JP3730329B2 - Paper feeding cassette device and paper feeding device - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to an improvement in a sheet feeding cassette apparatus and a sheet feeding apparatus that adjust lateral shift of sheets in a sheet feeding cassette apparatus that is attached and detached on the front side of the apparatus body.
[0002]
[Prior art]
In an image forming apparatus or the like, in a device that pulls out the paper cassette device to the front side of the main body perpendicular to the paper take-out direction, a so-called lateral shift in which the paper position stored in the paper cassette device is shifted from the image forming position. In the case of a type that is positioned by contacting the front cover of the paper cassette device with the housing of the device main body, a part of the paper cassette device is pulled out from the device main body. There was also a device for adjusting the lateral displacement by sliding the mounting position of the front cover. However, the lock mechanism for fixing the paper cassette apparatus to the image forming apparatus main body or the uppermost sheet is prevented from being skewed and soiled by sliding contact with the pickup roller when the paper cassette apparatus is pulled out. For this reason, in a paper cassette apparatus having a contact / separation means on the front cover side for separating the pickup roller from the paper before pulling out, the lateral width guide generally provided on the bottom surface of the paper cassette is shifted laterally by the rack and pinion. The lateral displacement adjustment is performed by sliding directly according to the position or by sliding the base supporting the lateral width guide.
[0003]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
However, in order to adjust the width guide and base slide, the paper cassette device must be pulled out from the main body of the device, all the paper must be removed, the rack and pinion on the back of the device must be adjusted, and the paper must be set again. The adjustment operation is cumbersome and has a problem of poor operability.
[0004]
Accordingly, the present invention eliminates the above-described problem, and even in a paper feed cassette device having a lock mechanism on the front cover side for fixing the paper feed cassette device to the image forming apparatus main body, the lateral deviation can be easily adjusted, An object of the present invention is to provide a paper feeding cassette device and a paper feeding device which are excellent in operability and reliability by preventing the uppermost paper from being soiled by interference with a pickup roller during an adjustment operation.
[0005]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
The invention according to claim 1 for solving the above-mentioned problem is a paper storage means for storing paper detachably attached from the front side of the apparatus main body so that the paper supplied into the apparatus main body can be taken out in a direction perpendicular to the attachment / detachment direction. And an exterior cover that is slidably attached to the front side of the paper storage means along the attachment / detachment direction with respect to the paper storage means and that contacts the apparatus main body when the paper storage means is attached to the apparatus main body. A positioning lever whose one end is pivotally attached to the exterior cover and the other end is always urged in the push-up direction, and the paper storage means attached to the tip of the positioning lever is attached to and detached from the apparatus main body. In conjunction with the operation, it is brought into rolling contact with a fixed guide provided in the apparatus main body, and when the paper storage means is mounted on the apparatus main body, the paper storage means is fixed to the mounting position by engaging with the fixed guide. While, the biased in a direction away from the sheet storage means, the retrieving means to retrieve the sheet from said sheet containing means, provided with positioning means comprising a contacting roller to said paper against said biasing means Is.
[0006]
According to a second aspect of the present invention for solving the above-described problem, a sheet storage is provided which is detachable from the front side of the apparatus main body, and stores the paper supplied into the apparatus main body so that it can be taken out in a direction perpendicular to the attachment / detachment direction. And an exterior that is slidably attached to the front side of the paper storage means along the attachment / detachment direction with respect to the paper storage means, and that contacts the apparatus main body when the paper storage means is attached to the apparatus main body. A cover, and a take-out means that is supported by the apparatus main body so as to be biased in a direction away from the paper storage means and takes out the paper in a direction perpendicular to the attaching / detaching direction when the paper storage means is fixed to the apparatus main body. A fixed guide fixed to the apparatus main body, the front side being tapered and the rear hook portion being substantially vertical, and one end pivotally attached to the exterior cover A positioning lever whose other end is always urged in the push-up direction, and is attached to the front end of the positioning lever and is in contact with the front side of the fixed guide in conjunction with the attachment / detachment operation of the sheet storage means to the apparatus main body. When the paper storage means is mounted on the apparatus main body, the paper storage means is fixed to the mounting position by engaging with the hook portion of the fixing guide, and the take-out means is opposed to the biasing means. Positioning means comprising a roller in contact with the paper .
[0013]
With the above configuration, the present invention is an apparatus in which a cover for fixing the paper feed cassette device to the apparatus main body or a contact / separation means for separating the pickup roller from the paper during the attachment / detachment operation of the paper feed cassette device is provided on the cover. The lateral shift can be adjusted by sliding the cover attachment position with respect to the sheet storage means without pulling out the sheet cassette device from the apparatus main body, and the operability during adjustment can be improved.
[0014]
Further, according to the present invention, the pickup roller is brought into contact with the paper when the paper feeding cassette device is fixed to the apparatus main body so that the paper can be taken out. Therefore, the sheet can be prevented from being skewed and soiled during the attachment / detachment operation of the sheet cassette apparatus, and the reliability of the apparatus is improved.
[0015]
Further, according to the above configuration, the present invention can reduce the cost by reducing the number of parts by engaging the fixed guide with a single roller and bringing the take-out means into contact with the paper.
[0016]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
The present invention will be described below with reference to the first embodiment shown in FIGS.
[0017]
FIG. 1 shows the internal configuration of the entire electrophotographic apparatus. Around the photosensitive body 20 in the apparatus main body 1 having the document table 3, a charging charger 21 and an exposure apparatus 22 are arranged along the rotation direction. An exposure unit 22a, a developing device 23, a transfer charger 25, a peeling charger 26, a cleaning device 27, and a charge eliminating device 28 are sequentially arranged.
[0018]
The lower portion of the apparatus main body 1 stores the paper P supplied in the transfer position direction of the photoconductor 20 and is detachable from the front side of the apparatus main body 1 perpendicular to the supply direction of the paper P. A paper cassette device 10 is mounted. Further, in the apparatus main body 1, a paper conveyance path for guiding the paper P taken out from the paper cassette apparatus 10 by the pickup roller 13 serving as a taking-out means to the paper discharge tray 9 provided on the left side of the apparatus main body 1 through the photosensitive member 20. 31 is formed.
[0019]
On the upstream side of the photosensitive member 20 in the paper conveying path 31, the separation conveying roller 14 that separates and conveys the paper P picked up by the pickup roller 13 one by one, the leading edge of the paper P are aligned, and synchronization with the photosensitive member 20 is performed. A registration roller pair 32 for conveying the paper while taking it is disposed, and a fixing roller 33 and a discharge roller pair 35 are disposed on the downstream side.
[0020]
Next, the sheet cassette device 10 will be described in detail. A handle 37a for pulling out the paper cassette apparatus 10 from the apparatus main body 1 is formed on the front side of the cassette container 36, which is a sheet storage means of the paper cassette apparatus 10, and the paper cassette apparatus 10 is connected to the apparatus main body 1. A front cover 37 that is brought into contact with the housing 1a at the time of mounting is slidably attached by an adjusting screw 38 through an elongated hole 37b.
[0021]
The front cover 37 constitutes locking means, and a tip end is urged upward by a tension spring 41, and a positioning lever 42 that is restricted from rotating upward by a stopper 42a is rotatably attached. At the tip, a roller 46 is attached, which is in rolling contact with a fixed guide 44 provided above the sheet cassette housing portion 43 of the apparatus main body 1 and fits into a hook portion 44 a of the fixed guide 44. The front side 44b of the fixed guide 44 is inclined, and the hook portion 44a is formed to be substantially vertical.
[0022]
The positioning lever 42 is attached with a contact / separation lever 47 that is a contact / separation member that pushes down the pickup roller 13 and contacts the paper P when the paper feeding cassette device 10 is mounted on the apparatus main body 1. In other words, the pickup roller 13 that is rotated through the drive transmission means 48 by a drive motor (not shown) and takes out the paper P from the paper cassette apparatus 10 is moved in the direction of the arrow s by the α spring 50 that is an urging means supported by the apparatus body 1. The urging arm 51 is urged upward by the urging arm 51 so as to be always away from the paper P via the link lever 52. On the other hand, when the pickup up / down lever 53 is rotated by the contact / separation lever 47 by mounting the sheet cassette device 10 on the apparatus main body 1, the biasing arm 51 is opposed to the arrow s direction against the α spring 50. The pickup roller 13 is rotated so as to come into contact with the paper P by its own weight.
[0023]
Next, I will talk about the action. At the start of copying, a document is placed on the document table 3, and copy conditions such as the number of copies, copy magnification, paper size, and image density are input from an operation panel (not shown). When the copy operation is started by turning on the copy key (not shown), the photoconductor 20 is sequentially charged, exposed, and developed in accordance with the rotation, thereby forming a developed image.
[0024]
On the other hand, in the sheet feeding cassette device 10, the uppermost sheet taken out by the pickup roller 13 is separated and conveyed one by one in the direction of the registration roller pair 32 by the separation conveyance roller 14.
[0025]
Then, the paper P once stopped by the registration roller pair 32 is sent to a transfer position between the photoconductor 20 and the transfer charger 25 in synchronization with the developer image on the photoconductor 20, and on the photoconductor 20. The developer image is transferred. The sheet P to which the developer image has been transferred is peeled off from the photosensitive member 20 by the peeling charger 26, sent to the fixing roller 33 to fix the image, and discharged toward the paper discharge tray 9. After the transfer is completed, the photoconductor 20 can be copied next through the cleaning device 27 and the charge removal device 28.
[0026]
When performing such a copy operation, if the center position P1 of the sheet P supplied from the sheet cassette device 10 and the image center position G1 are laterally shifted with respect to the image forming position by the apparatus main body 1, FIG. 6 (a), from the state where the sheet cassette apparatus 10 is fixed to the apparatus body 1, the sheet cassette apparatus 10 is pulled out from the apparatus body 1 and a part of the front side thereof is exposed. At this time, when the handle 37a is pulled strongly, the roller 46 rolls the hook portion 44a in the direction of the arrow t against the upward biasing force of the positioning lever 42 by the tension spring 41, as shown in FIG. In this manner, the hook part 44a is detached. At the same time, the contact / separation lever 47 is pulled down and separated from the pickup up / down lever 53. As a result, the biasing arm 51 is rotated in the direction of the arrow s by the biasing force of the α spring 50 and the link lever 52 is rotated in the direction of the arrow u, so that the pickup roller 13 is also rotated in the same direction. Separate.
[0027]
Therefore, when the paper feeding cassette device 10 is pulled out, the paper P is smoothly pulled out without causing the paper P to be soiled or skewed by sliding contact with the pickup roller 13. Then, the adjustment screw 38 exposed from the apparatus main body 1 is loosened, and the attachment position of the front cover 37 with respect to the cassette container 36 is adjusted along the elongated hole 37b according to the degree of lateral displacement, and then screwed again. That is, as shown in FIG. 6C, when the paper center position P1 is laterally shifted L1 with respect to the image center position G1, the attachment position of the front cover 37 with respect to the cassette container 36 is indicated by the arrow v from the position indicated by the dotted line. The lateral shift is adjusted by shifting L1 in the direction.
[0028]
When such an adjustment operation is completed, the paper cassette apparatus 10 is pushed into the apparatus body 1 and fixed again. During this mounting operation, the roller 46 is placed on the front side 44b of the fixed guide 44 as shown in FIG. After rolling and pressing down gradually against the tension spring 41, the apparatus main body 1 is fitted together with the front cover 37 that fits into the hook portion 44a and contacts the housing 1a as shown in FIG. The built-in paper cassette apparatus 10 is mounted and fixed to the apparatus main body. During this time, until the roller 46 is fitted into the hook portion 44a, the pickup roller 13 is separated from the paper P by the biasing force of the α spring 50, and at the same time the roller 46 is fitted into the hook portion 44a, the pickup by the contact / separation lever 47 is performed. The pickup roller 13 is brought into contact with the sheet P by the rotation of the up / down lever 53 in the arrow w direction, and the sheet P can be taken out.
[0029]
With this configuration, in the paper feed cassette apparatus 10 in which the positioning lever 42 is attached to the front cover 37 for fixing the paper feed cassette apparatus 10 to the apparatus main body 1, the paper P is laterally shifted from the image forming position. If this occurs, it can be easily adjusted simply by sliding the front cover 37 with a part of the sheet cassette apparatus 10 exposed from the apparatus main body 1, and the operability during adjustment can be improved.
[0030]
Moreover, when the paper cassette apparatus 10 is pulled out to adjust the lateral displacement, the pickup up / down lever 53 is lifted up by the contact / separation lever 47 at the same time as the drawing starts, and the pickup roller 13 is separated from the paper P. When the cassette apparatus 10 is fixed to the apparatus main body 1, the pickup roller 13 is again brought into contact with the paper P. There is no possibility of interference with the paper P, and the paper is not soiled by the skew caused by the pickup roller 13, thereby improving the reliability of the apparatus.
[0031]
Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. In the second embodiment, the contact / separation lever 47 in the first embodiment is also used as the roller 46, and the other parts are the same as those in the first embodiment. Reference numerals are assigned and explanations thereof are omitted.
[0032]
That is, a wide dual-purpose roller 57 that fits the hook portion 44 a of the fixed guide 44 and rotates the pickup vertical lever 56 is attached to the tip of the positioning lever 42. The pickup vertical lever 56 is attached to the dual-purpose roller 57. An inclined portion 56a is formed on the rolling contact side to facilitate rolling contact.
[0033]
When the sheet cassette device 10 is pulled out from the apparatus main body 1 to adjust the lateral displacement, the dual-purpose roller 57 is picked up at the same time as it is detached from the hook portion 44a against the upward biasing force of the positioning lever 42 by the tension spring 41. Separated from the upper and lower levers 56. As a result, the urging arm 51 is rotated in the direction of the arrow s by the urging force of the α spring 50, and the link lever 52 is rotated in the direction of the arrow u in the same manner as in the first embodiment, thereby moving the pickup roller 13 in FIG. As shown in FIG.
[0034]
Therefore, when the paper feeding cassette device 10 is pulled out, the paper P is smoothly pulled out without causing the paper P to be soiled or skewed by sliding contact with the pickup roller 13. Then, after adjusting the lateral displacement in the same manner as in the first embodiment, when the paper feeding cassette device 10 is mounted again on the apparatus main body 1, the dual-purpose roller 57 is brought into rolling contact with the front side 44 b of the fixed guide 44 and is brought into contact with the tension spring 41. 9 and 10, the apparatus main body 1 is squeezed together with the front cover 37 that fits into the hook portion 44 a and contacts the housing 1 a as shown in FIGS. 9 and 10. Is mounted and fixed to the apparatus main body 1 and simultaneously the pickup up / down lever 53 is rotated in the direction of the arrow w so that the pickup roller 13 is brought into contact with the paper P against the urging force of the α spring 50 and the paper P can be taken out. To do.
[0035]
With this configuration, as in the first embodiment, the operability during adjustment can be improved, and the paper can be damaged due to the skew caused by the sliding contact with the pickup roller 13 when the paper cassette apparatus 10 is pulled out. The reliability of the apparatus is improved, and the dual roller 57 is engaged with the fixed guide 44 and the pickup up / down lever 53 is rotated, so that the pickup up / down lever 53 is rotated. There is no need for a lever, and the cost can be reduced by reducing the number of parts.
[0036]
It should be noted that the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and can be changed without departing from the spirit thereof. For example, the structure of the apparatus main body is arbitrary, and a plurality of sheet cassette apparatuses are provided. It may be a thing. The hook portion of the fixed guide is preferably vertical so that the pickup roller is separated from the paper at the same time as the paper cassette unit is pulled out. Can be removed smoothly and the paper cassette apparatus can be easily pulled out. Furthermore, the adjustment amount or adjustment direction of the lateral deviation is also arbitrary.
[0037]
【The invention's effect】
As described above, according to the present invention, the lateral shift adjustment can be performed with a part of the front side exposed from the apparatus main body without completely pulling out the paper cassette apparatus from the apparatus main body. Can be improved. Also, during the insertion / removal operation of the paper cassette device, the take-out means can be separated from the paper by simply pulling out the paper cassette device from the main body, so that when the paper cassette device is started to be pulled out or the paper cassette device is installed The paper is skewed at the end of the operation, and the paper itself is not soiled, improving the reliability of the apparatus.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram showing an apparatus main body according to a first embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a schematic explanatory view showing a state in which the paper feed cassette apparatus according to the first embodiment of the present invention is mounted on the apparatus main body.
FIG. 3 is a partial top view showing a connection state between the cassette container and the front cover according to the first embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 4 is a schematic perspective view of the pickup roller and the fixed guide as viewed from below when the paper cassette apparatus according to the first embodiment of the present invention is pulled out.
FIG. 5 is a schematic perspective view of a pickup roller and a fixed guide as viewed from below when the sheet cassette apparatus according to the first embodiment of the present invention is mounted on the apparatus main body.
6A and 6B are schematic explanatory views showing a lateral deviation adjustment operation according to the first embodiment of the present invention, in which FIG. 6A is a schematic explanatory view showing a fixing state of the paper feed cassette device to the apparatus main body before the lateral deviation adjustment, and FIG. Schematic explanatory diagram showing when the paper cassette apparatus starts to be pulled out, (C) schematic schematic diagram showing the adjustment of the front cover, and (D) schematic diagram showing when the paper cassette apparatus starts to be mounted on the apparatus main body. Explanatory drawing (E) is a schematic explanatory drawing which shows the fixed state to the apparatus main body of the paper feeding cassette apparatus after the side shift adjustment completion.
FIG. 7 is a schematic explanatory diagram illustrating a state in which a sheet feeding cassette apparatus according to a second embodiment of the present invention is mounted on the apparatus main body.
FIG. 8 is a schematic perspective view of a pickup roller and a fixed guide as viewed from below when the paper cassette apparatus according to the second embodiment of the present invention is pulled out.
FIG. 9 is a schematic perspective view of a pickup roller and a fixed guide as viewed from below when the sheet cassette apparatus according to the second embodiment of the present invention is mounted on the apparatus main body.
10 is a side view of a state in which the dual-purpose roller according to the second embodiment of the present invention is fitted in the hook portion of the fixed guide as viewed from the direction of arrow A in FIG.
[Explanation of symbols]
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Main body 10 ... Paper feed cassette apparatus 13 ... Pick-up roller 36 ... Cassette container 37 ... Front cover 37b ... Long hole 38 ... Adjustment screw 41 ... Tension spring 42 ... Positioning lever 44 ... Fixed guide 44a ... Hook part 46 ... Roller 47 ... contact / separation lever
50 ... α spring 51 ... biasing arm 52 ... link lever 53 ... pickup up / down lever 56 ... pickup up / down lever 57 ... combined roller

Claims (2)

A paper storage means for storing paper detachably attached from the front side of the apparatus main body so that the paper to be supplied into the apparatus main body can be taken out in a direction perpendicular to the attachment / detachment direction; An outer cover that is slidably mounted along the attaching / detaching direction, and that contacts the apparatus main body when the paper storage means is attached to the apparatus main body, and one end that is rotatably attached to the outer cover. A positioning lever whose end is always urged in the push-up direction, and a fixed guide provided on the apparatus main body in contact with the attachment / detachment operation of the paper storage means attached to the front end of the positioning lever. When the paper storage means is attached to the apparatus main body, the paper storage means is engaged with the fixed guide to fix the paper storage means in the attachment position and away from the paper storage means. Is energized, the extraction means for removing the sheet from the sheet storing means, sheet feeding cassette apparatus characterized by comprising a positioning means comprising a contacting roller to said paper against said biasing means. A paper storage means for storing paper detachably attached from the front side of the apparatus main body so that the paper to be supplied into the apparatus main body can be taken out in a direction perpendicular to the attachment / detachment direction; The outer cover is slidably attached along the attachment / detachment direction and is urged in a direction away from the sheet storage means when the sheet storage means is attached to the apparatus main body . A take-out means that is supported by the apparatus main body and takes out the paper in a direction perpendicular to the attaching / detaching direction when the paper storage means is fixed to the apparatus main body, and is fixed to the apparatus main body, and the front side is formed in a tapered shape. A fixed guide in which the hook portion is formed substantially vertically, a positioning lever having one end pivotably attached to the exterior cover and the other end constantly biased in the push-up direction. The fixing lever is attached to the front end of the fixing guide in conjunction with the attachment / detachment operation of the paper storage means to / from the apparatus main body, and when the paper storage means is attached to the apparatus main body, The paper storage means is fixed to the mounting position by engaging with a hook portion of a fixed guide, and the take-out means includes positioning means comprising a roller that abuts against the paper against the biasing means. Characteristic paper feeder.

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