JP2018056643A - Opening/closing device, image formation apparatus and compound machine - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an opening/closing device in which an upper housing closes at the substantially-fixed speed and slowly reaches a close position.SOLUTION: An opening/closing device of a compound machine 1 includes: a first guide unit 61 which is provided in an upper housing 31; a second guide unit 62 which is provided in a lower housing 21; a third guide unit 63 which is provided in the lower housing 21, arranged between a connection part 5 and the second guide unit 62 in the direction heading from the connection part 5 side of the lower housing 21 to an opening end side, and has a cam surface 631 inclined in the direction approaching the lower housing 21 side from the upper housing 31 side as heading to an ending point 631b on the opening end side from a starting point 631a on the connection part 5 side; a slider 64 which has a first engagement part 641 engaged with the first guide unit 61 and guided, a second engagement part 642 engaged with the second guide unit 62 and guided, and a third engagement part 643 engaged with the third guide unit 63 and guided; and a biasing member 65 which biases the slider 64 from the opening end side to the connection part 5 side.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 4

Description

  The present invention relates to an opening / closing device configured by rotatably connecting a lower housing and an upper housing, and an image forming apparatus and a multifunction peripheral including the opening / closing device.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, an opening / closing device configured by rotatably connecting a lower housing and an upper housing is known. Such an opening / closing device is used for an image forming apparatus such as a printer, an image reading apparatus such as a scanner, a multi-function machine equipped with the image forming apparatus and the image reading apparatus, and the like.

  Some multifunction peripherals include an image forming unit in a lower casing and an image reading unit in an upper casing that covers the upper portion of the lower casing. A concave paper discharge tray is provided on the upper surface of the lower housing. By lifting the upper housing above the lower housing and opening it, small-size paper discharged to the back of the paper discharge tray can be removed. Easy to take out. In such a configuration, it is necessary to close the upper housing slowly in order to suppress the impact and sound generated when the upper housing is closed.

  In addition, there is a multi-function machine that allows the upper casing to be lifted and opened above the lower casing in order to facilitate maintenance such as parts replacement and jam processing.

  For example, in Patent Document 1, a pair of link mechanisms that are disposed on both ends orthogonal to the opening / closing direction between the image forming unit and the document reading unit and that restrict opening / closing of the document reading unit, and each link mechanism are provided. An open / close mechanism having a coil spring that biases the document reading unit to an open state is disclosed.

JP 2008-304748 A

  In Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2004-260688, each of the plurality of coil springs is arranged with different lengths so that the document reading unit can be opened and closed smoothly even if the weight of the document reading unit is offset. However, in the configuration using the coil spring and the link mechanism of Patent Document 1, it is difficult to control the document reading unit so that the opening / closing speed when the document reading unit opens and closes between the open position and the closed position is sufficiently smooth.

  An object of the present invention is to provide an opening / closing device in which an upper housing closes from an open position to a closed position at a substantially constant speed and slowly reaches the closed position.

  The switchgear according to the present invention includes a lower housing, an upper housing, and a vertical direction between a closed position where the upper housing covers the upper portion of the lower housing and an open position where the upper portion of the lower housing is opened. A connecting portion that connects the upper housing and the lower housing, and a rotating tip side from the one connecting portion side. A first guide portion extending to the open end side, a second guide portion provided on the other of the upper housing and the lower housing, extending from the other connecting portion side to the open end side, and the other Provided between the connecting portion and the second guide portion in a direction from the other connecting portion side to the open end side, and from a starting point on the connecting portion side to an end point on the open end side. A third guide part having a cam surface inclined in a direction approaching the other side from the one side as it goes, and the first guide A first engaging portion that is guided by engaging with the second guiding portion, a second engaging portion that is guided by engaging with the second guiding portion, and a third that is guided by engaging with the third guiding portion. It is set as the structure provided with the slider which has an engaging part, and the urging member which urges | biases the said slider toward the said connection part side from the said open end side.

  According to the above configuration, when the upper casing rotates from the open position toward the closed position, the moment due to the weight of the upper casing gradually increases and the rotation speed increases, but the cam surface and The presence of the biasing member suppresses an increase in the moving speed of the slider.

  According to the present invention, when the upper casing rotates from the open position toward the closed position, an increase in the rotation speed of the upper casing is suppressed by the slider, and the upper casing is substantially constant from the open position to the closed position. Close at a speed of, and slowly reach the closed position.

1 is a perspective view of a multifunction machine according to an embodiment. 1 is a perspective view of a multifunction machine according to an embodiment. It is a top view of the opening-and-closing mechanism of one embodiment. 1 is a partial side cross-sectional view of a multifunction machine according to an embodiment. 1 is a partial side cross-sectional view of a multifunction machine according to an embodiment. 1 is a partial side cross-sectional view of a multifunction machine according to an embodiment. 1 is a partial side cross-sectional view of a multifunction machine according to an embodiment. 1 is a partial side cross-sectional view of a multifunction machine according to an embodiment. It is a figure which shows the force applied to a slider in the state of FIG. FIG. 10 is a partial side cross-sectional view of a multifunction machine of Modification 1; FIG. 10 is a partial side cross-sectional view of a multifunction machine of Modification 2; FIG. 10 is a partial side cross-sectional view of a multifunction machine of Modification 2;

  The opening / closing apparatus of the present invention can be used in an image forming apparatus such as a printer, an image reading apparatus such as a scanner, a multifunction machine equipped with the image forming apparatus and the image reading apparatus, and the like. In the following embodiment, an example in which an opening / closing device is applied to a multifunction machine will be described. In the following description, the front-rear, left-right, and upper-lower directions are determined based on the state in which the multifunction machine is installed as shown in FIG.

[Overall configuration of MFP]
1 and 2 are perspective views of a multifunction machine according to an embodiment. FIG. 1 shows a state where the image reading unit is closed, and FIG. 2 shows a state where the image reading unit is opened. The multifunction machine 1 includes an image forming unit 2, an image reading unit 3, an operation panel 4, a connecting portion 5, and an opening / closing mechanism 6, and the image reading unit 3 is connected to the connecting portion 5 with respect to the image forming unit 2. It is provided so as to be swingable up and down via an opening / closing mechanism 6.

  1 and 2, only the arrangement of the opening / closing mechanism 6 is shown, and the detailed configuration thereof is shown in FIGS. In this specification, the position when the image reading unit 3 is stationary while covering the upper surface of the image forming unit 2 is the closed position (the state shown in FIG. 1), and the image reading unit 3 opens the upper surface of the image forming unit 2. The position when it is stationary is defined as the open position (state shown in FIG. 2).

  The image forming unit 2 includes a lower casing 21 having a substantially rectangular parallelepiped shape. The lower casing 21 includes a paper feed cassette that stores paper, a transport mechanism that transports paper from the paper feed cassette, an image forming unit that forms an image on the paper transported by the transport mechanism, and an image forming unit. A paper discharge mechanism that conveys paper out of the lower housing 21 is accommodated (not shown). There is no particular limitation on the configuration of the image forming unit, and configurations such as an electrophotographic system, an inkjet system, and a thermal head system can be used.

  The multifunction device 1 has a so-called in-body discharge type. The upper surface of the lower housing 21 is recessed, and a paper discharge tray 22 that is inclined so as to bend from the rear side toward the front side is formed. As shown in FIG. 1, a paper outlet 23 is formed between the upper front part of the image forming unit 2 and the lower front part of the image reading unit 3. Then, the sheet on which the image is formed is discharged to the discharge tray 22 from the rear side to the front side by the discharge mechanism.

  The image reading unit 3 includes an image reading unit (not shown) that reads a document placed on a document table, a substantially rectangular parallelepiped upper casing 31 that accommodates the image reading unit, a document cover 32, and an ADF (auto). document feeder) 33.

  The image reading unit has a so-called flat bed type. The image reading unit includes an image sensor that reads an image and a drive mechanism that drives the image sensor. As the image sensor, for example, a line type sensor in which a plurality of photodiodes are arranged in the front-rear direction can be used. The drive mechanism includes a motor and a plurality of gears, and moves the image sensor in the left-right direction. Accordingly, the image reading unit can read the document placed on the document table while moving the image sensor.

  The upper housing 31 is placed on the image forming unit 2 so as to cover the upper surface of the paper discharge tray 22. The upper surface of the upper housing 31 is closed by a platen glass for placing a document as a document table. Further, the rear end portion of the upper housing 31 is rotatably connected to the rear end portion of the lower housing 21 by the connecting portion 5. Accordingly, the image forming unit 2 can be rotated between the closed position and the open position.

  The document cover 32 is a plate-like member having substantially the same size as the upper surface of the upper casing 31 and is placed on the upper casing 31 so as to cover the document table. A rear end portion of the document cover 32 is rotatably connected to a rear end portion of the upper housing 31 by a hinge (not shown).

  The ADF 33 is disposed on the upper right side of the document cover 32. The ADF 33 includes a document supply tray 331, and a transport mechanism (not shown) that transports the document placed on the document supply tray 331, passes the document sensor above the image sensor, and discharges the document onto the upper surface of the document cover 32. ing. As a result, the image forming unit 2 can automatically read a plurality of originals one by one.

  The operation panel 4 is disposed at the front end of the upper housing 31. The operation panel 4 includes a display unit such as a liquid crystal panel and operation units such as a touch panel and operation buttons. The connecting portion 5 is a hinge in which a shaft portion 5A provided in the lower housing 21 and a shaft hole portion 5B provided in the upper housing 31 are fitted (see FIG. 4), and the rear end of the image forming unit 2 And the rear end of the image reading unit 3 are rotatably connected. Accordingly, the rear end portion of the image reading unit 3 becomes a rotation base end portion including a rotation center when rotating with respect to the image forming unit 2. On the other hand, the front end portion of the image reading unit 3 is a rotating tip portion having the largest amount of rotation when rotating with respect to the image forming unit 2. Hereinafter, the side of the upper housing 31 and the lower housing 21 on which the rotation tip is located may be referred to as the open end side of the upper housing 31 and the open end side of the lower housing 21.

  The opening / closing mechanism 6 is disposed between the image forming unit 2 and the image reading unit 3 and in the vicinity of the right end in front of the connecting portion 5. The opening / closing mechanism 6 is a member that suppresses the closing speed of the image reading unit 3 when the image reading unit 3 is rotated from the open position to the closed position, that is, when the image reading unit 3 is closed with respect to the image forming unit 2. is there.

  The opening / closing mechanism 6 may be disposed between the image forming unit 2 and the image reading unit 3 and in the vicinity of the left end in front of the connecting portion 5. Moreover, you may arrange | position the opening-and-closing mechanism 6 in both right and left. When the opening / closing mechanism 6 is disposed only on one side, it is preferably provided on the ADF 33 side. This is because the image reading unit 3 can be stably opened and closed by supporting the heavy ADF 33 side.

  In the MFP 1 configured as described above, the user can open the document cover 32 by lifting the front end portion of the document cover 32 and place the document on the document table. Further, the user can automatically read a plurality of documents by placing the documents on the document supply tray 331 of the ADF 33.

  Further, when the user lifts the image reading unit 3 and moves it to the open position, the paper take-out port 23 is expanded, and even if a small-size paper that has been discharged is placed on the back side of the paper discharge tray 22, it is small. It becomes easy to take out the paper of the size.

[Configuration of switchgear]
The multifunction device 1 includes an opening / closing device. The opening / closing device includes a lower casing 21 of the image forming unit 2, an upper casing 31 of the image reading unit 3, a connecting portion 5, and an opening / closing mechanism 6.

  FIG. 3 is a plan view of the opening / closing mechanism 6. FIG. 3 shows the arrangement when the image reading unit 3 is in the open position. 4 to 8 are partial side cross-sectional views of the multifunction machine 1. 4 shows a state where the image reading unit 3 is in the open position, FIG. 5 shows a state where the image reading unit 3 is in the vicinity of the open position, and FIG. 6 shows that the image reading unit 3 is in an intermediate position between the open position and the closed position. FIG. 7 shows a state where the image reading unit 3 is in the vicinity of the closed position, and FIG. 8 shows a state where the image reading unit 3 is in the closed position. In FIG. 3 and subsequent figures, the image forming unit 2 and the image reading unit 3 are simplified in a substantially rectangular parallelepiped shape.

  The opening / closing mechanism 6 includes a first guide part 61, a second guide part 62, a third guide part 63, a slider 64, and an urging member 65. These members of the opening / closing mechanism 6 are arranged at positions that do not interfere with each other when the image reading unit 3 is opened / closed. In the present embodiment, the members of the opening / closing mechanism 6 are arranged in parallel to each other in plan view as shown in FIG.

  The first guide portion 61 is provided on the lower surface of the upper housing 31. The first guide portion 61 is a rail of a ridge that linearly extends from the connecting portion 5 side of the upper housing 31 to the open end side. In this embodiment, the 1st guide part 61 is extended in the front-back direction orthogonal to the rotating shaft of the connection part 5. As shown in FIG. The first guide portion 61 is formed with a guide groove 611 that penetrates in the left-right direction and extends linearly in the front-rear direction. The guide groove 611 guides the first engaging portion 641 of the slider 64 in a direction orthogonal to the rotation axis of the connecting portion 5.

  The second guide portion 62 is provided on the open end side of the upper surface of the lower housing 21 with respect to the third guide portion 63. The second guide portion 62 is a protruding rail that extends linearly from the connecting portion 5 side of the lower housing 21 to the open end side. In the present embodiment, the second guide portion 62 extends in the front-rear direction. The second guide portion 62 is formed with a guide groove 621 that penetrates in the left-right direction and extends linearly in the front-rear direction. The guide groove 621 guides the second engaging portion 642 of the slider 64 in the front-rear direction.

  The third guide part 63 is disposed between the connection part 5 and the second guide part 62 in the direction from the connection part 5 side to the open end side on the upper surface of the lower housing 21. The upper part of the third guide part 63 protrudes from the upper surface of the lower casing 21, and the lower part is embedded in the lower casing 21. The upper surface of the third guide portion 63 is a surface that guides the third engaging portion 643 of the slider 64 in a direction orthogonal to the rotation axis of the connecting portion 5, and includes a cam surface 631, a convex portion 632, and a concave portion 633. And have.

  The cam surface 631 is inclined so as to approach the lower housing 21 side from the upper housing 31 side as it goes from the starting point 631a on the connecting portion 5 side to the end point 631b on the open end side. That is, the cam surface 631 extends from the starting point 631a located above to the end point 631b located below and descending forward. In this embodiment, the cam surface 631 is a concave surface, and the inclination angle thereof is designed so that the upper housing 31 closes from the open position to the closed position at a substantially constant speed. Note that the cam surface 631 may be a convex surface, a flat surface, a surface combining these, or the like.

  The convex portion 632 is formed at a position where the third engagement portion 643 engages when the upper housing 31 is located in the vicinity of the open position. That is, the convex portion 632 is formed smoothly and continuously from the start point 631a on the rear side of the start point 631a of the cam surface 631. As shown in FIG. 4, when the upper housing 31 is in the open position, the third engaging portion 643 of the slider 64 is engaged with the rear side of the convex portion 632. Thereby, the upper housing | casing 31 can be simply locked in an open position.

  The recess 633 is formed at a position where the third engagement portion 643 engages when the upper housing 31 is located at the closed position. That is, the recess 633 is formed smoothly and continuously from the end point 631b on the front side of the end point 631b of the cam surface 631. As shown in FIG. 8, when the upper housing 31 is in the closed position, the third engagement portion 643 of the slider 64 is engaged with the recess 633. Thereby, the upper housing | casing 31 can be simply locked in a closed position.

  The slider 64 is a movable member having a first engagement portion 641, a second engagement portion 642, and a third engagement portion 643. In the present embodiment, the slider 64 is a triangular member as viewed from the right side as shown in FIG. 4, and has a first engagement portion 641, a second engagement portion 642, and a third engagement at three apexes, respectively. A portion 643 is formed.

  The first engaging portion 641 is a boss extending leftward from the apex located at the top of the slider 64 in FIG. The first engaging portion 641 is engaged in a state inserted in the guide groove 611 of the first guide portion 61, and is guided by the guide groove 611 in a direction orthogonal to the rotation axis of the connecting portion 5.

  The second engaging portion 642 is a boss extending rightward from the apex located at the lower portion of the slider 64 in FIG. The second engaging portion 642 is engaged in a state of being inserted into the guide groove 621 of the second guide portion 62, and is guided by the guide groove 621 in a direction perpendicular to the rotation axis of the connecting portion 5.

  The third engaging portion 643 is a boss extending rightward from the apex located between the upper and lower portions of the slider 64 in FIG. The third engagement portion 643 engages with the cam surface 631 of the third guide portion 63 and is guided by the cam surface 631 in a direction orthogonal to the rotation axis of the connecting portion 5.

  Therefore, the slider 64 moves from the connecting portion 5 side to the open end side when the upper casing 31 rotates from the open position to the closed position, and conversely the upper casing 31 rotates from the closed position to the open position. Sometimes it moves from the open end side to the connecting portion 5 side.

  The urging member 65 is a member that urges the slider 64 from the open end side toward the connecting portion 5 side. As the urging member 65, a spring such as a tension spring or an elastic body such as rubber can be used. When a tension spring is used as the urging member 65, one end of the urging member 65 is locked in the vicinity of the second engagement portion 642 of the slider 64, and the other end is connected to the connecting portion 5 by the second guide portion 62 in the lower housing 21. It is preferable to be locked to the lower side. Thereby, the urging force of the urging member 65 becomes a force that pulls the second engagement portion 642 at a position away from the third engagement portion 643 downward with the third engagement portion 643 as a fulcrum. The required biasing force is small. Therefore, the urging member 65 having a small urging force can be used.

  In the present embodiment, a tension coil spring is used as the urging member 65, and the front end of the urging member 65 is locked to a support portion 644 extending leftward from the vicinity of the second engagement portion 642 of the slider 64. On the other hand, the rear end of the urging member 65 is below the connecting portion 5 side of the second guide portion 62 in the lower housing 21, and is associated with the support portion 211 fixed to the lower housing 21 in the vicinity of the connecting portion 5. It has been stopped. Thereby, the urging member 65 pulls the slider 64 obliquely downward from the open end side toward the connecting portion 5 side.

  Thus, when the upper casing 31 rotates from the open position to the closed position by pulling the slider 64 from the open end side to the connecting portion 5 side by the biasing member 65, the upper casing 31 rotates. The increase in speed can be suppressed.

  According to such an opening / closing device, when the upper casing 31 rotates from the open position to the closed position, the moment due to the weight of the upper casing 31 gradually increases and the rotation speed increases. The cam surface 631 and the urging member 65 suppress the increase in the moving speed of the slider 64. Accordingly, an increase in the rotational speed of the upper housing 31 is suppressed, the upper housing 31 closes from the open position to the closed position at a substantially constant speed, and slowly reaches the closed position. Hereinafter, the operation of the switchgear will be described in detail.

[Operation of switchgear]
Next, an operation when the image reading unit 3 is closed, that is, an operation when the upper housing 31 is rotated from the open position to the closed position will be described.

  When the upper casing 31 is stationary at the open position (the state shown in FIG. 4), when the upper surface is pressed by the user, it starts to rotate from the open position to the closed position, and then automatically closes by its own weight. Rotate to position. In this process, a moment due to the weight of the image reading unit 3 and an urging force of the urging member 65 via the slider 64 act on the upper casing 31, and a rotational force that is a force that actually rotates as a resultant force thereof. Occurs.

  Specifically, when the upper housing 31 is pressed downward in the state of FIG. 4, the first guide portion 61 pushes down the first engaging portion 641, thereby causing the first engaging portion 641 to have a forward force component. As a result, the first engaging portion 641 moves forward along the guide groove 611. Accordingly, a forward force component is also applied to the second engagement portion 642 and the third engagement portion 643 that are integral with the first engagement portion 641, and the second engagement portion 642 extends along the guide groove 621. The third engaging portion 643 starts moving up the convex portion 632 by moving in the forward direction.

  At this time, the urging member 65 hardly extends and only a small urging force is generated. Therefore, the slider 64 starts to move forward, the upper housing 31 starts to rotate downward, and the state shown in FIG. 5 is obtained. When the upper housing 31 moves from the state of FIG. 4 to the state of FIG. 5, the force that pushes down the upper housing 31 is reduced by the operation of the third engaging portion 643 over the convex portion 632, so that the user feels a click. Can be given.

  When the upper casing 31 is further pressed downward from the state of FIG. 5, the slider 64 further moves forward, and the third engagement portion 643 reaches the start point 631 a of the cam surface 631. Then, since the cam surface 631 descends forward from the start point 631a toward the end point 631b, the upper casing 31 automatically starts to rotate downward due to its own weight. As a result, a forward force component is applied to the slider 64, and the slider 64 moves forward. At this time, the urging force gradually increases as the urging member 65 gradually extends. Therefore, an increase in the rotation speed of the upper housing 31 is suppressed, and the state shown in FIG. 6 is reached while maintaining a substantially constant speed.

  FIG. 9 shows the force applied to the slider 64 in the state of FIG. In FIG. 9, solid arrows indicate the forces applied to the respective engaging portions, and alternate long and two short dashes arrows indicate the vertical or horizontal components of the respective forces.

  The force F1 received by the first engagement portion 641 from the first guide portion 61 due to the weight of the upper housing 31 has a downward force component F11 and a forward force component F12. The force F2 received by the second engagement portion 642 from the second guide portion 62 is an upward force. The force F3 received by the third engaging portion 643 from the cam surface 631 has an upward force component F31 and a forward force component F32. The force F4 that the support portion 644 receives from the urging member 65 has a downward force component F41 and a backward force component F42.

  The force component in the vertical direction applied to the slider 64 is obtained by F11 + F2 + F31 + F41, and becomes a downward force. On the other hand, the force component in the front-rear direction applied to the slider 64 is obtained by F12 + F32 + F42 and becomes the force in the front direction. Therefore, a downward force is applied to the slider 64 in the forward direction, and the slider 64 moves in a direction downward from the cam surface 631.

  Then, when the slider 64 moves from the state of FIG. 6 to the state of FIG. 7, the force F1 shown in FIG. 9 gradually increases while approaching vertically downward, the force F2 does not change substantially, and the force F3 increases gradually. While approaching vertically upward, the force F4 gradually increases. At this time, the force components in the vertical direction are substantially balanced. On the other hand, the force component in the front-rear direction is such that the force F1 and the force F3 approach the vertical direction, the force components F12 and F32 in the front direction are reduced, and the force F4 is increased, so that the force component F42 in the rear direction is increased. Therefore, a backward force is applied to the slider 64, and an increase in the moving speed of the slider 64 is suppressed. Accordingly, an increase in the rotational speed of the upper housing 31 is suppressed, and the state shown in FIG. 7 is reached while maintaining a substantially constant speed.

  When the slider 64 further moves forward from the state of FIG. 7, the upper housing 31 reaches the closed position as the third engaging portion 643 falls into the recess 633 as shown in FIG. At this time, the operation of the third engaging portion 643 falling into the concave portion 633 causes the speed of the upper housing 31 to rise momentarily and stop, so that the user can feel a click. In addition, after the upper casing 31 reaches the closed position, the third engaging portion 643 is simply locked in the rearward direction by the recess 633, so that the upper casing 31 is in a simple locked state at the closed position. Become. In order to stop the upper housing 31 when the upper housing 31 reaches the closed position, for example, a contact portion that contacts the lower surface of the upper housing 31 is provided on the open end side of the upper surface of the lower housing 21. It is preferable to keep it.

  Thus, when the upper housing 31 rotates from the open position toward the closed position, the moment due to the weight of the upper housing 31 gradually increases and the rotational speed increases, but the cam surface 631 and The presence of the urging member 65 suppresses an increase in the moving speed of the slider 64. Accordingly, an increase in the rotational speed of the upper housing 31 is suppressed, the upper housing 31 closes from the open position to the closed position at a substantially constant speed, and slowly reaches the closed position.

  Next, an operation when the image reading unit 3 opens, that is, an operation when the upper housing 31 rotates from the closed position to the open position will be described.

  When the upper casing 31 is stationary at the closed position (the state shown in FIG. 8), when the open end is lifted by the user, the upper casing 31 starts to rotate from the closed position toward the open position. At this time, since the third engaging portion 643 is pulled up from the recess 633 to the end point 631b of the cam surface 631 (the state shown in FIG. 7), the force to lift the upper housing 31 is reduced, so that a click feeling is given to the user. Can do.

  Next, when the upper housing 31 moves from the state of FIG. 7 to the state of FIG. 6, the cam surface 631 is gently inclined and the urging force of the urging member 65 is strong. Can be lifted. Subsequently, when the upper casing 31 moves from the state shown in FIG. 6 to the state shown in FIG. 5, the upper casing 31 is raised, so that the downward moment due to the weight of the image reading unit 3 is reduced and applied to the user. The load is hardly increased.

  And when the upper housing | casing 31 moves from the state of FIG. 5 to the state of FIG. 4, the force which lifts the upper housing | casing 31 became light for a moment because the 3rd engaging part 643 fell over the convex part 632, and fell. Thereafter, the upper housing 31 stops at the open position. Therefore, a click feeling can be given to the user. In addition, after the upper housing 31 reaches the open position, the third engaging portion 643 is simply locked forward by the convex portion 632, so that the upper housing 31 is simply locked in the open position. It becomes.

  Thus, when the image reading unit 3 is opened, it can be lifted with a small load by the biasing force of the biasing member 65 and the inclination of the cam surface 631. Instead of reducing the load to be lifted, a member having a weak urging force can be used as the urging member 65.

[Modification 1]
The switchgear may have an upside down configuration with respect to the above embodiment. That is, in the above embodiment, the first guide portion 61 is provided on the upper housing 31 side, and the second guide portion 62, the third guide portion 63, and the biasing member 65 are provided on the lower housing 21 side. Conversely, the first guide 61 may be provided on the lower housing 21 side, and the second guide 62, the third guide 63, and the biasing member 65 may be provided on the upper housing 31 side. This embodiment is referred to as a first modification, and FIG. 10 is a partial side sectional view of the multifunction machine 11 according to the first modification. In FIG. 10, the same reference numerals are given to the same members as those in the above embodiment. Since the multifunction machine 11 of the first modification is simply the arrangement of the switchgear according to the above-described embodiment, its detailed description is omitted.

  Similarly to the above-described embodiment, when the upper casing 31 is rotated from the open position to the closed position, the upper casing 31 is closed from the open position to the closed position at a substantially constant speed. Slowly reach the closed position.

[Modification 2]
The slider 64 may include a guide part. This embodiment is referred to as a second modification, and FIGS. 11 and 12 are partial side sectional views of the multifunction machine 12 according to the second modification. FIG. 11 shows a state where the image reading unit 3 is in the open position, and FIG. 12 shows a state where the image reading unit 3 is in the closed position. 11 and 12, the same members as those in the above embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and detailed description thereof is omitted.

  As shown in FIG. 11, in a state where the upper housing 31 is located at the open position, the guide portion 66 extends between the upper housing 31 and the lower housing 21, on the open end side portion of the slider 64. It is provided so as to protrude. As shown in FIG. 11, the protruding side of the guide portion 66 is an arc-shaped portion 66a extending upward from the second engaging portion 642 and a straight line extending to the upper housing 31 following the arc-shaped portion 66a when viewed from the right side. It is comprised with the shape part 66b. The slider 64 and the guide part 66 may be integrally molded.

  When the upper casing 31 rotates from the open position to the closed position, that is, when the upper casing 31 moves from the state of FIG. 11 to the state of FIG. 12, the arc-shaped portion 66a of the guide portion 66 protrudes toward the open end side. While maintaining the state, the slider 64 moves from the connecting portion 5 side to the open end side along the first guide portion 61, the second guide portion 62, and the third guide portion 63.

  Therefore, when the upper casing 31 is rotated from the open position to the closed position with foreign matter between the upper casing 31 and the lower casing 21 in front of the guide portion 66, it protrudes to the open end side. The guide part 66 removes foreign matter. If the foreign matter cannot be completely removed, the guide portion 66 cannot move and the upper casing 31 stops rotating. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the upper casing 31 from being closed with a foreign object interposed therebetween, and the safety is improved. Note that the guide unit 66 of the second modification can also be applied to the multifunction machine 11 of the first modification.

[Effect of the embodiment]
To summarize all the embodiments described above, the opening / closing device includes the lower casing 21, the upper casing 31, the closed position where the upper casing 31 covers the upper portion of the lower casing 21, and the upper portion of the lower casing 21. And a connecting portion 5 that connects the upper housing 31 and the lower housing 21 so as to be rotatable in the vertical direction with respect to the open position. In addition, the opening / closing device includes a first guide portion 61 that is provided on one of the upper housing 31 and the lower housing 21 and extends from the one connection portion 5 side to the open end side that is the rotation tip side. Further, the opening / closing device includes a second guide portion 62 that is provided on the other of the upper housing 31 and the lower housing 21 and extends from the other connecting portion 5 side to the open end side. The opening / closing device is provided on the other side, and is disposed between the connecting portion 5 and the second guide portion 62 in the direction from the other connecting portion 5 side to the open end side, and from the start point 631a on the connecting portion 5 side. A third guide portion 63 having a cam surface 631 that is inclined from one side toward the other side toward the end point 631b on the open end side is provided. The opening / closing device includes a first engagement portion 641 that is guided by being engaged with the first guide portion 61, a second engagement portion 642 that is engaged and guided by the second guide portion 62, and a third A slider 64 having a third engaging portion 643 engaged and guided by the guide portion 63 is provided. Further, the opening / closing device includes an urging member 65 that urges the slider 64 from the open end side toward the connecting portion 5 side.

  According to this configuration, when the upper casing 31 rotates from the open position toward the closed position, the moment due to the weight of the upper casing 31 gradually increases and the rotation speed increases, but the cam surface The presence of 631 and the urging member 65 suppresses an increase in the moving speed of the slider 64. Accordingly, an increase in the rotational speed of the upper housing 31 is suppressed, the upper housing 31 closes from the open position to the closed position at a substantially constant speed, and slowly reaches the closed position.

  Further, according to the MFP 1 according to the above embodiment, the first guide unit 61 is provided in the upper casing 31, and the second guide unit 62 and the third guide unit 63 are provided in the lower casing 21. Further, the urging member 65 is a tension spring, one end of the urging member 65 is locked in the vicinity of the second engaging portion 642 of the slider 64, and the other end is connected to the connecting portion by the second guide portion 62 in the lower housing 21. Locked to the lower side on the 5th side.

  According to this configuration, the urging force of the urging member 65 becomes a force that pulls the second engaging portion 642 located away from the third engaging portion 643 as a fulcrum, and the necessary urging force is obtained by the lever principle. It's small. Therefore, the urging member 65 having a small urging force can be used.

  Moreover, according to said embodiment, the cam surface 631 is a concave surface. According to this configuration, the cam surface 631 is gradually inclined from the connecting portion 5 side toward the open end side. Therefore, when the upper housing 31 rotates from the open position to the closed position, the second engagement portion Since the direction of the reaction force that 642 receives from the cam surface 631 approaches vertically upward, the moment due to the weight of the upper housing 31 is substantially balanced. Therefore, an increase in the rotational speed of the upper casing 31 can be suppressed, and the upper casing 31 closes from the open position to the closed position at a substantially constant speed and slowly reaches the closed position.

  Further, according to the above embodiment, the third guide portion 63 has the convex portion 632 at a position where the third engagement portion 643 is engaged when the upper housing 31 is located in the vicinity of the open position. According to this configuration, when the upper housing 31 is opened, the third engagement portion 643 gets over the convex portion 632 when the upper housing 31 reaches the open position, so that the user can feel a click. Moreover, after the upper housing | casing 31 reaches | attains an open position, it will be in a simple locked state.

  Further, according to the above embodiment, the third guide portion 63 has the recess 633 at a position where the third engagement portion 643 is engaged when the upper housing 31 is located at the closed position. According to this configuration, when the upper casing 31 is closed, the third engagement portion 643 falls into the recess 633 when the upper casing 31 reaches the closed position, so that the user can feel a click. Further, after the upper housing 31 reaches the closed position, it is in a simple locked state.

  Further, according to the multifunction machine 12 according to the above-described embodiment, the guide that protrudes to the open end side between the upper casing 31 and the lower casing 21 with the upper casing 31 positioned at the open position on the slider 64. A portion 66 is provided. When the upper casing 31 rotates from the open position toward the closed position, the slider 64 is maintained in a state in which the guide portion 66 protrudes, and the slider 64 is moved to the first guide portion 61, the second guide portion 62, and the third guide. It moves along the part 63 from the connecting part 5 side to the open end side.

  According to this configuration, when the upper casing 31 is rotated toward the closed position with foreign matter between the upper casing 31 and the lower casing 21, the guide portion 66 protruding to the open end side is provided. Foreign matter is eliminated by If the foreign matter cannot be completely removed, the guide portion 66 cannot move and the upper casing 31 stops rotating. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the upper casing 31 from being closed with a foreign object interposed therebetween, and the safety is improved.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1, 11, 12 Multifunction device 5 Connection part 21 Lower housing | casing 31 Upper housing | casing 61 1st guide part 62 2nd guide part 63 3rd guide part 64 Slider 65 Energizing member 66 Guide part 631 Cam surface 632 Convex part 633 Recessed part

Claims (8)

A lower housing,
An upper housing,
The upper housing and the lower housing are pivotable in a vertical direction between a closed position where the upper housing covers the upper portion of the lower housing and an open position which opens the upper portion of the lower housing. A connecting part to be connected;
A first guide portion provided on one of the upper housing or the lower housing and extending from the one connecting portion side to an open end side which is a rotation tip side;
A second guide portion provided on the other of the upper housing or the lower housing and extending from the other connecting portion side to the open end side;
Provided on the other side, arranged in the direction from the other connecting portion side to the open end side, between the connecting portion and the second guide portion, and from the starting point on the connecting portion side to the open end side A third guide portion having a cam surface inclined in a direction approaching the other side from the one side toward the end point of
Engaged with the first guide part, engaged with the first guide part, engaged with the second guide part, guided with the second engagement part, and engaged with the third guide part. A slider having a third engaging portion to be guided;
An opening / closing apparatus comprising: an urging member that urges the slider from the open end side toward the connecting portion side. The first guide is provided in the upper casing;
The second guide part and the third guide part are provided in the lower housing;
The urging member is a tension spring, one end of the urging member is locked in the vicinity of the second engaging portion of the slider, and the other end is closer to the connecting portion than the second guide portion in the lower housing. The opening / closing device according to claim 1, wherein the opening / closing device is locked to the lower side of the switch.   The opening / closing device according to claim 1, wherein the cam surface is a concave surface.   The said 3rd guide part has a convex part in the position which a said 3rd engaging part engages when the said upper housing | casing is located in the open position vicinity, Any one of Claim 1 to 3 characterized by the above-mentioned. The switchgear according to claim 1.   The said 3rd guide part has a recessed part in the position which a said 3rd engaging part engages when the said upper housing | casing is located in a closed position, The any one of Claims 1-4 characterized by the above-mentioned. The switchgear according to item. The slider is provided with a guide portion protruding toward the open end across the upper casing and the lower casing in a state where the upper casing is in the open position,
When the upper casing rotates from the open position toward the closed position, the slider is moved to the closed position while the guide portion maintains the protruding state. The switchgear according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the switchgear moves along the three guide portions from the connecting portion side to the open end side. The switchgear according to any one of claims 1 to 6,
An image forming apparatus comprising: an image forming unit provided in the lower casing. The switchgear according to any one of claims 1 to 6,
An image forming unit provided in the lower housing;
A multi-function machine comprising an image reading unit provided in the upper housing.

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