JP2019131303A - Printing device - Google Patents

Abstract

To stack sheets neatly on a simply configured paper discharge table in a printing device.SOLUTION: A printing device 1 includes a device housing, a paper discharge table 11 arranged at a position where paper discharged from the device housing falls, and a guide (second guides 15 and 16, and third guides 17 and 18) arranged above a flight path of the paper discharged from the device housing for preventing the paper from floating.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

  The present invention relates to a printing apparatus including a paper discharge table.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, there has been proposed a paper discharge device provided with a blade-like member that is provided near a paper discharge port in an apparatus housing of a printing apparatus and pushes down the rear end side of the paper downward (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

  In addition, there has been proposed a paper discharge device that is disposed above the paper stacked on the paper discharge table and pushes the paper downward by blowing an air current (see, for example, Patent Document 2).

  Although not related to the paper discharge device, it relates to a sheet conveyance switching device for switching the sheet conveyance direction, but a sheet conveyance switching device including a flapper that presses and drops a sheet has been proposed (for example, Patent Documents). 3).

JP 2012-62156 A JP 2004-217359 A JP 2007-39150 A

  By the way, in order for paper discharged at a high speed from the apparatus housing of the printing apparatus to fly stably, the center in the paper width direction is bent so as to bend into a U shape located below both ends. Sometimes.

  However, even if the paper is curved in a U-shape as described above, the flight path of the paper has air resistance, so airflow such as air conditioning (disturbance wind), paper curl state, side fence Due to misalignment, high-speed paper discharge, etc., the paper may float and take time before dropping. If it takes time for the paper to fall, the front edge of the paper that is discharged later collides with the rear edge of the paper that is discharged first, and the paper is scattered and the paper is not stacked in an orderly manner. , Printing may stop due to jamming.

  Although it is possible to prevent the paper from colliding by increasing the time until the paper collides with the end fence by moving the paper discharge stand (end fence) away from the discharge port, the size of the printing device and the paper stacking unit As the installation area increases, it becomes difficult to stack the sheets in an orderly manner by being easily affected by the airflow of the outside air.

  The above-described paper discharge device including a blade-like member, a paper discharge device that pushes down a sheet by blowing an air current, and a sheet conveyance switching device including a flapper all require a drive control device, so the size of the device is increased. And cost increase.

  Furthermore, the paper discharge device provided with a blade-like member presses the rear end side of the paper downward, so that the front end side of the paper is lifted, causing the paper to lean on the end fence and slipping out of the fence. Will not be neatly loaded. In addition, a plurality of sheets may pass through the fence continuously and be scattered outside the printing apparatus.

  In addition, the above-described paper discharge device that pushes down the paper by blowing an air current has a fan device and the like located above the paper discharge table, so that the fan device and the like need to be attached and detached when taking out the paper. bad. In addition, it is difficult to adjust the fan device and the like.

  Note that the above-described sheet conveyance switching device including a flapper is a sheet conveyance switching device for switching the sheet conveyance direction, and thus cannot stack sheets on a sheet discharge table in an orderly manner. Since it is pressed and dropped, the printed image on the paper may be soiled.

  An object of the present invention is to provide a printing apparatus capable of orderly stacking sheets on a sheet discharge table with a simple configuration.

  In one aspect, the printing apparatus includes an apparatus casing, a sheet discharge tray disposed at a position where the sheet discharged from the apparatus casing is dropped, and a flight path of the sheet discharged from the apparatus casing. And a guide for preventing the paper from being lifted.

  According to the above aspect, it is possible to orderly stack sheets on the sheet discharge table with a simple configuration.

It is a figure which shows a printing apparatus typically. It is a perspective view which shows a paper discharge stacking part. It is explanatory drawing of the 1st guide seen from the opposite side of the paper discharge direction. It is explanatory drawing of the 2nd (3rd) guide seen from the opposite side of the paper discharge direction.

Hereinafter, a printing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1 is a diagram schematically illustrating the printing apparatus 1.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the printing apparatus 1 includes an apparatus housing 2, a paper feeding unit 3, a transport unit 4, a printing unit 5, an operation panel unit 6, an image reading unit 7, and a control unit 8. , A wing 9, a paper discharge stacking unit 10, and first guides 21 and 22. The printing apparatus 1 is, for example, an inkjet printing apparatus or a stencil printing apparatus, but may be other printing apparatuses.

  The apparatus housing 2 accommodates the transport unit 4, the printing unit 5, and the like. A pair of first guides 21 and 22 (to be described later) shown in FIG. 3 are slidably arranged in the vertical and horizontal directions above the discharge stacking unit 10 on the left side surface of the apparatus housing 2 in FIG. .

  The paper feed unit 3 includes a paper feed table 3a and a paper feed roller 3b. The paper P before printing is stacked on the paper feed tray 3a. The paper feed roller 3b includes a scraper roller that feeds the paper P positioned at the top of the paper P stacked on the paper feed tray 3a, and a pickup roller that transports the paper P fed by the scraper roller.

  The transport unit 4 transports the paper P fed by the paper feed roller 3b. The conveyance unit 4 is a belt, a roller, or the like.

  The printing unit 5 includes a plurality of inkjet heads when the printing apparatus 1 is an inkjet printing apparatus. In addition, when the printing device 1 is a stencil printing device, the printing unit 5 is a plate making unit for making a stencil sheet (master), a plate cylinder on which the stencil sheet is wound and rotated, and the sheet P is pressed, It has a stencil discharge unit for storing the stencil sheet.

  The operation panel unit 6 is disposed on the upper part of the apparatus housing 2. The operation panel unit 6 functions as an input unit of the printing apparatus 1 by having operation keys for performing various operations of the printing apparatus 1. Further, the operation panel unit 3 functions as an input unit and a display unit of the printing apparatus 1 when it has a display with a touch panel.

  The image reading unit 7 is disposed on the upper part of the apparatus housing 2. The image reading unit 7 includes a scanner that reads image information from a document.

  The control unit 8 includes a processor (for example, CPU: Central Processing Unit) that functions as an arithmetic processing device that controls the operation of the entire printing apparatus 1 and a storage unit. The storage unit is, for example, a ROM (Read Only Memory), a RAM (Random Access Memory), a hard disk device, or the like.

  The wing 9 has a U-shaped guide surface whose center in the paper width direction is located below both ends, and is located at the discharge port of the paper P in the apparatus housing 2. Therefore, the paper P immediately before being discharged from the apparatus housing 2 is guided by the wing 9 so as to be bent into a U shape.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing the paper discharge stacking unit 10.
As shown in FIG. 2, the paper discharge stacking unit 10 includes a paper discharge tray 11, a pair of side fences 12 and 13, an end fence 14, a pair of second guides 15 and 16, and a pair of Third guides 17 and 18 and two pairs of paper alignment sections 19 are provided. As an example, the paper discharge stacking unit 10 is used by being pulled out of the apparatus housing 2 from the state of being accommodated in the apparatus housing 2.

  The paper discharge tray 11 is disposed at a position where the paper P discharged from the apparatus housing 2 is dropped. The stacking surface, which is the upper surface of the paper discharge tray 11, is positioned above the center at both ends in the paper width direction. Therefore, the paper P is stacked on the paper discharge table 11 in a state where both ends in the paper width direction are curved in a U-shape located above the center.

  Here, the paper width direction is a direction orthogonal to the paper discharge direction (the flight path R shown in FIG. 1), which is the direction in which the paper P is discharged from the apparatus housing 2. Note that the flight path R shown in FIG. 1 is merely an example, and in a state where the number of sheets P stacked on the paper discharge tray 11 has increased, the sheets P can fly to a position where they hit an end fence 14 described later. Instead, the paper P may be moved in the paper discharge direction along the uppermost paper P among the papers P stacked on the paper discharge tray 11. The flight path R varies depending on the paper discharge speed of the paper P. For example, the higher the paper discharge speed, the higher the position where the paper P hits the end fence 14.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the paper discharge stacking unit 10 is inclined with respect to the horizontal plane so that the stacking surface of the paper discharge tray 11 is positioned downward as the paper P is advanced in the paper discharge direction. However, the stacking surface of the paper discharge tray 11 may be horizontal, or may be inclined with respect to the horizontal plane so as to be positioned higher as the paper P is advanced in the paper discharge direction.

  The pair of side fences 12 and 13 shown in FIG. 2 regulates the position of the paper P discharged from the apparatus housing 2 in the paper width direction. The side fence 12 and the side fence 13 are slidably arranged in accordance with the size of the paper P in conjunction with a direction approaching and separating from each other in the paper width direction. The side fences 12 and 13 are provided with a through hole for allowing a protruding piece 19a of a sheet aligning portion 19 described later to pass therethrough and a through hole for allowing air under the flying paper P to escape.

  The end fence 14 regulates the position in the paper discharge direction of the paper P discharged from the apparatus housing 2. The end fence 14 is arranged to be slidable in the paper discharge direction according to the size of the paper P. The end fence 14 is abutted against the leading edge of the paper P discharged from the apparatus housing 2 and flying.

  The pair of second guides 15 and 16 and the pair of third guides 17 and 18 are arranged above the flight path R of the paper P discharged from the apparatus housing 2 and prevent the paper P from being lifted up. It is an example. The second guides 15 and 16 and the third guides 17 and 18 do not guide all the paper P discharged from the apparatus housing 2, but the airflow of the outside air, the curled state of the paper P, the side fence 12 , 13 and the high-speed paper discharge guide the upper surface of the paper P that has been lifted off the normal flight path R or both ends in the paper width direction.

  Although it is an example, the 2nd guides 15 and 16 and the 3rd guides 17 and 18 exhibit flat plate shape, and are provided in the upper end of side fences 12 and 13 horizontally. Further, the second guide 15 and the second guide 16 extend from the side fences 12 and 13 so as to approach each other in the paper width direction, and the third guide 17 and the third guide 18 include the side fence 12. , 13 extend so as to approach each other in the paper width direction.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the second guides 15 and 16 are arranged so that the sheets P in the direction perpendicular to the stacking surface inclined vertically with respect to the sheet P stacked on the sheet discharge tray 11 (or perpendicular to the horizontal). (Upward). Further, the second guides 15 and 16 protrude from the side fences 12 and 13 in the paper discharge direction, so that the paper P can be guided until they are abutted against the end fence 14.

  The third guides 17 and 18 are disposed on the opposite side of the paper discharge direction from the second guides 15 and 16 and protrude from the side fences 12 and 13 to the opposite side of the paper discharge direction. The third guides 17 and 18 are not positioned vertically above the paper P stacked on the paper discharge tray 11 (or above the paper P in a direction perpendicular to the placement surface inclined with respect to the horizontal).

  As shown in FIG. 4, both the second guides 15 and 16 and the third guides 17 and 18, or the second guides 15 and 16 positioned above the paper P stacked on the paper discharge tray 11. 2 includes, for example, hinges 15a, 16a, 17a, and 18a to prevent the paper P from being lifted (first position), and from this position, for example, the paper on the side fence 12 and the side fence 13 is provided. It is good that it can be rotated (movable) to a position (second position) indicated by a two-dot chain line retracted to the outside in the width direction. The second guides 15 and 16 and the third guides 17 and 18 may be held at an arbitrary angle suitable for a wide variety of sheets P having different sizes, basis weights, paper discharge speeds, and the like.

  However, the 2nd guides 15 and 16 and the 3rd guides 17 and 18 may be provided in side fences 12 and 13 or other members so that movement is impossible. The rotation of the second guides 15 and 16 and the third guides 17 and 18 may be driven by driving means (drive actuator) such as a motor, but the printing apparatus 1 has a simple configuration. In order to do this, it is desirable that it can be manually rotated by the user. Further, the second guides 15 and 16 and the third guides 17 and 18 are provided on the side fences 12 and 13 in order to make the length protruding from the side fences 12 and 13 toward the center in the paper width direction variable. On the other hand, it may be movable in the paper width direction. Further, the second guides 15 and 16 and the third guides 17 and 18 may be movable in the vertical direction.

  In addition, as shown in FIG. 4, the second guides 15 and 16 and the third guides 17 and 18 may have star wheels 15 b, 16 b, 17 b and 18 b arranged so as to be able to make point contact with the paper P. The star wheels 15b, 16b, 17b, and 18b protrude downward from the second guides 15 and 16 and the third guides 17 and 18 at positions where the paper P is prevented from being lifted. Further, the star wheels 15b, 16b, 17b, and 18b have a plurality of teeth with pointed tips, thereby making point contact with the upper surface of the paper P or both ends in the paper width direction. The star wheels 15b, 16b, 17b, and 18b are desirably arranged so as to be rotatable around a rotation axis parallel to the paper width direction, for example.

  Further, the second guides 15 and 16 and the third guides 17 and 18 are water repellent in order to suppress transfer of ink on the printing surface of the paper P to the bottom surface, which is a surface that can come into contact with the paper P. It is preferable that a retransfer suppressing unit such as a coating is provided.

  As shown in FIG. 2, for example, four sheet aligning sections 19 are arranged outside the side fences 12 and 13 in the sheet width direction, and a pair of sheet aligning sections 19 and 19 facing each other are arranged in the sheet discharge direction. It is arranged side by side. Each sheet aligning portion 19 includes a plurality of protruding pieces 19 a that pass through the through holes of the side fences 12 and 13. The plurality of protruding pieces 19a are arranged side by side in the vertical direction. Further, the protruding piece 19a is inclined downward toward the center in the paper width direction in order to make the paper P into a U shape as described above. The protruding piece 19a rotates so as to retreat to a position where it does not penetrate from the side fences 12 and 13 with the weight of the paper P.

  The pair of first guides 21 and 22 shown in FIGS. 1 and 3 are provided on the side surface of the apparatus housing 2. The first guides 21 and 22 have a plate shape, and have inclined portions 21a and 22a at the lower portion that are inclined so as to be separated from the apparatus housing 2 in the paper discharge direction as they approach the lower end.

  Similar to the second guides 15 and 16 and the third guides 17 and 18, the first guides 21 and 22 are arranged above the flight path R of the paper P discharged from the apparatus housing 2, and It is an example of the guide which prevents lifting. In addition, the first guides 21 and 22 do not guide all the paper P, like the second guides 15 and 16 and the third guides 17 and 18, but float off the normal flight path R. Guide the upper surface of the sheet P or both ends in the sheet width direction.

  The first guides 21 and 22 are arranged so as to be slidable up and down and left and right along the apparatus housing 2, and a position for preventing the paper P from floating (first position) and a position retracted from the position (second position). It is good that it can be moved to the position. However, the first guides 21 and 22 may be provided in the apparatus housing 2 so as not to move. The movement of the first guides 21 and 22 may be driven by driving means (driving actuator) such as a motor. However, in order to make the printing apparatus 1 simple, it is manually performed by the user. It is desirable to be movable. Further, it is desirable that the inclined portions 21 a and 22 a can be folded to a position along the side surface of the apparatus housing 2.

  Further, the first guides 21 and 22 may have a star wheel disposed so as to be able to make point contact with the paper P, similarly to the second guides 15 and 16 and the third guides 17 and 18. In addition, the first guides 21 and 22 are similar to the second guides 15 and 16 and the third guides 17 and 18, respectively, on the bottom surfaces of the inclined portions 21 a and 22 a that are surfaces that can contact the paper P. In order to suppress the transfer of the ink on the printing surface, it is desirable to provide a retransfer suppression unit such as a water repellent coating.

  In the present embodiment, the first guides 21, 22, the second guides 15 and 16, and the third guides 17 and 18 have been described as examples of the guides. However, the guides are the first guides 21. , 22, the second guides 15, 16, and the third guides 17, 18. Further, the first guides 21, 22, the second guides 15, 16 and the third guides 17, 18 are arranged in pairs, for example, the second guide 15 and the second guide 16, for example. May be arranged as a single member instead of a pair. Further, for example, when the sheet P is likely to be lifted by only one of the left and right with respect to the paper discharge direction due to the influence of the airflow of the outside air, the guides are arranged only in one of the left and right instead of the left and right pair. May be. Further, the second guides 15 and 16 and the third guides 17 and 18 may be provided integrally.

  In the present embodiment described above, the printing apparatus 1 includes the apparatus housing 2, the paper discharge tray 11 disposed at the dropping position of the paper P discharged from the apparatus housing 2, and the discharge from the apparatus housing 2. Guides (first guides 21 and 22, second guides 15 and 16, and third guides 17 and 18) that are disposed above the flying path R of the paper P and prevent the paper P from being lifted up. Prepare. Therefore, the simple configuration in which the guides are arranged can prevent the paper P from being lifted due to the airflow of the outside air, the curled state of the paper P, the position defect of the side fences 12 and 13, the high-speed paper discharge, and the like. Further, since the sheet P can be prevented from being lifted, the sheet P is likely to lean against the end fence 14 which is likely to occur due to the sheet P being lifted, particularly during high-speed paper discharge (for example, 150 ppm (page per minute)). It is possible to prevent slipping from the side fences 12 and 13 and the end fence 14. Furthermore, since the sheet P can be prevented from being lifted, the time until the sheet P is lifted and dropped is extended, so that the front end of the sheet P to be discharged later is the first sheet of the sheet P to be discharged first. It is possible to prevent the paper from colliding with the rear end and scattering. Therefore, according to the present embodiment, it is possible to stack the sheets P on the paper discharge tray 11 in an orderly manner with a simple configuration. Furthermore, since it is possible to prevent the front end of the paper P discharged later from colliding with the rear end of the paper P discharged first, it is possible to prevent printing from being stopped due to a jam. . In addition, it is desirable that the guide does not guide all the sheets P, but guides the upper surface of the sheet P that is lifted off the normal flight path R or both ends in the sheet width direction. Further, even when the guide is not in contact with any paper P, it is possible to prevent the paper P from being lifted by suppressing the airflow of the outside air.

  Further, in the present embodiment, the guide is a position indicated by a solid line in FIGS. 2 and 4 (first position) for preventing the sheet P from being lifted, and a position indicated by a two-dot chain line in FIG. 4 retracted from this position. (Second position) and are movably arranged. Therefore, the user can easily take out the paper P from the paper discharge tray 11 with a simple adjustment for retracting the guide. Furthermore, when the guide is disposed so as to be manually movable without using a driving means (driving actuator) such as a motor, the printing apparatus 1 can have a simple configuration. When the guide angle is held at an arbitrary angle, the sheet P can be prevented from being lifted more reliably at an angle suitable for a wide variety of sheets P having different sizes, basis weights, paper discharge speeds, and the like. Can do.

  In the present embodiment, the printing apparatus 1 further includes side fences 12 and 13 for restricting the position of the paper P in the paper width direction orthogonal to the flight path R, and includes guides (second guides 15 and 16 and the first guide 15). 3 guides 17, 18) are provided on the side fences 12, 13. Therefore, in order to guide the paper P in the flight route R, legs for arranging the guide above the flight route R compared to the case where the guide is arranged at a position independent of the side fences 12 and 13. The arrangement of other members such as can be omitted. When the side fences 12 and 13 are movable in the paper width direction, the guides can be moved together with the side fences 12 and 13 in accordance with the size of the paper P. Therefore, the printing apparatus 1 can be made a simpler configuration.

  In the present embodiment, the guide includes star wheels 15b, 16b, 17b, and 18b that are arranged so as to be able to make point contact with the paper P. For this reason, it is possible to suppress deterioration in print quality when the guide contacts the printing surface of the paper P.

  In the present embodiment, the first guides 21 and 22 and the third guides 17 and 18 are not located above the paper P, and therefore compared with the second guides 15 and 16 located above the paper P. Thus, the user can easily take out the paper P from the paper discharge tray 11 without retracting the guide.

  In the present embodiment, the second guides 15 and 16 protrude from the side fences 12 and 13 in the paper discharge direction. As a result, the paper P can be guided until it is abutted against the end fence 14, so that the paper P leans on the end fence 14 and slips through the side fences 12, 13 and the end fence 14 due to the floating of the paper P. Can be further prevented.

  Note that the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments as they are, and can be embodied by modifying the components without departing from the scope of the invention in the implementation stage. Various inventions can be formed by appropriately combining a plurality of constituent elements disclosed in the above-described embodiments. For example, all the constituent elements shown in the embodiments may be combined as appropriate. It goes without saying that various modifications and applications are possible without departing from the spirit of the invention. The invention described in the scope of claims at the beginning of the filing of the present application will be appended.

[Appendix 1]
A device housing;
A paper discharge tray disposed at a dropping position of the paper discharged from the apparatus housing;
A printing apparatus comprising: a guide that is disposed above a flight path of the paper discharged from the device housing and prevents the paper from lifting.

[Appendix 2]
The printing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the guide is arranged to be movable between a first position for preventing the sheet from lifting and a second position retracted from the first position. .

[Appendix 3]
A side fence that regulates the position of the paper in the paper width direction orthogonal to the flight path;
The printing apparatus according to appendix 1 or 2, wherein the guide is provided on the side fence.

[Appendix 4]
The printing apparatus according to any one of appendices 1 to 3, wherein the guide includes a star wheel arranged to be point-contactable with the paper.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Printing apparatus 2 Apparatus housing 3 Paper feed part 3a Paper feed stand 3b Paper feed roller 4 Conveyance part 5 Printing part 6 Operation panel part 7 Image reading part 8 Control part 9 Wing 10 Paper discharge stacking part 11 Paper discharge stand 12,13 Side fence 14 End fence 15, 16 Second guide 15a, 16a, 17a, 18a Hinge 15b, 16b, 17b, 18b Starfoil 17, 18 Third guide 19 Paper alignment part 19a Projection plate 21, 22 First guide 21a, 22a Inclined part P Paper R Flight path

Claims (4)

A device housing;
A paper discharge tray disposed at a dropping position of the paper discharged from the apparatus housing;
A printing apparatus comprising: a guide that is disposed above a flight path of the paper discharged from the device housing and prevents the paper from lifting. 2. The printing according to claim 1, wherein the guide is arranged to be movable between a first position that prevents the paper from being lifted and a second position that is retracted from the first position. apparatus. A side fence that regulates the position of the paper in the paper width direction orthogonal to the flight path;
The printing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the guide is provided on the side fence. The printing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the guide includes a star wheel disposed so as to be capable of point contact with the paper.