JP2016184092A - Image forming apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an in-barrel ejection type image forming apparatus that enables a user to visually recognize a sheet even when the sheet is of a small size.SOLUTION: A groove part 8 extending in an ejection direction, the groove part 8 having a depth dimension of 5 mm or more is provided at least at a boundary part 6C between a first placing surface 6A and a second placing surface 6B of a paper ejection tray 6, and light can be made incident on the rear face side of a sheet through the groove part 8 so as for a user to recognize the rear face of the sheet as a surface. Since the groove part 8 extends in the ejection direction at the boundary part 6C between the first placing surface 6A and the second placing surface 6B, even when a sheet of a small size is placed on the paper ejection tray 6, the user can recognize the rear face of the sheet as a surface. Thus, in an in-barrel ejection type image forming apparatus, the user can visually recognize the sheet even when the sheet is of a small size.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

  The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus having a scanner unit on a vertically upper side of a printer unit.

  For example, in the image forming apparatus described in Patent Document 1, a paper discharge tray on which a sheet on which an image is formed is placed and a paper discharge space in which a paper discharge space is provided between a printer unit and a scanner unit. Type image forming apparatus.

JP 2008-304748 A

  In the in-body discharge type image forming apparatus, due to its structure, it is difficult to visually recognize the back side of the discharge tray (discharge space). In particular, when a small-sized sheet is placed on the sheet discharge tray, it is difficult for the user to visually recognize the sheet.

  SUMMARY An advantage of some aspects of the invention is that it provides an in-body discharge type image forming apparatus that can be visually recognized by a user even for a small-sized sheet.

  In the present application, in the invention described in claim 1, the printer unit (3) for forming an image on a sheet, the first mounting surface (6A) and the second mounting surface on which the sheet on which the image is formed is mounted. A printer unit (3) having a discharge tray (6) having a placement surface (6B) in the upper part in the vertical direction, and a sheet on which an image is formed is directed to the discharge tray (6). A discharge roller (7) to be discharged, and a scanner unit (5) for reading the contents written on the document, the position being spaced apart via a space (4) above the discharge tray (6) in the vertical direction When the width direction is a direction parallel to the first placement surface (6A) orthogonal to the sheet discharge direction, the scanner section (5) is at one end in the width direction. The first support portion (10A) provided in the second support and the second support provided on the other end in the width direction (10B) and the downstream side in the discharge direction of the space (4) is open, and the first placement surface (6A) is located on the discharge roller (7) side in the sheet discharge direction. The second mounting surface (6B) is connected to the first mounting surface (6A) so as to become lower in the vertical direction as it approaches the paper discharge roller (7). ) Located on the more forward side in the discharge direction and at a smaller inclination angle than the first placement surface (6A), and at least the first placement surface (6A) and the second placement surface of the discharge tray (6). The boundary (6C) with (6B) is provided with a groove (8) extending in the discharge direction and having a depth dimension (D) of 5 mm or more.

  In the present invention, light can enter the back side of the sheet through the groove (8). Therefore, the user can visually recognize the sheet as an expanded surface by recognizing the light reflected on the back surface of the sheet. That is, the user can recognize the back surface of the sheet as a surface through the groove (8).

  The groove portion (8) extends in the discharge direction at the boundary portion (6C) between the first placement surface (6A) and the second placement surface (6B). Even if it is mounted in (6), light can be introduced into the back side of the sheet.

  Therefore, according to the present invention, in the in-body discharge type image forming apparatus, even if the sheet is small in size, the user can visually recognize the sheet. If the sheet is large in size, the leading end of the sheet in the discharge direction reaches the second placement surface (6B). For this reason, it is sufficient that the groove (8) is provided at least at the boundary (6C) between the first placement surface (6A) and the second placement surface (6B).

  Incidentally, the reference numerals in parentheses for each of the above means are examples showing the correspondence with the specific means described in the embodiments described later, and the present invention is indicated by the reference numerals in the parentheses of the above respective means. It is not limited to specific means.

1 is an external perspective view of an image forming apparatus 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of the paper discharge tray 6 of the image forming apparatus 1 according to the first embodiment of the present invention. 1 is a perspective view of a paper tray 6 of an image forming apparatus 1 according to a first embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view of a paper discharge tray 6 of a conventional image forming apparatus 1. FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of the paper discharge tray 6 of the image forming apparatus 1 according to the first embodiment of the present invention. 1 is a diagram illustrating characteristics of an image forming apparatus 1 according to a first embodiment of the present invention. FIGS. 3A and 3B are diagrams illustrating features of the image forming apparatus 1 according to the first embodiment of the present invention. FIGS. FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view of a paper discharge tray 6 of an image forming apparatus 1 according to a second embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 6 is a perspective view of a paper tray 6 of an image forming apparatus 1 according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

  The “embodiment of the invention” described below shows an example of the embodiment. In other words, the invention specific items described in the claims are not limited to the specific means and structures shown in the following embodiments.

  In this embodiment, the present invention is applied to a so-called “in-body discharge type image forming apparatus”. The arrows and the like indicating the directions given to the drawings are described for easy understanding of the relationship between the drawings. The present invention is not limited to the directions given in the drawings.

  At least one member or part described with at least a reference numeral is provided, except where “plurality”, “two or more”, and the like are omitted. Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

(First embodiment)
As shown in FIG. 1, the in-body discharge type image forming apparatus 1 includes a printer unit 3 and a scanner unit 5, and a discharge space 4 is provided between the printer unit 3 and the scanner unit 5. An image forming apparatus.

<Printer section>
The printer unit 3 forms an image on a sheet. In the housing 3A of the printer unit 3, for example, an electrophotographic image forming mechanism (not shown) is accommodated. The sheet on which the image is formed by the image forming mechanism is discharged toward the paper discharge tray 6 by a pair of paper discharge rollers 7 as shown in FIG.

  The paper discharge tray 6 is a placement unit on which a sheet on which an image is formed is placed, and is provided on the upper part of the printer unit 3 in the vertical direction. The paper discharge tray 6 has a first placement surface 6A and a second placement surface 6B.

  The first placement surface 6 </ b> A and the second placement surface 6 </ b> B are placement surfaces that are adjacently disposed along the sheet discharge direction. The discharge direction is a moving direction of the sheet discharged by the pair of paper discharge rollers 7. The discharge direction according to the present embodiment is a direction from the rear side to the front side of the image forming apparatus 1.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the first placement surface 6 </ b> A is located on the paper discharge roller 7 side (rear side in the present embodiment) in the discharge direction. The second placement surface 6B is connected to the first placement surface 6A and is positioned on the forward side in the discharge direction (the front side in the present embodiment) from the first placement surface 6A.

  The first placement surface 6 </ b> A is an inclined surface that is inclined with respect to the virtual horizontal plane, and is an inclined surface that decreases in the vertical direction as it approaches the pair of paper discharge rollers 7. The second placement surface 6B is an inclined surface or a horizontal surface having a smaller inclination angle than the first placement surface 6A. The “inclination angle” is a depression angle that decreases in the vertical direction as the pair of paper discharge rollers 7 is approached.

  Specifically, the second placement surface 6B according to the present embodiment is configured by a curved surface smoothly connected to the first placement surface 6A as shown in FIG. That is, the inclination angle of the second placement surface 6B increases as it approaches the boundary portion 6C with the first placement surface 6A, and the inclination angle decreases as it moves away from the boundary portion 6C along the discharge direction.

  Note that the boundary portion 6C refers to, for example, a portion where the inclination angle (the depression angle) is a preset angle (greater than 0 ° and 5 ° or less). In the present embodiment, the inclination angle (the depression angle) of the second mounting surface 6B is approximately 0 °.

  A regulating wall 6D is provided at the end of the pair of paper discharge rollers 7 on the first placement surface 6A, that is, at the rear end of the first placement surface 6A. The restriction wall 6 </ b> D is a wall that can contact the end of the sheet discharged to the discharge tray 6. For this reason, the rear end position of the sheet discharged in the discharge tray 6 in the discharge direction is determined by the regulation wall 6D.

<Sheet on the output tray>
As shown in FIG. 3, at least one groove portion 8 is provided in at least the boundary portion 6 </ b> C of the paper discharge tray 6. The discharge roller 7 side of the groove 8 extends to the regulation wall 6D. And the said groove part 8 is a groove | channel of the depth dimension D (refer FIG. 2) 5 mm or more and 20 mm or less while extending in a discharge direction. The width dimension W of the groove part 8 is 10 mm or more and 30 mm or less.

  The groove portion 8 according to the present embodiment includes a plurality of grooves (first groove portion 8A and second groove portion 8B). The first groove 8A and the second groove 8B are arranged in the width direction. The first groove portion 8A and the second groove portion 8B extend along the discharge direction in parallel with each other. Hereinafter, the first groove portion 8A and the second groove portion 8B are collectively referred to as the groove portion 8.

  The width direction refers to the direction (in the present embodiment, the left-right direction) orthogonal to the discharge direction among the directions parallel to the first placement surface 6A. The groove 8 is provided at the center in the width direction of the paper discharge tray 6.

  Note that “the groove 8 is provided at the center in the width direction of the paper discharge tray 6” means that when the groove 8 is constituted by a plurality of grooves, one end of the plurality of grooves 8 in the width direction. It means that the central portion in the width direction of the paper discharge tray 6 exists between the groove located and the groove located at the other end in the width direction.

<Scanner part>
The scanner unit 5 is an image reading device that reads the contents described in a document. As shown in FIG. 1, the scanner unit 5 is provided at a position spaced apart via a paper discharge space 4 on the upper side in the vertical direction of the paper discharge tray 6.

  As described above, the paper discharge space 4 is a space in which a sheet on which an image is formed is discharged, and the first support portion 10A and the second support portion 10B are provided at both ends in the width direction. . The first support part 10 </ b> A and the second support part 10 </ b> B support the scanner part 5.

  That is, the first support portion 10 </ b> A is positioned on one end side in the width direction of the paper discharge space 4 and supports the scanner portion 5. The second support portion 10B is located on the other end side in the width direction and supports the scanner portion 5. The paper discharge space 4 is a space that is open at least on the downstream side in the discharge direction (the front side in the present embodiment). That is, the user can take out the sheet discharged to the discharge space 4 (discharge tray 6) from the front side.

2. Characteristics of Image Forming Apparatus According to this Embodiment In this embodiment, light can enter the back side of the sheet through the groove 8. Therefore, the user can visually recognize the sheet as an expanded surface by recognizing the light reflected on the back surface of the sheet.

  That is, when the groove portion 8 is not provided, the user can visually recognize the sheet placed on the paper discharge tray 6 as shown in FIG. Is only visible.

  On the other hand, in this embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 5 to 7A and 7B, the sheet can be visually recognized as an expanded surface S3 through the groove portion 8. In other words, as shown in FIG. 7B, the user can recognize the sheet back surface S3 as a surface through the groove portion 8.

  Since the groove 8 extends in the discharge direction at the boundary 6C between the first placement surface 6A and the second placement surface 6B, the small size sheet is placed on the discharge tray 6. Even if it exists, light can be introduce | transduced into the back surface side of the said sheet | seat.

  That is, the forward side in the discharge direction is the front, the smallest size sheet that can be imaged by the printer unit 3 is the minimum sheet, and the virtual tangent that passes through the front end of the scanner unit 5 and contacts the bottom 8C of the groove 8 When L1 is set, as shown in FIG. 5, the front end S1 of the smallest sheet placed on the first placement surface 6A is positioned above the virtual line of sight L1 in the vertical direction.

  Therefore, according to the present embodiment, in the in-body discharge type image forming apparatus 1, even if the sheet is small in size, the user can visually recognize the sheet. If the sheet is large in size, the leading end of the sheet in the discharge direction reaches the second placement surface 6B. For this reason, it is sufficient that the groove portion 8 is provided at least at the boundary portion 6C between the first placement surface 6A and the second placement surface 6B.

  In this embodiment, the discharge roller 7 side of the groove 8 extends to the regulation wall 12D. Thereby, since light can be guide | induced to the back side, the visibility of a sheet | seat can be improved reliably.

  In the present embodiment, the groove 8 is provided at the center in the width direction of the paper discharge tray 6. As a result, the present embodiment can be applied to sheets of various sizes having different dimensions in the width direction.

(Second Embodiment)
In the groove portion 8 according to the above-described embodiment, the depth dimension D is constant over the entire discharge direction. On the other hand, as for the groove part 8 which concerns on this embodiment, the depth dimension D changes along a discharge direction.

  Specifically, as shown in FIG. 8, the depth dimension D of the groove 8 according to the present embodiment becomes smaller toward the discharge direction advance side. Thereby, in this embodiment, when a user takes out a sheet | seat, it can be made easy to hold | grip the said sheet | seat.

(Third embodiment)
In the groove portion 8 according to the above-described embodiment, the width dimension W is constant over the entire discharge direction. On the other hand, as for the groove part 8 which concerns on this embodiment, the width dimension W changes along a discharge direction.

  Specifically, as shown in FIG. 9, the width dimension W of the groove portion 8 according to the present embodiment becomes larger toward the advance side in the discharge direction. Thereby, in this embodiment, since light can be reliably introduced to the back side, the visibility of the sheet can be improved.

(Other embodiments)
In the above-described embodiment, the groove portion 8 is configured by providing a concave groove on the paper discharge tray 6. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and for example, at least two protrusions are provided and the groove portion 8 is provided. You may comprise by the said protrusion.

  Although the printer unit 3 according to the embodiment of the above-described embodiment is an electrophotographic system, the present invention is not limited to this, and may be an inkjet system, for example.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Image forming apparatus 3 ... Printer part 4 ... Paper discharge space 5 ... Scanner part 6 ... Paper discharge tray 6A ... 1st mounting surface 6B ... 2nd mounting surface 6C ... Boundary part 6D ... Restriction wall part 7 ... Paper discharge Roller 8 ... Groove portion 8A ... First groove portion 8B ... Second groove portion 8C ... Bottom portion 10A ... First support portion 10B ... Second support portion 12D ... Restriction wall

Claims (8)

A printer unit for forming an image on a sheet, wherein the printer unit has a paper discharge tray having a first placement surface and a second placement surface on which the sheet on which the image is formed is placed;
A paper discharge roller that is provided in the printer unit and discharges a sheet on which an image is formed toward the paper discharge tray;
A scanner unit for reading the contents described in the document, the scanner unit provided at a position spaced apart via a space above the discharge tray in the vertical direction;
When the direction parallel to the first placement surface orthogonal to the sheet discharge direction is the width direction,
The scanner portion is supported by a first support portion provided on one end side in the width direction and a second support portion provided on the other end side in the width direction, and the downstream side in the discharge direction of the space is opened. And
The first placement surface is an inclined surface that is located on the sheet discharge roller side in the sheet discharge direction and becomes lower in the vertical direction as it approaches the sheet discharge roller.
The second placement surface is connected to the first placement surface and is positioned on the forward side in the discharge direction from the first placement surface, and has a smaller inclination angle than the first placement surface,
Further, a groove portion extending in the discharge direction and having a depth dimension of 5 mm or more is provided at least at a boundary portion between the first placement surface and the second placement surface of the paper discharge tray. An image forming apparatus. A wall portion on which the end portion of the sheet can come into contact is provided at the end portion on the discharge roller side of the first placement surface,
The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the discharge roller side of the groove portion extends to the wall portion. The advance side in the discharge direction is the front, the smallest size sheet that can form an image in the printer unit is the minimum sheet, and the virtual tangent that passes through the front end of the scanner unit and contacts the bottom of the groove is the virtual line of sight When
The image forming apparatus according to claim 2, wherein a front end of the smallest sheet placed on the first placement surface is positioned above the virtual line of sight in a vertical direction.   4. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the groove is provided at a central portion in the width direction of the paper discharge tray. 5.   5. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a depth dimension of the groove portion becomes smaller toward the advance side in the discharge direction. 6.   6. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a width dimension of the groove portion increases toward the advance side in the discharge direction.   The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a plurality of the groove portions are provided in the width direction.   The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a width dimension of the groove portion is 10 mm or more.

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