JP3655096B2 - Paper cassette - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a paper feed cassette that is detachably attached to an image forming apparatus.
[0002]
[Prior art]
Recently, in order to save space for OA equipment, downsizing is also required in image forming apparatuses such as printers, copiers, and facsimiles. In view of this, a so-called front loading type image forming apparatus in which a paper feed cassette is detachably mounted from the front surface so as not to take a lateral space on both sides of the main body of the image forming apparatus is the mainstream. A paper feed cassette mounted on this type of image forming apparatus has a pair of sides for guiding the side edges of the paper to the front side and the back side in the drawing direction in order to feed in a direction orthogonal to the drawing direction. Has a fence. And these side fences are comprised so that the opposing space | interval can be adjusted according to the size of a paper.
[0003]
In order to adjust the distance between the side fences, a plurality of holes are arranged along the width direction of the paper at the bottom of the cassette case of the paper feed cassette, and a protrusion protruding from the side fence is fitted into one of these holes. However, since it is difficult to reduce the pitch of the holes formed in the cassette case, the positions of the holes are determined according to the standard size paper. As a result, paper of an arbitrary size cannot be used.
[0004]
For this purpose, for example, as described in JP-A-8-169563, a rack perpendicular to the sheet feeding direction is fixedly provided in the cassette case (sheet feeding tray), and meshed with the rack by the force of a spring. There is one in which a fixing member and an operation member (fixing release means) for removing the fixing member from the rack are provided on the side fence.
[0005]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
The configuration in which the fixing member provided on the side fence is meshed with the rack provided on the cassette case can determine the width of the side fence within the range of the rack tooth pitch. The paper can be selected. However, since the fixing member is engaged with the rack by the force of the spring, the side fence is adapted to the width of the paper while operating the operation member against the spring force and maintaining the state where the fixing member is removed from the rack. The operation to move to an arbitrary position is forced. That is, the side fence must be moved to a desired position while keeping the operating member pressed to the release position, and the operability is poor. If the spring force that determines the meshing force of the fixing member with respect to the rack is weakened in order to improve operability, the side fence moves due to an impact or the like when the cassette case is mounted. This movement of the side fence causes the skew of the paper. For this reason, when adjusting the position of the side fence, it is difficult to increase the holding force of the side fence and improve the operability.
[0006]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a cassette case that holds sheets in a stacked state and is detachably mounted on the image forming apparatus from a direction orthogonal to the paper feeding direction, and a front side and a back side in the drawer direction of the cassette case. The cassette case includes a pair of side fences that are opposed to each other and are supported so that the interval between them is adjustable according to the width size of the paper, and a plurality of meshing teeth arranged in a direction perpendicular to the paper feeding direction. A locking body fixedly provided on the side fence, an operation member having a locking portion that is supported by the side fence so as to be displaceable and meshed with the meshing teeth by a displacement operation, and the locking portion is connected to the locking body. And a switching holding means for holding the operating member in a switchable manner between a locking position for locking the locking member and a releasing position for removing the locking portion from the locking body, and the locking body holds the locking portion. Do That they are arranged on both sides of the trajectory of sea urchin the locking portion.
[0007]
Therefore, when the operation member is operated to the release position, the operation member is held at the release position by the switching holding means. In this state, the locking portion of the operation member is maintained in a state of being detached from the locking body, so that the side fence can be moved to a desired position. When the operating member is operated to the locked position, the operating member is held in the locked position by the switching holding means , the locking portion enters between the locking bodies facing each other, and both sides are sandwiched between the meshing teeth of the two locking bodies. Ru is engaged in the state. In this state, the engaging portion of the operating member is engaged with any of the engaging teeth of the engaging body.
[0008]
According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect of the invention, the pair of side fences are connected to each other so as to be interlocked in an approaching / separating direction, and the operation member is provided on one of the pair of side fences. .
[0009]
Therefore, by operating the operation member of one side fence to the release position, the pair of side fences is moved to a desired arbitrary position, and by operating the operation member of one side fence to the lock position, The fence can be fixed at a desired arbitrary position.
[0010]
According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the second aspect of the present invention, the operation member is provided on the side fence on the back side.
[0011]
Therefore, since the rear side fence can be maintained in a fixed state, when the cassette case is attached to the image forming apparatus, it is possible to receive an impact due to the inertia of the sheet by the fixed side fence.
[0014]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
An embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a plan view of the paper feed cassette 1. The cassette case 2 of the paper feed cassette 1 is a box-like shape with an open upper surface, and a panel 3 that also serves as a drawer handle is formed on one side of the front side. The cassette case 2 is detachably mounted on an image forming apparatus (not shown) such as a copying machine with the panel 3 as the front. Inside the cassette case 2, a bottom plate 4 that supports sheets fed in the sheet feeding direction (right side in FIG. 1) in a stacked state is provided so as to be able to rise and fall around a spindle 5. The bottom plate 4 is urged upward by a spring (not shown) provided at the bottom of the cassette case 2.
[0015]
Further, an end plate 6 that regulates the position of the rear end of the sheet is supported on the bottom of the cassette case 2 so as to be slidable and arbitrarily fixed along the guide groove 7. Furthermore, openings 8 are formed on both sides of the bottom side of the front side and the back side in the drawer direction of the cassette case 2, and the side fences 9 and 10 are movable in these openings 8 in a direction perpendicular to the paper feeding direction. Is provided. Racks 11 projecting in parallel to each other in opposite directions are integrally formed on the opposite side fences 9 and 10, and a pinion 12 meshed with these racks 11 is rotatably supported on the bottom of the cassette case 2. ing. That is, the side fences 9 and 10 are connected so as to move in conjunction with each other.
[0016]
Further, a locking body 13 that is orthogonal to the paper feeding direction is fixedly provided at the bottom of the cassette case 2. As shown in FIG. 4, a large number of meshing teeth 13 a are formed on the opposing inner surfaces of these locking bodies 13 in a direction perpendicular to the paper feeding direction. As shown in FIG. 1, the operation member 14 is rotatably supported by the side fence 9 on the back side in the drawer direction of the cassette case 2. On the upper surface of the operation member 14, there are a lock mark 15 indicating a portion to be pressed when the operation member 14 is rotated in the lock direction, and a release mark 16 indicating a portion to be pressed when the operation member 14 is rotated in the release direction. Is formed.
[0017]
Next, based on FIG.2 and FIG.3, the structure and supporting structure of operation member 14 itself are demonstrated. 2 and 3 are longitudinal sectional front views taken along line AA in FIG. The operation member 14 is rotatably supported on the side fence 9 by a support shaft 17 parallel to the paper width direction. The operation member 14 includes a pin 18 as a locking portion at one end. The pin 18 is swingable about a support shaft 19, and on both lower ends thereof, as shown in FIG. 4, protrusions 18a that are detachably locked to the meshing teeth 13a of the two locking bodies 13 described above. Are formed one by one.
[0018]
Next, the structure of the switching holding means 20 that holds the operation member 14 so as to be switchable between the lock position and the release position will be described with reference to FIGS. The switching holding means 20 regulates the inverted mountain-shaped protrusion 21 protruding downward from the rotation center of the operation member 14, the leaf spring 22 held by the side fence 9, and the rotation range of the operation member 14. It is formed by a stopper (not shown). Slopes 23 and 24 for receiving the pressure of the leaf spring 22 are formed on both sides of the protrusion 21.
[0019]
In such a configuration, when paper is set in the cassette case 2, when the cassette case 2 is pulled out from the image forming apparatus and the portion of the release mark 16 of the operation member 14 is pressed, as shown in FIG. 14 rotates about the support shaft 17 in the clockwise direction. At this time, when the operation member 14 exceeds the neutral position (position where the apex of the protrusion 21 abuts against the leaf spring 22), the operation member 14 is further rotated clockwise by the urging force of the leaf spring 22 received by the inclined surface 23 and contacts the stopper. Stop in contact. That is, the operation member 14 is held in a stable state at the release position. In this state, the pin 18 of the operation member 14 is maintained in a state of being detached from the locking body 13, so that the side fence 9 can be moved to the back side even when the operation member 14 is released. In conjunction with the movement of the side fence 9 at this time, the side fence 10 on the near side also moves to the near side, so the distance between the side fences 9 and 10 can be increased. In this state, the sheet is placed on the bottom plate 4.
[0020]
Subsequently, when the side fence 9 is moved to a desired arbitrary position according to the width of the set paper, the other side fence 10 is also moved in conjunction with it. When pressing the parts of the lock mark 15 of the operating member 14 in this state, as shown in FIG. 3, the operating member 1 4 is rotated counterclockwise around the support shaft 17. At this time, when the operation member 14 exceeds the neutral position, the operation member 14 is further rotated counterclockwise by the urging force of the spring 22 received by the inclined surface 24, and comes into contact with the stopper to stop. That is, the operation member 14 is held in a stable state at the lock position. In this state, the pin 18 of the operation member 14 enters between the two locking bodies 13, and the protrusions 18 a formed on both sides of the pin 18 mesh with the meshing teeth 13 a of the locking body 13. It can be maintained in a fixed state.
[0021]
In this case, since the locking force between the pin 18 and the locking body 13 does not act as a force for rotating the operation member 14, it is not necessary to bias the operation member 14 to the lock position with a strong force. Thereby, the operation force for rotating the operation member 14 to the release position in order to set the paper can be reduced. In addition, as described above, since the operation member 14 can be held at the release position even when the operation member 14 is released, the moving operation of the side fence 9 can be facilitated. The position of the side fence 9 can be finely adjusted in units of the arrangement pitch P of the meshing teeth 13a of the locking body 13. As a result, paper having an arbitrary width other than the standard size can be used.
[0022]
Further, when the cassette case 2 on which the paper is set is attached to the image forming apparatus, if the cassette case 2 is attached vigorously, the paper comes into contact with the side fence 9 on the back side due to inertia when the cassette case 2 stops. Since the operation member 14 having the pin 18 meshed with 13 is provided on the back side fence 9, the impact of the sheet is received by the back side fence 9 firmly fixed. Therefore, the movement of the side fence 9 can be prevented.
[0023]
Moreover, since the locking body 13 is disposed on both sides of the locus of the pin 18 so as to sandwich the pin 18, the movement of the side fence 9 can be further reliably prevented.
[0024]
The present invention can also be applied to a structure in which one of the pair of side fences is fixedly provided to the cassette case. In this case, an operating member is provided on the other movable side fence, and the engaging portion of the operating member is engaged with the engaging member of the cassette case.
[0025]
【The invention's effect】
According to the first aspect of the present invention, the cassette case mounted on the image forming apparatus so as to be freely drawable from the direction orthogonal to the paper feeding direction and the front side and the back side of the cassette case in the pulling direction are opposed to each other. A pair of side fences, the intervals of which are adjustable according to the width size of the paper, and a plurality of meshing teeth arranged in a direction perpendicular to the paper feeding direction, and a latch fixedly provided in the cassette case A body, an operation member having a locking portion that is supported by the side fence so as to be displaceable and meshed with the meshing teeth by a displacement operation, and a lock position and a locking portion for locking the locking portion to the locking body. Switching holding means for switching the operation member to a release position to be removed from the locking body, and the locking body is disposed on both sides of the locus of the locking portion so as to sandwich the locking portion. Tei Runode, cassette When setting the paper in the case, the operation member can be held at the release position by the switching holding means in order to make the side fence free, thereby giving the operation member an operation force in the release position direction. The side fence can be easily moved to a desired position without having to do. In addition, since the operation member can be held in the locked position by the switching operation means, the engaging portion enters between the opposing engaging bodies, and both sides mesh with the engaging teeth of the two engaging bodies while being sandwiched. Thus, the side fence can be securely fixed while maintaining the state in which the engaging portion of the operating member and the engaging teeth of the engaging body are engaged with each other.
[0026]
Since the invention according to claim 2 is the invention according to claim 1, the pair of side fences are connected to each other in an interlocking manner in the approaching / separating direction, and the operation member is provided on one of the pair of side fences. By operating the operation member of one side fence to the release position, the pair of side fences is moved to a desired arbitrary position, and by operating the operation member of one side fence to the lock position, It can be fixed at any desired position.
[0027]
The invention according to claim 3 is the invention according to claim 2, wherein the operation member is provided on the back side fence, so that the back side fence can be maintained in a fixed state. When the case is attached to the image forming apparatus, the back side fence can be securely fixed even if the impact due to the inertia of the paper is received by the back side fence.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a plan view of a paper feed cassette showing an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a longitudinal front view showing a state in which an operation member is displaced to a release position.
FIG. 3 is a longitudinal front view showing a state in which an operation member is displaced to a lock position.
FIG. 4 is a partial plan view showing the relationship between the locking portion of the operating member and the locking body.
[Explanation of symbols]
2 Cassette cases 9, 10 Side fence 13 Locking body 13a Engagement tooth 14 Operation member 18 Locking portion 20 Switching operation means

Claims (3)

A cassette case that holds the sheets in a stacked state and is detachably mounted on the image forming apparatus from a direction orthogonal to the paper feeding direction, and is opposed to each other at positions on the front side and the back side in the drawer direction of the cassette case. A pair of side fences whose opposing intervals are supported so as to be adjustable according to the width size of the paper, and a plurality of meshing teeth arranged in a direction perpendicular to the paper feeding direction and fixedly provided in the cassette case A stopper, an operation member having a locking portion that is supported by the side fence so as to be displaceable and meshed with the meshing teeth by a displacement operation, a lock position that locks the locking portion with the locking body, and Switch holding means for holding the operating member in a switchable position at a release position for removing the locking portion from the locking body, and the locking body holds the locking portion so as to sandwich the locking portion. Trajectory Paper feed cassette that is arranged on both sides.   2. The sheet feeding cassette according to claim 1, wherein the pair of side fences are connected to each other so as to be interlocked in an approaching / separating direction, and the operation member is provided on one of the pair of side fences.   The sheet feeding cassette according to claim 2, wherein the operation member is provided on the side fence on the back side.

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