JP3658854B2 - Paper storage device - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a sheet storage device that is provided in an image forming apparatus that discharges a sheet after image formation from a predetermined discharge port, and that stores the discharged sheet.
[0002]
[Prior art]
Conventionally, in this type of paper storage device, a paper tray for stacking and holding paper is slidably provided between a storage position stored in a lower portion of the image forming apparatus and a protruding position protruding from the image forming apparatus. It is considered. If the paper tray is configured in this way, when a large number of large sheets are ejected, the paper tray is disposed at the protruding position to hold the sheets in a stacked state, and otherwise, the paper tray is disposed at the storage position. Occupying area can be reduced.
[0003]
In this type of paper storage device, it is also considered that a stopper for locking the front end of the paper discharged onto the paper tray is provided at the front end of the paper tray. By providing such a stopper, a large number of sheets can be aligned and held on the sheet tray.
[0004]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
However, when the stopper is provided on the paper tray that is slidably provided as described above, the paper tray must be disposed at the protruding position when the paper is discharged as follows. That is, if the paper tray configured as described above is disposed at the storage position, the stopper is disposed in the vicinity of the discharge port of the image forming apparatus and blocks the paper discharge path. Therefore, even when image formation is performed on one small sheet, the sheet tray must be disposed at the protruding position, and as a result, the area occupied by the image forming apparatus cannot be sufficiently reduced.
[0005]
Therefore, the applicant of the present application raises the stopper provided at the front end of the paper tray from the upper surface of the paper tray and holds the front end of the paper discharged on the paper tray, and lower than the standing position. It has been proposed that the sheet discharged from the discharge port is movably provided between a lower position where the sheet passes above. In this case, if the paper tray is disposed at the protruding position and the stopper is disposed at the standing position, a large number of sheets are stacked and held by the paper tray, and the leading ends of the sheets are locked by the stopper to align the sheets. Can do. Further, when image formation is performed without using the paper tray, the paper tray can be passed above the stopper by disposing the paper tray at the storage position and disposing the stopper at the low position. For this reason, it is possible to satisfactorily reduce the occupation area of the image forming apparatus.
[0006]
However, in this case, forgetting to dispose the stopper in the upright position when the paper tray is disposed in the protruding position, the following problem occurs. That is, if images are formed on a large number of sheets in this state and discharged onto the sheet tray, the sheets discharged onto the sheet tray may be separated, and it may be necessary to manually align the sheets later.
[0007]
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a sheet storage device that can automatically dispose a stopper in an upright position when disposing a sheet tray in a protruding position.
[0008]
[Means for Solving the Problems and Effects of the Invention]
The invention described in claim 1 made to achieve the above object is a paper storage device that is provided in an image forming apparatus that discharges paper after image formation from a predetermined discharge port, and that stores the discharged paper. A paper tray that is slidably provided between a storage position stored in a lower part of the image forming apparatus and a protruding position protruding from the image forming apparatus, and stacks and holds the discharged paper on an upper surface; A standing position that is provided at the leading end of the paper tray, stands up from the top surface of the paper tray and locks the leading end of the paper discharged onto the paper tray, and is positioned lower than the standing position from the discharge port. A stopper provided so as to be movable between a low position where the discharged paper passes above and a stopper which moves the stopper to the standing position when the paper tray slides to the protruding position. Characterized by comprising a moving means.
[0009]
In the present invention configured as described above, if the sheet tray is disposed at the protruding position and the stopper is disposed at the standing position to perform image formation, a large number of sheets can be aligned and held. Further, if the sheet tray is disposed at the storage position and the stopper is disposed at the low position for image formation, the area occupied by the image forming apparatus can be reduced favorably.
[0010]
Further, in the present invention, when the paper tray slides to the protruding position, the stopper moving means moves the stopper to the standing position. For this reason, when the paper tray is disposed at the protruding position, the stopper can be automatically disposed at the standing position. Therefore, it is possible to reliably prevent the occurrence of a situation in which the sheets discharged on the sheet tray are separated and the sheets have to be rearranged manually.
[0011]
According to a second aspect of the present invention, in addition to the configuration of the first aspect, when the paper tray slides to the storage position, it further comprises stopper storage means for moving the stopper to the low position. And
In the present invention configured as described above, when the paper tray slides to the storage position, the stopper storage means moves the stopper to the low position. For this reason, when the paper tray is disposed at the storage position, the stopper can be automatically disposed at the low position. In other words, if the paper tray is placed in the storage position and the stopper remains in the upright position, the stopper may block the paper discharge path and hinder smooth paper discharge. In the present invention, such a situation can be reliably prevented. Therefore, in the present invention, in addition to the effect of the first aspect of the invention, there is an effect that it is possible to surely prevent the smooth discharge of the sheet from being hindered when the sheet tray is disposed at the storage position.
[0012]
According to a third aspect of the invention, in addition to the configuration of the first or second aspect, the stopper moving means is provided integrally with the link connected to the stopper and the image forming apparatus, and the paper tray protrudes. And a contact portion that contacts the link and moves the stopper to the standing position when sliding to a position.
[0013]
In the present invention configured as described above, when the paper tray slides to the protruding position, the link connected to the stopper comes into contact with the contact portion, and the stopper is moved to the standing position by this contact. In the present invention, the stopper is moved to the upright position by the mechanical contact between the link and the contact portion. For this reason, even if the sheet tray is slid to the protruding position while the power of the image forming apparatus is turned off, the stopper is surely disposed at the standing position. Therefore, in the present invention, in addition to the effect of the first or second aspect of the invention, an effect that the stopper can be moved to the standing position more reliably is produced. Therefore, it is possible to more reliably prevent the occurrence of a situation in which the sheets have to be rearranged manually.
[0014]
According to a fourth aspect of the invention, in addition to the configuration of the third aspect, the stopper swings about a horizontal axis perpendicular to the sliding direction of the paper tray, so that the standing position and the low position are The link is connected to the stopper below the horizontal axis, and the contact portion contacts the link when the paper tray moves a predetermined amount in the protruding position direction. Thus, the movement of the link in the direction of the protruding position is prevented.
[0015]
In the present invention configured as described above, the contact portion prevents the link from moving in the protruding position direction when the paper tray moves a predetermined amount in the protruding position direction. Further, since the link is connected to the stopper below the horizontal axis that is the axis of swing of the stopper, when the movement is prevented, the stopper is swung to the side away from the image forming apparatus to stand up. Move to. For this reason, the link can be provided on the lower side of the paper tray, and there is an effect that the link does not interfere with the paper stored on the paper tray.
[0016]
According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in addition to the structure according to any one of the first to fourth aspects, when the stopper moves to the low position, a guide for guiding the paper discharged from the discharge port to the paper tray. The stopper is disposed below the surface or the upper surface of the paper tray.
[0017]
In the present invention, when the stopper is moved to a low position, the stopper is disposed below the guide surface of the discharged paper or the upper surface of the paper tray. For this reason, there is almost no possibility that the stopper disposed at the low position hinders the discharge of the paper. Therefore, in addition to the effect of the invention according to any one of claims 1 to 4, it is possible to more effectively prevent the smooth discharge of the paper from being hindered when the paper tray is disposed at the storage position. The following effects occur.
[0018]
According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, in addition to the configuration according to any of the first to fifth aspects, the image forming apparatus is an ink jet printer that forms an image by ejecting ink onto a sheet.
Ink jet printers are often placed near a personal computer and use small paper such as A4 size, so there is a strong demand for reducing the area occupied by the apparatus. In addition, in an ink jet printer, if a paper sheet immediately after image formation is carelessly touched with a hand, the paper or the hand may become dirty. Therefore, there is a strong demand for preventing the occurrence of a situation where the sheets have to be rearranged manually later. In the present invention, as described above, the occupation area of the image forming apparatus can be satisfactorily reduced, and the occurrence of a situation where the sheets have to be rearranged manually can be reliably prevented. The effect of the invention according to any one of 5 is more remarkable.
[0019]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Next, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a longitudinal sectional view showing a configuration of an ink jet printer to which the present invention is applied.
As shown in FIG. 1, a paper feed cassette 14 that can store a plurality of printing papers 12 is provided at the rear portion (left side in the figure) of a printer main body 10 as an image forming apparatus. A rotation axis along the width direction of the printing paper 12 (perpendicular to the plane of the paper: hereinafter also referred to as the left-right direction) is provided at the lower front portion of the paper feeding cassette 14 and in contact with the uppermost printing paper 12. A paper feed roller 16 is provided. A tray 18 on which the printing paper 12 can be placed is provided in the paper feed cassette 14, and this tray 18 is biased toward the paper feed roller 16 by a coil spring 20. For this reason, the printing paper 12 on the tray 18 comes into contact with the surface of the paper feed roller 16 by the urging force of the coil spring 20 and is rotated on the guide 21 by the paper feed roller 16 that is rotationally driven (counterclockwise in the figure) by a motor (not shown). Is conveyed downward.
[0020]
The printer main body 10 in front of the paper feed roller 16 is covered from above by a cover frame 24 that can be freely opened and closed, and the following members are disposed in the cover frame 24. First, a conveyance roller 31 that is rotationally driven by a motor, a paper pressing roller 32 that cooperates with the conveyance roller 31 to convey the printing paper 12, and a roller holder 33 that rotatably supports the paper pressing roller 32. Are arranged. The roller holder 33 is pivotally supported by the mounting shaft 34 and is urged in the direction of the transport roller 31 (clockwise direction in the figure) by an urging member (not shown). By this urging force, the paper pressing roller 32 is pressed against the transport roller 31.
[0021]
The printing paper 12 transported on the guide 21 by the paper feed roller 16 is sandwiched between the transporting roller 31 and the paper pressing roller 32 and transported onto the printing guide 35 that is obliquely downward and forward. A print unit 50 is further provided in the cover frame 24 at a position facing the print guide 35. The printing unit 50 includes a recording head 51 that forms an image on the printing paper 12 on the printing guide 35, and the recording head 51 is mounted on a carriage 52 that can reciprocate along a guide shaft 53. . The recording head 51 is a well-known ink jet head that forms an image by ejecting ink from a printing surface (nozzle surface) 54.
[0022]
Below the recording head 51, there are provided a discharge roller 60 that is rotationally driven by a motor, and a spur roller 61 that discharges the print paper 12 after image formation between the discharge roller 60. The spur roller 61 is made of a thin plate material having a number of sharp protrusions on the outer periphery. That is, the upper surface of the printing paper 12 immediately after image formation is in an undried state, and a rubber roller having a large contact area cannot be used unlike other printers that are not ink jet printers. Therefore, the spur roller 61 having a small contact area is used.
[0023]
The spur roller 61 is pivotally supported by a plate-shaped spur roller holder 62, and the spur roller holder 62 is attached to a frame 63 that supports the carriage 52. A bent portion 64 bent forward is formed at the lower end of the frame 63, and a substantially continuous surface is formed by the bent portion 64 and the spur roller holder 62. A partition plate 65 is disposed below the frame 63 substantially in parallel with the frame 63, and the partition plate 65 is connected to the cover frame 24. Further, the opening portion between the partition plate 65 and the spur roller 61 is closed by the above-described surface including the spur roller holder 62 and the bent portion 64, and dust is prevented from falling on the stacker 70 below. Yes. A discharge port 66 for discharging the printing paper 12 conveyed by the rollers 60 and 61 to the stacker 70 is formed behind the partition plate 65 below the discharge roller 60 and the spur roller 61.
[0024]
The stacker 70 has a stacker base 71 as a guide surface located below the spur roller holder 62, the bent portion 64, and the partition plate 65, and a paper tray that can be arranged to project forward (shown by a two-dot chain line in FIG. 1). As an auxiliary stacker 72. The stacker base 71 is constituted by a part of the base frame 73 of the printer body 10 and is formed with a slight downward slope in the discharge direction of the printing paper 12. The auxiliary stacker 72 is provided below the stacker base 71 and is configured to be stored in a storage space 74 provided below the base frame 73 (shown by a solid line in FIG. 1).
[0025]
Further, a stopper 75 for aligning the front end of the printing paper 12 is provided at the front end of the auxiliary stacker 72. The stopper 75 is connected to the front end of the auxiliary stacker 72 via a hinge part 77 (see FIG. 5), which will be described later, and is positioned at a low position where the front end 75a faces the stacker base 71 side and falls on the auxiliary stacker 72 (solid line in FIG. 1). ) And an upright position (indicated by a two-dot chain line in FIG. 1) that stands up perpendicularly to the surface of the auxiliary stacker 72 so that it can swing around a horizontal axis. Further, as shown in the perspective view of FIG. 2, at the center of the front end of the stacker base 71, when the auxiliary stacker 72 is stored in the storage space 74 and the stopper 75 is disposed at the low position, a rectangle that accommodates the stopper 75 is stored. The notch 71a is formed.
[0026]
Returning to FIG. 1, in the present inkjet printer, the total length of the upper surface 78 of the auxiliary stacker 72 and the upper surface 79 of the stacker base 71 projected to the full length is the total length of the printing paper 12 having the maximum usable size. Is almost equal to Further, the printing paper 12 passes between the discharge roller 60 and the spur roller 61 and is discharged downward from the discharge port 66 at an angle of about 45 °. The front end of the stacker base 71 is disposed slightly ahead of the extended surface in the discharge direction.
[0027]
Next, the configuration of the stacker 70 will be described in detail with reference to FIGS. 3 is a bottom view showing the configuration of the stacker 70, FIG. 4 is a sectional view taken along the line AA (only the vicinity of the right end in FIG. 3 is shown), and FIG. 5 is a sectional view taken along the line BB. . 5A shows a state in which the auxiliary stacker 72 is fully projected (the state shown in FIG. 3), and FIG. 5B shows a state in which the auxiliary stacker 72 is stored in the storage space 74. .
[0028]
As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, on the left and right sides of the auxiliary stacker 72 of the stacker 70, there are a pair of support plates 81 and 83 that protrude from the lower surface of the stacker base 71 and the base frame 73 and are bent in an L shape inward. The auxiliary stacker 72 is slidably supported by the support plates 81 and 83. Further, the support plate 83 on the left side of the inkjet printer (the right side in FIG. 3) has a pair of protruding pieces (contacts) that protrude further from the lower surface of the support plate 83 and bend inwardly in the vicinity of the rear end and the rear end. Part) 83a and 83b are formed.
[0029]
As shown in FIGS. 3 and 5, a stopper 75 is swingably connected to a rectangular cutout 85 formed at the center of the front end of the auxiliary stacker 72 via a hinge 77. The hinge portion 77 has a well-known configuration in which shafts provided on both side surfaces of the stopper 75 are fitted into shaft holes formed on both side surfaces of the notch portion 85. The stopper 75 includes a flat plate portion 87 that locks the leading end of the printing paper 12 and foot portions 88 and 89 that protrude obliquely from both sides of the edge (lower end in the standing position) of the plate portion 87. The hinge portion 77 is formed on the side surfaces of the foot portions 88 and 89. According to this configuration, the stopper 75 can swing between a low position where the stopper 75 is overlaid on the upper surface 78 of the auxiliary stacker 72 and a standing position where the stopper 75 rises perpendicularly to the surface of the auxiliary stacker 72. Further, the left foot portion 89 projects to the lower side of the auxiliary stacker 72, and a thin notch 89a is formed from the tip of the foot portion 89 toward the hinge portion 77.
[0030]
Further, the upper surface 78 of the auxiliary stacker 72 is formed with a protrusion 72a that engages with the protrusion 71b formed on the lower surface of the stacker base 71, as shown in FIG. The auxiliary stacker 72 can be prevented from being pulled out by the engagement of the protrusions 71b and 72a. Further, as shown in FIG. 5B, a protrusion 72b is formed on the upper surface 78 behind the stopper 75 at the low position, and the protrusion 72b has a gently inclined surface at the rear. Therefore, even if the auxiliary stacker 72 is stopped while being pulled out, the printing paper 12 can easily get over the stopper 75 if the stopper 75 is tilted to a low position.
[0031]
A pair of protrusions 72c are formed on the lower surface of the auxiliary stacker 72 as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, and a link 91 formed by bending a wire can slide between the protrusions 72c in the front-rear direction. It is supported by. As shown in FIGS. 3 and 5, the front end 91 a of the link 91 is bent inward in the horizontal direction, and is slidably fitted into the notch 89 a of the foot portion 89. Further, as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the rear end 91b of the link 91 is once bent outward in the horizontal direction and then bent downward so that it can come into contact with the projecting pieces 83a and 83b.
[0032]
Next, the operation of the stacker 70 configured as described above will be described. When the auxiliary stacker 72 is stored in the storage space 74 and the stopper 75 is disposed at the low position, as shown in FIG. 5 (B), the tip of the foot 89 swings forward, and the link is made accordingly. 91 is disposed relatively forward. When the auxiliary stacker 72 is moved forward from this state, the rear end 91b of the link 91 comes into contact with the protruding piece 83a slightly before the maximum pull-out position. When the auxiliary stacker 72 is further moved forward, the link 91 is blocked by the protruding piece 83a and cannot move further forward, so the front end 91a pulls the foot 89 backward. As a result, the plate portion 87 of the stopper 75 swings upward and is disposed at the upright position as shown in FIGS. 3 and 5A.
[0033]
When the auxiliary stacker 72 is moved rearward from this state, the rear end 91b of the link 91 comes into contact with the protruding piece 83b before the storage completion position. When the auxiliary stacker 72 is further moved rearward, the link 91 cannot be moved further rearward, so the front end 91a pushes the foot 89 forward, and the stopper 75 is disposed at a low position as shown in FIG. Is done. At this time, the stopper 75 is disposed below the upper surface 79 of the stacker base 71.
[0034]
As described above, in the stacker 70 of the ink jet printer, the stopper 75 can be automatically disposed at the standing position when the auxiliary stacker 72 is projected. Further, the stopper 75 can be automatically disposed at a low position when the auxiliary stacker 72 is stored. For this reason, the following effects arise.
[0035]
That is, if the auxiliary stacker 72 is protruded but the stopper 75 is not disposed in the upright position, the printing paper 12 discharged onto the auxiliary stacker 72 will be separated, and the printing paper 12 must be rearranged manually later. In some cases, this ink jet printer can reliably prevent the occurrence of such a situation. Further, if the stopper 75 is left in the upright position when the auxiliary stacker 72 is stored, the stopper 75 may hinder the smooth discharge of the printing paper 12. However, in the present inkjet printer, The occurrence of a situation can be surely prevented.
[0036]
Furthermore, since the stopper 75 is disposed below the upper surface 79 of the stacker base 71 at the low position, there is little possibility that the stopper 75 hinders the discharge of the printing paper 12 in this state. Therefore, the printing paper 12 can be discharged more smoothly. Further, the stopper 75 is disposed at a low position by being tilted backward, and is housed in the notch 71a of the stacker base 71, so that the area occupied by the ink jet printer can be made extremely small.
[0037]
Furthermore, since the stopper 75 moves from the low position where it has fallen backward to the standing position, the printing paper 12 is locked even if the stopper 75 stops at a halfway position without completely moving to the standing position. be able to. Further, the stopper 75 moves to the upright position by mechanical contact between the link 91 and the protruding piece 83a, and thus moves as described above even when the power of the ink jet printer is turned off. For this reason, it is possible to prevent the occurrence of a situation in which the printing paper 12 is reliably locked and the printing paper 12 needs to be rearranged manually afterwards.
[0038]
As described above, the stacker 70 of the present ink jet printer has extremely excellent characteristics. In the above embodiment, the protruding piece 83a corresponds to the contact portion, the protruding piece 83a and the link 91 correspond to the stopper moving means, and the protruding piece 83b and the link 91 correspond to the stopper storing means.
[0039]
In addition, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and can be implemented in various forms without departing from the gist of the present invention. For example, the present invention can be applied to various image forming apparatuses other than an ink jet printer. However, there is a strong demand for an inkjet printer to reduce the area occupied by the apparatus as compared with an image forming apparatus such as a dot impact type printer. In addition, in an ink jet printer, if the printing paper 12 immediately after image formation is carelessly touched with a hand, the paper or the hand may become dirty. Therefore, there is a strong demand for preventing the occurrence of a situation where the printing paper 12 must be rearranged manually later. Therefore, when the present invention is applied to an ink jet printer, the effect of the present invention that makes the occupation area small and prevents the occurrence of the above situation becomes more remarkable.
[0040]
Further, the stopper may be disposed at a low position by falling forward, or may be slid up and down to move between the standing position and the low position. Furthermore, in the above-described embodiment, both the stopper moving means and the stopper storage means use the link 91, but both may have completely different configurations.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a longitudinal sectional view illustrating a configuration of an ink jet printer to which the present invention is applied.
FIG. 2 is a perspective view illustrating a configuration on the stacker side of the inkjet printer.
FIG. 3 is a bottom view showing the configuration of the stacker.
FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along line AA showing the configuration of the stacker.
FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view taken along line BB showing the configuration of the stacker.
[Explanation of symbols]
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Printer main body 12 ... Printing paper 51 ... Recording head 60 ... Discharge roller 70 ... Stacker 71 ... Stacker base 72 ... Auxiliary stacker (paper tray) 74 ... Storage space 75 ... Stopper 81, 83 ... Support plate 83a, 83b ... Projection piece (Contact part) 91 ... Link

Claims (6)

A paper storage device that is provided in an image forming apparatus that discharges paper after image formation from a predetermined discharge port and stores the discharged paper,
A paper tray that is slidably provided between a storage position stored in a lower portion of the image forming apparatus and a protruding position protruding from the image forming apparatus, and that holds the discharged paper on the upper surface thereof;
A standing position that is provided at the leading end of the paper tray, stands up from the top surface of the paper tray and locks the leading end of the paper discharged onto the paper tray, and is positioned lower than the standing position from the discharge port. A stopper provided so as to be movable between a low position through which the discharged paper passes above;
Stopper moving means for moving the stopper to the standing position when the paper tray slides to the protruding position;
A sheet storage device comprising: 2. The paper storage device according to claim 1, further comprising stopper storage means for moving the stopper to the low position when the paper tray slides to the storage position. The stopper moving means is
A link connected to the stopper;
A contact portion provided integrally with the image forming apparatus and configured to contact the link and move the stopper to the standing position when the paper tray slides to the protruding position;
The sheet storage device according to claim 1, further comprising: The stopper is provided to be movable between the standing position and the low position by swinging about a horizontal axis perpendicular to the sliding direction of the paper tray,
The link is connected to the stopper below the horizontal axis,
4. The contact portion according to claim 3, wherein the contact portion contacts the link when the paper tray moves by a predetermined amount in the protruding position direction, and prevents the link from moving in the protruding position direction. Paper storage device. When the stopper moves to the low position, the stopper is disposed below the guide surface that guides the paper discharged from the discharge port to the paper tray or the upper surface of the paper tray. The sheet storage device according to any one of claims 1 to 4. 6. The paper storage device according to claim 1, wherein the image forming apparatus is an ink jet printer that forms an image by ejecting ink onto paper.

Images