outside of the curved portion of the first transport path, and rotates the upstream side in the transport direction as an axis and the downstream side in the transport direction as a rotation tip side. Can be rotated as Therefore, a first guide member that can move to a first position that defines the curved portion and a second position that opens the curved portion, and a second guide member that defines the inside of the curved portion of the first conveyance path A second tray having a support surface for supporting the sheet; a guide member provided in the second tray; a guide member having a guide surface intersecting the support surface; and the housing. A second conveyance path that extends from the tray and is connected to the first conveyance path upstream of the conveyance roller in the conveyance direction. In the first guide member, a first surface facing the curved inner side defines a part of the first transport path, and a second surface facing the curved outer side with respect to the first guide member is the second transport. A part of the path is defined, and is held at the first position by engaging with a protruding piece protruding from the guide member toward the second transport path.

  By engaging with the protruding piece of the guide member, the first guide member is regulated so that the first guide member does not turn to the second position side on the center side in the left-right direction of the first guide member, and the first guide member is Can be held in position.

  (2) The first guide member may be held at the first position by an engagement portion provided at a place other than the first surface engaging the housing.

  By the engaging portion, the first guide member can be held at the first position by restricting the first guide member from rotating to the second position side on both the left and right sides of the first guide member.

  (3) The first guide member is provided with a rib that protrudes toward the protruding piece side and extends along the conveying direction to define a part of the second conveying path. It may be engaged.

  Thereby, the protrusion of a guide member can be engaged with the rib which prescribes | regulates a 2nd conveyance path.

  (4) In the projecting piece, the third surface may constitute a part of the guide surface, and may be engaged with the rib on the fourth surface side opposite to the third surface. .

  By the protruding piece, the guide surface can be extended to the second transport path, and the gap between the guide surface and the second transport path can be reduced. Since the projecting piece is engaged with the rib, the position of the projecting piece is stable, and the sheet can be smoothly guided from the guide surface to the second conveyance path.

  According to the present invention, the guide member can be stably held at a predetermined position, and the apparatus can be downsized.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the multifunction machine 10 with the movable unit 69 standing up. FIG. 1A shows the front side of the multifunction machine 10 and FIG. 1B shows the rear side of the multifunction machine 10. Yes. FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing the rear side of the multifunction machine 10 with the guide member 22 in the open state and the outer guide member 18 in the upright state. FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing the rear side of the multi-function device 10 with the guide member 22 in the open state and the outer guide member 18 in the lying down state. FIG. 4 is a longitudinal sectional view showing the internal structure of the printer unit 11. FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing the curved inner side of the guide member 22 and the guide member 34. FIG. 6 is an enlarged view showing the vicinity of the guide member 34 in FIG. FIG. 7 is an enlarged view showing the vicinity of the guide member 34 in a state where the recording paper 100 passes in FIG. FIG. 8 is an enlarged view showing the vicinity of the guide member 34 when the guide member 22 is rotated from the standing state to the lying state in FIG. FIG. 9 is a longitudinal sectional view of the printer unit 11 at a position where the protruding portion 95 and the hole 92 in the left-right direction 9 are formed. FIG. 10 is a plan view schematically showing the flexible portion 93 and the vicinity of the rotating tip 81 of the guide member 22. FIG. 11 is a perspective view schematically showing the guide member 97 and the guide member 22.

  Hereinafter, the multifunction peripheral 10 according to the embodiment of the present invention will be described. The embodiment described below is merely an example of the present invention, and it is needless to say that the embodiment can be appropriately changed without departing from the gist of the present invention. Further, in the following description, the advance from the starting point of the arrow to the ending point is expressed as the direction, and the traffic on the line connecting the starting point and the ending point of the arrow is expressed as the direction. In the following description, the vertical direction 7 is defined with reference to the state in which the multifunction machine 10 is installed (the state shown in FIG. 1), and the side on which the opening 13 is provided is the front side (front side). A front-rear direction 8 is defined, and a left-right direction 9 is defined when the multifunction machine 10 is viewed from the front side (front side).

[Overall configuration of MFP 10]
As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, the multifunction machine 10 is formed in a substantially rectangular parallelepiped, and includes a printer unit 11 that records an image on a sheet such as a recording sheet by an inkjet recording method. The multifunction machine 10 has various functions such as a facsimile function and a print function. The printer unit 11 corresponds to an image recording apparatus.

  The printer unit 11 includes a housing 14 having an opening 13 formed on the front surface. In the opening 13, a feeding tray 20 and a discharge tray 21 on which recording sheets of various sizes can be placed are provided so as to be insertable / removable in the front-rear direction 8. A feeding cassette 30 is provided below the feeding tray 20. In the feeding cassette 30, recording sheets of various sizes can be placed on the feeding tray 20 independently. The bottom surface of the feeding cassette 30 comes into contact with the mounting surface on which the multifunction machine 10 is installed.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the printer unit 11 includes a feeding unit 15 that feeds recording paper from the feeding tray 20, a feeding unit 36 that feeds recording paper from the feeding cassette 30, and an image on the recording paper. A recording unit 24 for recording, a first transport roller pair 54 and a second transport roller pair 55 for transporting recording paper, and the like are provided.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, a scanner unit 12 is provided on the upper portion of the printer unit 11. The dimensions of the casing 16 of the scanner unit 12 in the front-rear direction 8 and the left-right direction 9 are the same as those of the casing 14 of the printer unit 11. Accordingly, the casing 14 of the printer unit 11 and the casing 16 of the scanner unit 12 are integrated to form a substantially rectangular parallelepiped outer shape of the multifunction machine 10. The scanner unit 12 is a flat bed scanner. In addition, since the structure of a flat bed scanner is well-known, detailed description is abbreviate | omitted here. The scanner unit 12 may be provided with an automatic document feeder (ADF) that separates and conveys a plurality of documents one by one.

[Printer 11]
Hereinafter, the detailed structure of the printer unit 11 will be described.

[Feeding tray 20]
The feeding tray 20 has an outer shape in which the length in the front-rear direction 8 and the left-right direction 9 is longer than the length in the up-down direction 7 and has a box shape with the upper part opened. A discharge tray 21 is provided on the front side of the feeding tray 20. The feeding tray 20 can accommodate a recording sheet by supporting recording sheets of various sizes such as an A4 size according to Japanese Industrial Standards and an L plate used for photographic recording on a supporting surface. The feeding tray 20 is accommodated in an internal space that communicates with the opening 13 of the housing 14. The feeding tray 20 can advance and retreat along the front-rear direction 8 with respect to the housing 14 through the opening 13.

[Feeding unit 15]
As shown in FIG. 4, the feeding unit 15 includes a feeding roller 25, a feeding arm 26, a drive transmission mechanism 27, and a separation pad 23. The feeding unit 15 is provided above the feeding tray 20 and below the recording unit 24. The feed roller 25 is pivotally supported at the tip of the feed arm 26 so as to be rotatable. The feeding arm 26 rotates in the direction of an arrow 29 about a shaft 28 provided at the base end. As the feed arm 26 rotates, the feed roller 25 contacts and separates from the support surface of the feed tray 20. Therefore, when the feeding tray 20 containing the recording paper is mounted in the housing 14, the feeding roller 25 can come into contact with the recording paper stored in the feeding tray 20. A separation pad 23 is provided at a position where the feed roller 25 contacts the support surface of the feed tray 20 when the feed tray 20 that does not contain recording paper is mounted in the housing 14. The separation pad 23 is formed of a material having a friction coefficient larger than that of the support surface of the feeding tray 20 with respect to the recording paper.

  A driving force of a motor (not shown) is transmitted to the feeding roller 25 through a drive transmission mechanism 27. The drive transmission mechanism 27 transmits the rotation transmitted to the shaft 28 to the shaft of the feeding roller 25 by a gear train in which a plurality of gears are engaged. When the feeding roller 25 rotates while being in contact with the uppermost recording sheet among the recording sheets supported on the support surface of the feeding tray 20, the recording sheet is fed to the conveyance path 65. Is done. When the recording sheet is fed to the conveyance path 65, the leading end of the recording sheet comes into contact with the separation member 35 provided on the rear side of the feeding tray 20 in the front-rear direction 8. As a result, only the uppermost recording paper is separated from the lower recording paper and conveyed. Then, the lower recording sheet in contact with the separating member 35 is held while being accommodated in the feeding tray 20 without being dragged by the uppermost recording sheet.

[Feed cassette 30]
The feeding cassette 30 has an outer shape in which the length in the front-rear direction 8 and the left-right direction 9 is longer than the length in the up-down direction 7, and has a box shape with the upper part opened. The feeding cassette 30 has substantially the same outer shape as the feeding tray 20 in the front-rear direction 8 and the left-right direction 9, and is disposed below the feeding tray 20. The feeding cassette 30 can accommodate recording sheets by supporting recording sheets of various sizes such as A4 size to A3 size, and letter size and legal size according to Japanese Industrial Standard, for example, on a support surface. The feeding cassette 30 can advance and retreat along the front-rear direction 8 with respect to the housing 14. The feeding cassette 30 corresponds to the first tray.

[Feeding section 36]
As shown in FIG. 4, the feeding unit 36 includes a feeding roller 45, a feeding arm 46, a drive transmission mechanism 47, and a separation pad 37. The feeding unit 36 is provided below the feeding tray 20 and above the feeding cassette 30. The feed roller 45 is rotatably supported at the tip end of the feed arm 46. The feeding arm 46 rotates in the direction of an arrow 49 around a shaft 48 provided at the base end. As a result, the feeding roller 45 is brought into contact with and separated from the support surface of the feeding cassette 30. Accordingly, when the feeding cassette 30 containing the recording paper is mounted in the housing 14, the feeding roller 45 can come into contact with the recording paper contained in the feeding cassette 30. A separation pad 37 is provided at a position where the feeding roller 45 contacts the support surface of the feeding cassette 30 when the feeding cassette 30 that does not contain recording paper is mounted in the housing 14. The separation pad 37 is made of a material having a friction coefficient larger than that of the support surface of the feeding cassette 30 with respect to the recording paper.

  A driving force of a motor (not shown) is transmitted to the feeding roller 45 through a drive transmission mechanism 47. The drive transmission mechanism 47 transmits the rotation transmitted to the shaft 48 to the shaft of the feeding roller 45 by a gear train formed by meshing a plurality of gears. When the feeding roller 45 rotates while being in contact with the uppermost recording sheet among the recording sheets supported on the support surface of the feeding cassette 30, the recording sheet is fed to the conveyance path 80. Is done. When the recording sheet is fed to the conveyance path 80, the leading end of the recording sheet comes into contact with the separation member 38 provided on the rear side in the front-rear direction 8 of the feeding cassette 30. As a result, only the uppermost recording paper is separated from the lower recording paper and conveyed. The lower recording sheet in contact with the separation member 38 is held while being accommodated in the feeding cassette 30 without being dragged by the uppermost recording sheet.

[Conveyance path 65]
As shown in FIG. 4, the conveyance path 65 provided in the internal space of the casing 14 extends so as to make a U-turn upward from the rear side of the feed tray 20, and further, the rear side of the printer unit 11. After being bent from the front side to the front side, it extends almost straight toward the front side and reaches the discharge tray 21. The conveyance path 65 is roughly divided into a curved path 65A that makes a U-turn and a straight path 65B that is straight. The straight path 65B corresponds to the extended portion.

  The curved path 65 </ b> A is defined by the outer guide member 18, the inner guide member 19, and the guide member 31 that face each other with a space through which the recording paper can pass. The straight path 65 </ b> B is defined by the recording unit 24 and the platen 42 that face each other with a space through which the sheet can pass, and the guide member 32 and the guide member 33.

  The recording paper fed along the conveyance path 65 by the feeding roller 25 of the feeding tray 20 is reversed in the conveyance direction from below to above along the curved path 65A, and is conveyed along the straight path 65B. Is conveyed from the rear to the front without being inverted.

  The outer guide member 18 is a member that constitutes an outer guide surface when the recording sheet is conveyed along the curved path 65A. The inner guide member 19 is a member that forms an inner guide surface when the recording sheet is conveyed along the curved path 65A. In addition, each guide surface may be comprised by one surface, and may be comprised as a group of the front end surface of a some rib.

  The guide member 31 is disposed above the inner guide member 19 immediately upstream (rear side) of the first conveying roller pair 54. The outer guide member 18 and the guide member 31 are members that define a bypass path 66 described later.

[Conveyance path 80]
As shown in FIG. 4, the conveyance path 80 provided in the internal space of the housing 14 extends so as to make a U-turn upward from the rear side of the feeding cassette 30, and is directly connected to the first conveyance roller pair 54. The upstream side (rear side) is connected to the conveyance path 65. The conveyance path 80 corresponds to a curved portion. Further, the first conveyance path is configured by the straight path 65 </ b> B of the conveyance path 80 and the conveyance path 65.

  The conveyance path 80 is defined by the outer guide member 18 and the guide member 22 that face each other with a space through which the recording paper can pass. The outer guide member 18 defines the curved outer side of the curved path 65 </ b> A of the transport path 65, but the curved outer surface defines the curved inner side in the transport path 80. The guide member 22 defines the curved outer side in the conveyance path 80. The detailed configuration of the guide member 22 will be described later. The outer guide member 18 corresponds to a second guide member.

  The recording sheet fed along the conveyance path 80 by the feeding roller 45 of the feeding cassette 30 is reversed in the conveyance direction from the lower side to the upper side, and enters the conveyance path 65 immediately upstream of the first conveyance roller pair 54. enter in.

[First Conveying Roller Pair 54 and Second Conveying Roller Pair 55]
As shown in FIG. 4, a first transport roller pair 54 is provided on the upstream side of the transport path 65 upstream of the recording unit 24 in the transport direction (frontward in the front-rear direction 8). The first transport roller pair 54 includes a first transport roller 60 and a pinch roller 61. In the conveyance path 65, a second conveyance roller pair 55 is provided on the downstream side of the recording unit 24 in the conveyance direction. The second transport roller pair 55 includes a second transport roller 62 and a spur roller 63. The first transport roller 60 and the second transport roller 62 are rotated by the rotation of a motor (not shown). The first conveyance roller pair 54 and the second conveyance roller pair 55 perform recording by rotating the first conveyance roller 60 and the second conveyance roller 62 in a state where the recording paper is sandwiched between the respective rollers constituting the first conveyance roller pair 54 and the second conveyance roller pair 55. Transport the paper. The first transport roller 60 corresponds to the transport roller.

[Recording unit 24]
As shown in FIG. 4, the recording unit 24 is provided between the first conveyance roller pair 54 and the second conveyance roller pair 55. The recording unit 24 includes a carriage 41 and a recording head 39. The carriage 41 is supported by guide rails 43 and 44 provided on the rear side and the front side of the platen 42 so as to reciprocate in the left-right direction 9. The guide rail 44 is provided with a known belt mechanism. The carriage 41 is connected to an endless belt of a belt mechanism, and reciprocates in the left-right direction 9 along the guide rails 43 and 44 by the rotation of the endless belt. When the carriage 41 and the recording head 39 are opposed to the platen 42 with a space therebetween, the carriage 41, the recording head 39, and the platen 42 define a part of the straight path 65B.

  The recording head 39 is mounted on the carriage 41. A plurality of nozzles (not shown) are formed on the lower surface of the recording head 39. Ink is supplied to the recording head 39 from an ink cartridge (not shown). The recording head 39 selectively ejects ink from a plurality of nozzles as fine ink droplets. When the carriage 41 moves in the left-right direction 9, ink droplets are ejected from the nozzles onto the recording paper supported on the platen 42. The ejected ink droplets adhere to the recording paper on the platen 42, whereby an image is recorded on the recording paper.

[Bypass path 66]
As shown in FIG. 6, an opening 64 is provided above the guide member 22 on the rear surface of the housing 14. A bypass path 66 extending from the opening 64 to the first transport roller pair 54 is formed inside the housing 14. The bypass path 66 is a path extending diagonally downward from the rear in the front-rear direction 8 to the front in the housing 14. The bypass path 66 is defined by the guide member 31, the outer guide member 18, and the guide member 22. The guide member 31 is a member that constitutes the upper guide surface when the recording sheet is conveyed along the bypass path 66. The outer guide member 18 and the guide member 22 are members that constitute a lower guide surface when the recording sheet is conveyed along the bypass path 66. The curved path 65 </ b> A and the straight path 65 </ b> B of the transport path 65 and the transport path 80 are all disposed below the bypass path 66. By rotating the upper side of the outer guide member 18 and the guide member 22 so as to fall backward, a part of the bypass path 66 is moved outwardly of the casing 14 together with a part of the transport path 65 and a part of the transport path 80. Open (exposed).

  A recording sheet accommodated in a bypass tray 70 described later is guided obliquely downward along a bypass path 66. The recording sheet is guided along the straight path 65 </ b> B of the transport path 65 and is transported by the first transport roller pair 54. The recording sheet is further subjected to image recording by the recording unit 24 and discharged to the discharge tray 21. As described above, the recording sheet accommodated in the bypass tray 70 is conveyed along a substantially linear path (a path where the front surface and the back surface of the recording sheet are not reversed in the vertical direction 7). The bypass path 66 corresponds to the second transport path.

[Bypass tray 70]
As shown in FIGS. 1 and 4, a bypass tray 70 is provided on the rear surface side of the multifunction machine 10. The bypass tray 70 accommodates recording paper independently of the feeding tray 20 and the feeding cassette 30. The bypass tray 70 corresponds to the second tray.

  A fixing portion 68 extending downward is provided on the rear surface side of the housing 14 so as to cover the opening 64 (see FIGS. 6 to 8). The fixing portion 68 constitutes a part of the bypass tray 70 on the downstream side in the conveyance direction. As shown in FIG. 4, a movable portion 69 is provided on the upper side of the fixed portion 68 so as to be rotatable with respect to the fixed portion 68. A bypass tray 70 is configured by the fixed portion 68 and the movable portion 69.

  A guide member 97 is provided below the fixed portion 68. The guide member 97 is positioned at substantially the same height as the opening 64 in the vertical direction 7. As shown in FIG. 6, the upper surface 56 of the guide member 97 includes a first inclined surface 57 whose front side is located above the rear side, and a second inclined surface 58 connected to the front end of the first inclined surface 57. It consists of The front side of the second inclined surface 58 is located below the rear side. The upper surface 56 generally extends in the front-rear direction 8 as a whole. The upper surface 56 intersects with a support surface 90 (see FIG. 4) extending generally in the vertical direction 7 as a whole. The support surface 90 will be described later.

  A separation piece 72 is provided on the first inclined surface 57. The leading edge of the recording paper supported by the bypass tray 70 abuts on the upper surface of the separation piece 72. A plurality of teeth 73 (see FIGS. 4 and 6 to 8) protruding upward are formed on the upper surface of the separation piece 72. The plurality of teeth 73 are arranged along the front-rear direction 8. The tips of a plurality of recording sheets supported by the bypass tray 70 are curled by teeth 73.

  As shown in FIG. 6, a protrusion 51 protruding toward the bypass path 66 is formed at the front end of the guide member 97. The protruding piece 51 is formed at least in the central portion of the guide member 97 in the left-right direction 9. Note that only one protruding piece 51 may be formed, or a plurality of protruding pieces 51 may be formed at intervals.

  In the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 11, two projecting pieces 51 are formed at a central portion in the left-right direction 9 with a space therebetween. Each of the projecting pieces 51 is formed at a position facing each of the two ribs 78 </ b> A provided on the guide member 22. A swingable guide member 34 is provided in the center of the guide member 22 in the left-right direction 9 between the two ribs 78A. Since the guide member 34 is configured to be swingable, the two ribs 78 cannot be provided on the guide member 34. Therefore, in the present embodiment, the two ribs 78A are provided at a position close to the guide member 34, that is, a position close to the center in the left-right direction 9. If the guide member 34 is not provided with the swingable guide member 34, only one rib 78 </ b> A may be provided at the center of the guide member 22 in the left-right direction 9. In this case, one protruding piece 51 is also formed at the center in the left-right direction 9 facing the rib 78A. The rib 78A and the guide member 34 will be described later.

  The upper surface 98 of the projecting piece 51 constitutes a part of the second inclined surface 58. The upper surface 98 corresponds to the third surface. On the lower surface 99 (surface opposite to the upper surface 98) of the protruding piece 51, a rib 52 protruding downward is formed. The rib 52 has a mountain shape having a vertex. The lower surface 99 corresponds to the fourth surface. As will be described later, the projecting piece 51 engages with the rib 78A on the lower surface 99 side where the rib 52 is formed.

  The second inclined surface 58 extends toward the opening 64. Therefore, the second inclined surface 58 can guide the recording sheet supported by the bypass tray 70 toward the bypass path 66.

  The movable portion 69 is provided above the fixed portion 68 so as to be rotatable with respect to the fixed portion 68. As shown in each figure, the movable portion 69 is in an upright state in which the support surface 90 of the support member 88 stands up along the up-down direction 7, and rotates from the upright state to the arrow 50 (see FIG. 4). The support surface 90 can be rotated between a tilted state (not shown) inclined with respect to the direction 7. The standing state is a state for reducing the space for the movable portion 69 on the rear surface side of the housing 14 and is a state in which the bypass tray 70 is not used. The rear surface of the movable portion 69 in the standing state is substantially parallel to the rear surface of the housing 14. The lying down state is a state in which the movable portion 69 is inclined obliquely upward toward the outside of the housing 14, and is a use state of the bypass tray 70. The user can select whether the movable portion 69 is in a standing state or a lying state by an arbitrary operation by the user.

  A tray cover 94 is provided at the upper end of the movable portion 69. The tray cover 94 is provided so as to be rotatable around an axis (not shown) extending along the left-right direction 9 with respect to the support member 88. The tray cover 94 is a flat plate-like member that can seal the opening on the upper end side of the bypass tray 70 and cover the space on the support surface 90 side.

[Guide member 22]
As shown in FIGS. 1 to 4, the guide member 22 is a member that is rotatably supported with respect to the housing 14 and constitutes a part of the rear surface of the housing 14. In the guide member 22, shafts 76 (see FIG. 5) provided at the left and right ends of the lower side are supported by the housing 14. When the guide member 22 is rotated with respect to the housing 14 around the shaft 76, that is, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the upper side (rotating tip side) of the guide member 22 is the housing. When rotating so as to fall backward with respect to 14, a part of the conveyance path 80 and a part of the bypass path 66 are opened (exposed) to the outside of the housing 14. The guide member 22 corresponds to the first guide member.

  Similarly to the guide member 22, the outer guide member 18 is also pivotally supported with respect to the housing 14 at the lower left and right ends. As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, in the open state in which the guide member 22 lies down, the outer guide member 18 also has a rotating shaft (not shown) along the lower left-right direction 9, and the upper side faces backward. It can be pivoted so as to fall down. As shown in FIG. 3, at least a part of the curved path 65 </ b> A is opened (exposed) to the outside of the housing 14 by rotating the outer guide member 18 so as to fall backward. As shown in FIG. 1B, when the guide member 22 is closed so as to be in an upright state, the outer guide member 18 is supported by the guide member 22 from the rear and maintained in the upright state, and the inner guide member 19 is maintained. The curved path 65A is defined in opposition to the above. In the guide member 22, the standing state corresponds to the first position, and the open state corresponds to the second position.

  The guide member 22 is held in an upright state by engaging with the housing 14. As shown in FIGS. 2, 3, and 5, holes 92 are formed in the left and right ends on the upper side of the guide member 22. On the other hand, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the housing 14 includes a flexible portion 93 that bends in the left-right direction 9 by elastic deformation. The flexible portion 93 is provided on each of the right side and the left side of the housing 14, but only the right side flexible portion 93 is shown in FIGS. Since the left flexible part 93 is also symmetrical with the right flexible part 93 and has the same configuration, the right flexible part 93 will be mainly described in detail below. The right flexible portion 93 is provided on the right side of the hole 92 formed at the right end of the standing guide member 22 so as to face the hole 92. The left flexible portion 93 (not shown) is provided on the left side of the hole 92 formed at the left end of the standing guide member 22 so as to face the hole 92.

  The flexible portion 93 includes a protruding portion 95 that protrudes toward the hole 92. The protrusion 95 is inserted into the hole 92 when the guide member 22 is in the standing state. Thereby, the standing guide member 22 is engaged with the housing 14. The hole 92 corresponds to the engaging portion. The insertion of the protrusion 95 into the hole 92 will be described in detail later.

  As shown in FIG. 5, the guide member 22 is a plate-shaped member that is curved along the conveyance path 80. The guide member 22 has an inner surface 91 that faces the curved inner side and defines a part of the transport path 80. The inner surface 91 corresponds to the first surface. A plurality of ribs 77 are provided on the inner surface 91. The rib 77 defines a part of the conveyance path 80 together with the inner surface 91. The rib 77 extends along the conveying direction along the vertical direction 7 in the guide member 22 in the standing state. A plurality of ribs 77 are provided at intervals in the left-right direction 9 of the guide member 22. Among the plurality of ribs 77, the rib 77 </ b> A disposed at the center in the left-right direction 9 has a longer length protruding toward the curved inner side than the other ribs 77. When the recording paper 100 is conveyed, the recording paper 100 is mainly guided by the rib 77A and conveyed. As a result, the conveyance resistance of the recording paper 100 can be reduced, and skewing can also be reduced.

  The guide member 22 has an upper surface 75 that faces the curved outer side and defines a part of the bypass path 66. The upper surface 75 corresponds to the second surface. A plurality of ribs 78 are provided on the upper surface 75. The rib 78 defines a part of the bypass path 66 together with the upper surface 75. The rib 78 is extended along the conveying direction along the front-rear direction 8 in the guide member 22 in the standing state. A plurality of ribs 78 are provided on the upper surface 75 of the guide member 22 at intervals in the left-right direction 9. When the guide member 22 is held in an upright state with respect to the housing 14, the ribs 78 protrude upward toward the protruding piece 51 side of the guide member 97. Among the plurality of ribs 78, the rib 78 </ b> A disposed near the center in the left-right direction 9 has a longer length to protrude toward the protruding piece 51 than the other ribs 78. Thereby, the rib 78A abuts on the rib 52 of the projecting piece 51 facing the rib 78A.

  On the upper surface 75 of the guide member 22, a concave portion 79 that is recessed downward in the vertical direction 7 is provided at the center in the horizontal direction 9. A guide member 34 is provided in the recess 79 of the guide member 22. The guide member 34 is a member that is shorter in the vertical direction 7 and the horizontal direction 9 than the standing guide member 22. The guide member 34, together with the guide member 22, defines a part on the curved outer side of the conveyance path 80 and a part on the lower side of the bypass path 66. The guide member 34 corresponds to a third guide member.

  The guide member 34 is rotatably supported by the guide member 22. When the guide member 22 is in the standing state, the guide member 34 is located upstream in the conveyance direction of the recording paper accommodated in the feeding cassette 30, that is, in the vertical direction 7 in the base end side and in the vertical direction 7 in the vertical direction 7. The upper side can be turned with the turning front side. The rotating tip 81 of the guide member 34 protrudes from the end 83 of the guide member 22. That is, as shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, when the guide member 22 is standing, the rotation tip 81 of the guide member 34 is closer to the first transport roller 60 than the end 83 of the guide member 22. Further, the rotation tip 81 of the guide member 34 is farther from the first conveying roller 60 than the end 86 of the outer guide member 18.

  Both ends of the guide member 34 in the left-right direction 9 overlap a part of the guide member 22, and the rotation range of the guide member 34 is restricted by contacting the guide member 22. When the guide member 22 is in an upright state, the guide member 34 has an outer position (see FIG. 7) where the rotation tip 81 is located outside the curve of the guide member 22 and an inner position (see FIG. 6) located inside the curve. ) And can be rotated. In the standing state of the guide member 22, when no external force is applied to the guide member 34, the guide member 34 is in the inner position due to its own weight. At this time, the rotating tip 81 of the guide member 34 is in contact with the outer guide member 18. In other words, the turning tip 81 of the guide member 34 is in a state of being placed on the outer guide member 18. When the guide member 22 is in the standing state, in the guide member 34, the outer position corresponds to the third position, and the inner position corresponds to the fourth position.

  The guide member 34 has a curved shape similar to the upper side of the standing guide member 22. A plurality of ribs 84 are provided inside the curved shape. The rib 84 extends along the conveyance direction of the recording paper conveyed from the feeding cassette 30. A plurality of ribs 84 are provided at intervals in the left-right direction 9 of the guide member 34. The surface formed by the tips of the plurality of ribs 84 corresponds to the first surface.

  A plurality of ribs 85 are provided at positions outside the curved shape of the guide member 34 and corresponding to the upper surface 75 of the guide member 22. The rib 85 extends along the conveyance direction of the recording paper conveyed from the bypass tray 70. A plurality of ribs 85 are provided at intervals in the left-right direction 9 of the guide member 22. A surface formed by the tips of the plurality of ribs 85 corresponds to the second surface.

[Operation of Printer Unit 11]
Hereinafter, the operation of the printer unit 11 when the feeding tray 20, the feeding cassette 30, and the bypass tray 70 are used will be described.

  When the bypass tray 70 is not used, the movable portion 69 is raised as shown in FIG. Thereby, since the projection area of the movable part 69 in plan view is reduced, the space on the rear surface side of the multifunction machine 10 can be reduced. Further, the tray cover 94 is rotated to a position that closes the opening at the upper end of the bypass tray 70. If there is sufficient space on the rear side of the multifunction machine 10, the movable portion 69 may remain in a lying state even when the bypass tray 70 is not used.

  When the feeding tray 20 is used, a recording sheet having a desired size is set on the feeding tray 20. Specifically, a plurality of recording sheets are stored in the feeding tray 20 in a stacked state. The feeding tray 20 in which the recording paper is accommodated is inserted into the housing 14 through the opening 13 and is in a mounted state. In this state, the feeding roller 25 contacts the uppermost recording sheet among the plurality of recording sheets stored in the feeding tray 20. The printer unit 11 feeds recording paper from the feed tray 20 based on user input, print data, and the like.

  When receiving an instruction to start printing, the printer unit 11 drives a motor (not shown) to rotate the feeding roller 25, the first transport roller pair 54, and the second transport roller pair 55 at a predetermined timing. In response to the rotation of the feeding roller 25, the uppermost recording sheet is fed from the feeding tray 20 along the conveyance path 65. The fed recording sheet reaches the first conveying roller pair 54 along the curved path 65 </ b> A of the conveying path 65. Ink droplets are ejected from the recording head 39 onto the recording paper that is sandwiched between the first conveying roller pair 54 and conveyed to the recording unit 24, and a desired image is recorded. The recording paper on which image recording has been completed is sandwiched between the second transport roller pair 55, transported along the straight path 65B, and discharged onto the discharge tray 21.

  When the feeding cassette 30 is used, the recording paper 100 having a desired size is set in the feeding cassette 30 in the same manner. The printer unit 11 feeds the recording paper 100 from the feeding cassette 30 based on user input, print data, and the like.

  When receiving an instruction to start printing, the printer unit 11 drives a motor (not shown) to rotate the feed roller 45, the first transport roller pair 54, and the second transport roller pair 55 at a predetermined timing. In response to the rotation of the feeding roller 45, the uppermost recording paper 100 is fed from the feeding cassette 30 along the conveyance path 80.

  In the conveyance path 80, the recording paper 100 is guided along the ribs 77 and 77 </ b> A of the guide member 22, in particular, the ribs 77 </ b> A, and the leading end of the recording paper 100 reaches the guide member 34. As shown in FIG. 6, in a state where the recording paper 100 is not in contact, the guide member 34 is located at the inner position by its own weight. As shown in FIG. 7, the leading edge of the recording paper 100 comes into contact with the guide member 34 at the inner position, and the recording paper 100 is further conveyed, whereby the guide member 34 at the inner position is pushed up and rotated to the outer position. Move.

  The recording paper 100 is guided along the ribs 84 of the guide member 34 at the outer position and reaches the first conveying roller pair 54. Ink droplets are ejected from the recording head 39 onto the recording paper 100 that is sandwiched between the first conveying roller pair 54 and conveyed to the recording unit 24, and a desired image is recorded. The recording paper 100 that has finished image recording is sandwiched between the second transport roller pair 55, transported along the straight path 65 </ b> B, and discharged onto the discharge tray 21.

  When the bypass tray 70 is used, the movable part 69 is put in a lying state. In addition, the tray cover 94 is rotated to a position where the opening on the upper end side of the bypass tray 70 is opened. The bypass tray 70 is placed on the support surface 90 of the bypass tray 70 in a state where a plurality of recording sheets are stacked.

  When an instruction to start printing is received, the printer unit 11 drives a motor (not shown) to move a feeding roller (not shown), the first transport roller pair 54, and the second transport roller pair 55 of the bypass tray 70 to a predetermined level. Rotate at timing. In response to the rotation of the feeding roller, the uppermost recording sheet is fed from the bypass tray 70 along the bypass path 66.

  The recording sheet fed along the bypass path 66 is guided along the rib 85 of the guide member 34 at the inner position, and is further transported along the straight path 65B of the transport path 65 from the bypass path 66. It reaches the conveyance roller pair 54. Since the rotation tip 81 of the guide member 34 at the inner position is supported by the outer guide member 18, even if the recording paper conveyed along the bypass path 66 slides on the guide member 34, the guide member 34 remains on the inner side. It does not rotate further inward from the position. Ink droplets are ejected from the recording head 39 onto the recording paper that is sandwiched between the first conveying roller pair 54 and conveyed to the recording unit 24, and a desired image is recorded. The recording paper on which image recording has been completed is sandwiched between the second transport roller pair 55, transported along the straight path 65B, and discharged onto the discharge tray 21.

[Rotation of guide member 22]
Hereinafter, the rotation operation of the guide member 22 will be described. When a paper jam occurs in the conveyance path 80 or the curved path 65A or when maintenance is required, the guide member 22 is rotated from the standing state (see FIG. 1B) to the arrow 50 (see FIG. 4). . As a result, the guide member 22 is in an open state (see FIG. 2), and at least a part of the transport path 80 is opened (exposed) to the outside of the housing 14. When the outer guide member 18 is rotated so as to fall backward when the guide member 22 is in the open state, at least a part of the curved path 65A is opened (exposed) to the outside of the housing 14 (FIG. 3).

  After the recording paper jammed in the conveyance path 80 or the curved path 65A is removed, the guide member 22 is rotated in the direction opposite to the arrow 50. In the process in which the guide member 22 is rotated in the direction opposite to the arrow 50, the rib 78A (see FIG. 6) contacts the rib 52 (see FIG. 6) from the rear. As described above, the rib 52 is provided on the lower surface 99 side of the protruding piece 51 protruding from the upper surface 98 of the guide member 97 in the conveying direction of the recording paper 100. The rib 78A protruding from the upper surface 75 of the guide member 22 first comes into contact with a portion (rear surface 52B) on the rear side of the top portion of the rib 52 (the lower end 52A of the rib 52). Here, the lower end 52A of the rib 52 is positioned below the upper end of the rib 78A. Therefore, the protruding piece 51 in which the rib 52 is formed is bent upward by being pushed by the rib 78A.

  When the guide member 22 is further rotated, the rib 78A gets over the lower end 52A of the rib 52. As a result, the rib 52 that has been bent upward tends to return to its original state. As a result, the rib 78A and the portion (front surface 52C) in front of the lower end 52A of the rib 52 are engaged with each other so as to exert a mutual force (see FIGS. 4, 6, and 7). In other words, when the rib 78A is pressed from the rib 52 (operation), even if a load accompanying the conveyance of the recording paper 100 is applied to the vicinity of the center of the guide member 22 in the left-right direction 9, the guide member 22 While the standing state is stably maintained and the rib 52 is pressed from the rib 78A (reaction), the projecting piece 51 of the guide member 97 is held in a state of being pressed upward without hanging down. The

  The standing guide member 22 engages with the casing 14 at both ends in the left-right direction 9 in addition to the ribs 52.

  This will be described in detail below. In the process in which the guide member 22 is rotated in the direction opposite to the arrow 50, the left and right ends of the rotation tip 81 abut against the protrusions 95 of the flexible portion 93 (see FIGS. 2 and 3) (FIG. 10A). )reference). When the protruding portion 95 is pushed by the left and right end portions of the rotating tip 81, the flexible portion 93 bends in the left-right direction 9 (see FIG. 10B). The protruding portion 95 has an inclined surface that is inclined with respect to the direction of the arrow 50, and can guide the rotating guide member 22 along the inclined surface.

  When the guide member 22 is further rotated in the direction opposite to the arrow 50, the projecting portion 95 is inserted into the hole 92 formed in the guide member 22 and engaged with the hole 92 (see FIG. 10C). ). The guide member 22 and the housing 14 are engaged with each other by the engagement between the hole 92 and the protruding portion 95. The guide member 22 is held in an upright state when engaged with the housing 14.

  As shown in FIG. 10C, when the guide member 22 is standing, the flexible portion 93 is slightly bent in the left-right direction 9 from the state shown in FIG. Thereby, the guide member 22 is pressed in the direction of the arrow 50 by the flexible portion 93.

  The guide member 22 pressed by the flexible portion 93 presses the outer guide member 18 from the rear. Here, as shown in FIG. 2, protrusions 87 extending in the left-right direction 9 are formed on the left and right ends of the outer guide member 18. The protrusion 87 is pressed against the contact surface 74 (see FIG. 3) of the housing 14 when the outer guide member 18 is pressed against the guide member 22. Thereby, the outer side guide member 18 is positioned in the position shown by FIG. As a result, the guide member 22 is also positioned at the position shown in FIG. 9 by contacting the outer guide member 18 from the front and contacting the flexible portion 93 from the rear.

  When the guide member 22 is rotated from the standing state to the arrow 50, an operation opposite to that when the guide member 22 is rotated in the direction opposite to the arrow 50 is executed.

  This will be described in detail below. The rib 78A gets over the lower end 52A of the rib 52 from the front. Thereby, the engagement between the rib 78A and the rib 52 is released.

  The flexible portion 93 bends in the left-right direction 9 by being pressed by a side surface 96 (see FIG. 10C) constituting the hole 92. Thereby, since the protrusion part 95 comes out of the hole 92, engagement with the protrusion part 95 and the hole 92 is cancelled | released (refer FIG. 10 (B)). When the guide member 22 is further rotated in the direction of the arrow 50, the rotation tip 81 of the guide member 22 is located behind the protruding portion 95. Thereby, the flexible part 93 which bent in the left-right direction 9 returns to the original state (refer FIG. 10 (A)).

[Effect of the embodiment]
According to the present embodiment, the guide member 22 is engaged with the projecting piece 51 of the guide member 97 to restrict the guide member 22 from rotating to the arrow 50 on the center side in the left-right direction 9 of the guide member 22. The member 22 can be held upright. Thereby, the guide member 22 can be stably held at a predetermined position, and the apparatus can be downsized.

  Further, the guide member 22 can be held in an upright state by restricting the guide member 22 from rotating to the arrow 50 on both sides of the guide member 22 in the left-right direction 9 by the holes 92.

  Further, the protruding piece 51 of the guide member 97 can be engaged with a rib 78A that defines the bypass path 66.

  Further, the upper surface 56 is extended to the bypass path 66 by the projecting piece 51, and the gap between the upper surface 56 and the bypass path 66 can be reduced. Since the projecting piece 51 is engaged with the rib 78A, the position of the projecting piece 51 is stabilized and the recording paper can be smoothly guided from the upper surface 56 to the bypass path 66.

[Modification]
In the above-described embodiment, the projecting piece 51 is engaged with the rib 78A. However, the projecting piece 51 may be engaged with a portion of the guide member 22 other than the rib 78A, for example, the upper surface 75.

  In the above-described embodiment, the engaging portion of the present invention is the hole 92, but the engaging portion of the present invention is not limited to the hole 92. For example, the protruding portion 95 may be formed on the guide member 22 and the hole 92 may be formed on the flexible portion 93. In this case, the engaging portion of the present invention is the protruding portion 95.

  Further, in the above-described embodiment, the holes 92 corresponding to the engaging portions of the present invention are provided at the left and right ends on the upper side of the guide member 22, but the engaging portions of the present invention are provided at locations other than the inner surface 91. The guide member 22 may be provided at an arbitrary position on the condition that it is present and can be engaged with the housing 14.

11 Printer section (image recording device)
14 Housing 18 Outer guide member (second guide member)
22 Guide member (first guide member)
24 Recording unit 30 Paper feed cassette (first tray)
45 Feed roller 51 Projection piece 56 Upper surface (guide surface)
60 First conveying roller (conveying roller)
65B straight road (extension part)
66 Bypass route (second transport route)
70 Bypass tray (second tray)
75 Upper surface (second surface)
80 Transport path (curved part)
91 Inner surface (first surface)
97 Guide members

Claims (4)

A first tray for supporting the sheet;
A housing having a first conveying path having a curved portion curved upward from the first tray and an extending portion continuous to the curved portion;
A feeding roller for feeding a sheet from the first tray along the first conveying path;
A conveying roller that is disposed on the downstream side in the conveying direction of the feeding roller in the first conveying path, and conveys the sheet;
A recording unit that is disposed on the downstream side of the transport roller in the transport direction in the first transport path, and that records an image on a sheet transported through an extended portion of the first transport path;
It is arranged on the upstream side in the transport direction with respect to the transport roller, defines the outside of the curved portion of the first transport path, and rotates the upstream side in the transport direction as an axis and the downstream side in the transport direction as a rotation tip side. A first guide member that can be moved to a first position that defines the curved portion and a second position that opens the curved portion;
A second guide member defining the inside of the curved portion of the first transport path;
A second tray having a support surface for supporting the sheet;
A guide member provided on the second tray and having a guide surface intersecting the support surface;
A second conveyance path that is provided in the casing, extends from the second tray, and is connected to the first conveyance path upstream of the conveyance roller in the conveyance direction. ,
In the first guide member, a first surface facing the curved inner side defines a part of the first transport path, and a second surface facing the curved outer side with respect to the first guide member is the second transport. An image recording apparatus that defines a part of a path and is held at the first position by engaging with a protruding piece protruding from the guide member toward the second transport path.   2. The image according to claim 1, wherein the first guide member is held at the first position when an engaging portion provided at a place other than the first surface is engaged with the housing. 3. Recording device. The first guide member is provided with a rib that protrudes toward the protruding piece side and extends along the conveying direction to define a part of the second conveying path,
The image recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the protruding piece is engaged with the rib. The image recording apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the projecting piece has a third surface that constitutes a part of the guide surface, and is engaged with the rib on a fourth surface side opposite to the third surface. .

Images