JP4046330B2 - Electronics - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to an electronic device that can discharge air inside a device housing to the outside and can take outside air into the device housing.
[0002]
[Prior art]
In an image forming apparatus configured as a copying machine, a printer, a facsimile, or a multifunction machine of these, or an electronic device such as a home appliance, a device that generates heat is provided in the device casing. And the outside air is introduced into the equipment casing to prevent the temperature inside the equipment casing from rising excessively. At that time, if an intake port and an exhaust port are provided on the back plate of the device housing, and outside air is introduced into the device housing from the air intake port and air is discharged from the exhaust port to the outside of the device housing, the electronic device If the rear surface is placed in close contact with the wall surface of the room, the wall surface will be in the way, and external air cannot be taken in efficiently from the air intake, and the air inside the device housing can be efficiently discharged from the air outlet. It cannot be discharged.
[0003]
Therefore, conventionally, an air intake duct and an air exhaust duct are provided inside the equipment casing, and an air inflow portion of the air intake duct is arranged at a portion other than the back surface of the equipment housing, and the equipment is passed from the air inflow section through the air intake duct by the operation of the fan. Outside air is introduced into the housing. Similarly, an exhaust port of the exhaust duct is disposed in a portion other than the back surface of the device casing, and the air in the device casing is discharged to the outside through the exhaust duct by the operation of the fan (for example, Patent Document 1). reference). In this way, if an intake duct and an exhaust duct dedicated to supply and exhaust are provided inside the equipment casing, external air can be efficiently introduced into the equipment casing and the air inside the equipment casing can be discharged to the outside. be able to.
[0004]
However, if the intake duct and the exhaust duct are provided inside the equipment casing as described above, the cost of the electronic equipment increases, and the weight increases.
[0005]
In view of this, there has been proposed an electronic device in which a groove is formed in the back plate of the device casing, and an intake port and an exhaust port that open in the groove are formed in the back plate of the device case (see Patent Document 2). According to this configuration, by arranging the electronic device in a state where the back surface of the device housing is in close contact with the indoor wall surface, an air flow path can be formed by the wall surface and the groove, There is no need to provide an exhaust duct, and the cost of the electronic device can be reduced. However, the electronic device according to this proposal is configured such that the exhaust port is formed in the back plate of the device housing and the air in the device housing is discharged from the exhaust port to the outside. The air exhausted from the exhaust port is directly blown onto the wall surface of the room located in close contact with the wall, and the wall surface becomes dirty over time.
[0006]
[Patent Document 1]
JP-A-11-287544 (page 4, FIG. 3)
[0007]
[Patent Document 2]
Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 6-188581 (page 3, FIG. 1)
[0008]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
The objective of this invention is providing the electronic device which can remove the said conventional fault.
[0009]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
In order to achieve the above object, the present invention extends from an air inflow portion located at a portion other than the back surface of the device housing to an air inlet formed in the back plate of the device housing, and is formed by an outer surface of the back plate. An air intake groove formed in the compartment, and an exhaust passage extending from the air outflow portion in the device housing to an exhaust port disposed in a portion other than the back surface of the device housing. At least a part of the passage is defined by the back plate, the intake groove and the exhaust passage cross through the back plate, and the air flow of the back plate that defines the exhaust passage portion that crosses the intake groove The upstream portion in the direction is gradually inclined toward the inside of the equipment housing along the air flow direction, and the downstream portion in the air flow direction of the back plate that defines the exhaust passage portion that crosses the intake groove Incline gradually toward the outside of the equipment housing along the air flow direction We propose an electronic apparatus characterized that.
[0016]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Embodiments of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the drawings.
[0017]
FIG. 1 is a schematic cross-sectional view of an image forming apparatus including a printer, which is an example of an electronic device, when viewed from the front side. A drum-shaped photoconductor 2 is disposed in the device casing 1 of the image forming apparatus shown here, and the photoconductor 2 is driven to rotate in the direction of arrow A. At this time, the charging device 3 charges the photoconductor 2 to a predetermined polarity. In the illustrated example, a charging device including a corona discharger having the charge wire 4 is used. However, other appropriate charging devices such as a charging roller may be used. The charging surface of the photosensitive member 2 is irradiated with the writing light L emitted from the exposure device 5 to form an electrostatic latent image on the photosensitive member 2. The electrostatic latent image is visualized as a toner image by toner when passing through the developing device 6.
[0018]
Further, an endless transfer belt 7 that is rotationally driven in the direction of arrow B is disposed opposite to the photoreceptor 2, and a paper feeding device 8 is disposed below the transfer belt 7. The paper feeding device 8 has a paper feeding cassette 9 containing the recording paper P and a paper feeding roller 10, and the uppermost recording paper P is fed in the direction of arrow C by the rotation of the paper feeding roller 10. The fed recording paper is fed between the photosensitive member 2 and the transfer belt 7, and at this time, the transfer device 11 disposed opposite to the photosensitive member 2 through the transfer belt 7 acts on the photosensitive member 2. The toner image is transferred onto the recording paper P.
[0019]
The recording paper P to which the toner image has been transferred leaves the transfer belt 7 and then passes between the heating roller 13 and the pressure roller 14 of the fixing device 12. At this time, the toner image on the recording paper P is heated and pressurized. It is fixed on the recording paper by the action. The heating roller 13 is heated by a heater (not shown) provided therein, and applies the heat to the toner image. The recording paper that has passed through the fixing device 12 is discharged onto the paper discharge unit 15 as indicated by an arrow D. On the other hand, the toner adhering to the surface of the photoconductor after the toner image is transferred is removed by the cleaning device 16.
[0020]
In addition, a manual feed table 18 is supported on one side surface 22 of the device housing 1 so as to be rotatable and openable about its lower portion. The manual feed table 18 is rotated to the open position as shown by a two-dot chain line in FIG. 1, and a recording paper (not shown) placed thereon is fed by a paper feed roller 19, on the photosensitive member 2 on the recording paper. The toner image can be transferred and fixed by the fixing device 12, and the recording paper can be discharged onto the paper discharge unit 15. When the manual feed table 18 is not used, it can be stored at the position indicated by the solid line in FIG.
[0021]
FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the electronic apparatus comprising the image forming apparatus shown in FIG. 1 as viewed obliquely from the rear, and FIG. 3 is a plan view showing only the outline of the electronic apparatus. The surface indicated by reference numeral 20 in these drawings is the front surface of the device casing 1, and the opposite surface is the back surface 21. Further, as described above, the surface denoted by reference numeral 22 is one side surface, and the opposite surface is the other side surface 23. Further, the surface indicated by reference numeral 24 is the upper surface. As described above, the manual feed table 18 is disposed on one side surface 22 of the device housing 1, and the paper discharge unit 15 is formed by the upper surface 24. FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view seen from the front 20 side.
[0022]
As described above, in the image forming apparatus of this example, the manual feed table 18 that can be rotated and opened is disposed on one side surface 22 of the device housing 1, and the recording paper is discharged by the upper surface 24 of the device housing 1. Since it is configured to be discharged to the paper section 15, this image forming apparatus can be arranged as shown in FIG. That is, the image forming apparatus is arranged with the rear surface 21 of the device housing 1 in close contact with the indoor wall surface 25 and the other side surface 23 of the device housing 1 in close contact with the other wall surface 26. Thus, the image forming apparatus can be disposed in close contact with the wall surfaces 25 and 26 in the room such as an office, so that the installation area of the image forming apparatus can be kept substantially small.
[0023]
By the way, a device that generates heat is provided inside the device casing 1, and in particular, a large amount of heat is released from the fixing device 12. Therefore, it is necessary to discharge the air in the device housing 1 to the outside and prevent the temperature in the device housing 1 from rising excessively. In addition, an apparatus that is preferably blown with fresh fresh air is also arranged inside the device housing 1. For example, the charging device 3 shown in FIG. 1 generates a discharge product during its operation, and if the product adheres to the charge wire 4, the charging function for the photoreceptor 2 is lowered. It is necessary to configure so that the discharge product is less likely to adhere to the charge wire 4 by blowing air flowing in from the outside of the device casing. Therefore, the image forming apparatus of this example is configured as follows.
[0024]
First, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, an intake port 28 is formed in a back plate 27 constituting the back surface 21 of the device housing 1, and a louver 29 is provided in the intake port 28 in the illustrated example. As shown in FIG. 2, the back plate 27 is formed with an intake groove 30 that is recessed toward the inside of the device housing 1. The intake groove 30 extends from a portion other than the back surface 21 of the device housing 1, that is, an air inflow portion 31 located on one side surface 22 in the illustrated example, to an intake port 28 formed in the back plate 27 of the device housing 1. ing. The intake groove 30 is defined by the outer surface of the back plate 27. Further, as shown in FIG. 1, an intake fan 32 is provided in the device casing 1 at a position facing the intake port 28.
[0025]
As described above, the image forming apparatus is disposed with its rear surface 21 in close contact with the wall surface 25 shown in FIG. For this reason, an air flow path having a substantially closed cross section is defined by the wall surface 25 and the intake groove 30 shown in FIG. Therefore, when the intake fan 32 is operated, as shown by an arrow E in FIG. 2, external air flows into the intake groove 30 from the air inflow portion 31, and then this air passes through the intake groove 30 and then the intake port. 28 is introduced into the inside of the device casing 1. For this reason, the problem that external fresh air flows from the back side to the front side along the longitudinal direction of the charging device 3 and discharge products adhere to the charge wire 4 is suppressed.
[0026]
In addition, since air taken in from the air inflow portion 31 disposed in a portion other than the back surface 21 of the device housing 1 flows through the intake groove 30 and flows into the device housing 1 from the air inlet 28, Although the opening 28 is formed in the back plate 27, it is possible to prevent a problem that the efficiency of air flowing in from the intake port 28 is reduced due to the wall surface 25 positioned in close contact with the back plate 27.
[0027]
In addition, an independent intake duct is not provided inside the device casing to introduce external air, but external air is taken in through the intake groove 30 defined by the outer surface of the back plate 27. The cost of the image forming apparatus can be reduced compared to the case where the image forming apparatus is provided.
[0028]
On the other hand, FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing a state in which a back plate 27 constituting the back surface 21 of the device housing 1 and a side plate 33 constituting one side surface 22 of the device housing 1 are separated and viewed from the outside. FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing a state in which the back plate 27 is viewed from the inside of the device housing 1. As shown in FIG. 2 and FIG. 2, a wall plate 34 rising substantially perpendicular to the surface is integrally fixed to the inner surface of the back plate 27, that is, the inner surface thereof. A cover 35 made of, for example, a resin sheet or a resin plate is fixed to the wall plate 34, and an exhaust path 36 is defined by the wall plate 34, the cover 35, and a portion of the back plate 27 located inside the wall plate 34. Has been. In this example, it is assumed that the cover 35 is made of a transparent material in order to clarify the configuration inside the cover 35.
[0029]
As shown in FIG. 1, the cover 35 is not provided in a portion of the exhaust path 36 located above the fixing device 12, and this portion is shown in FIG. An air outflow portion 37 located inside the device housing 1 is formed by the wall plate portion and the inner side back plate portion 27A. The exhaust passage portion other than the air outflow portion 37 has a closed cross-sectional shape by wall plate portions 34B and 34C, a back plate portion 27B inside thereof, and a cover 35 fixed to the wall plate portions 34B and 34C. Is formed. Further, an exhaust port 39 formed in the side plate 33 coincides with the opening 38 on the opposite side of the air inflow portion 37 of the exhaust passage 36 as shown in FIGS. In this example, the exhaust port 39 is also provided with a louver.
[0030]
In addition, an ozone filter 40 is detachably attached to an appropriate position of the exhaust path 36 described above, in the illustrated example, in the vicinity of the exhaust port 39. A filter holding plate 41 is bridged and fixed to both wall plate portions 34B and 34C in the vicinity of the exhaust port 39, and a holding portion that holds the ozone filter 40 by the both wall plate portions 34B and 34C and the filter holding plate 41. Is configured. In this way, a holding portion that holds the filter 40 is provided in the exhaust passage 36.
[0031]
Further, as shown in FIG. 1, an exhaust fan 42 is disposed inside the device casing 1 at a position facing the air outflow portion 37 of the exhaust path 36.
[0032]
As described above, the image forming apparatus of the present example has an air outlet disposed on a portion other than the back surface 21 of the device housing 1 from the air outflow portion 37 in the device housing 1, that is, on the one side surface 22 in the illustrated example. 39 has an exhaust passage 36 extending through the device housing 1.
[0033]
When the exhaust fan 42 is actuated, the air in the device housing 1 flows into the air outflow portion 37 of the exhaust path 36 and flows through the exhaust path 36 as indicated by the arrow F in FIGS. After passing through, it is discharged out of the equipment casing through the exhaust port 39. For this reason, it can prevent that the temperature in the apparatus housing | casing 1 rises too much, Furthermore, after removing the ozone contained in the air with the ozone filter 40, the air can be discharged | emitted outside. At that time, in the illustrated example, since the air outflow portion 37 is provided in the vicinity of the fixing device 12, the heat released from the fixing device 12 can be efficiently discharged out of the apparatus housing. Further, since the exhaust port 39 of the exhaust path 36 is disposed on a portion other than the back surface 21 of the device housing 1, that is, on the one side surface 22 in the illustrated example, as shown in FIG. Although it is located in close contact with the wall 25, the air in the device housing can be efficiently discharged outside without being obstructed by the wall surface 25.
[0034]
Further, as described above, in the image forming apparatus of this example, the air outflow portion 37 of the exhaust passage 36 is partitioned by the back plate 27 of the device housing 1 and the wall plate 34 standing on the back plate 27. An exhaust passage portion other than the air outflow portion 37 is defined by a back plate 27, a wall plate 34 standing on the back plate 27, and a cover 35 fixed to the wall plate 34. . As described above, since a part of the exhaust path 36 is partitioned by the back plate 27, the cost of the image forming apparatus can be effectively reduced as compared with the case where a dedicated exhaust duct is provided. It is also possible to form the exhaust path 36 only by the back plate 27 of the device housing 1, and in this way, the cost of the image forming apparatus can be further reduced. In this way, by forming at least a part of the exhaust path 36 by the back plate 27, the cost of the image forming apparatus can be reduced.
[0035]
As shown in FIG. 2, in the image forming apparatus of this example, the exhaust port 39 of the exhaust path 36 and the air inflow portion 31 of the intake groove 30 are the same side of the device housing 1, that is, one side surface 22. However, the exhaust port 39 is located above the air inflow portion 31. For this reason, the high temperature air exhausted from the exhaust port 39 flows into the air inflow portion 31, and it is possible to prevent the problem that this is taken into the interior of the device housing 1. If the exhaust port 39 is located below the air inflow portion 31, the air discharged from the exhaust port 39 flows into the air inflow portion 31 while rising due to the heat, and the device casing 1. There is a risk of being returned to the inside. If it becomes like this, the ventilation effect inside the apparatus housing | casing 1 will reduce, and the temperature rising prevention effect inside the apparatus housing | casing 1 will be impaired. In the image forming apparatus of this example, such a problem can be prevented from occurring.
[0036]
By the way, in the image forming apparatus of this example, the air inflow portion 31 and the exhaust port 39 are both opened on the one side surface 22 of the device casing 1 for the following reason.
[0037]
A manual feed table 18 supported to be openable and closable is provided on one side 22 of the device housing 1. Therefore, the image forming apparatus cannot be arranged with the one side surface 22 in close contact with a wall surface of an office or the like. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 3, the image forming apparatus can be installed with the other side surface 23 opposite to the one side surface 22 being in close contact with the wall surface 26. At that time, if the air inflow portion 31 and the exhaust port 39 are opened to the other side surface 23 side of the device housing 1, the outside wall is obstructed by the wall surface 26 and external air can be efficiently taken in from the air inflow portion 31. In addition, the air cannot be efficiently discharged from the exhaust port 39 to the outside. In addition, the drawback of fouling the wall surface 26 with exhaust is inevitable. Therefore, in the image forming apparatus of this example, the air inflow portion 31 and the exhaust port 39 are arranged on one side surface 22 of the device casing 1.
[0038]
In addition, as described above, the exhaust port 39 is located above the air inflow portion 31, and as can be seen from FIG. 1, the intake port 28 is located on one side 22 of the device housing 1 from the air outflow portion 37. Occupies a close position.
[0039]
In order to satisfy such an arrangement state, in the image forming apparatus of this example, as clearly shown in FIG. 2 and FIG. Crossing through part 27C. With this configuration, the air inflow portion 31 of the intake groove 30 and the exhaust port 39 of the exhaust path 36 are opened on the same surface of the device housing 1, that is, one side surface 22 in the illustrated example, and the exhaust port 39 is inflow of air. It is possible to dispose them above the portion 31. The degree of freedom of arrangement of each part of the image forming apparatus can be increased.
[0040]
Further, when the intake groove 30 and the exhaust path 36 are crossed as described above, the back plate portion 27C that defines the intake groove 30 is inside the device casing 1 at the cross portion X as shown in FIG. Since it protrudes to the side, the cross-sectional area of the exhaust path 36 in this portion is reduced, and there is a risk that air will not easily flow therethrough.
[0041]
Therefore, in the image forming apparatus of this example, when the width of the exhaust passage 36 in the direction orthogonal to the air flow direction is the exhaust passage width, as shown in FIG. 5, the exhaust passage width W1 in the air outflow portion 37 is shown. Rather, the exhaust passage width W2 of the exhaust passage portion that intersects the intake groove 30 is set to be larger. With this configuration, it is possible to prevent the cross-sectional area of the exhaust passage 36 in the cross portion X from being reduced, and to prevent a problem that air hardly flows in this portion, and the air can smoothly flow through the air outflow portion 36.
[0042]
Further, as shown in FIG. 6, the upstream portion 27 </ b> D in the air flow direction of the back plate 27 that defines the portion of the exhaust passage 36 that intersects with the intake groove 30 gradually moves along the air flow direction. The downstream side portion 27E in the air flow direction of the back plate 27 that defines the portion of the exhaust passage 36 that inclines toward the inner side I and crosses the intake groove 30 gradually along the air flow direction. It inclines toward the outer side O. Thereby, it is possible to suppress the generation of vortex in the air flowing in the vicinity of the exhaust passage portion crossing the intake groove 30 and the air, and to smoothly flow the air, and to prevent a problem that the exhaust efficiency is lowered.
[0043]
Further, as described above, in the image forming apparatus of this example, since the holding unit that holds the filter is configured by the member that defines the exhaust path 36, a dedicated member for holding the filter 40 is provided in the device housing. There is no need to provide the inside of the body 1, the configuration of the image forming apparatus can be simplified, and the cost can be reduced.
[0044]
As described above, an image forming apparatus including a printer is shown as an example of an electronic device, and an example in which each configuration according to the present invention is adopted is shown. However, the present invention is not limited to an image forming apparatus other than a printer, It can be widely applied to electronic devices.
[0045]
【The invention's effect】
ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, while raising the ventilation efficiency of an apparatus housing | casing, the raise of the cost of an electronic device can be suppressed effectively.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a schematic cross-sectional view of an image forming apparatus which is an example of an electronic apparatus.
FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the image forming apparatus shown in FIG.
FIG. 3 is a plan view illustrating an installation state of the image forming apparatus.
FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing a back plate, a side plate, and an ozone filter separately of the device housing.
FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing the back plate from the inside of the device housing with the ozone filter removed.
6 is a cross-sectional view taken along line VI-VI in FIG.
[Explanation of symbols]
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Equipment housing | casing 21 Back surface 27 Back surface board 27D Upstream part 27E Downstream part 28 Intake port 30 Intake groove 31 Air inflow part 36 Exhaust path 37 Air outflow part 39 Exhaust port 40 Filter

Claims (1)

  An air inlet groove located in a portion other than the back surface of the device housing, extending to an air inlet formed in the back plate of the device housing, and defined by an outer surface of the back plate; An exhaust passage extending from the air outflow portion of the device casing to a portion other than the back surface of the device housing, and an exhaust passage extending through the device housing, wherein at least a part of the exhaust passage is partitioned by the back plate. The intake groove and the exhaust passage are crossed via the back plate, and the upstream side portion of the back plate that defines the exhaust passage portion that crosses the intake groove is in the air flow direction. Along the air flow direction, the downstream side portion of the back plate that inclines toward the inside of the device housing and divides the exhaust passage portion that crosses the intake groove gradually moves along the air flow direction. An electronic device characterized by being inclined toward the outside of the body

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