JP2016157993A - Image forming apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an image forming apparatus that includes imaging means that photographs a subject, and can simultaneously execute imaging and image formation by using sheet loading means supported by an apparatus body outer surface part without impairing a sheet loading property.SOLUTION: An image forming apparatus 1 comprises: an apparatus body 1a that includes an image forming part 10 that forms images on sheets P1; and a sheet loading tray 11 that is supported by a front part 1b of the apparatus body 1a and can load the sheets P1 to be fed to the image forming part 10. The image forming apparatus 1 further comprises: a subject loading tray 12 that is provided at an upper part of the sheet loading tray 11 and can load a subject S; and a reading unit 231 that is supported at an upper part of the subject loading tray 12 on the apparatus body 1a and can photograph the subject S loaded on the subject loading tray 12.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 4

Description

  The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus such as a copying machine, a facsimile machine, a printer, and a multifunction machine of these.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, an image forming apparatus provided with a document reading unit has been proposed which includes a document reading means (imaging means) for reading a document from above for the purpose of reducing the size of the image forming apparatus body (hereinafter referred to as the apparatus body). (See Patent Document 1).

  The image forming apparatus includes an upper surface discharge unit that discharges a sheet on which an image is formed by the image forming unit to the upper surface of the apparatus main body, and an upper surface discharge that can be opened and closed with respect to the apparatus main body that receives the sheet discharged by the upper surface discharge unit. With a tray. Further, the image forming apparatus captures a subject placement table that exposes a subject placement surface on which a subject such as a document or a book is placed by opening the top discharge tray, and a subject placed on the subject placement table. And a two-dimensional sensor as the document reading means. The opened upper surface discharge tray is also used as a support for the two-dimensional sensor. As a result, not only a flat document but also a three-dimensional subject can be imaged. The two-dimensional sensor refers to an image sensor that is two-dimensionally arranged.

JP 2006-317863 A

  However, the image forming apparatus described in Patent Document 1 may cause the following problems. That is, since the subject placement surface is exposed by opening the upper surface discharge tray that supports the two-dimensional sensor that images (reads) the subject, the upper surface discharge tray corresponds to the size of the readable subject. There is a risk of enlargement. Since a flat surface serving as a subject placement surface is required on the upper surface of the apparatus main body, the apparatus main body may be increased in accordance with the size of the readable subject.

  Further, it is necessary to open the upper discharge tray each time the subject is read. For this reason, even if a jam (paper jam) does not occur when a sheet is discharged from the main body of the apparatus, if the sheet is opened in a state where the sheet is stacked on the upper discharge tray, the stacked sheet is shifted in one direction. The sheet stackability is impaired.

  Although the present invention has a configuration in which a subject is imaged by an imaging unit, imaging and image formation can be performed simultaneously using a sheet stacking unit supported on the outer surface of the apparatus main body without impairing the sheet stacking property. An object is to provide an image forming apparatus.

  The present invention relates to an apparatus main body having an image forming means for forming an image on a sheet, and a sheet stacking capable of stacking sheets fed to the image forming means and supported by an outer surface portion of the apparatus main body. And a subject stacking unit provided above the sheet stacking unit and capable of stacking a subject, and supported above the subject stacking unit in the apparatus main body and capable of capturing an image of the subject stacked on the subject stacking unit And an imaging means.

  According to the present invention, imaging and image formation are simultaneously performed by using the sheet stacking unit supported on the outer surface of the main body of the apparatus without deteriorating the sheet stacking property while having a configuration in which the subject is imaged by the imaging unit. It becomes possible.

1 is a perspective view illustrating a schematic configuration of an image forming apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention in a storage state of a sheet stacking tray and a subject stacking tray. FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing a schematic configuration of the image forming apparatus according to the present embodiment in a stacked state of a sheet stacking tray and a subject stacking tray. The perspective view which shows the state at the time of the imaging by the reading unit which concerns on this embodiment. FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a schematic configuration of the image forming apparatus according to the present embodiment in a stacked state of a sheet stacking tray and a subject stacking tray. FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing a state in which a subject stacking tray is stored in an opening / closing cover according to the present embodiment. FIG. 3 is a perspective view illustrating a state in which an opening / closing cover according to the present embodiment is opened together with a sheet stacking tray and a subject stacking tray. (A) is a perspective view showing a subject stacking plate of a subject stacking tray according to the present embodiment, and (b) is a perspective view showing an entire structure of an opening / closing cover. The perspective view which shows the state which rotates and expand | deploys a to-be-photographed object stacking tray from the state which opened the opening / closing cover which concerns on this embodiment. FIG. 9 is a perspective view showing a state where the subject stacking tray in FIG. 8 is further rotated and deployed. FIG. 10 is a perspective view illustrating a state where the subject stacking tray in FIG. 9 is further rotated and deployed to a second stacking position. 1 is a block diagram showing a control system of an image forming apparatus according to an embodiment.

  Hereinafter, an image forming apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. The image forming apparatus according to the present embodiment can be composed of an electrophotographic recording type copying machine, a printer, a multifunction machine, and the like. 1 is a perspective view showing a schematic configuration of the image forming apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment in a storage state of the sheet stacking tray 11 and the subject stacking tray 12. FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the sheet stacking tray 11 and the subject stacking tray 12. It is a perspective view shown in a loading state. FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view showing a schematic configuration of the image forming apparatus 1 in a stacked state of the sheet stacking tray 11 and the subject stacking tray 12.

[Image forming apparatus]
As shown in FIGS. 1, 2, and 4, the image forming apparatus 1 includes an apparatus body 1a. A sheet stacking tray 11 is rotatably supported on a front portion (right side portion (outer surface portion) in FIG. 4) of the apparatus main body 1a. The sheet stacking tray 11 extends from the apparatus main body 1a and has a first stacking position (position shown in FIG. 4) where sheets can be stacked, and a first storage position where the sheets can be stored in the apparatus main body 1a (see FIGS. 1 and 6). And, it is configured to be expandable. The sheet stacking tray 11 is configured as a multi-tray in which various types (various sizes) of sheets can be stacked (as desired) according to the user's application. The sheet stacking tray 11 constitutes a sheet stacking unit that stacks the sheets P1 fed to the image forming unit 10.

  In the apparatus main body facing the rotation base (support mechanism 66) of the sheet stacking tray 11, a feeding roller 40 as a feeding unit that feeds the sheet P <b> 1 stacked on the sheet stacking tray 11 to the image forming unit 10. Is arranged. Further, a reading unit 231 as an imaging unit is rotatably supported above the sheet stacking tray 11 in the front portion (side portion) 1b (right side in FIG. 4) of the apparatus main body 1a.

  In the upper center of the apparatus main body 1a, a discharge stacking unit 51 on which sheets P discharged after printing are stacked is provided. The discharge stacking portion 51 is provided with a discharge extension tray 52. The discharge extension tray 52 has a configuration that extends rightward in FIG. 4 from the vicinity of the front end of the discharge stacking portion 51 so as to improve the stackability when the length of the discharged sheet P is long.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, an operation unit 61 having various operation buttons and the like is disposed at a position adjacent to the discharge stacking unit 51 at the top of the apparatus main body 1 a. The operation unit 61 is configured to display the power state of the image forming apparatus 1, the presence / absence of a job, an error state, or the like, or to perform network setting, job deletion, various settings, operations, and the like. Yes.

  As shown in FIG. 4, in the apparatus main body 1a of the image forming apparatus 1, an image forming unit 10 as an image forming unit is disposed at a substantially central portion inside, and a sheet feeding cassette 56 as a sheet storage unit is provided at the bottom. Is arranged. The paper feed cassette 56 is configured so that it can be attached to and pulled out from the apparatus main body 1a by pushing the exterior surface 58 shown in FIGS. 1 and 4 toward the apparatus main body 1a or pulling it out from the apparatus main body 1a. . In the sheet feeding cassette 56, the sheet P2 fed to the image forming unit 10 is stored.

  A feeding roller 57 is disposed downstream of the sheet feeding cassette 56 in the sheet feeding direction. The feeding rollers 40 and 57 are each configured in a substantially half-moon shape, and will be described later so as to feed the sheet P1 stacked on the sheet stacking tray 11 or the sheet P2 stored in the sheet feeding cassette 56 to the image forming unit 10. Each rotation is controlled by the controller 46 (see FIG. 11). In addition, the shape of the feeding rollers 40 and 57 is not limited to the circular arc shape, and can be configured as a roller having a circular outer periphery.

  The image forming unit 10 includes a photosensitive drum 21 as an image carrier, a developing device (not shown), a laser scanner 201 that exposes the surface of the photosensitive drum 21 to form an electrostatic latent image on the photosensitive drum, and a charging roller (not shown). And a transfer portion 22 for transferring the toner image to the sheet P. Further, the image forming unit 10 includes a fixing unit 31 that fixes the transferred toner image to the sheets P1 and P2 by heating and pressing. The transfer unit 22 includes a photosensitive drum 21 and a transfer roller 22a, and a transfer nip portion is formed by pressure contact between the photosensitive drum 21 and the transfer roller 22a. The fixing unit 31 includes a fixing belt 31a having a heating source and a pressure roller 31b pressed against the fixing belt 31a.

  In the sheet conveyance path 39, downstream of the fixing unit 31, a conveyance roller pair 45 that conveys the sheets P <b> 1 and P <b> 2 that are formed with the image forming unit 10 and fixed by the fixing unit 31 is disposed. Further, a discharge roller pair (discharge unit) 41 that discharges the sheets P1 and P2 is disposed on a discharge stacking unit 51 as a common stacking unit downstream of the conveyance roller pair 45.

  The discharge stacking unit 51 is fed from the sheet stacking tray 11 by the feeding roller 40 and is imaged by the image forming unit 10, and is fed from the paper feed cassette 56 and is imaged by the image forming unit 10. The sheets P2 are stacked in common. With this configuration, a stacking unit for stacking the image-formed sheet P1 sent from the sheet stacking tray 11 and a stacking unit for stacking the image-formed sheet P2 sent from the sheet feeding cassette 56 are separately prepared. Since it is not necessary, the apparatus configuration can be simplified.

  In the image forming apparatus 1 having the above configuration, the sheet P1 fed from the sheet stacking tray 11 by the feeding roller 40 is transferred to the registration roller pair according to the control of the control unit 46 (FIG. 11) during image formation. The image is sent to the image forming unit 10 via 43. Further, the sheet P <b> 2 fed from the sheet feeding cassette 56 by the feeding roller 57 is fed into the image forming unit 10 through the conveying roller pair 44 and the registration roller pair 43.

  The registration roller pair 43 temporarily receives the fed sheets P1 and P2 at the nip portion, corrects the skew, and sends them to the transfer unit 22 at a predetermined timing in accordance with the toner image on the photosensitive drum 21. In the transfer portion 22, the toner image formed on the photosensitive drum 21 is transferred to the sheets P1 and P2.

  Thereafter, the sheets P1 and P2 to which the toner image is transferred by the transfer unit 22 are conveyed to the fixing unit 31 and heated and pressed when passing through the fixing nip portion between the fixing belt 31a and the pressure roller 31b. The toner image is fixed. Further, the sheets P <b> 1 and P <b> 2 are discharged to the discharge stacking unit 51 through the discharge roller pair 41 through the conveyance roller pair 45.

  As described above, the image forming apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment includes the feeding roller 40 that feeds the sheet P1 from the sheet stacking tray 11 and the feeding roller 57 that feeds the sheet P2 from the sheet feeding cassette 56. There are two feeding means.

  In the sheet feeding cassette 56, the sheet P2 that is usually most commonly used as the sheet size and type is stored. Further, the sheet stacking tray 11 is normally stored in a folded state on the front surface (right side in FIG. 4) of the image forming apparatus 1. The sheet stacking tray 11 stacks the sheets P1 in a state of being pulled out as shown in FIG. 4 when recording on a sheet P1 of a size or type not stored in the sheet feeding cassette 56 is desired.

  When it is desired to read information from the subject S such as a document or a book, the sheet stacking plate 11a of the sheet stacking tray 11 is pulled out to the position shown in FIG. Before the sheet stacking plates 11c and 11d are expanded to the first stacking position, the subject stacking plates 12a, 12b, and 12d of the subject stacking tray 12 dedicated to the subject are rotated and deployed to the second stacking position. S is loaded. At the position of the subject stacking plate 12a on the apparatus main body 1a side, a subject regulating convex portion 12c that restricts the subject S from moving from the subject stacking tray 12 tilted in the state of being deployed to the second stacking position to the device main body 1a side. Is provided.

  The subject stacking tray 12 is provided above the sheet stacking tray 11 and constitutes a subject stacking unit capable of stacking the subject S. The subject stacking tray 12 extends from the apparatus main body 1a, and a second stacking position (position shown in FIG. 4) where the subject S can be stacked, and a second storage position (FIGS. 1 and 6) that can be stored in the apparatus main body 1a. It is configured so that it can be expanded. The subject stacking tray 12 is supported by the opening / closing cover 70 so as to be rotatable integrally with the opening / closing cover 70. As will be described later, the opening / closing cover 70 that integrally supports the folded subject stacking tray 12 integrally closes the opening 32 formed in the front portion (side portion) 1b of the apparatus main body 1a. (Side part) It is supported so that opening and closing is possible with respect to 1b.

  The subject stacking tray 12 is provided between the reading unit 231 and the sheet stacking tray 11 and is configured to stack the subject S at a position where the reading unit 231 can capture an image. The subject stacking tray 12 is supported by the central portion of the sheet stacking tray 11 in a state of extending substantially parallel to the sheet stacking tray 11 at an interval above the sheet stacking tray 11. The reading unit 231 supported by the apparatus main body 1 a above the subject stacking tray 12 is configured to image the subject S loaded on the subject stacking tray 12.

  The subject S is stacked on the subject stacking tray 12 developed at the second stacking position shown in FIG. Then, the subject stacking tray 231 is capable of reading the entire area of the subject S in a state of facing the subject stacking tray 12 extending so as to incline to the upper right from the center in the vertical direction in FIG. 4 on the front surface of the apparatus main body 1a. It stands up in the state which faces 12 from above. The reading unit 231 is positioned so that the optical axis O at the time of imaging is perpendicular to the subject S on the subject stacking tray 12 when standing. By adjusting the tilt angle of the reading unit 231 in the upright state, the optical axis O is positioned at the approximate center of the subject S, so that the entire range of the reading range H of the subject S (the range indicated by the arrow) is in focus. Will be matched.

  Next, the details of the reading unit (imaging unit) 231 that reads the subject S will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing a state during imaging by the reading unit 231 according to the present embodiment.

  As shown in FIG. 4, an opening / closing cover 70 is supported on a front portion (side portion) 1b below the reading unit 231 in the apparatus main body 1a via a support mechanism 65 so as to be openable / closable with respect to the apparatus main body 1a. Has been. Further, the sheet stacking plate 11a of the sheet stacking tray 11 is supported via the support mechanism 66 so that it can be positioned inside the open / close cover 70 in the closed state and can be opened / closed with respect to the apparatus main body 1a.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the reading unit 231 capable of capturing an image of the subject S is formed with a pair of support convex portions 239 so as to protrude from both sides above the sheet stacking tray 11 in the central portion of the front upper portion of the apparatus main body 1a. Has been. The reading unit 231 includes a reading portion 231c, a first arm portion 231a that supports the reading portion 231c, and a second arm that is connected to the first arm portion 231a by a connecting shaft 237 and is rotatable relative to the first arm portion 231a. Arm portion 231b.

  The lower second arm portion 231b is provided at its lower portion with a shaft portion 238 that protrudes in the axial direction (left-right direction in FIG. 3). In the second arm portion 231b, both end portions of the shaft portion 238 are rotatably supported by the pair of support convex portions 239, and are rotatably supported by the apparatus main body 1a. The first and second arm portions 231a and 231b as moving means are configured so that the reading unit 231c can be moved and adjusted to a position where the entire subject S stacked on the sheet stacking tray 11 can be imaged. Note that reference numeral 240 in FIG. 3 denotes a recess for making it easier for the user to hook a finger or the like when opening the opening / closing cover 70 from the state where the opening / closing cover 70 is closed on the apparatus main body 1a (see FIG. 1). The recess 240 is not shown in FIGS. 1, 2 and 4 for convenience.

  FIG. 3 shows a state in which the reading unit 231 is pulled out from the apparatus main body 1a and set to the reading mode position (image pickup possible position). In this state, the shaft portion 238 and the connecting shaft 237 are fixed by a light lock mechanism (not shown). This light lock mechanism (not shown) is configured so as to suppress the rotation of the shaft portion 238 and the connecting shaft 237 like a ratchet, and does not rotate until a certain rotational moment is applied. Held in position. As a result, the reading unit 231 is maintained in an upright state that does not rotate toward the discharge stacking unit 51 from the position in FIG. 3 at the image pickup possible position, and is maintained in the folded state in FIG. 1 at the image pickup storage position. The

  The reading unit 231c is formed in a cylindrical shape extending in the left-right direction in FIG. 3, and a knob operation unit 231d is formed on the upper portion so as to protrude. Inside the reading unit 231c, a two-dimensional sensor 50 configured by two-dimensionally arranged image sensors for reading information on the subject S is fixed in a state along the longitudinal direction of the reading unit 231c cylinder. A lens 232 is attached to the center of the surface of the reading unit 231c that can face the sheet stacking tray 11, and LED lights (light sources) 233 as illumination units are attached to the left and right sides of the lens 232, respectively. .

  The lens 232 forms an optical axis O (see FIG. 4), and is configured to form an image of the subject S on the two-dimensional sensor 50. The two-dimensional sensor 50 performs so-called photoelectric conversion, which converts the formed image of the subject S into electronic information, and outputs the signal to the control unit 46 (see FIG. 11). LED lights 233 provided integrally on both sides of the lens 232 in the reading unit 231c emit light under the control of the control unit 46, and illuminate the subject S stacked on the sheet stacking tray 11.

  The reading unit 231 described above is a subject on the subject stacking tray 12 (on the subject stacking means) facing the subject stacking tray 12 at the second stacking position (see FIG. 1) stored on the apparatus main body side. S is supported so as to be movable to an imageable position where imaging can be performed. As shown in FIG. 3, on the front side of the upper front of the apparatus main body 1a, a display unit (light emitting unit) is provided at a position covered by a reading unit 231 folded at an imaging storage position stored on the apparatus main body side. A reading display lamp 235 and a reading operation start button 236 are arranged.

  The reading display lamp 235 is exposed when the reading unit 231 moves to an imageable position (reading mode position) where the subject S stacked on the subject stacking tray 12 at the second stacking position can be imaged. It emits light to indicate that it is possible. The reading display lamp 235 displays that the image can be captured by light emission under the control of the control unit 46 (FIG. 11), and the reading unit 231 can perform imaging while the reading display lamp 235 is displayed. Are controlled by the control unit 46. That is, the reading display lamp 235 is turned on when the reading unit 231 is in the image pickup possible position (FIGS. 2 and 3) and can be read, and is turned off when the reading unit 231 is in the image pickup storage position (FIG. 1) where the reading operation is not possible. , Controlled to play a role in informing the user of the status.

  Whether or not the reading unit 231 is in the reading mode position is determined based on the detection of the position of the reading unit 231 by the reading mode position detection sensor 49 (FIG. 11) as detection means. (FIG. 11) determines. The reading mode position detection sensor 49 can be composed of a switch (not shown), a photo interrupter (not shown), and the like that are turned on and off as the shaft 238 of the second arm 231b rotates. If the reading mode position detection sensor 49 is on, the reading unit 231 is in the image pickup possible position, and if the reading mode position detection sensor 49 is off, the reading unit 231 is in the image pickup storage position. That is. The control unit 46 controls the reading unit 231 to start the reading operation when the reading operation start button 236 is pressed while the reading display lamp 235 is lit.

  As shown in FIG. 4, in a state where the sheet stacking tray 11 is rotated to the stacking position and the reading unit 231 is raised to the image pickup possible position, the reading display lamp 235 shown in FIG. 236 can be operated. However, as shown in FIG. 1, when the reading unit 231 is closed on the apparatus main body 1a side to be in the imaging storage position, the reading unit 231 covers and hides the reading display lamp 235 and the reading operation start button 236 from above.

  Therefore, the reading display lamp 235 cannot be viewed and the reading operation start button 236 cannot be operated. Therefore, in the state of FIG. 1 in which the reading unit 231 is accommodated, there is no possibility of performing a reading operation by mistake, and the reading operation can be performed only when the reading unit 231 is in the reading mode position. Therefore, there is no possibility that the reading operation is performed in a state where the position of the reading unit 231 is deviated from the reading mode position and the reading range is shifted or the focus is not adjusted.

  Here, the image forming apparatus 1 in the state shown in FIG. 1 is closed and accommodated in the apparatus main body 1a with the sheet stacking tray 11, the subject stacking tray 12, the discharge extension tray 52, and the reading unit 231 closed. The image forming apparatus 1 can be normally used as a compact printer with the sheet stacking tray 11, the subject stacking tray 12, the discharge extension tray 52, and the reading unit 231 closed in the apparatus main body 1a as shown in FIG. Is possible.

  When the sheet P2 is fed from the sheet feeding cassette 56 to the image forming unit 10 (FIG. 4), the feeding roller 57 is rotationally driven. On the other hand, when it is desired to use a sheet P1 having a size or type different from that of the sheet P2 stored in the sheet feeding cassette 56, the sheet stacking tray 11 is opened from the apparatus main body 1a and is positioned at the first stacking position. The feed roller 40 is rotationally driven.

  Further, when the discharge extension tray 52 is opened as shown in FIGS. 2 to 4, the length of the sheet P is not less than a predetermined length, and the stackability of the sheet P on the discharge stacking portion 51 is desired to be improved. . During normal use of a shorter sheet, the discharge extension tray 52 can be used in a closed state.

  When reading the subject S such as a document as well as a normal printer, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 4, the sheet stacking tray 11 and the subject stacking tray 12 are respectively set to the first stacking position and the second stacking position. It is performed in the state opened to the loading position.

  Next, the subject stacking tray 12 dedicated for document stacking developed when the reading operation in the present embodiment is performed will be described in detail with reference to FIGS. 5 to 10 are perspective views showing a development procedure of the schematic configuration of the image forming apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment. FIG. 5 shows a state in which the subject stacking tray 12 is stored in the opening / closing cover 70, and FIG. 6 shows a state in which the sheet stacking tray 11 and the subject stacking tray 12 are stored in the opening / closing cover 70. 7A shows the subject stacking plates 12a, 12b, and 12c, and FIG. 7B shows the structure of the opening / closing cover 70. FIG. FIG. 8 shows a state when the subject stacking tray 12 is rotated and unfolded with the opening / closing cover 70 opened, and FIG. 9 shows another state when the subject stacking tray 12 is rotated and unfolded on the opening / closing cover 70. FIG. 10 shows still another state when the subject stacking tray 12 is rotated and deployed on the opening / closing cover 70.

  The image forming apparatus is not limited to the one used in the present embodiment, and has been reduced in size by eliminating a useless space inside, and increased even if the document table was folded and placed inside the apparatus main body. The capacity portion protrudes outward from the apparatus main body, leading to an increase in the size of the apparatus main body. Therefore, in the present embodiment, the sheet stacking tray 11 and the subject stacking tray 12 are arranged on the exterior surface (front portion 1b) of the apparatus main body 1a (see FIG. 4). In this manner, the subject stacking tray 12 is installed on the exterior surface of the apparatus main body 1a with the smallest area at most, so that the increase in the size of the apparatus main body 1a is minimized. Thereby, the enlargement of the image forming apparatus 1 can be avoided.

  FIG. 5 shows a state in which the subject stacking plates 12 a, 12 b, 12 d in the subject stacking tray 12 are stored in the opening / closing cover 70. In the present embodiment, the subject stacking plates 12a, 12b, and 12d are accommodated in the opening / closing cover 70 only by increasing the thickness of the opening / closing cover 70 by several millimeters. The subject stacking plate 12a has arms 13a and 13a projecting in a direction perpendicular to the exterior surface of the apparatus main body 1a at both lower ends, and cylindrical shaft portions 13c and 13c are outside near the tips of the arms 13a and 13a. (Figs. 7A and 7B). The subject stacking plates 12a, 12b, and 12d are fixed to the open / close cover 70 with a force that can be released by a user's operating force by the arms 13a and 13a and the engaging convex portions 12g and 12g shown in FIG. The

  The engaging convex portions 12g and 12g are provided at both upper ends of the subject stacking plate 12b in FIG. A recess 75 (FIG. 7B) formed in a rectangular shape is provided on the exterior surface of the open / close cover 70 so as to accommodate the subject stacking plates 12a, 12b, and 12d. With the subject stacking plates 12a, 12b, and 12d stored in the opening / closing cover 70, the engaging protrusions 12g and the engaging protrusions 12g and 70a (FIG. 7B) provided at both upper ends of the opening 75 of the opening / closing cover 70 are provided. 12g can be engaged. Thereby, the folded subject stacking tray 12 is stored in the opening / closing cover 70 as shown in FIG.

  In FIG. 6, the opening / closing cover 70 is opened to a predetermined position in order to unfold the sheet stacking tray 11 and stack the sheet P1 or to unfold the reading unit 231 and stack the subject S. As shown in FIG. 6, the rectangular opening / closing cover 70 is fixed in a state in which the accommodating portions 71 a and 71 b are erected slightly near the center of both ends in the longitudinal direction.

  That is, as shown in FIG. 7B, a recess 75 is formed in the central portion of the rectangular opening / closing cover 70. The housing portions 71a and 71b having groove portions 72a and 72b formed so as to be connected from the exterior surface (front surface) to the back surface of the opening / closing cover 70 are provided at both ends of the recess 75. As shown in FIG. 7A, the accommodating portions 71a and 71b provided in the groove portions 72a and 72b of the opening / closing cover 70 are formed in a box shape so as to cover the arms 13a and 13a of the subject stacking plate 12a. A part of the surface parallel to the upper end surface of the accommodating portions 71a and 71b and the back surface of the opening / closing cover 70 is free without a wall portion.

  An L-shaped long hole portion 73 (see FIGS. 5 and 6) that is formed to penetrate the housing portion 71 a so as to communicate with the inside of the housing portion 71 a is provided on the outer surface of the housing portion 71 a and is located on the opposite side. The accommodating portion 71b is also provided with a long hole portion 73 having a similar shape. The long hole portion 73 includes a long guide portion 73a along the longitudinal direction of the accommodating portion 71a fixed along the short direction of the opening / closing cover 70, and a bent portion 73b bent at a right angle from the long guide portion 73a. And a short guide portion 73c extending in the opposite direction from the bent portion 73b.

  That is, in the shaft portions 13c and 13c provided on the arms 13a and 13a of the subject stacking plate 12a shown in FIG. 7A, first, the arms 13a and 13a are inserted into the groove portions 72a and 72b of the housing portions 71a and 71b. The Thereafter, the shaft portions 13c and 13c enter the L-shaped long guide portions 73a and 73a of the housing portions 71a and 71b. Here, the overall length dimension of the subject stacking plate 12a and the dimension between the inner walls of the accommodating portions 71a and 71b of the opening / closing cover 70 are substantially the same, and the subject stacking plate 12a is incorporated so as to bend. Thereby, after assembling, the shaft portions 13c and 13c of the arms 13a and 13a of the subject stacking plate 12a are restricted from being detached from the long hole portion 73 on the opening / closing cover 70 side.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 7B, shafts 13c, 13c in the longitudinal direction of the subject stacking plate 12a have shafts that rotatably support the subject stacking plate 12b with respect to the subject stacking plate 12a. Portions 14 and 14 are provided.

  As shown in FIG. 6, hooks 76 and 76 that are bent downward from the middle portion are fixed to the opening / closing cover 70 in the same phase, below the accommodating portions 71 a and 71 b at both ends. The front ends of the hooks 76 and 76 are opened and closed with respect to the apparatus main body 1a by the sheet stacking plate 11a connected to the sheet stacking plates 11c and 11d via a rotating shaft 74 included in the support mechanism 65 (see FIG. 4). Supported as possible. As a result, the subject stacking tray 12 is placed between the opening / closing cover 70 and the opening / closing cover 70 supported to be openable / closable with respect to the opening 32 of the apparatus main body 1 a so as to be parallel to the developed sheet stacking tray 11. Positioned with the subject stacking tray 12 in between.

  In addition, the sheet stacking tray 11 is fixed to the lower portions of both ends of the sheet stacking plate 11a with engaging convex portions 16 and 16 bent upward so as to be in phase with each other. The front end portions of the engaging convex portions 16 and 16 are supported so as to be openable and closable with respect to the opening portion 32 of the apparatus body 1a via a support mechanism 66 (see FIG. 4). Guide portions 17 and 17 each having a substantially arcuate guide slot 17a are fixed to the back surfaces of the accommodating portions 71a and 71b in the opening / closing cover 70, respectively.

  Guide shafts 18 and 18 fixed to both ends of the sheet stacking plate 11a are slidably inserted into the guide slots 17a and 17a of the guide portions 17 and 17, respectively. Accordingly, when the opening / closing cover 70 is rotated so as to be pulled out from the state of FIG. 5, the folded sheet stacking tray 11 is opened / closed while being pulled by the guided shafts 18, 18 via the guide portions 17, 17. Following the cover 70, the cover 70 is rotated in the direction of arrow B in FIG. Note that side regulating members 19 and 19 for regulating the positions of both ends of the stacked sheets in the width direction on the sheet stacking surface of the sheet stacking plate 11a are provided so as to be movable and adjustable in the width direction. It has been.

[Control system]
Next, a reading operation control system in the image forming apparatus 1 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 11 is a block diagram illustrating a control system for the reading operation of the image forming apparatus 1.

  As shown in FIG. 11, a control unit (control means) 46 provided in the apparatus main body 1a includes an original detection sensor 47, a reading unit 231, an operation unit 61, a reading mode position detection sensor 49, and a reading operation start button 236. Each signal is input. Further, the control unit 46 outputs each signal to the reading unit 231, the USB memory 48, the image forming unit 10, the feeding roller 40, the feeding roller 57, and the reading display lamp 235. The reading operation start button 236 functions under the control of the control unit 46 so that the reading operation can be instructed only when the reading display lamp 235 emits light.

  When the signal from the document detection sensor 47 provided on the subject stacking tray 12 is transmitted, the control unit 46 performs a reading operation (imaging operation) by the reading unit 231 based on the on / off state of the reading mode position detection sensor 49. It is determined whether or not it is possible. Further, the control unit 46 outputs a lighting command to the reading display lamp 235 in the on state based on the on / off state of the reading mode position detection sensor 49, and the reading display lamp in the off state. A non-lighting command is output to 235.

  When the signal from the reading operation start button 236 is transmitted, the control unit 46 outputs an operation command to the reading unit 231, and information from the reading unit 231 according to the input status (setting) from the operation unit 61. Is input to the USB memory 48. Alternatively, the control unit 46 outputs a command for inputting information from the reading unit 231 to the image forming unit 10 and outputs an operation command to the image forming unit 10. The control unit 46 controls the operation of the feeding roller 40 and the operation of the feeding roller 57, respectively. Then, the control unit 46 performs image forming processing performed by feeding the sheet P1 from the sheet stacking tray 11 to the image forming unit 10 by the feeding roller 40, and imaging for capturing the subject S on the subject stacking tray 12 by the reading unit 231. The process is configured to be executed simultaneously.

  As described above, the control system of the present embodiment is configured to display the subject S loaded on the subject stacking tray 12 at the second stacking position by pulling out the reading unit 231 disposed so as to be housed in the device main body 1a. It has a reading mode position that allows reading. Then, when the reading unit 231 is set to the reading mode position, it has a reading display lamp 235 for displaying that reading is possible, and a reading operation start button 236 for instructing to start the reading operation.

  The reading display lamp 235 is configured to emit light when the reading unit 231 is pulled out to a readable reading mode position. The reading operation start button 236 is configured to appear when the reading unit 231 is pulled out to the reading mode position and to be hidden when the reading unit 231 is stored in the apparatus main body 1a. Then, the control unit 46 controls the reading operation start button 236 to function only when the reading display lamp 235 emits light.

  In the present embodiment, the subject stacking tray 12 for stacking the subject S in the pulled-out state, in consideration of the increase in size of the image forming apparatus and the stackability of the sheet conveyed to the discharge stacking unit 51 after image formation, The sheet stacking tray 11 for supplying sheets is configured separately. For this reason, it is not necessary to select whether to read the subject S or to form an image on the sheet P1, and both can be executed simultaneously under the control of the control unit 46. Accordingly, the image formation on the sheet P1 based on the information of the subject S read by the reading unit 231 can be executed simultaneously with the reading by the reading unit 231.

  Next, the locus and the like when the subject stacking plates 12a, 12b, 12d and the like shown in FIGS. 5 and 7A, 7B are developed from the front portion (exterior surface) 1b of the apparatus main body 1a will be described.

  That is, in the above-described configuration, the opening / closing cover 70 is opened at the position shown in FIG. The sheet stacking tray 11 rotated together with the opening / closing cover 70 is rotated in the direction of arrow B in FIG. 6 following the rotating operation of the opening / closing cover 70, so that the sheet stacking tray 11 faces upward and the subject stacking tray 12. Will be located in a state of facing downward.

  From this state, the operator grasps the subject regulating convex portion 12c facing forward and pulls it up in the direction of arrow C. Accordingly, the shafts 13c and 13c are moved in the direction of arrow E in FIG. 8 while being guided by the long guide portion 73a while the subject stacking plates 12a, 12b and 12d are folded. That is, the shafts 13c and 13c of the arms 13a and 13a of the subject stacking plate 12a are connected to the long guide portions 73a and 73a of the opening / closing cover 70 with the subject stacking plates 12a, 12b and 12d pulled out partway as shown in FIG. It is moved in the direction of arrow E along 73a. Then, when approaching the ends of the long guide portions 73a and 73a, the subject stacking plates 12a, 12b, and 12d can be rotated in the direction of arrow D toward the inside of the apparatus main body.

  When the shaft portions 13c and 13c come into contact with the lower portions of the bent portions 73b and 73b from the long guide portions 73a and 73a, the movement of the subject stacking tray 12 is temporarily stopped. From this state, the subject stacking tray 12 is rotated while moving the shaft portions 13c and 13c upward (in the direction of arrow F in FIG. 9) along the bent portions 73b and 73b. Then, the subject stacking tray 12 is further rotated in the direction of arrow D (FIG. 8) from the time when the shaft portions 13c and 13c contact the short guide portions 73c and 73c. As a result, in the subject stacking tray 12, the shaft portions 13c and 13c at both ends in the width direction are positioned at the short guide portions 73c of the housing portions 71a and 71b, respectively, as shown in FIG. At the same time, the arms 13a and 13a are in the standing state shown in FIG. 9 in a state where the arms 13a and 13a are locked to the engaging end portions 72c and 72c provided in the accommodating portions 71a and 71b, respectively. In this state, the subject stacking tray 12 is supported at a predetermined interval above the folded sheet stacking tray 11 while being supported by the opening / closing cover 70 with the arms 13a and 13a extending downward as fulcrums. The

  That is, the subject stacking plates 12a, 12b, and 12d are further rotated from the state of FIG. 8, and the shaft portions 13c and 13c of the arms 13a and 13a of the subject stacking plate 12a are rotated so as to be directed in the direction of arrow F. Thus, the state shown in FIG. 9 is obtained. At the end in the direction of the arrow F, there are short guide portions 73c and 73c formed in the direction opposite to the direction of the arrow E (FIG. 8) that has advanced the long guide portions 73a and 73a last time. , 13a pivots 13c, 13c. Thereafter, the subject stacking plates 12a, 12b, and 12d are moved to positions parallel to the sheet stacking plates 11a, 11c, and 11d while being folded (FIG. 10).

  From the above state, the operator places the subject stacking plate 12b with respect to the subject stacking plate 12a and the shaft portions 14 and 14 as fulcrums in the direction of arrow J (FIG. 10) so as to match the size of the subject S to be imaged. To 180 ° to widen the loading surface of the subject S. Further, when the operator wants to widen the stacking surface according to the size of the subject S, the operator rotates the subject stacking plate 12d with respect to the subject stacking plate 12b up to 180 ° with the pivot shaft 20 as a fulcrum. Expand the loading surface. The object stacking plate 12b has storage recesses 12e and 12f that can store the object stacking plates 12d and 12d that rotate about the rotation shaft 20 at positions near both ends of the front end.

  After unfolding the subject stacking tray 12 as described above, the operator sequentially pulls out the sheet stacking plates 11c and 11d in the direction of arrow C from the state of FIG. As a result, the sheet stacking plates 11c and 11d are pulled out from the sheet stacking plate 11a and developed, and a plane on which the sheets P1 are stacked appears.

  After the above rotation and unfolding, the subject S is loaded on the subject stacking tray 12 and information is read by the reading unit 231. Further, when a small size sheet P1 is stacked on the sheet stacking tray 11 in order to perform image formation by the feeding roller 40, the following can be performed. That is, the subject stacking plates 12d and 12d, which are a part of the subject stacking tray 12, are folded toward the subject stacking plate 12b, or the subject stacking plate 12b is further folded onto the subject stacking plate 12a to stack the sheets P1. It is possible.

  In the above embodiment, the sheet stacking tray 11 in the first storage position and the subject stacking tray 12 in the second storage position rotate together with the opening / closing cover 70 in a positional relationship adjacent to each other on the back side and the front side of the opening / closing cover 70. Configured to be possible. Before opening the sheet stacking tray 11 to the first stacking position with the opening / closing cover 70 opened from the apparatus main body 1 a, the subject stacking tray 12 is rotated from the front side of the opening / closing cover 70 to move the upper portion of the sheet stacking tray 11. And then deployed to the second loading position. As a result, the sheet stacking tray 11 and the subject stacking tray 12 can be stored very easily, and the unfolding operation of the subject stacking tray 12 from the stored state and the subsequent unfolding operation of the sheet stacking tray 11 can be performed very easily. it can.

  When the subject stacking tray 12 is positioned at the support position, the center portion in the direction extending from the apparatus main body 1a is supported in a non-rotatable state, and the plurality of stacked subject stacking plates 12a and 12b are supported. , 12d are deployed while being sequentially rotated to the second loading position. For this reason, according to the size of the subject S stacked at the second stacking position, necessary ones of the subject stacking plates 12b and 12d can be rotated and deployed to appropriately change the stacking area.

  Further, the sheet stacking tray 11 is extended substantially parallel to the subject stacking tray 12 between the subject stacking tray 12 and the opening / closing cover 70 after the subject stacking tray 12 is developed to the second stacking position, and the first stacking is performed. Expanded to position (FIG. 4). The sheet stacking tray 11 is unfolded while the subject stacking tray 12 is unfolded to the second stacking position (FIG. 4) and the plurality of stacked sheet stacking plates 11a, 11c, and 11d are sequentially pulled out. The first loading position is set. Therefore, the sheet stacking plates 11a, 11c, and 11d can be smoothly and slid and sequentially moved to the first stacking position without being affected by the subject stacking tray 12 that is rotated and deployed and positioned at the second stacking position. Can be deployed.

  According to the present embodiment, a variety of sheet feeding can be realized by simultaneously performing the sheet feeding from the sheet feeding cassette 56 and the sheet feeding from the sheet stacking tray 11. In other words, since the subject stacking tray 12 on which the subject S to be imaged by the reading unit 231 is stacked is provided so as to be substantially parallel above the sheet stacking tray 11 for supplying sheets to the image forming unit 10, even temporarily. There is no need to select whether to read a document or form an image. As described above, the sheet stacking property is not impaired even though the subject S is captured by the reading unit 231. Then, while using a sheet of a desired size using the sheet stacking tray 11 supported on the front portion of the apparatus main body 1a (the right side portion (outer surface portion) in FIG. 4), the image pickup by the reading unit 231 and the image forming unit 10 are performed. Can simultaneously perform image formation. The outer surface portion of the apparatus main body 1a includes all outer surface portions exposed to the outside, such as a front surface portion, a side surface portion, or a rear surface portion of the device main body 1a.

  In the present embodiment, the subject stacking plates 12b and 12d are rotated with respect to the subject stacking plate 12a from the state shown in FIG. 9 and deployed to the second stacking position. However, the present invention is not limited to this configuration. That is, as in the case of the sheet stacking tray 11, it is possible to configure the second stacking position by moving the subject stacking plates 12 b and 12 d sequentially from the subject stacking plate 12 a from the state of FIG. 9. Further, a subject stacking plate having a size longer than the subject stacking plates 12d and 12d is provided from the center of the subject stacking plates 12d and 12d in the subject stacking plate 12b of FIG. 10 to widen the stacking area of the entire subject stacking tray 12. It is also possible.

  Although the embodiment described above has been described using the image forming apparatus 1 of the electrophotographic recording system, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the present invention can also be used in an image forming apparatus of an ink jet recording system that forms an image on a sheet by discharging ink liquid from a nozzle. In this case, the same effect as described above can be obtained.

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Image forming apparatus / 1a ... Apparatus main body / 1b ... Front part (outer surface part of an apparatus main body) / 10 ... Image forming part (image forming means) / 11 ... Sheet stacking tray (sheet stacking means) / 11a, 11c, 11d ... Sheet stacking plate / 12 ... Subject stacking tray (subject stacking means) / 12a, 12b, 12d ... Subject stacking plate / 40 ... Feeding roller (feeding means) / 46 ... Control section (control means) / 49 ... Reading mode Position detection sensor (detection means) / 51 ... discharge stacking section (common stacking section) / 56 ... paper feed cassette (sheet storage section) / 70 ... open / close cover / 231 ... reading unit (imaging means) / 235 ... reading display lamp ( (Display means, light emitting section) / P1, P2 ... sheet / S ... subject

Claims (13)

An apparatus main body having image forming means for forming an image on a sheet;
A sheet stacking unit supported on an outer surface of the apparatus main body and capable of stacking a sheet fed to the image forming unit;
A subject stacking unit provided above the sheet stacking unit and capable of stacking a subject;
An imaging unit supported above the subject stacking unit in the apparatus main body and capable of capturing an image of the subject stacked on the subject stacking unit;
An image forming apparatus. The subject stacking unit is supported by the sheet stacking unit in a state of extending substantially parallel to the sheet stacking unit at an interval above the sheet stacking unit.
The image forming apparatus according to claim 1. The sheet stacking means is configured to be expandable into a first stacking position where a sheet can be stacked by extending from the apparatus main body and a first storage position capable of being stored in the apparatus main body,
The subject stacking means is configured to be expandable into a second stacking position where the subject can be stacked by extending from the apparatus main body and a second storage position capable of being stored in the apparatus main body.
The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the image forming apparatus is an image forming apparatus. An open / close cover supported to be openable and closable with respect to the outer surface portion below the imaging means in the apparatus body
The sheet stacking means is supported by the apparatus main body so as to rotate following the opening / closing cover,
The subject stacking means is supported by the opening / closing cover so as to rotate integrally with the opening / closing cover.
The image forming apparatus according to claim 3. The sheet stacking means in the first storage position and the subject stacking means in the second storage position are rotatable together with the opening / closing cover in a positional relationship adjacent to each other on the back side and the front side of the opening / closing cover,
In a state where the opening / closing cover is opened from the apparatus main body, the subject stacking unit is rotated from the front side of the opening / closing cover before the sheet stacking unit is expanded to the first stacking position. And then deployed to the second loading position after being positioned at the upper support position,
The image forming apparatus according to claim 4. The sheet stacking unit is extended substantially parallel to the subject stacking unit between the subject stacking unit and the opening / closing cover after the subject stacking unit is deployed to the second stacking position, and the first stacking unit. Be positioned,
The image forming apparatus according to claim 5. When the subject stacking unit is positioned at the support position, the plurality of stacked subject stacking plates are sequentially rotated from a state in which a central portion in a direction extending from the apparatus main body is supported so as not to rotate. Deployed to the second loading position,
The image forming apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the image forming apparatus is an image forming apparatus. The sheet stacking unit is expanded to the first stacking position while the plurality of stacked sheet stacking plates are sequentially slid and pulled out from the state in which the subject stacking unit is expanded to the second stacking position. ,
The image forming apparatus according to claim 6. A sheet storage unit that is disposed in the apparatus main body and stores a sheet fed to the image forming unit;
A common stacking unit that is provided at an upper portion of the apparatus main body and stacks in common a sheet fed from the sheet stacking unit and formed with an image and a sheet fed from the sheet storage unit and imaged;
The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the image forming apparatus is an image forming apparatus. A feeding unit that feeds the sheets stacked on the sheet stacking unit toward the image forming unit;
An image forming process performed by feeding a sheet from the sheet stacking unit to the image forming unit by the feeding unit, and an imaging process of capturing an image of the subject on the subject stacking unit by the imaging unit are performed simultaneously. An executable control means,
The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the image forming apparatus is an image forming apparatus. Detection means for detecting the position of the imaging means;
Display means for displaying that imaging by the imaging means is possible,
The control means causes the display means to display that the imaging means can capture images based on detection by the detection means.
The image forming apparatus according to claim 10. The display means is a light emitting unit that emits and displays information indicating that imaging by the imaging means is possible,
When the imaging unit moves to an imaging storage position stored on the apparatus main body side, the light emitting unit is covered and the imaging unit moves to an imageable position where the subject on the subject stacking unit can be imaged. The light emitting part is exposed to display that the image can be captured,
The image forming apparatus according to claim 11. The control means controls the imaging means to enable imaging when displaying the fact that the imaging is possible on the display means,
The image forming apparatus according to claim 11, wherein the image forming apparatus is an image forming apparatus.

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